Cat

While I am entirely a dog person, I have found myself thinking in a feline, Cat with Nine Lives kind of way. It started about a week ago when the glamorous Tabitha at Bourbon & Pearls revealed her current fetish (her word) for the romance of Russia. A lively dialogue developed in the comments section in which I mentioned having participated in a theatre festival in St. Petersburg during a cold, dark winter. The rippling surprise of her reaction encouraged me to remember that yes, I had done that and yes, it was an extraordinary experience. One that had been buried under the leaves of long ago. I tend to forget.

Remi hooked up the record player on New Year’s Day. For some reason we hadn’t bothered since moving in a year and a half ago, odd in itself. That evening, I sat on the floor with a glass of wine and flipped through the records slowly. More scattered leaves. Vinyl examples of personalities that are tried on, reworked; some kept guarded, others discarded.
In evolving towards Living to Work (being an actress in New York), then Living to Love (meeting Remi and moving to France), I arrived at Living to Discover (criss-crossing the world with him as a travel writer), all of which required different tastes and modes of being. How these things come and go, have come and gone. And it is the disappearing acts that have left me pondering.  

While I know I am not “what I do” and certainly not “what I wear” hopefully there is something brewing in the “how I am.” I have worked over the past year on being more in the present moment. A greater appreciation for the small moments right in front of me has arrived out of that. But I have been so focused on the now that I am left feeling a bit bare. Some layers have been stripped out of necessity, it is true. Along with the down-sizing that we have undergone in the past few years, I have also down-sized…myself. I have kept my house swept a little too clean. Now I want to remember that it is perfectly fine to let those fallen leaves linger while I inch my way towards whatever is Next. There is nothing wrong with a little surface suggestion or a waltz with what has been.

Time to dust off an album, put the needle on the record and let the music play.

I know that we are all formed by our past and our previous choices but I am curious–if you wish to share–how much of your past has stayed with you? Have you changed much over the years? 

Shine like diamonds

Happy New Year!

The tide comes in, the tide goes out…may 2013 be as bright as a diamond and as multi-faceted…

*Sorry for the terrible sound quality, I have told you it is windy here!*

Thank you all so much for being here. I feel so fortunate and am truly grateful for your fine company.
Let’s look keep looking forward…
Off to celebrate the first day of a new year with champagne and lobster!
Wishing that wherever you are, you are enjoying more than a whisper of hope for this new year washed clean with the tide…

Walking in Maxfield Parrish

Do remember the moment when you first fell in love with art?

I do. 

I would have been around eight years old and my parents took me to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. 
My Mom had to finally pull me away from the paintings of Claude Monet as I was truly mesmerized, having never seen something that spoke so clearly to my young romantic self. The one who would hide in her oak panelled closet to read for hours, believe in ghosts and create imaginary worlds.
I was still unformed and uninformed. 
What I liked was because…well, just that. Chords were struck, simple internal music.

Slowly, I taught myself about painting and sculpture but with it came the pressure of snobbery. “Oh, I can’t possibly enjoy *fill in the blank*.” I would waiver, then abandon. Monet, Erté and Maxfield Parrish to name a few, all deemed entirely too commercial by the New York Citified version of me. 
And yet the other evening, it was Mr. Parrish that came to mind as I strolled outside of Les Baux with Remi and Ben. His colors entirely lit the hills on fire without the slightest hint of menace. Or getting burnt. And so his sweet stories of possibility wrapped around me. I let them.
How grateful I am to have doubled back in some way, almost to where I started. To see, to appreciate, to wonder without caring why.
Do you remember your first brush with art? What did it give you?
Wishing you all a very fine weekend…

Palate Cleanser, Part two

I thought that it might be time for another Palate Cleanser for those of us that have had our fill of goose and foie gras, whose ears are still ringing with the jangle of tinsel and the whiz of Jingle Bells.

So, let’s close our eyes for a moment and try to conjure a splash of sun on our faces. 

It is a warm autumn day in the village of Vachères in the Luberon. 

Remi, Ben and I have been determined to discover every single village within a reasonable radius of our cabanon rental and so have found ourselves here after a bit of pointing and tracing on the map.
The authentic calade stone paving, a rarity, pulls us along and eventually, apart.

Vistas beckon and I answer.

Ben is eventually sent down to find me, to pull me out of my reverie…

…and vain efforts of trying to smoosh down the light so that it will fit into my little black box.

When I am lead back to Remi, he is doing what he does best…

…transforming a ruin into an imaginary castle, just for two.
The bees swarm threateningly around us, wishing to guard their treasure trove of fallen prunes…

…so wistfully we move on, continuing to steal glances of inner lives…

…and outward barriers of time’s warriors as we go.

I wish to also extend un grand remerciement to all of you who left such kind Holiday Wishes. Thank you so very, very, very much.
A lovely day was had by all.
Remi, Ben and I are about to head out for a much needed walk in the country.
Hoping that you are able to relax and find a bit of peace, wherever you are…

Ben’s Christmas Greeting

Hello everyone! My friend Ben has a special Christmas Greeting for you:
Got that? This is a special time of year with so much joy in the air. A lot of memories too. So please remember to be generous and give…

…of your heart. That is all that matters! We all have so much to be grateful for. 
From our household to yours, a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!
Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men…and dogs.


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