January, 2016 | This is authentic

January 2016

My new kicks… this time for real

Saw these on my friend Toure’s Instagram and had to have them.

So they may not be the most practical sneakers on the planet, but these Stan Smiths, designed by Pharell Williams and made out of tennis ball material, are my new sneakers of choice right about now.

I bought them at BK Wearhouse, a primarily dead stock (aka limited-edition, sort-of-like-vintage-but-never-worn) sneaker and accessories shop in central Williamsburg. It’s one of those tiny spots that you walk into and then gasp audibly while you gaze wide eyed at the idiosyncratic selection of kicks, tees, patches, backpacks, etc, that all speak directly to your inner record collector. If you find yourself over in this area, you need to check this place out. You will not be sorry.

Luckily I was in a rush, or I may have left with far more than one pair of shoes. But then again, 2016 is a new year and I live within walking distance…

I am too sad to write a real post today…

music - people

David Bowie, back when he was just David Robert Jones.

My mother, who is at once one of the loveliest and least sentimental people I know, cried when Jackie O passed away back in 1994. She explained to me that she felt as if a part of her had died too. This morning, when I first heard the news about David Bowie, I finally understood exactly what she meant.

I’ll be back on track tomorrow, I’m sure. But today, I’ll leave you with this New York Times obituary and a really interesting and insightful e mail exchange I read between two writers who thought they were crafting tributes to the thin white duke after Grantland.com got a tip (back in 2012) that Mr Bowie was on his last legs and would be dying at any moment.

Terrie Gross (of NPR’s Fresh Air) of course has something meaningful to say, plus she replays some great moments from her 2002 Bowie interview:

Also this photo, which features my favorite hair incarnation:

David Bowie (1947 – 2016)

And this song, which is one of the sweetest songs ever written from a parent to a kid:

Kooks

Will you stay in our Lovers’ Story
If you stay you won’t be sorry
‘Cause we believe in you
Soon you’ll grow so take a chance
With a couple of Kooks
Hung up on romancing

We bought a lot of things
to keep you warm and dry
And a funny old crib on which the paint won’t dry
I bought you a pair of shoes
A trumpet you can blow
And a book of rules
On what to say to people
when they pick on you
‘Cause if you stay with us you’re gonna be pretty Kookie too

[CHORUS]

And if you ever have to go to school
Remember how they messed up
this old fool
Don’t pick fights with the bullies
or the cads
‘Cause I’m not much cop at punching other people’s Dads
And if the homework brings you down
Then we’ll throw it on the fire
And take the car downtown

[CHORUS (repeat ad inf.)]

Music to clear your clutter by

music

Just play this music while you re-organize your life and you will be as happy as Bill Withers is in this picture. No, really.

Clearly, one cannot be expected to get any serious de-cluttering done without a great playlist. And while everybody’s tastes differ– some people find inspiration in Taylor Swift, while others need to sing along to Carmen whilst waving their arms madly about– I say, listen to whatever works. And in that spirit, I humbly offer you (via Spotify) a slice of what I have been listening to for the past several days as I make headway in the massive never-ending project that is the re-organization of my office.

Below please find the track list, should you wish to follow along…

I Can’t Stand The Rain – Ann Peebles
Shame, Shame, Shame – Shirley & Company
Lovely Day – Bill WIthers
Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get – The Dramatics
Sweet Jamaica – Lord Kitchener
Saturday Night Fish Fry – Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five
Get Out Of My Life Woman – Joe Williams
What Is Hip? – Tower Of Power
Sunshine Superman – Donovan
The Tide Is High – Blondie
Words Of Love – The Mamas And The Papas
Reflection – Diana Ross & The Supremes
Pretty Thing – Bo Diddly
Tightrope – Janelle Monáe
I Feel Like Funking It Up – Rebirth Brass Bad

And while we’re on the topic of clearing out the old…

home

The deconstructed VHS tape, on the dining room table. How many of these do you still have aying around?

The deconstructed VHS tape, on the dining room table. How many of these do you still have laying around?

Once the juices get flowing, it’s hard to stop. My plan is to systematically go through the bags and put away or get rid of (hopefully more of the latter) all of the various papers that lurk within. Then I tackle the two file drawers in my desk. And then the bits of loose paper on the shelves.

But my husband has no such devotion to a system and is much more of an all or nothing kind of person when it comes to doing these things. So when he glanced up and saw the pile of videos o my bookshelf, he lept at them, demanding to know what kind of useless nonsense was on them.

Turns out they are all copies of an incredibly cute video that his cousin and best man Mark made for us and played at our rehearsal dinner. But we have no way to play them and most definitely don’t need more than one copy at this point. So into the trash the other copies flew.

And then right back out again, because I can’t stand the idea of that much plastic going into the landfill if I can help it. And it turns out we can recycle everything but the film… you just have to take apart the casing, which I learned how to do from this video. (What did we do before YouTube?) Granted, it took about 3 minutes a tape, but I think that’s time well spent when it comes to saving the planet, don’t you?

Yesterday, at some point…

home - photography

Another January, another attempt at clearing out all of the excess stuff in my office. This is not, to put it mildly, my first time at this particular rodeo. Nor my second. Or even my third.

But this time is going to be different. I am being kinder to myself. I’ve enlisted the help of a professional (the inimitable Martha Hayden– more about her at a later point), speaking with her over the phone for hours gathering up advice and working on gong about the project in a way that will stick. I’ve even gotten my husband (who has just left his job and is, as such, ripe for activities) into the game.

This is a huge job. It is going to take some time. We have only just begun. But we are determined to, in the words of the great Alan Rickman in Galaxy Quest:

“Never give up. Never surrender.”

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Yesterday, at some point is a series of photographs that describe a moment I experienced during the previous day. The posts are meant to be stand alone images, though at times I can’t control myself, and I end up expanding the caption into a more lengthy bit of text. Hopefully the extra information is useful, or at least interesting. If not, feel free to ignore it.

Monday, Monday– or links to my favorite Best of 2015 lists

links

So according to #2015bestnine, these are my nine most popular Instagram images for 2015. Might not have been the ones I chose, but it’s always interesting to see what the algorithms have to say…

The top 11 moments for women in pop culture in 2015, according to Time Magazine. Because girl power is all the rage these days. Finally.

This list comes out in the summer, but Saveur’s Best Food Blogs of 2015 is a list well worth pouring over.

No list of lists is complete without something from Flavorwire… Here are the esteemed listmakers’ picks for 2015′s best movie posters.

You can take Longreads.com’s list of the Best Essays and Criticism of 2015, print or download your favorites, and consider your subway reading taken care of for a couple of months at least.

And speaking of articles, here are 2015′s top 100 stories in the New York Times, by time spent.

As for music, here’s the esteemed mixmaster Diplo’s Best of 2015 Year End Mix on Soundcloud.

Last but definitely not least, I give you Brainpickings.org’s list of the Best Kids Books of 2015. To be honest, this might be the best list of children’s books I have ever seen. I want everything on it. (Thanks for the tip, @reclaimthetable!)

This is authentic - "

January 2016