Catching Up
This has been a year of major changes for us. Every time I have the photos and story together for the next blog, something major shifts that makes it feel out-of-date. The changes have been coming so rapidly that I haven't felt like I've had the time/space to focus on blogging, let alone the confidence to share what is unfolding in that moment! Facebook has been my primary quick-post venue to keep up with family and friends. I know that many of you do not use that kind of social network and may be wondering "what ever happened to Magic Mama?!"
So here's a quick summary:
This time last year, Indigo and I were van-less, living in the Driftless Community and volunteering for the Viroqua Harvest Celebration Parade. I made all the musical instruments and some costumes, we helped build and paint puppets and props, I organized all the music and entertainment in the park following the parade, provided and set up the sound system, and accompanied many of the acts as a drummer. Indigo was a crow in the parade, I was an apple and rode my old Schwinn cruiser, pulling a trailer that I decorated as an apple cart. Local kids distributed the real apples that filled my cart, sharing them with the crowd as we paraded through town.
Meanwhile, Sage was in his second year at Harbor City International School in Duluth, MN
I was also teaching paper making for the Driftless Folk School and we worked a couple of days a week on an Organic Farm. Indigo was quite helpful caring for our home in Viroqua.
I was invited to perform in Mendocino, California for a Halloween event so we borrowed a van, Sage took a couple of weeks off from school and joined us for a cross-country road trip!
I also worked with several Driftless herbalists in a commercial kitchen blending small batches of tea for Tea for the People
Most Friday nights I could be found at a Driftless Wine bar, playing music with Bob Hill
Unless it was the third Friday of the month, then I would be at Community Chant, playing Kirtan with Lauren Hunt and friends
I connected with Shanti Shivani for some musical gigs while we were on the Big Island
Just when we thought we were on our way back to "Mainlandia", our plane malfunctioned and dropped us off on Oahu. Since we were flying standby, the airline did not get us on a replacement flight so we had an unexpected island hopping adventure trying to find a flight back. We made it to Maui just in time for a big anti-GMO rally where we met Ben Cohen (of Ben and Jerry's) which was a highlight for Indigo (who LOVE's ice cream!)
Just before leaving the islands, we received news that the kid's dad intended to move to Oregon in the spring - before Sage was done with his second year of high school. So, after reconnecting in the Driftless and volunteering in Minneapolis a few times for the May Day parade puppet build....
Indigo and I found a room in a house in Duluth for Sage to join us and finish school. I played some music for the Spirit of the Lake Community Waldorf School, also a fundraiser for the Jefferson People's House and worked the dawn shift as a Piping Plover Monitor (walking the shore of Lake Superior, taking field notes for the St. Louis River Alliance).
I also painted some signs for an import store in Duluth and made more jewelry to be sold at the Nisse House of Art in Westby, WI
After Sage finished school, we all headed back to the Driftless. I performed in Richland Center for Ocoochapalooza and played a house concert at a solar home in Viroqua. We helped on a couple of farms, played some more Kirtan music, milked goats, made some art, and practiced our circus skills.
Then, we began selling our things to raise money to drive across the country to visit the kid's dad and check out the area.
And so begins the next series of blogs about our cross-continental adventure....!
So here's a quick summary:
This time last year, Indigo and I were van-less, living in the Driftless Community and volunteering for the Viroqua Harvest Celebration Parade. I made all the musical instruments and some costumes, we helped build and paint puppets and props, I organized all the music and entertainment in the park following the parade, provided and set up the sound system, and accompanied many of the acts as a drummer. Indigo was a crow in the parade, I was an apple and rode my old Schwinn cruiser, pulling a trailer that I decorated as an apple cart. Local kids distributed the real apples that filled my cart, sharing them with the crowd as we paraded through town.Meanwhile, Sage was in his second year at Harbor City International School in Duluth, MN
I was also teaching paper making for the Driftless Folk School and we worked a couple of days a week on an Organic Farm. Indigo was quite helpful caring for our home in Viroqua.
I was invited to perform in Mendocino, California for a Halloween event so we borrowed a van, Sage took a couple of weeks off from school and joined us for a cross-country road trip!
Back in the Driftless, I began a DreamWeavers project which is chronicled in earlier blogs here.
Most Friday nights I could be found at a Driftless Wine bar, playing music with Bob Hill
Indigo and I got ahold of a couple of stand-by tickets to Hawaii and did some work-trades for places to stay while we escaped the winter cold for awhile
Indigo's school consisted of snorkeling and circus arts
Just when we thought we were on our way back to "Mainlandia", our plane malfunctioned and dropped us off on Oahu. Since we were flying standby, the airline did not get us on a replacement flight so we had an unexpected island hopping adventure trying to find a flight back. We made it to Maui just in time for a big anti-GMO rally where we met Ben Cohen (of Ben and Jerry's) which was a highlight for Indigo (who LOVE's ice cream!)
Just before leaving the islands, we received news that the kid's dad intended to move to Oregon in the spring - before Sage was done with his second year of high school. So, after reconnecting in the Driftless and volunteering in Minneapolis a few times for the May Day parade puppet build....
Indigo and I found a room in a house in Duluth for Sage to join us and finish school. I played some music for the Spirit of the Lake Community Waldorf School, also a fundraiser for the Jefferson People's House and worked the dawn shift as a Piping Plover Monitor (walking the shore of Lake Superior, taking field notes for the St. Louis River Alliance).
I also painted some signs for an import store in Duluth and made more jewelry to be sold at the Nisse House of Art in Westby, WI
After Sage finished school, we all headed back to the Driftless. I performed in Richland Center for Ocoochapalooza and played a house concert at a solar home in Viroqua. We helped on a couple of farms, played some more Kirtan music, milked goats, made some art, and practiced our circus skills.
Then, we began selling our things to raise money to drive across the country to visit the kid's dad and check out the area.
And so begins the next series of blogs about our cross-continental adventure....!
