Thirteen Years.

Photo copyright Wings, 2020; 

all rights reserved.

Oh, BearGirl. It can't possibly have been thirteen years already since you left us. And yet it is.

She would be the first of many — so many; too many — of the animals who would have to leave us since we began our lives as a couple, and so this day is always especially hard. It's also hard because it was still too soon, entirely unnecessary but for the veterinary malpractice that took her from us. We had taken her to said vet some weeks previously, the vet clearly surprised and none too pleased to see me holding her leash, and when it came time to examine her, BearGirl turned and fled to hide her face between my knees. "Mom," was Wings's comment.

But the animals in our lives have never been child substitutes; they are equals in spirit. Dependent on us, surely, that doesn't imply a childlike status, merely care. And BearGirl was already an old soul, impossibly wise. She was in the neighborhood of eleven years old on this day thirteen years ago, and while that's long for a Newfie, she should have had much longer. But I had only recently learned of the long-term damage that had been inflicted previously, and its shadow and her spirit had finally caught up with each other.

I still remember how she greeted me the day we met: a week after Wings and I had first met, as it happens, when I came here for our first date, no small amount of trepidation on my part because of all the obvious reasons, and because I had also been so long out of the dating game, courtesy of life and work and the need to take care of two ill elder parents. I had no real idea what to expect, but as I turned into the drive, she and her sister Hunter saw my car, fixed their eyes straight on me, and came bulleting all the way across the north field as fast as their legs could carry them, so fast they seemed nearly to levitate. By the time I parked, they were dancing with anticipation; I opened the driver's door, and Hunter, a gull-sized Australian Shepherd, immediately shoved her way in under my feet, while BearGirl, enough older to insist on retaining a smidgen of dignity, merely danced and shoved her head in onto my lap. It was a minute or two before I could even get out of the car, because these two girls adopted me instantly, and they never let me go.

Letting BearGirl was exceedingly hard, and we had fewer than four weeks to adjust ourselves to the idea that she might not make it through the crisis, through the battle her body was insistently waging despite all odds. Indeed, on the next-to-last day, we were still arguing with fate, hoping for a miracle. But on the day of the Feast of San Geronimo, when absolutely no help is to be found, a mini-stroke foreclosed all other avenues, and it was time. And it was the vet who was not hers who agreed to help us help her. He's been vet to all of our dogs ever since, and he's come out for others, too. And we knew it was right, because he wept with us at the end.

I love that photo Wings took of her, above. I love the contrast between her rich black velvet coat and the bright gold carpet of aspen leaves, a shot from this very time of year, probably in 2005 or 2006. It was when she was happiest, too, the cool air most comfortable for her with all that gorgeous long black fur.  And there is not a day that goes by that BearGirl is not in my heart, nor in my thoughts. It would be impossible: All I have to do is walk outside to see the spot where, when the old manufactured home was still here, she loved to lie against the skirting in the sun. That house was far longer than our home now is wide, and so that spot is now open space, but I can still tell you exactly where it is. And so, some forty minutes ago, I did as I always do for all of our animals and I took her water and cedar and tobacco. I put them where we spread her ashes, including a little extra tobacco on her favorite spot in the sun. And I miss her terribly. We both do.

We love you, BearGirl. We always will.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner. 

A Surprise: New Work By Wings.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; 

all rights reserved.

Just completed, it's a surprise: new work by Wings. Actually, it's less a surprise per se than simply that I wasn't expecting to be able to bring them to you this soon. They've been in rotation on his workbench along with a half-dozen to a dozen other pieces for a few weeks now, but I didn't realize that he'd finished them. I had hoped to post them yesterday evening, but it was just too busy here for me to be able to get the moments of silence I needed to edit the photo and write the description.

This pair is called Rain In Flower, and they're amazing. The lapis lazuli cabochons are extraordinary, part of the same parcel whose smaller members sit at the ordinal points of the Winter: Snow At Midnight necklace he created at the end of last year, the first in his limited signature series The Four Seasons. These, though, are end-of-summer into fall in spirit — the deep blue of the monsoonal rains, the flared petals of the last of the squash blossoms, still visible in our garden now. You can read their full description here. If you're into dancing blues, these are for you.

Wings's main page is here. Inquiries via the site's Contact form. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.  

Autumn light.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Yesterday's dawn. Today's was the same; we finally have the gift of the autumn light.

It won't be as cold today; highs back into the 70s instead of the 50s. That'll be good for San G. For us, though, it's going to be work as usual. I'm still not back 100% from that vaccine reaction (well, I'm never 100% at the best of times, but you know what I mean), and I've fallen so far behind now that no amount of pushing myself is going to catch me up; it's just going to take time. I made that mistake yesterday, trying to do a bunch of small tasks, and I crashed as a result. Today, though, is going to require at least five no, six big things of me, so I need to get on it. The rest you've seen, if you bother to read on, but if not, it matters. Yeah, I know; things are tough all over. But they're especially hard in and on our communities, and I see very little acknowledgment of that beyond the usual colonial poverty porn.

There's also a new positive COVID-19 case here. At IHS, natch, which makes it all the more dangerous for everyone. There are five current ones total, all reportedly doing well, although the state still stubbornly refuses to count the May one that was not. And still I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years, or the last six months, on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be not merely brutal but positively deadly And we are at particularly heightened risk.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. If my Patreon clears properly (yes, it's still down by ~$110 a month, but I mean the rest of it), then I'll pay the quarterly taxes on Friday. If I could make a couple of large sales, I could feel fairly confident that I've got October covered, but not until then. Which means that, no matter how sick I still feel from this vaccine, I've got to get on it. I'm still delaying the tow and the car repair because it's going to be many more hundreds of dollars than we can afford. Selling Wings's newest work would do it: It's the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come). You can see it here, and it's incredible.

We're still going to need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Items from the wishlist help, too; most important at the moment is the Lamina Saver for Miika. The farrier changed his appointment from yesterday to Thursday, so that's another expense, but this helps with prevention. But the big thing is bringing in sales, so please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

In the Amber Light of Autumn Spirits

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Now posted at The NDN Silver Blog, it's a work by a master to honor the small spirits of the light. It's a butterfly concha belt as you've never seen one before, one that honors its namesake in literal form and shape, and reminds us now of the magic and mystery and medicine we find here at this season, in the amber light of autumn spirits.

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. Inquiries via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last few weeks. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.  

Not quite human yet, but almost.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Not quite human yet, but almost. Meanwhile, the world keeps delivering new issues (and I keep falling further and further behind).

Yesterday, it delivered unseasonal clouds and bitter cold, sufficient to need to keep the fires going all day. It also delivered a new birds (and some returning ones here entirely out of season). That's a brown thrasher. In migratory terms, they sometimes make it along the eastern border of the state, but not here. Until now. Its tailfeathers glow rusty red and luminous in the sunlight. The yellow-headed blackbird was here six months out of season, too, and a female grosbeak all by herself. We have the new woodpeckers, the young pair of scrub jays, and the hawks playing overhead. And today we have bright sun (and will eventually have a high a good 20-25 degrees higher than yesterday's). 

We will also have a slight return to more usual markers. No, there will be no public feast day this year, but I've qualified that all along with the word "public" (although I'll bet most folks focused on the word "feast" and missed my very specific qualifier altogether). They've announced this morning that it will take place, but in private, no one from outside tribal lands except tribal members (and those from outside the area would have needed to return and quarantine two weeks ago to participate). Masks, distancing, sanitation, and limited gathering.

There's also a new positive COVID-19 case here. At IHS, natch, which makes it all the more dangerous for everyone. There are five current ones total, all reportedly doing well, although the state still stubbornly refuses to count the May one that was not. And still I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years, or the last six months, on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be not merely brutal but positively deadly And we are at particularly heightened risk.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. If my Patreon clears properly (yes, it's still down by ~$110 a month, but I mean the rest of it), then I'll pay the quarterly taxes on Friday. If I could make a couple of large sales, I could feel fairly confident that I've got October covered, but not until then. Which means that, no matter how sick I still feel from this vaccine, I've got to get on it. I'm still delaying the tow and the car repair because it's going to be many more hundreds of dollars than we can afford. Selling Wings's newest work would do it: It's the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come). You can see it here, and it's incredible.

We're still going to need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Items from the wishlist help, too; most important at the moment is the Lamina Saver for Miika. The farrier changed his appointment from yesterday to Thursday, so that's another expense, but this helps with prevention. But the big thing is bringing in sales, so please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

Red Willow Spirit: Shadows Leafing In the Light

Photo copyright Wings, 2020; all rights reserved.

Now posted at The NDN Silver Blog, it's an edition of Red Willow Spirit for a season of change, and a year of it, too, for resilience and adaptation and seeing the beauty that lies ahead. It's a different, yet still formal marking of autumn's gifts, of lines across the land that open it to this last golden dance before the snow flies: shadows leafing in the light, a land lit by all the shades of the sun.

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. As always, his photos are available in any of the usual three formats; to order them or the wearable art shown, simply inquire via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last three weeks. I still need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

Pennies.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Leaves like copper pennies.

That was from yesterday, but they still kind of glow, even though it's cloudy and windy and all of forty-four degrees outside. The animals love it, but I just had to build a fire in the smaller woodstove, too, because the wind chill is somewhere around the freezing mark.

Feeling a little better today, less feverish (it's so weird to feel like you have the worst fever ever but with no, you know, fever), but still the baseball-sized injection site, still the headache and scratchy throat, still the body aches and fatigue. I can't believe I have to do this again in two months. I think I'm going to have to put off my flu shot until the end of the year, because I cannot have my body in full systemic autoimmune rebellion all the time.

I'm so far behind it's not funny. I also have to spend all of this week chasing pennies of the more literal sort. If I could make a couple of large sales, I could feel fairly confident that I've got October covered, but not until then. Which means that, no matter how sick I still feel from this vaccine, I've got to get on it.

There's also a new positive COVID-19 case here. At IHS, natch, which makes it all the more dangerous for everyone. Tomorrow night would normally be San G vespers, and Wednesday would be the Feast of San Geronimo. Not this year. It's been canceled for the first time not only in living memory, but ancestral memory, too; no one alive today has ever heard any stories of circumstances requiring cancellation since its observance was instituted hundreds of years ago. And still I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years, or the last six months, on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be not merely brutal but positively deadly And we are at particularly heightened risk.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. If my Patreon clears properly (yes, it's still down by ~$110 a month, but I mean the rest of it), then I'll pay the quarterly taxes on Friday. I still, as I said, need to make a couple of good-sized sales to make sure we make it through October, and I'm still delaying the tow and the car repair because it's going to be many more hundreds of dollars than we can afford. Selling Wings's newest work would do it: It's the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come). You can see it here, and it's incredible.

We're still going to need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

Monday Photo Meditation: The Golden Season

Photo copyright Wings, 2020; all rights reserved.

Now posted at The NDN Silver Blog, it's a photo meditation for a time that is traditionally filled with a magical beauty. It's a reminder, too, that even in such dark days, those gifts remain; this is the golden season, here to inspire us to do the work because time grows short. 

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. As always, his photos are available in any of the usual three formats; simply inquire via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last month. I still need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner. 

Fierce.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

She was "the scared one," they said. The one who was afraid of everything, they said.

She's also the one who routinely pins her brother, and if he pisses her off, she clamps down hard and won't let go.

She's fierce.

I, on the other hand, am not feeling fierce at all today. I have not felt this sick in a very, very long time. If this is what the vaccine does, though, I can only imagine what the misery of the illness must be. I'm not looking forward to the second dose in two months, though. This kind of pain makes functionality impossible, and I don't have that kind of time.

Which is also to say, it's going to be harder than ever to get done all that I need to do today, so the rest is cut-and-paste, but please check out the links to the new work. I've got to bring in more steady sales.

And as I said, and I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Yes, I'm glad to see the back of official summer, but since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be even more brutal.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. [Now, if I could just find paper towels in stock . . . .] What's left I'm hoarding for October's quarterly tax payment (aside from the $82 I spent Monday morning ordering Wings's glucose tabs, because they were on sale, and I will never find them at this price again, so I ordered six bottles to stock up for a while). As I also said, if I could make one more good sale, I could pay the tax bill in full this week and get it out of the way early. We've got that now, but one more and I'd have us all set for October, barring unforeseen disaster. I'm still delaying the car tow and repair, because the taxes need to come first, and with my Patreon still down by ~$110 a month or so, I need to make sure every penny is available to cover the taxes and the regular bills. That one more good sale? If all goes well, I'll have that major new piece to show you by tonight (it was supposed to be last night, but yesterday was a hectic day on multiple fronts) in a few hours, which is why this post is coming before the NDN Silver one. If so, it'll appear on the day of the very last hours of as part of Indian summer: It's the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come). You can see it here, and it's incredible.

So we will still need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

The Medicine of Fall

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Now posted at The NDN Silver Blog, it's one of Wings's newer masterworks, a cuff that honors the sacred in spectacularly beautiful form. It's a work for this season, too, for what yet grows and is ready for harvest, for the medicine of fall as we make ready for the arrival of a long hard winter.

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. Inquiries via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last few weeks. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.  

The smoke plume is back today.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Pretty, but the smoke plume is back today.

It's not all that's back. I'm in full autoimmune overload this morning, which I kind of expected, but silly me, after yesterday's seeming non-reaction I had enough hubris to think I might escape it. Among the other things I had to do yesterday, most of which were hideously expensive and set me back more than $300, I got my first does of the shingles vaccine. [Wings got his last week.] And I had virtually no reaction yesterday, which is vanishingly rare for me, and I thought I might avoid it entirely.

Until this morning. Oh, my god, the body aches. Even my right arm hurts, and they gave it to me in my left. Literally, every joint, every muscle group is in agony; it feels like the flu, but without the fever. Which is to say, the norm for me after a vaccine (and even just on an ordinary day in full autoimmune flare). Add the smoke on top of it, though? I'm utterly miserable.

Which is also to say, it's going to be harder than ever to get done all that I need to do today, so the rest is cut-and-paste, but please check out the links to the new work. I've got to bring in more steady sales.

And as I said, and I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Yes, I'm glad to see the back of official summer, but since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be even more brutal.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. [Now, if I could just find paper towels in stock . . . .] What's left I'm hoarding for October's quarterly tax payment (aside from the $82 I spent Monday morning ordering Wings's glucose tabs, because they were on sale, and I will never find them at this price again, so I ordered six bottles to stock up for a while). As I also said, if I could make one more good sale, I could pay the tax bill in full this week and get it out of the way early. We've got that now, but one more and I'd have us all set for October, barring unforeseen disaster. I'm still delaying the car tow and repair, because the taxes need to come first, and with my Patreon still down by ~$110 a month or so, I need to make sure every penny is available to cover the taxes and the regular bills. That one more good sale? If all goes well, I'll have that major new piece to show you by tonight (it was supposed to be last night, but yesterday was a hectic day on multiple fronts) in a few hours, which is why this post is coming before the NDN Silver one. If so, it'll appear on the day of the very last hours of as part of Indian summer: It's the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come). You can see it here, and it's incredible.

So we will still need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

The Light That Falls From an Autumn Sky

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Now posted at The NDN Silver Blog, it's one of my favorite works in its category, a pair of earrings of substance and spirit, of the same enormous power and ethereal beauty as our world here now. These are the embodiment of a turquoise dawn, of the light that falls from an autumn sky to dance in the sharp clear air.

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. Inquiries via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last few weeks. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.  

The world is still on fire.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

The smoke plume is back, and the world is still on fire.

Despite the noxious air, I have to go out into it today. In fact, I have a hugely overloaded day, I need to get on it because I'm already behind, and as the saying goes, winter is coming, in more ways than one. The rest is going to be cut-and-paste, but it all still matters.

I mean, it feels like it's been an early winter all summer long anyway. Red willows dying in spring; trees starting turn by the end of June; snow in September. Drought. Pandemic. Toxic wildfire smoke everywhere for weeks on end. More than just the leaves are dying.

I had one of my worst episodes in months on Monday night. I'm still feeling the effects of it even today, Wednesday, and it's frightening. And as I said yesterday, and I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Yes, I'm glad to see the back of official summer, but since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be even more brutal.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. [Now, if I could just find paper towels in stock . . . .] What's left I'm hoarding for October's quarterly tax payment (aside from the $82 I spent Monday morning ordering Wings's glucose tabs, because they were on sale, and I will never find them at this price again, so I ordered six bottles to stock up for a while). As I also said, if I could make one more good sale, I could pay the tax bill in full this week and get it out of the way early. We've got that now, but one more and I'd have us all set for October, barring unforeseen disaster. I'm still delaying the car tow and repair, because the taxes need to come first, and with my Patreon still down by ~$110 a month or so, I need to make sure every penny is available to cover the taxes and the regular bills. That one more good sale? If all goes well, I'll have that major new piece to show you by tonight (it was supposed to be last night, but yesterday was a hectic day on multiple fronts) in a few hours, which is why this post is coming before the NDN Silver one. If so, it'll appear on the day of the very last hours of as part of Indian summer: the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come).

So we will still need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

Friday Feature: Summer Flowers, Autumn Frost

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; 

all rights reserved.

It's our Friday Feature at The NDN Silver Blog, with a pair of works by Pueblo master whose legacy is one of traditional beauty and power. It's two figurative sculptures that share a common spirit, that of summer flowers, autumn frost, and the transcendent ability to thrive in beauty and wisdom and harmony.

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. Inquiries via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last few weeks. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

Bare tundra.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

Lots of yellow on the peaks. Lots of bare tundra, too. Everything we're seeing now will likely mean an early winter, and probably a hard one, too. Here, the hardest ones are the ones without snow.

I mean, it feels like it's been an early winter all summer long anyway. Red willows dying in spring; trees starting turn by the end of June; snow in September. Drought. Pandemic. Toxic wildfire smoke everywhere for weeks on end. More than just the leaves are dying.

I had one of my worst episodes in months on Monday night. I'm still feeling the effects of it even today, Wednesday, and it's frightening. And as I said yesterday, and I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Yes, I'm glad to see the back of official summer, but since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be even more brutal.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. [Now, if I could just find paper towels in stock . . . .] What's left I'm hoarding for October's quarterly tax payment (aside from the $82 I spent Monday morning ordering Wings's glucose tabs, because they were on sale, and I will never find them at this price again, so I ordered six bottles to stock up for a while). As I also said, if I could make one more good sale, I could pay the tax bill in full this week and get it out of the way early. We've got that now, but one more and I'd have us all set for October, barring unforeseen disaster. I'm still delaying the car tow and repair, because the taxes need to come first, and with my Patreon still down by ~$110 a month or so, I need to make sure every penny is available to cover the taxes and the regular bills. That one more good sale? If all goes well, I'll have that major new piece to show you by tonight (it was supposed to be last night, but yesterday was a hectic day on multiple fronts) in a few hours, which is why this post is coming before the NDN Silver one. If so, it'll appear on the day of the very last hours of as part of Indian summer: the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come).

So we will still need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

#ThrowbackThursday: Early Fall Beneath a Wildflower Sky

Photo copyright Wings, 2020; all rights reserved.

It's #TBT at The NDN Silver Blog, with a work from, if memory serves, this very season some twelve years ago, a spare and simple buckle set with extraordinary gems. It's a cactus blossom in full flower, perfect for these days of crisp air and clear skies, early fall beneath a wildflower sky.

The post is here. Wings's main page is here. This work obviously will never be duplicated exactly, but if the style speaks to your spirit, simply inquire via the site's Contact form; Wings can create a version uniquely your own. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last few weeks. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.

Indian Summer's Wildflower Dance

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; 

all rights reserved.

Now posted at The NDN Silver Blog, it's Wings's newest masterwork, completed only this evening, and the third entry in his limited signature series of necklaces, The Four Seasons. It's the petals of warmer winds as you've never seen them before, and now, all the hope and promised manifest in Indian summer's wildflower dance. 

There's also a bonus item, entirely separate: an all-new cuff bracelet that embodies the wildflowers even as it looks ahead to winter:

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

This is Winter Blossom, and you can read its full description here.

The main post is here. Wings's main page is here. Inquiries via the site's Contact form. And look: The long and short of it is that this summer has been nothing short of brutal, and the repeated hits combined with the sheer volume of need in our communities has taken an enormous toll. I'm already behind by about $1,500 on all the outlay from the last few weeks. I need to get the car in for what will be costly repair, and it will require an also-costly tow to do it. We will make it through this month, but I still need to bring in steady sales to ensure that quarterly taxes are paid in full with enough left over for October's regular bills, so, as always, sales are very much needed, and shares of the site links are much appreciated.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.  

More than just the leaves are dying.

Photo copyright Aji, 2020; all rights reserved.

This post first today, because I should be able to have two new pieces for you this afternoon, and one will be the featured work on Wings's blog, so that post will come thereafter. They're starkly different works, different categories and styles and price points, but they're both stunning.

And we need a little color, and a little light. The green is distinctly in the minority now. To left and right of that shot, most of what's along the highway is gold. The aspen line appeared on the Mountains at midday on Monday, and it's growing by the day. This early? That will mean an early winter, and probably a hard one, too.

I mean, it feels like it's been an early winter all summer long anyway. Red willows dying in spring; trees starting turn by the end of June; snow in September. Drought. Pandemic. Toxic wildfire smoke everywhere for weeks on end. More than just the leaves are dying.

I had one of my worst episodes in months on Monday night. I'm still feeling the effects of it even today, Wednesday, and it's frightening. And as I said yesterday, and I feel the need to keep pointing this out, because people truly do not understand the ravages of the last four years on our communities: Among the wider community of people Wings is related to, friends with, or simply knows, he's lost at least an average of one per week since the first week of May. In one really terrible week, there were four in one day; then another four two days later. Yes, I'm glad to see the back of official summer, but since the state is busy reopening everything in defiance of all care and common sense, we can expect winter to be even more brutal.

It will also mean that we can expect sales to continue to be terrible. As I said, thanks to a friend, we've got September completely covered. [Now, if I could just find paper towels in stock . . . .] What's left I'm hoarding for October's quarterly tax payment (aside from the $82 I spent Monday morning ordering Wings's glucose tabs, because they were on sale, and I will never find them at this price again, so I ordered six bottles to stock up for a while). As I also said, if I could make one more good sale, I could pay the tax bill in full this week and get it out of the way early. We've got that now, but one more and I'd have us all set for October, barring unforeseen disaster. I'm still delaying the car tow and repair, because the taxes need to come first, and with my Patreon still down by ~$110 a month or so, I need to make sure every penny is available to cover the taxes and the regular bills. That one more good sale? If all goes well, I'll have that major new piece to show you by tonight (it was supposed to be last night, but yesterday was a hectic day on multiple fronts) in a few hours, which is why this post is coming before the NDN Silver one. If so, it'll appear on the day of the very last hours of as part of Indian summer: the "Summer" entry in Wings's limited series of necklaces, The Four Seasons ("Winter" sold back in, well, winter; "Spring" is still available here; and "Fall" is, of course, yet to come).

So we will still need help to make sales through the rest of this awful year. I'm not asking for donations; there are too many people worse off than us, people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who very shortly may not have (or already don't have) a roof over their heads. But this pandemic has killed tourism for Indigenous artists like Wings, and has killed everyone's sales. Businesses are closing left and right here, and we're blessed to be able to work out of our home, but still, sales are, in relative terms, down to nothing.

You can help by sharing our links. You can especially help if you're in the market for high-end, Spirit-infused Indigenous wearable art, for yourself or as a gift, by considering Wings's work for purchase. It's also  back-to-school season, even if remotely in some places, with all the events that that entails; birthdays come and go year-round; Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas especially will all be here before we know it. 

The links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here;
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And making sure everything's covered? That part of it is all on me, no matter how sick I am, no matter how much pain I'm in, no matter how little sleep I get. And with this hanging over me, I'm getting precious little sleep now. We need to be able to continue to help folks, and we're going to keep on doing it. But to do that, and to keep our own heads above water, we need to bring in sales closer to normal rates. Please help us do that if you can. Thanks.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.