I cut my own hair, and sometimes it comes out great and sometimes not so much. As I tell friends, there is usually one day between trims when it looks just right. Today is the day, and par for the course, I’ve got nowhere to go! It’s a gray cold day in SoCal (the humidity improves my do) and the only thing on my calendar is getting a leaky tire checked. Doubtful the Firestone team notices old lady hair!!
Today is big on the calendar not for good hair, but for a hairy anniversary: 30 years since the 1994 Northridge earthquake!! We were shaken awake on that fateful night, with our recently-added second story swaying and things crashing throughout the house. First reaction was to grab our young daughters and gather downstairs, but we couldn’t find the 9-year-old big sister in her room! Her bookcase was overturned and fear clutched us until we remembered she was sleeping over at a friend’s!! Telephones weren’t working so we jumped in the car and drove the four miles in pitch dark with no street lights or traffic signals. We passed several police cars cruising slowly, checking the freeway underpasses, an eery sight. The sleep-over kids were excited and scared, and we brought our girl home to a structurally intact but topsy-turvy house. We lived on a north-south street – Coldwater Canyon – and when the waves of force hit the mountains and bounced back, most houses’ chimneys broke and everything we owned was thrown to the floor. The kitchen cupboards spewed plates and glasses, the refrigerator disgorged jars and groceries. Our massive TV – remember the giant sets before flat-screens?? – was face down on the carpet. But being campers, we bundled up and found our Coleman propane stove and heated water in the yard for our friends visiting from Finland. Their hotel across the street was also a mess and they were very shaken up, but they’ve enjoyed telling tales of the Big One ever since!
In the last few weeks, I’ve gone on two train adventures – one south to Orange County, one north to Ventura. There’s a station just a few minutes from our house (we can hear the whistles blow when the wind is right) with ample free parking. Proximity and convenience are great motivators – now if the trains would just run on time, I’d be riding the rails regularly!
Paola and I took Amtrak to Irvine on a Friday to meet the Getty Galz at the Orange County Museum of Art. We beat the group that carpooled down (they got lost), but returning home was a bust. Our northbound Surfliner was over two hours late and we had to stick by the tracks because they never announced a revised ETA. Then when we finally boarded, the brief stop at Union Station turned into a train change, more unexplained waiting, then the announcement that we were waiting for paramedics! I got home at 11 p.m. instead of the scheduled 7:30!!
The artventure was fun – we saw an excellent Alice Neel exhibition and had a Peruvian lunch – and then dashed over to Balboa Island and did lots of walking. (My new knee held up great – 11,500 steps!! – but my hip not so much.) And I really enjoyed riding the 3-car ferry across to the quaint tourist destination which I hadn’t visited in over 40 years.
Last Friday I Amtrak’ed to Ventura to visit Getty Gal Robin who is in the process of moving up the coast to be closer to her grandkids. We had a wonderful day seeing some local highlights – the botanical gardens, Main Street restaurants and cool shops, the Mission – all in walking distance of each other! The vibe is very laid back, like a mini and less hoity-toity Santa Barbara. I see why Robin loves her new neighborhood, and I’m looking forward to more train escapes up her way.
It’s been a busy month (that’s my excuse for a lag in posting) of visitors – 3 sets of company compressed into 3 weeks! Our daughter and her husband started the month, and it’s always great to have them here, even when their time is busy seeing local friends. Devon spent much of the visit sewing her outfit for the wedding they came for, and her meticulous perseverance in making and fitting a challenging pattern is impressive! She started sewing when she was very young and wanted elaborate Halloween costumes beyond my willingness to attempt!
Our next visitors were Hawaiian friends Claire and Les, stopping off on their way home from a European river cruise. We enjoyed catching up and also sharing favorite local art museums with them – Norton Simon and the Getty! Claire and Mercer go way back “pre-dk”, and Les is a recent re-found friend she knew from high school. Good people, good times.
Our third visitors were our beloved friends Charlie and Donna, who we met in 1989 when our first daughters started kindergarten together. Donna was their intrepid Brownie and Girl Scout leader for many years who instilled a love of camping even beyond what we were already doing as a family. Sadly for us, they now live on the other side of the U.S. so we don’t get together very often. Reunions with Charlie and Donna are always filled with laughter, great reminiscing, and a sense that no time has passed.
Now I need to prepare for all the Leo birthdays among our peeps (including mine), and anticipate with excitement the late August visit from my sister! Cathy and I are planning a mini-road trip to see our brother in Tucson, stopping to see Fran in Chandler, then up to Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon for a day at the Grand Canyon! Here’s hoping the weather gods will take pity on us and we don’t cook. It’s been a very hot summer since the May Gray and June Gloom ended, and excessive heat usually lasts into October here in SoCal.
That’s my story for now. Still reading too much, painting not enough, but happy with my “knew knee” and the joy of friends and family. Stay cool, y’all!
I’m already walking without a cane or pain, five and a half weeks after surgery! The doctor wants me to take it slowly, and I did have an infection scare, but I’ve finished the antibiotics and am hoping for no restrictions soon. Doctors said a partial replacement was much easier to recover from, and so far it’s amazing. Time to start plotting foreign adventures…
Had a lovely visit from my original LA friend Phyllis last week. We met back in the mid-seventies, and now she lives in Portland, so I do get to visit her when I go up to see the daughters. She flew down this time with her 97-year-young dad so he could visit family and friends here in SoCal. Great to hang out and catch up.
This is Memorial Weekend, but we are staying home and low key. Kind of boring, but best not to overdo as my knee heals. We are having chilly May Grey weather, which makes me moody. But true to my EO profile (eternal optimist) I’m ever thankful we have a lovely yard and I keep reminding my hubby that we will be complaining about the extreme heat before long so enjoy this season! And our new roof + solar project is almost complete: we’re crossing our fingers we will be sourcing our electricity from the sun by the time we hit AC season and the power bills skyrocket!!
Our Orchid Cactus is going crazy this spring – all the winter rains are paying off in these wonderful blooms!!
Today is the last of January – oh my! I haven’t been inspired to write, but hate to go too long without adding some thoughts to this journal. So here goes…
My watercolor interpretation of a painting, unknown artist
I’ve been doing lots of wellness checks at Kaiser this month: annual scans, pokes and squeezes! So far so good, and I’m on a new surgery wait list for a partial knee replacement. I was on the total knee list, but second and third opinions recommended the lesser operation which has a faster and easier recovery. Sis and I are still plotting a Scottish adventure and hoping we will be able to do it late summer. Depends on my knee, so no bookings as yet.
We are having a rainy and cold winter, a rarity lately. Cold is semi-normal, but these frequent rain events are very welcome in drought land. Hills are green, our plants and trees are happy, and no leaking roof – yay! However, natural gas rates are through the roof, so heating, cooking and hot water are the latest areas we have to conserve. If it’s not one thing, it’s another. But we are so thankful to have a roof, and retirement income. So many don’t.
Elizabeth Catlett, my drawing from a photo
My British friend Sue is in SoCal for a month, and it’s great to hang out, laugh and reminisce. We are planning an artventure this week, and in this first month of the year I’ve already been to two art collections in addition to the Getty. The Broad has a great show on the South African artist William Kentridge. He does drawings, animations based on his drawings, sculptures, collages, and sound installations. The variety and humor reminds me of Dada and Surrealism, with political commentary underlying all his work.
Next month our puppy Echo will be six years old, and I celebrate my first six years of retirement. And the truly amazing anniversary will be Mercer’s ten years since his bone marrow transplant! We are extremely grateful to still be a team. Life is good.
The last day of 2022 – a year that brought us further out of Covid isolation as we boostered our vaccinations and ventured onto longer flights to see family. I visited my people on the Right Coast, and started planning our Scotland trip nixed by pandemic in 2020. I realized that my always bum knee should be replaced, and initiated the road to surgery by getting on the wait list. Cathy had cataracts removed from both eyes, so we want to get our bionically restored bodies over the Pond asap!
My drawing from a Rembrandt “tronie”
I took portrait painting classes spring and fall semesters, enjoying my favorite subject for drawing and painting and appreciating in museums! These courses are free through the community college for seniors program, and now are presented online by really talented teachers. I also designed and created a new handmade haiku and artwork accordion book, producing an edition of 12 for host and holiday gifts.
My favorite activity is still volunteering as a docent for the Getty. We gradually increased the in-person tours for schools, and due to Covid kept the student numbers smaller for much improved experiences. I hope my knee surgery won’t take me off the circuit too long – but my pain now is interfering with the enjoyment. I also like hosting virtual school visits, and happily that program is continuing next year. This fall my partner and I presented Getty online lessons to young people in Brazil and Denver!
Winery afternoon and Sensorio evening – Paso highlights!
Mercer and I got away for a weekend in November to Paso Robles, meeting up with cousin Sam and Barb. We all had fun visiting the local history museum, wine-tasting, good eating, and the Sensorio light show (our second time). It was a combination belated Mercer birthday and our 40th anniversary celebration!
Christmas Eve with the Plummersmy linocut printed cards dryingGetty Galz holiday potluck
Our Christmas season has been very quiet, with just a couple get togethers, as neither daughter planned to come home. We are happy they didn’t attempt to fly in from Portland, as Southwest Airlines did a total meltdown stranding people for days! Whitney did pop home over July 4th weekend, and Devon and Danny joined me in Virginia for our family+friends week (including three nights at the Mountain House!).
I look forward to new artmaking, traveling, friend and family enjoying, and Peace on Earth in 2023. Yes, I am THE ETERNAL OPTIMIST!!
Oops, I’ve let a whole month slip by without an entry – too busy with planning and enjoying my first trip to the Right coast since Covid! Cathy and I worked out a really fun itinerary, friends and family were great hosts, and the weather gods were totally in alignment. That last bit was just barely the case as hurricane Ian was slamming Florida as I flew home! Here are the highlights:
Female Justices and us!
Flying into National Airport in Virginia (I refuse to call it Reagan National) was easy and my high school bud and college roommate Martie picked me up and hosted my first two nights. She and husband Chris live in a self-built (father/son) amazing log house set in a lush green dale with pond, ducks and deer. And totally secluded from the surrounding urban area of Alexandria! Next day we drove into DC and met up with my other long-time pal Pat and my younger daughter Devon who was also visiting her bestie and had timed her trip to join up with mine. We four loved the Whistler’s Women in White exhibit in the East Wing of National Gallery, wandered through the NGA to see some other favorites, then lunched in the sculpture garden before walking over to the National Portrait Gallery to see the winners of their annual (or biennial?) competition. Just the right amount of art and a tad too much walking for my bum knee. Back at Martie’s, she and Chris grilled dinner outdoors, and party included Pat and Mike, Devon and Danny. Good times, with deer photobombing my people shots!
Tuckahoe Plantation, Thomas Jefferson’s boyhood home
Early Thursday morning Martie dropped me at the train station near their house and I was in Richmond by 9:30. Cathy picked me up and we went directly to a plein air painting event at Tuckahoe Plantation. Beautiful setting to wander and sketch, and so relaxing. Back at her house, she and Tim made us BLTs for lunch and we sat and chatted on their porch with entertainment by kitties Inky and Moochy. Then off to meet D&D’s train, fast-food supper and dropped them at niece Julie’s house. Best part of that afternoon was the gorgeous orange sunset as we drove to Chesterfield!
We enjoyed the Tyler clan and having everyone together!
Friday morning was more art-related errands: picking up and dropping off Cathy’s paintings to local exhibits, then some prep for next day’s pre-dawn departure for the mountains! The Dartez crew (Cathy’s younger daughter, husband, and 3 kids) arrived from Chesapeake about 3:30, and we all headed over to Julie’s for the pizza party with their whole family. Good fun and silly antics around a fire pit in their wooded back yard, a group photo, and back to Cathy’s.
Saturday morning Cathy and I were up and out and got to Julie’s by 6:00 a.m. to pick up D&D – still dark out, the sun did some more special effects as we drove south. I tried to spell Cathy on driving, but by this time my knee was not cooperating so she had to do most of it (neither D nor D drive!!). Made good time and were in Bryson City – after obligatory stop at the Asheville Farmer’s Market – in time to catch some of the Harvest Festival, pick up some boiled peanuts (yum), and get deli dishes and groceries for the weekend. As we were unpacking at the Mountain House, Margaret roared up the driveway (too steep for quiet ascent) and invited us to ride up to the top of Hickory Cove in her Polaris all-terrain vehicle for the amazing views. Spectacular afternoon sunshine and long vistas of rolling Smoky Mountains, so green and unlike our mountains here in SoCal! Quiet evening on the porch before early to bed.
Sunday Cathy and I made our traditional Mountain House breakfast, a menu dating back to when we were kids and Daddy and Aunt Ruth did the honors: biscuits, bacon and fried apples!! Cousin Jesse stopped by for some laughter and sharing memories, and brought us some of his chocolate chip cookies. Late morning we drove back into Bryson and managed to meet up (organized by text) with Devon’s good friend Rhye and her family. They hung out at a small brewery on the main street while Cathy and I did some window shopping, then we all discovered a beautiful spot we never knew about: Island Park is just that – an island, reached by footbridge, in the river that bisects town! There were canoes and kayaks practicing in the rapids, and Cathy and I did some watercolors while the kids walked around the park. There was an ice cream stop before goodbyes, then we four drove back to the Mountain House and ate leftovers for supper. Devon and I played some Chinese Checkers, and she outsmarted me twice! After admiring the starry night, crawled under our quilts (very chilly night) and were immediately wide awake as rain hit the tin roof with a short blast of crazy noise!
Monday we decided to go to Deep Creek to see the waterfalls as it was too chilly for the usual summer tubing activity. Again Cathy and I did some sketching while the youngers hiked the trails on another beautiful crisp fall day. Everyone was getting hungry, so we found delicious BBQ from a food truck parked by a tap room in Bryson, and visited the history museum in the old Courthouse. When we got back to the House, Jesse stopped by for another fun chin-wag of story-telling and memories. He and Margaret live on the mountain most of the year, and built their own sweet 2-story house which has recently been visited by local bears!!
That was the coldest night yet, and Cathy hauled in more blankets from her car for us to curl up under. Tuesday morning we all helped close the house up, short version, as Cathy was coming back for a night after taking us to Atlanta. Headed to Ann and Walter’s in Hiawassee for lunch and a nice visit – she made soup and ambrosia – and looking at old family photos. D&D helped them reconfigure wifi on their devices, and we took pix together before hitting the road again. Stopped at Ann’s favorite tourist spot, Mercier Orchards, for shopping (huge selection of decor, gifts, foods) and a gas-up for the road. We paid $2.97 a gallon, half what fuel costs in LA!! Got to Woodstock and Lydia’s house in time for a big family pizza party: she’d included her three kids, spouses, baby, plus our cousin Fred and Sara!! Lots of kidding and laughter, and admiring her big mastiff-lab pup Walter. Lydia is a massage therapist, and worked on my knee with her various devices, creams, and massage. Felt good but too far down the hurt path to fix me.
Ann and Walter
Wednesday morning we relaxed and decided it was too difficult to include a stop at the High Art Museum before the airport, so Cathy departed solo, Lydia went to work, and D&D and I called a Lyft after hanging out with Walter on the porch awhile. Got to ATL with couple hours before our flights, which ended up not being too much: their TSA line was way long! D&D were also flying Delta but not the same terminal as they were going home to Portland! My flight was full, but luckily I had an aisle seat and could stretch my knee during the 4-hour flight.
It was wonderful to spend time with my sister, as well as D&D, and all the nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends!! Mercer and Echo survived my absence, and it was good to be back home after my Great Escape ’22!!
I’ve been remiss in writing, but for a good reason: traveling! Last weekend we did a road trip to Tucson to visit my brother and his family in their newly-built home. Bro and Sis-in-law are settling into a totally foreign desert environment after living forever in northern Virginia. I took them four sacks of succulent cuttings, so I expect the bare yard will look way different next visit. We enjoyed my niece and her family, and did a drive up Mount Lemmon where the rock formations are fabulous.
Then last Thursday was our long-anticipated Getty Galz artventure to the Van Gogh exhibit in Santa Barbara. We took Amtrak and had a marvelous time strolling, shopping, eating, and of course being inspired by the paintings of the Dutch phenom! Here’s how the Santa Barbara Museum of Art described the show:
“Through Vincent’s Eyes: Van Gogh and His Sources seeks to immerse viewers in the visual imagination of one of the most idolized artists in the world. By floating 20 works of art by Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh in a sea of over 75 works by 60 artists that he admired, the exhibition provides an unprecedented opportunity for visitors to dive deeply into the rich, visual culture of Van Gogh’s late 19th-century world. Celebrated works of art by Van Gogh are juxtaposed with works by the many artists he admired (Breton, Monticelli, Raffaelli, Millet, Monet, Gauguin, and more), thereby dramatizing both the artist’s indebtedness to and radical departure from the art world of his day.“
I love to get out of town, and sharing adventures with family and friends is even more appreciated after these last years of Covid isolation!
One is silver and the other gold! We sang this song in Girl Scouts, and I feel like I’ve lived it this week. Tuesday we got together with dear friends Renée and Michael, whom we’ve known for 40+ years, and shared a picnic and sunny day at beautiful Descanso Gardens. Then Thursday I met up with my newer friends, the Getty Galz, who’ve helped each other survive the past two years of Covid isolation by zooming every Monday afternoon. Getting together in person after that stretch is still pretty exciting and we laugh a lot whenever we do. And yesterday I reconnected with a high school friend whom I hadn’t seen in almost 50 years – we were in each other’s first weddings, but lived since college on different sides of the country. It felt to me like all that time still hadn’t dimmed our friendship. On a sadder note, Friday as we prepared to drive two hours to say goodbye to my husband’s high school friend who was in hospice, we got the text that he’d passed in the night. Life is a gift, friendships make it happy, and no one knows when a silver or gold friend will leave the planet. Keep in touch.
Today is the first day of Spring, a reliable source of happiness for me: anticipating, appreciating, photographing nature’s beauty as the flowers and plants put out new leaves and ephemeral blossoms. Friends and flowers – life is good. Time to make some art!!
Plummers and MercersGetty Galz (minus Robin)Karen and DKMercer and John from their high school yearbook!
Yesterday was International Women’s Day, and I wanted to salute my fab female friends who inspire me every day. I shoot lots of photos of people to help me remember good times shared, especially the smiles, so I put together a digital collage of ladies to celebrate our sisterhood. Here’s to you (and the ones I didn’t have photos of to include), and thanks for enriching my life!
Open Your Eyes! 