And the Winner is....?

Oscar night!!!!!!!!! A sacred kind event for me. I believe that my love for movies started with "Mary Poppins" when I was 5 years old. It was so magical. When you would go to the movies then in France you would get an "Eskimo Bar" or Caramels, we didn't have popcorn. I tried popcorn when I was 21 in New York City... I also grew up in Cannes where the Film Festival is the biggest event of the year so that might have contributed to my passion for movies. So Oscar night is a big deal at my house. This year I have not prepared as well as I could, I regret to say that I have not seen Juno yet and other well noted movies. We did go see "No Country for Old Men" yesterday. Not my type of movie. Good acting. The story was typical in the genre. It was bloody as expected but didn't have any originality. I like to be surprised, I wasn't. I was even bored at times. It was definitely not at the level of "Fargo" not even half way. Anyway, moving on... I hope that Daniel Day-Lewis wins for his role in "There will be Blood" as he was remarkable in his role of a heartless man, who wanted to make big money so he would be left alone, that is it in a nut shell and in his own words. There was a lot more though. Kate Blanchett is one of my favorite actress and she gave a meaty performance in the "Elizabeth: the Golden Age". Ruby Dee should get the Oscar for her role in "American Gangsters". Casey Affleck for his supporting role in the "Jessie James" movie. Ratatouille for the best animation. I would love for Atonement to win for best movie but we shall see... lots of competition. I will be ready with my "Kentucky Fried Chicken" (just a tradition of mine for as long as I have been in the USA, my once a year KFC Feast...ahahhaha) in front of the Television and will savour every minute of the show. We might even have champagne with it...

But for now I have to get ready for a meeting for the "Alaska Fiber Festival 2008. We have about 10 days to finalize the details to this event. Check the website for what is happening. http://www.alaskafiberfestival.org/ A big event for the Fiber Community of Alaska. We will breath Fiber for a week in Anchorage.

By the way last year today I was in Madrid at the Prado Museum and the Thyssen-Bornemisza. That was really memorable. I never got to see last year's Academy Award Event. There was no contest though... Traveling is still winning over Oscar Night...

Today the sun is shinning and the stars will be out tonight!

Not For the Faint of Heart

I think that this blog is turning into a weather report! In Alaska it is hard to avoid talking about it. It is a never ending subject of sorrow... For months end we are living in the cold, the snow, the ice, the mud... etc. So to give you a little flair of what we have to deal with this week is my first short film... Very scary and should not be watched if you have a delicate disposition or allergy to cold...
Here it is

Have a good day!!! more to come in the next two days.

Valentine's Day! AHhhhhhhhhhh Love..........

Happy Valentine's Day to all the lovers out there. Mine is taking me out to dinner tonight at Jen's.

Happy Valentine's Day to all my wonderful Friends and Family! You are all the sunshine in my life and I could not be the blessed person that feel I am without you. Thank you for being right here along me and know that I am right along with you too.

I was looking for a reading or a poem that I could post about love. Something that would encompass love as a universal truth. It is my belief that true love is the answer to harmony in everyone's life. One's mind, body and heart need to give and receive love and the rest comes naturally after that. As I was leafing through some of my favorite books I found something from Rumi that illustrates the way Love feels like at times when you feel it for someone and it is reciprocated and it is such a relief, a harmony, a unrichment, a total wellbeing and Peace.

So here it is:

The Most Alive Moment

The most living moment comes when

those who love each other meet each

other's eyes and in what flows

between them then. To see our face

in a crowd of others, or alone on a

frightening street, I weep for that.

Our tears improve the earth. The

time you scolded me, your gratitude,

your laughing, always your qualities

increase the soul. Seeing you is a

wine that does not muddle or numb

We sit inside the cypress shadow

where amazement and clear thought

twine their slow growth into us.

(translated by Coleman Barks)

Weekenders

Don't know about you but the weekend was full. I got to finish my book "Enduring Love" by Ian McEwan. Just a really fast read that keeps you guessing til the end. Unusual story and magnificent writing. Not your typical romance novel. Lots of descriptions about the narator's feelings, the places and situations he's in. You have a good sense of being right inside his mind and living the story right along with him. I was happy to be done with it I couldn't wait to know how all that was going to end. I have already started another book "The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield. I have been wanting to read this for quite some time.

I also spent time in the studio. More throwing things around really. I feel pretty bad about as slow things are progressing but I just turn around a lot in there cogitating and being depressed. Here it is .... You judge!!! I need to really buckle down this week. Went to see the movie "There will be blood" with Daniel Day Lewis. http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809720590/trailer His performance is really remarquable. It is hard to completely hate this character and believe that he is truely bad but... he is! I would have like to have more background info's about his life growing up and in some of the years that are not covered. What made him the man that he was. Anyway I won't see it again but it was a good movie.

Today I went hunting for a Webcam. My friend Nancy has asked me to get on Skype now that she is a snow bird so we can talk and see each other. Well I got a little one that clips on the top of my laptop. Really small so I can take it along on trips. It has a microphone incorporated so no need of an extra hardware to carry around. So I am ready for a skype call...

Curt and I went to see the ice sculptures in Anchorage by the Performance Art Center. I believe that night time is a lot prettier with color lights shinning through the ice, I will have to go in the evening and check that out. (a Cyclop) Those are not the most detailed ice scuptures that we have had in the past years but they were a few fun ones where you could sit or interact with for camera purposes. It was another super cold day. We were really bundled up. There is a skating rink right in the middle of the park. the ice is solid and very sleek. Kaladdi Brothers (Local Coffe Shop) was ready for us for a cup of Red Goat (my favorite of their blends) with a chocolate muffin. Not bad, not bad at all! So another weekend done. I also got to talk to Paule. She just had a serious 6 hours surgery and is doing good. So that was excellent to hear. I just love her. I have done a little watercolor card to cheer her up today. Well that is a wrap up!!! literally!

Typical!!!!

(It must be spring??? Silly birds)

Well it is a typical February day! 15 below zero F. and beautiful sunshine that feels like ice. Can't complain too much because having the light back is something short of miraculous. I love that spotlight "sunsation" ahhaha. So I am hiding inside the house behind the window. Closing my eyes and thinking that it could be worse. I do have visions of beaches with warm water licking my toes as they are sinking slowly into the sand. I hear the sound of the waves and the seagulls. Oh well. It is very close to reality. Really!

Anyway after a very quiet weekend here we are. Another Monday a new week full of promises. I have worked a bit on my collage. Still need some stuff.I will take a picture in a minute and post it along this whinning lament.(Mission accomplished!!).... About taking pictures.... my wonderful pooch Gaia has decided to agreement her boredom by chewing on my beloved camera. She luckily only got the view finder that I don't use because of the LCD screen works better for me. I wish I could take a picture of the hole that is on the side of the camera. It is pretty sad looking. Fortunatly it is working and I am going to patch it and continue to use it. Yeah. Nothing like Duct tape to make you feel more like an Alaskan. We even have a Duct Tape Ball where people make their gowns out of that stuff. Anyway I was saying... Yeah so I will take few pictures later and then add them to this saga. (Done) Oh by the way: My do is still alive.
You know about Cabin Fever?....Well I do! ( a batik that I made to depict my look when having a Cabin Fever attack). To give you an example I was writting an email and realized that I have not gotten out of the end of the driveway since Thursday!!!!!!! It is crazy. It just creeps up on you and then you have only one goal. Get out of this house, QUICK!So, I am ready to get out in the real world. That is to the supermarket to get some stuff for tonight and see that there are other people out there... Wish me luck! ahahhah.