May Day...

I was going to keep this a secret, but somehow word got out.

I live in a dorm room.

And if the embarrassment of this demotion isn't enough, I'm surrounded by animals.  Sweet, friendly animals, to be sure, but animals none the less.  It's a shame when the public restroom is more inviting than one's own, and the kitchen...well.  Suddenly the word squalor, seems to be creeping its way into my everyday lexicon.

In a vain attempt to fool myself into thinking I live somewhere lovely and homely, I've turned my tiny room into a greenhouse.  Jars full of succulents, hanging air ferns, bouquets of alstroemeria and bowls full of fragrant lemons have all made new homes in my room.

 (The stack of books above is a clue to what I've been reading lately.  I was m.i.a. all of last week, absolutely addicted to Murakami's, Kafka on the Shore. Also in the line up: Mark Twain, my kindred spirit.)

Hanging plant balls seem to be taking over the window displays at the Santa Cruz nurseries.  They're pretty visually striking, and very easy to make.  I used this funny tutorial here.

Despite my best efforts to beautify this unfortunate room, I can't help but count down the days (46!) until I leave and finally settle into

 a place of my own.

Lost And Found...

Oh Shannon.

This picture was taken in December, with one of my little disposables.  

I had decided to make an advent calendar to send home, in lieu of one big Christmas gift, and in anticipation of Shannon coming to visit me in Europe.  Over several hours a train ride to Barcelona, I wrapped up little trinkets in brown paper, tied them with red string, and labeled them according to the day they should be opened.

I"ll admit I was a little excited about the box full of goodies reaching its recipient and checked with Shannon incessantly to see whether it had arrived.  

Much to my chagrin, advent days began to slip by, and Shannon still hadn't gotten my package in the mail.

Months later, I had resigned myself to the idea that it had just been lost somewhere between Spain and California due to those bumbling postal workers at the Correos.

But! One of the first days I was back home, visiting Shannon's little cottage by the beach, and drinking whiskey sours in her back garden, I spotted an oddly familiar green lump tucked under the back stoop and did a double take. 

There was no mistaking that iconic green box and yellow tape- Shannon's Christmas present had finally arrived!

Late mail is better than no mail at all, I thought, but on further investigation, it turns out that the package hadn't been late at all.  Tucked away in the garden it had escaped notice for months, and weathered rainstorms, bleaching sunrays and worse.  We opened up the box to find that a family of snails and their salamander friends had taken up residence inside and decided to eat the tags and wrapping paper.  I didn't even know snails ate paper!

I found the whole thing rather amusing, and though the advent days and Christmas socks are now irrelevant, the lost and found aspect makes up for the novelty.
Merry Christmas in April!

P.S.  I feel sort of about having thought poorly of the Correos postal workers.  The little post office ladies had laughed and laughed when  I arrived with a sack full of little numbered parcels but they had, been nothing but helpful and accommodating as I tried out different box sizes before settling on one for shipping, and in fact, were very excited about the idea of a postal advent calendar too. 

Theatre Of Dreams...

Directly across the straight from Benicia lies a teeny tiny one-street town.  Port Costa is made up of a post office, a bar, a café, a letterpress studio, and an ephemera workshop- pretty much everything you need, right?

Coming here is always a special treat, like being in a private club, or stumbling across a secret fort.

Once in a while, however, a steady steam of traffic will make its way here for something special.  This weekend, that special occasion was the opening of Wendy Addison's Theatre of Dreams.

The little storefront, which opens but three times a year (once for Easter, once for Halloween, and once for Christmas), is stuffed to the brim with all sorts of whimsical decorations and artifacts, mirroring the quaint and magical quality of the town itself.  Inside, those blue doors is a cornucopia of fairies, toadstools and diving swallows.  My mom, a vertiable Wendy Addison enthusiast, was in German glitter glass heaven, and left with a big back full of sparkling stars, bees, and treasure boxes.  

After we finished gawking, Wendy suggested we go across the street, to this little place.

Evento Bordeaux...

Every two years, Bordeaux celebrates Evento, a two week long festival of the arts in urban spaces. 
Empty store fronts have been replaced by pop-up galleries and community spaces that provide anything from venues for fine art sculptures or prints, to virtual tours of Istanbul. 
My favorite pop-up shop during Evento was Publication Studio Bordeaux.

Publication Studio Bordeaux was a mixture of almost all my favorite things.  

Inside this tiny studio, writers, editors, bookbinders and publishers worked elbow to elbow, creating books from start to finish.   The concept of Publication Studio was first begun in Portland, where the emphasis was placed on the communal aspect of artisans working in the same space, and the creativity that could be generated in such an environment.  This week in Bordeaux, this idea was taken a step further and given a flair francais.  Publication Studio Bordeaux sold their books on a menu, alongside food!  Patrons and artists alike could have brunch, tapas or drinks while perusing handmade books, or chatting with friends. 
I've touched on this subject before, but there I find nothing more communal than the act sharing a meal.  Finding a place where both my passion for the community of food, and the act of creating communally were joined together was really, really inspiring.  

Someday, when Shannon and I have our studio, there will definitely be a kitchen attached!!!

Thank You Notes...

As a giant thank you to Ryan's parents for treating us to a week on San Juan Island, we had a craft day and made them a candle holder from an old white oak wine barrel stave.  Kris and Tom are very anxious to find a home on the island, so this is also somewhat of an early housewarming gift for them.