on long marriages with kids

i was talking with a friend once about a mutual acquaintance who had had an affair, and whose husband had just found out. the couple had been married a long time, they had four kids, and two houses together. i asked if divorce was being discussed, and she said “i don’t think so, their life is so intertwined at this point i don’t think they are considering it.”  i heard that story many years ago and had forgotten it until today. this tangle of tendrils reminded me of it–two independent vines growing side by side, with so many intertwined tendrils that it would be devastating to both if they tried to untangle it all. so destructive, in fact, that it simply wouldn’t make sense. as i am typing, i realize that is a grim metaphor for marriage–a co-dependent death grip of sorts. i am actually a big fan of marriage. i have been married 30 years to the same man. i consider it the best decision i ever made. i know i feel, and i think steve would agree, that we are both better, stronger, happier people because of our marriage. i guess “entanglements” is a neutral which doesn’t necessarily have to carry with it a positive or negative association. only what you bring to it. much like marriage.

wild grape vine tendrils in march

season opener

the snow has finally melted from all my favorite walking trails. jack (aka puggle) is thrilled. as am i. today i grabbed these late winter stems as i walked and marveled at the number of birds that migrate to or through minneosta each spring and fall–somewhere between 400-500 species i believe. today the eastern bluebirds and hooded mergansers caught my attention. this bouquet is about 1 meter tall and yet it felt almost weightless in my hands it is so dry. one of my daily frustrations with STILL is that i have to downsize the resolution of each image before i post it to the blog (otherwise STILL would take eternity to load). but it means that an image like this one, with so much texture and detail, loses a little of its magic in the process.

bouquet of late winter stems

a banner day

of course this blog is about nature and STILL, but it is also in some ways about a life shared not just with the flora and fauna of the upper midwest and mediterranean france, but a life shared with a husband and family, and how that family tries to make creativity fit into a life that is otherwise successful in a normal and sometimes boring way. today was a day spent huddling together to celebrate my husband’s nomination for two james beard awards. it was a day to make a perfunctory STILL blog image, and to focus instead on a lavish and indulgent evening together, husband, wife and son, eating at one of the best restaurants in minneapolis, drinking champagne, and briefly acknowledging a milestone, before we all go back to the daily grind. thank you for celebrating with us. if you want to read the award nominated article, you can read it here. if you want to give my hubby a little bit of love, you can do that here.

foxtail (?) stems

you’ve got a lot of gall

this ash tree’s path to my living room was somewhat convoluted. steve’s first cousin once removed on his father’s side married the delightful moira, who follows my blog, and offers occasional wise and witty commentary, and who had the generosity to save branches from an ash tree they recently cut down, which were festooned with galls. i picked this this one to photograph because i loved its vaguely calderesque asymmetrical weightedness. thank you moira, for being you, and for an eye knowing enough to see the beauty in these ugly-cute little growths.

galls on an ash tree branch

good things come to those who wait

do any of you remember the persimmons i posted way back in november? i reposted them today (right before this post) so i could show you the before and after of these three fruits. yup, these are the same three persimmons–117 days later. they have been sitting on my kitchen counter ever since, and i have been keeping a daily eye on them. they didn’t really rot, they didn’t mold, they didn’t dry out and crack, they just sort of…deflated. and with each passing day they got more and more interesting.  you may recall, my rule of thumb for what passes muster as a STILL blog photo: the subject has to be either beautiful or interesting. and every once in a while, i get lucky, and find something that is both–truly beautiful and interesting.  well, these deflated persimmons are definitely interesting. you’ll have to decide for yourself if they are also beautiful.

overripe persimmons (Diospyros kaki)