CHERRY me TIMBERS

FALL HAS COME TO NEW TOWN!
As the change approaches, we prepare and commemorate the shifting seasons with special rites. By now we have used our magic, transforming pumpkins into pies, and lanterns. We have dressed in costume frolicking through the streets after dark! All Hallows Eve was an exciting night of mythological proportions, with characters from far and wide through space and time, converging for a night of celebration!

Now the excitement has passed. It culminated in a fiery display of Yellow, Orange and Red. The leaves change in a blaze of glory. Their vibrance represents the last deep breath of mother earth before a winter of hibernation. She exhales. The winds blow, rains pass through and temperatures drop some ten degrees. Some can smell winter approaching. Browns quickly take over each and every leaf, until it crisply comes off of the limb, falling careful and silently to worship the ground.

When we tread, the crunch of withered leaves is everywhere: the crack of DEATH! This will not do! We must take action! The community unites against The Forest\’s LEAVING. Everywhere you go, through suburbs far and wide, people emerge from their houses to join in the battle against leaf debris. Each man must pull his own rake. We must unite to clean up the wreckage of fall, so the we have the semblance of an orderly world and can continue on with cheer (Christmas is almost here!). People come to the streets wielding riding mowers, blowers and big black bags!


This season we committed more than just leaf sabotage. I walked out the door one morning to find Daddio up in the cherry tree! \”WHAT are you doing up there?\” I asked, laughing at the surprise. He was not simply delighting in the joy of the outdoors in a tree. We LEAF that to the deer hunters. He was cutting branches! I thought to myself, \”Okay, he\’s just pruning off unnecessary branches.\”

Next thing I know, Daddio is standing next to me eying up the trunk! Now I\’m thinking, \”He must still be out on that limb because THE TRUNK was a necessary branch last time I checked!\’\”

Here we are Summer of \’05 – Oh the joy!

If there had been time, I would have chained myself to the tree or made it my loft (hammock home) so that her safety would be ensured. I have served as surrogate momma since the BARKING began. I appointed myself Casey-Fur (rather than Caseifer, which is a delightful nickname combining my middle and first names) and nobly served in the best interest of the tree family. Unfortunately, it was much too late for such an elaborate defense. I was STUMPED. As a result, the life of my beloved cherry tree was TRUNCATED. The war that raged for years – kept off the backyard battlefield by a negotiating coffee table – ended with Ms. Cherry\’s sweet swaying surrender. That beautiful, peace-loving tree bowed down gracefully, back to the earth that bore her. And still she gives, by warming our home this winter. We had a good run. This salute goes out to Cherry and all her supporters! Remember the good times.

MERRY Halloween!

This year for Halloween I embraced my inner St. Nick! I put on my jolly with a pillow under my belt to celebrate the Eve of All Hallows. In my travels throughout the night I got some very important business taken care of, as it is my duty to know who has been bad and good (so be good for goodness sake)!


First I met my cousins, the R-well gals. We were on the phone playing a live game of Where\’s Waldo. They told me to wave so we could find each other. I threw my arm up with a big, \”Ho! Ho! Ho!\” and across the street two young ladies threw their heads back in delight! Found you!

We continued down the cobblestone lane, past all the fruits of the loom, and I came face to face with a double of myself: an identical Claus. The moment was surreal: this other Santa was standing next to a penguin and as soon as I met him head on, another penguin appeared next to me. The four of us stood there across from our carbon copies as if we were standing in a mirror box. We had just frozen time. A seam must have torn apart to sponsor this moment so I sewed myself back into the crowd.


At the Waterfront I happened upon Grandma, who got run over by a reindeer. She was a slightly befuddled in her nightclothes with curlers in her hair, but charming despite the hoof prints. I apologized for the herd\’s clumsiness. \”The team is undergoing a rigorous training regimen to ensure the safety of everyone this Christmas,\” I assured her. \”But since you are so delightful and understanding, I am forwarding your name straight to Nice!\”

At the bar I invited those who wanted a one on one meeting: \”Now who wants to sit on Santa\’s lap?!\” And of course, in came Clark Kent! He was looking quite sharp in his business attire, but perhaps the secret was out because his S emblazoned undershirt was showing. Kent was clearly concerned about Lex Luther. I told him I would see what my reckless reindeer could do about that. Kent\’s next wish was for Lois: some nice lingerie. \”Now that\’s the spirit of giving that I like to see! Bravo Clark! You\’ve made the nice list this year!\”


Just about everyone made the nice list this year because it was such a joyful All Saints Eve! I even spied Grandma breaking it down with Rudolph on the dance floor! Boy was it a heartening sight to see those two together! It made me so Happy about Christmas that all the way home I cheered, \”Merry Halloween!\”

Amethyst Orb

Perhaps you have seen this marble before. It\’s my favorite. (Well, it\’s the only one, but I wouldn\’t want to imply that I\’ve lost all the others.) This is a hand blown amethyst marble.

Bryce (Briz-NICE) is the brilliant one who generously guided me on rock-out(ing)s. He was kneeling over to inspect some stone while I stood over him, focused in the periphery, that is, slightly unfocused. I looked down at my feet and the color, the lines – it stuck out, that perfect little circle, it was probably trash, but then it wasn\’t. It was beautiful! It had been beating around bushes on the North Colorado plain for perhaps one hundred and fifty years! It was waiting to be found. It found me. I\’ve been in love ever since.

Bryce said that this is an artifact from colonial times – i.e. settlers in wagons! It was formed by heating an amethyst cord and cutting off a piece that is allowed to roll down a spiral shoot, thus finding its shape. I think that is lovely and poetic.

I just didn\’t realize how profound my favorite find was until a couple of days ago while ruminating over old scrapbooks. I was reading about my travel adventures on the Big Sur Coast in the summer of 2003. It was there, overlooking the ocean, by the light of a campfire that I hesitantly embarked upon my first vision quest. I was seasoned to go and found my guide: a spider (A spider? [Yeah, that\’s what I said!]) Spider was friendly enough and scuttled off expecting me to follow. Spider led to lands unknown. I hardly knew how real this journey would become, but I took the messages to heart and so of course they are in my presence. While traveling I picked up a stick and a marble.

In 2006, I found that marble. Now, I know. Wow.


Just an FYI: the altar that the marble rests on is my great grandmother Goldie\’s wedding ring. I feel so blessed to be the caretaker of such a remarkable family heirloom. It is so tiny that it only fits on my pinky finger. Engraved on the inside it reads: CEO and CLT Aug 14 1902.
(Charles Elwood Oliver and Caroline Laporte Taylor. When I found the marble I was living on Laporte Avenue. Great Grandma Goldie and I share the same birthday: September 7th. )

Ouroboros, tail devourer

GETTING ACQUAINTED WITH SNAKES
My first inspiring experience with snakes was in high school. I was volunteering for a park program called Scales & Tales, which traveled throughout the community introducing people to native reptiles & birds of prey – face to face. We went to summer camps and the state fair handling animals so that people could learn more about their message. We learned a lot in the process. It was wonder-full! By fostering positive encounters with the animals themselves, we helped people understand that humans can co-exist with wildlife in a healthy manner. This is a much-needed program, and I would pass on the knowledge gained here again and again over the years.

For instance, at the trail-head for Maryland Heights one day, I came across a man jumping up & down and dancing like a monkey all over! He was warding his wife and little girl away from something by the trail, while grabbing stones to hurdle towards it. Now I thought everyone knew that there is no creature in the woods of Maryland that warrants this type of reaction. These techniques may have sufficed in the time of the caveman, but nowadays we should know better! I walked right up to diffuse the situation and found a garter snake hastily climbing the hill. Just like that, crisis was diverted: man and his family went on their way in peace, and so did the snake – Shu!

Just look at the way his tongue flickers! How cute!?


Tonight, as you can see above, Ory has digested last week\’s dinner enough to come out and play. Actually, what we do is more like hanging out. At least, he hangs. Often, I stand. But that is only a technicality. While he hugs my neck, I take the opportunity to clean the tank a bit. We waltz into the bathroom to refill the water bowl. Upon return I stop…

I offer him the bowl.

Poised over the water, Ouroboros\’ nose takes a dive, and without breaking surface tension his jowls swallow like the waves do roll. He slurps down a delightful drink; it was such a precious moment! Now he is back at home under his log and we are playing a breakout game of peek-a-boo!