2021 :: we won't be sad to see you go

a blue-toned photo from each month of 2021 and a selfie that seems to fit the messy hair and the hoodie and sweatpants that were so prevalent this year. 

a selection of 2021's creative output. it came in fits and starts. weaving, cooking, stitching, quilting, lino prints, baking, gardening and dyeing. need more creativity in 2022.

and no year would be complete without the cats and the kittens. we said goodbye to our sweet freya (bottom right) when she got hit by a car. but everyone else is just fine. 

omicron is raging, and betty white died on the last day of 2021, sealing its spot on the worst year ever lists, but let's still hope that 2022 will be better. happy new year, one and all. 

lazy first days of january

this is just how it looks outside at the moment, i didn't do any processing to this photo. everything has that cold, nordic blue cast to it. the light should be returning, but i'm not sure i've really noticed it yet. on new year's eve, it actually snowed and accumulated on the ground, though it started out as slush. as you can see, it's mostly gone now, but it was nice to have the brightness it brought.

the new year seems ok so far. i haven't gotten dressed yet, there's no need. the stores are all closed (thanks, mette) and we don't need anything anyway. i've been editing an audio present that was technically for christmas and i finally drove down the road to get a proper signal and uploaded it. after i have a chance to give to the recipient, i'll share it here, as i've uploaded it and made into a little video version using headliner. 

husband is taking advantage of the click & collect that the diy stores are offering and going to get the supplies he needs for our never-ending building project. i baked a banana cake and it turned out strangely crumbly. it doesn't taste dry, but it kind of looks it. i'm always at a loss as to what to learn from such things.

we found out that our amazon prime video, which we have through amazon.uk, no longer works (thanks, brexit). i'm binge-watching the harry potter films, which luckily, i bought as a set on apple tv, so i'm not dependent upon amazon. i'd actually never seen them before, except in bits and pieces on a plane or in a hotel somewhere. i've always been a reader of harry potter, not a viewer of it. it's kind of amazing watching those kids grow up on screen. and i have the same obsessive desire to see the next one that i always have reading the books. it's such a shame that j.k. rowling has become such a terrible human. 

i'm lazily pondering finishing that quilt top that i made last january - it's a rainbow pinwheel and it would be nice to have a new blanket to snuggle under while we're watching t.v. i've got candles going all over the house and space heaters, but it's cold these days and i am currently regretting that husband disconnected our furnace last summer in the roof project. luckily up 'til now, it's been a mild winter, but it's a bit chilly these days. he didn't reconnect it because he's moving it to another building (which he's almost done building, right beside the house). but almost done isn't done and it's pretty cold around here. and it doesn't help that the fuses blow when i try to run two space heaters and the washing machine at the same time. so it's a good thing i'm just hanging around in the same pajamas these days and not generating a whole lot of laundry.

i'm doing some online research into archaeoacoustics - and ended up reading a couple of weird short stories featuring the notion of being able to play pottery like a record, and hear the sounds "recorded" when it was made. that's a really interesting notion, but one of the stories, a bit of science fiction called buzz from 1981, was super bizarre. the other story, called time shards, was more thought-provoking. the research is for our continuing novel project, which is progressing very nicely. we had a really great session writing together one day last week and we'll definitely be doing that again. it was pretty amazing what we each came up with in 15 minutes. 

these quiet, slightly lazy days feel like the exact right way to ease into the new year. 

i've read a bunch of end-of-the-year wrap ups on various sites and honestly, i just can't face dwelling on 2020 anymore, can you? 2021 is here and while it doesn't feel all that different, it just has to be different, doesn't it? and easing our way into it, with candles and a few days in pajamas, making some nice food with whatever's leftover in the fridge, and maybe going for a walk and catching another installment of harry potter, is exactly the right way to begin. 

* * *

the voyeuristic pleasure of tik tok homes

speaking of harry potter, did you know about snapewives?

put on your tinfoil hat for this one about q.

remember that ghost ship, the alta, that washed up on the shores of ireland last year? i found myself thinking about it. they apparently never did find the owners.

noting 2018

hello 2018! i've got an old-fashioned calendar diary to use for the first time in years. it's by arctic paper and is appropriately called illuminate. it was developed together with students from the design school in oslo as a meditation on the differences in light throughout the year and it's beautiful. i can't wait to use it! i'm going to note something from my day every day in 2018. small bits and pieces, perhaps occasionally profound, but mostly about remembering the little things that happen along the way. there's something wonderful about a new, beautiful notebook. so much promise contained within its beautiful, blank pages. i'm looking forward to filling it.

as you know, i'm not much one for resolutions, but along with the intention to write a little something every day in my gorgeous notebook, i thought i'd note a few more intentions. in 2018, i want to be more thoughtful, kinder and more joyful. i want to be less cynical and less critical and more open, curious and accepting. i want to eat healthier, get more exercise and drink less. i want to be more in touch with my body and dwell within it, instead of always being in my head. i want to have less stuff and be more deliberate in the things i do acquire - embracing handmade, unique things. i want experiences, not stuff. hmm, these are sounding an awful lot like resolutions...

* * *

did you listen to the polybius conspiracy podcast? did you know it was fiction? i'll admit i didn't, tho' i did find it super weird. and i found myself thinking it was good that radiotopia didn't choose it as a new podcast for their network, because it was in no way even close to ear hustle.

* * *

loved this obituary for 2017.

thank you mcsweeney's

* * *

bon appetit takes on hygge.
laughter ensues.

sweet '16! 2016"

we didn't spend thousands (of kroner) on fireworks last evening, thinking we'd watch everyone else's and still have our money. but it was weirdly foggy, so we found some sparklers and set off chinese wish lanterns instead. it was much more wonderful that way. and we didn't miss the fireworks at all. after all, the clear, still air was filled with the sound of them. it was rather weirdly disorienting, actually. all that sound and none of the visuals.

i have so many hopes for 2016: to be healthier - in body especially, but also in mind and spirit and relationships. to creative challenges at work - i got an awesome idea yesterday and can't wait to explore it. for travel. for new experiences. for spending time with friends and family. for remembering to live a less consuming, more sustainable life. for finishing that new kitchen. for getting rid of this infernal cold (i got out the juicer and worked on that one today).

a new year always feels like a blank slate. fresh and new and full of possibilities.

happy new year, one and all! it's going to be a sweet '16. 2016.

it's all about the food

new year's eve.
it's all about the food.
purple potato with homemade aïoli,
garlic olive with cheddar crust
and cauliflower agnolotti on a bed of mojo.
there's even more, but i didn't photograph all of it.
yet.

happy new year, one and all!

* * *

i did it! i finished another 365 photo project.

it's a way of life now, so i'll be continuing in 2014.

* * *

war toys is a powerful photo project where photographer brian mccarty

duplicates children's drawings using toys and real-life settings in palestine.

* * *

a touching and wonderful mother-daughter photo series.

* * *

hundred-year-old negatives discovered in antarctica.

and developed.

* * *

fleet of ships made from currency

symbolize the flow of world commerce.

* * *

what if TED is just a pseudo-intellectual version of american idol?

hello twenty twelve!

a brand new year, fresh, pristine, just like a brand new egg.  2012, i have a lot of plans for you. 

i know it's just another day on a calendar, but it does feel like a fresh start.

let's use it wisely, shall we?

we're off to an icy start

ice. -10°C. cold, crisp air. it seems cleansing. fresh. and along with clear skies in which the full moon and eclipse were visible last evening, it was the perfect start to 2010. and to kick off my blog camp 365 project, i took 140 pictures today. pretty good start, i say. happy 2010 to all of you!!

random thoughts on new year's eve

i woke up this morning with random thoughts swirling in my head and you know what that means...it means i feel compelled to share them with all of you....

~  whose eyes are these anyway and when did they start needing reading glasses?

~  the child is now so horse-crazy she is referring to her room as her stall and answering questions with a snort and a paw of her leg.

~  there seems to have arisen some kind of insane misunderstanding that in order to join the blog camp 365 flickr group, one must submit one's underwear to inspection. i would like to say that although i have no idea how this notion came about, i can assure you all, with 100% certainty, that i want nothing whatsoever to do with your underwear. it's really all about taking pictures. if you choose to take pictures of your underwear, that's your business, of course, but please keep them tasteful, this is a nice group.

~  i have a vague sense of panic knowing that the grocery stores are going to close in 15 minutes, even tho' i am quite sure that i don't need a thing.

~  how can my husband have a child that's turning 18 today? and does it make me old too, tho' i had nothing to do with it?

~ sabin and i met the lovely and talented brigitte bouquet (of wobbly plate fame) in copenhagen the other day and had such a great time talking to her and her husband. she gave me a pretty little red wobbly tapas plate and sabin spent yesterday afternoon arranging small tapas plates on it. she even made a menu and we had to order whether we wanted small, medium or large. and no matter the size the plates came with carefully arranged carrot, blueberries, cheese, tomato, cucumber, cottage cheese and chorizo. it was a great present, thank you BB!!

~  i wonder if i should do my monthly blog print after i post this, or will i feel compelled to write something else later today?

~ why am i in rereading mode at the moment? i just keep reading stuff i've already read (most recently mistress of spices). does this happen to you?

~  how come other people can make their "blogged" thing a link on flickr and i can't? (hmm, maybe i should install that plug-in, eh spud?)

~ this photography takes my breath away.

and with that, i believe it's my last posting of 2010 (tho' you never know). i wish you all a very good new year's eve full of laughter and good conversation and just a wee bit of champagne. looking forward to seeing you all in 2010. and do join in with our 365 project on flickr. there's something really comforting to me to imagine a whole group of us, all over the world, taking pictures every day and sharing them with one another.

hello 2009

hello 2009. you've treated me pretty well so far. we slept in 'til almost noon, got up, made a leisurely cup of tea and watched a whole lot of television, some of it good (dalziel and pascoe on the channel formerly known as BBC prime) and some of it bad (a completely crappy movie called sky high on channel 5). we went for a walk.  my headache seems to have subsided at last, tho' the cough is hanging on. since 2009 seems to be going ok so far, although i am not much for resolutions, i hereby resolve the following:

1. not to leave pans on the stove until what was in them becomes unrecognizable, no one remembers what it was and they begin to incubate a life form that threatens to take over our kitchen.
2. make sure husband is the one to deal with said pan when i break #1.
3. get rid of this stupid cough.
4. learn chinese so i can find out what's in the medicine my friend marianne gave me yesterday. whatever it is, it tastes really good and there are no disturbing pictures of tigers on the package, so i'm thinking it's ok for me to take another spoonful every couple of hours to try to fulfill #3.
5. let the tea steep long enough. life is too short to drink weak tea.

in sleeping in this morning, i had one of those really vivid dreams. unlike most of my dreams, it did not take place in a mall. i dreamed that i undecorated the christmas tree and put away all of the ornaments. it was such a real dream that i was actually quite shocked to find the tree still standing there in all its decorated glory when i got up. 

it does seem a shame not to leave it up a few more days, but it's clearly weighing heavily on me, or i wouldn't have had the dream. i do love that nordic sun symbol husband made for the top of it. we'll have to save that one for next year too. it's been an excellent tree.

here's wishing you all a lazy, leisurely new year's day.

happy new year!

it's an hour into the new year, central european time. and in denmark, they celebrate with fireworks:

tripping headlong into 2009

me and my headache are still together. it seems we're inseparable. i've given it countless ibuprofen--including the good liquidy-inside green advil kind and more excedrin, with the high grade caffeine in them than i can count, but still it refuses to leave me. and i can't laugh at all, because every time i do, it causes a major coughing fit, which only exacerbates the headache. i'll be happy when this flu is over. poor husband has it now too and is at the stage where he leaves drifts of used kleenex in his wake. he has about another week to look forward to. he will definitely not be taking his usual new year's dip into bursesø (seen below in more summery times) this evening.

we would have stayed home this evening, but since we are responsible for both the main course (beef wellington, on which i cheated and used store-bought pate instead of making my own due to the headache) and the dessert (i made another of those gorgeous, delicious jule logs), we are dragging ourselves to the party. and it's not really fair to sabin, who is well and chipper and looking forward to spending the evening with her best friend andreas, so we're going. it is our best friends and they've been warned we're a bit under the weather, so i'm sure it will be a good evening despite our being sick.

watching sabin, i realized that i want to face 2009 more like she faces life. she doesn't wait for anything. she jumps headlong into everything she does. we gave her a number of different games for christmas and she just gets them out and sets them up and wants to play immediately. no waiting for the time to be right. she wants to play right away, right in the middle of everything. it's a wonderful way to look at the world, if you think about it. to just BE in it all the time, not looking forward or looking back, but looking at and enjoying right here and now. that's how i want to live in 2009. fully and truly in every moment that life brings. just as soon as i get rid of this headache...

happy new year everyone, i look forward to experiencing 2009 together with all of you!