The Willow Ball!

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Tomorrow night, this farm chick will giddily galavant to a ball! Our favorite blog sophisticate, Willow of Life at Willow Manor, is throwing a sparkling and extravagant party, the third Willow Ball, and this is the first time I am going. It is a blog event so massive that everyone is invited. To participate, all you have to do is "shop" for your attire, your escort, and any other accourtrements you please on the Internet (or from your own archives, if you are so fortunate), and post them as images at your blog, like I'm doing today. (We hope the original sites for what we borrow won't mind. I'm giving credit for my sources at the bottom of this post.)

I'm asking Willow, Fred and Ginger to bend their ball rules the way they bend their bodies dancing. Here at my place I am morphing the event into a Regency Willow Ball, because, well, I can, and because I have sat waiting to dance at a Jane Austen ball long enough. There are never enough partners . . . or balls for that matter!

I shopped and shopped until my fingers dropped, and I found just what I wanted to wear, how I want to get there, and who will escort me.

If you didn't find out in time to post this event on your blog, you can still party all night long at Willow's Manor and at all the other Willow Ball blogs that are linked there (Willow will have a Mr. Linky widget with participating blogs starting at midnight tonight). Just hop in the coach and click, tap and waltz your way around the floors of the world. Ahh, music, ahh, candlelight, ahh, romance.

Before departing the farm tomorrow,
here is what I'll be wearing.

One must have the proper undergarments, mustn't one?

Don't you think the hairstyle I've asked André

to coif is dressy, without being stiff? No hairspray pour moi.

When you see my dress, you'll understand why my favorite gems, garnets, are the necklace I must wear. Besides, they match my copy of P & P.

I decided against heels, since I'll be dancing through the night,
although maybe uncomfortable shoes would help me stay awake.
Not that these toes look comfortable,
but they're the fashion, what can I do?

I must have a fan to yawn behind,
and I need a handkerchief after certain, ahem, wild dances
when I'll be sweating glowing.
This warm glow will bring out the subtle
scent of lavender oil I've dabbed on my neck, temples and wrists.
(Chanel No. 5 hasn't been blended yet.)
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Here is my silk gown. I'm going to hold it just like this, 

while I twirl and swirl and stub my tiny pointed toes
(and bruise and puncture my poor dance partners). 

I trust my neck will not look as thick as hers,
although it would be harder to break.

Since Willow lives just one state away from me, 

my escort and I really could ride in this cozy coach the whole way.
So romantic, all enclosed, and someone else
to pay attention to the road.

As for my escort, sadly, my husband Don made a commitment for this night (cleaning the chicken coop and his nails afterward). I did get some enchanting offers from dear friends (who had better not forget their promises to dance the night away with me if my escort will permit me to leave his side - forget what I said about punctures and bruises) but they were after my dear, dear friend Elizabeth Bennet-Darcy had already pitied me and charitably offered her husband. Hmph! said I in my head. Second-hand goods, and not directly from the man himself! I considered her offer long and hard over tea and crumpets. I ate a whole package of crumpets! Finally, I sent a note with my carrier chicken to Eliza's dearest Fitzwilliam, sidestepping my dear friend, because I don't want any of those horrid misunderstandings that our friend Emma Woodhouse got into as a result of second-hand news. As I say, I sent this note to Fitzwilliam:  

Colin Firth, as Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy in BBC's Pride & Prejudice,

giving Elizabeth The Look

Update: Fitzwilliam Darcy has agreed to my terms, 

and his note also said that we won't be riding in any 

puny little one horse buggy. 

He'll be coming 'round with his coach and four.
Willow, don't worry about the horse puckey!
Fitzwilliam's man will take care of it.

I look forward to seeing you, my dear blog friends, here, at Willow's and all around the world as we turn, spin and swoosh, and drink toasts to each other and our splendid hostess all night long. I have several of you penciled in on my ballspenden and can hardly wait to dance with you. There's still room on it, so don't be shy, gentlemen. And ladies, Mr. Darcy assured me that Eliza has rid him of his infernal pride, and he will dance with as many of you who desire it. Will the night be long enough? Cheers!

Image sources:

The ball

The garnet necklace

The Regency undergarments

The hair

The shoes

The fan
The handkerchief 
The perfume bottle

The ball gown

The little coach

The look

The big coach

The wallpaper designs

Mind, Body & Spirit

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Friday we went to our son Peter's CD release party for his band April to Fall. 

Brian, left center, and my son Peter, right, are April to Fall;

Jeff and Jen contributed considerable vocal talent

to the new album "Straight Line to Your Heart"

Click this link to go to their site where you can listen to clips of the tracks on the album. Their sound is similar to Morrissey, with pleasing strong vocals and acoustic guitar, though in other venues they rock it out when Peter plays his electric guitar. I am not here to sell you anything, but you can figure out at the site how to buy the album on iTunes. I don't know yet how they are selling the CD. At the gallery at the site see photos of Peter and Brian I shot in my studio that Don and Peter converted from a chicken coop. At times I have felt that this studio - l'atelier - where I don't really create anything, except deep sleeping breaths in my hammock chair, is the center of the universe, my kilometer zero, so I'm happy this special place is featured at the center of the CD cover, below. The party was in Rochester, Michigan, which has a homey 100-year-old downtown. (Downtown Rochester photo found here.)

Brian and Peter inside the CD cover -- a photo I took in l'atelier

Besides the big celebratory joy of one of Peter's musical ventures, I was geeked to finally tour and eat in the first-and-only certified organic restaurant in Michigan, Mind, Body & Spirits. The upstairs dining room was the venue for the party. Mike, the owner, is also the one who started the record label (Lazy Day Records) releasing its premier album, April to Fall's "Straight Line to Your Heart". Mike has his entrepreneurial hands in several companies, all of them organic in one way or another.

That's Mike in the middle, with Dennis, my niece Amy's husband, to his left;

I don't know who the gentleman looking at the woman with the camera is - nice smile!

Last October, Mind, Body & Spirits was awarded the Certified Organic Restaurant status (the first and only one in Michigan). Mind, Body & Spirits is one of just thirteen restaurants in the U.S. that not only serves organic and locally grown food, but is also where each and every aspect of the physical building and furnishing is eco-conscious.

I ate certified organic rib-eye steak, though I eat beef only a few times a year;
the finger-length potatoes and Bernaise sauce were YUM;
(I didn't eat it all, there was plenty for lunch the next day)

From their web site:

Mind Body & Spirits was built to inspire and help people…

Mind..

Our 100+ year old building, which was renovated using many of the latest and century old technologies to operate as sustainable as possible, continues to provide a public classroom to progress our children and adults through its education.

Body..

Being a certified Organic restaurant, we only use the purest ingredients for our menu, and as our customers consume our seasonally inspired dishes it will help their bodies on its natural path to wellness without compromising the flavor or your pocket book!

Spirits..

I truly believe that when a person consumes food made with a “conscience” or love, your inner spirit begins to burn stronger….and I will toast to that with a nice glass of organic wine!

My inner spirit was flying around the room as I took pictures. Snapping photos really is a good way to sneak around and nose in and get closer to people you want to get closer to. They don't mind you doing that if you have a camera, at least that's what I've found. I just ate up their smiles.

Everything in the restaurant is made of recycled and/or sustainable materials, from reused and reconstituted brick, to bamboo and cork floors. Every piece of furniture is made from sustainable structural materials and fibers.

 Jeff, Lindsey and Andrea chatting
on furniture made from recycled and sustainable materials

The heating and cooling system is geo-thermal, which means plumbing goes 10 feet deep (3 meters) and water circulates through the earth with its core temperature of 55°F (12.8°C), naturally cooling the building in summer and heating it in winter. There are solar panels on the green roof. Mike would like to get off the electrical grid eventually, with a wind turbine and solar panels providing all the power they need on site.

The roof terrace is covered with tiles made from recycled tires. Vegetables are grown in pots, used for the menu and also for decoration, though the nasturtiums, peppers and tomatoes below are a bit summer-weary now that September is almost done. The tables and chairs on the terrace are manufactured from recycled plastic milk bottles.

 Roof terrace tiles made from recycled tires;
I think maybe a few glasses of wine have dribbled on these tiles

My niece Amy (Ginnie's daughter), next to terrace furniture

made from recycled plastic milk cartons

Potted terrace plants of vegetables, now a little summer-worn

My favorite part of the building is the greenhouse. To go to the restrooms, you have to walk through this space, which is brilliant, since part of Mike's vision is to educate not only the children of Michigan about renewable practices, but also adults. The "wall of water" consists of tubes full of standing water that absorb heat from the sun through the greenhouse windows, then radiate it to keep the greenhouse warm. The solid cement brick wall to the right in this photo absorbs the sun's heat in the winter months when the sun shines lower through the windows. I'd like to go back during the day, for lunch and a daylight tour.

 Wall of water lining the greenhouse

Don stands by the wall of water, which absorbs heat 

from sunlight through the greenhouse windows
for heat in long cold Michigan winters

Herbs and other plants for the restaurant are grown here in the greenhouse.

Amy is standing by the rain water receptacle;
rainwater is used to water the plants.

The quick composter takes 200 pounds of food garbage a day (vegetable and animal matter except bones), then dehydrates it. The water removed is used to water the plants throughout the restaurant, and the dried matter is composted further, since it is still too "hot" to be used by farmers. Restaurant staff set it out every Saturday morning for residents and farmers in the community to help themselves, and compost it for their own use. Have you ever seen a restaurant without a dumpster out back? Mind Body & Spirits has no dumpster. They recycle everything. The restaurant Director of Operations, Ed, along with his dad, take the leftover cooking oil from the restaurant and make bio-diesel for his 1970s Mercedes Benz, which smells like French Fries while he drives.

Quick composter-dehydrater

Dehydrated and composted food ready to take out back 

to the receptacle for pick-up by local residents and farmers

Among the savory food, the groove-inducing music of the band, Peter's musical accomplishment, family from Atlanta and friends from around Michigan, all wrapped in cozy intimacy, and the eco-consciousness of the restaurant, I was energized and stimulated in mind, body and spirit all the way until midnight! Me!

But will I be able to stay up all night for the Willow Ball? Two late nights in one week. Maybe Willow has a sofa, like this one I had my feet up on . . .

And Man created the plastic bag and the tin and aluminum can and the cellophane wrapper and the paper plate, and this was good because Man could then take his automobile and buy all his food in one place and He could save that which was good to eat in the refrigerator and throw away that which had no further use.  And soon the earth was covered with plastic bags and aluminum cans and paper plates and disposable bottles and there was nowhere to sit down or walk, and Man shook his head and cried:  "Look at this Godawful mess."  ~Art Buchwald, 1970

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Last Minute Prep for the Willow Ball Thursday

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Did you get your invitation to the Willow Ball? Willow of the famous Life at Willow Manor, Magpie Tales and all things willow? You didn't? You just have to go pick it up. Everyone's invited. I especially encourage and cajole you men into going, otherwise we women will have to dance with each other when our escorts need a rest. Not that there's anything wrong with dancing with women, but I prefer a man for a partner. On the other hand, my escort may be available several dances while I nap curled up in the corner.

This is the third year for this famous virtual ball, but this is my first! I don't know what I was thinking the last two years. I was a little intimidated by Willow's grandeur, to be honest. But I've discovered she is down to earth and funny. No doubt another reason I didn't leap into Willow's ball was hearing my once Baptist feet whine, "But we don't know how to dance." Add to that my early bedtime and wondering how in God's name I would stay awake until 10, let alone dawn, and . . . zzzzzzzz

Oh! Yes, I was saying . . . 

No more excuses, I'm going! I'm spending all my spare time getting ready. I have my gown picked out, just need the shoes. And I'm waiting to hear from my possible escort, since Don is going to be busy (I think he plans to clean his nails; or did he say he has to clean out the chicken coop? or clean his nails after the coop . . . .? Whatever . . . ).

I found this beginner waltz lesson. Oh dear, I think I'm definitely going to fall asleep before I even get there.




I looked for How to Stay Awake videos, and when I saw this first one, titled "Stay Awake," I got excited! And then I played it. Mary Poppins is going to be no help whatsoever.

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An Interview

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My friend Bonnie at Original Art Studio is an artist, thinker, questioner and writer. Out of her generous spirit, she is unveiling a series of interviews of a few of her blog friends, and I'm the first! I'm so excited. Please visit Bonnie's blog, not just to see how I answered her interesting questions (I really felt like I was on the stage of Inside the Actors Studio), but also to browse her beautiful images and be challenged by her thought-provoking posts, examining how we live. Her aesthetics and sensitivities are really very lovely.

And she even creates word puzzles, like this one:

Bonnie will be interviewing other bloggers in this series, some of whom I already know well, some I know a little, and others I don't know at all. I look forward to getting to know my friends better, and to make new friends.

Thank you so much, Bonnie!

Ode to Autumn, by John Keats

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John Keats needs no image support for his poem to autumn. I revel in his lines, the hair of autumn soft-lifted by the winnowing wind, as beautiful as any written anywhere. Nothing needs to be said, and my photos aren't necessary. But I also overflow with love for autumn, in Michigan. The images I share below the poem are from previous years, some here at the farm, some on my drive to work, and some at the lake where my family has a cottage. Wherever you are, I hope you enjoy the onset of autumn today (even if in Australia and New Zealand, and you are in spring!).

Ode to Autumn
by John Keats

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness!
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves run;
To bend with apples the mossed cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o'erbrimmed their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;
Or on a half-reaped furrow sound asleep,
Drowsed with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers;
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady thy laden head across a brook;
Or by a cider-press, with patient look,
Thou watchest the last oozings, hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too, -
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing, and now with treble soft
The redbreast whistles from a garden-croft;
And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.


~ John Keats, from Endymion