Bedlam Farm Blog Journal by Jon Katz

27 October

Staying Calm: How Henry David Thoreau Got Us Sleeping Again, Sort Of….

by Jon Katz

It’s a distressing time for almost everyone, red or blue, Republican or Democrat.  There is so much arguing and anger.

There were other issues for us this summer. It was our most challenging time at Bedlam Farm. We often woke up too anxious to sleep, but we had help.

A few years ago, Maria and I both started having some trouble sleeping. We signed up for a sleep-and-anxiety-sleeping meditation music website called Calm. The website features guidance music and calming stories by different travelers and, in one case, a narration designed to “connect with the serenity of nature” as a popular author—Alan Sklar—guided us through Walden, Henry David’s mythic home and a great inspiration for me.

It sounded perfect to me; Maria liked it also.

Walden and Thoreau helped inspire my move towards nature and away from the familiar—the urban and suburban wife. Calm offers sleeping guides, music, and storytelling; it works well for us almost all the time and helps us get to sleep. I was excited to come across “Passages From Walden,” Sklar’s edited version of the famous book on Calm.

I’ve always admired Thoreau’s independence, love of nature, and solitary year at Walden (he built his cabin), which connected with me and my year in a cabin at the top of a mountain here while I sorted out my life. That year was the beginning of my spiritual life.

Passages from Walden” sounded great. I turned it on my Iphone, and both settled down to be guided to sleep. I made it through the first sentence and fell asleep. Maria didn’t get that far. We’ve tried it again and again and again and fallen asleep instantly each time. On Calm, we’ve listened to cat stories, Beetle stories, fairy tales, and sleeping counselors and spent time listening.

But it turned out to be an anesthetic; it knocks both of us out in seconds. Thoreau got us sleeping, but not in the way we expected. I can’t explain it.

The words of Thoreau knock us out.

We have yet to make it to the third line of Sklar’s reading.  I love Thoreau; his book and writing have affected and enriched my life. Why would someone reading passages from Walden put both of us asleep instantly? The mind is fascinating to me; I never quite know what it is thinking. My apologies, Henry David; no offense.

I’ll try again tonight.

26 October

Flower Art: Exploring Abstraction And Representation. Giving A Flower It’s Due. Imagination Versus Technique. Sculpture Versus Color. Come And See

by Jon Katz

Georgia O’Keeffe used her art to record emotional and sensory experiences, especially her responses to the rhythms and forms of the natural world. Raised on a dairy farm in rural Wisconsin, she attended the Art Students League and Teacher’s College at Columbia University in New York, where she trained as an art teacher. ”  —-  The Whitney Museum.

 

Is it love or destiny that defines a life? I don’t believe in luck. We make our destiny and set our course; we either keep on it or fall off. Sometimes, we are knocked off. Going to Boston Monday and much of Tuesday, Georgia O’Keeffe has a show at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. She is a Fine Art.  See you in the morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can a Bee in a flower be beautiful?

 

 

Graceful.

 

26 October

Cambridge Food Pantry, Children’s Juice Day, Cranberry, $2.61, Lemonade, $2.79.

by Jon Katz

Pantry supplies are a morass of regulations, bureaucracies, food banks, family needs and wishes, and the ever-difficult world of meeting children’s moods and desires.

Today, Saturday, and Sunday, Sarah is asking for help in getting two popular and much-requested food juices back onto her shelves: Cranberry Juice and Lemonade. Both are favorites for families and almost impossible to get for the pantry, leaving us with no other option but to seek help from our community or have an empty shelf:

Fortunately, both are inexpensive at the prices Sarah found on Amazon (those are also constantly changing):

Lemonade from Concentrate, 64 Fl Oz, $2.79.

Cranberry Juice Cocktail,  Plastic Bottle 64 fl oz (Pack of 1), $2.61

 

I’ll be gone Monday and most of Tuesday. Please browse the Cambridge Food Pantry Amazon Wish List any time, day or night. You can do so by clicking on any link here or by using the Cambridge Food Pantry link, the green bar at the bottom of every blog post on this blog:

 

_______________

 

(Food you sent a couple of days ago)

 

26 October

Beautful Morning For The Farm And For Supporting My Blog And Photos. It’s That Time, Sorry To Ask, We Can’t Work Without It

by Jon Katz

It’s time for a post I must put up every couple of months. I wish I didn’t have to, but I do. It’s time for blog support. It’s all voluntary, and no help is too small.

This morning, I received a heartwarming message from long-time Blog Reader Melissa in Missouri. It was a gentle reminder of our blog content’s value in your lives. While everything you love about the blog is free, I can remember it’s not cost-free. Your engagement and appreciation for our content are the true treasures of my blog, and your feedback plays a crucial role in shaping the content you want and appreciate.

A wise person reminds us to count our blessings—reading your blogs and seeing your picks are among my blessings, Melissa in Missouri:” I get a lot of messages like that; they touch me deeply. Thank you for sending them.

It is not Melissa’s fault; that’s the way I want it, but every couple of months, I need to ask for blog support for:

The columns essays and writing in the blog.

the photos on the blog

the videos on the blog

the cat on the blog

The computer programs that make my pictures possible

 

The computer then runs and stores my work and photos.

The computer programs that help me edit my pictures

the cameras and memory chips and batteries that run my cameras,

and the cameras that take the pictures

the digs and donkeys on the blog

The iPhones that take many of the pictures

The dog food and hay feed the animals.

The barn where the animals sleep and live

the time I spent helping and working with the Cambridge Food Pantry,

the refugees and older citizens

The pastures that need to be brush-hogged every year

The excellent life I write about

the spiritual life

 

the meaningful life I

The right to be happy.

the special moments in videos

The stories and pictures of the animals here, our Peaceable Kingdom.

The many things I have learned about the spiritual life

The things I have learned about aging

the repairs to the farmhouse,

the cost of the firewood

The meditation videos I’m posting.

the free delivery of my blog to your home

The software is not free to me.

Whew, it’s scary but uplifting. It makes me gasp. It’s my life.

For a week or so, I thought of going on Substack, as so many other writers have, but I couldn’t stomach charging anyone for my writing. I just can’t do it. I canceled the substack post I was writing and my account.

I can remind my very faithful and wonderful readers that I need occasional support to publish the blog in the different ways I do since none of it is free to me. Without your support, I can’t do the photos of the words, thoughts, or videos.

When I left publishing, I gave up extensive checks and royalties; my income is just not big enough to support all this on my own. I depend on you to whatever degree is comfortable for you, big or small.

My costs are also rising, just like yours. Please help if you can.

I don’t believe in charging for the blog, but I do believe in being paid something for my work by people who can afford it so that the people who can’t will never have to pay to see it. Many people like Melissa tell me it means a lot to them, and this makes me very happy. The blog is now entirely focused on light, color, safety, and calm (and beauty, too).

 

It’s a little frightening to read about all the things that aren’t free and that I have to pay for. Sometimes, every month requires something or a sacrifice, something that is true for so many Americans.

But they are not working to make and keep their work accessible.

Many people care about my blog, and I also care about it. I appreciate the regular support I am getting (it’s simple to set up monthly payments in tiny amounts). If you find value in the blog, the pictures, and the writing, please consider supporting it—blessings to you.

Please consider supporting my work and the farm. As the support blog link details, there are several easy ways to contribute.

The simplest is via PayPal, [email protected], Venmo, Jon Katz@Jon-Katz-13, or by check, Jon Katz, Blog Support,  P.O.Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. The blog support page explains.

I’m sorry to ask for money and support, but we are all flooded with requests for money these days. We have to make our own choices.

Please do what you can; I understand when and if you can’t. The blog will always be free, and people will always be welcome here, payment or not.

Thank you.

 

 

Email SignupFree Email Signup