8/29/12

back in mn...eating food on a stick


i made it...my stuff made it...totally EXHAUSTED...real pictures and postings coming soonish. luckily, i had a chance to get initiated into MN life at the state fair today!

8/26/12

upon leaving philly...my last day! thank you!



dear philly:

how do i say goodbye to such a uniquely wonderful and complex place? first, i'm glad that you have seen me through some really good and some really bad times over the last 11+ years i've called you my home. second, please don't doubt that i'll miss you and the amazing people i have met here...probably when i least expect it. except the humidity, i will not miss your humidity.

this day to leave came so quickly that i didn't have a chance to do all of the things on my "philly bucket list" - but i look forward to continuing to cross them off on my (many i'm sure) upcoming visits. and don't worry, i'll always be an eagles fan.

my love, sara
-------------------------------------
since i will be mired in the moving process for the next few days, i'm going to limit my presence here to sporadic posting and will be back in regular action after labor day. thanks!!

8/16/12

leaving philly...T-11 days! rivers & fountains!


i am knee-deep in boxes...literally! it's time to focus on my move and thus take a break from the regular blog schedule. so, on each of my last 11 (!!) days i'm going to post some pictures highlighting my philly favorites...starting now! the theme today is WATER aka rivers & fountains! philly has the delaware river on the east side and the schuylkill river on the west side. fun fact: the delaware river is tidal and sometimes smells like the ocean!

8/15/12

a picture & a poem: caroline caddy!

Editing the Moon by Caroline Caddy
---------------
Be precise
authority is magic.
When you think you've got it straight
wax wane declination
feel the movement under your hand
one summer morning
as you observe it set
then rise that night.
Always use a well-sharpened pencil
followed by a good eraser.
Watch the white emerge.

(poem source)

8/14/12

artistic appreciation: miranda july!


i went to the venice biennale in 2009 and (hands down) one of my favorite installations was by american artist miranda july. ms. july (left, in the above photo) seems to both challenge and engage her audience, often in ways that make viewers/participants feel uncomfortable...or ways that make people laugh. to me, her interactive piece in venice was a celebration of humanity...the ups/downs and good/bad and the hidden/exposed. here are a few of my favorites from her "eleven heavy things":

8/10/12

friday fab/five: wishlist!



(my birthday is coming up, so this is a little fantasy "birthday wish list" fab/five.)

1. a new watch: i still rub my wrist expecting my lost watch to be there. ghost watch. this whimsically/modern watch by biegert & funk would be a delightful replacement.

2. manicure: boy, if celebrating your birthday is not an excuse to get a zany manicure, i don't know what is! some great tutorials here.

3. necklaces: stunning!

4. a new iphone case: i've featured society6 on the blog before, but really they have the most beautiful cases.

5. being nice: sometimes i wish that we would all be nicer to each other (and ourselves) more often...and say nice things to each other more often...and help each other out more often. it's easy to get frustrated with humanity, but it's also easy to smile at a stranger and mean it.

( 2 via pinterest // 3 // 5 )

8/9/12

just because...geometric tattoos!

i mean, so cool right?

( 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 )

ear candy: fleet foxes!


i'm working on a music mix to give to my philadelphia friends, but there are just way TOO many songs on it right now. how do i edit out all the tunes that reflect my time here or songs that evoke memories...like the time i danced to "moves like jagger" for a friend when she was feeling sleepy. i showed her MY best moves!

one band with 4 or 5 songs currently on the list is fleet foxes. perhaps they are so well represented  because they have (hushed) layered epic sounding songs which are perfect for my epic journey! speaking of travel...the chevron points the way with these wood earrings from scarlet garnet.

8/8/12

a picture & a poem: dana gioia!


Reunion by Dana Gioia
----------------------
This is my past where no one knows me.
These are my friends whom I can’t name—
Here in a field where no one chose me,
The faces older, the voices the same.

Why does this stranger rise to greet me?
What is the joke that makes him smile,
As he calls the children together to meet me,
Bringing them forward in single file?

I nod pretending to recognize them,
Not knowing exactly what I should say.
Why does my presence seem to surprise them?
Who is the woman who turns away?

Is this my home or an illusion?
The bread on the table smells achingly real.
Must I at last solve my confusion,
Or is confusion all I can feel?
(poem source)

8/7/12

artistic appreciation...theo altenberg!


these paintings by german artist theo altenberg make me want to listen to atmospheric music and stare at all their dreamy magic of oil on cardboard.

8/3/12

friday fab/five: water bottles/eagles/library/cuffs, etc.!



1. water bottles: seriously, i have lost too many to count...in all kinds of crazy places, but i am such a water-aholic that i feel like something is missing when i don't have my water bottle with me! especially on these super hot days. this addiction is a double-edged sword...i basically have all the public bathrooms in philly mapped out! i'm partial to the metal bottle from sigg.

2. E-A-G-L-E-S: wow, realized this week that football preseason is right around the corner! and while i am moving back to MN...i vow to remain a diehard eagles fan. once and eagles fan, always an eagles fan.

3. events @ the free library on pinterest: my favorite folks from the free library have created a pinterest account...you should follow them and get your literary fix.

4. cuffs AKA big bracelets: these are all over etsy/pinterest/tumblr...a few drool worthy options are available here and here and here.

5. the olympics: it's hard to ignore the triumph and the tragedy happening in london right now. even the royal family is getting caught up in the spectacle!

(images 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5)

8/2/12

books i read last month...


what a great month of reading...all hits and no misses!

8/1/12

a picture & a poem: todd boss


We Tend to Sleep Better When the Clock is Wound by Todd Boss
----------
than we do
when it’s all

wound down.
I don’t know

why we settle
to the sound.

Somehow
the regular

click and chime
of passing time,

like water, turns
a water wheel

that turns a gear
that turns a stone

that turns upon
another stone

and fine
and finer in between

our dreams like grain
are ground.

(poem source)