3 Self-Portraits

"Lupine Dance" (taken in Maine)

"By the Sea" (taken in Maine)

"With you now" (taken in British Columbia)

~Shannon Murray

"The Table" (start to finish), Wine Box Gardening

So I probably haven't said the word "table" more in my entire life as I have in the last few weeks. That's because over the last few weeks I've been building my very own wood table for my backyard with one caveat: it was made all from scrap wood (except the four bottom legs-I need some sturdy, sturdy wood for that= $6.00).

See, this all started when I decided that I wanted a large vegetable garden box in my backyard to grow vegetables in for the coming Fall Harvest. But I have a *very* small backyard, and I would guess most people wouldn't even call it a backyard at all. So I have to be smart about every decision I make regarding what I do with my space as well as which plants I buy. It's so very hard to restrict myself when it comes to plants. I might be terribly dangerous if I ever have the farm land I want :)

So I was going to build a vegetable garden box on the ground. I have an area that gets SUN all day long which is PERFECT. And I would say the space was big enough for a box about 4 ft by 14 ft. Pretty decent. But the more and more I thought of it the more and more something just didn't set 100% right about the idea. I couldn't pinpoint it exactly, until one day I was looking through one of the best gardening books I have called "Garden Anywhere" by Alys Fowler.

I was flipping through when I saw a picture of her prepping some old wine boxes to grow vegetables in. That was it! It was love at first sight, and my mind was made up. I was going to grow my vegetables in wine boxes! But I didn't want them on the ground. I wanted them elevated on a table. But where would I get a long, narrow table from made out of rustic wood that I could let weather in the sun & rain?

I know, I would BUILD it!

But did I really want to buy the wood? No, not really. So instead one day me and my good friend Christina went and hunted down wood from a office strip. They had tons of woods and pallets in their dumbsters. And come to find out, her boyfriend who worked in the office strip had some pallets he didn't want either. One of these pallets ended up serving as the base and foundation of my table. I didn't quite realize this at first, and had already built a frame for the table when I realized that the pallet the was long. narrow, and skinny would be a better frame. (I will use the other frame I already built for my next project--> a potting bench).

My second obstacle was that I didn't really have all the tools I needed. I had already ruined the jigsaw I had a couple of years ago sawing down a bougainvillea plant. So rather than buying a bunch of equipment, I borrowed a saw from my father-in-law. I didn't quite want to commit to buying a big saw, because what if I never do anything like this again?

But I can tell you now that the table is finished. I'm kind of addicted. I loved building this table. It was so much better than going out and buying one. It was so empowering that it was practically free, and that I did it all by myself. I even learned how to do bolts (which was something I was intimidated by, and now it is so so so easy!) I can't wait to start more projects.

The best thing about it: this whole experience is empowering. BUILDING things is empowering. I live in the first house inside the gate of my community. So when I'm working in my garage EVERYONE sees me as they drive in. Most people in my neighborhood don't seem too terribly friendly or rude. People just usually stay to themselves. But this lady drove in and stopped her car one day as I was out there sawing away (covered in sweat, sawdust, and water) with my headband on to keep my hair back and my safety glasses on. She stopped her car and had her jaw dropped open, she said "You are one amazing woman!" She said it with such enthusiasim. I was a little shocked, but I must admit it made me feel good. She asked what I was building and I told her. She said you're doing this all by yourself? I said Yes. She was still in disbelief. Later in the day I saw another woman drive by watching me as she drove by with a big smile on her face. :)

Here it is step by step:

The wood on both the table & the wine boxes were proper & sealed with coatings of Danish Oil which is absorbed by the wood rather than just sitting on the surface like Polyurethane does. Holes were drilled into the bottom of the wine boxes to allow for proper drainage, and feetsies were attached to the bottom of the 4 corners of the boxes to slightly elevate them off the table which also allows for proper drainage.

~Shannon

I saw this & liked it :)

The 4th

How was your 4th of July? We usually don't do anything special. But this year, I could tell a few days prior that I kind of had an itch to do something & to entertain. I didn't take any pictures, and we didn't go see fireworks (or even hear them), but we did do something even better.

We picked a meal and made it together, then celebrated with close friends. What was great about it was how spontaneous and last minute it all was. :) Patrick used a special rub on chicken and then grilled it along with venison sausage. I grilled asparagus, mushrooms, and corn on the cob. We made sweet potato fries, and warm biscuits with homemade garlic butter.

It was a great evening :) It's great to be in a free nation. And it's wonderful to just get together and hang out over a nice meal with good friends. The 4th also marked the day that I moved my newly built table from scrap wood to the backyard, and for the first time saw all of my lovely wine boxes sitting on the table for the very first time. It's a great feeling to see your original idea that you've been working hard on finally take shape right before your eyes. I am very pleased!

Self-Portrait I

“You have to take risks. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen.”

-Paulo Coelho

Houston Center for Photography

Not so long ago (although it seems like quite a while back) I went to the Houston Center for Photography. Probably the first time I ever went was back when I was in high school at HSPVA. But I go periodically, and always love it. I feel like it's a place more people in Houston should know about (hence this post).

They have great shows displaying work from local photographers. There is a library, as well as an entire slew of classes you can take.

Find more info. at the website: Houston Center for Photography

Anthropologie & Rebecca Rebouche

It seems wherever I go today I am constantly inspired by everything I come across! First I was at the hairdressor getting my hair bleached (a chore as far as I am concerned), where I was looking at a magazine.

There were so many great articles in this magazine that were just so inspiring! One was about a woman in LA who quit her day job and took up full time gardening in her backyard of only half an acre.

She would sell the beautiful flowers she grew and vegetables at a local Farmer's Market. Soon enough though, the neighbors started noticing all the plants, and actually instituted a law that was from 1946 saying this woman couldnt sell her "backyard produce." Long story short, she fought it and WON!

She came out stronger and better in the end, and she has many supporters. There are even people offering her space in there backyards for her to grow more flowers & plants so she can sell more at the Farmer's Markets (since there is such high demand).

Just goes to show you there will alays be negative sources trying to pull you down (which I can't believe someone would be mad or angry about another human growing plants), but oh well- you must perservere.

This video below is from my *favorite* store Anthropologie, and I just love this video and artist. Check it out!