Saturday, July 23, 2016

City Views, Country Dreams

Good afternoon from New York.

It is a hot and humid Saturday.  The temperature has been stretching towards the 90 degree level, and is now about 95 degrees.  Forecasts call for this sort of challenging weather to continue for many more days.  100 degrees may be reached.

I've been a lazy blogger, but will try to give you all a bit of a catch up of recent city views.


Last Monday, I met a friend over at The Metropolitan Museum of Art to see a very fine exhibit of opaque watercolor miniature paintings from India.  These beautiful paintings currently belong to The Kronos Collections, but are "promised gifts" to the Met.  Please do click on the link to see the Met's information about the show.

Sometimes I find exhibit labels irritating.  The labels for this show were wonderfully informative and actually quite witty in explaining the setting and story line of the scene depicted in each painting.  I definitely intend to return for another look and will make use of the available magnifying glasses.  The air conditioning was another plus!

My Met membership has expired, and for the time being, I will be taking advantage of the "suggested contribution" to attain entrance to the wonderful museum.  Having worked there for quite a few years back in the 1970s, I feel no guilt at now making minimal monetary contributions.

The pictures I have added to this post show a pretty little desert plant I bought at the farmers market.  I plan to use it as a subject for some watercolor studies.  The plant's colors are almost iridescent.

I confess that on several evenings this past week I did force myself to watch the Republican Party's Convention in Cleveland.  There was much anger on display and also an attempt to spread fear. 


However, on one evening, I fixed myself an early supper, and then walked a few blocks down to Lincoln Center to see the opening event to this year's Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors festival.  Everything is free and a variety of performances are on the schedule.  I've provided a link for folks who might be in New York during the festival weeks.

July 20th's headliner was Patti Smith and her band.  She has performed several times before at the Out-of-Doors festivals and is a New York City favorite.  I am fortunate to have met Patti and to have been given an inscribed copy of her memoir, Just Kids.

It was a swell night outdoors, under the almost still full moon.  Patti read a bit from Just Kids, declaimed an Allen Ginsburg poem and then, she and her band, including guitarist Lenny Kaye, played for about two hours.  Lots of Patti classics, but they also played tribute covers of When Doves Cry, This Will Be the Last Time, and My Generation.  

There were thousands of folks attending the show, some very early arrivals got to be close to the stage where rows of folding chairs were lined up.  No one really sat down after the music started up.  The rest of us just found a bit of space somewhere in Damrocsh Park plaza.  Folks of all ages from babies to folks older than I am.

The spirit of the evening was fabulous.  Lots of smiles and some very varied dance styles on display.

On yet another hot morning, I walked over to Central Park to watch a playoff game in the Broadway Show Softball League.  It was truly too hot for such activity.  I actually left for my walk home before the game was over, and while the Hamilton team was well behind in runs.  I was wilted and decided to act my age.


Let's see, what else got me out of the apartment?  Yesterday two friends and I decided to brave the heat to meet for lunch at a Greek restaurant that has sort of become our clubhouse.  The food is delicious and very reasonably priced.  The location on Ninth Avenue is in a neighborhood traditionally referred to as Hell's Kitchen.  Appropriate in the current heat, even if the neighborhood is yet another area that has undergone lots of gentrification.

My friends and I had a marvelous catch up visit and agreed to meet up again soon.

Last night, the media reported another shooting incident, this time in the Munich suburbs.  I turned the television off.

Even with the overnight heat, I slept well and woke up early enough to accomplish my outdoor errands before today's true sizzle struck. I will now stay indoors near my fan and lots of cold water for the rest of the day.  Salad is on the menu for supper tonight.  I've noticed that the 1954 film Hobson's Choice is on television tonight, along with many other viewing choices.  I've also got several books on my to-be-read stack.

I'm hoping that this post has given you all an idea of how city summer days may be experienced.  Thank you so much for your visits to and comments on my previous post.  Summer in the city can be very enjoyable if you pace yourself!

50 comments:

  1. I have just finished watching the late news where the heat was a feature. I think that our corner of North America is the only one not sweltering or burning. I am glad to read that you are finding ways to stay cool, Frances. A trip to a gallery or museum is a good choice!
    What are you knitting these days?

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    1. Aha - just remembered those gorgeous finger-less mittens, and that you were going to start on another pair!

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    2. Yes, Pondside, I think your area is outside the "dome." We do usually get a span of very hot July days, but this year's span will be longer than usual. It's sort of fun to think of cooling measures. (Knitting the current pair of wool mitts has gone on hold for a while!) xo

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  2. It sounds as though you have got "summer in the city" living well sorted out. I don't blame you for switching off the news which is just so depressing. Hope it cools down for you soon. Our promised thunderstorms never arrived but it does feel cooler this morning.

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    1. It's grand when just a bit of a breeze moves through the air...really makes a difference.

      I'm hoping that having this July pattern will mean that August won't be so challenging. xo

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  3. Hi France's, thanks for the link to the exhibition , I would love to see those painting close up! Like you I would need my specs. Maybe you will be inspired to paint your little plant in miniature too? Good to hear of your concert and
    your connection to Patti. Like you I have been dismayed by news from all sides. Keep cool. Val.

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    1. Val, I'm sure that seeing the exhibit influenced my buying the little plant. Even if I paint it "life size" the picture will still be small...but perhaps I will do some miniature miniatures.
      I want to return for a closer look at your current post. Ages ago, I got caught up in silverpoint drawing and really loved the technique. I bought prepared paper but was tempted to try to create own surface. Now I will have a look through my various pen and pencil boxes and see where I "filed" my silverpoint tool. xo

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  4. A wonderful description of summer in the city!
    And the living is fairly easy - if horribly HOT!
    Your little plant is a delight.
    Yes, a miniature of t would be charming!

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    1. Thanks Elizabeth. Wasn't that lunch get together fun! I think that tomorrow (Monday) is going to be the peak of the heat dome...or I do hope so.
      The colors in the tiny plant really do call to me. xo

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  5. I don't think it is quite so hot here in the UK but I am struggling to cope with the heat we do have. A fan and plenty of water are my go to things for that too.
    Love that little plant and look forward to seeing your paintings.
    Hugs from the UK-x-

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    1. Sheila, summer in the city is my most unfavorite season, but it does have its bright moments.
      The windowsills where my plants attempt to survive are south-facing, but don't get much direct sunlight. This can cause certain plants to evolve in odd growth patterns. I'm hoping to sort of document what happens with the new addition in my drawings and paintings. We shall see what happens.
      Keep the fan and water going! xo

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  6. I can imagine your sweet little plant figuring in a new painting.

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    1. Elizabeth, I do think it will be fun to draw and paint. Perhaps start with some careful observations and then go into a bit of abstraction. xo

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  7. Dear Frances, You always know how to make the most of a day. It's been hot here, as well. We work in the garden till noon and then it's inside where it is cool.

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    1. Oh thank you so much, Gina! Mornings are very valuable opportunities, aren't they. Because Manhattan's streets and avenues are mostly configured as a grid, it's usually possible to find at least a slim cooler sidewalk shadow cast by a tall building...except in the true mid-day hour. Because of daylight savings time, that hour is 1-2 pm.
      The city noises even seem louder in the heat...funny how one sense arouses another. xo

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  8. Other than the heat, which I cannot stand, it does like a fun time in the city. You certainly lack nothing for entertainment. I can just imagine you with a little skip in our step.

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    1. Donna, I am totally with you on the heat. I can't stand it either, but years of experience have shown me that our city weather will change. This current dome of heat is unusual. I surely hope it won't be the new July normal!

      I do love the city's diversions, though! xo

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    2. I meant to say skip in your step.

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  9. I keep thinking about that song, "Hot town, summer in the city..." I hope that your heat wave doesn't last too long. I'm looking forward to seeing some little watercolors of that sweet plant.

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    1. Carol, that Loving' Spoonful song is on my mind, too! xo

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  10. Frances, I dearly love the succulent plants, so much variety, so easy to care for. It should make a wonderful little model for your painting.

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    1. The succulents are like living sculptures to my eye. They do manage to live longer than most other plants do on my window sills.

      There are several large stands at the farmers market that sell a great variety of plants at pretty reasonable prices, so I do make a purchase now and then. xo

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  11. Frances, you sound to be having a splendid time in spite of what sounds to me like unbearably hot weather. I suppose that your Museums are sir-conditioned, which makes them nice cool places to wander round - but there is still the hot journey there.

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    1. That's exactly where the rub lies, Weaver. The museums are welcome oases and even the buses and subway cars are kept very cool. It's the rest of the journey that melts me. Still worth it! xo

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  12. Hope it cools down for you soon - air con in a gallery sounds a very welcome break! We too have very hot and humid weather here at the mo, it's actually a pleasure going to work in an air conned building !

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    1. Su, the marvelous thing about the Met is that it is so huge that there are always gallery rooms that the massive crowds don't seem to favor. The Japanese section is particularly wonderful on a hot summer day. There is a Noguchi water table sculpture that will alway bring a sense of serenity.
      Back in my working days, I always experienced too much ac at work! xo

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  13. it sounds as if you are coping well with the heat and city life.Enjoy your art gallery visits.I have decided to do a study of some female artists starting with Gwen John and then moving onto Vanessa Bell.Just for my own interest.Have you got a favourite female artist?A friend of ours has just been to London to see the Georgia O'Keefe exhibition and said it was amazing.

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    1. Shall I share a long ago experience with you? When I was in my senior year of college, Georgia O'Keeffe came to the school to collect an honorary degree. I had the honor to meet her in the art studio, chat a while and have her look at what I was then working on...and compliment me. True. Perhaps sometime I will write out the longer version of this experience in a blog.

      There are lots of other female artists I like, but that early experience still astonishes me. xo

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  14. Interesting little window on your life there Frances. I enjoyed it although this is only a short comment.

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    1. Thank you, Rachel. I've actually gotten out a sketchbook and some colored pencils and begun some studies of my new plant. Quiet indoor pleasure while it broils outside. xo

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  15. I was so hot yesterday it was very hot 106 but we expect that. 90 in New York sounds awful.

    Love the little Echeveria (lipstick?) and I can't wait to see your watercolor. I would love to trade one drawing with you.
    I didn't watch much of the convention but somethings I did agree with. I was sure to watch Peter Thiel's speech. He was fabulous as always. As a mother of a gay daughter that I love very much I was very happy with his speech.
    I have worked with mostly gay men all my working life so I do not understand all the misunderstanding.
    But I am wandering here.
    Much like us desert dwellers we get up do all our outside work early and then we are inside till later in the day.
    I am sorry I didn't answer back your comment about the show on the watercolors. I zoomed over to the website and enjoyed myself looking at them.
    I used to put a bowl of ice cubes in from of my fan.
    Not sure if it helped but it made me feel like it did.

    In Japan they have a portable fan that you plug in and fill with ice. Then the fan blows cool air on you. I loved it when I stayed with my family there. Maybe they have something like that in the city or maybe the Japanese shops ?

    cheers, parsnip and thehamish

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    1. Thanks so much for your good, long comment, Parsnip. We've gotten the temp up to 94 this afternoon, and tomorrow supposedly will knock 100's door. I will stay inside and do some more drawing.

      I like the idea of the Japanese ice fan! I just keep on drinking cold water and running cold water over my pulse points. Seems to work well!

      Promise to keep you posted on the echeveria drawing/painting progress! xo

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  16. Hello Frances,
    amazing how much different your days seem to ours. But Summer in the City sounds great to me! Especially when one is happily retired and not bored and able to get the best out of the days. Here also, it is hot, some 24°C (this is just about acceptable to me before I find it too hot) and we are lazy when we allow ourselves to be so. I prefer to chose what to 'know' these days and therefore don't watch any TV, only check online news headlines, that's enough for me right now. Happy summer days to you, dear Frances!

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    1. Good to hear from you, Bayou. I'm glad that you enjoyed reading about some of my typical summer days in NYC.

      It's very hot here today...a good day to stay out of the sun. xo

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  17. The Patti Smith concert sounds a lot better than the RNC -- which I didn't watch. The reports from it were quite toxic enough.

    I too am wilted by the heat -- an hour and a half in the garden from 8:30 to 10 and I was southern-fried. Back to the house for iced tea and fans.

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    1. The concert was lots of fun, for folks of all ages.

      There's a large thunderstorn going on right now, which has cooled the air. Hope that effect lingers for at least 15 minutes!

      Congratulations to you on completing the writing of your new novel. What an accomplishment! Best wishes to you as this next important stage of publication unfolds.

      xo

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  18. Summer in the city sounds just great for me! A nice post from you Frances...
    It´s really warm here in Sweden too, I really long for some vacation now!
    Warm hug from Titti

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    1. Thanks so much for your comment, Titti, and for the hug. (All hugs are really warm around here these days!)
      xo

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  19. If you are full of desire to see, feel and learn more, to enjoy life, to turn an ordinary walk into an adventure, then, despite the hot weather, a summer in the city may be a lovely period of the year - full of sunny memories for the dark and cold winter evenings...Thank you, Frances, for sharing with us your everyday joys and discoveries!:)x

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    1. Dear Rossichka, I like what you say about cities in your comment very much! It's such a pleasure to share a bit of NYC..even when the heat and humidity are thick. In a sense, the city is even more interesting in those cold winter months. Lots of variety is so welcome. xo

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  20. I am rereading some Jane Austen along with the Claire Tomalin biography.Your measured prose chimes well with it.X

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    1. Oh my, Angela, thank you so much for those words. I will seek out the Claire Tomalin book. Having read Jane Austen's books, I am quite honored that you find my humble prose chiming. xo

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  21. Such a lovely read Frances..I've really enjoyed your catch up this morning! My daughters recently visited your city and had the most amazing time..you're so lucky to live in such a very special place x
    Susan x
    P.S Fortunately they managed to miss your recent extremely hot weather!

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    1. Thank you, Susan, for visiting and commenting. I am glad to report that after a very rainy weekend, NYC is currently enjoying much milder weather...for a few days! I'm also glad your daughters enjoyed their NYC visit, and hope they will return, bringing you along with them. xo

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  22. Hello so hot also hear...but I read you spent good time with friends!!Next week I ll do a giveaway for my blog's birthay!!I invite you to pass!!Have happy week

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    1. Gabri, thanks so much for your comment and for letting me know about you blogging birthday.
      This is a great week, with much better weather, and more get togethers with friends! (Knitting with wool is also more pleasant since the air is cooler.)

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  23. hang in there just a bit longer and Autumn will be upon us. Try to stay cool and don't over-do. I used to freeze clean tea towels and drape them around my neck when I had no air conditioning, it helped. I've seen little hand held portable fans, but don't know if they really work?

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    1. Thanks for the hot weather tips! We have had a little break from the super hot weather over the past five days...but the heat will be back with us today. Thunderstorm possible during the afternoon. I'm hoping it's a quick one, since there is an outdoor concert tonight that I want to attend. Fingers crossed. xo

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  24. I agree you’ve done very well in spite of the heat. But thank you very much, I prefer my temperatures a little less on the
    sweltering side.

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    1. Friko, truly summer is not my favorite city season, except for those glorious days when the temperature stays in the 70s...or no more than 25 degrees C. (We had a few of those in the past week, but now the heat has returned, with its pal humidity. Wilting....) xo

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