she giggles
when I expect her to
she twirls
with rainbows in her hair
she cries
sometimes, because we all do
she answers
when I ask
she hugs
just right
she is my best friend
in a short and long life
Our Everyday
Sharing our stories, big and small.
It spins, it tosses, it lurches, it bumps
My stomach tumbles
Laughter escapes
Down below, the cotton candy vendor shrinks
Ringing bells quiet
I smell the sea
I stretch, I shrink, I slim, I fatten
I get lost in a maze
Crashing into walls
Balls fly into cans, horses stagger forward
The claw is clawing
Tickets stream
Pigs, horses, crayons, fish
All won with pride
Loved treasures
Persisting like the sand in our shoes
Carefree sunny days
Will warm us in winter
This is a city I never stop falling in love with, the longer I am away the fonder my heart grows. As I make home with my current city, which is actually my old city whose streets I’ve driven for the past two decades in my dad’s Mustang, my friend’s Chevette, my Odyssey, I visit my old city which is actually my new city and it somehow feels like coming home.
This is the city where you walk the crowded sidewalk with a slice of pizza, cup of Joe’s coffee or Mister Softee cone in your hand while hearing the beating drums, jazz quartet or pianist, heading to the bookstore, theater or bar then stumble upon an artist selling jewelry, paintings or music. This is a city of predictability, a city of spontaneity, a city of connection; anyone from anywhere can belong.
The National Building Museum presents a one-of-a-kind destination for visitors, an interactive architectural installation that brings the quintessential summer experience of going to the beach to downtown Washington, D.C. Spanning across the Museum’s Great Hall, the BEACH, created in partnership with Snarkitecture, will cover 10,000 square feet and include an “ocean” of nearly one million recyclable translucent plastic balls.
– National Building Museum website, August 2015
In my closet I have many shoes. I have the pair that instantly boost me a foot taller allowing me to tower over everyone, seeing heads of balding men and down women’s blouses. I have my flip flops which are essential for sunny days and sandy days, for dashing out of the house in chase of an errant child. I have my dusty Doc Martens from high school that go perfectly with my Morrissey t-shirt. I have my low boots my high boots my brown boots my black boots when I need to be stylish and practical and sophisticated and comfortable. I have my sneakers, which no one believes I own, because they are seen on the rare occasion when either outdoor exercise will occur or Toms just won’t do. And I have THE pair that goes with everything and takes me everywhere, that allow me to strut and dance, the strappy pair that stay put when swinging from chandeliers. How perfect that Jen has the same pair.
Sitting in the back of my parent’s station wagon driving to Ocean City, MD I’d stare out the window at the houses passing by wondering who lived there, imagining the clever conversations they must be having, the interesting food they must be eating and the great belly laughs that filled their sunshine filled homes. I was ten years old and I romanticized what existed in these houses, believing the lives they led were filled with TV moments. I’m not ten years old anymore but the romantic in me is still thriving. Now my lens has shifted from the houses on Route 50 to the rest of the world. Whether driving through the charming town of Valladolid or walking the tourist filled Avenue des Champs-Elysees I am equally enamored with the history and the landmarks as I am with the daily routine of those that live there.
There is still much of the world I want to see. Thanks to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival I can enjoy a curated glimpse into different countries and cultures and see the people that by simply performing their daily routine are carrying forth traditions.
“Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
– Psalms 37:4
The greatest gift a friend can give you is a friend. Your trusted and loved friend has done all the leg work; she has confirmed her humor is sarcastic, sassy, self-deprecating with a pinch of bawdiness, has the right balance of book smarts and street smarts, is earnest and gracious, enjoys a good Pinot Noir and a Hendricks and tonic, preferably at the same time, and gives good hugs.
Ellen, whom I have known since we sang religious nursery rhymes together, bestowed upon me Lisa. Lisa, an accomplished, silly, intelligent woman knows no boundaries nor lets fear anchor her. Lisa, who has inspired me since the moment I met her, is pregnant through assisted reproductive technology. Lisa is a woman who knows herself, who uses her mind to follow her heart.
We celebrated my parents 50th wedding anniversary and my father’s 80th birthday with a family trip to Cancun, Mexico. The Beloved Hotel was all-inclusive, luxurious, serene and a perfect host to our family of twenty one.
Isla Mujeres, Spanish for “Island of the Women”, is an island in the Caribbean Sea about eight miles off the Yucatán Peninsula coast. To the west the skyline of Cancún can be seen across the clear waters. The island is roughly four miles long and one half a mile wide and has approximately 12,000 inhabitants.
Mimi is mother to two boys, six year old Brett and soon to be three Levi. Whether going out to karaoke or having a backyard cookout she is always impeccably styled, with perfect hair and make-up. In college she studied Organization Management and worked in mortgage and banking until she decided to stay at home. The decision to stay at home was an easy one having grown up as an only child with parents who worked 14 hour days. As Mimi says, not only was she alone but “lacked the guidance I needed to keep me on the right path. There were many basic lessons and good habits that I should have learned in my early childhood that I didn’t grasp until my twenties.”
As a nine year old Mimi would move furniture around just to change the look of the room or make it function based on her needs. As other girls her age were reading fashion magazines Mimi was reading books on architecture and design.
Six years after leaving the workforce, twenty six years since she first started decorating in her home Mimi is beginning a new career. Through Decorating Den Mimi will create her own franchise leveraging their tools to begin her own interior design business. It was my pleasure to photograph her home as she launches her new website and launches headlong into a well planned dream.
“I use my own home as a way to express my creative side. I love to change designs according to the season or how I feel at a particular time. Nothing is ever permanent when it comes to interior design…I love that!”
Our Everyday 