We have started working on The Chapel of Jimmy Ray today after a bit of a layoff in these weirdly up and down economic times….We will concentrate on the Chapel for now and Casa de Caca will follow.   This is all very exciting…we bought 11 boxes of tiles today for major mosaic and fountain work.  And to add to the festivities……Patzky has been declared Pet of the Week….his deep and fierce love made him "first place" this week while beating Manchas by a nose…so folks….Life is good.  I am starting a series of small paintings this weekend… so love to all and remember:  Remain in Groove and the Flowers will Shower!!!!

…..2:33 am at the computer.  Five of our seven dogs are engaged in some sort of barking ritual up by Carlos' house and I can't get back to sleep.  I do want to let those of you who read this blog know that I am bringing back "The Pet of the Week Award"  here at Casa de Las Ranas.  People asked me why I stopped and I really had no answer.  I could have and probably did make some sort of excuse up.  Upon returning from the States last week,  I have realized how deeply entwined Richard and I have become with this cast of critters and all the joy and love that they bring to our hearts.  So …this weeks' winner is none other than Cielo:  The Queen of the Love Groove…the Ultimate Cat Cuddler…she rules the Cat Scene both in and outside of this funky lil' folly we call home…she arrived here about 6 years ago with her brother Sueño.  A neighbor woman found the kitties out at the dump, she had them nestled in a shoe box outside her restaurant.  Our curiosity was too much and it was love at first purr.  The lil' ones needed a home and that was us.  Richard took on the duties of teaching the two lil' critters how to eat and shit and all those things a mother cat would do…Cielo, stole our hearts from the beginning…and the love continues to grow.  Congrats to Cielo, we love her dearly ….by the way, the dogs are still barking up the hill….

…well I have been back in Mexico for five days and stepping into the everlasting flow of the Groove that runs through our life here at Casa de Las Ranas.  Lots of projects in various forms and states of completion…the idea factory is going full tilt…make you want to get up and Groove!  Richard returns on Friday and that is certainly a plus.  The construction of the Chapel site will continue once I get some money issues untangled…here are some shots of Casa de Caca…all the walls are up…those are glass clear drops applied to the bottles with silicon to keep out the moisture…we will have an onion dome to cap it and mosaic work will collar the bottom exposed concrete…stain glassed window…mosaic toilet platform…that kind of thing…so we are Movin' and Groovin' and gettin' on down the Line…Jimmy Ray is coming out of retirement for some guest appearances…so stay tuned!

 

…I have been here in the United States since May 17 and in San Francisco since May 19.  It has been a quite delightful and message laden return to the Bay Area.  I have seen numerous friends…some real heart-to-heart joy filled and tearful moments.  Linda Bacon and her husband Charles threw a major party for my birthday at their home in Kentfield.  I am so blessed to have so many old souls in my life to live and play with.  Jamie Leo flew in from New York.  Jamie and I go back to the 1970's in the Village….woah!  We saw Marcia Ball and her band at Yoshi's on my birthday….she rocked the house.  Poor…Dear…Divine…and most Beloved Carol Wheeler got ill and was unable to attend the show…Last evening we had dinner with Lolita and Catherine Abby in Larkspur…two bottles of wine…laughs…good food…ahhhhh mashed potatoes! And then today…it happened….I got in a car accident in the rain driving Richard's car…it was my fault…nobody was injured…but it has been a tremendous wake up call…My aggressive Taxi techniques from New York days must cease…waiting is the key to this puzzle….I am feeling extremely vulnerable and shaky…I could have killed myself or the other driver…it was an accident and a message….I was on my way to a meeting….and kerwap!….Wake up!  Wake up!  The real lesson here is to acknowledge how vulnerable we all are and to bring as much awareness to all tasks…..to awaken and smell the coffee…have a cup…and witness….

…My friend Carol Wheeler and I are flying to LA on Monday from Mexico City.  Lolita (LoveeGroove) is going to meet us at the airport (my palms meet in prayer) and we are going to spend two days in Southern California.  We will visit Ojai and Santa Barbara and then head North to SF.  I have been a bit out of sorts for the last month…however, things are falling into place and I could use this "vacation"..I need to have another perspective for a bit…some sea air…winds above Noe Valley…old Dear Friends…the Bay (The One and Only Bay Area)…The Ferry Building…Vietnamese Food…long Urban Walks…that sorta thing…as long as Richard continues with this on-line teaching gig, I will continue going North once a year…its good for me…stirs the pot..stirs the heart…

…to realize the pinnacle takes some doing or better yet some "un-doing".  As time goes by, I find myself up to here in "doing"…physical…mental…and above all spiritual.  In quiet moments when this desiring  nature is less demonstrative, a small trigger….and the gratitude fills my cup…vision…unaltered…these moments are fleeting…what are these "needs" about?  Wanting to check out into absolute spacious unconscious blah!  Weakness…habit…treadmill…Samsara…Oh! To be so strong to accept….clarity without fanfare…I remember sitting on a marble floor on an early morning…long ago…and hearing a man say:  "Be Still and Know"…yes, the stillness…and to this day, the answer is in the Silence….yes.