My little room (my private temple of solitude!) at Vlierhof, with a view of the yurts, the herb garden and the sheep.
19 Dec 2009
softly, softly
My little room (my private temple of solitude!) at Vlierhof, with a view of the yurts, the herb garden and the sheep.
7 Dec 2009
Chapter Two...
I leave Vlierhof tomorrow... I have lived here 2 months already!
I have never achieved so much or felt so free.
Tomorrow I take a night bus from Amstel station in Amsterdam to London, where I will have brunch with Steve and catch a tube to Stepney Green for my rideshare to vipassana!
2 more sleeps until vipassana! (I'll let you know if I survive.)
Sunshine!
Yoga!
Pranayama!
Life is good.
I have never achieved so much or felt so free.
Tomorrow I take a night bus from Amstel station in Amsterdam to London, where I will have brunch with Steve and catch a tube to Stepney Green for my rideshare to vipassana!
2 more sleeps until vipassana! (I'll let you know if I survive.)
Sunshine!
Yoga!
Pranayama!
Life is good.
30 Nov 2009
26 Nov 2009
24 Nov 2009
bikeporncentral 3 - Amsterdam
Alright, I couldn't think of a better title. I have been meaning to upload these for weeks and it seems criminal that they lie unseen in my desktop folder... so here's the latest installment in bike-envy ^_^
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so many neglected beauties (if only i had a bolt-cutter...)
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15 Nov 2009
12 Nov 2009
love story (think good thoughts on Friday 13th)
Love one another,
but make not a bond of love
Let it rather be a moving sea
between the shores of your souls.
Sing and dance together and be joyous,
but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone
though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts,
but not into each other's keeping;
For only the hand of Life
can contain your hearts.
And stand together
yet not too near together;
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress
grow not in each other's shadow.
~Khalil Gibran
but make not a bond of love
Let it rather be a moving sea
between the shores of your souls.
Sing and dance together and be joyous,
but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone
though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts,
but not into each other's keeping;
For only the hand of Life
can contain your hearts.
And stand together
yet not too near together;
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress
grow not in each other's shadow.
~Khalil Gibran
10 Nov 2009
25 Oct 2009
the community cosmos
Oops. My blog nearly joins the thousands of neglected blogs out there in the bloggy blogosphere. It was all those photos, and all those changes, and suddenly I am swept up in a whole new life and trying to stay in the present each day.
On the 5th I took a bus from London to Amsterdam, after a night of pure fun in epic proportions with Andy, Caroline and Filza at Black Seeds. (We had a picnic and drinks at the Barbican first off. Twas a sell-out show at Shepherds Bush and they were really high energy, and we danced and drank and danced some more, it was an amazing vibe.)
Late on Saturday night I dragged myself into Amstel station and spent a week with Arjuna in Baarn.
Sitting in silence.
Meditating.
Cooking.
Drinking wine.
Walking around the village talking to strangers, ogling bikes and spending time in conversation with the self-titled (and highly intelligent) town bum Laurence. I spent a day in Amsterdam just walking and absorbing and met Arjuna that night for snacks and drinks in a lovely cafe.
The first weekend we made a spontaneous plan to visit a community called Vlierhof on the German / Dutch border, even though our contact there had recently left and there was no work for us at the time. We arrived Saturday evening and by that night I knew I wanted to stay, it just felt so right and familiar and all the pieces fit at once. Arjuna went back to work on Tuesday, and that same day I started in the garden with Jonatan, my scorpion twin I'm sure I knew from a past life somehow.
It flowed from there, I was found a space working in the garden (perfect!) and I help in the kitchen. I live in the yurt with three other lovely humans and two cats and have been here two weeks already.
It's amazing. Each day is like a week in this intense micro-cosmos we inhabit. We share each meal except for Sundays, and argue and laugh and work and hug and teach each other.
There is kindness here, and out of necessity a lack of ego and aggression. Cooking for everyone is a wonderful feeling, and working to grow food for us all is a blessing. Yesterday I saw a tiny shrew! Snuffling about our feet in the tunnelhouse on his sightless quest for food.
Wednesday is sauna night, it was built along with 'the pride of Vlierhof' - our natural pond and mini-beach on which we light a bonfire, steam ourselves in the sauna and run naked into the pond to come alive again.
Each day brings new challenges and new surprises. Dealing with people with such close contact is like years of learning about yourself condensed down into days. It's crucial to be honest with yourself and with those around you.
I feel open and free and part of a big family. I have been singing and dancing and playing music and expressing as much as possible. Some days I wake up soaring and some with the depression back with no warning.
This is a very serious post. It's been a long week! Time for a photo attempt I think. Today I will also finally add some to my facebook account.
2 more days left in my 20s...
Amsterdam city art!
on the way to the kitchen from the yurt
the fire that keeps us toasty warm :)
On the 5th I took a bus from London to Amsterdam, after a night of pure fun in epic proportions with Andy, Caroline and Filza at Black Seeds. (We had a picnic and drinks at the Barbican first off. Twas a sell-out show at Shepherds Bush and they were really high energy, and we danced and drank and danced some more, it was an amazing vibe.)
Late on Saturday night I dragged myself into Amstel station and spent a week with Arjuna in Baarn.
Sitting in silence.
Meditating.
Cooking.
Drinking wine.
Walking around the village talking to strangers, ogling bikes and spending time in conversation with the self-titled (and highly intelligent) town bum Laurence. I spent a day in Amsterdam just walking and absorbing and met Arjuna that night for snacks and drinks in a lovely cafe.
The first weekend we made a spontaneous plan to visit a community called Vlierhof on the German / Dutch border, even though our contact there had recently left and there was no work for us at the time. We arrived Saturday evening and by that night I knew I wanted to stay, it just felt so right and familiar and all the pieces fit at once. Arjuna went back to work on Tuesday, and that same day I started in the garden with Jonatan, my scorpion twin I'm sure I knew from a past life somehow.
It flowed from there, I was found a space working in the garden (perfect!) and I help in the kitchen. I live in the yurt with three other lovely humans and two cats and have been here two weeks already.
It's amazing. Each day is like a week in this intense micro-cosmos we inhabit. We share each meal except for Sundays, and argue and laugh and work and hug and teach each other.
There is kindness here, and out of necessity a lack of ego and aggression. Cooking for everyone is a wonderful feeling, and working to grow food for us all is a blessing. Yesterday I saw a tiny shrew! Snuffling about our feet in the tunnelhouse on his sightless quest for food.
Wednesday is sauna night, it was built along with 'the pride of Vlierhof' - our natural pond and mini-beach on which we light a bonfire, steam ourselves in the sauna and run naked into the pond to come alive again.
Each day brings new challenges and new surprises. Dealing with people with such close contact is like years of learning about yourself condensed down into days. It's crucial to be honest with yourself and with those around you.
I feel open and free and part of a big family. I have been singing and dancing and playing music and expressing as much as possible. Some days I wake up soaring and some with the depression back with no warning.
This is a very serious post. It's been a long week! Time for a photo attempt I think. Today I will also finally add some to my facebook account.
2 more days left in my 20s...
Amsterdam city art!
on the way to the kitchen from the yurt
the fire that keeps us toasty warm :)
2 Oct 2009
bike porn central...
I know I'm just about to head to Holland and will most likely die of happiness... But these sexy machines I've been saving up.
I've now come to the conclusion, after days of geeking out over the amount of old classics on the road (as well as expensive new look-alikes) that half of london must have dredged up their parents' dusty old raleighs from the basement or garden shed. It's epic and adds so much to the general atmosphere!
I've now come to the conclusion, after days of geeking out over the amount of old classics on the road (as well as expensive new look-alikes) that half of london must have dredged up their parents' dusty old raleighs from the basement or garden shed. It's epic and adds so much to the general atmosphere!
I. Want. This. Bike.
To me it's a cross between a fun cruiser and someone's battered, stickered-up
guitar case. Beautiful.
guitar case. Beautiful.
I've heard about these but not seen one until now - white tyres! I love it!
Big and little extremes.
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