Sunday, March 30th, 2008
In the museum of Mr. John Tradescant are the following things: the hand of a mermaid…a number of things changed into stone…a picture wrought in feathers…a cup of an east indian Alcedo, which is a kind of unicorn…the passion of Christ carved very daintily on a plumstone…a hat band of snake bones.~ Georg Christoph Stirn, […]
Tags: ethnography, museums, neuchatel
Posted in wunderkammer | Comments Off on ~and to what end, comets?~
Sunday, March 23rd, 2008
Easter water is thought to have healing properties–farmers once herded their cattle to brooks on Easter morning to protect them from illnesses. Another tradition calls for young women (ahem) to bathe in the early morning on Easter to secure everlasting youth and beauty. Who am I to doubt it? All bathed and youthful, we had […]
Tags: alps, austria, film, museums, natural history
Posted in flandscapes & flanerie, vino & victuals | Comments Off on ~the green valleys of silliness~
Saturday, March 22nd, 2008
How a lady feels after an uncharacteristic night of Blaufränkisch… The Medicean Venus, in her case of rosewood and 200 year old warbly Venetian glass, looks something like Snow White waiting for her transplant.… Saturday began at the Naschmarkt, a produce and specialty food market along the Wien river that has been around since the […]
Tags: anatomy, art history, austria, ephemera, film, flea marché, museums
Posted in flandscapes & flanerie | Comments Off on ~ver sacrum: the rite of (nearly!) spring~
Friday, March 21st, 2008
You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait, be quiet still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet. ~Franz Kafka At first impression Vienna […]
Tags: austria, cathedrals, saints
Posted in flandscapes & flanerie, vino & victuals, wunderkammer | Comments Off on ~ecstasy at your feet~
Sunday, March 16th, 2008
These days I have been pondering the way one gets hooked into certain responses, particularly in the face of discomfort (a flat writing day, a lover’s spat, uncertainty about seeming pipe dreams, or just plain getting wait-listed for Yaddo–again!). One could simply not tell oneself the same story, could make a choice to experiment with […]
Tags: cathedrals, neuchatel, saints, suisse
Posted in flandscapes & flanerie, vino & victuals | 2 Comments »
Sunday, March 2nd, 2008
Dorothy Parker (who also inspired this title) said, “The best way to keep children home is to make the home atmosphere pleasant–and let the air out of the tires.” The kids are at home by choice this weekend, wheel-less it’s true, but planning an adventure for next weekend…in Milan! Yay! In response to a few […]
Tags: neuchatel, suisse
Posted in co-conspirators, flandscapes & flanerie | 4 Comments »