my home design #1

One of my friends recently asked me what my home/design/decor style was...and I couldn't really articulate it--I feel like it varies based on what space I would be living in.  So I've begun a small series of my home inspirations, basically themes I like for where/how I want to live--once I can afford it.

Dream home pictures #1: Inspiration: Lofts...I love lofts with their huge spaces and vaulted ceilings and the idea of a huge blank canvas to build in walls wherever you want.  I love the huge windows and tons of light...and the juxtaposition of the smooth pillars, wood floors, and white walls verses the rustic brick walls and natural wood beams--I LOVE texture.  I also love the industrial ceilings where you can see all the electrical stuff*(technical word) and vents, etc.  Old town here I come...someday....close enough to the beach and yet, I'll get the NY lofty feel that I love.  In general, I love anything oversized, maybe because of my obsession with Alice in Wonderland, tangent, but anything humungous: a big mirror, huge painting, huge beams, a huge clock--I just think it looks neat, especially in such a vast space.  

Also, in general I have a pretty clean and simple approach to decor.  I don't like a lot of stuff(junk); it makes me feel claustrophobic.  I like pieces that make a statement or have a story (ie. huge/vintage).   

morning traffic report

I really don't understand why the radio traffic reporters seem so surprised by the traffic at Culver or the slowing on the 55N, or the 405 moving "at a snail's pace" every morning.  Is it really that surprising when you announce it every single morning?  It is at the very least entertaining listening to the shock and surprise that a regular and consistent slowing brings to the traffic reporter though.

Who needs talk radio when your local traffic reporter is so enthusiastic and entertaining!

car wash

In an effort to be more responsible/be an adult I decided to finally wash my car after months and months of neglect and barely so often a drive through car wash at the gas station, but needless to say my car has been dirty for close to a year, at least.  And when I said I washed my car, I meant the guys at the fancy car wash down the street washed my car--yes, I splurged on a 60-ish dollar car wash, but after a year of filth, I resolved that this was a good investment.  In an attempt to stay committed to my decision to be more responsible and take care of my car--essentially the vessel which carries my friends and I to various places near and far, I got suckered into purchasing a package deal, i.e. pay $100 now and get 6 car washes later.  I partially regret this $100 splurge, but I'd like to reframe it as an intelligent long-term investment.  Here's to car cleanliness!  

the good life

Sometimes I find it strange how impressionable I am, or maybe how easily God speaks to me through something as simple as a movie.  This evening I watched A Good Year with my mom and it reminded me how much I long for that life.  There is this strange deep yearning for a life filled with the simple joys and pleasures of good conversations, good food, good ambiance, good views, good stories, good times.  A bit slower than how I’ve grown up.  No expectations for equivalence or extravagance….just living life with people you love.  

This is a wine induced jot, either in a state of complete honesty at the core of my being or the projection of the idealization of the movie in my mind…either way, in this moment I think it might be the most wonderful thing to uproot my life for an adventure abroad, living in a villa on a vineyard in Provence.  There was something so inspiring, energizing after finishing that movie.  All I want to do is read, discuss human nature, life, God, etc. and lay by the pool all day, drink red wine and eat good cheese and walk around the vineyard at dusk, while hearing grandiose stories that could only in part be true, all the while French love songs serenading the soundtrack of my life.