Covid shots and baby steps to increased freedom

 I almost hesitate to write that I've gotten my first Covid immunization - 

and by the end of the month, I will have my second one.

I'm hesitant because I know the inequity involved;

am aware of how many others, in my state and beyond,

are still waiting to hear about available clinics and resources for them

and their health.

Our state is 50 out of 50 in getting the population immunized.

Thanks to a Governor who is a good ol boy 

who doesn't think Covid is any worse than the flu,

has never issued a mask mandate

and refuses to make the health of people in urban areas a priority,

the roll out in MO has been a complete disgrace.

Immunizations, when available, are being prioritized by

age, health conditions and high risk zip codes -

and I don't have a problem with any of that.

I meet 2 out of the 3 criteria - 

age and health risks.

My zip code is NOT generally high risk,

so I was surprised although pleased when my oncologist arranged for me

to get a shot sooner rather than later.

 

SO pleased that, to celebrate,

I drove around town,

by myself and masked -

with a renewed sense of freedom

and cautious optimism.

And I found a house I LOVE.

Seriously, can we talk about the square tree?

Can't wait to see it filled out this spring!

I love the architecture of St Louis -

in all its variety.

I've decided to explore neighborhoods more frequently.

 

Since international travel is off limits, for now, 

I might as well treat my own city as an unexplored treasure. 

Baby steps - and one street at a time.

Mardi Gras Fleur de lis -

doesn't get much more St Louis than that!

Look at the different colored 'snake' lines separating out the floors of this town home 

in Benton Park?

Bloom where you're planted - 

and explore what you think you know.

 

No passport needed.

Valentines Day

 Now that my grandson is 4, 

I doubt there will be many more months of him admitting to having a 'lovey',

his beloved Mr Monkey.

So when he asked if he could bring him to his Valentines mini photo session

last week,

I said YES.

I'm so glad I did.

 

How wonderful that we have this bond documented for him.

 Besides all the love he brings to my life and home,

vintage valentines are all around;

along with snowmen ...

doesn't get much more 'February' than this.

I'm not one for wishing any time away;

I'll take each season as it comes

but I'm just going to put this out there ...

I will happily welcome warmer weather when it comes.

Granny Squares

In 1967, 

my grandmother made me a granny square sweater to take to college.

 (Similar in style to the one pictured above.)

 

I LOVED that sweater -and wore it everywhere.

No seriously, look at pictures of Waverly, Iowa from that time period - 

and you'll likely find me in them. 

I thought it was the height of sophistication.

 

Imagine the above, worn with a white, button down, Oxford cloth shirt,

 gray wool 'Bermuda shorts', knee socks and penny loafers.

Quintessential late 60's!

 

I was going through FB Marketplace recently 

and found the exact color palette of my sweater -

but in an afghan, which, lets be honest, 

is more suited for my age and retirement status.

 

Oh, who am I kidding?

If it was available as a sweater I would have snatched it up too,

but it wasn't.

Snow be damned.

I made the 2 hour trip North to pick it up -

 

and have been surrounded by warmth, comfort, love 

and wonderful memories

ever since.

Perfect for this single digit winter weather and binge watching Netflix.

Stay warm - and healthy, friends!

 

Private Showing

As the mother of an artist, 

I can't help but have an appreciation of the creative process and

how it works, or doesn't work, for each creator - 

whether their expressive form is the written or spoken word,

painting, sculpture, collage or a combination of multiple mediums.

 

I can guess the effort that goes into every piece

and the courage it takes to see something of yours completed 

and sent into the world.

In my mind, it would be like standing naked every day, 

saying here I am; take it or leave it.

There's such an exquisite vulnerability that stands along every piece of art;

I wonder if people who casually walk among works in museums have any clue.

That being said, I don't know much about why some things work together 

and why others don't.

I don't know how the 'art world' judges or prioritizes what's worthy of acclimation

and what isn't.

As the vernacular has it,

"I know what I like."

and

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder".

A recent exhibit at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation,

highlighting works by Terry Adkins, spoke to me on several levels

and has kept me thinking abut what I saw for several weeks now.

I was unfamiliar with this particular artists work 

and am still not familiar with the breadth of all he created.

Adkins was raised in a 'musical household' in Alexandria, VA (in 1953)

where he learned to play piano and saxophone.

He was drawn to music, especially jazz 

even while turning his focus to visual art, 

earning degrees in fine art and printmaking.

 

He referred to himself as a 'composer', 

applying principles of improvisation and experimentation that he learned through jazz

 to his approach to art making.

"My quest has been to find a way to make music as physical as sculpture might be 

and sculpture as ethereal as music is. 

It's kind of challenging to make both of those pursuits do 

what they are normally not able to do."

"He was drawn to gathered objects that others considered 'scraps' 

which he brought home and lived with until they revealed their purpose",

says the booklet that accompanied his exhibit.

 

This description made me smile -

what a wonderful way to say he was a dumpster diver 

who lived with other peoples garbage. :)

 I know and love some folks just like him.

The ability of seeing beauty in what others discard is a gift;

the select few who have that talent are visionaries.

I can't tell you how familiar this rosary draped figure felt to me;

I've seen it before on several 'art altars' in different studios.

 

This was from his personal collection of memorabilia and cultural artifacts.

He was also a prolific reader, beginning in middle school 

when he began collecting copies of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy; 

eventually gathering dozens of copies of the book

 

 Honestly, who sees a thrown away patio chair and thinks,

"I know; lets weave some reeds through it and call it sculpture?"

Doesn't he know the proper response is to spray paint it

and put it on a deck?

 

As an African American artist, 

Adkins explored the intersection of blues music and the Great Migration, 

a period during which millions of black Americans moved from the South 

to metropolitan centers of the north, Midwest and eastern United States. 

 

He created the pieces below during a residency in Texas, 

in a building which had decades worth of mechanical and textile scraps stored -

which he repurposed into art.

 

This piece was created from wooden pants patterns - 

each 'petal' was a different inside seam length...

genius, right?

I honestly don't remember anything about this piece  (below)

except how much I loved it.

 

In my mind its very evocative of Egyptian imagery and symbolism.

I could be totally off base - 

but that's the wonder of art, isn't it?

Who can tell me I'm wrong?

 

Without a doubt, though, my favorite piece was entitled Infinity.

Adkins longest running work was born out of an act of repentance.

When Adkins was 19 years old, he stole a copy of John Coltrane's album, Infinity (1972)

from a Nashville record store.

Consumed by guilt, he decided to atone for his indiscretion 

by buying a copy of the record every time he encountered it 

for the rest of his life.

Here, 75 records rest in a vintage trunk 

whose starburst lining complements the psychedelic album covers.

The motivations behind pieces of art are rarely as clearly articulated as this;

but this is such a powerful example of 'emotional baggage' made manifest

that it's fascinating to me.

I'm so glad I was able to see this exhibit especially in the midst of a pandemic.

 

Beauty and thoughts of what lives on beyond our own time on this earth 

are enterprises worthy of our time and attention.

Dragnet

I know I'm revealing my age by using this image and quote. 

I suspect there are many youngsters out there 

who are unfamiliar with either this program (Dragnet)

or the Detective (LAPD Sgt Joe Friday).

There have been thousands, if not millions, of words written in the past week

about what happened in our Nations capitol on Wednesday, 1/6/21.

Having read more than a smattering of those words

and witnessed the event as it unfolded on camera,

I have some feelings and observations.

 

For me, what are indisputable facts are:

*after months of perpetuating 'the Big Lie' -

that the election was 'stolen' from the party of T-rump by a far left cabal -

thousands of right wing extremists and militias gathered in the capitol,

having been called to action and encouraged to 'fight' by 'their President'.

 

Their intent was to interrupt and prevent the Electoral Votes being certified in Congress;

a certification which would result in Joe Biden being named the President Elect.

They wanted to disrupt the transition of power

so President T-rump could declare himself the winner

and remain in power.

 

*The insurrectionists 'stormed the building' using violent means 

(as one does in the process of 'storming'),

entered rooms and offices

(both public and private spaces)

and engaged in violent confrontations 

with the few representatives of law enforcement 

who were on the front lines; 

all while screaming "where's Nancy", "where's Mike Pence"

and "hang Mike Pence." 

 * Gallows had been erected within sight of the Capitol.

 

*All 3 members of government who were next in succession for the presidency

(Vice President, Speaker of the House and President Pro tempore)

were in the building at the time. 

They were taken into protective custody

literally minutes before the mob entered the same room in their rampage.

I remember watching in horror at how little official pushback 

the insurrectionists encountered as they entered the building.

 

*I remarked to a friend that I had NO doubt there was inside collaboration/ help,

even active cooperation, from law enforcement on the scene

in what I called an 'attempted coup'.

 

*At this time, 6 people are known to have lost their lives.

It gives me little satisfaction that as the week has played out

my thoughts and worst suspicions are gaining momentum and being verified.

The contempt I've had for the person who has occupied the presidency

for the past 4 years has only grown.

 

*All his prophetic inaugural vision of "American Carnage' and people dying in the streets

have come true - because he brought it into being.

 

*All of his minions 

who are now trying to distance themselves from this monster;

all the social platforms who have finally banned him from using their space to spew his hatred -

all WAAYY TOO little and WAAYY TOO late!

*Our country has been fundamentally changed

and not for the better.

*The center is still holding,

but only barely.

 

Picking up where we left off

I was foolish enough to think that getting out of town, 

having a visual re-set 

and surviving the expansion of my small Covid bubble by 2 

was a sign that the year might hold better things. 

Wisconsin

acts as a visual palate cleanser for me.

The absence of man made structures,

the expanse of ground and horizon calm me 

and restore my perspective about my place in the world writ large.

Wisconsin is always a good idea.

 

Luckily, for me, a relatives home is a refuge

 and serves as a jumping off point

to any one of the many county and state parks in Northern WI 

Was it cold?

Of course, it's winter.

I expect that; in fact I relish that.

I may not want to be bone chilling cold all season long,

but I can survive for 10 days.

Despite ice everywhere,

 I stayed upright and intact.

I'm taking that as a win.

The other win was a longed for granny square afghan -

with perfect colors for my house.

It's wonderfully heavy, nap tested and a near perfect score to start the year of junking.

It was wonderful to be away from routine

yet still be with family

It seemed like a wonderful omen for the coming year.

Little did I know, right?