The Celtic New Year

...and a blessed and beautiful Samhain to you all.

~Rhiannon at the Willow Cottage on the Wyndy Hill

Quiet But Busy

October has been such a busy month. It's kept me a bit quiet on my three blogs...quiet but busy! I normally post more often than this but I've squeezed in a few days of stripping my old Thomas Edison 'Little Folks Furniture' dresser, circa 1930's. A favorite era-the 20's, 30's and early 40's. All my hard labor in stripping away decades of paint is eased with a little Al Bowlly playing in my head. At the moment, 'The Very Thought of You' is on constant rotation :)

What's left of the Edison 'Little Folks Furniture' label on the dresser...

 The door and drawers in it's last color; black....

 Getting down through the last layers of time...

to it's beginning. Finally! Now...all I have to do is strip the drawers and the door, have a new wood handle made for the door to match the drawers' handles (original is missing), buy new hinges and door closure hardware that match the originals, that are in unusable condition, then sand, then stain....so, not really done ;)

I've also been working long hours on geneology projects...

 My German-Austrian and British roots.

My family, in California in the 1920's

Also, planning a garden in the side yard for upcoming spring. Big plans for a little area! Raised beds, surrounded (hopefully) by grass, rain/snow collecting barrels at the far end (where the hideous chain link resides) and hopefully a clothes line! No need to use the gas dryer, no need to waste water while watering my veggies and fruits and no need to depend on the grocery stores toxic, over-priced produce! Whew! Big project :)

Then there are my daily walks with my friend, we'll call 'Mrs. Becks' ...



Page from 'I Spy'

All the while, trying to get the work ball rolling. It's hard to get the ball rolling when it isn't in your court anymore...just waiting on someone else...

And still find time to do 'fun stuff', silliness that I enjoy....mainly decorating.

One of the sheds

 Green Man and acorns...

Autumn-gray sky, reflected in the cherubs birdbath...

And I'm never far from my true inspiration...my Moon, my Luna; always has been and always will be the most beautiful vision I have ever been blessed to see.

 Luna rising over the pines at Willow Cottage on a crisp Autumn night, with the scent of a wood-burning fire in the air...as the clouds pass over her.

Mabon Blessings, friends...
Oh! And don't forget to feed the birds :)

~Rhiannon

Rainy Southern California

I looooove rainy days. Although, being in Southern California, I can feel the waves of misery from all of those sun-lovin' folks that flock here to live in our sunshine. What's my story then? Why am I here? Well, I believe I'm one of those rare creatures that are called 'California Natives'. I was born here and although I love my Southern California and my good 'ol U.S. of A., I don't feel I've ever really belonged. My original blog (still up and running) is appropriately titled 'Elizabeth Rhiannon is...Misplaced in SoCal'. My story is...since the age of about 11 or 12 I began my obsession with England. Not in the way of 'fairytale, storybook land' or 'cute, little cobblestone streets with quaint teahouses' and 'aren't their accents adorable?'...more in a way of, I knew that's where I belonged. The simple things like beans on toast, rainy days, car boot sales, ancient history and my love of Brit music and Brit comedy among a million other little and not-so-little things. Not to mention Celtic Paganism that has always spoken to me. So, as I sit here, warm and snug in my cottage in the sky, I do what I do every rainy, blustery day, as I've done since childhood-I look outside and watch the rain and the beautiful dark clouds and dream of being in a different place...a place I belong.
~Rhiannon
(the photo above is mine, taken from our hotel room at the Grafton House. View of Durham Cathedral, Durham, England)

~Blessed October~

Well, today is the first day of my favorite month. The month I was born, the month of Samhain, the month of my favorite season and many other favorites that I won't get into now, as I've just spent a good part of my morning on my 'other, not-so-Pagan blog', blogging away about my love for the month of October. I've also created another blog about the area I live in, mainly for real estate purposes. Something has to give and this blog is paying the price.

 Which is unfortunate because my reason for creating this blog was to help get me back in the spiritual swing of things, so to say. I know life is about 'peaks and valleys' and the 'ebb and flow' of things...but I've been too long in the valleys and here, once again, I'm letting some soul-nurturing take a back seat. Tsk! Tsk!

 This 'little' folder is my latest reason. Filled with real estate 'stuff' that I need to organize and weed out. Something I should have been working on all morning...it's now 12:04...lunchtime! So, my stomach is telling me to get off the computer and fill it up.

I think I'll eat my lunch out in the beautiful, breezy first day of October, in the aftermath of last nights rain. Sit in the sunshine, talk to my usual robin that accompanies me in my outdoor excursions and contemplate October :)
See? The blog is helping me stay on track! :) Have a blessed day and Happy October...
~Rhiannon