Little loves this week:
Loud Creole chatter at the Haitian Embassy in DC >>> Haitian crackling sense of humor
The new President-Elect Martelly was visiting and so I dropped by to see the man in the flesh. People seem to love him. Even though it was an evening reception, he gave a serious speech about his plans for governance. But the best thing about being there was being with connecting with people immediately even though I had never seen them before. Laughter bonds. Always.
Exuberant Arab music >>> I listen to Melody4Arab when I need a pick-me-up. The steps do not matter, just move your bum!
Maria Oro Cookies >>> found a little store that sells typical Spanish goods. I bought fuet, Maria cookies and morcilla (blood sausage).
Texting >>> I’m about 3 years behind but I’ve just upgraded my texting limit and I love it. It feels less distracted than with a ringing phone.
black beans and rice >>> staple Caribbean food rocks my world always
Lebanese Food
Brunette Belgian Praliné Butter Spread >>> I’m allergic to chocolate but I love the smell of Nutella
Ginger Ale >>> always reminds me of the day I came to the US and seeing my Mom for the first time after six years! :) We always drank a lot of Ginger Ale.
Camper shoes >>> I am still completely amazed at wearing 3 inch heels for 14 hours without pain. Camper, I’m at your feet.
Old Friends from University. New Friends from Haiti.
Love
Non-working week-end ahead!
These shoes are supposedly inspired by the sturdy clogs of peasants. Camper means peasant in Catalan, the language spoken in the Northeast of Spain. I need to sit down with one such peasant and find out the secrets he knows because these things are luxurious underfoot. For more Fashion love, check out Style section.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie >>> I went to town and bought all her books and read them all. Then I watched her speak and read a few magazine interviews just for good measure. I like to get a thorough look before becoming a fan :) I love this woman! (More on that later)
I loved this talk on the importance of Darkness and Light. Lighting Architect Rogier van der Heide argues that quality of a building does not have so much to do with its volume (how much stuff or people we can stuff in) but how well it allows us to remain connected to the sky, to experience the sun and natural darkness, how much it benefits the well-being of the people within it.
And what do we need for our well-being? People are like plants; we lean toward the Light. During the winter it’s common for people to feel depressed from lack of sun. It’s interesting to me that in Italian and Spanish, the term “to give birth” means “to give to the Light.” The concept of the Sun God was the most powerful in ancient Egypt. Our connection to light is so strong that Nobel Laureate Vargas Llosa wrote about a small tribe in the Peruvian Amazon, Machiguengas, who believe that their duty in life is to walk with the Sun forever. Whenever famine or any other misfortune befalls the tribe, they stand and start to walk to atone for their truancy. To keep the sun shining, one must walk. That is a belief that not everyone shares. But all beliefs are created out of necessity, out of the necessity to explain what may be beyond our control but indispensable to our lives. And so, the Light…
Building in the Complex City of Art and Sciences by Santiago Calatrava
Rogier van der Heide also talks about our sensitivity to Light and how we can use it for better healthy and greater productivity. For example schools could help kids be more alert by playing with the Blue in the lights in the environment. Rehab centers might use this knowledge to soothe or stimulate patients.
But in order to experience all this great light we must have great darkness. And so in a way he’s arguing for us to use less lighting but better lighting, which must be welcome news for environmentalists.
If we channel Light the right way, we can use where it is most needed and not overwhelm our environments. For example, the bright lights on oil rigs disturb the path of migrating birds and disrupt their ecologies.
Looks like the idea of container homes is catching on >>> Brown University and Rhode Island Innovation Center for Entrepreneurship recieves $150,000 federal grant “to explore the use of shipping containers as energy-independent, sustainable housing.”
Art Inspiring Art
The Repentant Peter painted by El Greco (above) and Goya (below). El Greco painted during the Renaissance when figures were not so much drawn from life but inspired from life. Even portraits tended to stylize or embellish the subject’s look. Consider this a 16th Century form of Airbrushing. But by the 19th Century painters became more interested in the representation of the average ordinary person and so even religious and mythical figures looked like your door neighor.
You can always recognize an El Greco painting because of this kind of lush coloring and the subject’s figures are always elongated. He made people look as if they were always reaching for the sky, toward God. He was religious man, El Greco. Goya, not so much. So he made people look the way he saw them and sometimes people soiled themselves and he didn’t mind showing that.
If you’re feeling like the week needs to be over right now, then watch this video. It feels like a vacation in three minutes. (Watch above!)
The Mountain from Terje Sorgjerd on Vimeo.
