last hurrah

i was privileged this morning to be able to have coffee with a dear friend, then receive a private tour of the recently installed "Saints Alive" by Michael Landy at the National Gallery. (Landy is perhaps best known for his piece Break Down where he famously documented - and subsequently publicly destroyed - all of his possessions: from his car to his birth certificate. some 7000+ items in total.) he speaks of being influenced by Tinguely and the notion that works of art can elicit laughter, and self-destruct. he was included in the 1997 sensation show at the RA that i visited - though i must admit i don't remember his piece (others were much more "sensation"al). anyway, this show is great. my friend - and organizer of this installation - talked about his desire to bring a younger audience into the national gallery. to show them that there is inspiration to be drawn from the collection. new interpretations. new excitement. it really is quite brilliant. saints meet steampunk so to speak. if you are in London go! (sadly again, no cameras allowed. but i'd suggested looking for it on youtube if you are interested!)

i wandered up to St. James's Square and enjoyed the tulips before being treated to a working lunch at The Wolseley. picadilly posh. and learned that we were seated at Lucian Freud's table. (a great painter-hero of mine.)

after that i tramped regent street (uniqlo, and superdry for the girlies, and of course liberty for me!) before heading back to hammersmith for a nap before dinner. sushi say.

all in all a pretty fabulous final day.

and did i mention that by mid-morning the sun was shining?

it has been a great week. oh how i do love london.

V&A

yesterday was work (the best kind of work mind you) with visits to the jewish museum and the british museum. (the shows at both venues look wonderful.)

today i'd set aside for play. on my first visit to London in 1991 i spent much time at the Victoria & Albert Museum (deemed "the world's greatest museum of art and design"). i fell hard. i'd decided i wanted to work in a museum, and this was it. strangely, i haven't been back since then. (the national gallery, and national portrait gallery, and the royal academy are my regular London stops - and I'll be visiting them tomorrow.) today was for the V&A (and a pop down to Harrod's for some souvenirs to take home).

maybe its the grey, but i haven't been taking too many pictures this trip. and those i am taking are mostly on instagram.












aside from the permanent collection which is just as great as i remember (e would flip over the fashion/costumes on view), they had a really great david bowie show. completely theatrical and over-the-top, as it should be.

scheming how to get us all here. soon.

chichester

by train


countryside




pallant house


rbk's the ohio gang (collection museum of modern art)


medieval market cross


chichester cathedral


vaulted ceiling*


chagall window

*the first time i really spent in england was in 1992 during a summer of studying art history at the university of cambridge. game-changer. i haven't looked at cathedral architecture (esp. gothic) the same since. and my love affair with england began.

mind the gap

took an overnight to london yesterday. navigating has become comfortable. i like that. {wishing my peeps were with me.} i can imagine living here.

mainly working in the city this week - but off to chichester tomorrow on pilgrimage to this (and to visit the cathedral as well).

looking forward to a good night's sleep.

summerland

we expected the day to be overcast and chilly. it fooled us.

i miss these peeps. xo

in deep

it is that time of the year where the weeks are just flying and the calendar is packed with endings. last violin recital; last pta meeting; last...



last week i took a stand-up paddle board lesson. i have been dreaming of an SUP for a long time now, with visions of me paddling around the island with girls in tow. the lesson cemented the dream. it was even better than i expected. amazingly peaceful (even on a day of choppy seas that took us much further out from shore than i anticipated). dolphins. sunshine. salty air. and a great workout too. i spent just over 2 hours paddling back and forth along the santa monica shore. i stood up. i fell down. i stood up again. it was a great morning.

next time the girls will be joining me. i was just talking to friend about kids and self-esteem. i think especially for girls (or maybe just because that is what i know best) it is so important to think about. and i truly believe that modeling behaviour and providing strong role models is the best way to go. strong and smart.

the next two weeks are chock full. i'm away for 1/2 of it to take in an opening at the british museum and visits to exhibitions at the jewish museum, and over to chichester and pallant house. while it is always a pull for me to be away, i am excited. i am looking forward to walking the streets of a favorite city and staying in one of my favorite homes.

before that we will be meeting up with dear friends we do not see often enough. and after that... the last day of school is circled boldly on the calendar. we are all looking forward to summer: birthday celebrations, horse camp a visit from gram and escaping to our refuge.

::

instead of going on a planned mother's day hike we planted ourselves by the pool to sit out the triple digit temps. (sigh. spring, where have you gone?)

i had breakfast in bed saturday, as k spent that night at her first (successful) sleepover with her BFF. (these two crack me up. they are so alike. they even look alike. feeling very blessed for this friendship.)

the heat has me cranky. and tired. there is a pile of projects i want to put to bed before i leave at the end of the month. we will see. 80s in the forecast keep me hopeful.

a hill of beans

we had fresh garbanzo beans in our csa box last week. it was first. and a surprise.

somewhere between a pea, and edamame. we ate them raw. they tasted like spring.

they'd be great in a salad. and i imagine good steamed in their pods too.

any favourite recipes using fresh garbanzos?

...

our screen-free week was pretty successful. it is always a good exercise - and i am always impressed how easy it is for the girls. (and i look forward to a relatively screen-free summer just around the corner!) i'll admit, it was hardest for me. with the spring fire developing at the end of the week i found myself drawn in to following its path. as it neared friends and favourite spots i couldn't look away.

i am relieved to hear it wasn't started by arson. nor was there any loss of life or homes. but i can't help but wonder what this landscape we know so well now looks like. the fire tore through one of our favorite camping spots. by fate, this year, we have booked our annual adventure to a nearby campground that went untouched by the fire. but we will be visiting "old sycamore" as soon as we can...


2009


2010


2011


2012

12 hikes :: april :: Pierce College

popping back in to report on our hike... which almost escaped us once again!

a little bit of a cheat (maybe?) on this one. we hiked over to Pierce College today for their Annual Farm Walk. we are so lucky to have this campus nearby, with its great recreational facilities, its agricultural center, and its abundant wide-open spaces. while the space has been reduced in recent years, it still is a prize to have within walking distance of our home.






Pierce College
6201 Winnetka Ave
Los Angeles, 91356
Neighborhood: Woodland Hills

Proximity: 0 miles (we started from our front door!)
Hike length: 3 1/2 miles : from our front door to the gate to the Ag center is about 1 1/3 miles plus hiking around the Ag center...and home again!
Bonus features: chickens, and cows, and goats! oh my! (plus sheep shearing, horse shows, live music, and much more)
Tips: It is always hot for Farm Walk (bring water!). The rest of the year you can't explore the farm as much, but there are great trails through the campus - all pretty easy.

* * * * *
reviews to follow... must beat mayday!

awesome-sauce

I need to write these things down...

K has declared that when she grows up she will be a mom with 3 kids and live on a ranch in California where she will train horses and care for sheep, goats, chickens and love birds. And she will own a 1000 inch plasma tv and eat in her own pizzeria.

E is still set on living in Paris.

I love 8 and 11. And am looking forward to 9 and 12 just around the corner.

They crowned D "Mr. Awesome-sauce". (And me "Mrs. Awesome-sauce" by default.)

On paper we have been married 14 years. It makes me very happy to type that.

K smuggled our new vintage typewriter (Hermes Rocket) to school in her backpack.



I've taken on a small contract with a great non-profit.

I'm so excited to be heading to England next month to see this, this, and this.

We found the sweetest little love bird who left us as quickly as she came.

I'm a World Book Night giver once again.

We are running another 5K this weekend.

Then heading to Farm Walk.

For the first time in 7 years I have not taken a position on a PTA board.

Balance is coming.

We are working on eating two vegetarian meals / week.

That black chicken keeps hiding her eggs around the yard. Everyone loves to hunt for them.

The daughter of an elderly neighbor we help quite a bit sent us the most beautiful thank you gifts.



I love my neighborhood public school.

The days are long but the years are short. Actually the days are even feeling short lately.

We are planning the summer. And it is awesome-sauce as well.

Next week is "Screen Free Week". I'm starting early.

See you in May!

zoom went the week

that's all folks...

::

it feels like the home stretch. and the calendar reflects it...



savoring the moments i can. lots of cut flowers. (from the garden and elsewhere.)



dreaming of an island summer...

spring planting

These are D's instructions on how to fold paper pots (circa 2009). We use them to start seedlings for our garden, and are busy folding them today.



We are a little late with planting this year - but I think we will make it. I've spent the last couple of weekends contemplating how to keep the chickens out of the raised beds. We have just run chicken wire around in the past - but it was looking a little shabby so I wanted to go with wattle - but would have to purchase the supplies. (Or wait for my friend John's tree to grow up again!) While D was thinning and trying to propagate our bamboo last weekend, he suggested I try a wattle-fashioned fence out of it. Here is what we have right now. I'm not exactly sure about it. But it was easy. And it was free. So we will see how it holds up.



We've got tomatoes, zucchini, persian cucumbers in, and lettuce, basil, cilantro onions seeded. Also trying a go at luffa this year. We will start peppers, eggplant today. Peas and Beans to come... The girls also seeded their cut-flower garden last weekend. The chooks had a go at it, so time will tell.

Happy Spring.

we have filled the last few days to the brim with neighborhood fun. the weather has been glorious.

this spring break felt just long enough and i think we are all ready for the final stretch of school before the summer arrives.

there was lots of hanging with friends up and down the street...





there was some serious springtime crafting...




egg carton wreath

and of course the requisite egg dying


onion skin


beets & red cabbage

we were supposed to head north for the easter weekend. i was very much looking forward to visiting dear friends in berkeley but alas, d wasn't feeling up to snuff and we had to postpone our visit. soon. soon...

and while our plans have changed, we look forward to familiar traditions and a celebration of spring...

happy easter.

12 hikes :: march :: caballero canyon

this one was a two-fer for march...

i did the 4 mile loop with my friend earlier in the month (great workout) - and returned with the family for a quick saturday morning hike (only 1 mile) just up the trail along the fireroad and up along mulholland drive.


view of the longer loop from reseda




Caballero Canyon (Topanga State Park)
top of Reseda Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 91356
Neighborhood: Tarzana

Proximity: 5 miles from our home
Hike length: various trails : i love the 4.2 mile loop for a workout and the shorter trails with the kids
Bonus features: beautiful chaparral with seemingly old manzanitas and wildflowers in the spring. great views of the ocean and valley. shorter trails dog friendly (on leash). lizards, rattlesnakes and coyotes have been spotted.
Tips: we parked for free on Reseda. (there is a propensity for car break-ins on this very popular hiking spot so windows up and doors locked.) bring lots of water. the longer hike takes almost 2 hours and the the shorter allow for at least 45 minutes.

* * * * *

E: I'd say 7 out of 10. It was a really good hike. I didn't really want to go at first. I felt lazy today. But it was pretty on the path we went on so I'm glad we went.

K: 7 too. This hike was more fun than I thought. I thought it would be very boring but it was better than I expected.

D: it had the potential of being a 10, but its a hot hill you want to start early in the morning. with what we actually did, it was good for a leg stretch.

happy spring (break)

and a new foal at the ranch... hello spring!



so ready for the week ahead with my girlies. xo