This is my kitchen window, at the back of the house, where I do my thinking and dreaming and writing, where my eyes unfocus and my mind wanders peacefully.
Once upon a time, there was a lush growth of ivy, thirty years of ivy, cascading down the brick wall that faces us. The owner of this building decided suddenly to destroy the four stories of ivy, and with it an entire ecosystem of birds and squirrels. I to this day fail to understand his reasoning. In a city where green is a rare and precious commodity, who has the temerity to kill that green? And if ivy were really destructive, then ancient universities and libraries the world over would long ago have crumbled to bits under its weight...
But that is neither here nor there.
Because the birds have persevered, the bright finches and dove-colored doves, and they visit the suet cube I hung from our rusty, rickety, dangerous old fire escape. Their little soft birdy noises keep me company in my solitary moments at the window, without disturbing my various trains of thought.
I have learned to see not the brick wall, but the sunlight and the tree-shadows cast there.
Where is your most special place for daydreaming?
30 comments:
My special daydreaming place--the living room recliner...I daydream a lot when I watch TV.
Inside of my own head Leah. The view from there is always one of beauty and ne'er a brick wall or the bottom of a bottle can change that.
Inside of myself I can see any view of my choosing. There are no barricades, no boundaries, and definitely no limits to what I can feel.
Occasionally though, I do like to daydream when I'm on the pan.
It's a man thing.
nice trick..seeing the shadow play and not the wall. the front porch, is the dreaming place at our house.
In bed, definitely in bed- but then it becomes night-dreaming as I fall asleep and invariably don't remember the dream.
Loved Jimmy's comment :)
ps- had to dive back over here to ask you if you have ever heard of 'Jewish Penicillin Soup?'!!
Lovely post, Leah.
I feel for you as I love ivy-covered buildings too. But I know people who destroy it because it attracts rodents. Or so they say.
Anyway...
I'm a big daydreamer so I often go away anywhere and anytime.
But as far as physical places (other than Planet MJ are concerned) here they are...
Here’s the one I go to on the west coast.
And here’s the one I had back east which gave me both a water view AND a Deco hit (the building).
Hey Girl,
Sorry about your neighbor's foolish actions.
Yes, birds love to rest in the ivy. I have an ivy-covered trellis in front of my house, and I just LOVE to hear the chirps of all those birds hiding inside.
And what the hell is that Bastard guy referring to as "the pan"? Is it what I think it is?...the...the...LOO???? OMG LOL
I can day dream anywhere but guess what? I do it the most when I'm in the kitchen, waiting for the milk or water to boil. I can even day dream while reading a book or sitting at the computer.
My kitchen window faces the street and a tiny village. It's the sleepiest place in the world which induces steady bouts of daydreaming!
Wow, you know me and nature. All that ivy. All that life. What a terrible shame. Why people do the things they do is often beyond me. But I learned something tonight. MJ is precious. What she wrote is beautiful and the links are gorgeous. (Yes, I clicked.)
I feed the birds and LOVE doves. They're so gentle and sweet. Earlier tonight Cece informed me I shouldn't feed or encourage birds because they're loaded with all sorts of bacteria. Biologist. No I'm not going to listen because they bring so much joy to my life. Oh, and she's really, really sick, so probably not in her right mind when she wrote me.
Beautiful post dear friend. Wish you still had green to envy in NYC, but you have the Adirondacks! Just a few more months if the snow stops. I talked to Mom a few days ago. It was snowing and I was ashamed to tell her I was enjoying almost 80 degree weather. Good luck honey!
XO
LOL! Mine is the computer screen!
i dream all over:
the pan
the shower (thats a fave)
the car
bed
and at work
i'm surprised and delighted that you managed to keep your wildlife even though you lost the ivy
as for the birds and the bacteria (as mentioned by suze) i'm close enough to call myself a biologist and certainly all kinds of animals carry all kinds of yukky bugs but you really have to get pretty close or have a major infestation to have a problem. basic handwashing is a wonder prevention for most things. boring but true.
great post leah
Rima--so good to see you! I hope you're doing well. And I must say, I just fall asleep in our recliner...like an old man!!!
Jimmy--that's beautifully put. I hear you. As for the daydreaming on the pan thing, I always supposed that was a man thing, until I read Kylie's comment below!!! Quelle surprise!
Brian--I wish we had a front porch. Even in Brooklyn, some of the houses do have them. It seems like daydreaming heaven!
Cinnamon--Chicken soup is often referred to as Jewish Penicillin, and I've also read that there's some truth to its healing properties!
MJ--eew, rats. We have them in great numbers all over Brooklyn. But they'll come with or without the ivy, I suppose...
The photos in your links are so so so beautiful!
Auntie--I love it when I can hear, but not see, the birds. They do hide! It's lovely. As for Jimmy's comment, I had not heard it referred to as the "pan" before, but it makes sense, eh? Made me giggle.
Devil--I'm jealous of your view of a sleepy little village! How conducive to daydreaming that must be! I too daydream over a book.
Suzy--I adore doves. We had a very sweet one as a pet for years. He flew free all around the house (what a clean-up) and never once were we sick from him! All animals carry bacteria--I even know people who wash their hands after they pet dogs, which I think is ridiculous. Any dog owner/lover knows that if you did that, your hands would fall off after about a week from all the scrubbing. Ridiculous. I wouldn't stop associating with animals for all the tea in China--and I'm germ-phobic!!!! Honestly, Cece better have been delirious when she counseled you against feeding birds!!! But feel better Cece!
Robyn--yes, me too!
Kylie--oh, I see you already addressed the animal/bacteria issue! Sound advice. Although, as I said before, too much hand-washing isn't a good thing either. I read about a major study that found that children who grow up in households with pets, pet dander, loose fur, etc. etc. have fewer allergies. Exposure in the case of animals raises resistance.
And yes, I love to daydream in the car...although sometimes I get where I'm going without even realizing I'm there!!!!
At work. That's when I really come into my own. Actually, no - scrub that. On public transport like buses or trains. That usually stirs up a good day dream.
D'you get red squirrels in your neck of the woods? Just that we only get grey ones over here.
I don't daydream unfortunately. Anxiety and stress consume the waking hours of my brain.
Hi Leah,
I hope you and everyone here will come to my website today and see the gift that I have for you all to share. I really hope you all appreciate and enjoy it. Something I am giving to everyone, so please stop by.
Take care and God bless.
EM, hello! Public transport is an excellent place--I've missed my stop more than once!
We seem only to have the drab grey squirrels here--I'd love to see one of the red ones--
Bob--you really must take up daydreaming. It's quite meditative.
Mrsupole--hi and hope your day's good!
This is what we need to see it's right.The shadow and light and forget the wall.There's a lot in those shadows to dream of.I like that!
Have a nice day
:)
I love the shadows....they're amazing!
For me, I suppose the daydreaming place, but not of choice, is the bus in towwards central London to get the tube. It's probably because I'm half asleep, but I do like listening to some wonderful music while I daydream - artists of choice at the moment are 'The Puppini Sisters' and 'Damien Rice'.
Peter x
My garden. I'm blessed with a huge one and there's nothing nicer than sitting under a tree, glass of wine in hand on a warm summer evening, slapping mosquitos and contemplating well . .just about everything.
You know, I was so amazed by nature and ivy I didn't answer your daydream question.
Rob is often amazed I don't listen to the radio or music in the car. I don't because it's my "quiet time." I like to think and imagine. I suppose that's my daydream time.
And yes darling, I agree. Why wash your hands after petting a dog if you don't have to! Life's too short to dwell on small stuff. When my nephew was young my sister adopted a kitty for him. She used to find his face literally buried in the kitty's fur and said "Honey, you probably shouldn't do that because of your allergies." His response was "She's just so worth it." He was like, seven!!! If you love animals, you simply love animals. All the germs and bacteria don't mean a damn thing. He also used to say "She's a keeper!"
And doves. Aren't they so very precious. You know, in the South they shoot them for food. Rob once said "Wow, what a challenge." Perfectly stated.
As I'm writing this I'm looking at Jimmy. Too funny!!! You got yourself a keeper!
Love you baby. Thanks for the comment. I'll put the post up again. Click on Martha's link. Trust me you won't regret a single minute. When I move home I'll introduce the two of you. A match made in Heaven. Hell, you probably already know her. Let's all buy the book together, review the hell out of it and torment Martha! She'll be happy.
Love you so much darling. Thanks for everything. Hope you're feeling better.
XO
Me
I'm going to go check on Mr. Shife. Think he's still standing?!!!
No, no matter what I think, I can't give up blogging. I care too much about all of you. Apparently you're stuck with me despite what I think.
Hi Leah,
Mine is a very nice chair in a cubicle farm. Yes, I know ...
Best wishes,
Skeeter
Post-Puller!
What's up with everyone deleting their posts?
The Art of Blogging: Post Puller.
so how did it go today! What was the prank something really good! Did she get you good?
Robyn
i just noticed you were surprised about my day dreaming on the loo.
look darl, it's probably not my place of choice but it's uninterrupted :)
What is that "post-pulling" about?
Candie--yes, I also believe that dreams are found in the shadows.
Peter, dear Peter! Music is an excellent accompaniment to daydreaming, and especially necessary on public transport...
Baino--I'm rather jealous of the huge garden! Lovely, especially with a glass of wine...
Suzy--thanks for the comment--I will definitely look at the Martha link. And I feel quite confident that neither Shife nor Wife are on their feet, lol!
Skeeter--just imagine all the dreams swirling round all the cubicle farms all over America...
Megan, Just Bob, Suzanne--I know, I know, but it was such a boring post, I just had to pull it.
Robyn--Hedgie TOTALLY got me with a rubber band around the sink sprayer! It was excellent. I love being pranked.
Kylie--I hear you! Sometimes I just hide in there and sit on the edge of the tub with a cup of coffee...
mago--I deleted a drab, dull post after I'd posted it. It really was too boring to see the light of day.
I truly enjoy your insights and writings. Find beauty in everything and everyone is something I try to do now, but it can be very difficult at times.
I daydream everywhere. Driving, on the bus, doing mundane tasks, and especially at work in front of the computer, but the best place to daydream is outside. Feeling the warmth of the sun kissing my cheeks and giving me a warm hug quickly ushers me into my la-la land. I can kill a lot of time that way and sometimes dislike having to come back.
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