Monday, December 29, 2008

slowness

 a long winter break...just the same as ever. 

sick at the beginning like always. exhausted from the exertion of the semester, my body finally gives up. by the time i'm better, i've adjusted to the new pace of time at home with the family. i'm slowed.

laziness, mixed with the annual official list of Things To Be Done:

buy the tree 
trim the tree
trim the house
do the dishes
sleep in
bake forever
clean the rooms
do the dishes
make the coffee
read the sunday times 
buy last minute gifts
go to holiday parties with the parents
do the dishes

then there are exotic chores, like walking the new dog on the path along the water, and re-discovering the old waffle iron....and eventually remembering that the first waffle always gets ruined. and remembering that i really like to cook, and proceeding to make lasagne and cookies and more waffles and potatoes and chocolate-just-about-anything.

there is the ritual cutting of my brother's hair, and also the ritual of him sitting on my feet while we watch tv, to keep them warm. really, there is a lot of tv. nature shows (everyone) dog shows (mom) movies (dad and me) and snowboarding videos, (brother) mostly. 

friends stop. time stops. work stops. there is only family. we re-learn how to be inside our family unit. we re-take up our roles. there is silver to polish for the table, and we drip wax into the bases to fit the new candles into the old candlesticks.

finally, there is dressing up and not leaving the house, as family arrives for christmas dinner. putting on fancy shoes just to wear in the living room has always felt odd.

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Friday, December 12, 2008

Edward Gorey-Worthy


Ravens. No where else in the neighborhood, nowhere else on the block. Just screaming all around my house. you can't see them all here. There were hundreds, and they were big and the sky was grey.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Monday, December 8, 2008

Balm of 100 Lovers

"The artist Dario Robleto visited us here in Los Angeles last week. He has been collecting 50 pairs of lovers' heartbeats for a while now. He took this photo of me and my boyfriend of ten years, artist Jeremy Blake, recording each others' hearts in our Venice pad.

Hearing Jeremy's heart like this was amazing, like staring through a telescope at a vast and previously undiscovered world. The beats sounded so powerful, and yet so temporary. We are just another damn song....

Dario says he will record the beats when he is done on a vinyl record, which he then will turn into a petroleum jelly that the purchaser can rub over their chest to soothe heartache.

He is selecting the couples slowly and very carefully.

The piece will be called "Balm of 100 Lovers."

From Theresa Duncan's Blog
The Wit of the Staircase
Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Dear Mr. Lovecraft,

Wednesday, December 3, 2008