Speak to Me

I worked on an art book a couple of years ago that celebrated the painting "American Gothic" (that one of the bald farmer with a pitchfork and his daughter. Yes, his daughter). The author of the book was Thomas Hoving, the former curator of the MET in New York. Tom now hates me, but that's a blog for a different time. I did, however, during the process, learn something. Art is only good if it gives you a feeling. You can take a billion art courses, learn about the masters, and identify time period by the type of brush stroke used, but if the piece doesn't "speak to you," it's not good. His basic premise was, people can tell you something is good, but if you don't think it's good then it's not. An art critic can tell you why an artist is important and how he or she influenced a movement, but if you don't like it, then eh. The reason this is coming up now is because I just got back from a Mexican vacation -- hola! -- and one of the things that I enjoyed in Puerto Vallarta was the art.

Actually, even the two days leading up to the trip down to ol' Mehico were art influenced. Claudine (former NYC roommate) flew into L.A. from Seattle (my, don't we sound cosmopolitan) for the weekend and we decided to pop over to LACMA to check out the new modern art museum featuring Jeff Koons installations. I have to admit that sculpture remains my favorite art medium. I like cool photographs and am mightily impressed by oil on canvas, however, put me in front of a Rodin and I'm awed. I first came to know Koons back in New York when he installed "Puppy" at the site where the Rockefeller Christmas Tree is usually erected. "Puppy" was a towering bush of sorts shaped like a terrier and it bloomed. Coolest thing ever! Anyway, now Koons's "Balloon Dog" and "Bunny" among others are here in L.A. and I really wanted to go check him out. So we did. If you link over to his web site, you'll see that his style is kitsch'y and irreverent and really kinda neat. He amazes me. And not in that Valley girl kind of way, but in that "Wow!" way. I think that's the best compliment I can give an artist.

On the boardwalk in Puerto Vallarta, the city has installed a bunch of statuary (some of these can be looked at over at my MySpace page). My favorite kinds of installation art are the ones that are interactive. You can touch them, you can sit on them, you can climb on them. The kind of art that begs you to be part of the experience. These hot brass structures were seats that faced both to and from the ocean. (If you can't figure it out, I'm the one on the left.)

But out of all the art arranged along the oceanfront, the one that spoke to me was this one.

Are they aliens; are they Mayan gods? The way I read this statue was that they were primitive people (priests?) trying to reach God. And since I wouldn't mind a little heavenly interaction, I hopped on. Unfortunately, our ladder was a little too short, and we didn't get very far. But that doesn't mean that it wasn't a fun encounter with art and the sun and maybe God, too.

I'm back to earth now, both physically and metaphorically, and I give two thumbs up to my Mexican experience. Next up. Europe! I got an email from Audra saying that she landed in Germany safely. Now, all I need is for the Euro to plummet and the dollar to surge. Then it's off to Roma and the Sistine Chapel. Maybe I can reach God through a little Michelangelo.

Things to Do

So, I don't know about you, but I've about had it with Sarah Palin's caustic stump speeches (that getting a bit scary) and the boring debates that devolve into other stump speeches (Tuesday night, anyone?) and the multi-billion dollar bailouts that haven't done anything to stop the ever downward spiral of the global economy. So, I've been on the web looking for fun things to watch, read, do, or just plain look at. Here are some of my favorites:

1) Amy and Kim's re-casting of Breakfast at Tiffany's over at their blog Romancing the Tome, (link found on this page under "blogs I like to read"). I suggest trawling through web sites like tMF's to look at their "50 hottest actors under 25" to find the new "Fred". You probably won't remember why you went to the website, but in the end, you'll be glad you did.

2) For all you cat people out there -- and it seems you come in both sexes -- this was in the NYT Fashion & Style(?!) section. Makes a dog person like me quirk an eyebrow. Especially the part in the article where the guy basically says that hundreds of "lonely cat women" were proposing to him. Erm, sir? You just posted a movie you made of your cats on YouTube. I don't think you get to throw stones.

3) If you ever need to laugh at the headlines (before you start to cry), the Onion is always a good place to land. This one especially tickled me since I keep getting emails asking me to go to Neveda to knock on doors and preach the word of Obama.

4) If you have not seen the Landlord on funnyordie.com, you must go there. In fact, once you're there, just shop around. There's a lot of random stuff on the site, but for every four stupid bits you watch, one will actually be funny. That's a better average than just about every other site on the web.

5) Pencil skrits are In and mini skirts are Out. And tweed is back! Yey! Every five years, I'm actually In Style and want to shop. Unfortunately, I have no money as I am...

6) ... leaving for Puerta Vallarta on Monday. I'll be gone all next week. Emails, phone calls, and texts will not be answered. I haven't decided yet whether I will come back.

7) Before funnyordie, there was Jib Jab. They were the ones who did that hysterically funny Kerry/Bush "This Land Is Your Land" cartoon that went viral back in 2004. Nowadays, they've got some funny videos and cards that you can cut and paste your (or someone else's) head into and email. There's a snarky news one now that's kinda funny.

Is It Me...

Is it me, or does this picture look like Hank Paulson and the President are congratulating each other on a bank heist? "Heeheehee, we pulled it off!"

What Would You Do: the Bra Edition

I have a couple of drafts logged on here that I will probably never post. These entries were started over the last couple of weeks. Both of them are political in nature. But since the theme of both depressed me beyond even my political junkie threshold, I decided I would spare you my heavily footnoted self-righteous indignation. And instead, I will tell you about my latest purchase. My new bra.

I have been in dire need of a new bra for sometime now as I have only one that fits me comfortably. I'm one of those women who, if she gains or loses weight, she does so in her chest region. It's very vexing. I have numerous bras. I won't get into numbers or letters -- I'm a repressed New England Catholic, remember -- but lets just say that my stash of bras could be used to lift and separate about four or five different women of various endowments. I never get rid of any of them because, well, I can only stay away from the Ben and Jerry's for so long. Unfortunately, as the years go by, your...erm...shape starts to shift a bit, and what used to look good on me when I was 30, isn't exactly supporting me the same way. More vexation! So, after sifting through the polysynthetics, I came to the conclusion that I had to buy a new brassiere. Luckily for me, the economy sucks right now and Macy's is having a sale just about every week. This week is their annual bra and pantie sale. How fortuitous!

I traipsed out to Macy's after work last night, and even though it was a school night and even though it was dinner time, I was shocked at how dead the mall was. Seriously, you know the economy is in trouble when school kids aren't hanging out near the Sabarros trying to persuade the classmate behind the counter to give them free cups of water. But I digress. I went up the three floors to the lingerie department and went directly to the clearance section. I picked up a ugly purple bra, a lacy bra, a pretty green bra, and even an animal print bra. From there, I went to the massive Buy 2 Get 1 Free sale section and picked up a bra from nearly every single rack except Wonderbra because they seem to be prejudiced against girls like me. ("Why do you need a push-up bra?" Umm, because my boobs need to be pushed back up from my knees...?) With hands full, I went into the changing room and stripped.

First, will I ever look good in halogen lighting? No, right? I mean, let's just agree on that. But after about thirty minutes of trying on every single bra I brought into dressing room (and I'm thinking I brought in over 20; I was determined), I found exactly two -- both Warners -- that actually fit. All these bras were exactly the same number and same letter. But like jeans, just because you're a ten at GAP, doesn't mean that you're a ten at Lucky Brand. Sigh. The Warner bras were buy two, get one free. Both bras were about $30. But... while they fit comfortably across my back and over my shoulders, they didn't do anything for me. They were just, you know, bras! They didn't lift; they didn't hold in; they didn't give me any kind of shape. They were kinda cute, and I liked the little satin trim on one and the daisy motif on the other, but since I buy bras to actually support me (and currently am not mentioning my unmentionables to any gentlemen suitors), it would be a moot point to get a pretty one just for show. I bought a pretty bra once with the idea that this year! I would be flashy the lace...and then I didn't. So, live and learn.

Usually, I buy Wacoal. They cost about $60 a piece, but they are the Cadillacs of bras and almost never go on sale. So, here I was with the cost effective conundrum? Do I buy one Wacaol that I know fits my criteria of perfect fit and nice silhouette or do I get three so-so bras for the same money? What would you do?