How Much

Look out the window

That Sky

Photo-Karen Harvey Cox

Is how






Photo: JDeQ http://jdeq.typepad.com/jerrys_thoughts_musings_a/




I LOVE YOU.

You Are Not The Boss of Me

"I think I already understand about life:

pretty good,

some problems."

Sam Lamott

at age 7

More On Charles and Ray Eames-Icons of Design

The Eames CASE STUDY House, Pacific Palisades California
Charles and Ray Eames designed and built their own home in 1949. It was part of the Case Study House Program sponsored by Arts and Architecture Magazine. Thanks to their design and innovative use of materials, this house is a mecca for architects and designers from all over the world. For information on touring the Eames Case Study House go here: http://www.eamesfoundation.org/visit_house.html



La Chaise, 1948
Designed in 1948 for MoMA's International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design, and inspired by Gaston Lachaise's 1927 sculpture 'Floating Figure', this organically-shaped chair has become a design icon. At the time it was too expensive to manufacture and so it had to wait until 1990 to be produced in small quantities. Only for those who can afford it as it costs almost 6000 Euro.

Aluminum Group Chairs, 1958
The chairs in the Aluminum Group are among the most famous creations by Charles and Ray Eames.

The Plastic Chair Group, 1948
Plastic Armchairs were first presented as part of the famed New York Museum of Modern Art competition, 'Low Cost Furniture Design'.

Eames Plastic Armchair, 1948
A landmark design consisting out of organic shapes. A clean, simple form sculpted to fit the body; first presented at the Museum of Modern Art in 1948. It was the first plastic chair to be mass produced and is still very popular in todays interiors.

Wire Chairs DKR and DKX, 1951
Between 1950 and 1952, Charles and Ray Eames began investigating bent steel wire and various welding techniques as a basis for a new kind of furniture. After much experimentation, they molded a wire shell seat using cross-woven steel wires and mounted it on a bent-wire base.

Designers Charles and Ray Eames established their long and legendary relationship with Herman Miller in 1946 with the boldly original molded plywood dining and lounge chairs. Since then, the aesthetic integrity, enduring charm, and comfort of the chairs have earned them recognition as the best of modern design.

In the early 1940s, when Charles Eames was working on MGM set designs, he would return to the small apartment where he and his wife, Ray, were experimenting with wood-molding techniques that would have profound effects on the design world. Their discoveries led to a commission from the U.S. Navy in 1942 to develop plywood splints, stretchers, and glider shells molded under heat and pressure. After World War II, they adapted the technology to create inexpensive, high-quality chairs that could be mass-produced. The process eliminated the extraneous wood needed to connect the seat with the back, which reduced the weight and visual profile of the chair and established a basis for modern furniture design. The chair is in the permanent collection of New York's Museum of Modern Art


Eames Lounge and Ottoman
In continuous production since its introduction in 1956, the Eames Lounge Chair is widely considered one of the most significant designs of the 20th century. It was the culmination of Charles and Ray Eames' efforts to create a club chair using the molded plywood technology that they pioneered in the '40s. In Charles Eames' words, the vision was a chair with the "warm, receptive look of a well-used first baseman's mitt." The result has become the consummate lounge set, timelessly blending old-fashioned comfort and visionary modernism. Pairing soft, inviting leather with the sleek form of molded plywood, the seat is balanced on a five-star, die-cast aluminum base.

Charles and Ray Eames tribute

While your local post office likely sold out of these a few months ago, they are still {luckily} available online! If you've never ordered stamps online consider it worth trying. It's easy, the stamps arrive quickly and buying online saves you a trip to the post office. Buy your Eames beauties here. Until you have the real thing in your home, the forty-two-cent version is the next best thing :)

Charles and Ray Eames, A little history

Charles and Ray Eames working on an a conceptual model for the Exhibition Matematica, 1960 photograph

Charles and Ray Eames are among the most important American designers of this century. They are best known for their groundbreaking contributions to architecture, furniture design (e.g., the Eames Chair), industrial design and manufacturing, and the photographic arts.Charles Eames was born in 1907 in St. Louis, Missouri. He attended school there and developed an interest in engineering and architecture. After attending Washington University on scholarship for two years and being thrown out for his advocacy of Frank Lloyd Wright, he began working in an architectural office. In 1929, he married his first wife, Catherine Woermann (they divorced in 1941), and a year later Charles' only child, daughter Lucia was born. In 1930, Charles started his own architectural office. He began extending his design ideas beyond architecture and received a fellowship to Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan, where he eventually became head of the design department.Ray Kaiser Eames was born in Sacramento, California in the middle of the century's second decade. She studied painting with Hans Hofmann in New York before moving on to Cranbrook Academy where she met and assisted Charles and Eero Saarinen in preparing designs for the Museum of Modern Art's "Organic Furniture Competition." Charles and Eero's designs, created by molding plywood into complex curves, won them the two first prizes.Charles and Ray married in 1941 and moved to California where they continued their furniture design work with molding plywood. During the war they were commissioned by the Navy to produce molded plywood splints, stretchers and experimental glider shells. In 1946, Evans Products began producing the Eameses' molded plywood furniture. Their molded plywood chair was called "the chair of the century" by the influential architectural critic Esther McCoy. Soon production was taken over by Herman Miller, Inc ., who continues to produce the furniture in the United States to this day. Another company, Vitra International , manufactures the furniture in Europe. In 1949, Charles and Ray designed and built their own home in Pacific Palisades, California as part of the Case Study House Program sponsored by Arts and Architecture Magazine. Their design and innovative use of materials made this house a mecca for architects and designers from all over the world. It is considered one of the most important post-war residences built anywhere in the world.

Charles' Office 1976

Vast collection of the Eames' wonderful slide collection

Ray's office 1976

Because She Wasn't Boring

"... she put on her choicest pair of earrings and a great deal of audacity and rouge and went into battle. She flirted because it was fun to flirt... she covered her face with powder and paint because she didn’t need it and she refused to be bored chiefly because she wasn’t boring. She was conscious that the things she did were the things she had always wanted to do. "
-Zelda Fitzgerald 1922


Zelda Fitzgerald was American writer, painter and dancer. She was born on 24th July, 1900 in Montgomery, USA. She attended The Margaret Booth School and Sidney Lanier High School and was quickly recognized because of her great beauty and ballet talent.
In July 1918 she met F. Scott Fitzgerald, who later became one of the most known American writers of this century. They were married on 3rd April, 1920.

What Will They Think of Next

A Story by Janet Lawrence

My daughter Aria sent me a website* that has just published a story by her friend Janet Lawrence. They met while students at Smith College. I contacted Janet to congratulate her on the publication of such a brilliant story and asked her if I might be able to share it on my blog. She graciously agreed. The following is for your reading pleasure...enjoy!

Why You Should Always Carry a 70 Pound Suitcase When Traveling with Strangers by Janet Lawrence

“Ladies and gentlemen, be advised that the last train for Florence has already departed from Rome.”I was on a train from Sicily to Rome, where I needed to make a connection to Florence, when I heard this unfortunate news over the intercom. A distinguished older gentleman in a blazer, seated beside me, stopped a conductor and demanded an explanation. A young Italian woman with dyed black hair and numerous facial piercings leaned in to catch his response.“There are no more trains to Florence tonight, I’m sorry.”A ripple of grumbles passed through the train car. The gentleman’s voice rose excitedly, “How could that be? My wife is expecting me in Florence tonight. What do you want me to do, walk?” The conductor, whose face was gaunt and boasted a large nose that protruded from under the low brim of his boxy green cap, pressed his lips together with annoyance.“Actually,” he said in a hushed tone, “I’m headed to Florence myself. The captain just told me that the train is delayed in Orte, the next town over. If you hustle and take the commuter shuttle, you could catch it.”“Beh—why didn’t you say so in the first place?” the man in the blazer demanded. The conductor shrugged his shoulders with his hands spread wide and eyebrows raised (that classic, full-bodied Italian shrug), as if to say “Whattaya gonna do about it?”We would have two minutes to make the commuter shuttle, and then one minute to make it from the shuttle to the train. “I doubt I’ll make it,” the conductor muttered. “So you guys—yeah, right!”The train began to decelerate as it approached the central station of Rome, and passengers started to pull their belongings down from the overhead bins. I hastily shouldered my duffle and struggled to guide my bulky rolling suitcase through the aisle. I imagined myself stranded, alone, at midnight in Rome’s Termini station, a late night sanctuary for wandering criminals and drug addicts. Completing the mental mathematics, I realized with mounting anxiety that only five Euros remained in my wallet, so I would not be able to afford a place to stay.Soon, there were five of us, all bound for Florence, assembled at the exit. We smiled nervously at one another, looking in each other’s eyes. The girl with the piercings, the conductor, the older gentleman, another young man in a brown leather jacket and bright white sneakers, and myself. I became vaguely aware of a sense of shared determination and Darwinian morbidity; each of us wondered who wouldn’t make it.The train came to a halt and the doors opened. I lowered my rolling bag down the steps as quickly as I could, when the girl with the piercings noticed that I was struggling. She turned unexpectedly, grabbed my suitcase, pulled it onto the platform, and set off running. “Let’s go!” she shouted, towing the suitcase behind her. I bounded after her, followed closely by the tailored gentleman, the conductor, and the young man in the leather jacket. “Could your luggage be any heavier?” she shouted back over her shoulder. The conductor passed us with long loping strides and motioned for us to follow. The young man in leather flanked me on my right, with the older gentleman a few feet behind us. In that moment, somehow, the fates of five strangers became connected.I laughed as we whizzed through the station, past droves of people. We ran through the gypsies with hands forever outstretched, past the beggars bowed forward in supplication, past newspaper stands, ticket counters, and coffee bars, the conductor directing us as we rounded corner after corner.Finally, we arrived at the shuttle. I hefted my luggage through the entrance and climbed aboard, out of breath and exhilarated, with no more than five seconds to spare.The five of us stood in the vestibule, bracing ourselves against its walls and catching our breath as the shuttle trundled away. Laughing delightedly, the young man in the leather jacket marveled at how nearly we had been left stranded. The older gentleman graciously admitted how we would have surely missed it without the guidance of the conductor. I was still silently reeling from surprise that the girl with the piercings had taken charge of my unwieldy luggage.“I’m Cristina,” she said, looking at us expectantly. “Massimo—my pleasure,” responded, the elder gentleman, offering his hand.“Paolo,” grunted the conductor.“Matteo,” said the young man in the leather jacket. His hair was buzzed closely on the sides and longer on the top, where he had gelled it into a squat mohawk.It was my turn, and I felt the familiar discomfort of having to reveal myself as a foreigner. Although my haircut and jeans were decidedly Italian, I could never conceal the dry vowels that tumbled out of my mouth when I spoke.“Sono Janet,” I offered, awaiting the questions that inevitably followed.“Where are you from?” Matteo asked in an easy, Sicilian drawl. “I’m American, but I live and work in Florence,” I answered, a well-worn phrase in my life as an ex-pat. Perhaps because we had succeeded in making the shuttle together, or perhaps because of the late hour, the customary barrage of questions and evaluations of my linguistic ability failed to materialize. For once, I did not feel like an outsider.As the shuttle neared the station, we prepared for our final dash to the train. Paolo, the conductor, who had initially been certain of our failure, again took on the role of team captain, discussing the strategy we must employ. He described the various obstacles we would encounter: the long platform, a staircase, and a ramp leading to the track.Like competitive sprinters toeing the starting line, we positioned ourselves on the steps of the vestibule a second time, awaiting the moment the doors slid open. Then, we exploded from the train’s exit and dashed down the platform. We reached the flight of stairs, and before I knew it, Massimo had taken hold of the right lateral handle of my suitcase, Matteo was on the left, Cristina the front, and Paolo the rear. Astounded, I padded uselessly alongside these four strangers as they conducted my suitcase down the steps. I felt as though I was not merely a part of the group, but an essential component of its existence. Without my monstrosity of luggage as our focal point, there would not have been a need to band together. I was the emulsifier in this unlikely group.We made the train.From past experience, I knew that spontaneous camaraderie often fades as quickly as it is born, and this was no different. As we pulled away from Orte, our sense of urgency dissipated in proportion with the distance between our train car and the station. And yet, as the train rumbled along, I felt a comfortable silence that for me has only ever been obtained amongst old friends. The conductor’s iPod played the tragic theme from La Dolce Vita, trumpet and saxophone calling to one another, and we listened as we plunged through the sprawling dark Italian landscape for Florence.

*This story can be found here:
http://glimpse.org/stories/view/why-you-should-always-carry-a-70-pound-suitcase-when-traveling-with-strangers/

Catch a Falling Star and Put It In Your Pocket

My Dad- Love this "Batman lounging outfit" -gift from my sister Jocelyn

I had a wonderful lunch with my 91 year old dad the other day and then we spent a couple of hours with my teenage nephews and their friends at my brothers home. Thank God my dad is still mobile and his mind is clear with a memory better than my own. I was talking to him about old songs just to keep the conversation light. I was talking about loving old Perry Como songs and saying, Remember the old Perry Como show and the Dean Martin show that we used to watch?

My dad said,

"Be careful Barbara. You're showing your age!"
I had to laugh.

Catch a falling Star

When I was a child I enjoyed watching "The Perry Como" show with my family. His calm presence and kind smile touched my heart. I loved this song and the image of catching stars and putting them in my pocket.

You Can Never Come Back to This Moment

"In the race to be better and best, lest we forget to just be."~Unknown

FAB-U-LOUS Award

I've been given a very nice award from Laurie at Indulge Your Shelf http://indulgeyourshelf.blogspot.com/2009/03/fab-u-lous.html

Thank you Laurie. That was so sweet of you.

As recipient, I'm to blog about five fabulous things and then pass the award along to five others.

So "Five things I think are fabulous" are:

My Family: I’ve been blessed with a wonderful family. They make my life rich beyond measure. Fabulous

My Friends: True friends are gifts to my life. They add meaning and purpose to everything I do . Fabulous

Learning. I love the saying, "You learn something new everyday." Not that some phenomenal amount of knowledge leaps into my brain daily but I am always fascinated with all the things there are to learn about in life. Fabulous.

Travel. I think travel is fabulous. I treasure every past opportunity I’ve had to experience places far and near. I look forward to any chance to see some place new . I truly believe travel broadens everyone's horizons.

Eating. I had to include this big treat in life. Love it. Fabulous.

Now, I'd like to pass this award on to some of my favorite reads:

Palmabella's Passions

http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/palma/

Jerry's Thoughts, Musings and Rants!

http://jdeq.typepad.com/jerrys_thoughts_musings_a/

Encausticopolis

http://encausticopolis.blogspot.com/

I Pray To Feta

http://ipraytofeta.blogspot.com/

Baked Alaska

http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/cindyruth/

You are all fabulous!

Charles and Ray Eames

A long ago chapter in my life....

I found an ad on the internet which was selling the "House of Cards" by Charles and Ray Eames, the renown husband and wife designer team.

Seeing these cards brought back a flood of memories of a time in my life in the mid 1970's. I was a graduate student in the Design department at UCLA. I had a couple of jobs working both as a Graduate Teaching assistant in Costume design and also making extra money working in the Physics department on campus. My cousin who was also a student there had mentioned that she saw an ad in the campus classified. She kept saying, "This says a design studio in Venice is looking for someone to work in the office. I think you should apply." I was busy, I was working two jobs already and since I wasn't interested and she was graduating she said she thought she'd apply. Turns out it was not just an ordinary office but it was the office of "Charles and Ray Eames". From the time she took that job and for the several years that she worked for them both our lives and that of many of our friends and family became entwined with the Eames office. The impact of those years were monumental to all our lives on many levels. I'm sure many of you reading this will know what I am speaking of. For some of you, you know better than I, the workings of that office, the dynamics of such keen and creative minds such as Charles and Ray and all the characters that moved in and out and around their exceptional lives. So many of you worked there. You were the ones involved in all the details and demands and late night deadlines. You were also the ones that were closest to Charles and Ray. I remember their "magic and charisma and their almost God-like presence". But I was just a visitor after hours and one who could stand in awe of such a magical place as that small unobtrusive warehouse building that stood at 901 Washington Blvd. I remember clearly everyone always so busy, rushing around, scurrying to get the details sorted. I remember beautiful slide collections, and toys and everything set in little places so beautifully arranged and yet seemingly placed in a random fashion. It almost seemed like a grown up designy Santa's workshop with wood workers, model-makers, toy trains and all kinds of artists working their magic. What a time that was and that's not discounting all the friendships, the parties and the office antics. Well, I'll leave those to our personal memories. For those of you that may not have alot of background knowledge on Charles and Ray Eames I will be posting some history and some photos of their remarkable lives and examples of the design legacy that they gave to the world in the next several posts.From and ad on the internet:

"Charles and Ray Eames are big heroes of ours. We love their furniture, their films, their photographs and, of course, their philosophy. But what makes them ever-so-special to us is their ability to find inspiration and beauty in ordinary, everyday things.This set of medium-sized cards was designed by Charles Eames in 1952, and contains 32 interlocking pieces featuring delightful and colorful images of what the Eames' referred to as the "good stuff". Pictures of "familiar and nostalgic objects from the animal, mineral and vegetable kingdoms," as well as gorgeous textiles and patterns the couple collected on their world travels. It's a wonderfully fun and inspiring set, and even comes with instructions showing you a few of the many different ways the cards can be stacked, piled, and locked together.Each card measures 7" x 4.5" and features the Eames starburst logo on the back."

Charles and Ray Eames

Exploring their vast contributions to the world of design.

Powers Of 10

A film by the Office of Charles and Ray Eames

Seth Godin

I was watching an interview with Seth Godin in which he said many things that "resonated in me."

Towards the end of the interview he was asked about why he didn't participate in things like "my space" and "twitter".

It wasn't a condescending look at either of these two phenomenons. It was more of how he focuses on his usage of time and chooses what is best for him.

The "why" boiled down to that fact that it would take him a great amount of effort and time to learn and/or participate in something that would take away from his time doing what he is really good at and enjoys doing. Doing those things also decrease the amount of little time left for what he wants to do.

He said, "I picked my thing and I'm good at that. I enjoy being good at that."

If I chose to spend my time in those other ways then,

"I am a wandering generality instead of a meaningful specific."

These words got to me,

"Be a meaningful specific..."

I liked the sound of that.

Some quotes by Seth Godin (a bestselling author, entrepreneur and agent of change):

"How Dare You?How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable? "
Seth Godin
Source: small is the new big

"There's a myth that all you need to do is outline your vision and prove it's right—then, quite suddenly, people will line up and support you.
In fact, the opposite is true. Remarkable visions and genuine insight are always met with resistance. And when you start to make progress, your efforts are met with even more resistance. Products, services, career paths... whatever it is, the forces for mediocrity will align to stop you, forgiving no errors and never backing down until it's over.
If it were any other way, it would be easy. And if it were any other way, everyone would do it and your work would ultimately be devalued. The yin and yang are clear: without people pushing against your quest to do something worth talking about, it's unlikely it would be worth the journey. Persist."

Seth Godin Source: The Forces of Mediocrity: http://sethgodin.typepad.com

25 Romantic Things To Do in Paris

Along the Seine, Concierge on Ile de la Cite

25 Romantic Things to do in Paris" was taken from an article from the blog "In the Kitchen and on the Road with Dorie"

I have only done a few of the things on the list and will have to draft my own personal favorite things to do in Paris. It is easy to feel romantic in this beautiful city, easy even without a list. All you have to do is walk along the Seine, see the Eiffel tower, people watch from a sidewalk cafe, stroll and pinch yourself because YOU are there!

So here is the list from this website:http://www.doriegreenspan.com/dorie_greenspan/2009/02/as-i-wrote-on-leites-culinaria-this-valentines-week-when-my-friend-david-leite-asked-me-to-guest-blog-a-postcard-from-pa.html

25 ideas for making Paris even more unbearably romantic than it already is. If you've got more ideas, please add them.

1. Go to a crowded bistro and pretend you're the only people there. You can try this out at two of my favorite places, Fish, La Boissonerie (69 rue de Seine, Paris 6), and Le Bistrot Paul-Bert.

2. Take time to have tea. Have a grand tea complete with piano music and stunning flowers at the Hotel George V; tea made from first-rate tea at Mariage Freres (they import and blend it themselves); or tea with a little pastry upstairs in the blue velvet and silk room at Laduree on the rue Jacob.

3. Walk around the Luxembourg Gardens, magnificent at any time of year (the circuit is only about a mile, so it's doable no matter the weather), and finish by stopping into a cafe for a vin chaud, mulled wine. I like to stop at either Au Petit Suisse, across from the park and the Odeon Theatre, or Cafe Tournon, near the Senat.

4. Have a big plate of oysters at the tiny Regis (where they only serve oysters), or splurge on a towering seafood platter at Le Dome. Eat with your fingers, slurp the liquor from the oysters and drink Chablis, Sancerre, Muscadet or lots of Champagne.

5. Watch the sun set from the Pont des Arts.

6. Have a leisurely lunch. Lunch is such a luxury, especially if you're a tourist with a long to-do list, but there's nothing lovelier than stopping in the middle of the day for something sybaritic. The two most romantic splurges for lunch are the Jules Verne, Alain Ducasse's restaurant in the Eiffel Tower, and Le Grand Vefour in the gorgeous gardens of the Palais Royale. Le Grand Vefour is the oldest continuously operating restaurant in Paris and it's beautiful, the service is perfect and every seat is named for a patron of the past. Once I was seated at the Empress Eugenie's place (which meant my husband would have been Napoleon III) and another time I was in Gigi, Julie de Carneilha, and Chance Acquaintances: Three Short Novels' target=_blank>Colette 's seat (be still my heart). A stroll down the garden's tree-lined allees is the perfect way to cap lunch. For a far, far less extravagant lunch, my favorite place is Le Comptoir (but it doesn't take reservations -- aarrrgh).

7. Buy chocolate-covered marshmallows at Pierre Marcolini or something with praline at Patrick Roger, two of the city's best chocolatiers.

8. Drink hot chocolate every chance you get. The richest chocolat chaud is at Angelina's.

9. Have anything -- oh, if only you could have everything -- at Pierre Herme, hands-down the best and most exciting patissier in Paris and no, I'm not impartial. If you've never had the Ispahan macaron -- rose, raspberry and litchi -- you must.

10. Have a glass of Champagne for no other reason than because you can.

11. Buy a bag of (the absolutely fabulous) chocolate-covered Sauternes-soaked raisins from Da Rosa and eat them in bed.

12. Visit Sartre and de Beauvoir's tombs at the Montparnasse Cemetery, which is a fascinating place, or go see Proust at Pere Lachaise Cemetery, another beautiful place (but much larger, so you might want to wait until the weather's a bit warmer).

13. Set off without a map, get thoroughly lost and celebrate your freedom at the closest cafe.

14. Go to the Jacquemart-Andre Museum and imagine that you live there. Of course you can do this at Versailles, but it's easier at the palatially cozy J-A.

15. Buy a slice or two from several kinds of terrines from master charcutier Gilles Verot (3 rue Notre-Dames des Champs, Paris 6) and have a picnic in your hotel room.

16. Get a bottle of wine from La Derniere Goutte, one of Paris's best and most interesting wine shops (everyone there speaks English), to go with those terrines.

17. Take an evening cruise up the Seine in a Bateau Mouche. Sure it's a touristy thing to do, but I figure if it was good enough for Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn in Charade, then it's good enough for me.

18. If you can't take the cruise, stand on the Quai opposite Notre Dame (the Left Bank side) and wait for a Bateau Mouche to sail by and shine its lights on the church -- the effect makes you catch your breath no matter how many times you see it.

19. Visit Claire Damon's pastry shop, Des Gateaux et du Pain. Damon is one of the few, I want to say only, but I'm not sure, French women with her own world-class patisserie. There's something lovely, light and, yes, feminine about everything she makes, even her breads.

20. Go to Berthillon and have one ice cream sundae with two spoons. If you and whomever you're with can agree on what flavors to have, you'll know it's true love.

21. Have a drink at the sumptuous Bar 228 in the Hotel Meurice or at The Ritz's Hemingway Bar. It will cost as much as a dinner, but it will be memorable.

22. Window-shop along the Faubourg Saint-Honore and finish with a fancifully decorated eclair at Fauchon.

23. Buy a scented candle at Diptyque and keep it burning late into the night.

24. Head for Poilane and buy not one, not two, not a dozen, but a sack full of their buttery cookies. After all, when it comes to love, nothing beats abundance.

25. Go back to Pierre Herme and buy just one more macaron to share.

Paris

photo courtesy of Brenda (see her blog: http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/bge/)

Athena Paris December 2008

Daniele and Aria, Paris Springtime 2008

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.

Explore.

Dream.

Discover.” - Mark Twain

La vie en rose - A tribute to Édith Piaf

We were sailing down the Seine, a summer night in 1999...warm breezes, the bridges overhead, the lights reflecting on the water, lovers strolling along the river banks... everything whispered romance. Could it be any other way in the city of lights? Ahh, Paris.

The Starling Diner-Belmont Heights, Long Beach

I had to get up early yesterday for my annual mammogram and dexascan check-up. This is a hint for all of you ladies...if you haven't made your yearly check-up please do it. I was finished by 8:30. To be honest my morale has been dragging abit these days and that's unusual for me. My posts are for the most part about being positive because that's the way I want to lead my life. Lately, though, because of reflecting on the loss of my mom and of now letting go of the family home I've been feeling a bit sad, well more than a bit... alot. It's only natural I think and I've allowed myself this time to feel the blues. Anyway, yesterday, after the early morning appointment I wanted to treat myself to breakfast out. I thought about some girlfriends and wondered if I should make an impromptu call to see if they'd like to join me. Then I thought, "no", today feels like a quiet "me" day. I've never been one to mind going to a restaurant to eat alone or take in a movie alone. Sometimes it feels okay to be in the company of myself...in fact sometimes I need it. I knew just the place to go. The "Starling Diner". Here is the website, take a peek: http://starlingdiner.com/index.htm

This is a little of what is written about the diner:

"Neighborhoods are better served when there are places where neighbors, families and friends can casually gather over a cup of coffee, a good meal or a glass of wine. That’s where Starling comes in.
Created by and staffed by people who love and live in Long Beach, we’ve come together because it is important to us that neighborhood joints exist and thrive. A place to think, have a bite to eat and a table to spread out the Sunday paper is- in our minds- a necessity for the pursuit of happiness.
Belmont Heights is perfect for a place like Starling. People know their neighbors, they take walks and they know good food when they taste it. Come on in, dine in comfort and meet some of the other people that live in your part of the world.
Starling has landed in your backyard. Enjoy yourself-your table is waiting…"

I love this place. If you are in Long Beach go here for wonderful food, lovely simple ambiance and well prepared food at affordable prices. (Presentations of food are lovely). I had the most relaxing morning. It made me so happy to be in a place that feels like you're at home. I had a magazine to read, a good cup of steaming hot coffee (waitresses are so wonderful and refill your cup without you asking). The music was so beautiful too. I had to ask what cd it was and I was brought the cd cover. "Celso Fonseca Natural". The post that follows is a YouTube sample of what I heard this morning. So imagine my happiness as I sat in a great little cozy neighborhood diner, room filled with soft bossa nova tunes, hot coffee, my freshly baked scones with lemon curd and a big breakfast. Who could stay blue for long with this kind of beginning to the day? Life is full of joy...you just have to find yours.

Samba e Tudo - Celso Fonseca - 7x Bossa Nova

Good Morning music to soothe your heart.

Quotes to lift the spirit

Porta del Paradiso-Florence, Italy

Those of you that know me, are aware that my siblings and I have been clearing out our parents home in order to rent or sell the property. In doing so I have found many of my stored old possessions. The other day I found the beautiful bible I was given when I was baptised in my church. I remember when I received it and what a treasure it was in a gold colored box. White leather with a zipper, still in perfect condition. In those years I kept the new bible in its' original box and read from the tattered black bible I had always used for church. Finding this beautiful bible reminded me of how often I found solace in reading it. Here are some passages which give me a sense of peace even today. I'll share them with you too.

Passages from the Bible that may lift you up:

You say: 'It's impossible' God says: All things are possible (Luke 18:27)

You say: 'I'm too tired' God says: I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28-30)

You say: 'Nobody really loves me' God says: I love you (John 3:1 6 & John 3:34 )

You say: 'I can't go on' God says: My grace is sufficient (II Corinthians 12:9 & Psalm 91:15)

You say: 'I can't figure things out' God says: I will direct your steps (Proverbs 3:5- 6)

You say: 'I can't do it' God says: You can do all things (Philippians 4:13)

You say: 'I'm not able' God says: I am able (II Corinthians 9:8)

You say: 'It's not worth it' God says: It will be worth it (Roman 8:28 )

You say: 'I can't forgive myself' God says: I Forgive you (I John 1:9 & Romans 8:1)

You say: 'I can't manage' God says: I will supply all your needs (Philippians 4:19)

You say: 'I'm afraid' God says: I have not given you a spirit of fear (II Timothy 1:7)

You say: 'I'm always worried and frustrated' God says: Cast all your cares on ME (I Peter 5:7)

You say: 'I'm not smart enough' God says: I give you wisdom (I Corinthians 1:30)

You say: 'I feel all alone' God says: I will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5)