and this is how a city is born –
urban planning at its finest.
—
“a city is more than a place in space, it is a drama in time”
-patrick gedde
Jan17
Jan16
glitt-her.
(yet another underpaid re-enactor)
when at the salon recently
my stylist was combing out my hair and asked:
“why do you have glitter in your hair?”
now, there are many possible scenarios
some more accepted than others
but i suppose in my case
it most likely has to do with
my being
a kindy teacher
a creator of mixed-media collage art
and
a fan of glitter
and i see
that a pattern
has begun to emerge
when family and friends and colleagues
and even my cat
quite often have glitter on them
after spending time with me
and my grandson mentions
that he always finds glitter stuck to him
after we’ve been hanging out together
and people sometimes
brush glitter off of their legs
after getting out of my car
but
some people leave footprints
and
some people leave glitter
and that’s how you know
they’ve been there.
—
“when you’re around me, you’re going to get glitter on you.”
-kesha
—
photo credits: fx hair studio, all things hair
Jan15
in honor of martin luther king – dreamer and idealist.
Jan14
he did it!
mark slats arrives on the other side of the pond
The arrival of #IRONMARK #TWAC2017 #MadebytheSea #3000milesToday The Gentle Giant set foot on the island of Antiqua and set a new World Record #Solo over the Atlantic in 30 days 7 hours and 49 minutes that is 19 days earlier then the previous #official World Record #Love #Like #Share #Row4cancer #Donatehttp://www.markslats.nl/row4cancer
breaking the world record
rowing 20 hours per day
for 30 days and a few hours
and raising money for cancer research
here’s to you, mark-
—
“man is a universe within himself.”
-bob marley
Jan14
laugh.
met up with my bookclub
for a late holiday brunch
in one of my favorite places
with
some of my favorite people
lots of bad gifts
beautiful food
morning drinks
strong coffee
live jazz
a pinata
and
a full morning of laughter.
a couple of people even read the book.
“laughter is an instant vacation.”
-milton berle
Jan13
open.
Jan12
row your boat.
mark at home on the water in his boat
i connected to this adventurer, mark slats,
through an old friend in the netherlands.
read below to see what he is currently undertaking.
i am amazed every day.
Mark Slats is hugged by his mother Maria in Ramsgate, UK last May.
He was about to row to The Netherlands here, never rowed before in a boat like this.
Now Mark is leading the field in the Talisker whisky atlantic challenge with Row4Cancer
with just two teams of 4 rowers ahead of him.
This is a 3.000 mile journey from Europe to America.
Mark’s mom has cancer and this gentle giant is raising money
for cancer and for the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Cancer hospital.
(http://www.markslats.nl/row4cancer/ )
UPDATE: (early January) Mark Slats is rowing solo across the Atlantic Ocean for 28 days now and with this blistering pace he’s on schedule to break the World Record with a stunning two weeks!! Mark is competing in the solo class, but he’s ahead of the leaders in the double and trio classes as well. Currently, the Gentle Giant is on the 4th place overall with only fours around him. Be prepared for his arrival, which is expected on January 14th!
—
UPDATE (January 8th)
World’s most bizarre rowing competition is approaching denouement:
Does Dutchman Mark Slats crush the world record ocean rowing?
Mark Slats participates in the Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge , the toughest rowing event in the world, to raise money for the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Foundation.
The route runs from Europe (the Canary Islands) to America (Antigua). He is rowing solo and nonstop.
Until last year, this carpenter from Wassenaar had never rowed. Mark is rowing for his mother who is seriously ill and all those other people who fight cancer every day.
Despite the hardships of the race, Mark remains positive, he enjoys the ocean and feels good. His physical and mental strength are extreme. Blisters, abrasions and contusions do not bother him, he is determined to crush the record. He rows around 100 miles a day and the expected finish date is currently being tested on January 14th.
After his three previous world voyages as a sailor, the sea has few secrets for Mark, yet every day is new on the ocean. Mark talks about birds, flying fish and dolphins around the boat, even a collision with a whale. He can not heat the freeze-dried food because his gas bottle has been thrown overboard. Cold is not tasty so it is a task to get enough calories. He no longer has a feeling in his fingers but jokes that he no longer feels the blisters on those fingers.
Mark has to finish his boat before January 18 13.03 to break the record of 35 days and 33 minutes. Then he has to walk an average of 2.6 knots, he has rowed an average of 3.4 knots from the start and now has 581 miles to go to the finish. He is in the lead in the Solo class from the start and 4th in the overall rankings. Still, the race has not yet run, a technical defect or sudden whirlwind can still be decisive, it remains exciting until the finish.
More about Mark and the race:
https://www.facebook.com/markslatsavontuur?pnref=story
More about the charity:
https://actie.avlfoundation.nl/row4cancer?nieuw=0
—
“and so in time the rowboat and i became one and the same-like the archer and his bow or the artist and his paint. what i learned wasn’t mastery over the elements; it was mastery over myself, which is what conquest is ultimately all about.” ― Richard Bode, First You Have to Row a Little Boat: Reflections on Life & Living
—
credits: michel porro, magic marine, talisker whiskey atlantic challenge, mark slats
Jan11
eat like a genius.
The Grocery List Sketched by Michelangelo
You can’t sculpt like Michelangelo, but you can eat like him.
In March 1518, Michelangelo feasted on fish and bread.
ACCORDING TO MICHELANGELO’S SHOPPING LIST, genius thrives on a diet of fish, bread, and lots of wine.
Owned by the Casa Buonarroti museum in Florence, Italy, this 500-year-old list was written and illustrated by the sculptor/painter/poet/personality on the back of a letter. Michelangelo’s servant was likely illiterate, so Michelangelo sketched out what he wanted to eat.
And Michelangelo wanted a feast, spread out over three meals. He depicted bread rolls as quickly-drawn circles, and for one meal, Michelangelo wanted two rolls. For another, he wanted six. On the page, an elegant herring floats in the air, while bowls overflow with salad and anchovies. Two dishes of stewed fennel are sketched side by side, and when asking for a smaller amount of dry wine, Michelangelo carefully drew a small wine jug next to a larger one. Sadly, he did not draw two plates of tortelli—he only asked for the ravioli-like pasta pouches in writing.
The menu consists mostly of vegetables, fish, wine, and bread. This might seem particularly healthy, but the letter on the other side of the list is dated March 18, 1518, around the time of Lent. Since eating meat was frowned upon, Michelangelo ate the requisite vegetables. However, Gillian Riley writes in The Oxford Guide to Italian Food that this was definitely an upscale menu. Despite his frugal reputation, the artist was probably used to dining with nobility.
By 1518, Michelangelo had already finished many of his most famous works, including the Pietà, the David, and the Sistine Chapel ceiling. But among all his work, this rough list is perhaps the most down-to-earth glimpse of the artist himself. It’s interesting to imagine the famously mercurial Michelangelo taking the time to illustrate for his servant what he wanted for dinner.
The survival of this list is remarkable, too. Only around 600 of Michelangelo’s sketches still exist. 1518 marked the year that Michelangelo burned many of his early drawings, and 46 years later, he ordered many of his papers to be torched in anticipation of his death. Maybe he wanted to preserve the aura of divine genius that surrounded his art. A list showing his sketched takeout order might not have given the right impression.
—
“all writing is an act of self-exploration.
even a grocery list says something about you;
how much more does a novel say?”
-steven saylor
—
credits: atlas obscura/gastro obscura, anne ewebank,Casa Buonarroti- Florence, Italy
Jan10
making my mark.
first time playing in the snow with my kinders
after our return to the playground.
—
“i rolled up my sleeves and said, ‘i want to make a mark on this world.’
-bebe rexha
Jan9
relate.
-mem fox
—
first day back at school relating.
