persimmons & monkeys as soul-trajectory affirmations

One night before leaving Minneapolis to move here to Santa Rosa, California I had a dream of persimmons. They were boxed in the same lovely way that you'd see them at a food co-op or a farmers' market. A hand-crafted sign posted on the box colorfully warned the would-be buyers that if they should be allergic to monkeys, their tongue should not know the taste of this tomatoesqe fruit. Why? We don't know. But I can tell you this. Upon my first visit to Santa Rosa's charming worker-owned, vegetarian natural foods store, I was astonished to find the persimmons accompanied by a monkey - a little stuffed monkey probably dropped nearby by a child & placed there for easy retrieval. Some would not see it so but I determined this to mean that I am on the right path. I expect other humorous & moving affirmations in the near future. So fear not, dear-hearted worriers! That intangible element of our surroundings that seems to care for us has indeed wrapped its ever-lovin' arms around me.

It has been one week since I arrived here in my new home. So far, so good.... My fantastic, fun & supportive friend Paul helped me drive out with whatever I could fit in my car including Daphne & Snax. The cats traveled exceptionally well - so well, in fact, that we're planning a road trip to Vancouver for next summer. Snax loves the international flavor of the city.

When we arrived, my landlords - a 60-ish couple - gave us a warm greeting which included homemade, organic, vegetarian soups. Yum! Juliette is a vegetarian chef who makes & freezes meals as well as caters events. George is a tilesetter who built the lovely kitchen counter & bar upon which I am now typing.

The apartment is great. It's a roomy studio cottage with a loft for the mattress that I will buy (hopefully before I can't stand sleeping on the floor anymore). Outside my window I look out over hills & trees & birds. I heard frogs last night which I'm guessing will be more active come spring. To get to my place one must drive up narrow & winding roads past overdone inflatable Xmas displays, succulents & a vineyard. When I turn off the lights to crawl into my sleeping bag at night, it is blacker than black. Good thing I grew up in the country where I could develop my night vision & my companionship with the dark.

As for the weather, the rain has been hanging around since I got here but I do see sun in the forecast. I am looking forward to that as the dreary atmosphere does not much help the feeling of loneliness that can come over a person in a new place. I already miss Minnesota & everyone there - & one fine fellow in particular. Hey, everyone, it's pretty here! Come drink some wine, drive on very curvy roads & eat delicious dinners cooked by me....

Today, I was determined to find a friendly coffee shop in which to begin my school reading. Success was mine! A'Roma Roasters is a charming, woman-owned business just a block from New College. I think I'm figuring out that the west is the best when it comes to Santa Rosa. It seems like most of the cool stuff & cheaper gas is on the west side of Highway 101. Of course, there is also a SCARY looking Chinese restaurant but I'm going to really try not to judge that book by its cover. On the other hand, I don't want to judge it by its indigestion either. I'll stick to the home cookin'.

As for the school reading, why, it was just marvelous! You see, The Fatal Harvest Reader: The Tragedy of Industrial Agriculture is just such a text as I might assign to myself to read. Yes, that is really how much of a sustainability dork that I am - or rather how much of a passionate person that I am according to my sweet & thoughtful brother. This is gonna be fun!

I sincerely wanted to post some photos here tonight but, regretably, I forgot to bring the proper cord with the first round of stuff. Come January the rest of my belongings will arrive in Eli's bread truck where they will have been subjected to several days of heavy vibrations & biodiesel fumes (I hear that they are cleansing...?). Then, I'll have a couch & all my cooking supplies. I can't wait!