The city is my mistress, the forest is my love.

Fall in the city, sure is pretty. But I'm gonna go see me some woods.

Grant swung by my place this past weekend. My heart aches from the pictures. I love upstate in the fall. I might resort to hitching. (Peep the second picture, another bear!)

Ten guesses as to where I'm spending my birthday. Hint: it's a TREE paradise.

The weekends upstate are dwindling as the summer weather wanes. I headed up this weekend with Marc and Justis and had some perfect upstate days. The kind where you've planned on doing absolutely nothing and yet you get up to so much. We spent some time at Justis's place and I'm sad to say my camera died right as I got there but it was SO beautiful. A dramatic yet small cabin in the woods that he's been working on all summer. Post and beam with hand-hewn/burned wood, single pitch, tons of windows. Incredible. Seeing his place renewed my sense of purpose and has wholly inspired me to keep on. What will I build next? I had huge dreams that night.

I suppose I should have mentioned the stellar line-up for the festival as opposed to just basking in it's glory. Family Band played though they aren't on the poster (which Mark Ohe of Endless Boogie designed!) Johnny also sat in on Hiss Golden Messenger's set which was...well.. . ..indescribably good. Pretty sure I unintentionally fell into some jam-band-dance-trance during that set, please no one remind me.

The pictures from this weekend are endless and beautiful. Check out Kim and Johnny's house... it's so cool it gives me house envy. Born of their own hands of course.

So, our annual music festival killed it. Mike, Julie and Julian made it off the charts special and unspeakably fun. Who's the handsome fellow bracing the port-o-let in the back of the pick-up you ask? My brother! More to come. (p.s. check Dusty in her yoda duds. Totally unintentional... preeeeetty darn cute)

Treehouse, Vallery style. Now if only Kursten were here.