Shel Graves' Sensorium

The Blue Monk notes the end of November. He and Snow Leopard go home. Snow leopard sight: a flying machine, one wingtip away from the glinting ice Snow leopard sound: motors Snow leopard touch: humidity, heat Snow leopard quote of the day: "a friendship formed int he mountain sun might be damaged in the sour light of the hotel" Snow leopard notable: the birthplace of Buddha Sakyamuni Snow leopard extra: "he accepts his life and will go on wandering until it ends" ; "When you are ready, the teacher will appear." Snow leopard gratitude: a strange and beautiful journey Panthera progress: Today's last day of National Novel Writing Month . What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project.

At 23,000 feet the Bodhisattva dreams of falling , his journey at an end. Snow leopard taste: orange, apple Snow leopard sight: the white crown of Great Kanjiroba Snow leopard sound: singing in the sunshine Snow leopard touch:  mud, descending Snow leopard smell: offal Snow leopard quote of the day: "I study this old soldier with the half-moon scar on his left cheekbone, the sad eyes, and wild smile that light a face like an ancient Mongol mask." Snow leopard notable: "sadly eroded by years of makeshift farming" Snow leopard extra: a dream of falling Snow leopard gratitude: hard journey coming to an end Panthera progress: piecing together the end What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project.

"Then the sun is gone, the journey is done, the new moon rises." Cranberries, carrot salad, kale slaw, yams, marinated mushrooms, olives, apple pie Snow leopard taste: sunset tea At home: peppermint chocolate, cinnamon - Mom's apple pie, sweet potato roll Snow leopard sight: "walleyed and wild as a horse of nightmare" At home: mom, dad Snow leopard sound: an oath for all to hear At home: "booms of d00ms," Servitor Snow leopard touch: cold gorge At home: wearing boots while dancing Snow leopard smell: human excrement At home: roasted sweet potato Snow leopard quote of the day: "...the signs of approaching civilization come thick and fast—the litter of Chetri villages, ubiquitous police, dogs, human excrement, the hard blare of transistor radios..." Snow leopard extra: a grim portent At home: "In the state of great compassion, you experience a natural state of peacefulness..." - Chögyam Trungpa Snow leopard gratitude: no bad news...

I went meat-free on Thanksgiving 25 years ago. Philosopher Peter Singer's book Animal Liberation (1975) gets the credit, but the timing is on me. I think about the book every Thanksgiving and, this year, to celebrate, I reread it and wrote a review over at Eco Lit Books — Read Like You Give A Damn! — I certainly do and let books influence me in big ways. Singer's book changed the way I eat (later another book by Singer would change how I spend the money I earn). I marvel at how a book I picked up by chance (what writer Victoria Nelson calls a "naked encounter") had such an impact and I wonder how Animal Liberation came to be at the little branch of the Yakima Public Library near my house. But I'm not surprised that it attracted me. The cover art by Daniel Craig, at that time, featured a picture of bucolic animals sure to appeal to animal-lovers and readers of James Herriot and then there was that provocative title. Singer's arguments were airtight....

A Buddhist monkey and a demoness parented the man-thing of the snows Snow leopard taste: sacred grains Snow leopard sight: red panda, lustrous red-and-black, loveliest of all forest animals in the Himalaya Snow leopard sound: "Kak-kak-kak KAI-ee!" - yeti cry, a wild laughing yelp Snow leopard touch: dank and bitter cold Snow leopard smell: strong resin, sharp needle - great evergreens, dark humus minerals Snow leopard word of the day: naljorpa - a holy man, a hermit with strange powers Snow leopard quote of the day: "...how can he forgive me, when he hadn't bothered with resentment in the first place?" Snow leopard extra: "I think the yeti is a Buddhist." ; "A sorcerer sits of the far side of this night fire in the Zuwa Gorge." Snow leopard gratitude: happy panda Panthera progress: none What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project.

The leopard-eyed frog looks into the mud and says, "Good night, stranger." Snow leopard taste: tea, turnips, yogurt Snow leopard sight: leopard-eyed saint Snow leopard sound: "Good night, sah." Snow leopard touch: sore and heavy when I rise ; hobbled by a sharp pain Snow leopard smell: fresh frog mud at the rivulets, sweet chicken dung in sunny heaps - the smells of childhood morning days that warm my heart Snow leopard word of the day: Kali Yuga - the Dark Age Snow leopard quote of the day: "This warm season is the season of a dream, not quite like any autumn I have known." Snow leopard extra: so naturally does he belong where the moment finds him ; Snow leopard gratitude: a mountain village where strangers are made welcome Panthera progress: just a little What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project.

"You are in paradise right now," says the Jewel in the Heart of the Lotus. "Is today Thanksgiving? " you reply. Snow leopard taste: salt, sugar, lentils, wild walnuts, green buckwheat flour, tea Snow leopard sight: a large red Hindu temple stands on a knoll over the river ; a light of heaven-silverness Snow leopard sound: grunting and bellowing Snow leopard touch: "I spring along the path as if set free; so light do i feel that I might be back in the celestial snows." Snow leopard smell: soap Snow leopard quote of the day: "This very day is an aspect of nirvana, which is not different from samsara but, rather, a subtle alchemy, the transformation of dark mud into the pure, white blossom of the lotus." Snow leopard extra: change is taking place; with every step my spirits rise Snow leopard gratitude: " Of course I enjoy this life! It's wonderful! Especially when I have no choice!" Panthera progress: step-by-step to the end ...

Coming down from the mountain at the end of the journey, a feeling of failure Snow leopard sound: the mad dog of Rohagaon barked all night in vain Snow leopard touch: headache Snow leopard smell: pus and bad breath Snow leopard quote of the day: "It is crucial to emerge gradually from such a chrysalis, drying new wings in the sun's quiet, like a butterfly, to avoid a sudden tearing of spirit." Snow leopard notable: our common plight Snow leopard extra: sudden loss of altitude - a fury of dark energies Snow leopard gratitude: "I look forward to nothing." Panthera progress: faithful What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project.

The invisible man chews Cannabis and drinks pink lightening; the dead sexy writer, accompanied by Xanadu, dances Snow leopard taste: blackish bread ; dried pumpkin squash At home: complexity every glass different - cherry, dark berry, cassis and smoky oak Snow leopard sight: lone small red leaves cling to withered bushes At home: Stacey Tookey, So You Think You Can Dance routine Snow leopard sound: great rush of the falls At home: Young and Beautiful , Lana Del Rey Snow leopard smell: Hindu attars At home: vanilla, orchid- Dead Sexy, TokyoMilk Snow leopard touch: shards of prayer stone At home: frozen fingertips on stainless steel Snow leopard quote: "The river, and life going, the excruciating sun: why do I hurry?" At home: "To keep that necessary edge, the writer must never feel quite comfortable, and never satisfied. So many good novels could have benefited from another draft. I would work all the way to the printer’s, if they let me." — Paris Revie...

"Tomorrow...the last hope of seeing the snow leopard will be gone." Snow leopard taste: chapatis Snow leopard sight: ghostly smoke arises from the granites; red tents Snow leopard sound: chanting Buddhist vows; yak bells; Japanese Snow leopard smell: cedar, pine Snow leopard touch: I rise, stiff and old Snow leopard quote: "No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place."; "In worrying about the future, I despoil the present..." Snow leopard notable: "At Murwa, crows replace the ravens for its is four thousand feet lower than Shey." Snow leopard extra: a deep glow of well-being ; full of marvels Snow leopard gratitude: I am going home.; generous family and friends Panthera progress: For two mornings in a row, I almost slept in, but did get up early to go to work on the novel anyway. Both mornings, I was rewarded: Progress was made. What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

"two hard days and one easy one are now behind us, and still we are not there" Snow leopard sight: "The dark shapes of the nomads glint with beads and earrings, amulets and silver daggers..." Snow leopard sound: harsh cries and piercing whistles Snow leopard smell: wool Snow leopard touch: slip and clamber Snow leopard quote:  "To the north and west, across the canyons, the thorn-scrub slopes are cut by cliffs, and soon blue sheep come into view, two far pale bands, one of nine, and the other of twenty-six. I search in vain for sign of the snow leopard." Snow leopard word of the day: Kanjirobas Snow leopard extra: exhilarated Snow leopard gratitude: "I have the universe all to myself. The universe has me all to itself." Panthera progress: Piecing together the end What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

A Gothic tale: The laughter of water demons freezes in a frozen treeless land A Baroque theatre: Where Fathers sing and dance, full bodies spinning webs Snow leopard taste: fingers in mouth At home: beets, lemon, orange, parsley, mint, pomegranate Snow leopard sight: "Among the rocks move shadows, trollish shapes..." At home: bodies move and twine like liquid silk Snow leopard sound: a night wind rattles; laughs and chatters At home: "Magic," Olivia Newton John Snow leopard smell: yak and goat At home: lemon zest Snow leopard touch: night wind/morning wind ; bitter cold canyon - well below freezing At home: first frost; hot shower; hug Snow leopard words of the day: klu, water demons ; Nam-do — sky-stone Snow leopard extra: "The beauty of the Namdo Pass opens the mind, for it is a true portal of the Himalyaya, where the traveler passes from one world to another." At home: "As long as poverty and inequality persist, as long as peo...

A celestial event, the orb of compassion shines behind the mountains Snow leopard taste: tea Snow leopard sight: the sun softens the sky behind the mountains ; Asoka's wheel, the ceremonial conch, the orb of compassion, serpents, flowers, barley offerings, OM MANI PADME HUM - brightly painted prayer wheels Snow leopard sound: morning chanting ; dashing lute; "a tinkle of small bells that dance from her sash" Snow leopard touch: dancing Snow leopard quote: "...the Lotus-Born is celebrating some celestial event with a blue Lord of Death, who one day will hold up a bright mirror from which we cannot hide, and weigh the white pebbles and the black in final balance." Snow leopard word of the day: obo -gravestones Snow leopard notable: treeless deserts of the Tibetan Plateau Snow leopard extra: starkness, severity, scarcity, religious fervor Snow leopard gratitude: "what good luck to have this Chiring Lamo in the party!" Panthera progress: Som...

Jangu, Sao and Na haunt the ancient icy cairns deep within the Kingdom of Lo Snow leopard taste: turnips; hot wheat bread; fermented barley Snow leopard sight: fresh wolf tracks in the snow Snow leopard sound: OM! ; lute ; "Taking Flowers to the Lama," "Highest Mountain" Snow leopard smell: human grease and coarse tobacco Snow leopard touch: belly glowing Snow leopard quote: "that human life could persist in such a place seems unimaginable" Snow leopard word of the day: sere Snow leopard extra: silver beasts, a haunt of wolves Snow leopard gratitude: " so many faces that I like in a circle " Panthera progress: loose ends What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Sao, the snow leopard, hides behind the locked monastery door laughing with the dancing yeti girl and little drumming lama boy Snow leopard taste: alkali salts Snow leopard sight: a small Buddha of worn stone, bright-painted in the reds and blues of earth and sky; prayer stones lit by fire-colored lichens Snow leopard sound: daybreak chanting ; S-A-A-O! Snow leopard smell: thick scent of juniper Snow leopard touch: winter ice, morning sun Snow leopard quote: " But 'only the Awakened ones remember their many births and deaths,' ( Bhagavad-Gita ) and I can hear no whisperings of other lives." Snow leopard word of the day: koan - "All peaks are covered with snow—why is this one bare?" Snow leopard notable: "on a hanging cloth, with a wolf, Tibetan wild asses, and an owl, there is a picture of a female yeti" — inside the Crystal Monastery Snow leopard extra: Yeti sighting? A deepened mystery. Snow leopard gratitude: homegoing Panthera pr...

Only two weeks remain of my journey with The Snow Leopard and I have, at this point, just made the connection that the GS (naturalist and conservationist George Schaller ) that the author is traveling with through the Himalaya in 1973 is also the current vice president of Panthera.org , a wild cat conservation organization founded in 2006 and devoted exclusively to the conservation of the world's 37 species of wild cats and their ecosystems. I'd crossed paths and connected with Panthera online much earlier on in my writing project far before beginning The Snow Leopard . In retrospect, this should be none too surprising a synchronicity. However, it's fun the way, after much work, connections suddenly come together, seemingly like magic, in life and in novel-writing. The last hope of seeing the snow leopard; thanksgiving for oranges and everything Snow leopard taste: potatoes At home: cranberries, oranges, Clementine , pomegranate, sweet potato; dried cherries and cedar...

A meditation on blue sheep — In lunar light: gaze with chaos, savor chocolate Snow leopard taste: chocolate Snow leopard sight: spiraled ammonites Snow leopard sound: wild cries of a primordial woman Snow leopard smell: sprig of everlasting Snow leopard touch: wind, cold mountain air Snow leopard quote: "Now the moon is waning, and the fine lunar clarity of life at Shey swiftly diminishes." Snow leopard word of the day: impermanence - to strive for permanence is to miss the point Snow leopard notable: "The purpose of meditation practice is not enlightenment; it is to pay attention even at unextraordinary times, to be of the present, nothing-but-the-present, to bear this mindfulness now into each event of ordinary life."   Snow leopard extra: strong hold of the great cats ; "forever getting ready-for-life instead of living it each day" Snow leopard gratitude: "the precision and openness and intelligence of the present," Chogyam Trungp...

The strong leopard listens. The gone leopard sees. The no leopard sips teas. Snow leopard taste: sun-dried green yak cheese and buttered tea Snow leopard sight: leopard prints as fresh as petals on the trail Snow leopard sound: the insistent call of the Tibetan tit-warbler, t-sip Snow leopard smell: juniper, tea Snow leopard touch: cool air Snow leopard quote: "Have you seen the snow leopard? No! Isn't that wonderful?" Snow leopard word of the day: damaru - prayer drum; kangling- trumpet Snow leopard notable: somewhere on this mountainside the snow leopard listens Snow leopard extra: reminders that our time on earth is fleeting Snow leopard gratitude: "Of course I am happy here! It's wonderful! Especially when I have no choice!" Panthera progress: Novels just want to have fun. What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Today, November 13, on page 238, in which our author observes that, after coming all the way to Crystal Mountain, he would actually be OK with not seeing the snow leopard whom we've been awaiting all this while, is my favorite part of the book, see the quote in extra below. Meanwhile, at home: It's not a particularly notable day . Orange-eyed, golden-horned rutting goats ask, "Have you seen us now? Have you perceived us?" Snow leopard taste: dry bread Snow leopard sight: sun and moon in perfect equilibrium above the snows east to west; orange eyes Snow leopard sound: rampant rump-rubbing; shoo   Snow leopard touch: traversing slopes with a zigzag technique Snow leopard quote: "...I am but a harmless dung-seeker, like other Homo sapiens of their acquaintance."; "The bharal await me with the calm regard of ages." Snow leopard word of the day: browse Snow leopard notable:   "Unlike the true sheep, which forges straight ahead, the bh...

One hundred and eight flying snow leopards and one little one named Sao Snow leopard taste: barley ; sacramental cakes Snow leopard sight: circumambulating wolf tracks; prints of leopard Snow leopard sound: Lama chanting sutras Snow leopard smell: incense; musty darkness Snow leopard touch: sunny Snow leopard quote: "And good news, too, would be intrusive, spoiling this chance to live moment by moment in the present by stirring up the past, the future, and encouraging delusions of continuity and permanence just when I am trying to let go, to blow away, like that white down feather on the mountain." Snow leopard word of the day: trapa - an aspirant monk Snow leopard notable: "A thousand years ago, the old scripts say, a great yogin named Drutob Senge Yeshe arrived here on a flying snow leopard to convert to Buddhism a wild folk ruled by a great mountain god. Aided by snake-beings, the mountain god resisted this conversion, but the snow leopard reproduced itself ...

Ghost prayer flags flap like the wings of griffon, dragon, or mythical eagles Snow leopard taste: coarse dull food Snow leopard sight:  bright Mars; full moon; Himalayan griffon Snow leopard sound: the bell of Dorje-Chang ; whisper of the shroud Snow leopard smell: clay fires of smudgy juniper Snow leopard touch: a sudden rush of feathers, sweeping, a break of air Snow leopard quote: " Now! Here is the secret! Now!" ; "Thus all is returned into the elements, death into life." Snow leopard word of the day: garuda-mythical bird Snow leopard notable: blue and white, celestial colors of the B'on sky god ; air burial Snow leopard extra: restless-a common lunatic Snow leopard gratitude: common miracles, contentment, doing one thing at a time Panthera progress: more structural momentum What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Failing to stalk blue sheep: slinking, instead, into black rivers with a seraphic air Tuning out an extinct station: a trip to Peru, a breakthrough, and creative conservation Snow leopard taste: roast barleycorns " Panther ," Alexander Phimister Proctor, 1897 At home: pumpkin spice Mighty-O maple bar; steamed kale with sesame seeds Snow leopard sight: Tibetan snow finches ; Turkestan hill pigeon ; Black Canyon At home: " A Country Home ," Frederic Edwin Church, 1854; " Anthony of Padua ," Kehinde Wiley 2013 - a visit to seattleartmuseum.org Snow leopard sound: faint tinklings; melt trickles; hallow drumming of wild hooves; shrill peeping At home: Collide "Head Spin" ; Jane Jensen "More Than I Can" Snow leopard touch: hot "imagine a striped and shiny lizard above 15,000 feet, in deep November!" At home: blow dryer Snow leopard extra: ringing splendor At home: list of extinct panthera via The Sixth Extinction ...

Until now we have found no trace of leopard — The snow leopard is here. Snow leopard taste: buckwheat bread - like a lichened stone mandala Snow Queen by Jody Bergsma Snow leopard sight: glare ice; a big pug mark; a distinct cat scrape and print Snow leopard sound: deep muttering of boulders in the Black River; dread rumble of the universe Snow leopard touch: warmth of a wooden door; a disc of stony bread Snow leopard word of the day: prana - life energy Snow leopard quote:  "this labyrinth of caves and ledges is a fine haunt for leopard" ; "Perhaps, in the days left to us, we shall never see the snow leopard but it seems certain that the leopard will see us." Snow leopard extra: uneasiness Snow leopard gratitude: "the precise bite and feel and sound of every step that fills me with life" Panthera progress: much to do, time feels short What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Wild Tibetan animals gnaw the farmer's potatoes while the belled ponies creep by Snow leopard taste: potatoes baked in coals Snow leopard sight: sign of weasel, Tibetan hare, and fox ; "There is a small company of mountain birds — eagles, griffons, lammergeigers, choughs, hill pigeons, finches, redstarts, accentors, and larks— and also the hardy skinks of the sunny slopes, and an assortment of ants, bees, grasshoppers, and spiders." Snow leopard sound: a belled pony; a hide drum Snow leopard smell: dry dung Snow leopard touch: heavy dust, creeping, blowing, seeping Snow leopard quote: "outlanders, here to collect dead mice and wolf shit" Snow leopard extra: the scientific names of mice, voles, and shrew Snow leopard gratitude: a spontaneous gift - four potatoes Panthera progress: having fun here What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Pondering strange questions raised by the rufous tailed walnuts of Rohagaon ; The Rocky rawrs raised by escadrilles of Red Hots Snow leopard taste: wild walnuts of Rohagaon At home: baked tofu Snow leopard sight: small black crows, in escadrilles, plummet At home: boys with ponytails; five large crows in the treetop Snow leopard smell: among sheep the absence of; scented by sheep-a human man At home: coconut lotion Snow leopard sound: a high-pitched whinny - chirr-r-rit At home: he sings "Gonna Fly Now" as the jogger runs by; "Rawr!" Snow leopard touch: the whole warm mountain At home: cold feet, cold hands; a warm, soft bed Snow leopard quote: "What can our evil monk be doing now?" ' ; "survival is her way of meditation" Snow leopard extra: "What does she dream of until daybreak, when she goes out on her endless quest for dung?" At home: a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert with socks (in dream) Snow leopard gratitude: ...

Crows squawk , "Attention!" and the salt and pepper Universe comes to Snow leopard taste: salt and pepper, tomato or soy sauce Snow leopard sight: the sunset turns a twilight raven into the silver bird of night Snow leopard sound: gorawk, gorawk ; in the heart of the earth silence Snow leopard smell: smoking juniper in the clay oven; kerosene lamp Snow leopard touch: shards of granite and dense thorn ; rude rock seat, legs crossed, scarcely breathing Snow leopard quote:  "Sometimes when I meditate, the big rocks dance." "The secret of the mountains is that the mountains simply exist..." "You never enjoy the world aright, till the Sea itself flows in your veins, till you are clothed with the heavens, and crowned with the stars: and perceive yourself to be the sole heir of the whole world, and more than so, because men are in it who are every one sole heirs as well as you." — Thomas Traherne, Centuries of Meditation Snow leopard extra: ...

All about yaks: shaggy, half-ton, balky, fluffy-tailed brutes Snow leopard taste: rancid yak butter Snow leopard sight: black and shaggy yaks ; a smiling potato given life Snow leopard sound: talking to yaks in a soft no-nonsense way Snow leopard smell: yak-dung fuel Snow leopard touch: a sudden hail ; heavy cold Snow leopard extra: How extraordinary! Snow leopard gratitude: mountains, wolves, snow and fire Panthera progress: momentum What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Hashbrowned potatoes and the pure and vital power of the way Snow leopard taste: potatoes; discs of greasy dough Snow leopard sight: a world of snow and sky, pure white, pure blue; snow peaks rising to a shining sky Snow leopard sound: water dripping Snow leopard smell: dung and juniper Snow leopard touch: tough brush, dead branches - gathering firewood Snow leopard word of the day: Shey Gompa Snow leopard extra: "When your mind is empty like a valley or a canyon, then you will know the power of the Way." — Lao-tzu, Tao Te Ching Snow leopard gratitude: "whatever is at hand tastes pure and vital" Panthera progress: New scenes ahead ! What is this? Blogging The Snow Leopard project .

Sheep run, slide down the grazed mountainside; oceanplay of Leviathan and whales Snow leopard taste: honeysuckle ; juniper At home: chai Snow leopard sight: prayer stones, flags, wheels, mills At home: cat's paws Snow leopard sound: wind-bell and distant river; the toes of ravens scratching At home: Sacred Harmonies Snow leopard smell: sheep urine, goat piss-the fine, funk of wild goat At home: patchouli incense; star anise; pancakes Snow leopard touch: itch of the rutting season, butting, sparring At home: hot bath, bubbles Snow leopard words of the day: Caprini, Pseudois Snow leopard quote: "There is so much that enchants me in this spare, silent place that I move softly so as not to break a spell." Snow leopard notable: sheep and wolves draw near the monastery Snow leopard extra: the taking of life has been forbidden At home: Psalm 104 Snow leopard gratitude: wolf hunt; what happiness! At home: walking to the library Panthera progress: None . What is thi...

Symbolic creatures frolic — Canis Lupus; Panthera Unica Unica Snow leopard taste: chapatis Arkansas Black apple At home: oatmeal Snow leopard sight: horns of argali, antlers of extinct Sikkim stag, fresco of garuda - mythical hawk; bright-painted mandalas At home: light-blue walls Snow leopard sound: Shey Gompa = Shel dgon-pa ; East wind rattled At home: rain patter Snow leopard smell: incense, tea At home: hand-sanitizer Snow leopard touch: -13 degrees Centrigrade At home: a fevered brow Snow leopard word of the day: kalachakra - circle of time Snow leopard quote of the day: "Wolves!" Snow leopard notable: Ch'ang Tartars of Central Asia the original Tibetans; four great rivers — the Karnali, the Indus, the Sutlej, and the Brahmaputra—flow down in a great mandala to the Indian seas Snow leopard extra: Journey to Shambala - how to transcend time (death) ; Avalokita, the Great Compassionate One is also Mahakala, Great Time the Lord of Death At home: "A...

A sturdy, full belly drums; Today is the first day of November. Snow leopard taste: lentil soup At home: Arkansas Black Apple; kale; cardamom, clove, pepper - Endangered Species Snow Leopard dark chocolate Snow leopard sight: a band of blue sheep At home: pink gladiolas in November; sunflowers; pale yellow/pale blue autumn sky Snow leopard sound: "five ancient prayer drums, sending om mani padme hum down the cold canyon" At home: barking; laughter, squeaking Snow leopard smell: smoky At home: spearmint oil Snow leopard touch: -20 degrees Centigrade At home: 55 degrees Fahrenheit Snow leopard word of the day: Nyima (sun) Snow leopard notable: Crystal Mountain; Crystal Monastery Snow leopard extra: pretty in a sturdy way At home: the autumn leaves are especially long-lasting, bright, and beautiful this year Snow leopard gratitude: fine, windless weather At home: carpooling ; a turkey named Clove Panthera progress: One month ahead! What is this? Blogging The Snow...