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Tuesday, March 31, 2015

day 3

DC - day 3
national 9/11 pentagon memorial

DC - day 3
franklin d. roosevelt memorial

DC - day 3
mlk jr. national memorial

DC - random
holocaust memorial museum

DC - day 3
DC - day 3
hirshhorn museum & sculpture garden

DC - random
national museum of american history

dc
dobbin house (gettysburg, pa)

Monday, March 30, 2015

day 2

DC - day 2
DC - day 2
DC - day 2
capitol building

DC - day 2
library of congress

DC - day 2
DC - day 2
arlington national cemetery

iwo jima memorial

spy museum

Sunday, March 29, 2015

making history... day 1

E and I are in Washington D.C. for the first of 5 days on the east coast, exploring U.S. history with 26 of her classmates & 3 additional parent chaperones. we took the red-eye last night, and are prepared to be exhausted by the end!

here we go...

DC day 1
DC day 1
mt. vernon

DC - random
DC day 1
newseum

DC day 1
national air & space museum

washington memorial

DC day 1
jefferson memorial

DC day 1
white house

korean memorial

DC day 1
vietnam memorial

DC trip - day 1
lincoln memorial

Saturday, March 28, 2015

weekend to do

...

off to D.C. & Philadelphia! i'll try and check in - if these 8th graders don't tire me out too much! xo

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

back & forth

shoe banks

back to our routine just in time to gear up for another departure. as I mentioned, E and I are heading to D.C. for five days of history, including visits to gettysburg and philadelphia. we are both very excited.

not growing up on this side of the 49th parallel, i admit i know very little u.s. history (aside from our role as a safe haven for slaves - canada abolished slavery in 1833 - and confederates during the civil war - after losing at gettysburg, general george pickett fled to canada.) both girls have been studying u.s. history this year, so i feel i have a basic understanding, and look forward to learning more. to feeling the history around me.

amsterdam felt so full of history. and reminded me of stories from my childhood. these shoes - one from my recent trip, and the other sent to my mom by her uncle, who was stationed in the "Nederlands". i've always been fascinated by my mom's shoe bank - and the story it represented. i couldn't resist picking up another.

Friday, March 20, 2015

weekend to do

...

open house at the ranch
catch-up

around the house
see where things are at after a week away!
pack for D.C.! (E and 27 of her classmates, another mom and myself head there next Saturday. go go go!)






waiting in the airport for my flight - now to Paris, though just for a moment - and then on to L.A. (Lufthansa pilots are on strike, and my original path has been rerouted to KLM and Air France.) looking forward to getting home. must add it has been a wonderful week. i do love amsterdam. the people (so warm). the city (such a lovely size). and the exhibition looks to be very well received. now to work on additional venues...

Thursday, March 19, 2015

Amsterdam : Day 3

Amsterdam : Day3
homes near the portuguese synagogue

Amsterdam : Day3
joods historisch museum

Amsterdam : Day3

Amsterdam : Day3

Amsterdam : Day3

Amsterdam : Day3
evening walk

a very successful day. wonderful opening events. coverage in two major newspapers. they have done such a lovely job with this exhibition. so thoughtful. you could feel rbk's presence.

tomorrow home.

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Amsterdam : Day 2

or "I Could Photograph Canals All Day"


Amsterdam Day 2

Amsterdam Day 2

Amsterdam Day 2

Amsterdam Day 2
flower market

Amsterdam Day 2
Anne Frank House (third building from the left is the original house - the museum now includes the adjoining three buildings on the right)

Amsterdam Day 2
Van Gogh Museum

Amsterdam Day 2
garden at the Rijksmuseum

Amsterdam Day 2
Gallery of Honor (The Night Watch) at the Rijksmuseum

Amsterdam Day 2

I was thinking, I should do little guides. tours of cities I love in under 48 hours. perhaps they already exist. while my ideal trip has more time, and my family with me, I feel like I've mastered the art of the "cultural business trip" (with good food included!). this one has not disappointed.

tomorrow will be full of celebration for the exhibition. must get some sleep!

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

hallo!

i arrived in Amsterdam this afternoon for a quick trip around the opening of the exhibition R.B. Kitaj: Unpacking My Library at the Joods Historisch Museum.

spring is in the air - and Amsterdam seems to be promising me a lovely few days.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam

Amsterdam

everyone was out on the cafe patios enjoying the late afternoon. (including me.)

followed by wonderful traditional dutch indonesian meal - Rijsttafel - at tempo doeloe

and a walk back to the hotel along the canals




Saturday, March 14, 2015

weekend to do

...


school garden workday (oh weeding!)

final prep for travel & all the bits and pieces to get in line here before I leave!
(I had a bunch of questions to ask you - shoes to take, battery case for my phone... but alas, time is tight. so off I go.)



you can follow me in Amsterdam here, and more on why I'm there, on the R.B. Kitaj Studio Project instagram

Monday, March 09, 2015

unified.

KiDSMARATHON

KiDSMARATHON

KiDSMARATHON

KiDSMARATHON


yesterday K participated in the Rod Dixon KiDMARATHON at Dodger Stadium. This is the kick-off event for the L.A. Marathon, as well as the culmination of 3 weeks of preparation by the marathon team at her school. the team is coached by our after-school "Youth Services" leader. this *free* program is available to all LAUSD elementary and middle school students. the ratio is a little daunting at times - one coach watching over 100 or so students - but I am constantly and consistently impressed with this program. K doesn't usually stay after school (another perk of working from home) but did in order to be a member of the marathon team. the team had to run 25 miles over the last few weeks, and then completed their marathon (1.2 miles) at Dodger Stadium early Sunday morning. (ouch! time change pain!)

i have been working / volunteering in our large, cumbersome, impersonal school district for over 10 years now. and as large, cumbersome and impersonal as it is, events like this remind me of why we are here. The Los Angeles Unified School District is Los Angeles. with I'd guess around 12,000 kids participating in this event (250 elementary schools represented) you felt like you were in the midst of something very special. these kids are our future L.A. and they are awesome. so proud of my girl. so proud of these kids. so proud of our school. so proud to be part of this District.

and props too, to their parents. who perhaps can't show up to every school activity during the week due to work schedules (with often more than one job). (there's been lots of buzz re: apathetic parents lately. lack of parent engagement. engagement does not = writing cheques!) they were there. they got up early and brought their kids and cheered them on at the top of their lungs. the love for neighborhood schools was palatable.

Los Angeles UNIFIED.




i'll add for posterity, k tied for 2nd out of the girls running in her group. she is a natural. those long legs. best part is that she ran with a friend the entire way. they crossed the finish line together - high-fived, then giant hug. love.

Saturday, March 07, 2015

weekend to do

...

I'll be joining this painting in Amsterdam in a week! my schedule is pretty full with events (I'm representing the RBK Estate in conjunction with the opening of this show) & meeting up with an old friend - but wonder if you have any hidden "musts" i should get on my itinerary. (it has been nearly 20 years since I was last there.)

prepare to pack for cooler weather

around the house
weed (always weeding)
living room window wash
hang pictures
mop shed