Friday, February 25, 2011

Film Friday

theresa &adam

Well, I didn't get a chance to scan any pictures this week, so another one from what I can find.

My high school friend Theresa and my fella at a party a good 10 years ago.
Theresa lives out here, in the interior; I haven't seen her. I've been out here 3 years but haven't really left the lower mainland at all.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Teal time

Vancouver has funny weather. In the spring time especially it can get beautiful and sunny in February, which always convinces me it's going to stay that way forever. The last few days have been just that, and even though I'm sure within the week it will go back to grey and rainy/snowy I can't help but hope!
I generally ring in the spring with colour, and I love these photos (c/o the sartorialist) with their bright, bold colours (that mustard again!).

sartorialist

sartorialist

sartorialist

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Chloe Reads

I've always been a pretty huge bookworm. In the last few years though I've realized that I have a hard time reading if I'm sad, or have something stressing me out. The last little while for me has included both of these emotions, and as a result I have not read much.

As I mentioned recently, I just finished Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood, which was the first book I finished since probably about November.
This is unacceptable! And so to mimic the popular CBC tradition of Canada Reads, I bring you Chloe Reads: bookshelf edition.

I have banned myself from buying or borrowing books from the library until I read (at least) 5 of the books I already own. I'm also aiming to get them all read within 2 months (which I feel is more than enough time really...just setting myself up for success).

My selected 5:
books

Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf - just one of those books I've been meaning to read for ages.

A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George - I was given this book from a family member. I was raised on a steady diet of British mysteries and in the last two years I've read a lot of PD James so this seems like something I'll enjoy. I started it last night actually and I think it'll be a nice quick read.

Wide Saragasso Sea by Jean Rhys - I've read a lot of her already. Most of what I've read by her I think I did in my hostel room in Thunder Bay, which is kind of fitting really. This is actually one of her better known books it seems.

The Blessing by Nancy Mitford - I haven't read anything by her before. A couple years back I got into the Mitford sisters and the crazy life they all lead. When I was back home recently I noticed this book and grabbed it.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte - again, another from that list of classics to be read.

I didn't set out to pick all lady authors, but there you have it.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Film Friday - USA

21
Chicago bus station, summer 2009.
Lomo LCA+

With no work today, I was still up early with Minnie. I've spent the morning indulging in daytime TV and seeing loads of commercials for President's Day sales. So in honour of the upcoming American holiday, an appropriately American picture.

I have tons of photos, but no access to a scanner right now, so I've been relying heavily on all the pictures I scanned of my train trip. By next week I'm going to try and get some stuff scanned so I'll have a wider array of stuff to show off.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

February so far

reading
Finished Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood (even with frequent bulldog interruption).
I'd only read The Handmaid's Tale by her, and was feeling a bit like a bad Canadian, so I asked Mary for a recommendation. I thought it was great; I've realized I really like books set years ago when the author gets into the customs and norms of the time.

kintaro
Me and Adam finally made it to Kintaro Ramen.
This is one of those places that's on a lot of "must see" lists for Vancouver. It's a tiny place that serves massive bowls of soup. It was amazing.

valentines
Spent the day before Valentine's crafting up some cards for friends. I've only actually delivered two so far.

miss minnie
Minnie Pearl modeling a lovely Yarn Over Movement bow.
Spent the 14th volunteering and then hanging around home with Adam and Minnie. I realized about a week before that this was actually my and Adam's 10th Valentine's together, so I decided to recreate our first one. I came home from school and he had bought kielbasa, dill havarti and little bottles of champagne that we ate with some triscuits on his couch.
All these years later it still made for just as lovely an evening.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Cosmic.


The other day the always interesting Skepchick blog posted a link to some amazing photos of heart-shaped astronomical objects.

Adam recently bought a pretty awesome telescope, which he hopes to use for some astral photography. Owing to Vancouver's oft-cloudy climate, I have yet to really see anything through it, but this weekend is supposed to be clear and the moon quite full so I'm gearing up for some awe.
Our goal is to see the rings of Saturn. Apparently near the beginning of April they're supposed to be the most visible. The thought of being able to see them gets me way more excited than I could have thought possible, and has had me obsessing over all things space as of late.

solar system quilt

Solar system quilt

This Solar System quilt from 1876 (!!) is just amazing. Even more amazing is that the woman who made it, Ellen Harding Baker, used the quilt as a visual aid when teaching astronomy.

Hand and Shadow
More loveliness from Hand and Shadow. Sadly these scarves, which use images from the Hubble telescope as inspiration, aren't available at present. Please come back!

Christopher Kane
This Christopher Kane skirt is perfection. But with a price tag over a grand, it's the stuff of dreams. Starry dreams.

Friday, February 11, 2011

Film Friday - Old school

old school
Me, Mary, Chandis and Haley in the back there.
This was the morning after a sleep over (which is why I'm holding a pillow) during grade 9, so 1996-1997. The four of us, plus one or two other gals went through about a year long phase where we had sleep overs pretty regularly. Generally they consisted of us watching goofy movies, eating junk, doing routines along to Spice Girls and BSB (all ironically, of course) and sometimes recording the whole ordeal on Haley's video camera.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Hair, pt 2

My hair is fine. I'll be hard pressed to get it to do anything but lay sleekly on my head. Of course, a lot of girls would kill for hair that does that. But, because we're never happy with our lot in life, I dream of big hair: cascading waves, luscious curls, thick and heavy plaits.

Hand and Shadow

Hand and Shadow

These tangled hair scarves and tshirts from Vancouver's Hand and Shadow are particularly lovely.

Jenny Mortsell
Illustration by Jenny Mortsell

Audrey Kawasaki
The girls of Audrey Kawasaki often have enviable locks.

Jeannie Phan

Jeannie Phan

When I was younger I cut a good 8 inches off my hair and kept the braid. My dad was squeamish about cut hair, and I could use the braid to gross him out on command.
These illustrations by Jeannie Phan have a beautiful/creepy quality that reminded me of that.

victorian-hair-jewelry

And speaking of beautiful/creepy, I dream to one day have a collection of Victorian mourning pieces.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Hair, pt 1

I apologize for my absence. As I mentioned briefly on Friday, I was working a lot last week. Every day of the week actually, which is the first time that's happened since I became a TOC, so hooray! But, that combined with puppy duty left me with little energy. I actually wasn't even on the computer that much, which was good actually. I read more.

This past spring/summer there was an exhibit at the Vancouver Art Gallery, "The Modern Woman: Drawings by Degas, Renoir, Toulouse-Lautrec and Other Masterpieces from the Musee d'Orsay, Paris". I'm most familiar with Degas, and it was really interesting to see his drawings; just the very beginnings of all those famous paintings, and how they changed from those early sketches to the finished piece.

Growing up my parents had a Degas print in their bedroom:
Edgar-Degas-After-the-Bath--Woman-Drying-Herself-5792
After the Bath

My mum had a nightly ritual of a bubble bath before bed. My bedroom was right next to the bathroom, so the sound of the running water became a sort of lullaby for me, and I'd eventually have trouble falling asleep without hearing it. When I was younger I had very long hair, which knotted terribly. It was a common ritual also, for me to be sitting in front of my mum while she worked out all the mats.
The familiarity of that one Degas print, along with his common themes of bathing and hair combing have led me to love those paintings of his.

hair_combed

DegasBath

degas33

55

degas.combing-hair

degas_combing_hair1


Friday, February 4, 2011

Film Friday - LCA

7

Taken inside the MOMA.
For the first time since becoming a TOC in Vancouver I worked every day this week; the last 3 at a nearby alternative school.
While very interesting and rewarding (intellectually and financially) , I am damn tired. And I probably uttered this phrase a million times today.
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