have a cool new year...

i was thinking the other day, how cool would it be to sit around and listen to records all day like we used to do when we were kids...

have a happy new year sweet ones!
bisous!!

also...

any idea which scene this is, in which film... i must admit i do love me christmas films and christmas music...

have fun these sweet days & have a quick look at the previous post, just wanted to take a moment to wish you all a lovely day...

bisous!

sweet christmas wishes...

i''m wishing you dear friends a sweet christmas. our paths have crossed this year... and for this gift i am thankful...

surely you must know...

when i lived in madrid i worked as an english teacher. i made very little money, just enough to pay the rent and utilities and have dinner and wine with friends, almost always. at the time, a glass of wine was about 2 euros and a nice dinner could be had for 10 euros. i lived like a queen... good wine and friends!

as i did not spend much then, i still don't, out of habit not stinginess. it's just that i learned that the sweet life does not have to cost much. well, yesterday, and in the spirit of american christmas commercialism i went on a little shopping spree. of the many goodies, i bought my very own copy of pride and prejudice. this way the librarian can stop looking at me crosseyed when she sees me checking it out... again! there is a line when elizabeth is overwhelmed by what darcy has done, and he looks at her in all hope and says... sure you must know! i am left breathless... i can't get enough of those words...

then i bought outliers by an author that is new to my book collection, malcolm gladwell...

the first time i saw this dude i found him incredibly interesting and funny looking. this past friday i saw him again on charlie rose and i think i am in love. if i were a guy i think i might want to be him. his job is to write about interesting (at least to me) stuff, formulate it simply, and then put out a bestseller. somehow it all seems so romantic, sitting and thinking and meeting with most interesting friends and having deeply interesting conversations over dinner and wine and then sharing it with those who might be interested. i love this idea and i think it says something very much about me... i'm soooo attracted to intelligence and romance...

have a happy christmas week! and i hope you get to indulge in all that pleases you... if you happen to pop in, share what that might look like... share your gifts and goodies...

nice weekend

thank you so much for your kind words of encouragement in connection to my previous post. i think we all have a special feeling about our blog relationships... i think it connects with the 'better angels of our nature.'

the order of the day...
do have a jazzy weekend!
and may it involve something, anything that's candy apple red...

creeping away

when people ask me about my family, i simply say that i don't see them very often, they're not very nice people. though to think of it, i think i remember that the adams family were nice people, though a little 'creepy and kooky...'

still it's all a bit creepy. of my family of five, 3 persons have birthdays this month, and all clustered together. i made my last phone call for the year last night to say my 'happy birthday wishes' and i should be free and good until after the new year.

i made up a story saying i would be away skiing for the holidays and i'll be back in touch after the new year. it's not true, and i use this space as my confession booth. how stinky is this situation.

when i wake up in the morning, i stay quiet and still for a moment thinking of what my responsibilities are for the new day. this morning i thought of my family and the pain i suffered beneath them and i was leaning towards being sad. but then i remembered, though they take the wind out of my sails for a minute and i get back up, they don't destroy me like they used to. not only do they not have this power any more, i've gotten stronger and wiser, thankfully. this makes me happy. and plus, sad but true, it frees me up to create for myself a life that brings me joy.

invent your world, surround

yourself with people, color

sounds, and work that

nourish you... sark

trippin' on today and tomorrow

what's on tap for this new week? all's a buzz this holiday season... i was going to share an image of a crystal ball, to have a look into the coming days, and i stumbled upon this crystal lounge... hmmm apparently it's in sweden. how dreamily trippy is this? i can totally see me siding up to the bar for a really fresh flute of champagne, a little coolness, as i imagine inside is warm and cozy while a bit chilly on the outside...

any who, it's a new week and i'm feeling quite content with the connections we've made as blog buddies, sharing our doings and our heart's concerns...

looking on into the near future...

1. meeting with my dear friend helen as i'll package my 'heart love' and send her off with my best wishes as she begins a new chapter in her life.

2. for some reason, i have no idea why, the vice-president of spain is speaking at my alma mater this week. i'm there just 'cause it tugs at my heart strings for my love of spain.

3. going to 'cafe philosohique' at the alliance francaise, where they philosophise about life and art in french. still trying to improve my french, it is a journey isn't it...

well, i imagine you must be bored by now. i didn't mean to bore you, but it's like you pop in to visit a friend and you want to hear all about what s/he has been up to and you want to share your little things too.

if you're inclined to share... to tell of a wee thing you're up to this week...

sending out christmas kisses...
photo by amundn

do you remember II

christmas time as always is an interesting time. i, we(?) get sentimental, thinking about persons and situations that we haven't thought about for what seems like a life time. memories... the other day i watched again the film 'when harry met sally.' it's so cool to have a look again at new york in the eighties. it was a lovely walk down memory lane.

i like almost everything about the film, but what seems to stand out most for me is remembering how at the end of the day i would curl up in bed and talk for a while with my best friend. it was sheer pleasure and such a cosy way to end the day before drifting off to sleep.

today in our fast paced existence, there simply seems to be little time for visiting... i've a friend who gets it. i rang him up and got his voice mail. he rang back, but this time i was in the middle of macy's with christmas carols playing softly over head. there, i layed down the slacks i was planning to try on, and stood there and talked to him. it was nice to be mindful of the moment...

and i confess that i'm feeling a bit sentimental, as i always do during christmas season. and it's a sweet thing to get messages and phone calls from persons we haven't heard from for quite some time these days. it really shows who is thinking of you during this sentimental time.

in my last post i mentioned how when we were wee ones, the panic, nervousness and exitement that came over us when boy meets girl. well i got to thinking about my first crush in grammer school. it was 'james powell,' and i thought he was the cutest. these were the days when the girls were in one line and the boys in another. well, i would look to see where james powell was in line, count, and then place me self next to him in the girls' line so that i could hold his hand.

well i ran into james as an adult one day before entering the metro...

there he was after all these years. when our eyes met i said 'you might not remember me...' he said 'i remember you very well, you still look the same.' as did he, only older of course and incredibly handsome. the cute boy had grown into a handsome man. we exchanged memories before i ran off in nervousness...

have yourself...
let your heart be light...
have a memorable weekend...

do you remember

s. is 10. on weekends i tutor him and his brother in english, at 10 and 11 the two boys are just about fluent in 3 languages... meeting on weekends for nearly a year now, it surprises me how my heart falls for these boys who were strangers not so long ago. sometimes they say things, apart from our english lessons, that venture into the real life of everyday boys. and very often they leave me at a loss for words. this past weekend s. got a phone call from a sweet little girl. he recoiled in horror. not only did he not want to take the call, he mentioned something like, girls are stupid. i've known him long enough to know that he was in a bit of a panic, as he did not know what to do upon receiving a phone call for the first time from a girl. i suppose it takes time to learn to navigate these waters. i shared some positive words on behalf of my girl sisters and he looked at me in wonder. i can only smile in thinking that, in just a few short years he'll be waiting eagerly for some sweet girl to give him a ring...

ahhh life... when boy meets girl...

hello

last night upon leaving the cinema i walked into a little sweet snowfall. what a nice surprise. i walked along 5th avenue with the wee little flakes dancing in my hair. the holiday festivities are slowly getting under way here in the city. it always amazes me how new york does christmas. it really is a wonderland...

i've had some trouble with my internet service, so i'm not in touch as much as i would like to be. i miss popping in on you and seeing what you are up to more often. but i trust these issues will be resolved, and i'll be back to visiting regularly. i do enjoy sharing in your endeavors...

meantime dear lovelies, i do hope that you are well and enjoying these days...

looking forward to things is half the pleasure of them. ~lucy mand montgomery

i send you warm hugs wrapped in love and cheer...

breath on glass

paint should not be applied thick. it should be like breath on the surface of a plane of glass. ~james mcneill whistler.

pardon my ignorance. it's amazing to me how i can discover something and someone so famous. what i mean to say, many times i stumble upon a thing that impresses me that i've never known before. in my amazement, when i share it with another i so often find that i'm one of the last to know. while browsing/reading an interior design magazine i came across a nicely written article on the works and attitude of the painter whistler. i thought how sweet and delicate are his works. never heard of him. when i mentioned him to m., he says 'you haven't heard of him?' m. is always gentle in enlightening me. many years ago i picked up a collection of stories by dostoevsky. i'd never heard of him. i borrowed it, read and loved the stories with a heavy heart. when i returned the book, in all confidence i said 'you know, this dostoevsky guy is pretty good.' m. says gently again, 'that is incredibly generous of you, considering he is thought to be one of, if not the greatest writer ever.' i looked on quietly, not embarrassed by not knowing, but delighted in the idea that i was quite moved by one of the great ones. what would i do or think if i thought it was crap:)

i always know that my education in the arts and literature are 'lacking,' but i do so love learning and discovering. the above painting is by whistler... one of my new 'discoveries.' hope you like it...