Like many people I have been fascinated by dreams. Dreams have been analyzed, psychoanalyzed, studied, dissected, interpreted, symbolized, mythed, demythed, etc. since the first caveman turned to his mate and said “I had the strangest dream last night.” Forthe Australian aboriginal people the Dreamtime is part of their sacred beliefs. It was as a child living in New Mexico that I first saw a dream catcher among the craft works of the Navaho people. To this day I have a dream catcher by my bed. I believe that my fascination of dreams comes from that time in New Mexico where I was a young child. I know my mother and brothers found the weekend trips to the ruins from Native American civilizations boring but for Dad and I the history that we felt from being at a place where history existed was very palatable and real. I will never forget the awe I felt when we experienced the Anasazi cliff dwellings.
I have read the works of Jung. I have read Dr. Ann Faraday’s books on dreams. I have read about Native American beliefs and the beliefs of people from around the world. But in the end it always comes down to a personal realization that dreams are a unique part of us as individuals. I have lately been going through a period of intense dreaming. I notice that when I am ill and running a fever that dreams come more frequently and often times I wake up thinking that I really need a new script writer because my dreams make no sense. Familiar people run through my dreams in unfamiliar circumstances. In my dreams my Dad is often still alive.
I didn’t go to work today because I was running a fever and my throat is raw. I went back to bed and as I have for the last several nights started to dream. In the dream I was angry at a phone service to a new home where the technicians were totally indifferent to the fact that we needed the service set up. They didn’t care that I had a mother with a bad heart and I needed to be able to get help for her. In the dream I did something I would never do in real life I assaulted the technician and forced him to schedule the service we needed. As I was trying to get him to cooperate ambulance workers were taking my Mom out of the house because she had another attack. I woke from the dream highly disturbed.
It is easy to see that I am worried about my Mom. Even in my dreams I try to take care of her. The unaccustomed violence bothered me until I realized that in the real world I have been “fighting” for health care ever since the election. It is something that I passionately believe in. I think it is significant that we “fight” for our beliefs. While we may not resort to the violence that the word implies we “battle” for our beliefs and trying to get things done in a legal manner still takes a physical toll from us. I feel as drained by the constant attempts to push my representatives, to write and try and persuade other for the cause, the constant trying to convince the people I deal with on a day to day basis, as I would if I had entered the ring in a boxing contest.
If you don’t deal with the day to day stress the mind will find a way to force you to do so often in dreams. There are still battles ahead. This health care reform isn’t the final and complete answer. We still are looking at financial reform, immigration, DADT in the military, the environment, wars and conflicts in the world. We still have much left to do. I have so much I still want to accomplish. My main task is always as care giver to my Mom. I gave her a copy of my Easter picture and raved how fast the new machine she bought for me rendered the picture. A picture that size normally would take a couple of hours and it was done in seven minutes. The joy in her face over the sweet picture made me happy.
So as I continue to work in the political “battles” ahead I will try and remain as optimistic as I can.I will continue to share my art and photos with others because as I see in my Mom’s face when I share with her the art and photos can brighten the lives of others. I try to be encouraging in my writings because people need to know that what they do matter and the fight may be hard but we can win in we don’t give up.
I will listen the dreams when they are trying to tell me something and enjoy the ones that seem to be movies that entertain. And if my mind wants to continue to put David Tennant or John Barrowman in them either in “real” life or playing The Doctor and Captain Jack Harkness from “Doctor Who” I won’t mind one little bit.
Today is my birthday. Most of the celebrating will be done curled up asleep next to the cats while I try and fight off this cold.My head is pounding, the sinuses are dripping, I ache all over, my throat is raw. Still it will be a nice day. I already heard from an old friend and we chatted for over a half hour. He built my work horse computer years ago and it is still running strong. I heard from one brother and will probably hear from the other two out California and Texas way.
In spite of feeling like death warmed over I realize that I have a lot going for me today. For starters a tornado isn’t hitting the other side of town like it did the day I was born. I can still get around and take Spring pictures. I can still do my art work. I just spent a couple of hours trying to round up all the pieces of the art programs and put them in the same place so I can do art work. This weekend is devoted to new pictures.
My Mom is still sleeping as her sinuses are acting up from being out in the wind yesterday. She is frail but I have her for another birthday for which I am truly thankful. We had a horrible storm the other night but today is bright blue skies and fairly warm temperatures and that makes me happy. I have an art commission from my niece for her youngest child’s birthday next month. Working on my art always makes me happy.
It is a day to be in touch with good friends. A day to play on my computer. A day to ignore my cold and have a happy birthday. It is a day to look at some of the things that make me happy. I have my family. I have friends. I have good books to read. I have some of my favorite movies and television shows on DVD to watch. I have my artwork to work on. I am thankful that many of the people we see at the hospital will be covered b the new health care program.I have always felt bad that we had so many really sick people coming in and they have no way to pay for the health care they need to get well. Maybe now they will have a chance. Maybe now the new insurance company we negotiated with last week will pay for my mother’s continued care. Her other insurance took money each month but never seemed to pay anything.
So today I feel like my “Tiffany Garden” picture. It is full of Spring and color but at the same time all the textures are glass. Beautiful and fragile that is how life is today
Being half Irish I have always loved St. Patrick’s Day. I love the stories and oral traditions of the Celtic people. I grew up on fairy tales. I love Irish music and dance. My brother got me an early birthday present of a Celtic Women CD with one of my favorite songs “Fields of Gold” on it and an incredible version of “Amazing Grace.” My Walkman has Clannad, Celtic Women, Seamus Kennedy, Loreena McKennitt, Alex Beaton, the Irish Rovers, The Chieftains and U2 on it. So Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone. Here are some Irish pearls of wisdom and some of humor for you. My picture illustrates one of my favorite Irish sayings. So on this festive day “May You Dance.”
May those who love us, love us And those who don’t, May God turn their hearts. And if He doesn’t turn their hearts, May He turn their ankles so we’ll know Them by their limping.
The secret of the Irish is to live a long time without growing old.
The day God created the Irish He didn’t do another thing except sit down and smile.
May you be in Heaven a half hour before the devil knows you’re dead.
May you live to be a hundred years, With one extra year to repent.
May God bring good health to your enemies’ enemies.
May your blessings be many, Your troubles be few. May the love in your hearts Forever be true.
May your mornings bring joy. And your evenings bring peace. May your troubles grow few. And your blessings increase.
May your home always be too small To hold all of your friends.
Dance as if no one were watching. Sing as if no one were listening. Live each day as if it’s your last.
Bless us with good food, The gift of gab. And hearty laughter. May the love and joy We share Be with us Ever after.
May your troubles be less And your blessings be more. And nothing but happiness Comes through your door.
May the road rise to meet you; May the wind be always at your back; May the sun shine warm upon your face; The rains fall softly upon your fields; And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
May you live as long as you want; and not want as long as you live.
May you have warm words on a cold evening, A full moon on a dark night, And the road downhill All the way to your door.
May the best day of your past Be the worst day of your future.
May your neighbors respect you, Troubles neglect you, The angels protect you, And heaven accept you.
Patience is a virtue and I am one of those “God grant me patience and I want it now” people. It has been a hard couple of months with the computer problems and not being able to do art work or get on the internet regularly to talk to friends. Thanks to my mother’s big heart I can now do that. For all the physical damage there is in her heart the spiritual and loving part is as big as ever. She had insisted that since she bought my brother three computers over the years she was buying me one. She didn’t care that the total package was just over $1,000.00. All she cared about was the fact that her daughter couldn’t afford to get a new one and she wanted me to be able to do my art work and play on the computer as it is my stress buster. There is no price tag on love.
I brought “Ruby” home on Friday and she is a beauty. She has a ruby red, black, and silver case with a glass door that let’s you see what is going on inside. For the geeks like me she has a Logisys CS308RD-10 Bay ATX mid tower, Intel Core 2 Duo ET600 3.06 GHz, 2 2G-Kingston Value RAM KVR800D2Ng/2G chips, a Western Digital Caviar Green Tera drive, a Hitachi/LG LG22L240 22x DVD+RW, Microsoft Windows 7 Premium Edition (we are running it at 32 bit because of older programs but I can do 64 bit if I wish), a MSI GeForce 9500 GTT 512 MB GDDR3 graphics accelerator, and an Intel Desktop Board DG43GtiG43. Or in others words for the non-geeks this is what the tech called one “kickass machine.”
It is a dream machine. It is going to take some more work getting all the programs back on so I can continue to do my art work but after playing all weekend I am in awe of the ease and beauty of this computer. Most of all I am so terribly grateful to my Mom for insisting that I have our tech make me the machine I needed to do my art. Her eyes lit up when she came up to see the machine. For her the idea that one of her children was happy was all that mattered. And I am so very happy.
This machine gives me the ability to give back also. I can continue to do my art work and share my recipes and thoughts. I can continue to talk and share with friends. I have missed being able to do that on a regular basis these last two months. So with St. Patrick’s Day coming up I thought I’d share some of the Irish themed recipes I have come up with over the years. One is for Irish-American Shepherd’s Pie and the other three went together as a meal one year. And of course I want to share some of my Irish themed art work. This one is called “Irish Sea.”
Irish American Shepherd's Pie
Recipe By :Michele Wilson Serving Size : 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 1 1/4 pounds ground beef, extra lean 1 tablespoon olive oil 3 ounces baby carrots -- diced 8 ounces mushrooms -- sliced 1 cup celery -- diced 1 cup frozen green peas 1 cup frozen corn 1 small onion -- diced 2 cloves garlic -- minced 1 tablespoon dijon mustard 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce 1/4 cup red wine -- or beef broth 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt 1/4 teaspoon seasoned pepper 1/2 teaspoon allspice 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1 1/2 pounds potatoes -- peeled and cubed 1/2 cup low-fat sour cream 1 cup low sodium cheddar cheese -- shredded 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Add potatoes to boiling water. Cook 15 minutes or until tender. Drain. In a separate pan cook carrots in boiling water. Drain.
Mash potatoes with sour cream, cheddar cheese, salt and white pepper.
Add olive oil to large frying pan and heat. Cook beef, onions, mushrooms and garlic until no pink remains in beef and vegetables are softened.
Add carrots, peas, celery and corn. Cook until vegetables are softened.
Mix cornstarch and wine. Add to beef and vegetables. Add dijon mustard, seasoned salt, seasoned pepper and allspice. Mix well and cooked until gravy has thickened.
Put meat and vegetable mixture in a 2 quart casserole. Cover with mashed potatoes.
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 3 pounds corned beef brisket -- lean 1/2 cup honey 1/4 cup orange juice 4 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 2 whole bay leaves 1 teaspoon peppercorns 1 medium onion 30 whole cloves 1 teaspoon mustard seed
Stud the onion with cloves.
In a large pot place corned beef brisket, onion, bay leaves, mustard seeds and peppercorns. Cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and cook around 2 1/2 hours or until tender
Heat oven to 350°F.
In a bowl combine honey, Dijon mustard, orange juice and ground cloves.
Put meat in an oven proof dish and spread with honey mixture. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until glaze is just brown and crisp. Halfway through brush meat with glaze.
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