For Walls, For Hanging

Lord Bodner's Octopus Print at Jonathan Adler's Georgetown Store

When Mary was here we spent a lot of time shopping, as we always do.  We are suckers for silk scarves and vintage purple leather (thank you Good Wood) but I was obsessing over art apparently.   Every photo I took was of art from the vintage horse poster to the Jonathan Adler Octopus in Georgetown.  Apparently I am in the market. 

Munch poster at GoodWood

Polo Poster in Foundry

The cheapest most beautiful mirrors at GoodWood

Documerica, Part II

EPA Gulf Breeze Laboratory Biologist is Dip Netting for Contaminated Female Shrimp, this is for a Study of Whether PCB is Passed on to Their Offspring , 07/1972 by Bill Shrout

So months after first blogging about how much I wanted to see Documerica at the National Archives  Mary and I finally went on Monday and it was amazing.  As good as I hoped and twice as gorgeous. The exhibit was smaller than I would have liked and the majority of the photos were of people. You can’t help but wonder where that bride is now and why she looks so grim and what the smiling biologist found.  I'm so amazed by how modern the family living in the bus look, the parents could be hipsters in any American city in 2013.  This gorgeous government funded project yielded thousands of photos and they are all on the National Archives website available for hi-res download. I’m so tempted to blow up a few of these pictures for my already too crowded walls. Here are a few of my favourites. 

 



"The painted bus is home."  by David Hiser, Rifle, CO, October 1972.

 



Mary's favourite hometown art - Great Kills Park, Staten Island 5/1973 by Arthur Tress



Photograph of a bride and her attendants in new Ulm, Minnesota by Art Hanson

Books, For Small Hands, Eyes

When I married David I inherited nine nieces and nephews, now there are ten of them under the age of ten and.  I have become the unavoidable cruel aunt who gives books for presents.  Because she doesn't think you need anymore plastic that can splinter and lodge in anyone's septum, because she doesn't believe in electronics for children and because she loves books more than most other things.  Because she is so so sad that the nieces are too old to get Miss Rumphius, the Lupine Lady and that no one ever bought it for them when they were small so that they would know that the greatest thing you can do is plant lupines and live near the sea, better if you can do it in Maine (this is a fact).   I have to keep a running list so I don't get Grandfather Twilight for the same child for two occasions in a row

Two of the nephews are turning four this summer and I think they need some books about the sea and the summer.  Maybe because I'm feeling deprived with no time at the sea, the boys are getting books of boats, and sand and water and old men who live by the sea and keep boats patched.  Books of water colours.

Burt Dow, Deep-Water Man By Robert McCloskey

 

 

 

Time of Wonder By Robert McCloskey

 

 

All the World By Liz Garton Scanlon

Cool and Blue

There is something about DC in the summer that compels me to leave the city.  I want to buy boat loads of fruit and grill and spend my days floating around in a pool.  Luckily my Oldest-and-Best-Friend (she of getting married and naughty little sisters and helping me wrap my bouquet along with swimming lessons at the age of 9 and fort building and college break visiting and teenage shenanigans fame) and her husband bought a house.  An hour and twenty minutes up a highway are complete with pool and grill and spare bed big enough for David and me.  A weekend of faffing around in their pool, eating her glorious cooking and talking about politics, religions, books, TV and recounting the mid-90's upstate New York strife with the Oneida Indian Nation to our husbands who, not having been there, couldn't possibly care less.  Coming back to work today feels like a tragedy.  I'm making her come back soon.

Independence

Tomorrow we are trudging down to the Mall with about 700,000 other people to watch the national fireworks.  We are going to attempt a picnic (we got this Picnic Basket as a wedding gift and it needs more exercise), I'm thinking olives and bread and goat cheese and pate etc., little nibbley things, cookies. Also if you tuck a flask in the lining of the bag you should be able to get it onto the mall.  This summer I've resolved to be better at keeping the sun off of myself (it's not actually going so well) and I'm loving spray suncare products.  I don't care what they are, I just wan to be able to spray instead of the rubbing in that is definitely not going to happen.  Add a straw hat (mine came from Ross' and was six bucks but it's similar) and some sunglasses and if we end up spending a couple of hours under the sun eating olives we won't mind.  I'm obsessed with these Mexican blankets that you can get anywhere and they make great picnic blankets.  Because I'm the ass who on St. Patrick's day wears black and tells everyone to go fuck themselves (apart from being the granddaughter of an Irish citizen) I refuse to wear red white and blue.  I'll wear grey and mint and coral.  I'll throw a book and a magazine (YA dystopian crazy makes me so happy in summertime and certain magazines that make me feel guilty for not being able to sail are too fun).  The fireworks will be amazing, they always are and on Friday we are off to my parents farm to swim and hang out in the backyard and maybe ride some horses, eat my mother food.  Enjoy the long weekend.

The End of an Era

View from the office, not actually in Washington

 

I will miss Google Reader.  Right now I'm flipping between Feedly, Newsblur and Bloglovin.  I don't like clicking on the headlines on Feedly, Newsblur only lets you follow 62 blogs (and I follow about 120) and Bloglovin' seems slow although I think a lot of bloggers like it because you can see their ads.  Feedly (currently my favourite) doesn't let you know when someone updates though without refreshing the page. When you spend the entire day at the office reading blogs and being a bum you really want to have the auto update.  Blurg,  bring back Google Reader and keep my life happy and easy.

In other news, it's a grey, grey week in Washington.  Sweltering hot and overcast and raining. I hope it lets up by Thursday.