j9 musings

2006-10-20T18:07:00.000-06:00

JERIC IS HERE!!!!

2006-10-19T11:27:00.000-06:00

The tree is expanding
Its arms stretch to fill the three windows of my empty living room
Bathing in the soft yellow light of its turning leaves
This moment before they will fall
into a silent freeze
It is glorious,
full
light
In their lightness the leaves whisper to one another, moving subtly in the breeze like strands of hair
A canopy of leaves, thin and delicate as dragonfly wings
dipped in the honey of this October day.

2006-10-09T19:55:00.000-06:00

I've been totally addicted to these two You Tube videos lately... view them here and here.

2006-10-09T17:40:00.000-06:00

Arboretum/Forest Hills

Last Thursday I had the day off and decided to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather. I went for a long walk through the arboretum, and then through the Forest Hills Cemetary. The Forest Hills Cemetary is a beautiful old Victorian cemetary nearby that houses the remains of EE Cummings as well as other famous and not so famous New Englanders. For the last few months they've had outdoor installations up as a part of the exhibition entitled Dwelling. Even though it felt a little morbid spend my day off walking through a cemetary, I'm glad I did. The leaves are just beginning to change color here, and I'm trying to enjoy the weather before it gets too cold!!! Some pics from the day follow...

At Forest Hills...

Just had to laugh when I walked by this one. And next to it, was one that said "Painting."

I loved walking around and seeing the installations intermingled throughout the grounds. This was one of my favorites. I met this artist at Haystack this summer... she does amazing things with with recycled wood.

2006-09-29T18:56:00.001-06:00

If I had a boat, it would look like this.

2006-09-29T18:01:00.000-06:00

Stranger

Although I've enjoyed getting to know the city, since moving here I have definitely felt like an outsider. I had resigned myself to the fact that it would be awhile before I would ever run into anyone I knew. The other day on my lunch break I decided to go get a bagel, and on my way back I ran into my friend Molly who I met this summer at Haystack ... in the entire city of Boston I know maybe 5 people and I just happened to run into one of them!

It makes me think back to the handful of times in my life when strange coincidences like that have happened. I always wonder about the near misses... how many times have I almost crossed paths with someone? What if I would have stayed in for lunch that day? or left five minutes earlier?

2006-09-19T20:34:00.000-06:00

First Week on the Job

After my first week the new job seems to be working out okay. It's definitely retail which is nothing glamorous, but for retail it could certainly be worse. You'd think that everyone who comes into such a fun store would be happy, but not so. For the most part the customers are pretty good, but there have definitely been a handful of annoying or just mean ones. At least I'm not waiting tables anymore...that's when people really get bitchy. The people I work with seem nice, and the managers are great which really helps. According to map quest, I'm only five miles away from work, but with all the traffic somehow it usually takes me 40 minutes to get there... time to start thinking about getting a bike!

Getting used to working full-time after being in school for so long is definitely an adjustment. I can tell it's going to be difficult to get anything done in the studio for awhile. Sometimes though, having a mind-numbing and somewhat boring job can promote creativity. At least at Starbucks it did, and I'm kind of hoping that will be the case. Unfortunately, I didn't get the teaching job here. In typical University fashion, they dragged it on for quite awhile assuring me that I was considered a strong candidate before finally sending a rejection letter sans interview. Fortunately, I at least had my current job lined up already when I got the news. At this point, I'm just happy to at least have something to get me out of bed in the morning, and I usually organize the merchandise when it's slow which helps satisfy my OCD tendencies.

2006-09-08T12:56:00.000-06:00

Work
I finally have a job! As of Monday, I will be working here full-time. It's not exactly a job that you need an MFA for, but I think it will be a good fit for now. I'm just happy to have something... I've been spending way too much time alone lately.

2006-09-08T10:47:00.000-06:00

Montreal

(I love this photo... compliments of Dan!)

For labor day weekend Dan and I ventured up to Canadian territory. We had been really curious to visit ever since last year when it looked like maybe we would be moving there, and we were also excited about the prospect of visiting a French speaking city. At l'hotel I asked the woman "Parlez-vous L'Anglais?" She glared at me for a moment and in an icy tone quipped, "Yes, I speak English." Oops... naive American faux-pas number one. Everyone who visits France says if you at least try to speak French they'll appreciate it. Apparently in Montreal, everyone is bilingual, and it's insulting to suggest otherwise. We quickly caught on. It was really fascinating though the way that Montrealers would slide so easily from one language to the next. People would greet us in French, and if we didn't respond right away, they would continue in English. Determing what language someone speaks is second nature, and just a part of life in Montreal. Signage is always in French, maybe with an English translation, and any sort of announcement takes twice as long because it has to be in French and English.

The drive through Vermont was absolutely gorgeous, filled with trees and rolling hills. When we crossed the Canadian border though, it was all flat cornfields. We made it through the border crossing okay, but on the way back they gave Dan a hard time because he didn't have a passport with him and was actually born in Canada. Almost had to leave him behind!!

Our first full day there was absolutely packed. First we visited the Museum of Canadian history, where the display of how frigid cold and long Montreal winters are made me happy I don't live there! The Musee D'Art Contemporain de Montreal was small, but impressive. There was a survey of work by Brian Jungen, an artist from Vancouver with ancestral ties to the Dane-zaa Nation of British Columbia. His series entitled, "Prototype for New Understanding," was an impressive collection of masks constructed out of Nike Air Jordans. The masks were potent hybrid objects, so convincing and well crafted. In the next room, Jungen had massive dinasour skeletons constructed out of plastic lawn chairs. The rest of the show was kind of filler, but those two bodies of work were quite stunning. In another exhibit, there was a piece my one of my favorite artists, Anselm Kiefer. We spent a long time just looking at that piece and being moved by it. Contemporary work by younger artists these days tends to be very witty and clever. It's easy to look at it and get it and think "what a fucking genius." But a lot of times, it ends there for me. When I look at a Kiefer, something that I can't explain grabs me from the inside and pulls me into a certain mood, or psychological landscape... I almost can't even explain it. Whenever I see one of his works I feel a sense of mournfulness and reverence, and I just stand and look, getting lost in the surfaces of the expressive textures.

We also spent a lot of time just walking around Old Montreal and other parts of the city. On our way back from dinner on St. Denis street, we discovered that the Montreal World Film Festival was going on. So we sat outside with a crowd of people watching Viva Maria (a hilarious movie that I highly recommend). Ahhh.... it reminded me of the days of Fullerton Fox Theatre outdoor screenings! Our second day there, we tried to visit the Biodome, but the line was insanely long, so we just walked around the grounds taking pictures instead. We were kind of running out of things to do, so (after getting lost a few times!) we went to the casino. It was actually my first time in a casino, and I'm hoping my last. The place was probably seven stories high, filled with people, flashing lights, and gross stale air. We played the slots for a little while and then got the hell out of there!

Walking around Old Montreal was probably my favorite part of the weekend. Filled with beautiful old buildings and churches such as Notre Dame, it really does feel like Europe. I was struck with how gray the city is. Even on a nice September day, everything seemed suspended in a haze of gray. It was nice to be in a city that was so entrenched with history, but also filled with so many young people. It is definately a city of the arts which is exciting. It's a great city, but overall I'm glad we moved to Boston instead. I think the winters would have been just that much colder, and not knowing French would have made it nearly impossible to find a job.

2006-08-31T13:25:00.000-06:00

Deer Isle, Maine

For three weeks this August I had the opportunity to take a digital weaving workshop in Deer Isle, Maine. Driving through one small town after another, I finally made it to the camp which to my surprise, ended up being much more remote than I had anticipated. Situated in the midst of a small island off the coast of mid Maine, the school houses facilities for metals, glass, weaving, and paper making.

I loved the architecture of the school, and the way the buildings were integrated with the trees. The school was built on a slope right on the coast, so all of the cabins are connected by elevated walkways and stairs. There were many stairs to climb which sort of helped to make up for the fact that the food was so good and there was dessert after every meal!

I opted for the econo-lodging, which meant sharing a dorm with 12 other girls. Insert flashback to summer camp! We had a really great group in the weaving class, and it was nice that it was so small. Also, a group of us were doing work- study so we worked together in the kitchen for 3 hours a day. It was fun to meet new people, and there were dance/drinking parties in the glass studio saturday nights.

I never knew so many different shades of green existed! The grounds were filled with this delicate lichen.

The workshop I took was digital weaving. The idea was that we would use digital images as source material for our weavings by pixelating the images and using a block structure to weave into the cloth. I didn't feel like the grid pattern really fit with what I wanted to do, so I ended up doing a painted warp instead. Our instructor, who teaches full time at School of the Art Institute of Chicago, does amazing work dealing with the intersection between textiles and technology. She introduced me to the work of some really interesting artists, and also recomended several relevant books that I am looking forward to reading.

One of my favorite things about the whole trip was pulling our looms outside and weaving on the deck.

Here are some shots of the weaving installation I did while I was there. The loom I was using at Haystack was a large four harness loom that would probably cost several hundred dollars even used, not to mention that I'd never be able to get it up three flights of stairs, and it would take up half my studio! When I got back though, I was so inspired and wanted to keep weaving. I found out about something called a rigid heddle loom which essentially does the same thing as a 2 harness loom by incorporating a shedding device in the heddles. Very clever! I never knew such a thing existed until I found one on Craig's List for $30. After spending several hours figuring out how to assemble the thing, I now have it put together, and hope to start weaving on it soon. I love it because it's so small and light weight compared to a normal loom, and since I really prefer doing plain weave these days anyway it's a perfect fit.

2006-08-31T13:01:00.000-06:00

Parents: Double-Header

So here I am, making up for posts gone by! Last month the summer breeze brought with it both sets of parents. Dan's parents were here for an extended weekend, and mine stayed for a whole week. Since it seems so long ago now, I will just recap the highlights:

My dad's illegal left turn ticket as we were taking a detour to Walden... I guess the "we're from out of town" excuse doesn't apply in Massachusettes

Witnessing the start of a fight while riding the orange line with Dan's parents. One guy had a bat and the other had a knife...See mom and dad, look where we live! hehe

Watching unhappy penguins at the aquarium

Getting treated to Lobster, fish and chips, and other New England delicacies

Hosting in an apartment with no A/C

Duck tours!

Rocky New England beaches

Clam bake with the whole fam at Dan's relatives Vineyard

Stay tuned for Deer Isle, Maine recap...

2006-07-17T18:23:00.000-06:00

What's Next?

Since I've arrived here, I've been feeling like I'm starting over. Sometimes life weighs so heavy on me. I've been given this life and I don't want to waste it. Maybe I'm taking things too seriously. I feel like I have a lot to contribute, but lack the direction and passion. The older I get, the more I realize how aggressively you have to fight for what you want. This means then, that you have to know what you want. Part of it is the change of the move, but I think a lot of it is also emerging from the cocoon of grad school where I've been completely immersed in such a specific subculture. Now that I'm out, I don't want to let anyone down. More importantly, I don't want to let myself down. I don't want to just float through life not knowing who I am or what I want.

2006-07-09T16:14:00.000-06:00

Good Friends, Good Times

The warm summer weather has been bringing it's share of friends and visitors (and there is always plenty of room at casa de haard... not so subtle hint!). This weekend our good friends A and J from New York came to spend the weekend with us in Boston. A and I have been friends since we met in 7th grade back in the cornfields of the midwest. The older I get, the more I appreciate my friends. It's a rare and beautiful thing to have a friend who shares such a long history with you. I remember once hearing someone talking about us acting as "witnesses" to one another's lives, and more and more I realize the significance of this notion.

Anyway, before this post gets too serious, the four of us had a pretty crazy time Saturday night. We started out with a walking tour of Boston via the Freedom Trail. Somehow whenever D and I attempt this walk, we never quite make it very far since we always get distracted right around Haymarket, and more specifically, a local pub called The Tap. Three pitchers of Sam Adams Cherry Wheat later, we were in no condition to stumble over to Paul Revere's pad. Someone was in the mood for karaoke, so we tracked down our good friend S, and headed over to a karaoke bar that he knew of in the neighborhood. The night digressed into a serenade of drunken renditions of songs by Bowie, Morrison, Depeche Mode, and the like. We ended up renting a private booth which was by far the most fun. For more pics, as well as D's version of the evening, head here.

2006-07-09T16:13:00.000-06:00

Maine: The Way Life Should Be

D and I haven't taken a trip together in a very long time, so we thought our birthdays would be a good excuse to get away and visit our friendly neighbors to the north. Incidentally, the state motto for Maine is "vacationland." As we crossed over the border, a sign read "Maine: The Way Life Should Be." It's a difficult statement to live up to, but with all the trees we saw just crossing the border, I sure couldn't argue with that! We spent a relaxing weekend visiting light houses in Cape Elizabeth, and soaking up the local culture in Portland.

As a tourist having recently lived in LA, Maine seemed to have the quaint and simple charm that I miss about the midwest. Driving around Cape Elizabeth, there were ice creameries and coffee shops on every corner (locally owned of course), as well as a myriad of water parks. We even got to pick our own strawberries, which us city folk were total suckers for. The rocky beaches and serene light houses had a regal quality about them that I couldn't help but contrast with so many of the sandy, commercialized beaches in California.

Portland, the largest city in Maine, seemed to be a city filled with contrast. We spent most of our time there on "Commercial Street," but not before driving through a depressed area only minutes away. This was probably one of the poorest, seediest areas I have seen in the US. Every person we passed appeared to be either on something or up to something. The most troubling were the ten or so people I saw actually strewn out in a parking lot area, just laying on the ground, and a rehabilitation center only a block away, incidentally.

We spent the rest of the night walking around the port, which although it was filled with tourists and shops, still had a nice charm to it. We had a delicious dinner at one of the many Irish Pubs in the area. D had one of his favorite meals; corned beef with cabbage and mashed potatoes, and I opted for the classic fish and chips. We couldn't help but remember one of our favorite Fullerton resturaunts, Old Ship. Overall, a fun and relaxing weekend.

2006-07-09T16:12:00.000-06:00

Danine Birthday Week 2006

D and I couldn't help but reminisce this week about "Crab Day" celebrations past. We miss everyone! For D's birthday, which fell on a Sunday this year we went ice skating of all things! It was kind of a spontaneous thing to do in the middle of the summer. I think it was D's silent rebellion against his least favorite season. We spent the rest of the evening relaxing and playing civilization (a first for me!)

The following Friday, I had a relaxing day and tried not to think too much about turning 28! For some reason I always get really reflective around my birthday. I can't help but think about my life and the decisions I've made, and the path I'm on. I was afraid I would be depressed, but it actually turned out to be a really nice day. I stopped by Emak and Bolio's (our local ice cream/coffee shop) and treated myself to the mother of all drinks... a Javachino (coffee shots poured over coffee ice cream with coffee syrup). Then I went for a nice long walk at the arboretum, and sat amongst the pine trees reading Robert Frost, writing and sketching. It was nice to have a lazy day, and I enjoyed catching up with friends and family over the phone/im too. When I got home, D had a spread of all my favorite foods wrapped in tin foil waiting for me on the porch. We had a nice evening together sitting out on the porch, and then ordered my fave, Indian food for a delicious bday dinner. Saturday AM we woke up bright and not so early to cruise on up to Maine.

2006-06-21T08:11:00.000-06:00

Okay, I have no idea what is happening to me. I never used to be into flowers, but something has happened since I moved out here. Anyway, I came across these beauties in the arboretum, and I just love them. They remind me of delicate little tea cups.

2006-06-20T20:08:00.000-06:00

World's Healthiest Foods

D and I have been trying to eat healthier lately, and we recently came upon this amazing website. Not only does it list "the world's healthiest foods" with all their nutrition info, but it also has a quiz you can take to see what foods you need to eat more of as well as lots of delicious recipes. Last night we tried the Salmon with Mustard and Dill Sauce, and tonight we had the Tuna Salad. After reading about the health benefits of all these foods, I feel like I'm rediscovering some real treasures. Like watermelon and mint... blend together for a refreshing summer drink!

2006-06-18T18:27:00.000-06:00

Linework

2006-06-18T18:01:00.000-06:00

David

At the risk of being redundant, I just had to publish a post honoring our visit with David last Sunday. It was so nice to see a familiar face in Bahston, and D and I both agreed that it was bittersweet. Such a treat to visit with David and soak in some good conversation, but sad that it had to go so fast. We miss you David!

2006-06-07T20:19:00.000-06:00

DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park

Yesterday I headed over to DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park. It's been unbelievably rainy lately, so I'm glad I waited for a nice day since so much of the experience was outside.

There was some pretty interesting work inside the Museum as well. Currently their annual exhibit of East Coast artists is up. It's interesting, from what I've gathered so far it seems like the work out here is a bit more traditional, not quite as edgy as LA. I'm thining of the big LA sculpture shows I've seen recently;Thing, Ecstacy, the Tim Hawkinson show . Two of the artists in this show were actually doing very fiber oriented work. Later this week I'm hoping to visit a few more galleries in Boston to get more of a vibe. Some images from the sculpture park:

2006-05-30T20:11:00.000-06:00

Lightness

2006-05-30T20:10:00.000-06:00

Signs of Summer

2006-05-28T21:07:00.000-06:00

"These trees are magnificent, but even more magnificent is the sublime and moving space between them, as though with their growth it too increased."
- Rainer Maria Rilke

"...Silently the birds
Fly through us. O, I who long to grow,
I look outside myself, and the tree inside me grows."
-Rainer Maria Rilke

"I know, for instance, that my grandfather got lost in a certain wood. I was told this, and I have not forgotten it. It happened in the past before I was born. My oldest memories, therefore, are a hundred years old, or perhaps a bit more. This, then, is my ancestral forest. And all the rest is fiction."
- Gaston Bachelard, The Poetics of Space

2006-05-25T20:32:00.000-06:00

Afternoon in Boston

Today I went to Copley Square to check out the Boston Public Library, and then walked over to Boston Commons. I've been negligent about taking pictures since i've been out here, so i decided to take the camera (thanks, D for turning me on to flickr) The library was a recommendation from a friend, and although it didn't sound that exciting, it ended up being pretty impressive. A gorgeous old building filled with murals by John Singer Sargent, miniatures and marrionettes, and of course, rare books. For more photos, go here (I'll try to keep updating this, I promise!)

2006-05-22T18:34:00.000-06:00

Hail

In Chicago, the saying is "if you don't like the weather, wait a minute." I think its safe to say that's the case here too. Case in point, yesterday: sunny and warm...HAIL...cold and rainy...rainbow...blue skies. I'd forgotten what its like to live in a place that actually has weather!

2006-05-19T18:58:00.000-06:00

This week: MIT

(photo from www.arquitecturaviva.com/imagenes/varios/MIT_FrankGehry.jpg)

Yesterday I ventured out once again to Cambridge, only this time to visit MIT. I started out by visiting the List Visual Arts Center where there were two exhibitions on view; Choreographic Turn, and 9 Evenings Reconsidered: Art, Theatre, and Engineering, 1966. Both addressed issues of art and technology, but also had a lot to do with documentation. I won't go into the descriptions of each, because you can read about that here.

I found the dancer's movements to be quite mesmerizing in Peter Welz's whenever on on on nohow on/ airdrawing. This video installation consisted of five different views of the dancer/choreographer's movements, two of which were taken from small cameras attached to his hands.

9 Evenings was interesting. I was most engaged by the documentation from John Cage's Variations VII and Robert Rauschenberg's Open Score. I think it's fantastic that there is so much documentation from this event, but walking around a room of ephemera just didn't do it for me. I guess you had to be there... wish I would have been alive in 1966.

After that, I made my way over to the MIT Museum where there were exhibits on Artificial Intelligence, holograms, the work of Harold Edgerton, and the history of MIT.

There were canteen trucks parked all over campus with a variety of good cheap food, but I was hard pressed to find a cafe. Just goes to show how hard those MIT students work... no time to sit around and pontificate or lay in the grass like the lazy Harvard students!

And of course, what visit to MIT would be complete without a visit to the funky Frank Gehry building.

2006-05-13T16:31:00.000-06:00

Wolfgang Laib

I recently learned of this artist, and I have to say, he is now one of my favorites. His installations have the serene beauty of a Rothko, only made of pollen. Read more about him here and here.

2006-05-13T12:33:00.000-06:00

Heart + Harvard

Yesterday morning I had the strange and surreal experience of literally watching my heart beat. There's something both terrifying and beautiful about watching this pulsating organ in action, and thinking about how simultaneously fragile and persistant life is. When I was in high school, I used to run a lot and that's when I realized I have an irregular heartbeat (which I now know is mitrovalve prolapse). Its not really a danger to my health, but the doctor wanted me to get an echocardiogram anyway.

Walking home from the hospital, I decided to cut through the arboretum. The Arnold Arboretum is over 2 miles of walking paths through trees and exotic plants, a "living museum" owned by Harvard, and open to the public. Lucky for us, it happens to be right down the street. It is an incredible gift to the community, and I only hope our generation has the foresight to leave such a treasure for future generations (but more on that for another entry). The most amazing thing about the arboretum is that you can visit ad infinitum, and it will never seem like same place twice. The flora and fauna are constantly changing with the seasons, and the ever-shifting weather patterns and light of day make for a different mood with each visit. Today, in the cool mist and fog of an overcast spring day it was filled with a quiet mystery.

On a whim, I decided to put off the paper I should be working on, and took the T to Harvard to bum around for the day. I have to say, I really like public transportation. Not only is it totally efficient, but its a kind of social leveler too. No matter what walk of life you're from, everyone is on the same boat so to speak, when you're on the train. As a recent transplant from the car culture of LA, I find it really interesting what happens when your forced into a situation with so many strangers from such different walks of life. It feels so akward to sit facing total strangers at three feet away... do you look at people? look away? close your eyes? read the ads? Anyway, I think its so interesting how people respond. I like that it makes me uncomfortable. Sometimes I get so sick of being in my own head, its nice to be around other people.

I've been to Harvard once before, to go to the Museum of Natural History (a place deserving of an entry all its own!), but other than that I really don't know my way around. So, I started out by following random people. I ended up at the Harvard Bookstore, which I am now in love with. It's actually the perfect setup; browse their amazing collection of books upstairs, then go downstairs to the used book collection for books you can actually afford. Since I've been here, I've been looking for a good novel to immerse myself in, so I was thrilled when found Middlesex, a novel I've been wanting to read. I spent the rest of the afternoon walking around, and then ended up at Peet's reading/people watching. I had to smile to myself whenever I would see the ivy league cliches... the two guys sitting outside a cafe immersed in a game of chess, the Harvard man in his khaki pants and burks, sans socks.
(photo from www.photo.net/photo/pcd0411/memorial-hall-80.4.jpg)

2006-05-12T17:24:00.000-06:00

Welcome to Boston

Blueberry beer, cobblestone streets, public transportation, historic sites, long walks in the arboretum, nonstop rain in May, lugging groceries up three flights of stairs, feta and olives from the Greek market down the street... I have officially been a Bostonian for one month!