Party! Holiday

Some of my fondest memories are from family holiday parties.  I come from a large European old fashioned close knit Jewish family.  What I mean is that we are a super tight unit and get-togethers are supremely loud, energetic, and delicious.  Especially now since many of my cousins are now parents themselves.  It used to be that every holiday culminated with these family festivities.  Not the case anymore.  But this year my mom decided to host a Purim party and to invite both sides of the family.  Never done before.

To some people Purim is the Jewish Halloween.  Really Purim is a festival that commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people in Ancient Persia from Haman's plot to destroy the Jews in a single day.  Three years ago my father passed away a few days prior to Purim.  In some ways my mother hosted this party so that our extended (almost immediate) family could be together at this time.  Lately I'm feeling emotional recounting some horrid moments from that tragic time.

How nice it was for us to be together again :) chatting, laughing, eating...true party fun!

Two reasons people think Purim is The Jewish Halloween:
1. We dress up in costumes (traditionally children dressed up as the heroes from the Purim story)
2. We send gifts of food to our friends (an exchange called Mishloach Manot in Hebrew)

Blogging Ladies

Last night I went to the JCC for an interview event with Julie Powell and Gretchen Rubin called From Blogs to Blockbusters. For those of you who don't already know, Julie Powell is the author of Julie and Julia (and Cleaving) and Gretchin Rubin is the author of The Happiness Project. I signed up really just to hear Julie Powell speak. I fell in love with the movie, that is based on her blog project about cooking her way through Julia child's cookbook. I knew nothing about Gretchin Rubin and didn't pay much attention to her name when I received the email invitation. The interview was focused on how their careers took off through blog writing. As a newbie blogger I was very much interested in what these successful women had to say. I hoped for tips and inspiration. I received an account of their passions in truly dissimilar manners. One left brain, one right. I thought of me and my sister: one doctor to be, one art teacher. Left brain, right brain.

I am interested in happiness. Like all other living beings. While Gretchen Rubin spoke I began to think about how complicated it is to be happy. What fascinates me is that as children it's one of the first emotions we learn. It seems basic, fundamental, easy. But as adults this almost boring emotion becomes a never-ending complicated a journey that eats away all of our energy.

I'll be happy when I am fed. I am warm. I am comfortable. I am thin. I am loved. In a relationship. In control. Own property. Earn a living. Why is it we are always one step away? It's a basic, fundamental, easy, emotion. Truth?

What I love about Julie Powell is although she is awkward, blatantly honest, and definitely not as cute as Amy Adams, she is this totally lovable woman who is completely obsessed by writing and also by food. I can kind of relate (even though no adorable hollywood actress will ever play me.)

Of course people blog for all sorts of reasons. But Julie and Gretchen write about obsession. As an ode to them I will gladly write and offer my thoughts on what obsesses me. Today it is my travel trip to Japan. More detail to follow.

My feet were prunish and soggy when I arrived home tonight. Not enough to dampen today's obsession :)

Self Worth

Precious has been on my mind all week. If you haven't yet heard of this movie -hear! If you haven't yet seen it- see! I saw it on Sunday and I know it has only been three days. Honestly though in sick time days feels longer. Yes I am still sick. Putting a damper on my weeklong vacation. :( Nose Runny. Throat clogged. I do not look or sound like much fun.

So Precious...

It's a story about a girl who has endured every form of abuse. Cruelty. Precious is the name of a sixteen year old obese girl, living in Harlem, who is pregnant for the second time by her father. She is illiterate. She is HIV Positive. Her first child is disabled. She is physically, emotionally, and verbally slaughtered by her mother. A girl ripped apart.

As I continually worry about mistreatment in its different forms, this movie highlights the idea of self worth. There is a difference between being needed and being important. It is clear Precious' mother "needs" her: to take care of her wants. But worth? Can Precious possibly know what that means? No. The movie makes us aware that Precious feels unloved, unwanted, and unnecessary. I have been thinking about the ego and how it is essential to us all. We share this as humans. We are trained to believe that too much "me" is bad. I agree. But what I know is that even little bits keep us going. Truth- people find and feel love in unique ways, yet no one can discover it unless the ego exists.

I am valuable. I am worthy. I desire. I deserve.

Fire Throat and Body Art

I wasted a self medicated sick day today :( It looks terrible not to show up the day before a holiday, but really and truly my throat's on fire. Trying not to spend the day feeling guilty (jewish) about the absence, I did what any other art teacher would do...body art! Ever since my trip to Morocco, this past summer, I am completely in love with henna. My supplies are sparse so I used what I had on my bedside- a green felt tip marker.

Now you all know what to gift me.

Sea Breeze and Henna Art on the boardwalk of Essaouira, Morocco

Bellisimo

An Introduction

I'd like to introduce my new baby. After months of research, debate, stress, and decision making, I invested in a Nikon D5000. In a word -elegance. But she is so much more. I've been playing with her in my apartment, trying to figure her out. Today was her first trip outside! Thanks Bloomberg for the opportunity (snow day). I think she liked the world outside. Unfortunately I got really soggy and cold- so we went home quite early.

I think this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship :)

Everything looks better with freshly fallen snow

Central Park in all its glory

But of course the traffic creates dirty slush

That's Tempeh?

Well I did it. I Tried tempeh for the first time this evening. (no not a vegan, just a curious eater) Met one of my college "Art Major" friends at, Blossom, this vegan cafe in my neighborhood. It's a charming place where descriptions on the menu out-taste the food. Not sure whether it was the way it was prepared, Moroccan glazed tempeh, (sounds yummy) but it really wasn't all that. I loved the chickpea, eggplant, tomato, sweet potato, spicy stew on the bottom. There was just no way getting around the strange consolidated texture and the nutty almost bitter flavor of the tempeh.

Strangely my Metrocard went missing this afternoon. Frustration. Silly me putting twenty new dollars onto my Starbucks card and slipping it into that same case :(

I guess there are worse things.

Peanut Butter

somehow peanut butter became an addiction! no rhyme or reason just pure bliss.

This week my bliss list also includes:

1. Vimeo -making class time more fun

2. Lentils. nutritious and delicious

3. L' Ultimo Bacio (The Last Kiss) - an adorable Italian film about a group of guys afraid to grow up

Round Two

It has been over two months since my last post- not cool. I figure either I can absorb this defeat and move on to some other popularized activity or I can suck it up and try again. I choose the latter. Apologies. If not to my readers (still don't think I have any) than to myself. So here I go at my second attempt to putting myself into the blogosphere.

Thursday night I met, Gloria, my colleague and an amazing artist in Brooklyn at MoCADA for the opening of "Gentrification of Brooklyn: The Pink Elephant Speaks". Super crowded, hot and sweaty, I pushed myself between people, stuck my head in uncomfortable locations, and stepped on things I probably shouldn't have. All discomfort aside- amazing exhibition. This selective group of artists uniquely captured their experiences of Gentrification and its effects on their communities. As a native New Yorker I am constantly made aware that here wealth equals power. Gentrification is not unique to Brooklyn, it's the trend happening all through the boroughs, and Raw New York is fading fast.

Afterwards we went to another opening exhibition, not worth mentioning, which landed us in DUMBO. We went for some tasty treats, including red, red, vino (obviously) at DUMBO General Store.