Author Archives: stanfordblog

My top five travel destination choices…

04 Tuesday Jan 2011

Posted by in Photography, Travel

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

,

We love travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls. – Anais Nin

I love to travel! Every year I try to visit at least one destination on my ever-expanding and evolving list of places to see. It took nine years from when I first decided to visit Australia and New Zealand until I was able to arrange the time off for the month-long trip, so my choices below may be overly-ambitious.

TOP FIVE DESTINATIONS WISH LIST:

1. Buenos Aires: Learn how to dance the tango like Cheryl Burke.

2. France: Hike on the Camino Francés portion of the Way of St. James or Camino de Santiago, a 500 mile Crusade route from that stretches from St. Jean-Pied-du-Port in France to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

2. St. Petersburg: The State Hermitage Museum is a must.

3. Madrid: See El Prado Art Museum  – I have had a fascination for Velazquez’s painting, Las Meninas.

4. Prague: At Christmastime.

5. Agra: I have had a lifelong yearning to see the Taj Mahal by moonlight – high romance!

I would love to hear about what destinations would be on your top five list!

Model – Azi

Resolutions Revisited…

01 Saturday Jan 2011

Posted by in Art, Photography, Reflections

≈ Comments Off on Resolutions Revisited…

Tags

, , , , , , ,

© Lauren DiMarco

Always bear in mind that your own resolution to success is more important than any other one thing.
Abraham Lincoln

In the 1980s we bought most of our electronics, jewelry, and toys from a catalog showroom store. We liked the idea of having the opportunity to preview and test out the merchandise before making a selection and, as a result, were always satisfied with our purchases.

On this first day of 2011, I am reviewing my resolutions for the year. I wish there were some way to test-drive some of the action items, as I did in that retail store, before investing the time, energy, and money necessary to make them happen. Several of my big ideas are fraught with considerable risk and I need to figure out how to manage that element. If after careful evaluation, I decide to embrace the projects full on, then the possibility exists that, by this time next year, one or two of them may have come to fruition!

Model – Lauren DiMarco

Year in Review…

29 Wednesday Dec 2010

Posted by in Art, Photography, Reflections, Writing

≈ Comments Off on Year in Review…

Tags

, , , , ,

© Joan Currie

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.
Seneca

In several Christmas cards this season, I received beautifully-crafted letters depicting the phenomenal year of accomplishments the senders had enjoyed, that included exotic travels, impressive job promotions, second marriages, massive home renovations, and elite athletic pursuits.

After reading the letters, I must admit I was a bit dismayed that my life did not seem as exciting or fun-packed as those featured in the missives. So, after Christmas I sat in my favorite coffee shop and wrote a mock brag letter of my own detailing all that my family members had accomplished this year. I was truly surprised, delighted, and grateful at what I saw on the page before me! I recommend this exercise and I plan to share my findings with my nearest and dearest as we sign off on 2010.

Giving Gifts:

21 Tuesday Dec 2010

Posted by in Photography, Reflections

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

© Studio La Donna

© Studio La Donna

Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect. – Oren Arnold

Giving gifts to significant others at Christmas can be tricky business. I know that the best way to ensure success is not to deviate from the wish list selections. Maybe it is the rebel in me, but I like to give really personal handmade gifts that are on the list but cannot be found on Amazon.com or in department stores.

Starting in October, I begin making a scrapbook photo album, knitting a sweater, or sewing a Sheplers-like flannel shirt so that the gift will be ready for Christmas morning. The recipients seem to have liked my offerings and used them beyond Christmas day (unlike Mark Darcy in Bridget Jones’ Diary) but they have not jumped with joy as they might have for a personally signed Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition, car shop manual, pneumatic drill press, or emergency home generator.

Their gifts to me have included serious power tools, car batteries, miniature propane tanks, and wrench sets – my fault, because at some point I shared with them that I liked NPR’s Car Talk and PBS’s This Old House and I am now doomed to reside in the home improvement section of their brains forever!

Model: Lauren DiMarco

Holiday Cocktail Parties…

19 Sunday Dec 2010

Posted by in Fashion, Photography, Reflections, Relationships

≈ Comments Off on Holiday Cocktail Parties…

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

© Edward Jahn

At every party there are two kinds of people – those who want to go home and those who don’t.  The trouble is, they are usually married to each other.
Ann Landers

My cousin has mastered the art of working a room. Two hours into a cocktail party, he has connected with everyone there and forged several new and possibly lasting friendships. I, on the other hand, typically engage in two or three meaningful conversations and then am ready to bolt, unless there is dancing – and in that case, I am good for the duration.

Model – Lauren DiMarco

Angels…

18 Saturday Dec 2010

Posted by in Art, Fashion, Photography, Reflections

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , ,

© Gabriela Camerotti - http://www.gabrielacamerotti.com

O welcome, pure-eyed Faith, white-handed Hope,
Thou hovering angel, girt with golden wings!
John Milton (Comus)

I remember fashioning angel wings from wire and tulle fabric, and decorating them with soft down feathers, and gold and silver glitter for my daughters’ Christmas pageants in elementary school.

Beautiful Home for the Holidays…

13 Monday Dec 2010

Posted by in Art, Reflections

≈ Comments Off on Beautiful Home for the Holidays…

Tags

,

© Lawren Harris

I’ll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree
Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light beams
I’ll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams.
Buck Ram

As I gazed at my friend’s Christmas tree laden with presents last night, a wave of sentimentality swept over me.

When I lived in Boston, my parents campaigned vigorously each year for my young family to visit at Christmas. The ten-hour drive to Toronto was always fraught with danger in December, particularly around Buffalo, where we often encountered terrible snowstorms. Despite our protestations to stay in the safety and comfort of our own home, my parents, then in their fifties, would tag on our heartstrings by saying, “this may be our last Christmas,” followed by some grizzly tale about a friend or relative who had met with an untimely death just months earlier.

We always resolved to have Christmas in our own home, but caved at the last minute and made the drive to celebrate with them. This modus operandi continued for over two decades, and for my children, Christmases have been associated with their grandparents’ hearth and home.

For the first time, we are not going to be spending Christmas with my parents as they moved into an independent living facility this week after months and months of deliberation and heartbreak. Christmas, as life, will go on – just a little differently this year.