Spring is Here with Cherry Blossoms and Art Shows, Tulip Fields, Pink Moons, and Visits with Family

My pink typewriter with cherry petals

Spring is Here—Cherry Blossoms and Art Galleries

In the days after AWP in LA, spring began springing in Seattle, although a bit colder than usual. The first sign here of spring is daffodils and cherry blossoms. We have several trees that I planted in our yard, and down the street, even more, so although it is a custom to go downtown to the UW quad to visit the almost-100-year-old cherry blossom grove, we usually get our cherry blossom fix closer to home.

Being outside is really good for me, even when I’m tired and feeling a bit sneezy (we’ve had a heck of an allergy season, despite or maybe because of the cold?), so I’m happy to have a bit less cold wind and a rain and at least a couple of partially sunny days.

Dewi Plass – Marvel

Visiting Art Galleries

Another soul-restoring practice of mine, besides spending time with flowers, is spending time with art. So, we went downtown to the new location (hard to find and in a bit of a dodgy area of town, but huge and well-lit) of Roq La Rue, my favorite art gallery in Seattle. They had a beautiful collection of smaller pieces called “Spectacle du Petite,” one of which I was able to take home (happy birthday to me!) Besides this, they had spectacular sculptures and new work by another favorite artist, Josie Moran. They just opened a new show this last Friday, so take a peek at their web site to see what’s going to be there. Worth the trip (and some level of confusion) finding it!

The day we went down we also went by a very friendly-seeming anti-Trump protest and a group of trans folks raising money for ACLU. It was sunny and everyone was in good spirits, even the gathered police, and despite what people on the right say about Seattle, I was happy and proud to be part of such a vibrant and inclusive community.

Annual Trip to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

Which, because spring is late this year, meant we saw not only fields of tulips, but fields of daffodils, still-blooming cherry trees, and early/late camellias and rhododendrons. I always wish I could stay longer and do more exploring up in the area, but this was a quick day trip (to avoid the work being done on the house—this time, noisy electrical work)—and I wore out after about nine hours out and about in the fields anyway. In the meantime, enjoy these pics—when I posted some of these on Instagram with a guess-where-I-am caption, several people guessed Holland! But you can totally imagine Holland looking at these pictures.

Pink Moon and Visiting Family

The full Pink Moon was actually pink this weekend, so I tried to get a picture of it in its true color which is always challenging but this one got pretty close.

My birthday is coming up soon which is always a time of introspection, as is tax time (how is it possible I did so much freelance work for so little money? I ask every year.) I am hoping to find a new home for my next book, maybe a chance to do more lucrative work teaching or publishing, and of course, balancing the joys of life and the stress plus health stuff. I am trying to find more disabled and chronically ill women’s books to review (so definitely comment if you have a new book coming out), and besides the book club and open mic, trying to get together more regularly with other writers. AWP (and maybe the art gallery and protest, too) reminded me of the strengths of feeling like part of a community, rather than just a lone eccentric trying to live your lone eccentric writer life. Helping others, speaking up, these things are also part of feeding the soul, not to get too cheesy.

I also got to visit my little brother’s newly renovated home (beautiful!) in a lovely neighborhood and got to see the way he and my sister-in-law have already started making it their own—hanging art, arranging furniture, trying to beautify the yard (which the previous owner had left a lot of gravel). I am reminded that someday soon our own home renovations will be done, and we can concentrate on something else, but also, in this area, buying and maintaining a home is no joke, financially, but somewhat more stable than the veering stock market this week, for instance. I always like to touch base with my family, and it felt nice to actually spend an hour or two just talking and catching up.

Wishing you some time with flowers, art, full moons, and family and friends this month.