tiny art director

I am loving this blog...

would Anne still love her puffed sleeves?

I have extremely fond memories of characters like Caddie Woodlawn, Anne Shirley, Ramona Quimby, and Mary Lennox. Nice to know someone else does too, and even thought of what they might wear.

saved by science

I've been lazy lately - not posting, though I have TONS of things to post...to remedy:

"backstage" pictures from the American Museum of Natural Science

clearing away the clutter

it's been a tough couple of weeks lately - my father is having some health issues - needless to say, I'm concerned. Last night I channeled my energy towards clearing away some of the clutter that has accumulated in the living room, and, in the process, rediscovered my treasured Dreamtime Stories book - given me by the staff of Melbourne Theatre Company for the opening of Metamorphoses. What a tremendous gift! I have always loved the stories, and the paintings, by Ainslie Roberts, are swirling, fantastic pieces....

wordle

Wordle

music music music

We've been playing a lot with our iPod touches these last few days, now that T's a proud owner of a new iTouch... I like this site to listen to music when I'm home...

put down the butter knife.

It's a Sunday - we're running errands up in Skokie and Evanston, we stop for lunch at:

1) Steak 'n' Shake - not a place I frequent often, but I was happy to go, since my monthly cravings for red meat and grease have hit. I have to say, I was happily surprised by the family atmosphere, the diversity, and the good value of freshly cooked food (albeit steakburgers and fries) coupled with the "kid eats free with a purchase of $9). Not bad. Forks and knifes, waitstaff, families of all colors, teenagers, some guys who look like they have a band, all having post-church, pre-Super-Bowl meals together, in a clean, well-lit environment.

2) Speaking of families, there was a lovely family sitting behind us - grandmother, 2 mothers, 4 kids. The kids were so happy and so cute. Thank goodness T has a sense of humor about how emotional I am around this time. I saw one of the little girls running over to her grandmother, all smiles, and I melted. Literally. There were tears in my eyes.

3) To top off our 'nutritious meal' I had a hot fudge sundae. It was free. And the hot fudge was so good - I didn't really want the ice cream - just the fudge. Of course it was all at the bottom of the dish, and the soup spoon I was given didn't fit in that part of the dish. So I used the butter knife to get the fudge. It was completely shameless, but - I needed that chocolate.

Of course now my brain feels like a raisin, with all the sodium coursing in my veins, so I'm drinking liters of water and off to the gym to sweat out the salt.

Maira Kalman

I read Ms. Kalman's The Principles of Uncertainty, and truly enjoyed it. She writes/illustrates for the New York Times - you can see her inauguration series here.

crushing on the new president

he's signing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act with a smile :).
I was going to link to the Washington Post but I like the picture and the comments on Jezebel better.

President Obama's not sure about the decorative plates

and last, this comment said it best: 'Why does he make it so hard for me to respect him simply as a great political mind and promising new president? Why does he have to be so cool?'
President Obama talks to Beyonce' about learning new dance moves

aurora borealis

Long long ago, in a land called Tom Thumb Hobby and Craft, my Sam-Nash-given-nickname was Aurora Borealis. The name came from the fact that when we took inventory, or checked in an order, we had to print our initials on whatever we had just worked on - AB is me, and that's how the rainbow effect known as Aurora Borealis is written on bead finishes and the like. Here's something I look forward to watching later this weekend:

http://www.astronomynorth.com/Replay2008.html

I love this artwork - it's from last year's Marshall Bennett Classic invitation..

bird's nest

I'm really enjoying our new membership at the Siskel Film Center - it's such a treat, and we've seen things we never would have seen. This evening we saw Bird's Nest: Herzog & de Meuron in China, following the architects responsible for the amazing stadium used in the 2008 Summer Olympics. I have a little bit of a talent crush on the architects now! I definitely recommend this film.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/toomanytribbles/2403059797/

http://www.herzogdemeuron-film.com/en/home/

inauguration day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cew2UTW1mmI

my sentiments exactly!

a day in history

so much emotion and reflection today. Words are too many and insufficient to describe everything swirling around these days...

http://www.whitehouse.gov/

it doesn't show signs of stopping

There is a lot of snow out there on the streets and sidewalks of Chicago. Not the most ever, but definitely enough to be significantly messy and for my snow boots to have officially become too wet to wear. It's a good time to stay inside and attack the clutter of my home office, finish up a few knitting projects and maybe create some jewelry. That's my 2009 goal - to finally make some pieces to add to my etsy account, for sale. Now that I've seen what's out there - it's time to overcome my intimidation, and, let's be honest, my procrastination, and get things moving.