Thule / Zele / Iceland / Colorado / Dawn / Farland / then / now /
Posted on May 31st, 2008
by 
synonym for light
synonym for light
I'm putting up photos from Iceland tomorrow, printed and matted along with copies of pages from Farland's gorgeous journal. I'm putting some of them up tomorrow at the cafe in Aspen for real people to see in the "real" world, while they drink their coffees and teas and read and chat and etc....
I had to write an "about the artist" thing and I HATE that, but I really enjoyed it, kind of.... I want to know what you wonderful, dear, very real friends think of this before I print it up and hang it up tomorrow-- and you too FARLAND whose phone seems to be dead!! :-)
here it is............
One day in the late autumn of 2003 Dawn Dexter & Farland Fish found themselves hiking through a magical, mysterious landscape shrouded in mist and fog with sharp mountains that disappeared behind clouds one moment only to reappear, seemingly elsewhere, in the next moment. As they walked along, feeling like the only people in the world they wondered if the small trees and bushes that bowed to the winds and soaked up the damp from the cool air and turned it into luscious green were in Scotland, Ireland or Iceland. They wondered whether there might be a sheep or a Viking ship anchored in a deep bay around the next bend, behind the next cloud. But that day, in the late autumn of 2003, they soon came to realize, to remember, that they were in the Maroon Bells / Snowmass Wilderness near Aspen, Colorado, way up near Willow Lakes at the edge of tree line, hiking characteristically further and longer than their meager supplies might recommend, with the promise of dinner and warm beds a far, many hours walk below them.
_insert above photo here_
photo credit Iina Valkeisenmaki
It was decided then and there. We would visit Iceland. We would not just visit. We would hike across Iceland one day. It would be epic. It would be an adventure..... an excellent adventure. It would be our own personal magical mystery tour. It would be brilliant. It would be incredible, fantastic, indescribable. We would have an incomparable time. We would have to save some money, make some arrangements, but it could be done. We would do it. Yes, we would. We would camp and hike and hitchhike if need be.
And we did. Yes, we did. Almost two years later, after we'd saved and we'd made some plans and after we'd read some Viking stories and found out something about the geography of Iceland, the geology and the history and the her-story too, we embarked on our journey. It was incredible and fantastic. It was excellent and mysterious and magical. We encountered water in so many forms: first oceans and icebergs, mist, fog, cloud, dew, rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, hot springs, waterfalls (large and small and epic-huge), rain, sleet, snow, glaciers, glacial lagoons and, yes, puddles too. And the people........ And the birds...... And the light....... It was an adventure. It was life changing. It was indescribable and yet Farland has described it, in words, in a journal that waited for almost three years to be read, a journal written usually in a tent or a coffee house, sheltering from the rain and wind and cold of the Icelandic summer of 2005.
During that summer, we both carried a camera, we both carried a journal. Dawn's journal was lost early in the month long trip. Farland discovered, upon returning home, that the 40+ rolls of film she so carefully rationed during those 30 days and nights of endless dawns and dusks had mostly been damaged. What remains are the photographs from Dawn's little point and shoot digital camera and even smaller camera phone and Farland's words, hand written, day by day and week by week shared with you here, on the walls of Zele Cafe, the way the story of that June 15th to July 15th of 2005 were shared with friends and family when we returned; in bits and pieces and all out of order and in stops and starts as conversation and time and life allow.
The photographs, by Dawn, and the journal entries, by Farland, featured here on these walls will shift like memories and stories told. All month they will change, randomly, in order to share more of the story as we remember it, of our journey, meandering, hiking and hitchhiking through Iceland.
Should you wish to see more of Farland's writing and her photographs too please go to her blog at www.farland.gaia.com/blog.
Should you be interested in purchasing one of the photographs you see here, please contact Dawn at synonym for light photography: synonymforlight@comcast.net or by phone @ 970-379-9113. She also does a spot of writing and posting photos, sporadically, at www.synonymforlight.gaia.com/blog
I had to write an "about the artist" thing and I HATE that, but I really enjoyed it, kind of.... I want to know what you wonderful, dear, very real friends think of this before I print it up and hang it up tomorrow-- and you too FARLAND whose phone seems to be dead!! :-)
here it is............
One day in the late autumn of 2003 Dawn Dexter & Farland Fish found themselves hiking through a magical, mysterious landscape shrouded in mist and fog with sharp mountains that disappeared behind clouds one moment only to reappear, seemingly elsewhere, in the next moment. As they walked along, feeling like the only people in the world they wondered if the small trees and bushes that bowed to the winds and soaked up the damp from the cool air and turned it into luscious green were in Scotland, Ireland or Iceland. They wondered whether there might be a sheep or a Viking ship anchored in a deep bay around the next bend, behind the next cloud. But that day, in the late autumn of 2003, they soon came to realize, to remember, that they were in the Maroon Bells / Snowmass Wilderness near Aspen, Colorado, way up near Willow Lakes at the edge of tree line, hiking characteristically further and longer than their meager supplies might recommend, with the promise of dinner and warm beds a far, many hours walk below them.
_insert above photo here_
photo credit Iina Valkeisenmaki
It was decided then and there. We would visit Iceland. We would not just visit. We would hike across Iceland one day. It would be epic. It would be an adventure..... an excellent adventure. It would be our own personal magical mystery tour. It would be brilliant. It would be incredible, fantastic, indescribable. We would have an incomparable time. We would have to save some money, make some arrangements, but it could be done. We would do it. Yes, we would. We would camp and hike and hitchhike if need be.
And we did. Yes, we did. Almost two years later, after we'd saved and we'd made some plans and after we'd read some Viking stories and found out something about the geography of Iceland, the geology and the history and the her-story too, we embarked on our journey. It was incredible and fantastic. It was excellent and mysterious and magical. We encountered water in so many forms: first oceans and icebergs, mist, fog, cloud, dew, rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, hot springs, waterfalls (large and small and epic-huge), rain, sleet, snow, glaciers, glacial lagoons and, yes, puddles too. And the people........ And the birds...... And the light....... It was an adventure. It was life changing. It was indescribable and yet Farland has described it, in words, in a journal that waited for almost three years to be read, a journal written usually in a tent or a coffee house, sheltering from the rain and wind and cold of the Icelandic summer of 2005.
During that summer, we both carried a camera, we both carried a journal. Dawn's journal was lost early in the month long trip. Farland discovered, upon returning home, that the 40+ rolls of film she so carefully rationed during those 30 days and nights of endless dawns and dusks had mostly been damaged. What remains are the photographs from Dawn's little point and shoot digital camera and even smaller camera phone and Farland's words, hand written, day by day and week by week shared with you here, on the walls of Zele Cafe, the way the story of that June 15th to July 15th of 2005 were shared with friends and family when we returned; in bits and pieces and all out of order and in stops and starts as conversation and time and life allow.
The photographs, by Dawn, and the journal entries, by Farland, featured here on these walls will shift like memories and stories told. All month they will change, randomly, in order to share more of the story as we remember it, of our journey, meandering, hiking and hitchhiking through Iceland.
Should you wish to see more of Farland's writing and her photographs too please go to her blog at www.farland.gaia.com/blog.
Should you be interested in purchasing one of the photographs you see here, please contact Dawn at synonym for light photography: synonymforlight@comcast.net or by phone @ 970-379-9113. She also does a spot of writing and posting photos, sporadically, at www.synonymforlight.gaia.com/blog
Access: PublicTagged with: iceland, thule, farland, maroon bells, snowmass, wilderness, willow lakes, fall 2003, summer 2005, june 2008, summer 2008, zele, gaias, hiking, adventure, hitchhiking, memories, stories
adventure
August 2008 
I love your writing and I love that picture, which looks like Farland is about to be eaten by a black and white wolf.
The only thing that jumps out begging for editing to my eye is “They wondered whether there might be a sheep or a Viking ship anchored in a deep bay around the next bend, behind the next cloud.” Unless you meant that there might be a sheep anchored in the bay, which would be sad for the little sheep, but possible I guess…
You both look so nordic! And you both have such lovely, alliterative names - I think you might be fictional characters I've invented. If so, I wish I had invented you closer to where I live.
Take pics of the pics and the journal pages - pictures of pictures, oh my - and of the people drinking coffees and teas and chatting and looking, please. This all sounds wonderful!
Jeannie,
Thank You!!!! Yes, I think I'll rework that sentence. I wish YOU were going to be one of those people in the cafe!
Thank you for being my editor today.
and as for you having invented us– I was in the bathtub the other night blowing bubbles with the wand from the bubble bath stuff and watching them float up and play with their own shadows on the wall for varying lengths of time before either self destructing by running into the wall or simply winking out of existence. I was thinking, what if the creator is just some giant something like me, blowing bubbles (planets and stars and galaxies) and watching to see what will happen to them with curiousity, fondness and wonder. You do have one of those bubble wand thingies– don't you. And quite an imagination too. :-)
I better get to work.
xoxo
-dawn
One day in the late autumn of 2003 Dawn Dexter & Farland Fish found themselves hiking through a magical, mysterious landscape shrouded in mist and fog with sharp mountains that disappeared behind clouds one moment only to reappear, seemingly elsewhere, in the next moment. As they walked along, feeling like the only people in the world they wondered if the small trees and bushes that bowed to the winds and soaked up the damp from the cool air and turned it into luscious green were in Scotland, Ireland or Iceland. They wondered whether there might be a Viking ship anchored in a deep bay around the next bend or a group of sheep behind the next cloud. But that day, in the late autumn of 2003, they soon came to realize, to remember, that they were in the Maroon Bells / Snowmass Wilderness near Aspen, Colorado, way up near Willow Lakes at the edge of tree line, hiking characteristically further and longer than their meager supplies might recommend, with the promise of dinner and warm beds a far, many hours walk below them.
A Month on the Edge of the World Living Frugally, nay, Voluptuously on Surprise
It was decided then and there. We would visit Iceland. We would not just visit. We would hike across Iceland one day. It would be epic. It would be an adventure….. an excellent adventure. It would be our own personal magical mystery tour. It would be brilliant. It would be incredible, fantastic, indescribable. We would have an amazing time. We would have to save some money, make some arrangements, but it could be done. We would do it. Yes, we would. We would camp and hike and hitchhike if need be.
And we did. Yes, we did. Almost two years later, after we'd saved and we'd made some plans and after we'd read some Viking stories and found out something about the geography of Iceland, the geology and the history and the her-story too, we embarked on our journey. It was incredible and fantastic. It was excellent and mysterious and magical. We encountered water in so many forms: first oceans and icebergs, mist, fog, cloud, dew, rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, hot springs, waterfalls (large and small and epic-huge), rain, sleet, snow, glaciers, glacial lagoons and, yes, puddles too. And the people…….. And the birds…… And the light……. It was an adventure. It was life changing. It was indescribable and yet Farland has described it, in words, in a journal that waited for almost three years to be read, a journal written usually in a tent or a coffee house, sheltering from the rain and wind and cold of the Icelandic summer of 2005.
During that summer, we both carried a camera, we both carried a journal. Dawn's journal was lost early in the month long trip. Farland discovered, upon returning home, that the 40+ rolls of film she’d so carefully rationed during those 30 days and nights of endless dawns and dusks had mostly been damaged. What remains are the photographs from Dawn's little point and shoot digital camera and even smaller camera phone and Farland's words, hand written, day by day and week by week shared with you here, on the walls of Zele Cafe, the way the story of that June 15th to July 15th of 2005 were shared with friends and family when we returned; in bits and pieces and all out of order and in stops and starts as conversation and time and life allow.
The photographs, by Dawn, and the journal entries, by Farland, featured here on these walls will shift like memories and stories told. All month they will change, randomly, in order to share more of the story as we remember it, of our journey, meandering, hiking and hitchhiking through Iceland.
Should you wish to see more of Farland's writing and her photographs too please go to her blog at www.farland.gaia.com/blog.
Should you be interested in purchasing one of the photographs you see here, please contact Dawn: synonym for light photographysynonymforlight@comcast.netphone 970-379-9113 She also does a spot of writing and posting photos, sporadically, at www.synonymforlight.gaia.com/blog
Oh dear! I loved that little sheep anchored in the bay! It was on a tiny island and safe from the jaw gaping beastie that is trying to eat me.
Jeannie, we did sometimes get picked up hitchhiking by tourists who assumed we were sturdy Icelandic girls.
I love this! I love your “About the Artists” and the story about how all of this adventure and continuing adventure has taken place! I love the little sheep anchored in the bay and the beauty of the two of you in that photograph!!!
I sooooo wish I could be there! This showing of your photos and Farland's Journal will be up all month? ((((hmmmmm. I am playing with my magic wand too!))))
If I don't manage to 'magically' get myself there … I do hope, like Jeannie says that you'll share stories and pics of everyone enjoying the show and both of YOU!!!
:)) peri
I'm taking my camera with me while Adam & I are installing the show and I'll bring it when I pop over to Zele to get coffee and spy on my lunch breaks and before and after work each day. It's only 1 block from my work place. Farland will have to get her picture taken again when she's back from rambling all over the mountains of Utah.
I'm so happy to have friends to share my excitedment with. Thank you Peri and Jeannie for helping us celebrate. :-)
Thank you and Farland for sharing this,I'm smiling and sipping coffee,and it's 4:50 a.m. and I already feel like anything is possible,a divine way to start off the day may I add.
Dawn,Farland, June and July sound like another epic adventure. I'm inspired,anything is possible…oh my this feels delicious
Oh, but what if the sheep anchored on the island was actually a wolf in sheep's clothing waiting to be picked up by a viking ship or maybe some unsuspecting tourist?
Another epic adventure…
I kind of like wolves better than sheeps. (yes I know, sheep, but I really like to say sheeps.) maybe the sheep is a savvy tourist wearing a sheep costurme in order to lure a viking or a wolf to the island because she's bored. :-)
You look like sisters. Honest! What inspires me about your adventure is that you dreamed it and you did it. So many us (myself included) “sketch out” fanciful ideas about trips or careers, but then bury those sketches in the closet or erase and re-work them so much that they never become fully realized. We can always find one hundred and one reasons not to do something. Thanks for sharing this here. Lately I've been prodding myself to “pee of get off the pot” with regard to several ideas I've dreamed for my life. Your blog is gently nudging me again in that direction.
otter. I am sitting here debating with myself about whether I will spend $100 that I really ought not to spend on a modern dance class for grown ups. I've always wanted to take one, but my life is so busy, but I do have the days off of work, but jordan might actually be interested in hanging out with me on one of those mondays, but I already pay for yoga classes, but adam is already crabby because I don't pay enough attention to him even though we have committed to 3 bike rides a week together and have done them so far. oh my. pee or get off the pot?
but then there's always this…. farland blog from yesterday about behaving as if you have forever and ever and ever and not rushing….. hmmm.. I like that too.
um. I still don't know if I should take the dance class. I begged adam to take a dance class with me or go to yoga with me sometime and he just says no. does that mean I should sit at home with him on the nights we aren't bike riding and watch a movie or go out to eat– he counts those as spending time together. ??? well, but no, he's always invited to join my adventures, but I think he MUST not complain or at least I shouldn't mutate my own dreams to fit what's acceptable to him. so maybe I should just take the class. we already have 4 nights a week dates with each other. 1 night of dance and 2 nights of yoga shouldn't kill him and it'll probably make me a funner, yes I said, funner, person to be around if I'm fit from dancing and happy from learning another way to be creative???
damnit! I WANT to take that class. I think I'm going to. even though I probably shouldn't spend the money. $100 for 8 classes is not much is it?
oh geez. I have to pee. :-)
b.b. what's your new icon made of. it looks like a painting…….
full of possibility. yes!
I decided to do the dance class. what the heck. I MIGHT have forever and ever to take a class someday, but I also have today to take a class. or read a book or ride a bike or go for a walk or a swim or have a cup of coffee or tea or do some yoga or meditate or ……. but I've never taken a dance class before so…. here I go. :-)