Jocelyn Campbell

Vicki and Lina, were you guessing on Heather's image, this one?

Heather Sharpe wrote:This one was hard to capture the color of in a photo, so i took two in different lighting.

Someone guessed it! Though it was not red cedar. Read through the replies and you'll see the answer.

So glad to have you play the guessing game though!

What a tricky one, Heather! And Jordan, your knowledge is incredible - well done!!

That smell of freshly cut wood - especially cedar! - can't be beat. It almost makes firewood and other chores worth it.

Is it quite pink, Heather?

I'm surprised no one else has guessed yet! I'm going to make a terrible guess:  is it Douglas fir?

Lauren Ritz wrote:
I was so busy I couldn't turn around without having priority paralysis.

I am loving that salient phrase: "priority paralysis." It makes me feel better to know that I'm not alone in struggling with that.

Currently, I'm optimizing for (1) mental clarity and (2) getting back on my feet financially, emotionally, and with my health. Plus, in the midst of that, and this pandemic, I'm also optimizing for (3) joy - but these all weave together, so the numbers are just to pop out the three things, and not necessarily putting them in any order.

I need mental clarity for the work I do. And for me, probably for most of us, mental clarity is inextricably tied to my physical health and self-care. But since I'm the type of person stuck in my head most of the time, my mental clarity is an incredibly huge clue about my current health status in other ways.  

My best mental clarity and least sinus infections are when I cook almost all my own food. So I do that. Plus, I now only keep foods in the house that build my health, instead of deteriorate it. My rare one glass of wine per month, is now one glass every 3 to 6 months because even organic wine affects me, slows me down.

I'm sleeping better and learning what does and doesn't help me sleep. My awesome landlady replaced the old, icky carpet with brand new flooring.

I'm taking time to enjoy family and friends (in safe ways), and beautiful things. I'm nesting. I'm making things more and more beautiful, comfortable and enjoyable for myself and my visitors in my new digs here in Carnation, Washington (state). I have a goat barn dining room that has half walls, open to the fresh air, that has been a safer place to have a visitor than indoors, and it is now decorated with Christmas lights and a paper star "chandelier" above the table.

My sinuses finally feel infection free for the first time in probably years, and it's amazing how much more clearly I can think and how much more energy I have.

It's always in hindsight that we can recognize how we were unhealthy, unhappy or otherwise in a reduced capacity one way or another. Some times, when we're in that reduced capacity, it's really hard to see why or what things are affecting us.

Now that I'm doing so much better, I have the capacity to learn new things, do new things, and I have the energy to actually do physical things because I want to, and it feels good! These are joyful things again, when before, just the idea of tackling new things added to my stress and priority paralysis.

I have been working on goals for my business, for my new life, but I think any life goals for me have to be on the foundations of mental clarity, being/staying on my feet (metaphorically speaking), and joy. So as Pearl mentioned in the OP, while things like planting 10 new trees are cool, taking that deeper dive into what makes my life work (or not work), and making big changes because of it...is helping. And also like Lauren, a far simpler life makes sense to me and is perhaps another part of what I needed. My life is basic enough right now, for example, that I have decided that I don't have time for my own garden or critters, but that makes a boatload of sense to me. It's actually a joyful thing to be a bit more carefree as I rebuild.

You all are amazing at this game - wow!

I tried to give apples to correct guesses. Did I miss any?

Ooh, that looks like a good one, for the game, John!

Random guess only because I've seen people cut it to the ground before:  buddlea davidii (sp?) or butterfly bush?

Edited to add:  do you mean central/east N. America? (On my phone which doesn't show location.)

I love it! Judith is right that your spoon is beautiful Jordan. More apples to you and Marty from me!

Now I'd love to see some "normal" looking Hackberry wood, too.

Looking forward to more pictures for this game...

It reminds me of the spoons Paul and others made out of serviceberry aka saskatoon or Amelanchier alnifolia, though I think that might not be it...is it?

Heather Sharpe wrote:English Ivy?

Ding, ding, ding!! You guessed it! Well done and apples for you, Heather!!

I did not know that English ivy, common ivy vines could get this massive. These are the vines that were strangling a majestic Douglas fir tree in the wooded part of the property where I live. Some are/were even thicker than this!

Who knew there could be such a thing as ivy wood to burn for heat?!

Now I wonder if anyone else has a picture for a brain teaser.

greg mosser wrote:so, to be clear, is the hairiness isn’t damaged bark, but a natural feature of the plant while it’s growing?

What a fabulous question! Yes, the "hairiness" would be considered a natural feature.