Well, it's been a while... and once again, my sincerest apologies... Seems back in January, I fell into an vampire vortex of sorts. I guess it happens when you don't pay attention to, or recognize the early signs of something not working out... and/or, not being in the position to do something about it when you do. F___king Aquarians... what are you going to do?!
Funny thing is, my blog title is "Follow Your Heart"... but it seems now in hindsight, that when I first chose the title, I was getting ahead of myself a little. But someone once said that "Life gives you the test first, then teaches you how to study afterwards." I whole heartily agree! The past 9 months have been an incredible experience for me... inside & out.
From living in urban LA, OC & Oakland, to riding tractors, taking care of farm animals... And coming face to face again with one of my all time fears... financial ruin & shame. But I've survived, and now I'm moving onto/into a co-operative community of old hippies, who are living off the land and into sustainable living, etc... But I'm getting ahead of myself... and there is so much to catch up on that it'll take a few posts to sort it all out... So if you'll indulge me one more time... I'll try not to disappoint ;-)
I'm going to start with the present (which I'm learning is where it's all at) and then I'll move around a bit later. I got a job at a little country store a month or two ago... and it's been a Godsend in so many ways, that it's absolutely kismet! It is an eclectic, iconic place to work and it is truly, a universe unto itself... filled with world wide cheeses, wines, chocolates, toys... you name it... and I'll get into that more later. But by getting out and interacting with people, my life has absolutely turned around. I got/get to see all walks of life... real, salt of the earth people who have a refined palette, visitors who travel out of their way to stop by every year, or ten years, and locals just dropping by to pick up our renowned Landjaegger (hunter sausage). This opportunity reminded me of why I moved up here in the first place. But again, more on that later...
I 'm currently house sitting for some friends of the store owner and these pic's are of their place. I was 'asked' to leave where I was living (and that's a story reserved for one on one communiques) and since I was/am broke, needed a place CHEAP or rent free of sorts... My boss told me about this community around the corner called the River Farm, and that a friend of his was going to be out of state for a while, and his house would be vacant, etc... That's another post in itself, but the timing of it all was/is amazing. They take their time in deciding who can move onto the property, and since I was looking at a July 1st move in... the timing issue was going to be tight. But then the universal sources opened up and my boss once again, came through... He knew of this couple that was leaving for Sweden and Finland, and they needed a house sitter... and voila... it bought me another week and a half until the River Farm people decide my fate or destiny. But I'm 99.99% sure it's a lock.
So here is where I'm at for the next 11 days... Just getting off the energy vortex was a gift enough... but this is awesome! The weather now is unbelievable... warm with a cool breeze... you can't beat it for up here. I love this silo! I don't know why, but it just calls to me... that and the barns, the view... all of it! I've gone exploring a little and have more pic's to share for next time... But these will give you an idea of what it's like up here.
This is the main house. Warm feeling to it... comfortable.
The back deck, plants, and a swing bench :-?
And the panoramic view... To the left, and panning right... the silo...
The newer barn... with a view of the Cascades behind...
Fields...
And more fields...
Like I mentioned earlier... the past nine months have been pretty amazing. There has been a lot of confronting & facing down fears... which I wish I could say I did valiantly. But honestly, I was walking on egg shells most of the time...trying to 'live' the faith I so truly believed in. There were wonderful moments too... where you really learn about who you are... and about how much of yourself you already knew, that was just beneath the surface. Anyway, there are some big gaps to fill in, and I'll do my best to 'fill' them in as I go... for anyone who's interested ;-) But I think this time I'll pace myself to two posts a week... Plus now things are really starting to take, and after all... how much can happen in a week? Thanks for checking in and as always... Take good care of yourselves... Alexis
