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Mistral Wind at Night

 Last night the wind was incredible. We were up to about 2 hoping for it to ease. Rune was afraid as there was nowhere to go to hide from the noise of it. I’ve been reading a lot and my recent reading brought some interesting thoughts to my mind as we huddled down against the assault. 

It sounded like giants were outside throwing tornadoes of wind at each other. It seemed to be coming from all directions, slamming the house, rattling the shutters, uplifting everything in its path and the crashing it somewhere else. I had to get up and batten down some things that were making a lot of noise. I just finished reading a fantastic book on Antarctic exploration at the beginning of the 20th century and the sad story of  Robert Falcon Scott. I couldn’t help but imagine being in a tent, in the frozen tundra, 40 below temperature with a blizzard outside. I can imagine just lying in wait for something to come crashing down…Here, I worry about the gigantic trees the line the back yard,,,huge umbrella pines that are already leaning way over. They are away from the house but you never know. I took my flashlight and peered outside…all was in a scramble…potted plants everywhere. I worried about a big Buddha that I have but he seemed secure…

I could see activity in the greenhouses below…they are just metal arches with white tarp like covering…the couple who work these fields must have been in a frenzy trying not to lose all of the structure. They grow anemones, strawberries and other similar things. They have 2 mean Malinois dogs that roam their crop plots which are many and spread over many blocks, shoehorned into the neighborhood, most disconnected from each other so they have to drive from one to another, loading the dogs into their truck. They are not friendly people.

My last thought was of my Father and how, on a night light that, he would have had to get into his dark green company car and been out all night supervising men in fixing and repairing downed electrical lines. I can see him in my mind in his yellow hard hat with La Barge handwritten on it. ( My father put his name on everything).

and with all of that going through my head, I covered Rune with his fuzzy blanket and read until my slight sleeping pill kicked in. 

Did I mention I have clothes on the clothesline ( no on in FRA uses clothes dryers)

An Italian/ Sicilian set up for Xmas.

My friend Alessandra sent me this pic from Catania ( Sicily) where one of here sisters live and they are visiting. I love to see how other people live. I asked for pics with food! I wonder who the woman is in the photo...Mama?

The woods where we walk.

 This is about 6 miles away from my house, maybe less. I go at 12 as no one is there. It's a very lovely place.

Loved this book..

 

not for everyone but the writing is so beautiful and I could picture the landscape of Provence...Spooky and supernatural....gory...a war between angels and devils during the plague in Provence.

6662 and 6663 and Fuzzy Mat5h

New! I can't come up for a name for this one. It reminds me of colorful scaffolding. 

 

Portal Quake

 

Coldplay - ALL MY LOVE (Official Video)

ok well this made me cry.

Here is some insanity...

this was empty before I schlepped all that wood here. Every man I know would be appalled. My mind will not allow me to be terribly worried about the perfection of the stacking. I don't want to be doing it in the first place!

One side left of the fig....I cannot move what is left;

I am supposed to be moving but my landlord decided to drop more than a "stere" or wood on me. He cut down a fig tree right outside my fence. It was very old and very big. I was tasked with putting it in a wheel barrel...( an un pronounceable word for me in french...une brouette..the R is guttural)...clunking it down the destroyed stairs and under the house...the "abri".

God forsaken stairs, ripped up by a backhoe ambling down it. The wheel barrel gets stuck every time and elicits a swear word out of me. I am not fearful of letting the language go even though I was raised with not one bad word, ever.

Rune, bugging me! my landlord still has 2 saws in my yard which I covered with a tarp and he intends on cutting all that you see here to the right. I am overcome with wood,

I still have these pieces that remind me of "Alien"

what's left after about 12 trips.

lots up by the back door. I am burning like crazy.

 

A noontime walk in the woods...

 

very quiet, just a tiny wind

On the Street Where I live.

Why no courier can find where I live.

turn lwft at the sign.

looking up my street / every house on the street is 621...there are 4 houses behind hedges on the left anf more at the top.

further up the street,,,landlord on the right in unfinished house.

take the right, dirt road.

Keep going to the end,

Hang a left to go up my street.

main road in my neighborhood...you will often see horses and dogs that are loose and there is an old dumptster diver that looks like an old Steve Mc Queen.

 

So far from done

 

This is a good example of me going too far and then over painting till it becomes something else...

This one is coming along nicely...Have to be careful

Have to be careful not to over paint this...it's almost finished.