My What Big Teeth You Have, Capybara

Largest rodent on earth, a capybara. @ West Coast Game Park Safari

Written by Jewel

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juellez

Jan 2

{NY 2023 VERTS} We surprised ourselves staying up past midnight to ring in another new year, me sporting my high school concert band jacket—a sign of the musical year to come (details on how I ended up with it are fuzzy…) Pictured: Milwaukie walkabout, strangest sign at a lumber store, and NYE besties.

Jan 2

For this year’s Day 1 walkabout/hike, I found myself in Milwaukie OR—overjoyed to spot a Haberman mural (RIP murals on Hawthorn and Foster) and Alien vs Predator doing Christmas. #walkabout2023

Dec 10

Feeling especially grateful to be surrounded by smart, witty, and inspiring women heading into the holidaze. I couldn't ask for better friends. ❤️
As someone who grew up with multiple families, I never got to spend a holiday without missing one of my parents or siblings, and at some early point I started spending holidays with friends to avoid the awkwardness and guilt of leaving some family out and having some feel resentful on top of hurt etc.
It's still tricky, but I've learned to let most of the guilt go and lean into the gratitude of having so much family and friends it's impossible to fit them all into a single day. Sharing my heart with everyone who finds the winter holiday season challenging. May we all find at least one place where we truly feel we belong.

Nov 30

thank you to everyone creating little pockets of love/art for others to enjoy.

Nov 23

It’s not even Thanksgiving / National Day of Mourning / The Indigenous Peoples Sunrise Ceremony and my Christmas Cactus is popping. #humblebragplants

Nov 23

so excited to be a temp dog mom for the week, especially living next door to the dog park i finally have an excuse to say hi to the humans huddled in cold patches of mud that i’d otherwise pretend to ignore…and this beautifully heart faced lady put up with my ask to impersonate the handsome @pdxfreecrap — i mean does this print pop or what??? swoooning
// ps. i also love that her stick keeps growing #goalbuster

Nov 10

Morning piano fun with a "funky d minor" and some inversions inspired me to share a beautiful and quirky turkey I had the honor of chatting with the other morning. When I get bummed about lack of connection in my community, aka politics, I tend to pull away and start with the basics...reconnecting with life within and all around. Feeling extra grateful for the privilege of being able to safely take some space. #gobblegobble

Nov 8

i was overjoyed to find out that my local library is also a ballot drop-off site 🗳️✅ and grateful for the right and opportunity to cast a vote.
<soapbox> as we collectively continue to live with lower risk tolerance, i know we have the capability to hold space for dignity, love, respect, and compassion … it’s hard but we’re fucking human and capable of doing hard things. so pass that along to your heart / friends / family when you feel fear and resignation creep in … it’s ok to feel scared, but not to vote against our own best interests or kill others’ rights because of it. </soapbox>
not only did i get to vote only minutes from home, i got to pick up 5 books on hold. and this thing called sunshine returned. and i just wrapped two separate intensive trainings spanning 1.5 weeks so imma gonna call this one a good day. 😎❤️ #votevotevote #vote2022

Nov 5

Pops of color, as told over 14ish hrs in reverse—arriving home in Portland for a block of classes after a drive through sun, rain, snow, sun, and rain from Northern California where I'd just wrapped another block of classes.
3rd picture is of a pocket trumpet passed down to me from my step dad, saved from the fires since it was small enough to fit in the safe. You better believe it was the first thing I tried to play as soon as I got home...and as stoked as I am for hands-on classes to be in session, I'm equally excited for some down time / music time soon.

Oct 21

Some proof of life from last week's whirlwind road trip. Pictured: from a Martian sunrise at Cliff Dwellings, sunset in Virgin, and some scenic pitstops in Zion, Grand Canyon, and in between with Orangina my Subie.
//
What started as a trip home turned into a spiritual journey through countless sacred lands. Endless gratitude to the ancestors of these lands...with every step I take, I'm filled with wonder, love, and honor for the opportunity to be here. I'd still pay for access to parks to have them returned to their native peoples.
#latergram #cliffdwellings #shadowselfies #unceded #subarucrosstrek

Oct 21

Thanks to all who came out (or would have, had you known ahead of time and been in town) to our Light Leak show at the UP's Buckly Gallery. The world shut down between us hanging our last show and trying to host an opening...and this ended up being the first time I'd seen most of the folks (fellow photographers) in our group in over 2 years. I was out of town for our opening and recovering from some dental surgery for our closing party...so it seems my timing for art shows hasn't improved greatly. Still, I'm grateful for the opportunity to create and share and honored to share wall space with this mostly analog crew.
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My piece: snapshots through screens (Ikoflex glass and windows) from Amtrak's Coastal Starlight with some handwritten text, entitled #coastalstarlight
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We moved beyond the silent black and white into the liminal space before full spectrum sights and sounds, between awake / alive and asleep / on screen. | A disco ball of kaleidescopic colors: blood gold, rainbows of siennas, wildflowers, buckles, and bags, washes of sunrises and sunsets. | We traveled for 2 moons and 3 suns, curled as cats in laps and chairs in the observation car. Landscapes scrolled by, our personal viewing of sacred mountains and lakes and auras.

Oct 15

Grand Canyon under October's full moon (at moonrise) and the Colorado right before sunrise from the Navajo Bridge (between south rim and North rim).
// #grandcanyon #fullmoonvibes
After a week on the road without a phone, I made it back to Portland from Austin in time to have my wisdom teeth pulled and with that down time, managed to get through some photos.

Oct 4

Christmas bulbs bear tasty fruit? my best guess is that these are the drying fruits of a passion flower- perhaps the stinking passion flower (though I didn't notice an odor)...anyone have a more confident idea? The gelatinous jelly around the seeds tasted slightly sweet with a twinge of tart. #urbanforager #donteatstrangeberries

Sep 29

Anyone else having fun with the "plant lookup" option on phones these days? Thanks to image recognition, I now know that these brainy looking giant limes are Osage Oranges that aren't related to oranges at all—and while somewhat edible, not tasty. I'm wondering if you can hollow one out like a gourd...as they'd look neat in a Halloween arrangement.
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Remaining photos—other plant (and fungi?) snapshots from the past week across 3 states. #ModernDayMeriwether

Sep 26

While we're awaiting NASA's shooting of an asteroid, I'm feeling grateful for the COOLEST back to school gift pack from @wibbibet — to all the new frontiers ❤️

Aug 23

Eeep! Tomorrow is almost here and I couldn't be more excited to support an organization supporting women who need access to abortions. We don't live in a fair or equitable world—so hope you can join us to help tip the scales. Folks with uteruses shouldn't be treated as cattle or shamed for holding the burden of bringing new lives into this world that stand a chance of being loved, healthy, and supported. Full details on the awesome lineup on the flyer on my "upcoming" highlights.
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Danit Chetron, Jewels, Jeff Lancaster, and Steve Wilkinson will perform solo music sets in this intimate outdoor covered venue. You'll also able to purchase food from one of the many yummy vendors at Portland Mercado and bring it with you to the bar patio.
There's no cover charge: Barrio is generously donating 25% of the night's sales to the Northwest Abortion Access Fund, which provides financial support for people who need abortions in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington. You can find out more about their work at nwaafund.org

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