fountain of life

On a recent trip to California, I became obsessed with fountains. And that funny thing happened, where you see (or hear of) something, and then you see (or hear of) it everywhere you turn, like when you're thinking about getting a little dog you can carry around in your purse and suddenly the world is filled with chihuahuas and mini toy poodles.

Here's the fountain that started it all, which my brother himself installed in his garden in front of his house. First, as you approach the doorway:

Click to read more ...

Hiring A Professional

So, great. I now have a plan for the electrical problem, and just have to wait for the guy to send me the estimate.  

Meanwhile, my friend Seddy came by for lunch and mentioned, more than once, that her sister is starting an interior design business. I mean, she mentioned it enough that I realized it was like when someone offers you a breath mint—you should always accept, even if you don’t want a breath mint right then, because the person may be trying to tell you something.  

Click to read more ...

The Criminal Style of the NYIPD

I may not know a Queen Anne chair from a dentist’s chair, but I can tell if a room feels welcoming and happy—or if it feels as if someone has just died there.   

So, could we discuss for a minute the design of your typical police station? Talk about a place that feels as if someone has just died there. And, sadly, probably someone did die there, at some point. But even someone has died in a place, there’s no need to make the visitor feel that dropping dead then and there is the best alternative, which is how I felt upon walking into a police station the other night to report a stolen purse. 

Click to read more ...

Elegant Design on the Silver Screen

Last week I went to a preview showing of a new movie, Susan Minot’s “Evening.” She’s the author whose name I was struggling to remember when talking to my sister recently. All I could come up with was that she’s part of that family of writers who all write different send ups of families—some that speak to each other and others that don’t, some that are successful and others that aren’t. And this Minot, Susan, is also known for writing a novel that entirely takes place during a particular sex act—a novel that doesn’t quite work, but sure is ambitious.

Click to read more ...