Yay! My package finally arrived. All of your orders shipped out yesterday afternoon. I can now put my feet up and think about what to do with all of these veggies I found in the garden.

Ratatouille anyone?

The GOOD NEWS is…

That I had a very productive day in the studio today! I finished a commission piece for the ever-patient, SR.

Several months ago (I won’t tell you how many because it’s too embarrassing) SR gave me two loose stones – a rectangular lapis and a facetted citrine teardrop – to turn into one-of-a-kind jewlery pieces. Until recently, I had taken a long hiatus from using colored stones in my work. But the lapis stone hit a perfect note with my latest work and became part of my newest jewelry chorus, that features colored stones, set in a silver frame and finished with a handmade chain!!

What do you think?

I think I might be tempted to keep it. Shhh! Don’t tell SR.

Now for the BAD NEWS…

I was expecting the arrival of a little brown package today.
But 6 p.m. rolled around, and there was still no package. Where in the world could it be?

I had my suspicions, so I checked my handy UPS tracking number again. It told me that my delivery was scheduled to be on time, but an “EXCEPTION” had occurred. An “EXCEPTION?”

Okay. So I read a little futher and it said that our address did not exist. Oh no, not again! Our house has an unfortunate habit of being transported to the twilight zone whenever the friendly UPS man comes around (I wish it would do that when the not-so-friendly gravel sleaseman… I mean… salesman honks his horn in my driveway at 8:00 in the morning).

About 70% of the time, deliveries reach our house without a hitch. The other 30% of the time reminds me of one of the few cons of living off the beaten path, as in, not in a neighborhood. Well, if it doesn’t come tomorrow, I will have to hunt down that truck with my hammer and torch – a mad jeweler on the loose, LOOK OUT!

So sorry for those of you who are waiting for the arrival of your Dream Spiral Art Jewelries or Supplies. Rest assured, as soon as I get that package, I can put the finishing touches on your pieces and zip them off to you in the mail! Oh, and I’m doubly sorry for my grumpy face in the photos. Hopefully you won’t have to see that ever again (I usually save those faces for my Sweetie Pie).

INSOMNIA. Teetering with the excitement of my newfound freedom, a laundry list of things to do, passing like cars on a freight train two miles long. Both the beauty and burden of working for oneself.

Did I forget to mention that I quit my desk job last Wednesday? In preparation for my final chapter of four years with Virginia’s judiciary, I may have forgotten to write you much these past few weeks.

They threw me a most generous exit party equipped with a gi-normous cake, presents galore, and an open house for the entire building to eat cake and bid me a merry farewell. For my last lunch with the front office, the ladies treated me to my favorite brunch at Cafe Gutenburg. A girl couldn’t have dreamed of a lovlier send-off to propel her with love and excitement for the journey ahead.

Sometimes a girl just knows it’s time for her to fly. And this little birdy has let the wind lift her wings for a new adventure.

In the fall I will be going back to school to reaquaint myself with an old flame that bears a hundred names: holistic health, alternative healing, eastern medicine, naturopathy, herbal healing, holism, mind-body wellness, homeopathy, spiritual healing, and therapeutic touch. Addressing both my psysical, psychological and spiritual well-being, so that I may, in turn, help others, I have decided to become a massage therapist.

I start the program in September. Until then I am full throttle wielding my hammer and torch, working from home, selling in my Etsy store, and at weekend festivals, developing my number one passion, my jewelry biz, Dream Spiral Art.

I must admit, though, I am a little scared. Sometimes when the heart has desired something so precious for so long, it is frightening to finally embrace it.

The unknowns jut out like jagged rocks along a road of mountain switchbacks. But I know that perspective is not achieved when dwelling at the bottom so it’s time to put on my hiking boots and begin the ascent.

POST SCRIPT: All birdy photos are compliments of my bird-man-in-residence (the one who really makes my wings soar), SMB.

Everything is growing so ferociously in our garden that I decided it’d be fun to document the weekly harvest.

FRIDAY: Gorgeous gladiolas (a feast for the eyes), two tomatoes, and a yellow squash.

Monday: One Japanese eggplant, two zucchini, several tomatoes, two cucumbers, and a fistful of string beans.

Thursday: one butternut squash, one cucumber, six cat-sized zucchini!

Do you know any good zucchini recipes???

Seriously.