Mojave Light Musing

So all I can say of the past week is 'Wow!'...... Not only have I stepped out of my own rut but I've been catapulted squarely from my dream into my new reality. Can't say too much at the moment as I'm frantically preparing for a trip to Alaska with my son - visiting friends and meandering in the wild, open spaces. Around that, I am tying up loose ends with helping get our annual Open Studio Art Tours ready - my 'job' is prepping the artists' images for the catalog and website and making sure everyone has something suitable to show. It's been a learning experience to be sure - I can't wait to see this year's works. We have some inspiring folks nestled among the desert boulders and thorns..... What a treat to be working with some of them behind the scenes... What's this dream of yours, you ask? Oh.....to take my imagery to a whole new level - for the area I live in anyway. The photograph in the frame route feels so 'been there, done t...

Whew...busy, busy, busy.... Snippets of what's brewing in this desert heat (of which we've been given a lovely reprieve with bouts of glorious rain, cool breezes, and semi-cloudy days - my a/c is on a much needed hiatus...)... This is what is brewing this very minute out of the picture window where I sit and do 'computer stuff' - meaning prepping over 125 photos. Twice. At least. For every photo used in the catalog and on the website. Our upcoming Hwy 62 Open Studio Art Tours  is the last 2 weekends in October.  Follow it here ! The horizon is now filled with darkening clouds, the promise of more rain in the air. Monsoon season has arrived earlier yet we are still behind in annual rain fall.... Christmas in July! A birthday present 6 months early! Or how about just a well-deserved, much planned for gift to myself? Finally. I can print my works the way I want. Stay tuned for printed pieces and how to buy them and where they will be showing.... ...

Sometimes, I feel like I'm on a path so well trodden that I can't see over the berm to the views alongside me.... Isn't this supposed to be summer vacation? What teachers dream of after the turmoil of test prep, crowded classrooms, and bureaucratic confusion? I have this habit of not being able to say no to things I really have no interest in doing which takes me away from those I do - even during summer vacation. And then nothing gets done. Yesterday was a day like that. I couldn't relax. I couldn't "get productive".  And then I just got grumpy... So, I broke out the trampoline and rebounded for about a 1/2 hour to rev up the blood flow.... Then, I took myself out to a movie.......  "To Rome With Love" - the newest Woody Allen flick. You have to appreciate Woody's meandering, quirky humor of the human psyche. You either get him or you don't. I do. So, it was a fun-get-out-of-my-dull-mood movie for me. Next, I had Ben...

What to you think about as you meander around the great outdoors? Do you meander in the great outdoors? If not, you absolutely should. Dr. Shay's orders. It's good for what ails you and reinforces all that doesn't.  I stumbled upon this poem somewhere on the 'net.  Something to turn over in your mind as you wander instead of the usual things that can strip us of peace and joy..... My favorite light at the end of the day - just before sunset..... 2012 ©Diana Shay Diehl / JTNP Promise Yourself... To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet. To make all your friends feel that there is something in them To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true. To think only the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best. To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own. To forget the mistakes of the past and pr...

For those dear readers who do not live in the USA, today is the 236th birthday since our nation signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 in Philadelphia's Independence Hall. Regardless of anyone's political beliefs or frustrations with the current political climate, you've got to admit, no other country has embraced diversity and human rights like this country has. Yes, there are many issues to wag one's tongue at and shake our heads in disbelief - but, we have a choice in this country. And that choice is to vote and make noise for what's the right thing to do. Is everyone happy with those choices or how they may come about? No. Certainly not. But I don't think that is the point..... In any event, there is much to be grateful for and celebrate in this country I call home. I hope you will find that to be true for yourself as well. Here is a link to the original wording of the Declaration of Independence. The words ring as true today as they did ...