Mushroom Poem

I am kind of a sap for Mary Oliver poems, and I am fungofile, so I would like to share a poem by Mary Oliver called Mushrooms:

Mushrooms

Rain, and then
the cool pursed
lips of the wind
draw them
out of the ground --
red and yellow skulls
pummeling upward
through leaves,
through grasses,
through sand; astonishing
in their suddenness,
their quietude,
their wetness, they appear
on fall mornings, some
balancing in the earth
on one hoof
packed with poison,
others billowing
chunkily, and delicious --
those who know
walk out to gather, choosing
the benign from flocks
of glitterers, sorcerers,
russulas,
panther caps,
shark-white death angels
in their torn veils
looking innocent as sugar
but full of paralysis:
to eat
is to stagger down
fast as mushrooms themselves
when they are done being perfect
and overnight
slide back under the shining
fields of rain.

A Rainy Day Post

It has been an unusually rainy day here in Boulder. It changes the mood. I was glad to stay inside today and get things done. We have many little details to take care of for the wedding, and then there are a million other things to do that didn't get done during school. I don't mind though. It feels great to be getting my life organized.

I have started exercising again. That more than anything seems to be helping my back heal and grow strong again. I have also been doing a lot of yard work, which I really enjoy because it gets me outside and connected with nature. Tomorrow I hope to start gardening, weather permitting.

Katie had surgery to remove a non-cancerous lump from her breast on Monday. It went well and she is recovering quickly. Thanks to everyone who called, brought food, sent things, etc. She felt very loved and supported.

One of the dogs that I grew up with died this week. His name was Duffy and he was 14-and-a-half years old. I chose him from a litter of puppies when I was eleven. He was a sweet and lovely dog. I am sad that he died, but I haven't lived at home for so long that I don't see him very often. I am sure I will feel his absence next time I am home though. I wonder how the other three dogs will adjust to his absence.




With this rain I can feel another bout of mushroom obsession coming on! Hopefully we will get some good shrooms poping up in the next few days. Last year I suddenly became obsessed with mushrooms, and bought something like 10 books on them. They are amazing creatures that can be used for healing, reclaiming chemically polluted land, good eating, and they have a huge impact on any ecosystem that they are part of. I am hoping to go to the Telluride Mushroom Festival in August. For more info on how amazing mushrooms are go to www.fungiperfecti.com.

Happy Hour at The Med - Semester End Celebration

The semester is finally over, and I think it was the hardest one yet; I got sick three times and my back went out during finals week. Not surprising really, given that I stopped exercising about three months ago. And here I am in front of the computer again. Oy ve!

I can finally feel my body beginning to unwind from all the stress. I've found that the best remedy is yardwork, house cleaning, and hanging out w/friends. Blogging is fun too, but I've had enough computer time to last me a good while.

It is gearing up to be a busy summer, with (no joke) four weddings and a funeral. One wedding is mine, one is my dad's, one is my cousins, and one is my friend Fabian's. The funeral is my grandfather's. The summer will also include a honeymoon, a surgery (to remove a non-malignant lump from Katie's right breast), an EMDR training, and the completion of my thesis proposal. Is that enough?
For at least three summers?

I need about a month of doing nothing, but it turns out I may not have more than a few days. At least it will be a rich summer.



Above are pictures from the second-year (soon to be third-year) Somatic Psych students celebrating the end of the semester at The Med. Great food, fun people, and no more 12-page papers. To see all 64 pictures, follow this link.

Bowling Collage

And here's a collage that Jean-Paul put together from bowling for Sam's birthday(?).

Semester End Photo Collage

Here's a quick post of this photo collage from the semester-end happy hour celebration. Click to enlarge.

Stuart Davis

I am a big fan of a musician named Stuart Davis, especially his live shows, which are usually hilarious, moving, and generally entertaining. He is a Buddhist pop-rock musician based in Boulder, Colorado. If you have never heard a Stuart Davis song and would like to check one out, click here to listen to Swim.

Try clicking on this link, Stuart Responds to His Critics , to see a (in my opinion) hilarious video road-journal by Stuart. If you would like to check out one of his albums, I recommend the Bell Bonus Album, which can be downloaded from his website. Also listed there is Stu's touring information, in case you want to check out a show.

Review: Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell

I have just this morning finished reading Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke. I thoroughly enjoyed it.



It is a novel that takes place in early 1800s England. Imagine that England has a long history of magic, and that English magical history is taught in schools along with writing and arithmetic. Yet in the last few hundred years magic has faded from England to the point that no one can even pull off a spell anymore. But magic is destined to be restored to England by two men, and this is the story of how that happens (or doesn't).

It is an easy read, and a lot of fun. Neil Gaiman, of whom I am a tremendous fan, gives it this high praise:
"Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is unquestionably the finest English novel of the fantastic written in the last seventy years. It's funny, moving, scary, otherworldly, practical and magical, a journey through light and shadow — a delight to read, both for the elegant and precise use of words, which Ms Clarke deploys as wisely and dangerously as Wellington once deployed his troops, and for the vast sweep of the story, as tangled and twisting as old London streets or dark English woods. It is a huge book, filled with people it is a delight to meet, and incidents and places one wishes to revisit, which is, from beginning to end, a perfect pleasure. Closing Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell after 800 pages my only regret was that it wasn't twice the length."

It is likely to be turned into a film by NewLine Cinema, but I have no idea how long that will take. I believe they are still writing the screenplay.

Snow: Final Score

Here, I believe, is, more or less, the final score on the snow. I didn't measure it, but it has to be at least eight inches, if not more. Not bad for the expected 1-3 inches. It should all melt by tomorrow though, with a high of 53 degrees. And now to start my final paper for Clinical Assessment . . .

I just measured the snow on our deck. It is 11 inches deep!

WARNING: The infamous "Raisin Toast" song.

"Raisin Toast" song.

Raisin Toast

So I like raisin toast, and so does Katie.
In fact, Katie likes raisin toast so much that she made up a song that goes to the tune of "Mama's little baby loves shortnin' bread."



"Toast and raisins
and raisins and toast
raisins and raisins
and toast and toast."

If I can ever figure out how to post sound files I will have Katie sing the song into an I-Pod. But be warned, it is EXTREMELY CATCHY. It may already be too late, but if you don't want it stuck in your head, as quickly as you can, think of another song and start singing it right now. Otherwise, there is no escaping the "raisins and raisins and toast and toast."

Snow?

So, although May is only a couple of days away it is snowing in Boulder. I thought to myself, "This is nice. It will probably all melt by tomorrow."

This was tomorrow (now today).

This is tonight. We were supposed to get 1 to 3 inches, but we now have about six, and it is still snowing. I don't mind really, but I wish I had set aside some dry firewood.

In other news, I threw my back out. It had been bothering me a bit for a week, then last night after I finished a 12 page paper I was doing the dishes and it suddenly seized up on me.

I have been takeing it easy today and yesterday, but tomorrow I need to get started on my next 12 page paper and studying for my oral exam on Monday. Yes, school is slowly killing me (what with being sick three times this semester and having my back go out this week) but it all ends on Monday! Freedom is looming! And then some down time before kicking it into wedding high-gear.

MirrorMask

I am a huge fan of Neil Gaiman, and a fan of Dave McKean. They collaborated to create the movie MirrorMask, which will be coming out some time this year. This image is from the movie.
There will also be a children's book based on the movie. Follow the link to check out the preview.

Katie

This is my fiance Katie. She is just the most awesome woman in the world. I know that I am a little biased in my opinion, but that is as it should be. She is a knitting fiend, an excellent cook, a loving person, and one smart cookie. Her blog is PinkLadyKatie, for knitting and other news.