outside my window

This place is for the birds.

Literally.

The coo of mourning doves, the shimmering shifting repertoire of the mockingbirds, the sweet tweets of finches all intersecting in the ancient Ent-like olive tree sprawled outside my (new) office window. The previous owners had hung grapevine balls wrapped in christmas lights from the branches and they are now home to the finches – making their twiggy nests within. I can’t even bear to turn those lights on in case I disturb their sleep!

We knew we would love this place when we went through the long arduous process of buying it (it was a short sale). But here we are in our second week of actually living here and I can’t believe we have this little oasis to ourselves. It even comes with turtles! I can’t quite tell if they’re stone or bronze – but there’s a big mama turtle and a wee baby turtle forever hanging out in the backyard, within sight of every northern window.

Some people have already wondered aloud if it wouldn’t be terribly distracting all this nature hovering in front of my eyes while I work. I guess it should. But instead I find these sounds and views deeply restful and inspiring. My own kind of white noise that keeps my monkey mind engaged while the REAL part of me gets down to business. Life has been as hectic as it gets when you buy a house and move. Like, REALLY hectic for me because I’ve over-thought and obssessed on every detail, such as how to move our precious Massi without freaking him out (which he didn’t, he loves this place too), where to put every last little thing, OH all these things that sprouted up in drawers and corners, like mushrooms, over the last three years. Choosing the paint before we moved was a Byzantine process itself – good Lord, I never realized how many different shades of blue existed in this medium!

Today, I finally put my guitar in my lap and strummed. And the fragment of a tune that played through my mind some months ago popped out and grew. Hearing my sounds in this new space brought me home even more than the cooking and cleaning and all the other feathering-the-nest things I’ve been brooding over. Feels like this room wants to hear music. And so I shall comply. Jamie’s new studio/workspace is a delightful combination of orange and brown – like a seventies talk show! We can hear ourselves when we jam – the sound doesn’t rise up 30 feet and peer down like a ghost. It’s the new and improved Chamber of Sounds and crackling with possibilities.

I’ve wandered a bit since my late twenties – which is quite a while if you’re counting – from Florida to New York to Los Angeles to Tucson. And now that Jamie and I actually found a place we were willing to commit to and go into debt for (yes, yes, it’s a GOOD kind of debt, but I like to be dramatic), I feel a deep sense of happy and contented humming in the eye of all my adrenaline-fueled whirling about. I made myself take a nap and actually avoided unpacking for a day. Later I’ll plant the cherry tomato from our friend Cyril and make a meal that doesn’t require too many dishes. We’ll curl up on the couch with Massi asleep in the faux leather chair and nod off to The Office. And just be home.