occasional posts by risa aratyr
Risa Aratyr Whenever I pass a building site or see somebody digging a ditch, I always think, “That’s real work.” [Liam Neeson] During the design part of the process, Roy and I were keen to fix things that had been bugging us for the past 16 years. Old house, people couldn’t find the front door; new house, … Read more BE-COMING HOME: dug & dusted
Oh! ye’ll take the high road and I’ll take the low road, And I’ll be in Scotland afore ye… [“The Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond” traditional tune, lyrics penned by a MacGregor of Glen Endrick, 1746] The choice to rebuild left us stranded at another crossroads. How to get “home” from here? Our Way or … Read more BE-COMING HOME: breaking ground
蔵焼けて 障るものなき 月見哉 Barn’s burnt down. Now I can see the moon. [a haiku by Mizuta Masahide, 17th C. poet and samurai] From the look of her, you’d have thought The Ruin would have gone down on her own the first time a strong wind hit the hill. She was a life-threatening public hazard in … Read more BE-COMING HOME: on the level
And a special thanks for not burning up the whole ship. Including yourself, you daft bum-rag. [Scott Westerfeld, LEVIATHAN] The weeks following the fire were a mind-numbing blur. We spent all day every day pin-balling from one essential task to the next, while simultaneously trying to come to terms with our shock and disorientation. Remembering, … Read more BE-COMING HOME: sifting through the rubble
Since the house is on fire let us warm ourselves. [Italian Proverb] On Saturday night, 17 November 2012, Roy shoveled the cold ashes from Friday night’s fire into the tin pail we kept by the wood burner for that purpose. On Sunday night, 18 November, he took the pail down to the carport and dumped … Read more BE-COMING HOME: up in flames