California Dreamin’ (or not)

Forget raining cats and dogs. Last night’s storm sounded like an entire zoo in the sky. At three am I got out of bed to use the bathroom, my bladder feeling full after hearing so much water fall outside. I’d been asleep (kind of) for four hours and the rain had woken me at least ten times. This is not good for blogging--I need rest in order to dream up funny blogs! But the whole thing got me wondering: was I waking up because of the intensity of the storm or because we’re not used to rain in San Diego? In places where it rains a lot, do people just sleep right through everything but the very loudest storms? Note to self: ask friends in rainier places…

I know our garden beds will be happy for the rain. We are in drought conditions here, and we definitely need rain. And my car did need a wash. But after a restless night listening to the percussion section in the sky, this California non-dreamer needs a nap…

Scalpel and clamp, STAT!

I have never performed actual surgery. At least not yet.

But tonight I had a moment when I thought, “This must be what it feels like to be a surgeon, mid-procedure.” I was in the middle of a chaotic furniture rearrangement and pile relocation and mess transfer between my bedroom and my art studio. I began to panic a little. The mess was just so huge. I began to regret ever attempting to make the switch. But on I plowed. At that moment I imagined a surgeon cutting organs, staunching blood, and trying to remain organized even as the mess got messier. It would get bloodier before it got better. I decided that like a surgeon, I needed to keep going, even though things were pretty crazy during the middle of the procedure. The surgeon’s end goal is getting the patient on the right track toward recovery. My end goal was getting my bedroom and art studio on the path toward looking less like the town dump. (See, this is an excellent analogy!)

Like a patient post-procedure, the two rooms undergoing some changes will bear the scars of surgery. There may be swelling and discoloration. There could be stiffness and sweating. Recuperation might take a lot longer than expected. But there was a reason for the procedure and I already can see some positive change. My bedroom looks better (even if my studio looks worse for now). Still, changes had to be made and I hope that with some good physical therapy this studio can be rehabilitated from a bruised bag of bones to an organized castle of creativity where—inspired by actually being able to find things—I will make even more art magic than before!

 

Stuffed...

According to my informal research while watching movies set in the 1950s, "Go stuff your bra" was a major insult at the time. It was a reference to someone's lack of body development. (If only they knew that as of 2014 many Hollywood types have had their implants removed and a smaller size up top is considered chic. But let's get back to the topic at hand. I run a G-rated or sometimes PG blog here and I don't want to shock you awake from your turkey coma by discussing boobs so early in the morning. And you thought a post entitled "Stuffed" would be about post-Thanksgiving full stomachs. Fooled you again!!!) Anyway, the bra-stuffing punch line led me to consider how I sometimes throw things into my sports bra, which gives a whole new meaning to stuffing a bra.

Women's clothes often do not include pockets. (Men's clothes always have pockets.) Maybe fashion designers assume women will carry a purse large enough to house anything and everything she might need (and whatever her dog, boyfriend, kids, family, friends and strangers might need on a given day, too). So pockets in women's clothes apparently are deemed unnecessary. I agree about the purse assumption. My purse is chock-full of the necessities, plus lots of other items for "just in case" scenarios. But there are times when I don't carry my purse. If these times coincide with times I'm wearing pocketless pants or shorts, what's a gal to do? I'll tell ya.

Every day I walk for exercise. I don't bring my purse and my shorts have no pockets. It's freeing not to have to lug a giant purse but still, I might need a few things while I'm out. If I'm walking for exercise I'm wearing a sports bra, which can house a few small items in addition to housing the parts it is designed to hold in and up. The elastic around the bottom of the sports bra ensures that things won't fall out. They stay just where you put them and are easy to find, unlike when I dig around in my purse, wondering if it has a trap door where my keys are hiding.

This bra-stuffing idea first occurred to me over the summer while I was at the beach with the kids. We chose a few special shells to bring home with us. Not planning ahead, I didn't have a bucket with us and I wasn't clutching my purse as I stood calf-deep in water. What to do if you don't have pockets? Stuff your bra, of course!

(I actually think this concept has been germinating in my brain for years, ever since I learned that in Spanish, the words for "purse" and "pocket" are the same: bolsa, which means bag. And a pocket really is a small bag, one that happens to be attached to your pants, so this is all quite logical.)

Anyway, a sports bra can hold quite a bit without anyone knowing anything unexpected is in there. I have tossed in lip balm, money, my driver's license, keys, tissues and shells. There are limits, of course. Let's say you need both your hands to push a stroller or hold your phone while walking your dog--I don't advise sticking your umbrella in your bra. No, I'm not concerned about weird stares you'd get by having an arrow shape pointing off your chest. I'm concerned only that the elastic in your sports bra would be stretched out to the point of no return if an umbrella were kept in there. And then you'd have to go buy a new sports bra and you'd be mad at me for telling you the old one could hold an umbrella which led to your needing to buy a new bra. I'd feel badly and I'd feel compelled to accompany you around for a while, holding your umbrella for you, just to redeem myself. And I've got things to do. So please, just believe me now--don't put the umbrella in there. We'll all be happier.

But lots of small things can fit in a bra. I think it makes excellent sense and since you're probably already feeling like you have too much to carry and do (simultaneously), just do what I do. Stuff that bra. Bras may not be a new invention, but carrying things in them is going to be the big new trend once word hits the street. Purses won't go the way of the dinosaur but it's nice to have an alternative for the times when you don't want to lug your bag.

Bras: the latest hands-free device. 

We are Thankful...

Recently I won an important argument. Yes, I’ll share details. It went like this:

Fun me: I should make a Thanksgiving banner to hang out front. Thanksgiving doesn’t get enough attention as far as decorations. It’s squeezed in between Halloween and Christmas and people don’t decorate for it. (It could be that they’re waking up at 2am on Thanksgiving to start cooking and they don’t have time to decorate. This is not me, by the way. 2am is sleep time.) But really, think about it. People decorate for Halloween. People decorate for Christmas. Thanksgiving? Not so much.

Responsible me: Decorating is fun, yes. But there is plenty of cleaning to do around here. Boring chores galore. I don’t think making a banner is urgent. That pile of dishes is almost touching the ceiling.

Fun me: Yawn, yawn. Dishes and chores can wait. After all, they have been ignored around here plenty of times and it’s not like they threw down their dirty dish cloth and screamed, “I’m out of here!” (Actually that would be welcomed. If chores simply left because I was ignoring them it would help me out…)

Responsible me: Is this just an excuse for you to ignore chores and do something you like?

Fun me: (shocked) I am so misunderstood! It is not about my selfish preference to make art. I am being selfless, thinking only about how ignored Thanksgiving must feel.

Responsible me: This isn’t procrastination?

Fun me: You say that like it’s a bad thing.

Responsible me: You swear you’re going to do the dishes later?

Fun me: I made no such promise. And shhhhhh. I’m trying to brainstorm designs for this banner.

Responsible me: I give up. There’s no point in arguing with you. You win. Get your craft on.

Fun me: I’m so glad you’ve decided to be reasonable about this. You’ll love my banner!

Responsible me: Yeah sure, fine, whatever. I have to go to bed. You’ve given me a headache…

Fun me: No problem. I’ll stay up and get stuff done while you sleep…Now where’s my hot glue gun?

 

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

 

Animal Behavior

If you read my recent post about the Isetta (what do I mean “if?” Of course you did! And you loved it, too!), you will recall my mentioning the illustrator Richard Scarry. Maybe I’ll call this Scarry Week here on my blog, because I’m about to mention him again. (Note the extra “r” in his name. Scary week—with one "r"—was Halloween week. This is different…)

Scarry illustrated many children’s books (more than three hundred). Some illustrations were playful and cartoony, but his talent went beyond cartoons. He painted beautifully and realistically, which you see in illustrations like this, from I am a Bunny:

 

I like Scarry’s illustrations of fall from his book Richard Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever (yep, that’s the whole title):

We don’t burn leaves like this now, but why haggle over details? Look how charming it is to see the bear rake leaves:

I think bears get too much of a bad rap. Everyone warns that they’ll break your car windows to get your picnic basket (pick-a-nick basket if we’re talking about Yogi Bear). But in some parts of the world, as Scarry has shown, bears are responsible creatures that rake their own leaves and even wear clothes when it gets extra cold. That hibernation story must be an urban legend…


And check out the turkey:

 

He seems like a very competent driver. Both wings are on the steering wheel. No texting and driving for that turkey…

I know I’m not the first person ever to say this, but we can learn a lot from our animal friends...

And The Green Plants Grew All Around, All Around, And the Green Plants Grew All Around

(Well, that’s the longest title I’ve ever given to a post! If you don’t know the song I was referencing it's a classic folk song, “The Green Grass Grew…” and you must check it out online.)
 

You’ve probably been on the edge of your seat, wondering why I haven't blogged about the community garden lately.

 

You see, I’ve wanted to make sure you were good and ready for an update. If I yap about it every day, you wouldn’t be as excited by the updates. Plus, I’ve been a little busy. The school year is a non-stop sprint when you have school-aged kids!

 

So let's back up a minute. Over the summer we expanded our community garden. Some of the new garden beds are growing with major gusto. Here are a few photos of some of the beds. I’m not always sure what’s growing in them (as in the photo below) but I still find it exciting to watch things grow:

 

 

Since I haven’t been at the garden as much in the last few months, I notice major change when I do pop in to see what’s growing.
 

 

This weekend I spent some time in the garden. It was a beautiful day: not hot, not cold—just right. Butterflies and hummingbirds meandered through while I was visiting. People wandered in and we chatted. Radios blared from the street a few feet away. The siren wailed from the fire station. But even noises like that don’t disrupt the serenity I feel at the garden. All the sounds blended into a vibrant soundtrack and I felt happy and alive while I was there. It feels like a modern day town square, the crossroads of a neighborhood, filled with activity. But it’s also a harmonious place where you can just be. Somehow the garden is simultaneously humming busily and breathing peacefully. 

Because it is Thanksgiving week here in America, let me say that I am so thankful for this garden…I give my garden bed water, the rare haircut and occasionally I dig some coffee grounds into the soil. I give it some care, but it gives me back so much more. And I am grateful for what it brings to my life…

Isetta and Drive-a

(The first draft of this post was written on Nov. 23, 2011; It finally was posted on my blog on Nov. 23, 2014. Three years later. I feel a little silly that it sat unfinished for that long. It’s true that I get all gung ho starting projects and that I sometimes don’t finish them. Three years seems like a long time to let this post marinate. Of course not when I compare it to the age of our planet…)

 

‘Twas the day before Thanksgiving,

with much cleaning to do,

but Sarah was gazing online

at cars that looked like shoes.

 

It’s true. Thanksgiving (2011) is tomorrow and I do have tons of cleaning to do before people come over. But I’m procrastinating. I mean, I’m doing important research on my blog post about the Isetta. Do you know it? It’s a teeny, three-wheeled car from the 1950s and 60s. I love things from this era and this is no exception.

 

Before I go any further, allow me to do a mini Italian lesson. (I used to be fairly fluent in Italian and I studied there when I was twenty-one.) Please pronounce it like this: EEE-set-tuh. Not, I repeat not, like this: EYE-set-tuh. In Italian the “I” has an “eeeee” sound. When you start sharing facts about the Isetta with your friends, you want to pronounce this correctly, right? (On a related note, Iran and Iraq are not pronounced “EYE-ran” and “EYE-rack.” Talk to any person from Iran or Iraq and listen to how they pronounce it!)

My mom likened the Isetta to the cars Richard Scarry drew, which is right-on! Here are two of Scarry’s illustrations that remind me a lot of the Isetta:

  

 

 

 

 

(The photo above must have been a later incarnation, with four wheels. But its top remains mostly glass, like the earliest models, and like Scarry's illustrations.)

 

Of course, Scarry illustrated books in the 1960s, and Isettas are from that time period so the similarity makes sense. My appreciation for items from that time period comes from the rounded shapes used in a lot of designs from the ‘50s and ‘60s, from toasters to cars. Compared with cars of today, ‘60s cars had a lot of glass and chrome, rounded edges, and a more playful, less boxy look.

Isettas are were not the only microcars developed in the 1950s and 60s. (Microcars are exactly what they sound like: cars that look like they were shrunk in the hot water cycle.) Microcars were developed in Europe after World War II, when small vehicles were in demand because of their fuel efficiency. But today I’m focusing on the Isetta. Their small size (only 7.5 ft long by 4.5 ft wide) and unusual design make Isettas intriguing. But what really fascinated me about Isettas was that they opened at the front, like a refrigerator. An Italian company named Iso SpA, which built refrigerators and motor scooters, made its first foray into car design in 1955. Their engineers decided to use elements of what they already made, and when they combined an engine from their scooters and a door from their refrigerators, the Isetta was born. (Oh, how I love this charming backstory!)

 

Isettas were known as bubble cars because of their curved body style and almost all-glass tops. There are other bubble cars, including the one, below: 

 

 

In the 1950s Isettas were built in various countries including Spain, Germany, France, Great Britain, Belgium, and Brazil. In 1954, the French company VELAM acquired a licence from Iso to make a car based on the Isetta. Iso had sold the body making equipment to BMW, so VELAM developed their own body but used the original Iso engine. The VELAM body was rounder and more egg-like than Iso's Isetta.

 

In 1955, Iso licensed the Isetta to Romi, a Brazilian company. With each new manufacturer, the body style changed slightly. Some companies chose to elongate the car so that more people could fit into it. Other companies made their microcars pointy or squarish. But for me, the original Isetta design wins in cuteness and originality.


In 1962 manufacturing of the Isetta was stopped. Among other factors, competition from the VW Beetle and Fiat created less demand for the Isetta. The Isetta’s seven year ride was short but this unusual car has not been forgotten. Today small cars are in demand due to fuel prices and a growing concern about the environment. Fuel-efficient cars, electric cars and hybrids are popular. I’d like to think that the Smart Car has picked up where the Isetta left off. It’s small, it’s very different-looking and it’s fuel-efficient. Did I mention cute? (No, I don’t drive one, nor do I work for Smart Car!)


I’m a good driver but I don’t understand much about how car engines work. I am convinced a really fast hamster is running through a wheel under the hood to power my car. Even if I know very little about how cars work, I’m intrigued by the design of cars from the 50s and 60s. Cars had such unusual design features back then: exaggerated lines and curves and true personality. And some had really fun, pointy tail fins!


This is only somewhat related to our chat about the Isetta, but I did spot a tuk-tuk on the streets of San Diego a few years back. It too is three-wheeled, small and efficient. I was shocked to see it!

That’s why I’m keeping my eyes peeled, people. I’m always on the lookout for something unusual and I feel it’s my calling to share my observations and photos with you. Fear not: this won’t be my last post about vintage cars or unusual sights. I’m on it…