Zinta Aistars's Blog, page 35
June 9, 2012
Dog Joy
by Zinta Aistars
Guinnez checking out the beehives when they are first installed at Z Acres
I almost lost him.
My official work day over (I usually work from home on Thursdays and Fridays), I switched gears to my other work life - as a freelance writer. Every month, I write a story for Southwest Michigan's Second Wave Media, a fun and interesting online news magazine that covers area businesses and ventures that overcome more demanding times to rise above, to do the unique, the make things work...
Guinnez checking out the beehives when they are first installed at Z AcresI almost lost him.
My official work day over (I usually work from home on Thursdays and Fridays), I switched gears to my other work life - as a freelance writer. Every month, I write a story for Southwest Michigan's Second Wave Media, a fun and interesting online news magazine that covers area businesses and ventures that overcome more demanding times to rise above, to do the unique, the make things work...
June 7, 2012
Exquisite Corpse: Art that's alive and kicking
Published in Southwest Michigan's Second Wave Media: Exquisite Corpse: Art that's alive and kickingZinta Aistars
Thursday, June 07, 2012 Art that keeps the imagination alive is part of what Kalamazoo's Exquisite Corpse is about. Zinta Aistars reports on how Arty Pants Button Mart funded a shared space that became home for a studio for an art collaborative. Eana Agopian's gaze wanders out the third floor wall of windows to look west across Kalamazoo and Kalamazoo Avenue...
Thursday, June 07, 2012 Art that keeps the imagination alive is part of what Kalamazoo's Exquisite Corpse is about. Zinta Aistars reports on how Arty Pants Button Mart funded a shared space that became home for a studio for an art collaborative. Eana Agopian's gaze wanders out the third floor wall of windows to look west across Kalamazoo and Kalamazoo Avenue...
May 28, 2012
Leaves of 3, Let Them Be; Friends and Kin, Let Them In
by Zinta Aistars
One of the greatest joys of owning Z Acres is sharing this place of beauty and peace with my beloveds. Time is sparse when you suddenly have ten acres to care for (and a new job, and a literary magazine to manage, and a list of freelance assignments to complete, and a stack of books to review, and ...), but I've been working in a schedule of visits from family and friends to add to their pleasure and mine.
My sister Daina was among the first on my list. I couldn't wait to have...
One of the greatest joys of owning Z Acres is sharing this place of beauty and peace with my beloveds. Time is sparse when you suddenly have ten acres to care for (and a new job, and a literary magazine to manage, and a list of freelance assignments to complete, and a stack of books to review, and ...), but I've been working in a schedule of visits from family and friends to add to their pleasure and mine.
My sister Daina was among the first on my list. I couldn't wait to have...
May 15, 2012
Sweet!
by Zinta Aistars
When beekeeper Jonathan Noble stops by Z Acres on a warm evening to talk bees, I'm all ears. I am fascinated to learn all he cares to share about keeping bees and helping bees thrive when we are hearing so much these days about "colony collapse." Colony collapse is a term that speaks to sudden death of entire bee colonies. Scientists are yet working to determine the reasons. Could be mites or other pests, could be disease, could be the use of pesticides, could be man...
When beekeeper Jonathan Noble stops by Z Acres on a warm evening to talk bees, I'm all ears. I am fascinated to learn all he cares to share about keeping bees and helping bees thrive when we are hearing so much these days about "colony collapse." Colony collapse is a term that speaks to sudden death of entire bee colonies. Scientists are yet working to determine the reasons. Could be mites or other pests, could be disease, could be the use of pesticides, could be man...
May 12, 2012
Simple Pleasures, Little Pleasures
by Zinta Aistars
And now that the first weeks have gone by, the big tasks done, the smaller and simpler pleasures have a chance to rise and take their moment in the sun.
A friend who came by to visit recently remarked that this is not the kind of place that one tires of in a short time. That it will grow on me. As the years go by, Z Acres and I will be rooted in each other. And so it is. Not a passing grin, or a shallow distraction, but a beautiful piece of land that gives back...
And now that the first weeks have gone by, the big tasks done, the smaller and simpler pleasures have a chance to rise and take their moment in the sun.
A friend who came by to visit recently remarked that this is not the kind of place that one tires of in a short time. That it will grow on me. As the years go by, Z Acres and I will be rooted in each other. And so it is. Not a passing grin, or a shallow distraction, but a beautiful piece of land that gives back...
May 6, 2012
Sunday Stroll and the Sacred
by Zinta Aistars
Sunday morning dawns peaceful and cool. Aside from mowing another patch of green later, no tasks are pressing. I can move at a calm pace, at last. The last weeks since moving to Z Acres have been hectic, adjusting to being a caretaker of ten acres, a landlord of my previous home, and learning the ins and outs of a new job.
At last, I can feel a rhythm settling in. Sunday morning brings serenity. The old chow pup, Guinnez, stirs at the foot of the bed as I stir. He rises and co...
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Sunday morning dawns peaceful and cool. Aside from mowing another patch of green later, no tasks are pressing. I can move at a calm pace, at last. The last weeks since moving to Z Acres have been hectic, adjusting to being a caretaker of ten acres, a landlord of my previous home, and learning the ins and outs of a new job.
At last, I can feel a rhythm settling in. Sunday morning brings serenity. The old chow pup, Guinnez, stirs at the foot of the bed as I stir. He rises and co...
April 22, 2012
Earth Day 2012 at Z Acres
by Zinta Aistars
Like all things, it is when something becomes more personal that we begin to care, and notice, on a deeper level. Not that I haven't noticed Earth Day. I have been marking it for a long time, taking notice of ways in which I can recycle more, conserve more, care more, and live on less.
Interestingly enough, living on less has a way of enriching our lives. Giving us back more.
This year, I have felt Earth Day in a different way--since taking ownership of ten of my own acres, my...
.jpg)
Like all things, it is when something becomes more personal that we begin to care, and notice, on a deeper level. Not that I haven't noticed Earth Day. I have been marking it for a long time, taking notice of ways in which I can recycle more, conserve more, care more, and live on less. Interestingly enough, living on less has a way of enriching our lives. Giving us back more.
This year, I have felt Earth Day in a different way--since taking ownership of ten of my own acres, my...
April 21, 2012
Into the Peace, Into the Quiet
by Zinta Aistars
Enjoying the warmth of a fire in my wood stove on a rainy eveningI hear people complain about boredom. It's a concept alien to me. Perhaps it says more about the complainer than the complaint?
Life is overfull with things to do, ideas to mull over, thoughts to follow to their never-end, adventures to be had, dreams to turn into reality. Bored? Never.
But a bit of routine ... now, that would be sweet. All things in balance. There has been so much newness in my life the la...
Enjoying the warmth of a fire in my wood stove on a rainy eveningI hear people complain about boredom. It's a concept alien to me. Perhaps it says more about the complainer than the complaint? Life is overfull with things to do, ideas to mull over, thoughts to follow to their never-end, adventures to be had, dreams to turn into reality. Bored? Never.
But a bit of routine ... now, that would be sweet. All things in balance. There has been so much newness in my life the la...
April 15, 2012
Moment to Breathe, Moment to Contemplate
by Zinta Aistars
Guinnez shows his guest Buddy the way to his new homeIt's a sweet Sunday morning, begun with overcast skies and soft, warm rain ... and I love these kinds of mornings, too, not just the blue skies and sun. These soft mornings make me feel a little sleepy, cozy in my new old farmhouse, and slow me down for a moment or more of contemplation.
And there is so much to contemplate ...
The past three weeks are something of a blur. A wonderful blur. A blur of miracles, of adventure and...
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Guinnez shows his guest Buddy the way to his new homeIt's a sweet Sunday morning, begun with overcast skies and soft, warm rain ... and I love these kinds of mornings, too, not just the blue skies and sun. These soft mornings make me feel a little sleepy, cozy in my new old farmhouse, and slow me down for a moment or more of contemplation.And there is so much to contemplate ...
The past three weeks are something of a blur. A wonderful blur. A blur of miracles, of adventure and...
April 6, 2012
Good Friday Evening Falls, Gently
by Zinta Aistars
Good Friday evening falls, gently, softly. I watch the sun slip down toward the horizon behind the far treeline and wonder, amazed, at the suffering that happened those thousands of years ago so that we could enjoy all these many blessings, free and clear. The gift of life and the ever present chance to choose rebirth.
I have been here on this farm for ... can it be? nearly two weeks already. Just a few days shy. And I am still amazed, every morning, every evening, every hour...
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Good Friday evening falls, gently, softly. I watch the sun slip down toward the horizon behind the far treeline and wonder, amazed, at the suffering that happened those thousands of years ago so that we could enjoy all these many blessings, free and clear. The gift of life and the ever present chance to choose rebirth.
I have been here on this farm for ... can it be? nearly two weeks already. Just a few days shy. And I am still amazed, every morning, every evening, every hour...
