Hello from Austin, Texas

Hot greetings from Austin!

This is my third visit to Austin, TX and I've loved each visit here.
The weather is grandiose and the atmosphere in this town is very cool and intelligent.
The signs on the streets reflect high awareness of social issues and are designed with a flare of modern neighborly courtesy.

For example, after treating ourselves to a wonderful cup of soy latte at Caffe Medici on West Lynn, we noticed that the parking lot shared by the cleaners and the coffee place had a sign which, in a nice font and soft colors, said something like "love your cleaners and your coffee; please respect the parking assignments for each business." As if extending its arm to welcome you and encourage your desires and needs, this sign was implying a closed system to which I would have agreed with ease and a smile on my face (and that's coming from someone who lives in Boston and who questions every system, especially the closed ones).

The flora in Austin is amazing and so rich. Austinors with gardens do a wonderful job using the varieties of cacti and other flora to create relaxed landscapes. This landscapes are quietly sophisticated and invite a desire of exploration and discovery. The forms and colors are very inspiring like, for example, today we found a young pomegranate tree and the fruits were very young, some still carried their flowers and others were already exploding into their roundness and slowly loosing their tall crowns. I love eating pomegranates and now I like thinking about them having seen their origin and stages of development while in their natural surroundings.

I an hour or so we will walk to my favorite restaurant Iron Cactus here in Austin. Every dish I've eaten there over the years has been absolutely orgasmic in its taste and presentation. The ensemble of color and ingredients comes together beautifully in my mouth with each bite. My absolute favorite however has been the guacamole dish. Besides being delicious, it is brought to the table as a collection of ingredients which are then combined together in front of your eyes. I always savor both parts of this experience and go back for more.

Tonite we are attending the wedding of my brother-in-law and his wonderful bride - that's why we are really in Austin right now. A great occasion to be in this city once again...

Create for a Cause - Suicide Prevention

This morning I'm thinking of my dear friend, RM, whose teen son died by suicide a few years ago. As result of her experiences pre- and post-, she's dedicated her life to this cause.

On June 4th, RM and her friends are holding an event during which several crafters will help her guests enjoy the process of creating and sharing the wonderful energy that usually accompanies such activities. Among conversations and meaningful relationships, we will sew and collage handmade cards and assemble jewelry.

RM and I met a couple of times to come up with ways to use beads of all types to create pendants, bracelets, rings and keychains. To economize, since this is a fundraiser for a good cause, we used memory wire and cords that we've had lying around my studio and her home to create models of what our guests can make. I will take pictures during the event and will have another post after June 4th showing you some of the pieces we will have made.

RM's son had a make-your-own streak in him. I got to know T. better when RM brought him to my studio and wanted me to teach him how to work glass in a torch flame. He ended up making beads that were all blue and red because he was a very passionate citizen of the Red Sox Nation - our baseball team here in Boston. I was amazed at how fast he took to the process. He explained to me later that he had just learned about the laws of gravity in his physics class and that he enjoyed seeing it happen so fast right in front of his eyes while melting glass.

After T. made some very nice red and blue glass beads, I taught him how to macrame so that he could incorporate them into jewelry that he would enjoy wearing. We sat in RM's kitchen with hemp thread and T. made his first of numerous macrame hemp necklaces. I found out later that many of his friends ended up with macrame hemp necklaces as result of T.'s new interest.

Now, to engage and pass on those memories of T's desire to create hands-on, RM created this fundraising event where professional crafters will provide guidance in designing and creating handmade and the guests will add new narratives to their relationships and this particular cause.

There will also be a silent auction. I donated two sets of jewelry which include a necklace and a pair of earrings representing my Berry with Seeds and Flower Berry Collections.

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