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Dragonfly Journal
~ The Whiskey Porch Blog ~

Summer Stars

6/21/2022

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Today is summer solstice.  "Midsommar" in Sweden.  I wanted to celebrate by sharing a lovely poem by an American Pulitzer prize winning artist and author who's parents were Swedish.  He lived in North Carolina and his home is now a National museum.
​
Bend low again, night of summer stars.
So near you are, sky of summer stars,
So near, a long arm man can pick off stars,
Pick off what he wants in the sky bowl,
So near you are, summer stars,
So near, strumming, strumming,
So lazy and hum-strumming.

From Smoke and Steel, by Carl Sandburg, 1920.

Learn about Carl Sandburg
Glowing sunflower with the blue sky and clouds behind
Sunflower by S. Carlson

However you celebrate, be sure it's outdoors and slow down to really observe and find the beauty all around you.  Let me know in the comments below what you think about this sweet poem and what you did to celebrate!

~Miriam

more inspiration

If you're looking for more inspiration, check out the other blog posts about Living with the Seasons here.
Living with the Seasons
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Living with the seasons: Transitional Spaces

3/24/2022

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One of the key themes I come back to at The Whiskey Porch is "seasonal living".  It's an aspect of a Simple Lifestyle that adds texture, and color, and variety, and a natural flow to things.

When we talk about living with the seasons, what does that really mean?

To me, it's simply shifting your lifestyle with the seasons.  Doing different things in different spaces, as the seasons progress through the year.

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Focusing on the connection to the landscape and the outdoors is just as important as the creature comforts and floorplan that you incorporate into your home design.  So, the interior isn't entirely separate from the outdoors and the landscape that your home sits on. 

By creating this connection intentionally, we craft a direct link between our daily activities and the cycle of the earth. 

And.  We can greatly expand the amount of living space available to us.

Let me explain.

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That hygge Time of year

11/9/2021

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It's Hygge time.

​As the seasons shift to colder and darker days, rather than yearn for the return of summer, Nordic lifestyle embraces this time with a concept known as "hygge". 

You've heard the word I'm pretty sure.   

What is hygge, though?
​
hot tea, lights, cinnamon and hygge time

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First frost

10/10/2021

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One of the fabulous things about gardening in the high country of Arizona (Prescott) is that, for the most part, it's a 9-month season.  The shoulder seasons are most definitely a bit unpredictable.  But it's really a gardener's paradise.

This week our first frost is coming.  Bit early - but if we can get our gardens through the odd frost here and there we will often be enjoying the fruits of our labor well into November.  

This year, because I invested so much in getting the new kitchen garden raised beds built and seeds started, I just couldn't let this cold snap claim the end of my growing season.  So, I spent some time getting prepared ahead of time and have actually enjoyed the process (rather than feeling like it was the end of a glorious summer, it was thoroughly enjoyable).  

I wanted to share a few tidbits from the process here.

sunflowers in the frost

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Autumn equinox

9/22/2021

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And just like that, it just all settles into this easy, warm glow.  

We are celebrating the Fall Equinox in the northern hemisphere today.  Far from being just the end of summer, autumn always feels like a new beginning to me.  



Life starts all over again
​when it gets crisp in the fall.
~ F. Scott Fitzgerald
​

​Everything is luminous with color and vibrancy.  The sun lower in the sky but still warm and gentle.  The bustle of the kiddos heading back to school and the birds enjoying the bounty of the summer season before everything lays down for a nice, quiet rest.  The freshness in the air in the evening and early morning brings new energy.

Always my favorite and most invigorating change of season - I hope this day is a lovely one for you too.  
Take a moment to smell the change in the air and listen to the birds chatter.  
​​
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Happy fall equinox to you,
​~Miriam

more inspiration

Love the idea of living with the seasons?  Looking for more inspiration?

You might enjoy 14 Ways to Embrace the Shorter Days of Autumn, an in-depth look at some inspired ways to jump into the season with all your heart.

More Inspiration
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14 Ways to embrace the shorter days of autumn

11/14/2019

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first frost on a sunflower


​Autumn is by far my favorite season. 

It's something that I treasure every year although at the same time it's signaling the end of all the glory of the long, easy summer days.

​How do you celebrate autumn?

I mean truly embrace it?  Not the "holidays" but the season.

We know that it's obvious to talk about pumpkins, and pumpkin spice, and then before you know it holiday decorations... BUT there is so much more you can do to truly connect with this cooler season with it's soft, low light and briskly shorter days. 

It's a time to celebrate beyond the standard holiday themes and hype.  In fact, I would honestly say that my deepest desire is to escape much of the commercial and cultural pressure and demands that are almost impossible to escape once Labor Day hits.  ​

We've compiled a list of wonderful ideas on how do just that...

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Books and publications we love

8/20/2019

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One of our goals here at The Whiskey Porch is to provide well curated, high-quality resources to help you on your journey to creating a smaller & simpler life in your Nordic bungalow.

This is my first collection in which I'm going to share some of my all-time favorites, and my focus will be books and publications here. 
​
  • None of these resources represent exactly my take on a small bungalow lifestyle or design, but they reflect the basics and core inspiration to get us there.
​
  • In fact, some of these listings feature some particularly spectacular, huge, over-the-top homes.  Not what I would call a smaller & simpler lifestyle, but never-the-less it's a wonderful idea generator.

Let's get started:


publications for inspiration
​

american bungalow magazine
American Bungalow Magazine
www.americanbungalow.com

This is an extremely high quality periodical with a subscription offering (4 publications/year) and the opportunity to purchase back issues individually. 

It's a great source for learning about the ins and outs of this architectural style and it's history.  The articles are all very well written, and  in-depth.  The photography is spectacular ​
and the featured properties are truly inspiring.

It is definitely oriented around the purest concept of the original bungalows, but sometimes features newer builds or remodels with a more modern aesthetic twist.

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    Author

    Hey there.  I'm Miriam ~ and I've been doing this my whole life.  It's my passion.  ​

    Miriam Carlson-Maier

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  • Resources
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