Whenever I moved to a new place one of my first priorities was to get a library card and find a good place to swim. While it has been a long time since I moved here, as I got ready to leave the house this morning with planned stops at the Y and the library I was feeling especially thankful for these institutions.
The Lilly Library in Florence.
The Hampshire Regional YMCA.
This bookcase, a piece of mission furniture we inherited from my husband’s family, is home to my decorating books and to a portion of my musical instrument and carved gourd collections.
Almost all of the decorating books are remainder purchases but the first one I ever bought was not. The Apartment Book, on the middle shelf, was published by Apartment Life magazine – practically my bible in the early days of my married life. It was the first magazine I had to live through the demise of – a very sad day!
Ever since we moved to our condo over 15 years ago I have been trying to figure out how to store our colander. In our old kitchen everything hung on lattices we had constructed out of dowels, but our tiny new kitchen had cabinets and no wall space. Everything else found a space but not the colander. I knew I wanted it to hang but it wasn’t until I saw pictures on Pinterest of measuring cups and spoons hanging on the inside of cupboard doors that I had my solution.
Red Volkswagens is what I call the phenomena that happens when you become aware of something and then all of a sudden you see it everywhere – a car, a word, pregnant women … I don’t even remember who had a red Volkswagen now! Today it was chickens – well not quite chickens. I have been “liking” chickens and roosters on Pinterest for awhile and recently my sister shared some other interesting looking fowl so today was the day I started a new board – “Feathered Fowl”. And then this afternoon I looked out my bedroom window and saw 15 wild turkeys! I ran downstairs to get my phone to take a picture. I only caught a few of them, a lot of them were in the woods, so the picture doesn’t really do them justice.
The Smith College Museum of Art has an exhibit this summer called Summer of Love, Psychedelic Posters from SCMA. This exhibit features posters from California and while the style may have originated there, posters from NYC venues at the time were very similar. I no longer remember anything about the one I had except the overall feel and the colors -green and orange. This Peacock image advertises a show by the Byrds at the Fillmore. It is similar, I think, in layout and lettering to the one I had and is one of my favorite in the show.
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Since it has been so long since I’ve seen them live, I almost forgot that The Hot Club of Cowtown is not my only favorite band. For many years that distinction went to Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers and since I got a chance to see them again at the Riverfront Blues Festival in Wilmington, Delaware I have vowed never to forget them again. During their set Rob and Honey played with their current band, their classic band and then with both bands together! As always they put on an incredible show.
If I thought there were a lot of Monet’s at the Philadelphia Museum of Art it was only because I hadn’t been to the Barnes Foundation yet. It had stopped raining on the second day I was in Philadelphia so I walked to the Barnes Foundation. Albert Barnes collected so many paintings in his lifetime it was not only hard to believe he had collected so many, it was hard to believe that the artists were able to paint so many paintings in their lifetimes!
What was really interesting though was the way the paintings were displayed. From the brochure: “Wanting to show the universality of the creative impulse and the expressive means used by artists, as well as the continuity between modern art and the art of the past, Barnes combined paintings, metalwork, sculpture, and decorative arts of different periods, cultures, styles and genres in ensembles, symmetrical wall arrangements”.
Viewing Barne’s ensembles reminded me more of my mermaid bathroom than of my visit to the Philadelphia Museum of Art the day before. Barnes continually rearranged his art. The bag from the gift store reproduces a sketch of a proposed arrangement from 1927. While I am not arranging Renoirs, I’ve had fun incorporating my latest purchases into my ensembles. Today we added a tin La Sirena lotteria card to the bathroom closet door ensemble.
I wasn’t expecting to see a lot of mermaids at the Philadelphia Museum of Art but in addition to an amazing collection of Impressionists (I don’t think I’ve seen as many Monet’s in one place before), there were a few mermaids and mermen on display. I spied these tiles first on the way to the bathroom.
I really know nothing of Edvard Munch’s work except the ubiquitous “Scream” but enjoyed this commissioned mermaid. It was designed to fit in a particular place in a home and depicts a mermaid “transforming” according to the posted info.
And this split tail mermaid (like the Starbucks logo) is riding a dolphin in one of the galleries.
The museum also boasts the Rocky steps and even though it was pouring, men ran up them while their companions took photos.
Last weekend we headed to the Pennsylvania Blues Festival. We have attended at least one day of this festival for the last 21 years. The festival, formerly The Poconos Blues Festival, lost its home at a ski resort a few years ago and relocated to another ski resort. I had loved how the former site used the slopes as seating – creating a natural theater and was disappointed that the new site did not but I am beginning to like the new site since they were able to accommodate the rain by moving shows indoors this year. As always the music was incredible!
The always wonderful (and sexy) Johnny Rawls inside because of the rain.
Sista Monica sang her heart out!
Robert Randolph and the Family Band – a great closer on Saturday night.
Watermelon Wednesdays is a concert series that takes place in a chapel in West Whatley every summer. Described as “The Best in Acoustic Music” it has featured some amazing musicians over the year. Last night my favorite band, The Hot Club of Cowtown, returned and showed everyone in attendance why they are my favorite band – talented, charming, and amazingly energetic, they always deliver!
