Let's Go To The Movies: Guest of Cindy Sherman

Aaron's deep Tivo search skills has led to some incredible programs as of late on our dvr. One such gem was the movie Guest of Cindy Sherman playing on IFC. It took me almost a week to finish it, but I continue to be intrigued by it.

I am a Cindy Sherman fan. She is one artist I always find myself feeling a tinge of jealousy for her work. I wish I had the opportunity to explore the same type of artistic exercises she gets to work out. She is able to explore so many facets of her life through her work in a way that I would love to. The possibilities of dress up are endless, and I think Sherman is so lucky to have found a way that keeps us all genuinely wanting more of her play.

More than just a look at a normally reclusive artist, I find the movie an endearing look at love and relationships. How lucky to have had the camera's rolling when cupids arrow struck both of these people. I felt giddy watching them as their relationship unfolded. It reminded me of those intense butterfly moments I felt when I first met Aaron. Check this one out if you can.

Never Can Say Goodbye

My best MJ memory is playing Thriller after dinner. We'd put the LP on and have a dance performance for my mom before bedtime. Specifically, I remember always doing the duet with my sister Patty to "The Girl is Mine." Of course, as the big sister and bossy choreographer, I always did the Michael vocals. Thank you Michael for such a great memory.

The Boys in Blue

On Sunday Team Meza, Team Gavin and Team Callaway headed down to the Chavez Ravine to check out the action inside Dodger Stadium. It was Nico's first baseball game and dad reports he was enthralled to say the least. I'm so glad the boys had a day out with their pops for some male bonding, pretzels and Dodger fan heckling. After the game they headed back home and Nico apparently picked up a couple cool moves from the game. Check this out.

Happy Father's Day

I know Father's Day was officially yesterday, but shouldn't we be saying this every day? We love you so much!

It's Aaron's second father's day so I wanted to tell him: Thank you for always helping me. Thank you for having so much patience. I love watching you and the bubba together. You both have a language all your own. It makes me giddy to see how happy you make him. Now that you are back from your trip, I feel that we are complete again. You're like a tall glass of water.

Happy Father's Day to all the other papa's, papi's, dad's, daddy's and abba's in our lives: Oscar, Ron, Hank, Abuelo Pacho, Jason M., Tim G., Sam S., Eric K., Jason C., Rudy J., Sean M., John B., Ty E., Scott J., Patrick C., and Kevin C.The 2 Oscars. My papi and my brother on one of our epic 80's ski trips.

Renegade Craft Fair

Who is coming to this with me? I really can't wait! Full report to follow after the L.A. show on July 11th. From the looks of the Brooklyn Show, L.A. won't disappoint.They have already sold out all the vendor booths. I'm ready to get crafty!

Don't I Wish: Palm Springs

AJ is in this picture, I swear. She's in background faced the other way,
but she would be part of this excursion for sure.

Don't I Wish I could go to Palm Springs for a weekend with my girlfriends. I would take $1,000 in cash to go furniture shopping. I'd like to find some chairs like these.

I would check out the Ace Hotel...
or my old standby The Korakia Pensione.

I would get a massage and then go swimming at night. I would do crosswords in bed every morning with a cup of coffee. I'd check out dinner at the Purple Palm. I'd be in bed by 11 latest, and fall asleep watching bad movies on Lifetime. Don't I Wish.

Hanging out with Bubbe

We give the Zimmer museum an A+ for fun.

We checked out the Zimmer Museum with my mom. The last time we were there Nico was about 6 months old. This time he really enjoyed it and was able to understand the concept a bit more. The Zimmer is considered one of the best kept mommy secrets in LA. It is located in the lobby of The Goldsmith Jewish Federation Center on Wilshire. It is a miniature town, complete with a Bagel Shop, a synagogue, a market, jumpy room, prayer wall, an ambulance, and a reading room. It is such a great place to let the kiddo run free. Bubbe's get in free and kids are free until they are 3. My mom was super impressed and intrigued by the Ultra Orthodox women wearing wigs. I have to admit, I always stare too! Nico had fun with my mom, whom he now calls Abui (aww-boo-wee), his version of Abuela, (grandmother in Spanish). It is such a cute pronunciation, I hope it doesn't change. Abui left today to go back to San Francisco. We already miss her terribly. Come back soon Abui!Nico playing in an abandoned Tzahal plane.

I don't think you have to make any offerings like that Nico.

Nico wearing a Tallit.
(This picture was hastily taken because we were being nervous and guilty Catholics and we didn't want to offend anyone. Abui had to hold Nico and keep a look out. We were ridiculous.)

Free Day

It's nice to be able to entertain your kid for free. Train rides here, a ball there, it all adds up. In these economic times I have to be more creative about how to fill up a day without having to pay. On Wednesday, my mom and I headed to Toys R' Us to help Nico burn off some steam in an air conditioned funhouse. We weren't the only people there using the facilities either. There were plenty of kiddies test driving all manner of toys.

Nico took right away to a lawn mower and made sure all the aisles were tidy. He also gravitated towards a dolly and made sure she was hydrated. He quickly dropped it on it's head when he saw a skateboard. He kept screaming "DADA!" as he tried to jump on and off of it. Two hours later we finally headed out. But not before our celeb sighting of the day, Lea Rimini and her kid playing in the store. Now that's what I call fun for free!

Poet's Celebration in San Diego

We headed to San Diego to celebrate Poet's second birthday. We went to Sea World for a day of revelry with the AJ's. It was a great weekend getaway. We stayed at the W hotel in downtown San Diego. It was a 10 minute drive to SeaWorld from there. We kicked of the party with a breakfast with Elmo. It was fantastic. All the Sesame Street characters came out and managed to somehow interact with every kid there. There were probably 100 toddlers in attendance. Breakfast was good and so was the coffee.Nico was in a trance. He was afraid and enthralled at the same time. When Cookie Monster came up to him, Nico gave him a raspberry. Classic Nico. We saw Shamu, played in the Sesame Street Playground, touched starfish, saw the Busch Clydesdales and got sunburned.Nico missed his nap and was super fussy so we left at around 4. In order to make him stay awake until bedtime, we made a beeline across the road to a beach and let him play in the sand. It was so nice to be able to access a beach so easily. It was packed with sunbathers. A perfect SoCal day. His obsession with sharks grew even more after this trip. He is also saying "pulpo" now. Octopus in Spanish. I saved our SeaWorld map and he looks at it before he goes to sleep, pointing out the sharks, Elmo and the pulpo. Thank you Cortelcheez for a great time. We always have fun with your clan. Happy Birthday Poet!

Cuzns

The cousins came to town last week. It was their first time visiting us at the new house. Nico went absolutely nuts when they arrived. Video to come later. We had so much fun with them. Nico played so hard he was sweating most of the time. Austin and Christian are so sweet to Nico. They are great helpers. Boys, you are welcome back anytime! We love you.

Heev Ho to the Hive

Today I tore down a wasp nest growing at a rapid rate under my garage awning. The wasps were long and scary and the paper hive was dangling like a Christmas ornament (ok, maybe more like a small earring). I knew I had to get it down quickly before it got so out of hand I would need professional help. I wore my safety gear (a jean jacket) and used a specialized tool (a broom). I had to be decisive (not my strong point) and run up to it and tear it down. It took me several attempts, and my mom wrapped in her own bee gear (a beach towel) watched me from inside the house.I finally tore it down and ran faster then I have ever in my whole life. The wasp was so mad, she was buzzing around for a while looking for her nest. I had to go back out and spray some repellent (Shout stain remover) in the area. Finally, she got the hint and moved on. I hope my improvised repellent works and they hate the smell enough (Meadow Fresh). 

The Gift of GIF

Didn't you think the GIF was dead? I did. In fact they were borderline pet peevish for me. There is nothing that gets under my skin more than a stretched out gif. (nerd!) These animated gifs are amazing. I found them on a site whose name is too dirty to type here because my mom and my mother in law read this. If you want the site leave a comment and I'll reply.  They feel really modern,vintage, punk and filmic all at the same time don't they? Do you love as much as I do? I thought I'd try and figure out how it was done. I couldn't figure it out just yet. Truth is, I had never made an animated gif at all, so for this post, here it is: my first gif.  So, the animated gif can be cool. What's next? Will the carnation somehow become floral du jour?

European Workcation

Mr. Meza touched ground in Sweden yesterday, the land of his ancestors. He sent this picture from his hotel, a grounded boat.(That's him on the right.) I know it's a work trip, but come on! It's pretty spectacular. We spoke briefly today and he told me he isn't getting too much sleep. It's hard to muster up any sympathy. However, it's easy to hear in his voice how much he misses Nico, and for that he eternally has my shoulder to cry on. Hurry home husband we miss you!

Observe and Report

Nico and I had an active morning. We drove on a relatively empty I-5 and exited on Los Feliz . The wide Boulevard was also drowsy and spare. A few people were inking FOR SALE signs for their cars parked on the side of the road. Some set out blankets and tchotchky wares for their yard sales. We turned up Vermont past hoards of cyclists and golfers packing up their gear. Through an ancient tunnel and up a windy road. Nico asking for "mas" as we exited said tunnel. There was plenty of parking at the Observatory, but I took an empty spot far away so that we could walk the path up to the building. I vowed to keep my mind focused on the astronomy and the architecture. I would not let my mind wander, pondering where exactly James Dean stood. It wasn't too hard. Going to the observatory with Nico for the first time made the trip distinctly different then past visits. I had to make sure he didn't jump off of any cliffs and I had to explain that all the planets were not balls. We had a blast. We sat on the terrace overlooking the Hollywood sign and ate snacks. He ran like wild on the lawns. We even ventured down a popular hiking trail. (I ended up having to carry him back up the trail, so that counts as a work out right?) I had so much fun. I think Nico did too. I love how much company Nico keeps me these days.

Bliss

Dear Aaron,
You are far far away right now. Across the Atlantic Ocean to be exact. We miss you terribly. I wanted to tell you how much we love you. The fact that on the eve of your departure you took the time to build us a bed speaks volumes about your patience. The three of us were huddled around the 50 slats of wood that would eventually become a futon frame, Nico mimicking you with his toy hammer. You called it bliss. My heart melted. I have it so good.

Yet another day at LA Zoo

What would I do without my zoo membership? The zoo comes in handy for those hum drum days with nothing to do. It's a 5 minute drive from my house. Last Friday Nico and I arrived fashionably late to the zoo, strolling in at around 3:30. Mind you they put all the animals away at 4. Yet, we always say Hi to the gorillas right before they are put away.Nico doesn't seem to mind. I also don't mind that the park is practically empty, all the school field trips and kiddies have long gone. It's nice having a huge public park all to yourself. Lately we don't even try to see any animals. We just enjoy walking the tree lined pathways. Nico loves running the curvy stone paths. Nico thinks he is about to jump off of a very high wall. Enjoying the pathways. We are here.

Around the House: Nico's Room

Nico's room is perhaps the one room that truly looks moved in. We spend more time in there adjusting artwork, changing beds (were on bed #3 right now) and all around "Jujjing" than any other room in our house. I wanted to share my favorite project in there so far.I was inspired by this site to take our ugly Ikea dresser, (one we had to buy out of necessity during our temporary move) and easily transform it into something interesting. I had very little budget. At Micheal's I purchased orange felt tiles with self adhesive on the back. Each tile was .99 cents, and I used 3 per drawer.I cut them to size with scissors, peeled the back and stuck it over the ugly corrugated frosted plastic. For under $10, I really love the look of the dresser now. Before the drawers looked messy all the time, because the plastic facing showed all its contents. Now the felt and the white wood are so interesting. What do you think? Before. After.