This weekend, I saw Moneyball (I thought Kerris Dorsey stole the show, but BJ wouldn’t go that far. The singing!!), made yakisoba from Mark Bittman’s recipe, took a whole afternoon to clean out only two boxes of paperwork, hung out with friends, lounged around, and celebrated the much-needed rain. Nothing too eventful, but just what I needed.
A piece for Oh, Bleek Strategies at the Chicago Calling Festival. Thanks, Mairead for inviting us to be part of this!
I still feel like everything has been in fast pace mode since the start of the school year even though we’ve officially made it through one grading period. Last weekend was suppose to be a breather – no traveling, no major grading- but then I got sick, and it took a while to get back to 100%.
Looking ahead, this month includes lots of cleaning, simplifying, and packing for our move . The place is closer in town so BJ can walk to work. Only downside is my commute may take an hour, but I think it’s in our best interest. I look forward to the day we’re in a place for longer than 1-2 years.
Right now, I’m struggling to find time to do my own work, but I guess I should know by now that there will always be something coming up and busy schedules to manage. Just gotta sit down and do it! Here’s something the both of us are working on for a friend …
5
LESS IS NOT NECESSARILY MORE.
Being a child of modernism I have heard this mantra all my life. Less is more. One morning upon awakening I realised that it was total nonsense, it is an absurd proposition and also fairly meaningless. But it sounds great because it contains within it a paradox that is resistant to understanding. But it simply does not obtain when you think about the visual of the history of the world. If you look at a Persian rug, you cannot say that less is more because you realise that every part of that rug, every change of colour, every shift in form is absolutely essential for its aesthetic success. You cannot prove to me that a solid blue rug is in any way superior. That also goes for the work of Gaudi, Persian miniatures, art nouveau and everything else. However, I have an alternative to the proposition that I believe is more appropriate. ‘Just enough is more.’
Well put. Part of Milton Glaser’s Ten Things I Have Learned 2001 AIGA Talk
I rarely get a chance to go online during the day, but by the time I get on in the evening, BJ has added a ton of new things to our tumblr (Can’t take any credit. He does all the work!). I love checking Thuy’s too.
During our trip to Portland, a lot of my relatives were staying over at my uncle’s place, so he kindly put us up in a cozy little room he built in the backyard. It was awkwardly dubbed the honeymoon suite (we get it, y’all want kids), but we could see everyone through the windows and vice versa – not so romantic. But it was surrounded by his beautiful garden and there was no doubt he put care and love into that space.
Guess who? I always find BJ’s sketches of different figures laying around the house – and always on the back of articles/scraps. This one was on the closet floor, staring up at me when I flipped the lights.  I wonder if I can convince him to do these in a sketchbook so I don’t miss any of them.
Rest of the wedding photos. After the ceremony, ice cream at Salt & Straw, dinner inside the Portland Art Museum, and flowers and favors by my aunt. Good times…
Playing in the car, Lana del Rey‘s Video Games
Trinkets from the trip (Beth gave me a photo she took on our wedding day. Excited to see the rest)
Back from a (sadly) short trip to NYC. Although it was only for a weekend, we managed to fit in a lot—even some sleep—and I’m already plotting things to do when we come back. Saturday was mostly devoted to the Capsule Show, the trade show that was the main reason for our trip. It was a visual feast of uniquely beautiful clothes, designs, accessories, and breezy rooftop view of Chelsea! A huge highlight was meeting Jennifer, Anne and Jenny. After seeing their work in person, I’m even more excited for the new Odette collection and, like countless former perfume skeptics, I’m now a full-on MCMC convert. If only it were easier to decide which scent to get …
Since Capsule took most of our time, there was none left for museum visits, window shopping, etc., but that’s okay since good company and food made the work and stress worth it. Coincidentally, during our stay, BJ’s younger brother Jeff was passing through the city during his Seattle-to-Hanover road trip, and we caught him for lunch. On our last night, we joined our friends Beth and David for a late Southern-tinged dinner at Delicatessen of delicious fried chicken and mac n’ cheese. The next morning, we took their recommendations and an enjoyed a Southern-comfort-food breakfast at Red Rooster in Harlem. Not bad for 1.5 days, right?
Leaving NYC was expectedly bittersweet. It has always been a special place for us—our first trip together in college, our honeymoon, introducing my sister Thuy to all our favorite places, reunions with friends, etc. In other words: the trips are always deeply meaningful—not just vacations—despite being so fleeting. Coming and going always feels so sudden, like such an extreme movement between wildly different places (for instance, South Bend, IN to the Lower East Side and back), that it only hits me once I’m home that I was actually there.