Off-season

Tiana Beach, Hampton Bays, NY


Cupsogue Beach, Long Island, NY

Giving Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving! This year I am thankful that I beat my neighbor to the finish in the great ground floor renovation: New kitchen; redone floors; moldings; windows; paint; bathroom for her, laundry room for me - the same upheavals and stress. She started long after me, but her crew is bigger. We were both behind schedule but the last coat of paint dried on our back stairs while her guys were still going strong. November 11 2010 at 4 PM was the exact moment I closed the garage door on the last contractor, which marks the official end of the project. Unless, of course, you count that missing baseboard in the closet...

Orange and Blue

I don't know whether it's the time of year or the design zeitgeist but I'm pretty obsessed with this Termez Crewel Oscar de la Renta fabric for Lee Jofa


Of course orange and blue is a color scheme I have used before. I chose it last year for the great room.


Now I see it everywhere: Fresh and smart in this kid's room by Erika Ward via Houzzz


and in this mouthwateringly delicious scallop on ice

After a very long wait George* stopped by last night. He was supposed to come with Warren but he met with an accident and we decided to postpone his visit until the kitchen was renovated and he had a safe place to hang out.


I think he'll be sticking around for a long time.

*George Nelson Sunflower clock

Leaves

Maple leaves on a neighbor's lawn - just before the landscapers tidy up for the winter. Enjoy!

Man v Bird(s)

A plan to take breakfast at Northport Harbor, NY goes horribly awry...
There might have been other shots, many whirling birds, much flailing of arms but I was too busy laughing hysterically to shoot straight. The Palmier cookie from the Copenhagen Bakery was sacrificed in the name of self-preservation.
Man 0-Seagulls 1

North and South

More fall photography - no apologies, it's beautiful and so short... looking north


and south across the neighbor's lawn to Beach House

Peak Fall

We didn't make it upstate to see the leaves turning but even in the back yard the show is amazing at this time of year.


the hints of colour in the woods


the citrus tones of the maples on the side yard


the browns against the green hemlocks



and the deep reds and oranges towards the pool

What Once Was

"Go get your camera" the squirrel said as he sat on the branch
"I don't think so" I replied. "You'll just move while I'm gone"
"C'mon, trust me. I've been sitting here for five minutes. Do you think I'd leave now?"
"Sure, squirrels are notorious for disappearing the minute your back is turned"
"Look, I'm here, I'll stay a little longer. Do you like my bushy tail? Wouldn't you like a photo of my cute eyes, my tufty ears?"
"OK, don't move, I'm coming right back"
...

"You're still there!"
"Of course I am, I said I would be"
"Hang on while I pull the lens cap off"
...

Point. Click. Gone!

Public Places

There were a few hours on our Seattle trip when we were bug free and we made the 3 minute journey from our hotel room, down the elevator, across the lobby, over the street to the place I've had on my must-visit list since 2004: Seattle Public Library.


Apart from the cool Rem Koolhaas architecture, there's the fastest, smartest book location system, a "living room", banks of computers, dedicated teen section, a writer's room. I could go on for ever... I could have stayed forever


The children's section that has the best language resources I've ever seen


and great art, too: Mandy Greer's "Babe"


The Guy and I did a self-guided tour (there's even a podcast) but there are guided tours available that last about an hour, too.


We split up eventually and met later outside the meting room. I recognised The Guy because he was the only non-rouge item on that floor.


The library people are so friendly - they really seem proud of their library and want to show it off - even security was happy. If I worked here, I'd be pretty damn buoyant as well.

Seattle: What happened?

I'll just say that if you have to get 24 hours of unrelenting stomach 'flu and if you are unfortunate enough to be away from home, I would recommend the Seattle Renaissance, Suite 2710 as the place to be because when you're eventually able to open your eyes without the room spinning you will have this fantastic view of the city.


And this one, towards Pioneer Square, too.


You can watch the weather roll in from every angle for the next day or so while you recover. Looking across Puget Sound by day


and night


until it's time to leave.

Seattle, where are you?

An hour ago we could see Puget Sound and The Space Needle, now we're cocooned in the clouds up here on the twenty-seventh floor.

Peace

Appropriately, on Armistice Day November 11 2010 after days of pounding surf that made Long Island Sound look like the North Sea, the wind dropped and the water became calm again. I escaped from the chaos that was the final day of painting and out at West Neck Beach I took this shot of the sun reflected on the bay. Light against dark; perfect peace.

Foamy

Refreshing, invigorating, sparkling - almost as good as a glass of champagne but a lot saltier!

Blown Away

Yesterday's beach walk was abandoned due to strong winds whipping the sand into our eyes... but at least I remembered the camera to capture that one gull riding the waves!

Draught free

via Decorexi

I had to ask the help of the twitterverse and facebook so I could write this quick post. Thanks Jenni for the correct answer and Heidi for making me spill my drink.
Yesterday while I was screwing up the last socket plate in the mud room/back hall I noticed a howling draught coming from under the garage door. Since the hardwood was installed and a new bullnose on the garage steps there has been a small gap that we hadn't noticed until now. Apart from the draught I didn't want our energy bills to increase so we needed to find a solution pronto. That's when I realised that "draught excluder" is British English and the locals had no idea what I needed. I was offered weather stripping that goes around windows and even a stuffed dachsund. It was also suggested I roll up a towel and stuff that in front of the door - great for when the door is closed, not so good when I've left in the car and there's no one to put it back in place after me!
Anyhow, after weighing up the options I had a Eureka moment and remembered I'd seen a metal strip with rubber attached in the back of the book closet and I wondered if we could screw it to the underside of the door rather than the bottom as a "draft stop". The answer was we could and, even better, it fitted perfectly. Hey presto, no more draught - in the nick of time for this morning's hail/sleet/snow/howling wind weather extravaganza. I have since learnt this strip is called a door sweep, I call it magic.

Tide's In

We were denied our morning beach walk twice this week for no reason other than poor planning on my part meant we arrived at high tide both days. But what a difference twenty four hours can make. Yesterday the wind was whipping up the waves and the gulls were buffeted up and down the water's edge.
Today it was so calm I could see two swans bobbing on the water as I approached the end of the road. Twenty gulls and terns of various species and sizes were perched along the shoreline and a couple of ducks waddled out for a dip; the dogs and I stood and watched as a grey heron flew over the sound from Lloyd's Harbor, circled and landed on a strip of sand amongst the other seabirds.
Of course today was also the day I forgot to take along my camera...

The Knives are out

No, not a reference to the election (Go Vote!), but these uniquely fabulous knives from Swedish bladesmith Johan Knives. Damascus Hunter has a Mosaic Damascus blade with birch root handle, $1900.


Take a closer look at the fantastic, intricately worked designs on the Mosaic Damascus blades.


Too gorgeous to hunt with, Red Fantasy is a work of art complete with gold-plated srews and a price-tag to match $3200.

via Thrillist