morning light shall burst bright

[ontology]

The weather has been glorious these last few days. I haven't shut the window once, and have been basking on the lawn as much as I can. Thought about eating lunch in the park or some such today, but I was far too hungry, and running errands, so mostly I ate my lunch on my bicycle. (It was a loaf of fresh crusty Italian bread I picked up at the supermarket on my way to Other Errands, and there was sharp cheddar in my satchel. I had the bread in my bicycle basket, so I'd just reach in every few minutes and rip a piece off. And no, silly, I did not crash and die.)

Dad and I have been a bit busy preparing for Merlefest, which was the primary reason for my errands today: that, and the weather that was absolutely beckoning to be bicycled in. We're drawing up lists of food to bring and making notes of camping equipment to fetch and fix and purchase, and I am trying to decide which summer dresses are best suited to this festival and the North Carolina sunshine. (I really wanted a parasol, but I started looking too late, and I haven't really found a satisfactory one online yet anyway, and it would probably ship too late to get here by Wednesday evening anyway. Maybe one of the vendors at the festival will sell one. Anyway I'll make sure I have one for Stanfest in July, at least.) Of course I've got to bring trousers... it'll get chilly at night, incomprehensible as that seems now... but I want to wear dresses every day! Packing my thick stockings, and my boots, I suppose. Perhaps it will rain, as it did last year -- I found that magnificent, but I think a lot of soggy people would beg to differ. (I would have enjoyed it more if I hadn't had a notebook in my cloth satchel with me, and had to protect it from being waterlogged.)

Anyway, today was Banui's Errands For Merlefest Day: I fetched hair dye -- my roots are growing out something ghastly (and I suddenly recall why I have hated my natural hair colour most of my life; especially at the roots it's a horrid dishwatery blonde-brown-green) -- so I plan to do that tomorrow. Want punk hair for the folk music festival. Er, heh heh heh. And I dropped my borrowed books back at work (and bloody plague, I don't have any hours next week either, which means I miss an entire gorram pay period), and... kind of splurged on some feather jewellery at Claire's? But I have been planning to buy it for Merlefest for months anyway. Anyway, feather earrings! And a hair clip! And a long necklace! No more spending for you now, Banui. Especially not as you wandered into Rue21 to check on the blouses you've been watching for two or three months now, waiting for them to go properly on sale (they're properly on sale when they reach the five-dollars-or-less racks), and... they were. And I bought them. But they are pretty and... no more spending, darling, okay? Good girl.

And this morning I spent gardening with Mum and the siblings -- yes, we're starting a garden for the first time ever! And I find that I quite enjoy it. The rich dark soil feel so lovely between my fingers (how can people manage with gardening gloves?), and even pulling up stubborn ancient weeds was aesthetically enjoyable. We're planting a ring of sunflowers (a "sunflower house") in a little squared-off area near the back patio, and all sorts of other things in the front -- daisies, I know, and I can't remember the rest -- all different sorts and colours of flowers, anyway. And vegetables. And birds, apparently, as we found the remains of one, sans head, tail-feathers sticking straight up, tucked into the dirt at the back of the front garden... Thank you, Bartholomew-cat, but a bird-tree, as delightful as you might find it, is strictly im...plausible.

Ben Sollee's album is beautiful, by the way. I really wish the Sparrow Quartet was playing one of the festivals we're going to this summer; this will be the first summer in two years I haven't seen them. ♥

Comments

[last-archangel.livejournal.com]

Vienna's coming to Ogunquit in mid-July and we must go. I'm not even sure where in NE you live, but I'll come and get you if I must!

[wanderlight.livejournal.com]

I want to see a picture of your satchel sometime! That's such a romantic word; I want a satchel now. Mostly I just use backpacks which are probably made of 90% plastic derivatives. :/

YAY BANUI PUNK HAIR!
Also, I think that you should not feel guilty for buying things on five-dollars-or-less racks. That is what we call an excellent bargain!

[faeriemaiden.livejournal.com]

It is, alas, falling to pieces, and it's cloth -- but it has the pockets and lovely buckles and things, so even though I bought it at Wal-Mart, it looks like a cloth version of those wonderful leather explorer satchels or things English schoolchildren carry. :D (Someday I am going to invest in a real leather one, because it will be expensive, but it will LAST FOREVER.)


Heeeee, I almost never pay more than about seven dollars for clothing. (The dress I wore to my friend Alessandra's wedding last year? Five dollars. Except then I paid like fourteen dollars for long black gloves, because I have always wanted an excuse to buy them....) But I'd just spent a lot of money on hair dye and jewellery and homemade chocolates and a loaf of fresh Italian bread... :/

[barefoottomboy.livejournal.com]

Such a lovely post. ♥

how can people manage with gardening gloves?

Gardening gloves are such a barrier, aren't they? I generally use latex gloves (I bought some for use in hair-dyeing, but they only came in boxes of 200, so we have many left), which allows for much more of a connection. The only thing with gloves vs. bare hands is that you can pick up all sorts of nasties from soil micro-organisms, so you should always wash your hands really thoroughly after contact with soil, and keep an eye on small children to make sure they a) do the same, and b) don't eat any. :-) *is all mumsical*

[charismitaine.livejournal.com]

Is there a Hobby Lobby anywhere near you? They sell parasols for $5 as part of their summer outdoor kitschy-color-coordinated stuff--that's where I got mine, and I was much happier to pay $5 for a solid red parasol than $15 or $25 for a faux-Asian printed one. I haven't been into HL recently, but I think the color selection for their summer stuff is red, lime-green, bright purple, canary yellow, orange, and maybe blue.

[airys1.livejournal.com]

Mm..dirt on one's fingers.
It does have something more to it, I agree.
I don't care for gloves either.

And the *smell* of beautiful dirt in the garden just waiting for seeds to feed. Mm.