This is a video of starlings wheeling and forming their strange dark shapes in the sky, shot on 22 October 2005 at Eastbourne Pier set to a Broken Social Scene song.
I love YouTube.
11.30.2008
sunday tune: broken social scene - lover's spit
11.29.2008
11.28.2008
sleepy
I'm still feeling lazy and dozy after yesterday's feasting, and I have a stack of books by my bed that deserve some attention. If I get it together later, I might:
- go for a stroll
- get lit up (here and here)
- watch some cartoons
- see The Scarlet Empress
Image: Vermeer's A Young Woman Sleeping.
11.27.2008
11.26.2008
i spend a lot of time imagining things
Case in point.
Still, I wish I had this to wear tomorrow. I like to look nice, even for casual family events. So much work goes into making and preparing and hosting, the least I can do is show up looking presentable. I'd have a soft pair of moccasins slipped in my bag to wear around the freshly cleaned house, and I'd coming bearing gifts - a bottle of something nice for my dad, and a casserole full of something tasty to share. After dinner, I'd wrap up in a cozy cardigan and fall discreetly asleep on the couch while everyone else finishes the pie and watches movies.
Happy Thanksgiving!
(And thanks, Courtney!)
Edited to add: and clearly NOT spellchecking things. Sheesh.
when i was young, i helped raise a squirrel
This is me and my squirrel. I'm about four in this photo.
Back in the day, my dad (among many other things) did animal rehabilitation. People would bring him injured and orphaned creatures and we would nurse them back to independence before returning them to the wild. We had raccoons, rabbits, owls, snakes, and just once, orphaned squirrels.
This little guy eventually returned to life in the trees. I had named him Sparkle, but he ended up going by Sparky.
union suits
My winter pajamas of choice. Finding good ones that don't look like baby rompers or lumberjack wear is challenging. These are surprisingly nice, though.
attics
My dream bedroom is somewhere high, with light and a pitched ceiling. I think this one (from Remodelista) is just about perfect. And I'd take that blanket, too.
i don't have a good pair of black boots
Shocking, I know. But I am really, really picky and I'm holding out for a pair that I love without reservation.
These might be contenders.
number six
Number Six Steam Engine. Steam engine on railroad tracks in the snow in 1912. Photo taken by Frank Sadorus. Collection of the Illinois State Museum.
(The lovely Courtney tagged me to share six quirky, yet boring facts about myself. Instead of listing them, I'm going to use each one as the basis for a post. Fact number 1: I prefer to travel by train.)
11.25.2008
of a musical variety, part 2
Having Britt Daniel as a neighbor is almost enough to make me think seriously about moving to Portland. I love Spoon.
of a musical variety, part 1
You could always sit around and jam like this after Thanksgiving dinner but get a couple of Stone Fences in everyone and they should be up for extreme musical spoons.
Hilarious.
to keep
Who wouldn't like a hand carved spoon with their name and birthday burned onto the handle?
I think I need one.
Birthday spoon belonging to Dinosaurs & Robots, seen at Reference Library (whose kiosk mini-exhibition is reason #1 I am delaying buying Christmas presents).
to give
The hand carved spoons at herriot grace are all made out of reclaimed wood and no two are alike. I think they would be a perfect wedding gift.
Nikole (whose father carves the spoons) has an very beautiful blog and flickr as well.
1002 spoons
Jurgen Lehl's collections fascinate me. His spoon collection is being exhibited later this week in Tokyo. As described:
New and old, elaborately carved and simple, big and small, carved from wood, coconut, horn, shell and bamboo,made of iron, brass and gourd,hammered from silver, copper, bronze and stainless steel, salt spoons, tea spoons, ceremonial spoons, tea ceremony spoons, serving spoons, ladles, and jewelry made of spoons.
Many were designed and made especially for this show, while others were found in Vietnam, China, Japan, Indonesia, Timor, the Philippines, Korea, India, Africa and Europe.
Photo by Kenichi Higashi. Spotted (aptly enough) at Spoon & Tamago.
11.24.2008
a stiff drink
I'm thinking of making these for Thanksgiving but I am wondering if they might cause too much trouble ...
a red sweater
Acne Jeans Shorty cashmere cardigan at La Garconne. The gold safety pin makes this for me.
a leather chair
Easy chair attributed to Illum Wikkelsø, from the Mid-Century Modernist via Ffffound.
This is at the top of Sean's 'what I really want for Christmas that I know I'm not getting' list.
a hot bath
Vieques Tub by Patricia Urquiola for agape.
I love all things Patricia, but I especially love this.
Spotted at roadside scholar via NotCot.
frost
Beautiful feathers of frost on a cold, cold window. Many people in Cleveland hate the cold (complaining about weather is almost a badge of civic pride) but I can't help finding it beautiful.
The correlation of cold is warmth and comfort, so today I am thinking of comforting things.
Photo from pudri via ungtblod.
11.23.2008
snow steps
Snow, Yasuhiro Ishimoto. 1994. © Lawrence Miller Gallery/Photography Gallery International.
Eight years ago, the CMA did a small show of photographs by Yasuhiro Ishimoto called Traces of Memory. I still remember it because of this photograph - one of my favorites of all time, and the start of a passion for Japanese photography.
I always remember it this time of year. It makes the slushy ground a little more beautiful.
sunday tune: sufijan stevens - casimir pulaski day
I am well aware that Sufjan has his lovers and haters. I had never really listened to his music until I had a chance to see him live on the Illinoise tour. When I heard this song, I was off the fence. I wish I could have written this. My goal on this earth is to make one near-perfect thing, and I consider this song pretty near perfect. It's a real, whole world in four and a half minutes.
Goldenrod and the 4-H stone
The things I brought you
When I found out you had cancer of the bone
Your father cried on the telephone
And he drove his car to the Navy yard
Just to prove that he was sorry
In the morning through the window shade
When the light pressed up against your shoulder blade
I could see what you were reading
Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications you could do without
When I kissed you on the mouth
Tuesday night at the bible study
We lift our hands and pray over your body
But nothing ever happens
I remember at Michael's house
In the living room when you kissed my neck
And I almost touched your blouse
In the morning at the top of the stairs
When your father found out what we did that night
And you told me you were scared
Oh the glory when you ran outside
With your shirt tucked in and your shoes untied
And you told me not to follow you
Sunday night when I cleaned the house
I find the card where you wrote it out
With the pictures of your mother
On the floor at the great divide
With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied
I am crying in the bathroom
In the morning when you finally go
And the nurse runs in with her head hung low
And the cardinal hits the window
In the morning in the winter shade
On the first of March on the holiday
I thought I saw you breathing
Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications when I see his face
In the morning in the window
Oh the glory when he took our place
But he took my shoulders and he shook my face
And he takes and he takes and he takes
sunday tune: sufjan stevens - the lakes of canada
This video has a view count of 202,020. I am probably personally responsible for about 253 of those - since I found it last year, I've watched it about once every three days. It breaks my heart a little every time I listen to it. Back in the day, Innocence Mission was a favorite of mine, and I love this song.
Look for me another day.
I feel that I could change,
I feel that I could change.
There's a sudden joy that's like
a fish, a moving light;
I thought I saw it
rowing on the lakes of Canada.
Oh laughing man, what have you won?
Don't tell me what cannot be done.
My little mouth, my winter lungs,
don't tell me what can't be done.
Walking in the circle of a flashlight
someone starts to sing, to join in.
Talk of loneliness in quiet voices.
I am shy but you can reach me.
Rowing on the lakes of Canada,
rowing on the lakes of Canada.
Oh laughing man, what have you won?
Don't tell me what cannot be done.
My little mouth, my winter lungs,
don't tell me what can't be done.
Look for me another time
Give me another day
I feel that I could change
Rowing on the lakes of Canada.
11.22.2008
11.21.2008
this weekend
I'll be:
- here for sure (I never miss it - it's one of my favorite holiday events in the Cleve)
- cooking up some of this
- finishing this (hopefully)
- celebrating Cleveland's own
- visiting an open studio
- taking a second look at this (it is gobsmackingly awesome)
- getting spooked at Rasputin
Image: Wind Through Northern Sky by d. kim. Love, love, love.
oh, and ...
Ta-da! evencleveland Etsy shop is open for the holidays! Current offering: elf villages.
I will be updating the shop weekly with homey little holiday things. Let me know what you think!
working on: little houses
One of my favorite things in the world is a cardboard holiday village. Finding vintage sets in good shape is difficult, and most modern sets are a little uninspired, so a couple of years ago I started to make my own, in a couple of different styles. They've proved to be popular gifts.
This particular model recycles old cardboard tubes as the base. I save the ones from the center of gift wrap, paper towels, lint rollers, etc. because paper alone isn't sturdy enough to make a solid little house. A dremel tool comes in handy to cut down the tubes and to bore holes for windows and doors. I think all mini-houses look better lit up - I love seeing light peeking out the tiny windows - and the great thing about most cardboard tubes is that they are the perfect size to accommodate flickering LED tealights.
In the end, I made 40 little red and green houses, and six in shades of blue. Pretty fun!
little boxes
I have little boxes made of ticky-tacky on the brain today. You will soon see why ...
(and I love Pete Seeger's sweater.)
big boxes
Nora got a new, extra-fluffy bed in the mail this week. She knew immediately that whatever was in that box for her. As soon as she let me unpack it, she tried to drag the massive thing across the house in her teeth, full of the joy of new possession.
They've been pretty much inseparable ever since.
11.20.2008
possibly this room
Erin's post on psychedelic home decor came pat to the psychological moment, I guess. I've been a bit obsessed with this Wary Meyers room, and up it popped on Ffffound. I took it as a sign of synchronicity and am posting it for you.
Those bargello pillows - that horse picture - and just look at the books! I'm a little weak in the knees.
Generally, I gravitate to the austere but Wary Meyer rooms hit some latent Wes Anderson-esque strain of controlled excess buried deep in my soul. I think they would be down with designing me my very own game closet.
definitely these books
I'm a bit dazzled by book design right now. These covers for the Penguin/Waterstone's Hardback classics are only feeding the beast. They were designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith.
Spotted at the NYTimes Book Design Review.
and maybe this chair
Someday, I would like my own special chair for reading. This could be a contender.
Pendel 2 Seat Sofa by Russell Pinch.
now i need cake
This left me speechless and ravenously hungry for cake with raspberry filling.
The making of video is even more wonderful. They include the recipe:
Amy sent me the link to these, knowing my love of tiny cars and baked goods. Thanks, Amy!
11.19.2008
home made
I've been getting a big kick out of watching Pomplamoose's VideoSongs. I've always been a fan of making music around the house, although it helps if you have an accordion, a Wurlitzer, some drums and talent. Here's the rules they follow:
1. What you see is what you hear (no lip-syncing for instruments or voice).
2. If you hear it, at some point you see it (no hidden sounds).
One cute, crazy-talented couple. Via she planted a tree.
(Oh, and niece and nephew: this one is for you.)
feeling crafty
Do I need any more projects, real or hypothetical, cluttering up my brainspace?
No! Right now I am living like a squirrel, surrounded by a ring of paper scraps, bits of fluff, and random shiny stuff.
Sadly, those cold hard facts have done nothing to stop me from craving these books and all the potential crafty goodness therein. What can I say? I am a glutton.
buttoned & hitched
Looking for some new pants. I'm into the strategic use of buttons.
Above: Engineer Button Crops at Anthropologie (also loved by a Lucky girl).
Below: Silence & Noise Wide-leg Suspender Pants at Urban Outfitters.
Maybe I should just invest in these (I love the tooled detail). They might smarten up what I've already got in my closet.
inkle
My mother (among many other things) is a weaver. While she used to work at her floor loom, my sister and I would weave on a little inkle loom nearby. I've been thinking about getting one of my own - I can think of lots of things I would use woven trim for ... like extremely cool suspenders ... hm.
blanketing the world
When I saw these Travis Meinolf blankets yesterday on hunter<>gather, my heart skipped a beat. Then I read about his blanket offer project, and really swooned. Since 2007, he has woven and given away 32 blankets in an attempt to "[wear] down my own tendency to hoard the product of my labor, to take pleasure in the feeling that I worked for another's warmth and let that eclipse my fetishization of the objects ..." The first were set out in humble piles, with a simple sign stating "If you need a blanket to keep you warm, you can have one of these. I wove them out of wool that was given to me."
I can't think of a more beautiful gift to give.
All images from here.
11.18.2008
imaginary outfit: winter stargazing
Winter is my favorite time to stargaze. The stars feel closer, even if they are bright, icy pinpricks impossibly far away. When I was small, my dad would take us out on winter nights to look for constellations and tell us stories. My favorite was one about a time when all the animals of the earth were fighting. Finally the din and noise from their disagreements drove the Great Spirit to drastic measures, and he pulled a heavy blanket down over the sun. The animals were quieted at once - they had never known the dark and were afraid. They knew the sun was somewhere behind the dark, but no one was brave enough to go and find him. Finally, the hummingbird, small as it was, flew up into the murky black, and used its beak to make tiny hole after tiny hole in the blanket, letting in dim bits of light. The Great Spirit was so charmed that he decided half the day would be given over to the little bird's work, and that's why, my dad claimed, we have stars in the sky.
These days he says he told this story to try and get me and my brother and sister to stop arguing with each other, in a quest for a little peace at home, and that it wasn't really about explaining the stars at all. Very crafty, right? I don't know how successful it was on that score, but I do still love to look at the stars and think of how they got there.
the impulse to understand the immense
A large square is marked with black paint on the gallery floor. The edge pointing true north is curved, and acts as the horizon. Placed on this surface are small limestone and quartz rocks collected from the Keewinaw Peninsula in Upper Michigan, in an arrangement that reflects the stars above San Francisco at first visibility on the night of the reception. This reflecting pool serves as a record of one moment in our trajectory through the universe.
Claire Nereim, Reflection. Currently on view at PLAySPACE.
angelica the doorkeeper
The falcon soars
The town's gates are even higher
Angelica's their doorkeeper
She's wound the sun round her head
She's tied the moon round her waist
She's hung herself with stars.
Anonymous.
Translated from Serbian by Anne Pennington (and included in one of my favorite anthologies).
Image: detail from Jane, Class of '44, No. 20 by Amanda Blake. Her watchful face is close to how I imagine Angelica looks.
11.17.2008
laws of general economy
Erica's new clothes swap blog, Laws of General Economy, is up. As she so nicely puts it, it is 'a space for giving (and also receiving)'. It works like this: lovely, gently worn items are posted with measurements and descriptions, and interested parties can leave a comment. At the end of 28 days, a winner is randomly selected. The winner pays for the shipping (and a nominal fee, if something is really, truly extraordinary) and there you have it. An excellent way to breathe a little life into your closet for very little money.
Current postings include Marc Jacobs and A.P.C. Madras. Personally, I am coveting this. This too. And I am already looking through my closet, thinking of things that need a better home ...
In other news: looking forward to following this and to shopping at this guy's store (opens in 11 days).
ritualized brutality
Nicolai Howalt's photographs of young boxers, taken moments before and moments after their matches. Pretty amazed by these.
Top to bottom: Boxer # 5, 2003; Boxer # 7, 2003; Boxer # 10, 2001.
Via lost.
raging bull
Spending too much time looking over WellMedicated's post on Polish film posters (discovered a while back on Ffffound). This is one of my favorites, but I like this one too - it has a creepy strangeness.
red letter day
11.16.2008
in case you know them
Greatest Smiths Fan Ever t-shirt by by Drew Devereaux Hamlet. You'll know you are giving it to the right person once you check for tattoos.
you were right and i was wrong and i'm sorry
Letterpressed cards by Kseniya. The words are from a text message her brother sent her. Hilarious!
sunday tune: please, please, please let me get what i want
One of my favorite songs. Looks like it's one of this kid's, too.
11.15.2008
11.14.2008
break out
To do:
- have a sense of humor
- help Pink Eye
- admire Grace and Cary - or Garbo, if you'd rather
- Sarah Vowell's in town
- Lou Reed's Berlin
- consider buying some new shoes, after all
- celebrate e-rock's big 3-0
Photo by Thobias Faldt, via Booooooom!
imaginary outfit: art gallery opening
People-watching at art gallery openings is one of my favorite things to do - the head tilting, the murmured approbation or condemnation, the name-dropping and cross-referencing. Often, the art on the walls is marginal, but what people are saying and wearing is always amusing. I still remember a particular woman I saw once about eight years ago, her gray hair piled messily on top of her head, threaded with hand-dyed yarn, wearing a full black taffeta ball gown skirt with a slouchy striped long sleeved t-shirt, talking animatedly about the Ballets Russes. It was awesome. I don't remember a single print from that show, but I'll never forget that outfit.
Going out tonight, I'd wear something with an unusual silhouette - a tight cropped jacket with bloomery trousers and architectural t-straps - paired with strange, luxe accessories, like rings shaped like enameled snakes and carved faces and a corded fabric necklace in shades of red and green. Just like everyone else, I'd tilt my head and act knowledgeable, and after I had my fill of surreptitious people-watching, I'd head for the door, wondering if anyone was watching me.
if you can't laugh at yourself ...
Oh, Cleveland. You make me sigh.
Asterisk Gallery is opening a new show tonight, 'a visual roast of this glorious city by Cleveland artists.' It should be fun - in addition to satirical art, there will be polka and kielbasa. Good times.
Apparently, the powers that be were not amused by the idea or the promotional art work. The gallery owner was slapped with a cease and desist by the Greater Cleveland Partnership for using the above image (a riff on theirs, an expressive masterpiece of originality).
This is so petty I can hardly believe it, but it has made going to this opening #1 on my agenda tonight. Hope to see you there.
in my mug
Sean and I have been drinking a lot of spiced apple cider. We zap mugfuls in the microwave, then steep chai tea bags in them instead of using sugary mulling spices. We thought we were geniuses for figuring this out, but my sister informed me that coffee shops do it that way all the time. Either way, it's pretty delicious. Sean says it has a "fullness of yum" - ha!
(It would taste even better in these studio mugs from Heath Ceramics.)
11.13.2008
I've mentioned this before
think-make-think by Clifton Burt. Today's 20 x 200 print. Selling fast ...
sssshhh. top secret news.
So. I am going to be opening an even*cleveland holiday shop on Etsy, where you can buy hot water bottle covers and some other little holiday treats I am making. I make a lot of fun things this time of year. Eeek!
We'll see how it goes. Hoping to have it up & going in one week ...
dadaya
Yesterday, Chelsea posted a picture of a hat by Dadaya. I am now officially obsessed. She makes the hats out of felt, then hand-dyes and embroiders them. It's worth looking at close ups of the pictures because many of the hats have tone on tone detailing in addition to their colorful flourishes.
I wish this woman was my neighbor so that she could teach me her ways.
feeling wooly
Look at this luscious wool felt sample pack from FilzFelt. I can't wait to order from them - wool felt is one of my favorite things. Spotted at PoppyTalk.
sean's new coat
This was our big purchase from Made in the 216: a Wrath Arcane wool melton jacket for Sean. He's been wearing it constantly. Their pieces are so beautifully constructed and well-fitting, and they have an understated distinctiveness - it was really hard for him to come home with just one thing.
I love that signature arc in the back.
11.12.2008
working on: hot water bottle covers
My mother and I have been transforming wool/cashmere scarves from TJ Maxx into cozy hot water bottle covers. They are so soft and plushy - it makes me happy just to see them. I can't wait to make more. I think they will make nice presents, don't you?
j'adore
Once upon a time... from Capucha on Vimeo.
Danielle posted this and it pretty much killed me with the cute. This little girl tells the most charming story ... in French.
Oh, I can't handle it.
pretties
Gorgeous necklaces at Roma Winkel, an Etsy seller discovered through Lena Corwin.
I've been playing with my beads again lately (thinking of friendship bracelets and worry beads) and this juxtaposition of color and texture is inspiring. They have a simplicity and honesty I admire.
color and pattern
The mociun web store just opened. Her prints just gobsmack me. I'd take this one any way I could get it.
stop motion
Jemapur: Aanaatt (TEASER) from Max Hattler on Vimeo.
I can't wait to see the whole thing. Spotted at Shape + Colour.
11.11.2008
for walking
Wood soles are the way to go.
When I was 15, I inherited a pair of vintage, wooden-soled Swedish clogs from my mother. They were beautiful, broken-in russety leather, insanely comfortable and generally perfect in every way. I wore them until they fell to bits. All told, they had lasted over 20 years. Foolishly, I replaced them with a lesser pair and nearly broke my neck innumerable times walking in them before I gave up - they were a pale shadow of my lost Swedish treasures.
I'm thinking it's time for a new pair. My basic criteria: must be have wood soles and come from Sweden. I was planning on getting these, but I'm being drawn to these.
for building
Tree Blocks are supposedly for children, but I think they look perfect for small home sculptural installations. I kind of want to play with some.
Available here and here.
blanks
I need to order these today: blank nesting dolls (available here or here) and natural wooden doll bodies from Goose Grease. If I get really ambitious, maybe these.
Thanks to SwissMiss and Abbey for their unintentional reminders.
11.10.2008
beyond the forest
You see, it’s a real place, but it’s explained through this folkloric tale. Every folktale has a bit of truth within it, but there’s a lot of twisting of that truth through word of mouth, so the surface of the reality changes.
Claire Richardson, as told to Aaron Schuman.
I've been fixated on Claire Richardson's Beyond the Forest series. They were taken in central Romania, among villagers who claim to be descended from the children the Pied Piper led out of Hamelin.
Found through Conscientious (an essential daily read for me).
bare branches
Carrefour de l'Epine, Eugène Cuvelier. Early 1860s; salted paper print from paper negative; National Gallery of Art, Washington.
11.09.2008
11.08.2008
fun things last night
Cutting boards shaped like Ireland and Japan ...
Earrings by minno that look like water drops suspended ...
Photographs of Cleveland factories (sidenote: I think this would be sublime blown up to tremendous size) ...
A red-headed guy smiling at me across the room (this is not only a picture of a lady in an orange vest) ...
Pho with friends and relations.(All the goodies from here, naturally. I'll show you what came home with me later. And now, to bed!)
11.07.2008
true story
Finding this fortune in my cookie would make my week.
If you aren't staying in with a book tonight and tomorrow, there will be:
- birdsong @ the orchestra (the fact that I am going to miss this kills me)
- one-of-a-kind things for sale
- prix fixe menus
- new prints
- alluring suburbia
- movies about naughty bits and aliens
- teratoid territory to explore
Me, I'd be pretty attached to the book idea if I didn't have so many other things to do.
Happy weekend.
11.06.2008
imaginary outfit: shopping the 216
Made in the 216 should be a good time. I love seeing the inventive displays Danielle comes up with (she worked at Anthropologie for a good long while, so her skills are honed razor-sharp) and getting to meet all the remarkable people hiding in the city. Cleveland is a funny place - there is no one place to go or live to meet like-minded people. Instead, they hide like truffles in secret pockets throughout the region and if you want to find them, you have to do some work and dig them out. Every so often, there's an event or gathering that pulls a critical mass together, and jumbles them out of their usual circles. That's when I find myself looking around and feeling like, "But WHERE do they come from? Why do they hide?" Who knows. Maybe unbeknownst to me, I'm hidden. It's a lot of fun and a little exasperating.
Anyway, I'll be curious to see who turns up tomorrow evening. If I had my way, I'd be wearing this natty ensemble.
(Note to Rachel Comey - if ever you need a shoe guinea pig, I am here for you. I am very good at wearing shoes, especially yours.)
take note, clevelanders
Danielle is at it again - another Made in the 216 curated showcase at Room Service for the entrepreneurial creatives of Cleveland.
Can I wait? No.
Friday, November 7th
Saturday November 8th
Laura Kushnik (prints)
Little Korboose (design & illustration)
Matthew Burke (carpentry)
Océanne (jewelry)
red i (jewelry)
Studio Dog Face (custom pet portraits)
There will be prints, jewels, art, stationary, and a killer homegrown menswear line. Last time was boss, so I wouldn't miss it.
Details:
4 PM – 9 PM (free cocktails!)
Saturday November 8th
11 AM – 6 PM
Players:
Anni Nanni Purses
Judy Crighton (jewelry)Claire Teschel (mixed media)
Genau Custom DesignLaura Kushnik (prints)
Little Korboose (design & illustration)
Matthew Burke (carpentry)
Océanne (jewelry)
red i (jewelry)
Rose Marincil (photography)
Small Screen Designs (prints)Studio Dog Face (custom pet portraits)
heavy words lightly thrown
I'm captivated by the title of this book. It's a study of the history behind nursery rhymes.
in case you, too, need a rhyming dictionary
I'd choose this one. Having one could make everyday conversation so much more fun ...
11.05.2008
words from yesterday for tomorrow
We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.
Abraham Lincoln, First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1861.
***
So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it’s that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers – in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.
Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House – a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, “We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.” And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn – I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.
Barack Obama, November 5, 2008
Image: Three Flags, 1958. Jasper Johns (American, born 1930).
11.04.2008
imaginary outfit: election returns party
Tonight, I am going to be sitting solo in front of my television, anxiously keeping track of the electoral returns - I decided I was too keyed up to be in any sort of public place. But, if I was going to a party to watch the results roll in, I would channel Ally Sheedy circa St. Elmo's Fire and dress like an 1980s prepster/yupster. When I was about 11, I discovered that movie, and even though it was pretty terrible, I thought Ally Sheedy's clothes were the last word in inspirational. She made wearing pearls and button downs, boxy jackets and long skirts, ties, tall boots and toggle coats seem unspeakably awesome. So, for me it'd be a velvet blazer over a wooly turtleneck, gold knot earrings, a classic old-school Coach bag, Bass loafers, and pearls. Like my ambitious '80s counterparts, I'd drink lots of foreign beer and feel that I was ushering in a new era.
(I hope we are!)
voting in the cleve (early report)
My sister's report on voting this morning in the Cleve (I voted early):
Rachel: voting done
Sent at 7:46 AM on Tuesday
me: awesome.
did you have to wait at all?
Rachel: yeah a little and it was total fucking chaos in there
me: wow
a million people voting?
did you vote at Tremont?
Rachel: i did
there was a line down the block at 6:30
Rachel: and then the ballot feeder broke
and so we all had to wait around for someone to decide what to do
there were people sitting on the floor voting
because there wasn't enough booths
i am used to lake county touch screen voting
Sent at 8:04 AM on Tuesday
me: good grief
Rachel: i know
i hope my little vote counts
Sent at 8:06 AM on Tuesday
me: awesome.
did you have to wait at all?
Rachel: yeah a little and it was total fucking chaos in there
me: wow
a million people voting?
did you vote at Tremont?
Rachel: i did
there was a line down the block at 6:30
Rachel: and then the ballot feeder broke
and so we all had to wait around for someone to decide what to do
there were people sitting on the floor voting
because there wasn't enough booths
i am used to lake county touch screen voting
Sent at 8:04 AM on Tuesday
me: good grief
Rachel: i know
i hope my little vote counts
Sent at 8:06 AM on Tuesday
The fact that Rach saw problems so early in the day are turning me into a stressball. Cuyahoga County did not do well with the vote-counting thing in 2004, and they have been assuring us for weeks that it should be better, but this isn't a good sign.
11.03.2008
for hiding small things
Acorn-shaped leather coin purse from Paulette Rollo. Available at Rare Device.
berries
Nora and I have been walking new routes the past few days. I've been transfixed by all the beautifully colored fruits we've found.
nuts
Ever since I spotted them at this lovely spot, I have been smitten with Lil Fish Studio's felted acorns. They remind me of a rhyme my sister and I would chant when we were small, merrily tromping through leaves in what we liked to call our 'poking boots':
I'm a little acorn brown,
Lying on the cold, cold ground.
Everybody steps on me,
That is why I'm cracked, you see -
I'm a nut!
I only wish real acorns came in so many colors.
fall chromatic
From one of my walks last week. I loved how these colors go through the spectrum from red to green.
This is even more precise (and really lovely, too).
11.02.2008
11.01.2008
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