The Enchanted Doll impressed me so much today that I had to share it with you.

A young Russian woman living in Vancouver makes these amazing porcelain dolls and their elaborate beaded costumes. www.enchanteddoll.com

Today I awoke with the startling realization that there is just so much more that I want to do than I'm ever going to have time for. Isn't life delightful.

Have you ever been in the presence of a young animal, a dog or a small child or a possum perhaps? And there just was this urge to get down on your knees and invite it to play. To move this way and that and entice and withdraw, touch and nudge, until the two of you were rolling and frolicking about together. Well, I know I've had that experience and sometimes it is the most alive and present experience in the world.
V. and I get to do it a fair bit in fact right on the living room floor, or chasing each other around the park, even making faces across the dinner table can have that element of deep connection and communication under the hilarious laughter.
There is someone else who's had this experience. He's had it a lot. His name is Fred O. Donaldson and he coined the term "Original Play" to describe it.
There is a group here in town who holds space and practices is regularly and I've been a few times to remind myself and expose V. She just loves it.
We went again last Saturday to the "Play after Play" where we saw a short play put on by just three people and mainly just their bodies and the sounds they could make with them as props. It was really funny and sweet and after that they roll out the mats and invite the kids on to them to play. It was so much fun. Viridian was totally delighted and came back for more over and over.
We've been taking time to move responsibilities and things out of the way and get down on the floor to play more and more since then.
My words can't fully describe it and neither will Fred's, but they have a website anyway that can point in the right direction. Enjoy http://originalplay.com/about_us.htm

I woke in the night to the sound of wind whipping through the chain link fence and water splattering the windows. Nighttime carries an impressive thickness in the air. As if darkness where denser than light. And I breathe in the power of my own experience; Life flowing through me and around. Here I stand in the midst of the being of being and awareness is reflected back to me from all around.

I am currently greatly enjoying the tales of His Dark Materials: The Subtle Knife

what an adventure to follow Lyra through many worlds.

Cool Games

Today my friend sent me to this site with really cool games. I don't usually like games that much but these are different. Easy enough for me to figure out and cute little pictures. I particularly liked the panda and the snow rider.

http://www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/

I think I've been on the computer too long today. But I just couldn't fall asleep and I've been having so much fun with blogging and putting photos online and linking stuff. It may not look like much yet but I've spent many hours learning over here.

Contemplation. Today I felt like the weather;
wind blowing, rain falling, sun shining, water leaking through the walls
extatic,alive, angry, content, confused
and the light was so bright as it shone under the clouds and lit up the golden trees with it's glory
and the colors were brilliantly surreal under the grey sky at noon
water filled the streets with puddles side to side
I love living in Portland in the fall

Baby Possum

Baby Possum
Originally uploaded by kittycat323.

Last summer we went to our neighbor's house to bake fish and bread in his oven. The sourdough took a long time to rise so I ended up sitting out in the back yard until late at night watching the oven and talking. All of a sudden we heard this crinkling in the leaves and there were two baby possums. Don caught one and we contemplated keeping it as a pet or perhaps giving it to someone we know.
But who wants a huge carnivorous rat in their house?
So he walked a block away to release it. In the meantime three more babies wandered by. I think they live in his basement.

What a week as a parent. And that is just one layer of my experience. In the background is this seed set by a book with a suprising title "Busting Loose from the Money Game" which really isn't that much about money.
How about the thought that the whole Universe is a creation of my Consciousness. As I walk around in the blustery wind and see all the leaves on the trees in their infinte beauty and the cars with all their techno complexity am I really supposed to believe that on some level I created it all.
Now there's something to chew on.