"It's the table and the bed that count in life. And everything else we do, we do so we can get back to the table, back to the bed"- Marlena De Blasi. We are in the process of packing up again and will be taking our American bed. It is big with a wonderful mattress fit for a princess and a pea. It was 2010 and we were moving to New York. We had stayed one night in a tiny Holiday Inn and the next morning we asked what the brand was and immediately bought it and it is
A children's book called The Weathermonger, focuses on how society has rejected machines and has returned to a feudal system of agriculture and witch hunting, a world where machines are evil and women are uneducated, and a council is creating a world of fear. After last week, it sounds less and less like fiction. As Elif Sarah says," when societies go backwards and slide into authoritarianism, nationalism, and tribalism, machismo and sexism are also emboldened". We can only live in hope as people rise up and say 'no'. We mustn't lose our nerve.
Emerson said that, 'the earth laughs in flowers'. Years ago, I worked with an older colleague who was in a new relationship. When asked about his day, he talked about it being his girlfriend's birthday. We asked him what he had given her and he replied that she said it didn't matter about presents. From the looks on our faces he realised that he shouldn't have taken her literally! We immediately suggested flowers and called a florist for him. The next day he cheerfully told us that the bouquet was happily received. In previous ages, the language of flowers
A friend is slowly roasting in Paris with not a beach or lake in sight. Berlin friends have managed 36 degrees by sitting in a lake. We spent the day under an umbrella with salty dips in the crystal aqua sea. We are in a heatwave. As we sit inside blessing the air-conditioning, I recalled days of my youth with just a fan. School lessons endured watching friends fall asleep in the afternoon heat and nights spent on a concrete garage floor to keep cool. Relatives arrive tomorrow and we will spend the next couple of days in the
Having recently sold an apartment and now looking for a new one, real estate agents are curious about Feng Shui and sceptical at the same time. We have a lovely agent who is fascinated as she reviews why some apartments sell and why some don't. Asking the question, what is Feng Shui is a good start. It translates as wind-water, driving forces in our life energy, Chi. The oldest Chinese Feng Shui versions are complicated and based on ancient philosophy and also ancient architecture and homes! Toilets, as most ardent Feng Shui people know, are considered to be the drain
I am an urban hiker. Rather than mountains and trails which end in severe allergies, I love walking around neighbourhoods and looking at architecture, or as a friend said, "More cement!" More frequently, modern buildings are appearing with sharp, glass windows not even apologising for a lack of style or privacy. The older '70s buildings are a form of corporate prison designed to drive a worker to despair with few if any redeeming features and basically just a concrete block. Fast forward to now and massive windows seem to be the style presenting glass boxes hard to heat and
Since 2004, we have been moving. First Penang, then Geneva, New York, Berlin and finally the South of France. Over those years we have been to various meet-up groups, forum nights and various getting-to-know-people events. We realise that most of our friends have been found more by default than design. We elbow-bumped Belgians in a New York French restaurant and eight years later we meet once a year. We have our New York boys, one of whom I worked with, and we connected immediately to find we were born in the same year but two days apart. Another was
Kandinsky said, "orange is red brought nearer to humanity by yellow". As an expressionist and colourful artist, he would have known! Orange, mandarin, tangerine, all shades that throw right back to memories of the 1970s with lava lamps, daisies and ugly Tupperware. It isn't a colour you see often these days and takes some courage to use with hues leaning to red or yellow tones. In some cultures, orange represents creativity and fertility and then, in the USA, it is the colour of prisoners. On a different note, bright orange with hints of gold is a quick marketing technique
There is something about a ginger jar that makes you want to at least touch it if not put it under your arm. The soft contours and roundness are an interior designer's delight. Originally just jars, or as in Chinese, guans, the Western world used them for exporting spices such as ginger. Blue and white Asian patterns are the most popular but they are made in a range of colours and sizes, highly patterned or plain. A temple jar is taller and was originally used for ashes and with its higher shoulders and more ornate lids, they make a
Tolkien stated, "If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world." The last week has been a series of small and wonderful dining moments. It started with a planned but surprise menu with a wonderful new friend in Cannes. Each choice had been careful selected and champagne was served. A Friday night spur of the moment beach drinks ended up with four of us snacking on tapas, good wine and with a lovely sea breeze as the tide came in. The weekend finished with good food, wine and song