Enriched Living
Through the month of November, I’ve been writing in a regular rhythm again. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings without fail I’ve gone into the office/sanctuary in a high focus mode, and writing hard and true. Those pages are not at all ready for your reading, in fact I’m hardly reading it myself. At the end of each session I do read it over, but don’t interfere with it more than that. December will begin the editing of it, to see how next to work with it. I’ll keep you posted.
So that’s why you haven’t heard from me until now, the very last day of November. And here with only a brief overview, some photos, not much writing. I promise, future issues will feature more thoughtful articles. Till then, scroll down and take a peek at some of the thoughts and doings.
The photo is of my writing desk with notebook open, and pen at the ready. I start with a little bit of scent inspiration from this bottle of fancy Noora Onyx perfume oil. It is complex, described as follows: Top notes are Lavender, Rosemary, Lemon Verbena, Artemisia, Lemon, Rose, Bergamot and Basil; middle notes are Juniper, Jasmine, Coriander, Carnation and Cinnamon; base notes are Leather, Fir, Oakmoss, Amber, Patchouli, Cedar, Sandalwood, Vetiver and Vanilla. Wow! If only my writing could be that evocative of the riches of life.
I’ve interspersed this issue with some photos, catching up on November moods.
Go Electric!
I’m feeling virtuous and good, since many of the electrification upgrades listed in this issue of Important, Not Important newsletter is ticking all the boxes here at our place. No EV car yet but do E-bikes count? (Well, only if you ride them.)
Not completely electric, since we’ve taken to using the wood stove for heating this winter, using the heat pump as backup. And weather-driven power outages mean we may have to depend on the barbeque if the induction stove is off. Folks have gas generators just in case. These gas cans for sale on the Salt Spring Exchange look like totem faces from figures of gods gone by.
Years ago, James K-M and I produced a project based on interviews with artists and media theorists about new media and its impacts. I still love the project’s name: “Electric Living” — based on a 1985 quote from Barrington Nevitt, an associate of Marshall McLuhan: “Our present hangups are due to the incompatibility of sequential thinking with the simultaneities of electric living.” (from ABC of Prophecy: Understanding the Environment)
Reflections on this Newsletter
I suppose I can apply the Barry Nevitt quote to my own present conundrum around this newsletter. This last month of writing has shown me some of the levels of engagement that are inevitable when I just begin to write. This open allowing comes up hard against my inner analyst, so I sort through deciding just what to send out to you and what to keep for my longer works. I’m still in process with that, but I owe you an update.
What I’ve Figured Out
I began this newsletter around half a year before the Covid gang came riding in to shoot up the saloon and wreck the town. When the Sheriff declared a general quarantine, I relied on my newsletter. It took me further inside and I reached out to you from there. It saw me through a move from the intensities of downtown Vancouver to the beauty and nature of Salt Spring Island. We’ve lived on the island for two years now — I don’t recognize my newsletter anymore. I’ve changed, the world has changed, the purpose has changed and I’m still figuring out what that is. It’s okay for it to evolve and shift. It is like a kite sent up into the air and then the winds blow from more than one direction, all at once. Kind of similar to this celestial phenomenon.
What exactly IS happening here? I’m using the focus of my pen to find out. So hang on, I just have to catch up to its transformation and you’ll be the first to know!
Ultimately, this is just a little newsletter from me to you, sharing some of my thoughts and doings. If some of the marketing tools that Substack has started to bake into the system get in your way, just ignore them as I do.
Watch this space!
No need for more. But nevertheless, more is on its way. In December, I’ll be sending more often - just read it when you can.
Thanks so much for staying with me on this exploration, I really do so appreciate your comments and connection.
And hey, if you’re starting a Substack and want a buddy in the process, just let me know!
Really appreciate your openness and the breadth of your ideas.
Thank you Carol. Don't change too much, you were/are appreciated/loved as you are/were.