Lost Camera

Dear Reader;

 Simplifying my life has become a joy. Every day I'm starting to examine my daily activities more closely and I'm always asking myself,"How can I made this easier....more streamlined...more compact...fewer steps?"

 My homes have always been quite simple but now I feel the urge to let even more things go and only live with what I truly value...yet not be crazy attached to. When I say those words in my mind I am seeing and hearing the heartbroken cries of a permaculture teacher who had stayed with us for a few weeks while we were living in Panama. She was really cool...very nice..knowledgeable about the permaculture course that she was giving and excellent with her students. One morning I heard this terrible crying coming from her upstairs bedroom so I rushed to see what had happened. She was sobbing hysterically and during lulls of her outburst ...she told me that she just found out that her digital camera had been stolen out of her bag..probably when she got out of the water taxi. I sympathized at the loss...gave her a hot cup of tea but that did not help. She cried...and cried...and cried...for the entire day! Frankly after about an hour I just wanted to smack her......and shout...."IT'S A CAMERA FOR GODS SAKE....SO SHUT THE HELL UP!!!"

 Instead I just waited it out and she was fine by the next day. If I remember correctly  the only time that I was truly upset about losing something was when I asked my then 13 year old daughter to trim my hair...just cut off an inch or so from the bottom. I did trust her judgement because she was good at makeup..hair...and fashion. Instead of starting with a little snip..she cut a chunk of hair off around ear level! Of course she had to finish the job and when I went to tie my hair up...it was to short! You have to understand that my hair is super fine and if it gets into my face it tickles and is just plain annoying plus I just had a baby...so I will blame it all on those crazy..unpredictable female hormones. Of course I started to cry and then my husband came in to see what was going on and scolded her for the bad haircut....then she cried....:) Drama...drama..drama...

  Anyhow ...where was I? Oh yes....so this week I was trying to solve the problem of a cold bathroom floor. This was the journey....cold floor...move rug from front because not using front door in winter....put rug in bathroom....good...but buckets of water are filled in the bathroom laundry tub three times a day for the cows....hay and straw all over the rug....sweep rug...vacuum rug...still dirty looking....alright move wooden floor mat to bathroom from shower but then feet are still cold....so buy bathroom slippers....hate bathroom slippers... wood chips and hay get stuck all over them....buy another pair of slippers...hate slippers...they shlop...shlop...around the house....finally I put my favorite velvet outdoor flats on and just wear them everywhere! Now not only do I love my indoor shoes but I also did away with the bathroom mat and two pairs of slippers. I know that the energy should not be transferred from the bathroom but at this point ...I don't care.

 The reason all this minimizing stuff is important is to make room for discovering how you really want to spend your time. I discovered that I require a space to put all of my books and art supplies. I've now spent a few days getting my writing/art/entertainment studio together. I would like to spend more time writing and also adding a more personal touch to this blog by incorporating my art.

 Just try it...look around right now and get rid of those papers....or books..or magazines that you no longer use. It feels great to start simplifying your life. Simplifying isn't actually a destination but a way of life.

Hare Krsna.
Kokum Lal

Millions of Diamonds

Dear Reader;

 Today we are digging ourselves out of the snow!

 The most amazing sight to see when that sun finally shone was that it looked as though our entire world had been blanketed by millions of sparking diamonds. That sight was the silver lining in an other wise very difficult two days.

 Here are some pictures where you can see the height of some of the snow drifts. Sticking with our minimalist lifestyle G parked the truck as close the road as possible so that the digging out would be much simpler. We also dug out just enough snow for a narrow pathway to the house from the truck.  We  learnt that it is better to remove the snow as quickly as possible after the snowfall while it is still light and fluffy.

 G spent the past few days working on plumbing the upstairs bathroom and I have been analyzing and removing all the things around the house that are not being used on a daily basis. Stripping the house down to get to the essence. Every item that I remove I feel so much lighter. I even found $40 in a pocket of a shirt.

 That reminds me of a story that my friend told me. Michelle told me how annoyed she would get when her twin sister would regularly find forgotten money in a purse,trouser or jacket pocket. Her sister would always be so pleased at this unexpected surprise so feeling a little envious Michelle would purposely hide money in various clothing pockets. The plan always failed because she would remember exactly where she had hidden it.

 I tend to be a little bit like her sister...kind of scatty about money. Good thing that I have it but .."Oh..well!" if I don't. I swear if it wasn't for my husband who takes such good care of me I would simply be wafting around the planet like a dandelion puff.

Hare Krsna.
Kokum Lal

All women are angels ..if you break our wings...we fly on broomsticks...we're flexible like that!

Blizzard 2013 (Video)

Dear Reader;

 Wow....it's is wild out there! Winds...snow....snowdrifts....makes you feel..alive!

Hare Krsna.
Kokum Lal