The first day of our Farm Club Retreat was rainy and windy–a good day to relax in the parlor of the Home. On the second day the sun was out and we had a plan. But first we gathered in the dining room for our traditional breakfast.

Some of the group decided to stay at the Home and continue with their projects and others went to the Asian Art Museum. Some of us decided to take advantage of the beautiful day and walk to the museum.That was a good opportunity to see some of the beautiful old houses in this part of San Francisco.First stop at the Museum was the Museum Store. In recognition of the Year of the Sheep there were plenty of sheep figurines and trinkets. Alison showed me how this Buddha Board works. You “paint” with a brush and water. The image takes a few seconds to be seen and then disappears as it dries. Alison described it as a version of an etch-a-sketch.

We didn’t have nearly enough time to see all that is in this museum. We split up as we wandered the three floors that hold art from 2000 years old to contemporary that represents all the Asian nations. I found myself focusing on finding sheep and horse images–at least a way to narrow my photographs. Not sheep, but labeled “A Goat Pen” from the year 25 to 220. Now that’s old!

  Here is a beautiful “glazed earthenware” horse (618-906).

 Bowl (1662-1722)“Horse with pack” (386-584).

There were a lot of other animals represented as well. Tiger netsuke (1675-1800) in ivory. Wikipedia says: “Netsuke  [netsu͍ke] are miniature sculptures that were invented in 17th-century Japan to serve a practical function (the two Japanese characters ne+tsuke mean “root” and “to attach”)” Traditional clothing had no pockets so people used small containers hung around the neck with cords. Netsuke were decorative closures. 

I love this one:Buffalo (1800-1900) in rock crystal, but I think my favorite piece of the day is this one:“Ewe with lamb” (1644-1911) in ivory.

After lunch at the museum we headed back to the home where we said our goodbye’s Some of us headed to Ribboneri, a store filled with any kind of ribbon you could possible want and some went to Lacis in Berkeley.

This was a great weekend and we already have a plan for next year!