Blogger Diary: Five Memories, Five Entries

In the last three weeks I’ve found beauty in unexpected places, learned a few new things, and caught up with some people that I love very much. My heart looks back on the memories fondly.

1. A weekend trip to NYC reunited me with a long-time friend. We stayed up till sunrise, sat on her roof, hit up the Brooklyn Flea, and of course, stuffed our faces with much needed brunch at Chez Oskar. There was entirely too much laughing and impersonating of funny accents. It was a great visit. 

 

2. I picked up this month’s Whole Living magazine which is always fun to flip through. I loved this opener on green news across the country:

Did you know that Chicago O’Hare airport now has an aeroponic vertical garden (equipped with grow lights and a water-recycling system)? Many of the restaurants in the airport actually serve the produce that it yields.

Did you also know that you can’t buy water bottles at the Grand Canyon anymore? Because of all the waste, they want to encourage visitors to bring reusable water bottles instead.

Check out the article for the rest. :)

 

3. This month’s highlight show: Woods at Johnny Brenda’s

I got caught in the rain biking there and showed up covered in dirt from the splashes. It stopped mattering the minute I stepped inside.  The crowd’s jubilant energy was intoxicating, and to end the show, they played a cover of Knockin on Heaven’s Door by Guns n Roses. It was one that will definitely go down in the memory books.

 

4. My dad came into town for a weekend. He took me shopping like all good dads do. I actually took this second photo at the mall. I looked up at the skylight, and its beauty stopped me in my tracks. Just goes to show that beautiful things can pop up at any point in life, even in the most unexpected of places.

My dad has always been a lover of this kind of beauty. When I was younger I used to get annoyed when he’d get distracted and stop to look at something. He’s the type who will examine a tree’s leaves or bend over to smell a flower. Now I love it. When I’m with him I notice things I’ve never seen before – like these roses. He pointed them out as we were walking to my apartment. Funny, I walk by them several times a week and never notice. Apparently they’re the very old kind of rose, one that you don’t see as much anymore, he told me.

 

5. Lastly, I finally made it to the Van Gogh Exhibit here in Philadelphia. We bought tickets over a month ago for closing weekend, and had to wake up early on a Saturday morning to go. It was well worth it. I’ve always loved him, but seeing so many of his works in one place was amazing. He was truly a genius – a kind soul full of talent and interesting thoughts. I learned a lot from the audio about his interest in nature’s minute details; he was obsessed with capturing them and giving nature the “attention it deserves.” It set my brain to thinking.

We exited the museum, chests puffed with inspiration, to this striking view of the city. The haze surrounded the buildings with an ominous presence. We walked all the way home, discussing Van Gogh, and it didn’t stop there. When we got back, I pulled out my Van Gogh coffee table book and we flipped through for another while. It’s amazing that his paintings have had the power to captivate so many people across so many years. And captivated I am, he’s amazing.

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Cally
11 years ago

Your thought about your dad reminds me of myself.. I am always the odd ball pointing out flowers, vines..rocks.. etc :)

11 years ago

Sounds like my past week! Hung out with an old friend, visited with my mom and pops, read whole living mag, and went to philly (got stuck there for 10 hours at the airport!!)
I love the personal touch :)

9 years ago

Cool blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere?
A theme like yours with a few simple tweeks would really make my blog shine.
Please let me know where you got your design. Thanks