Hers & His

Hers

Read:

Over the weekend, I started reading One-Woman Farm: My Life Shared with Sheep, Pigs, Chickens, Goats, and a Fine Fiddle by Jenna Woginrich. From what I understand, several years ago Jenna Woginrich literally had my job as a graphic designer at Scripps. But after several years of corporate life, she decided to leave the cubicle behind and buy her own farm in Washington County, New York. This book is about her first year on that farm, and (blame the Green Acres complex) I have been completely enchanted with it. She talks very poetically about the tasks that fill her days from one October to the next, but she also describes a completely different way of thinking about time.

Farmers have different hours, holidays, and seasons than those of us that sit inside from 9 to 5 everyday. One such “holiday” of sorts that she mentions in the beginning of book has really stuck with me: “Days of Grace.”

“…the Days are what farmers in this area call the time of year between fall’s fireworks and the first snowfall–when everything in nature is in a state of transition and naked waiting. This fragile period is a window of reverent preparation, a gift of last chances to farmers in our four-season climate to get everything done before the winter nails us.”

Transitions have been front and center in my mind as of late. As Husband continues his job search, and I try to jump on every opportunity that comes across my desk, I keep thinking that this odd little limbo we’re in will eventually produce a clear picture. But what exactly are we doing to prepare for it?

Missed:

Ah NYC, the land of arts & culture… Yesterday in the sculpture garden at the MoMA a garden party was held for 2 of my favorite artists: Maira Kalman & Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket). It was a 1930s-style soiree to celebrate Maira and Daniel’s new book published in partnership with the museum: Girls Standing on Lawns. (You can view some pics from the party on @MoMA_Live‘s twitter.) The book is full of photographs from the museum’s “vernacular photography” collection as well as new original paintings by Kalman and prose by Handler. (I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy!)

I’d also suggest reading this piece on how the book came to be by the MoMA’s Charles Kim.

Listen:

While we’re on the subject: If you’ve never heard this Fresh Air interview with Daniel Handler, stop everything and listen now.

Need a little enticement? There is an accordion version of a Prince’s “When Doves Cry,” and at one point Mr. Handler references the fact that “And then I hit puberty, which wrecked my career as a boy soprano.” Not to mention the fact that Terry Gross giggles like a little school girl for the better part of the hour.

Watch:

Maira and Daniel performing an Ode to Libraries…

His

Watch:

Thanks to Amazon Prime teaming up with HBO, I’ve finally started “The Wire”. Thanks to a wicked cold last week, I had a lot of time to watch “The Wire”. It’s realistic, gritty, and just as amazing as everyone has said.

Plus–Idris Elba. Speaking of, if you like Mr. Elba and “The Wire”, you must check out “Luther” from the BBC. It is streaming on Netflix. Don’t watch it late at night. You’ve been warned.

Listen/Reading:

I stumbled back across this on the radio the other day and the poem inside hit all the feels. Hindemith’s Sonata for Alto Horn and Piano has a dialogue poem to start the fourth movement. When I performed it on my college recital we skipped the poem (since I played it on saxophone it made a little less sense), but it really stood out to me as I heard the recording.

The Posthorn (Dialogue)

Horn Player:
Is not the sounding of a horn to our busy souls
(even as the scent of blossoms wilted long ago,
or the discolored folds of musty tapestry,
or crumbling leaves of ancient yellowed tomes)
like a sonorous visit from those ages
which counted speed by straining horses’ gallop,
and not by lightening prisoned up in cables;
and when to live and learn they ranged the countryside,
not just the closely printed pages?
The cornucopia’s gift calls forth in us
a pallid yearning, melancholy longing.

Pianist:
The old is good not just because it’s past,
nor is the new supreme because we live with it,
and never yet a man felt greater joy
than he could bear or truly comprehend.
Your task it is, amid confusion, rush, and noise
to grasp the lasting, calm, and meaningful,
and finding it anew, to hold and treasure it.

Hers & His

Hers

Reading:

I’m finally reading Julia Child’s My Life in Paris, and I cannot believe it has taken me so long! I bought the book in 2009, the year Julie and Julia came out–such a stereotype. That was also when I fell in love with the cookbooks but, not being an avid reader until recently, I’m just now picking it up. The way she describes the food and the markets is, of course, completely enchanting. But what I’ve really loved is her little observations. Here are two that I wrote down in my notebook…

[Speaking of her walks with her husband Paul, an artist] “I discovered that when one follows the artist’s eye one sees unexpected treasures in so many seemingly ordinary scenes.”

“In late 1949, the newspapers informed us that something called “television” was sweeping the States like a hailstorm. People across the country, the papers said, we’re building ‘TV rumpus rooms’… in order to sit around for hours watching this magical new box. …When we read an article about the horrifying effects of TV on American home life…”

Watching:

Speaking of television. I have serious, hardcore fangirl feelings for Mindy Kaling. And the season finale of The Mindy Project is Tuesday night, y’all! Last week I tweeted this after watching Mindy throw a mug out the window because there was a bug in it…

I love the @MindyProjectFOX because I am The Mindy Project. @mindykaling

— Hannah B. (@HB_Belle) April 30, 2014

Side Note: If you haven’t read it yet, her book will make you laugh out loud! It’s a total must read.

His

Reading:

I’ve been reading Bart Ehrman’s How Jesus Became God. I must admit, I started it feeling very separated from religion, but as I’ve read this skeptics historic view I’ve come to question many of his arguments. The historic norm doesn’t necessarily mean the historic every time, most notably as it applies to Joseph of Arimathea. Never underestimate the power of rich friends. That being said, still keep me firmly in the ecumenical camp. Religion, like style, is a highly personal thing.

Watching:

Sorry.
Can’t talk.
I DVR’d 24.

Hers & His

His:

Listening

I heard a podcast a couple of weeks ago that really stood out and motivated me, and I plan on going back and listening one more time: Alton Brown talks with Robert Sparks about art and art collecting. Hannah and I have always been interested in surrounding ourselves with beautiful things, but also that it is a duty for people to support artists by buying their work. Too often people thing “I can make that”, or something similar, but if you like the art don’t steal the idea–buy it and support the creator.

Watching

The grass grow (or not).

Reading

Hannah recently bought me a beautiful edition of “The Catcher in the Rye”. This is one I missed in school (not that I likely would have read it had it been assigned. I’ve made a commitment to myself to go back and read or reread some standards of literature now that I’m a little less, well, a little less of a Holden.

Hers:

Listening

I really love cool podcasts and have recently become addicted to one in particular: The Dinner Party Download. Each week hosts Rico Gagliano and Brendan Francis Newnam share news, stories, and even cocktail recipes and etiquette lessons to help you dazzle friends and strangers alike at the next dinner party you attend. The pace is quick and the guests are always fantastic. (Particular favorites recently include: BJ Novak reading a piece from his new book and Wes Anderson talking about his new film.)

Listening

Ok, I know not everyone is as into podcasts as I am, but there’s one more that I loved hearing recently. It was all about I Love Lucy and was a part of Studio 360’s American Icons series. Basically, it gave a lot of the history behind how the show was made but, more than that, how it has influenced everything that came after– female lead, characters seeking fame, an interracial couple, Cuba. And then this, which I watch every time I start to get really cynical about this great country of ours (which Husband can tell you is often)…

(Watching)

Other Places Hannah’s Been Lately:

HGTV’s Design Happens

Today on HGTV, we’re celebrating the launch of Spring House. There is a ton of gorgeous inspiration designed by Brian Patrick Flynn and put together by Kayla Kitts. To get in on the fun several bloggers, including myself, styled bar carts. You can see my casual faux bar cart here.

Made + Remade

March was “Wear It” month on Made + Remade, and I had the privilege of interviewing designer, knitter, & author Emma Robertson for our Creative Genius series. See the Q&A here.

How YA Fiction Works

Attention fellow bibliophiles, my friend Casey recently launched a blog: How YA Fiction Works. I was lucky enough to help her pull together the look for her new site where she analyzes what works (and so often doesn’t) about Young Adult fiction. Be sure to click over and check it out.

(You may also want to follow Casey on twitter: @CaseyMarieNYC. Her thoughts in 140 characters or less are among my favorites.)

Hers & His

Hers

Reading

Have you ever been in the midst of a conversation and thought to yourself, “Am I actually losing brain cells right now? Didn’t I used to be smarter than this?” I felt this way the other night when I was watching the engagement party episode of Parks & Recreation and found myself analyzing the top 5 reasons I thought it was one of the best examples of situation comedy ever. (Seriously: the unity quilt… We’re a twizzlers family…? Come on!)

So when I started reading My Fair Lazy this weekend I thought, “This is soooo the book I need right now!” It begins with the writer, Jen Lancaster, sitting across from her idol, Candace Bushnell who says she’s really into Baudelaire at the moment. Jen wonders, is baudelaire is a type of noodle? At which point, she decides to culture up.

2 Things:

1.) You may remember that I fell in love with Jen Lancaster last fall when I read The Tao of Martha. Now, thanks to my friend Beth’s fabulous recommendation, Jen is officially on my ‘favorite literary people’ list, and I will be reading all of her books in good time.

2.) A warning: Jen’s books are not good for bedtime reading as you will wake up your bedmate with laughter.

Watching (About Reading)

This week, the New Yorker debuted the trailer for B.J. Novak’s first book. As if I wasn’t already excited enough to read this one, Mindy Kaling co-starred in the trailer making those two my favorite BFFs on the inter webs.

Watching (& Eating)

Things I already believed, but now buy into wholeheartedly after a couple days of processed foods while on vacation. Make things at home.

His:

Reading

I’ve been rereading a book of essays that I forgot I had already read, and I’m finding it quite forgettable again. Hannah bought me a couple of classics that I never got to in high school that I can’t wait to get to. Perhaps Catcher in the Rye will will finally change my life forever.

Watching

I finally started watching House of Cards. I don’t know why I waited this long. Princess Buttercup comes to the dark side to join Congressman Keyser Söze. Inconceivably (see what I did there?) addictive, as Netflix shows have tended to be.

Listening

Sometimes you just need to listen to some fun music, and this week NPR released 600 suggestions for your cabin fever playlist. Thanks NPR for the suggestions, but I’ll just stick with Tower Of Power.

Hers & His

Hers

Reading:

For January’s book club, I’ve been reading David Sedaris’ latest: “Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls.” I really love satire and also prefer reading non-fiction so I adore his writing. However, from what I’ve heard, this has been pretty controversial read among the ladies so tomorrow night’s meeting should be pretty entertaining.

Listening:

The series of events that led me to this one are better suited for a longer post(s). But recently I was excited to come across the audio for Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union. It was the speech that laid out the famous “Four Freedoms” less than a year before America joined the Allies in World War II…

Freedom of Speech
Freedom of Worship
Freedom from Want
Freedom from Fear

This speech/policy not only inspired the famous quartet of Norman Rockwell paintings but also seems to have shaped America’s foreign policy from here on out. All that to say, this one speech has led me down a bit of a rabbit hole that has been so much fun! Does that ever happen to you? One nerdy thing leads to another and suddenly you find yourself researching a period in history you don’t know enough about?

Watching:

I have this theory that Netflix is both the best and worst thing ever. In the seven years since we became subscribers, we’ve obsessively watched and subsequently fallen in love with Frasier, Parks & Recreation, The West Wing, and (most recently) Psych. After 2 weeks of binge watching, I have a new favorite show.

His

Reading:

We stay up way too late, way too often. I blame most of this on Craig Ferguson. The Late Late Show is like PeeWee’s Playhouse for people that grew up with PeeWee’s Playhouse. The normally silly Craig can also get serious, like when he eulogized his father or interviewed Desmond Tutu. All of this watching led me to his autobiography. Introspective, honest, and always funny–this is a story about overcoming addiction, but it also seems to me to be a man learning to be at peace with who he was and learning how that shapes who he is.

Listening:

I’ve had the opportunity to spend some more time playing piano recently (as positive a spin as I can put on this job search), so I’ve been listening to Rachmaninoff like this. Aggression, much?

Watching:

Our Sunday was a fun day of relaxing after a rather overindulgent Saturday. We did decide to open a bottle of wine as we re-watched Bottle Shock–a fun movie worth the time from Netflix. Mostly because, well, hooray wine.

Hers & His

Hers

Reading:

I am always the first to admit that I’m a huge Disney fangirl. At the moment, that fact is most apparent when looking at my stack of books. After all, what better way to get ready for the December 20th premiere of Disney’s Saving Mr. Banks than to reread all the Mary Poppins books? Don’t tell me I’m alone here!

Will you be reading Mary Poppins before December 21st?

If you want to read along, here’s my list…

Mary Poppins
Mary Poppins Comes Back
Mary Poppins Opens the Door
Mary Poppins in the Park
Mary Poppins from A to Z
Mary Poppins in the Kitchen: A Cookery Book with a Story

Wearing:

Do y’all remember when Lady Gaga used to just waste her crazy on things like giant eggs and Madonna bras? Well this holiday season, she has endeared herself to me forever. Sure her Christmas special with the Muppets was weird, but America loves a girl who will live out her childhood fantasy on television wearing an inappropriately sexy outfit! And, now she’s dressing as a Christmas tree. A CHRISTMAS TREE! Check out the detail shots on PopSugar. Who else wants their own version?

Watching:

The NYTimes has been putting out some really great short films lately. Last week, I was mesmerized by these star-studded, one-minute films. This week, I am swooning over Joanna Coles’ executive assistant Sergio Kletnoy. If you have ever fantasized about living in Magazine Land, you must check it out!

His

Reading:

Uh, it was championship Saturday. Give me a break. And Go Spartans! (I NEVER thought I would say those words.)

Otherwise, make sure you are following @RealTimeWWII on Twitter. Follow along while they “live” tweet the war. Japan has just bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States has declared war. Whether or not you’re a history buff, it’s worth a spot in your feed.

Listening:

This is one of those recordings I just keep going back to. Darryl Brenzel’s “Re-(w)rite of Spring” – a jazz rewrite of Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”. If you know and appreciate the original, this is going to blow you away. Check it out: http://open.spotify.com/user/123470565/playlist/5vkkn1q7wQxFYUKodHmnZf

Watching:

Did I mention football? Has Hannah had enough football? Why don’t you ask her how much she loves football?

Hers & His

Hers

Reading:

Our most recent book club pick was Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan. I’ve really enjoyed it, and I think one of the main reasons is because I didn’t know a thing about the plot beforehand. I am never one to read adult fiction and, if I do, I have a tendency to read the last chapter first. (It’s all very Harry Burns, I know.) So if you’re looking for a good read or a good listen (I have the audiobook), I’d highly recommend it. Bonus: If you actually buy the physical book, the cover glows in the dark! All 10 of us gathered in my teensy half-bath the other night just to see.

Listening:

If you are looking for the perfect background music to take away the stress of this holiday week, then you’re in luck! I cannot stop listening to The Ellington Suites–three suites composed by Duke Ellington, one he wrote for Queen Elizabeth after they’re meeting in 1958.

Watching:

Each year, we host Thanksgiving at our house, and this year I’m going to try something I’ve never done before: brining the bird. Needless to say, I went straight to the master.

His

Reading:

Ever since I finished The Imperial Cruise by James Bradley (fascinating book that will make you hate Theodore Roosevelt, a bit disjointed writing) I’ve been fascinated by who we classify as heros or villains and why. When I came across I Wear the Black Hat: Grappling with Villains (Real and Imagined) by Chuck Klosterman, I couldn’t resist. Rethink villains and heros, super and regular, with this book.

Listening:

We caught this performance on the Late Late Show, and I haven’t been able to stop listening to The Bomb Shelter Sessions since. Plus, in this video, the lead singer is wearing a peacock pocket square. Boss.