Mountaindance's Weblog

It’s National Blog Posting Month (NABLOPOMMO), so it’s about time I post something to this blog. I’m determined to complete it this evening, which means it may be a little “all over the place.”   Here’s some highlights of the last few months in no particular order :

At our house, my grandson Leo’s little brother or sister is due anytime now and he is very excited!

Leo and his dad painting his sibling’s room.

Leo turned three on July 1^st and is an absolute delight!  The video below is from many months ago ( he was 2 ½) when my daughter Melody was visiting, and I of course meant to post it then.

Mel and Leo at the Botanic Gardens discussing the moon.

Some of you know that Melody has been editing a book on the history of Lincoln County, Montana, where she is living. Just in case anyone is interested, you can get a copy by sending a check for $26.95 to the Lincoln County Public Libraries Foundation,   220 West 6^th Street, Libby, Mt 59923 .   (That includes the shipping.)

I have honestly been swamped with work the last 5 months. In addition to my job at The Gathering Place, I was doing some consulting work on Recovery (mental health) and had a large report due on June 30^th. It was a great relief to have it completed!  The very next day, on July 1^st, Sam arrived for a visit!  We had a great time, went to Boulder for a few days, ate wonderful vegetarian food, went to the Botanic Gardens, and just hung out.  Leo and Sam really hit it off!

My job at The Gathering Place continues to go well.  I feel very blessed to be there. It is a wonderful heart-centered organization that provides support to women and children who are living in poverty. .…wonderful people, wonderful mission, a rooftop garden, with a great view of the mountains, sometimes a vegetarian meal in the kitchen, and we can bring our knitting and crocheting to staff meetings. How perfect is that?

I just finished crocheting a baby blanket and I visited two yarn shops Friday to pick out yarn for my next project(s).  I learned to crochet from my mother and grandmother and that’s what I’ve been most comfortable with over the years, however, I am now experimenting with some knitting!   Cheryl has promoted knitting over crocheting  for years, but, I had to apparently leave Erie to begin knitting. Of course I haven’t finished a knit project yet, so maybe I’m speaking too soon.

Besides knitting, Cheryl spins and weaves, and now is making rugs.  I got a most beautiful handmade rug from her for my birthday.   When I returned to Erie in April, Daniel and I got to see the loom.

Daniel with Cheryl’s amazing rug loom.

My brother and Marianne came to visit in  June.

Robert and Leo watching the lions.

I went of Florida in February and will heading back soon to see Amanda before she starts first grade.

Me and Amanda at the Gulf of Mexico.

I really do love it in Denver and I feel increasingly much more comfortable getting around.   I’ve managed to make my way to drum circles, Dances of Universal Peace,  book stores, the latest Harry Potter movie, and a beekeeping store (way across town to get a present for Melody). I still use the Garmin, but I usually know where I’m going.

The weather is pretty perfect. It has been in the  90s during the day and then it cools down at night. ……50s or 60s.    I walk the dogs in the morning and it actually feels kind of fall-like in the morning, but that no longer “terrifies me”  as it did in Erie (where fall leads to winter and well, we all know what that’s like!!)  It’s sunny most of the day and then in the afternoon or evening it will rain.  We’ve actually had a lot of rain this year, which is great.  Leo and I have been picking peas in the garden, and tomatoes are just starting to get red.

I’m reading a book by Donna Eden on the promise of energy medicine.  I’m not prepared to give you a book review at this time , but Eden believes there is an energetic circuit for joy.   It’s important to nurture it, pay attention to it,  be silly, have fun, dance, sing, smile.  So here are some moments of joy:

Daniel running at the beach

And what’s a blog post without book recommendations? :)

Francis Perkins, the Woman Behind the New Deal – this book is excellent!!  Perkins was the Secretary of Labor for Franklin Roosevelt.     She started off as a social worker but actually witnessed a textile fire in New York City where hundreds of  workers died.    That incident really shaped her.  She spent her entire life fighting for the rights of workers.  And she dealt with all kinds of political and personal challenges.  As the first woman cabinet member she had to deal with unbelievable sexism.  At cabinet meetings she had to wait to speak last, so they wouldn’t think she was too pushy!!  Both her husband and daughter had bipolar disorder.  Her husband was unable to work.  It’s a great story and the book is very well written.  We are indebted to Perkins for ending child labor, creating Social Security, and ensuring many of the worker’s rights we take for granted today.  She tried valiantly to also introduce national health care, but she was blocked on that issue.  Read the book!!

Speaking of National Health Care:  Here’s my suggestion:   Could we get a National Referendum to take health insurance benefits away from Senators and Representatives?  They should be in the same boat with the rest of us.  They have the absolute best health insurance, not just during their term but for the rest of their lives (So they actually HAVE national health care for themselves.)  It seems to me that if they had to purchase insurance for themselves and their family members they would be more interested in fixing the problem.

The Daily Coyote -   A beautifully written spiritual tale of a woman raising a coyote. I found the story somewhat challenging to my vegetarian sensibilities and  my wanting things to fit neatly into categories of good and bad.  The cover tells you that the coyote was orphaned, but you find out early in the book that her boyfriend shot both of the parents and all the other cubs (because that’s his job for Land Management in Wyoming) and then he brings her this cub as a gift.   I found that part very discordant.  Yet the book is very worth reading.  I would be curious to hear from any of you that have read it.

Qi Gong for Beginners, Eight Easy Movements for Vibrant Health, Stanley Wilson.  This is a great overview for beginners on Qi Gong (chi gung, either is correct).   I have been practicing a set of the “8 Pieces of Brocade” for many years after learning it at the Whole Life Center in Erie.   It consists of  8 (pretty easy to learn) movements that promote health and wellness. A complete set takes less than ten minutes a day.    I’ve been doing a lot of reading about  Qi Gong, and have found that there are many variations of the “8 Pieces of Brocade”.  At first that confused me……am I doing the “right” one?   And then I realized that in a 2,000 year old system of medicine that is Chinese Medicine, of course there would be variations.   The common themes in most of the movements are: an emphasis on breathing correctly and deeply, which not only increases oxygen but massages the internal organs; maintaining mindfulness while doing the exercises; and twisting and bending that nurtures the lymphatic system (that removes toxins form the body).  All of the practices increase Chi or vital energy.   The set of exercises in this book is a little different from the ones I practice, but it’s a great book because it explains so clearly why you should consider doing qi gong and then how to get started.

I also found this wonderful set of  websites posted by Michael Garofalo at :  www.egreenway.com He is a martial artist and practices qi gong.  He is also a gardener, so there are gardening pages too!!!  If you are at all interested in the 8 pieces of Brocade, check out his posting. There are very clear and helpful instructions.

Hope you are all having a great summer and please check in and let me know how you are!!!