Kathryn V. White, Award-Winning Author & Artist
Adventures In Expansion

Musings

Just some thoughts, reflections, inspirations, and things I come across I think are fun, amusing, inspiring, or just plain great!

So welcome to my eclectic musings...

SEE MY ART
  • Home
  • Kathryn's ART
  • Books--Rumble Tumble Joy
  • Story Cafe
  • Kathryn's Stories
  • Quick Tales (For Kids of All Ages)
  • Blog
  • About Kathryn
  • Sign Up!
  • Contact
  • Media/Press
  • Multimedia
  • Privacy Policy

Fragrant Gardens: Places to Indulge the Senses

7/26/2014

 
Ethel L. Dupar's Fragrant Garden Plaque--www.kathrynVwhite.com
Ethel L. Dupar's Fragrant Garden--Photo by Kathryn V. White
Last summer, I enjoyed a tour of the Ethel L. Dupar’s Fragrant Garden located within the corporate campus of Seattle’s Lighthouse for the Blind.  

Our tour guide, Helen Weber, encouraged us to look, touch, taste, and deeply breathe in the alternatively sweet, fresh, sharp, and often indescribable scents of the plants.  Not surprisingly, the garden is loved by hummingbirds and bees.

Out of the 80 or so species at the garden, my favorites included: 
  • the ultra soft leaf of the Lamb’s Ear,
  • the pretty white flower of the Garlic Chives (which also smelled and tasted like garlic),
  • the peanut butter scented leaf of the Peanut Butter Plant,
  • the curry scented leaf of the Curry Plant (Helen assured us the taste was awful and nothing like curry),
  • the refreshing scent of the Lemon Scented Geranium leaf,
  • the full-bodied chocolate scent of the yellow flower of the Chocolate Flower, and
  • the soothing, fresh scent of Roman Chamomile.

Check out their website for tour dates and times.  

Other fragrant gardens in Seattle include the University of Washington (UW) Center for Urban Horticulture, the Joseph A. Witt winter garden in the Washington Park Arboretum near the Graham Visitors Center, and the UW Campus Medicinal Plant Garden. There is also the Fragrance Garden near Ferndale, WA adjacent to the Hovander Homestead historical site and its gardens.


So don't wait!  Enjoy the loveliness of a fragrant garden today!

The Positive Power of Change

7/19/2014

 
In the short story Yes, Fernando a woman finds her world turned upside down after an intense illness.

No longer able to authoritatively wield the word "NO!," she struggles to handle the changes sweeping her life.

And then, one fine spring day, she is faced with a dilemma. What will she choose?
Read Yes, Fernando to see the positive power found in opening to change.  

Click on the book cover to find out more! (Affiliate link)

Divine Delight

7/12/2014

 
Pond at UW Arboretum--photo by Kathryn V. White Pond at UW Arboretum--Photo by Kathryn V. White
July is the month to visit the UW Arboretum to see the hydrangeas—common, mop head, and lace caps to name a few.  Hydrangeas come in all sorts of shapes and colors.  The more acidic the soil, the bluer the flowers.

When I was looking at a lace cap beauty, I was struck with the thought of how much the Divine loves variety, creativity, and beauty.  I mean, just look at the lace cap—who would come up with something like this?  It’s a strange combination that renders the flower odd, wonderful, and beautiful at the same time.

Lace Cap Hydrangeas--photo by Kathryn V. White
Lace Cap Hydrangeas--Photo by Kathryn V. White
Did you know that maple trees—no matter the shape of their leaves (they don’t all have a five pointed leaf shape, as you see in the photo below)—have samaras?  These are seed pods—non-Latin names include “wing nut,”  “helicopter,” and “whirlybird.” As a kid, you may have liked to pull them apart and stick them on your nose. 
Weeping Maple Samaras (seed pods)--photo by Kathryn V. White
Weeping Maple Samaras (seed pods)--Photo by Kathryn V. White
Don’t miss out!  The hydrangeas are gorgeous—so get to the UW Arboretum this month!  And while you're there, decorate your nose with a maple tree samara!

FREE arboretum tours that highlight the hydrangeas during July are on Sundays, 1:00PM to 2:30PM.
Purple, Blue, & Pink Common Hydrangeas--Photo by Kathryn V. White
Common Hydrangeas--Purple, Blue, & Pink--Photo by Kathryn V. White
White Common Hydrangeas--Photo by Kathryn V. White
Common Hydrangeas--White--Photo by Kathryn V. White
Mop Head Hydrangea--photo by Kathryn V. White
Mop Head Hydrangea--Photo by Kathryn V. White

Going For Higher Ground

7/5/2014

 
Higher Ground is a movie about the internal and external struggles that ensue when the call to be one's authentic self is stronger than following the dictates of one's community.

It's a slice-of-life story of a young, intellectual girl, brought up in a fundamentalist household, who marries too young. 

With womanhood, she begins to wrestle with her changing sense of identity, her unhappiness in her marriage, the restrictions imposed by the male-dominated religion of her community, and her limited roles that she wants to sunder. 

And as she questions her faith and tries to give voice to her yearnings, the ties that bind her to her husband and her community start to unravel.

A beautiful and poignant film about growing up and away from that which has defined us and the costs this brings.

Click on the DVD cover to find out more. (Affiliate link)

    RSS Feed

    Be Sure To
    *Look at my fine art prints.
    *Check out my stories.

    *Sign up for my newsletter.
    *Like my Facebook page. (Click on the "Like" button below).
    If you love art, books, animals, and writing, visit my FB page.  Lots of cool stuff!

    Author

    Kathryn V. White is an author and artist who dreams of rousingly playing a djembe in a drum circle.  

    Two of my books are finalists in the 2014 Wishing Shelf Book Awards!  Click on the below book covers to learn more.
    Picture
    Picture
    Rumble Tumble Joy book reviews: San Francisco Book Review (4 star) & Story Circle Book Reviews (4 star).
    Picture
    2020 Juried Exhibit at the Washington State History Museum 
    Kathryn's collage, "Resonating Truth" has been juried into a show at the Washington State History Museum in Tacoma, Washington. The exhibit runs from April 9 to August 20, 2020.

    2019 - 2020 Juried Traveling Art Exhibit in Virginia

    Kathryn's papercutting plus collage  "Summer Interlude" has been juried into a traveling show.  The exhibit runs September 9, 2019 to December 8, 2019 at Gallery 3700 in Arlington, Virginia and from December 17, 2019 to February 18, 2020 at Westover Library in Arlington, Virginia.
    2019 Juried Exhibit at the Washington State Convention Center
    Kathryn's large collage "When I'm Gone, Who Will Remember Me?" has been juried into a show at the Washington State Convention Center's Phyllis Lamphere Gallery.  The exhibit runs January 12, 2019 to March 31, 2019.
    Poetry On Buses 
    Kathryn's poem, The Sound Soothes, was selected for the ​2017 Poetry on Buses: Your Body of Water Program and is a part of the online collection! Click here to read it!

    2018 Juried Exhibit at the Rosehill Community Center

    ​*Three of Kathryn's collages have been juried into an exhibit at the Rosehill Community Center in Mukilteo, WA from April 3 through June 24, 2018. "Phoenix" won the Northwest Collage Society's prestigious Eleanor Wolters Smith Memorial Award.

    2017 SOLO SHOW at the University Business Center

    *20 of Kathryn's artworks were on exhibit in a solo show from October 16 through December 7, 2017 at the University Business Center's Gallery 4500 in Seattle's U-District.
    2017 Juried Exhibit at Seattle City Hall 
    ​Kathryn's collage, "Welcome to My Universe" was juried into the exhibit, "Hot Town: Summer in the City" at the Seattle City Hall in downtown Seattle that ran from July 7 through August 30, 2017.
     
    2017 Juried Exhibit at Seattle University  
    ​Kathryn had a large collage, "Broadway at Times Square" juried into the 2017 Search for Meaning Art Exhibition (part of the Search for Meaning Book Festival) from February  16 to 25, 2017 at Seattle University's Vachon Gallery. 
    2017 Juried Exhibit at Cascadia Art Museum  
    ​Kathryn had a collage, "Indra's Net" juried into the exhibit, "Collaged Impressions of the Northwest Social Realism and the American Scene 1930 to 1950" that ran January 19 to March 26, 2017 at the Cascadia Art Museum in Edmonds, WA.
    2017 Exhibit at Dreamclinic 
    ​Kathryn had 10 artworks exhibited from January through April 12, 2017 at Dreamclinic in Seattle's Roosevelt neighborhood.
    BUY ART: 
    Kathryn's art is available as fine art prints. Click here to find out more.

    Kathryn’s quotes


    "You have everything when you embrace the full circle of life."— Kathryn V. White

    Goodreads Quotes

    Archives

    May 2021
    October 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    September 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    Categories

    All
    Add Your Voice
    Animals
    Art
    Art By Kathryn V. White
    Artists
    Authors
    Books
    Books By Kathryn V. White
    Documentaries
    Environment
    Feel Good
    Fiction
    Finding Joy
    Gratitude
    Movies & TV
    Nonfiction
    Quotes
    Resources
    Things To Do & See
    Writing

    Picture
    indiebound
    Some of the book and DVD covers included on this website are affiliate links with Amazon. This means that if you buy the book or DVD after clicking on its cover, I get a very small percentage of the sale price.
    Picture
    Image from Kat Eye Studio
    Picture
    Image from fourcornersdesign.blogspot.com
    Kathryn's "Aha" Moment
    ​
    Copyright 2013--2023
    All rights reserved.
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.