The ceremony of Piemaking

I make pie. I mean, from SCRATCH, completely. I don't use anything from a can, or frozen crust. In the fall after Halloween, I buy the poor lonely rejected pumpkins that didn't get chosen for jack o'lanterns, and I give their lives meaning by turning them into pie.

If you've never cut up a pumpkin, it takes about as much effort as cutting down a tree with an ax. Seriously--I know, because I've done BOTH. A SHARP, long thin serated blade works best, but no matter how good your knife is, plan on spending some TIME at it. It doesn't get done quickly, I don't care WHO you are.

I like to save the seeds and soak them overnight in salt water and then bake them on a cookie sheet. Test the salt water to make sure you haven't overdone it before you add the seeds. It needn't be BRINE, just a little salty. Bake them till they are beginning to turn brown, so they are a bit crispy. Pumpkin seeds are VERY good for you--Extremely high in vitamin E and lecithin.

After I have mutilated the pumpkin and cut it into chunks, I put the chunks into a zip lock bag and add the seasonings and shake it up so they get evenly coated.

I do the same thing with apples--I peel and core them (which, though I have a coring took, it still takes forever to peel enough for a pie or two) and then season and sugar them with the ziplock bag trick. At this point, I generally throw the bag into the freezer and leave it there until I am ready to make the pie. The freezing actually helps to soften the apples or pumpkin a bit so they don't require as much cooking.

The crust recipe is essentially my mothers, but I have modified it a bit, as I do with all recipes. I can't seem to help myself, I just have to make a recipe my own. (Actually my favorite way to cook is to not follow ANY recipe, and just throw things together and WING IT!) I have a wonderful rolling pin and a crust "cutting" tool--for mixing the flour butter or shortening into the flour. It makes all the difference in the world. Good utinsels are important in cooking and baking. If you don't believe me, try making meringue with a simple whisk and elbow grease! UGH!!! Pie making requires a lot of time no matter how you do it, and without the right tools, it can be downright exhausting! I recently made two apple pies, and from apple prep to full bake time took SIX HOURS. (That doesn't count clean up, either!)

On that note, always prewash your utinsels right away, before you wash them or run them through the dishwasher. It just gets them extra clean, and saves a lot of goop from going in your regular wash water.

Making a pie is almost a spiritual ceremony to me. My pies are an intention, a gift to someone--for a special occasion, for a special thank you, congratulations, or just to say I love you. They are made with intention and care and love--a ritual of expression. I never bake when I am sad or angry---I believe it can ruin a pie, or a loaf of bread. The best pies are made with the all the love for those who will enjoy it baked right in.

The magic hoop

Greetings~~~
WHEW! This winter has been a difficult one for me, in both body and spirit. I have been fighting "demons" from both without and within, trying to stay present in this world in the capacity I have been blessed with up till now. Perhaps it is just "cabin fever", but I have been a prisoner in my own head lately....
I began making real changes in my life habits several years ago, beginning with retiring from my 33 year career as a professional smoker. I quit cold turkey on April fools day in 2005, and have not had a puff since. I can honestly say it was one of the most grueling, yet satisfying tasks I have ever accomplished. Since then, I have done everything I can to help those around me who want to quit, when they want help. This too, has been fulfilling, and helped a great deal to keep me on track; when I saw what others went through in their own struggle, it reaffirmed that I didn't want to repeat my own!
Now I have begun to examine my food choices (which are admittedly, not always the healthiest) and move in a direction that involves a bit less saturated fat, salt and sugar, to be replaced by more fruit and vegetables. Making this gastronomically appealing has been challenging to say the least. It's difficult if not almost impossible to make tofu seem as sumptuous as a cheeseburger and fries....... but I'm working on it. I have been implimenting some taste sensations that were formerly abscent from my palate: hot, spicy sauces, more onions, horseradish, and garlic, and recently, I have discovered the joy of curry. Weeeeeehooooooo!
In addition to my food overhaul, I have been snowshoeing, as I mentioned in my last blog. I replaced my 25 year old tried and true snowshoes with ones nearly identical (and almost extinct in the retail arena) and have been happily hitting the trails.
A couple of weeks ago, after I came back from the trails, I dragged out my giant hula hoop from it's "storage" spot where it leaned against the house. I had to bash some ice from it first, but then I rolled it out into the road in front of my house, where I had a one woman hoopfest for over an hour. I had forgotten how good hooping makes my body, mind and spirit feel. I wear headphones while I'm out there, and I dance while I hoop, whirling around clockwise and counterclockwise and swooping my arms, in a kind of grouse-like dance. A friend of mine from Red Cliff commented on my "good hoopdancing", and I was very honored. I always assumed I look like a total dork but it's fun, so I don't care.
Now, my favorite time of day is just before sunset, when I go out to the road to hoop. I watch the sunset (and this week, moonrise-at the same time!), dance and even take pictures! Just to up the ante, I hoop-walk up and down the road, which works even more muscles. Some people swear by yoga (which I also want to try) but I can't imagine anything that feels as good or is more fun than hooping. There is just something magical about that hoop revolving around my body.....
I have two hoops: one is 5'5 --as wide as I am tall, and weighs about 7 lbs. My other one is smaller--about 3'5, and weighs mabye a pound, if that. The big one was the one I learned on. I had never hooped before, so my body was not familiar with the motion. It reminded me of when I was learning to ride a bike or waterski--i was SURE something must be wrong with me, because I JUST COULDN'T GET IT!!! But then one day I tried this big hoop which seemed suddenly easy by comparison and I couldnt' get enough of it. I discovered over time that the big one is like lifting weights with your torso. It tones EVERYTHING from the chest down. I could even feel it in my FEET. I got smaller very quickly that summer! The smaller hoop requires a much faster movement, and is a good cardio workout, thus burning calories like an incinerator! Between the two of them, I hope to be in MUCH better shape by spring!
Aside from that, I'm painting like mad, as usual, and I've been making a little jewelry. I'll be posting some pieces here when I get the photos taken.....

Happy days to all~~ Diane Marie

In the Woods

I have been snowshoeing every day, and have been amazed at how different things are from day to day in the woods. The snow changes with the temperature and humitidy, and some days my snowshoes make a lot of noise, and some days I can barely hear a sound (except my pounding heart). The light is always different, some days there is a weak sun peeking through--like yesterday--some days it is blindingly bright, and I need sunglasses, which fog or even FROST over. The sky is as blue as anything you can imagine on those days--like that elusive shade of beach glass we all look for, but almost never find. On far too many days for my comfort, there are grey skies, which do nothing good for my energy or mood, but often bring fresh snow.

Every day, there are stories, written in the snow. A woodpecker hammers away at a dead poplar, leaving a pile of sawdust at the base that makes me look up in search of the mess-maker. In February, the Piliated woodpecker begins to drum on these trees, trying to attract a mate. The sound is a loud and distinctive drumming sound, in a variety of pitches, depending on the tree, and it can be heard for MILES.

Tracks are fun to look for, obviously, and there are lots to be seen. In powder, they aren't all that distinctive, so it's hard sometimes to tell whose trail I'm meeting. Mostly it's deer, squirrels and mice--field mice and jumpers, which leave very different trails. I usually run across a weasel trail as well--fantastic HUNTERS of mice!

Lately, I have seen the tracks of what might be snowshoe rabbits (or perhaps fishers.) We generally don't HAVE rabbits here BECAUSE of the fishers, but I have seen a couple of them over the years.

I often see the trail of the coyote whose territory this is. He was my dog's boyfriend for years--he often sang to her under the window in the moonlight, and I call him "Romeote". The first time he came, he sang on the front steps of the bus where we lived--he, on one side of the door glass, and she on the other!

Yesterday, I took one of my trails I hadn't been on in a few days; it had snowed since then. Twice, Romeote's trail crossed my previous tracks, and both times he MARKED the spot with urine, just as he had when my dog was alive, and hitting the trails with me! She always looked for those spots, and marked them in return, when she found them. I was pleased to see he had greeted me. It helped me to feel she still makes the rounds with me in spirit.

Hello,Hello.....Hello.Hello! Hello:) (Hello) Hellloooooo??? Hello: Just nod if you can hear me.
HAPPY NEW YEAR, almost!
This is my art blog, and I'm reporting live (for the most part) from Madeline Island--not quite the middle of nowhere, but you can see it from one of our shores. Currently, the temperature is 12 degrees, a whopping 2 degrees higher than the mainland, 2.5 miles away. We are only days away from windsled season, when the ferries shut down for the winter. If you are unfamiliar with windsleds, you can image-google "windsled Madeline Island" and see a variety of pictures, or go to http://www.windsled.com/. I would post a picture here, but I havent' figured out how to do it yet.
After a few weeks of windsled season, if the temperatures remain butt-cheek clenching cold, the ice should be thick enough for us to drive across to the mainland.
Meanwhile, I have been busy here in my home studio, as well as a tiny studio I set up in Mpls., at the house I stay in when I go down there. I've been painting in a "pointallist-imprssionism" style, which I've discovered is a dandy way to paint if your near sight is failing. The painting is created by layering tiny dots of color on the canvas, which the eye automatically blends when you step back. When you have failing nearsight, the colors blend even when you are up close, because your eyes are unfocused. I'm convinced that the old masters all had poor nearsight!!!! It would be VERY tedious to paint in this style if you had good nearsight, because you would be constantly forcing your eyes to unfocus, or you would have to step back.
My first painting in this style is my blog picture--my "self portrait" of my eyes, peeking over a lowered harlequin mask. Click on the picture to enlarge the image.

I'm very excited about the coming summer. Last August, I left the gallery known as "Imagine", which I co-created and co-owned with Holly Tourdot, and I have since been asked by Steve McHugh--the owner of the new up and coming "Bell Street Gallery" on Madeline Island--to be one of their featured artists. The gallery will feature the work of local artists including mine, and provide some studio space for us to work in as a "working artists exhibit". For more information, and to view the gallery in it's present progress, visit http://bellstgallery.blogspot.com/
Be sure to stop in and say hello this summer. I am working hard on a whole new body of work (paintings, sculpture, jewelry...) to display. Some of my older pieces will come out of hiding as well. The gallery will have a homey and welcoming atmosphere that celebrates the unique flavor of island life. There are plans in the works to be oen every day, with later weekend hours, and plenty of fun art openings and events. It's going to be a BLAST, and I can't WAIT!
For now, I'm having fun playing in my studio and snowshoeing! Stay tuned and have a great New Year!
Cheers~~~~ Diane Marie