President's Day, 6:30 am
Spring has arrived in Hollywood. The recent rainstorms succeeded in stirring dormant roots with memory and desire. Heading downstairs this morning, I noticed our pink magnolia tree is suddenly rife with blossoms. When did that happen?
(2/15/10, Hollywood)
An image stirs to life in my brain as well: an elegiacal Edna St. Vincent Millay in upstate New York communing with another pink magnolia. Is that photo really ninety-seven years old? It could almost be from the latest Anthropologie catalog.
(Photograph by Arnold Genthe, 1913)
In the kitchen, Piero and Luca are preparing to go skiing for the day. The Giramonti men are not at their best in the morning. Before fortifications (espresso and cereal, respectively), they find it near impossible to communicate.
After caffeine and calories, however, they become exuberance personified.
Before I know it, they have packed the car and are driving away.
The house is silent and distraction-free.
Quickly, I whip up my new favorite breakfast. Two months ago, I went on a three-week detox cleanse, courtesy of "Clean", the new detox book by Alejandro Junger. I have felt like a superwoman ever since and have continued with one raw meal a day via his morning smoothies. More than their countless health benefits, I drink them because they're just so crazy delicious.
Peach-Almond-Cardamom Smoothie
(courtesy of "Clean" by Alejandro Junger)
1 cup almond milk
1 cup frozen peaches
1 tbsp. raw almond butter
1 tsp. agave syrup
1/2 tsp. cardamom powder
3 ice cubes
Blend well and enjoy every icy drop.
7:15 am
And now, thus fortified, with a massive day of sewing ahead of me, it's time to reveal to you the details about the big project that's been occupying the better part of my life for the past four months.
From May 1st-29th, I am having my first solo art show at the fabulous Acme Gallery in Beverly Hills. It's called "Stitching Up The Noughties" and of course, I would love you all to come.
I will be showing ten of my larger-than-life postmodern samplers (one of them, "Perky Boobies", I've already posted on). Just as traditional samplers of the past gave voice to their creators' innermost thoughts, my pieces provide a highly personal perspective on how I view life today. (Topics include celebrities, tabloids, the recession and plastic surgery and more.) As of this writing, six are completed, which means I haven't quite entered the home stretch yet. Hence, the boys' skiing trip today so that I could have some uninterrupted hours sewing words onto burlap.
I finished this one last night -- can you guess what it's about from this little sneak peek?