Pretty

People visiting Greenjeans often comment about what a pretty shop we have. Today I'm totally feeling that. So, accompanied by Nick Drake's album "Bryter Layter" on constant repeat, I've taken some pictures of how the shop looks today. Sometimes it's nice to just enjoy something pretty!

New Artisan: aya*shii

This week a remarkable batch of work arrived from Japanese puppet maker Aya Ishii, known as aya*shii in the puppet world. They are so fabulous I can hardly even describe them!

Every puppet Aya makes is different. The ones she sent to us include a punk bat with a white fur mohawk, a circus-flavored tiger in a red suede jacket, and a green bunny in a polka dot dress who is so flirty Jae has a crush on her. Click here to see images of all eight.

The craftsmanship of these puppets is extraordinary. Aya carves their heads from cherry or camphor wood, paints them perfectly, and details them with fur, whiskers, and eyelashes. She then sews their clothes from different kinds of fabric and leather. Each one is beautifully lined in suede.


We have eight of Aya's magical finger puppets here at the shop. They're the only ones for sale in the U.S. (She also sells them in Tokyo.) These are works of art and will retail at around $200 each. So if you love puppets, or you love unusual artwork, come and get it while the gettin's good!

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It's Peace Day. Come register to vote at Greenjeans!

September 21 (Thursday) is the International Day of Peace.

This year, instead of hanging a cascade of paper cranes or peace signs, I opted to do something a little different. At the suggestion of Jane Kaufmann who is herself a deeply devoted peace activist, I'm taking a more political view of peace, asking:

What would Buddha do?

The answer? Buddha would be mindful and Buddha would endeavor to be the change he wants to see.

So Buddha would VOTE!

And if Buddha wasn't registered, Buddha would REGISTER TO VOTE!

So, I'm holding a voter registration drive. It's quick, it's easy, and it's your ticket to claiming your voice as a citizen of this country. I have voter registration forms here at the shop and will even mail them in for you. And if you register at the shop this week we'll give you 10% off your purchases.

You can also download NY State's form by clicking here. Or click here to register in another state. It will literally take you 5 minutes, so do it now!

Back to voting. Don't be ashamed if you're, like 96 years old and still unregistered. It's never too late, and it's always very hip to become an active citizen. And let's not play that tired old but-I-don't-want-to-get-called-in-for-jury-duty line. We're all grown ups, aren't we? Don't we believe in the greater good? Anyway, if you need to get out of jury duty, just say you believe in TORT reform.

Now I'm going to get on my soapbox a bit here. There is a vitally important election coming up on November 7th that can shift the balance of power in Congress. Those who want to maintain the status quo will definitely be at the polls on the 7th--they are great at mobilizing the voter base. Those seeking change aren't so great at getting out the vote. Often these voters feel that their vote doesn't count. That the voting machines and systems are rigged so their vote is useless. But you know what? There's really only one thing that is 100% guaranteed to work the way the status quo wants it to: voter apathy on the part of their opposition.

So if you want change but you don't vote on the 7th, you are playing directly into the hands of those who want to keep things as they are. It's your decision: let them win, or fight for change. If all who want change vote on the 7th, there will be change.

I also wanted to mention that Doctors Without Borders is staging a mock refugee camp exhibition in Prospect Park Sept. 20-24, another good idea for a Peace Day excursion.

Ghandi said you must be the change you want to see.

Be the change! Register to Vote!

Peace.

top photo: site of Bamiyan Buddha after Taliban destroyed it in 2001

bottom photo: Borobudur stone Buddha in Java

Visit to Hudson, NY

Yesterday, Jae and I took a day trip up to Hudson, NY. We've been hearing this town is a destination cultural center with lots of galleries and such opening up. An art jewelry gallery that we admire is located up there too, giving us even more enticement to go. Plus we wanted to score some farm fresh apples! So we ventured forth into the warm late summer day to check it out.

The drive took a little over 2 hours from Brooklyn up the beautiful Taconic Parkway. On the way, we stopped at Eger Brothers Farm where we stocked up on the freshest apples, gorgeous red peppers, green beans, okra, nectarines, grapes, watermelon, pears, zucchini bread, and the most complex and succulent white peaches I've ever tasted.

Our farmer's market fix sated, we proceeded into Hudson. I took a bunch of photos that you can view here. Click the picture for a description. (If you don't have a Flickr account, you may log in as "greenjeansguest1" and password "brooklyn1".)

We found the town to be quaint and quiet (it being an off-season Monday), redolent of Belfast, Maine, or Portsmouth, NH. We parked the car in the shade and started walking up Warren Street which is the main drag, passing dozens and dozens of beautiful antique shops, boutiques, and art galleries. Many were closed, but they offered great window-shopping.

We stopped for lunch at Swoon, an airy, pleasant cafe with tin ceilings painted silver and paintings by local artists on the honey-colored walls. Our Cuban panini sandwich, heap of local organic baby greens, and cold beer (Belgian for Jae, British for me) hit the spot.

At the cafe we read about an equinox event called "Riverfire: An Ancient Celtic Fire Festival" coming up Sept. 23. The idea of an ancient Celtic fire festival excites me, but we won't probably make it back.

Eventuallly we made our way up to Ornamentum, the art jewelry gallery. We took our time examining the fascinating and unusual baubles and brooches created by jewelry makers from all over the world -- Vietnam, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Korea, the US. I especially loved the brooches made from small pieces of driftwood inlaid with tiny pearls and uncut diamonds by a German artist whose name I can't remember. There were also amazing gold pieces involving finger prints by Gerd Rothmann and rings and cuffs with salamanders and ants suspended in clear acrylic by Ted Noten. And the little gold coathanger earrings shown above.

I fell for a pair of little oxidized silver earrings with gold posts cast in the shape of a violet blowing in the wind (or that's how I see them) made by New York artist John Iversen that instantly became my new favorite earrings. We talked with Laura, the owner of the gallery whom we'd met briefly this past spring at SOFA NY. Later on, her adorable blonde 2-year-old came running in followed by her husband and gallery co-owner Stefan.

Hudson closes down at 5pm, and so after our visit to Ornamentum, window-shopping was the only option. We admired the impressive red art deco doors of the Mark McDonald gallery that we were told is one of the most important modernism galleries in the world. We caught a glimpse of a singer practicing inside the Hudson Opera House. We peered through the glass at the many vacant spaces in the midst of reconstruction (this is definitaly a growing area). And we marveled at a variety of strange and wonderful chairs, tables, and unidentified objects in the windows of some of the 150 antique shops in the town.

At last we reached our car and drove away from Hudson feeling satisfied and edified. Hudson is a great day trip, but be aware that many businesses are closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and shops close at 5. The trees are just beginning to show signs of fall color, so going up in the next few weeks would be prime. We hear there are nice inns up there too...

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Esquire Magazine Reveals the Future of Craft?!

The other day I was reading through an old issue of Esquire Magazine (for the articles, I swear!), and I came upon something that made me realize how ahead of the curve the contemporary handmade movement really is. Unlikely perhaps, but read on.

In a typically cheeky-yet-informative piece titled the “5 Minute Guide to Oil,” the magazine asked some hard questions: “Can we get oil from someplace other than the Middle East?” (Basic answer: Yes, but it’ll run out around 2025) and “What is Peak Oil?” (The recognition that oil is a finite resource and once supply outweighs demand in about 20 years it’s gonna hurt.)

It also asked the question “Should we be scared?” (Essentially, yes.) By way of responding to this question, it offered a Saudi saying that, once I read it, set off a flashbulb in my brain. It may be scary in terms of oil, but its ramifications for craft are inspiring. The saying goes like this:

“My father rode a camel. I drive a car. My son rides in a jet. His son will ride a camel.”

Opting to ignore the chauvinism for a moment, “Exactly!” I exclaimed to myself, as I excitedly grabbed for the Aug/Sept issue of Bust Magazine at my side. I love this issue for the wardrobe-altering sewing instructions it offers. And I love how empowering the magazine is generally to anyone craving a little DIY self-sufficiency from the global economy.

My thought was that perhaps in some ways, Bust magazine and many other recent cultural phenomena—a resurgence of stitch-and-bitch gatherings, Church of Craft events, many DIY books and magazines, the blogs kept by potters and bookbinders, and so on—are sort of preparing us to ride the camel before we really have to. Today we can knit a warm scarf at our leisure while riding in a jet. This struck me as quite profound.

Among some of the people who make things by hand for a living there is an attitude of knowing a secret. This secret has to do with having access to a way of life most of the rest of us have abandoned for the (perceived) convenience and variety of the global marketplace. It has been only a few dozen years since we American consumers started sending our dollars overseas in exchange for the goods we use everyday. 100 years ago, our good were made much closer to home, even in the home. Imagine sewing and mending clothes for yourself and your family, or building your own house out of the trees on the land, not because you want to but because that’s what you have to do to survive.

Fossil fuels like oil and coal had a lot to do with changing all that as it became feasible to power factories and transport goods across great distances. Today, we usually don’t think twice about picking up some new dishes on sale at Crate & Barrel, or ordering a pretty throw blanket from Pottery Barn. But where are these items made? And who is making them? How are they getting here? And who is profiting from the money you paid for them? Is this better than the locally handmade option?

There are plenty of questions about labor fairness and corporate bottom lines to be considered here. But today I’m interested in the matter of energy, fuel. Oil. On what sort of power are factories in China and India run? What powers the shipping of items from these factories to us? What fuels the trucks from the ports to stores? How do we get to the stores? How do the stores keep their lights on? For the most part by far, the answer is oil.

There is an opposing argument that says it is actually more costly in terms of amount of oil per, say, head of garlic to drive a small truck down from upstate than it is to steam a cargo ship from China and then drive a tractor trailer truck with a bulk load across the country. And it may be argued that small-scale production is not as energy efficient as large-scale production. And surely there is a numbers game that may be played here.

But what will happen if we suddenly don’t have the oil needed to fuel our consumer economy? What will we do? We will go back to riding camels. That is to say, we will return to relying upon local producers to supply our needs: skilled local potters, shoemakers, furniture builders, toymakers.

There may come a day when taking a pottery class is less about finding a creative outlet and more about making a living producing tableware for the local market. Imagine a day when the artisans of the world are flush with plenty of locally-based work and the globalized corporations are shutting down because they can’t fuel their vast needs any longer. I'm not saying we should rush things. But it is a vision like what I think some craftspeople see on the horizon.

What do you see?

(Read a response to this post in Design Diary.)

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Imaged sourced here

Craft & Art Crossing Over

Contemporary art and craft are finding all kinds of ways to crossover these days. I could wax philosophical about it, or I could share some compelling examples. Today I'm opting for the latter.

A few days ago our friends Morry and Dennis stopped by with an amazing portrait of their grey tiger cat. But it isn't a painting, a sculpture, or a photograph. It is a fully functional scarf and hat crocheted by their incredibly talented friend Ming Yi Sung. (The piece is modeled here by tres chic cousin Jason.)

Ming Yi is a master crocheter and artist based in Washington, DC, who, besides making beautiful presents for her friends, crafts incredibly elaborate installations, wearable sculptures, and other objects entirely out of crocheted yarn. The work really speaks more eloquently than I could, so I've put some pix below. Check out her excellent website, too, for lots more images.

Another example was mentioned to me yesterday by Corrie Beth Hogg, who is herself an example of an artist bending the edges of craft. (See her website here -- we have her Little Animals here at the shop, with a new batch coming soon.)

She mentioned reading in Bust magazine about a group of women in Texas who go out under the cover of night with their yarn and knitting needles to make, for instance, cozies for stop signs and car antennas. They're called Knitta and they're in NYC too! Check 'em out at www.knittaplease.com. (Thanks, Claire, for writing in with the name!) (paragraph modified 9/13/06).

These examples are just the tip of the iceberg. What else is out there challenging the norms of art, craft, and design?

Unrelatedly, the Adventures of the Travelling Felt Ball has been updated -- see it in Ireland and Italy here!

Ming Yi's "Creation of the World"

Ming Yi Sung's "Fish Out of Water"

Ming Yi's "Tree Sweater"

Corrie Beth Hogg's Little Animals

Cozified ketsup bottle in Brooklyn by Knitta

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Suggestions for Peace Day Window?

As some of you may know, September 21 is the International Day of Peace. To mark this day, we at Greenjeans want to do a special window display to keep up through the month of September helping to raise awareness about the day. Thing is, I'm not sure what to do!

To give you some background, the ultimate vision for this day is that it would be a day of armistice and cease-fire, an actual day of peace for all humanity. In the meantime, it is a day when people around the world hold vigils, concerts, teach-ins, and all sorts of other events to bring people together to connect in the spirit of understanding, love, community, and non-violence.

Ceramacist Mary Anne Davis, who is on the U.N.'s IDP committee and has taught me about the day, suggested we work with school children to make dozens and dozens of paper cranes to hang in the window as a tribute to the Cranes for Peace project. (She was going to contribute to the window, but then got a huge commission for dinnerware at a very fancy restaurant and can't take on any more commitments until it's done.) And we also will display some wonderful bowls with the names of peace activists painted inside made by NH potter Kit Cornell. But other than that, I'm not sure what else to include!

Do you have a suggestion for what a window display for peace might look like? If so, please send me a comment or email. I'd love to integrate as many ideas as possible, so brainstorm away!

Thank you so much for your input! And maybe we'll even offer a discount that day for anyone who brings in a paper crane!

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Labor Day Blues

It is a rainy Labor Day weekend and business couldn't be slower. This is quite normal for a shop in a residential neighborhood like Park Slope in late August, and we are in good company with the other businesses in the area, though many are, wisely, closed for vacation.

But when things are slow like this, my mind tends to drift toward doomsday scenarios. I entertain my doubts a little, knowing that a little doubt can be healthy, and having faith that soon enough things will pick up again. And since I imagine most business owners experience these doubts from time to time, I decided to blog about where my mind is at today.

It is said that an idle mind is the devil's workshop, and so I try to stay occupied. I polish some jewelry and change some displays. I work on writing new text for ads and the website. I troll magazines and blogs for inspiration.

But instead of filling me with confidence, these attempts only bring more doubt. The magazines and blogs inspire only insecurity. The writing sounds weak and uncertain. The choices I make rearranging pieces seem like bad ideas. I feel like everyone is more clever than me, every business is more successful than ours.

And then I wonder, why aren't people coming in? Is there something we're doing wrong? Maybe people don't like what we offer for sale. Or maybe they come in and because nothing is familiar, nothing is "famous" from being in a flashy magazine or in higher-profile stores, they walk back out. I always thought that having a shop full of things you can't find everywhere else is a good idea. But maybe not. Maybe people want what they know and aren't as willing to take a chance buying something "unproven." Are we barking up the wrong tree?

Jae, naturally, disagrees with my doubt-full thoughts. He reminds me that it is pouring rain outside and everyone is on vacation. And he says it's the shops that are doing something different that make it big. I reply that, on the contrary, it seems to me it's the mainstream players who make it big. He says nothing, understanding that there's no reasoning with me on a day like this.

And so it goes. I spray some nice citrusy room fragrance around the shop and fluff up the stuffed animals. I file away some sales receipts. I try to imbue all my actions with good energy and positive thoughts.

Then I take a step back and realize that as slow as August has been, and despite the fact that we were closed for a week earlier in the month, we brought in 2.5x more this August than we did last August. And what is that? That is growth. That is progress. That is success. That is maybe even encouraging.

So doubts may come and doubts may go, and that's just fine. I do my best to ride out the tough times and enjoy the good times. Because at the end of the day, there is no doubt in my mind that this is the best job I've ever had, the job that utilizes more of my aptitudes and skills than any other before, the job that brings me (on most days!) the greatest sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. And that certainly has to count for something. Does it mean Greenjeans will become the wildly successful international sensation I sometimes dream for it to be? Who knows. But so long as we stick to our sense of what is right, what is beautiful, and what is true, I think we’ll be just fine. I can go ahead and doubt that if I want to, but for now I think I’ll go with it!

Image found at http://billmon.org/archives/cat_misc.html

Sneak Peek: New Work by John Zentner

New Hampshire potter John Zentner sent me these pictures yesterday of newly-thrown pieces drying in preparation for bisque firing. Pottery like this gets fired twice: once before glazing and once after. This is the before picture.

These pieces will have to wait a little while before they're done because John is rebuilding his kiln, which is necessary from time to time. The kiln has to be taken down brick by brick and then built back up after necessary interior repairs are made, which is no small task. But we will have pieces from this batch in store this fall!

John makes lots of nice things, but to me his mugs take the cake. Just about every potter makes mugs, but not all mugs are created equally. John's mugs are always so well-balanced, well-proportioned, and friendly to handle and drink from. They are sturdy without being clunky, earthy without being homely, and creative without being whimsical. They are also a reassuring presence to me, though maybe this is because I've lived with his mugs at home for so many years. John has a gift for mug-making, and it's such a privilege to offer his quintessential mugs at Greenjeans. Anyone who collects handmade mugs definitely needs a Zentner mug or two!

A small sampling of finished mugs available at Greenjeans ($18-$35 ea.)

John peering into his kiln at a new firing (taken July 2005)

Studio Visit: Janice Ho, Metalsmith Jeweler

During our Midwestern adventure, Jae and I visited the studios of two metalsmith jewelers whose work we offer at Greenjeans. Yesterday I wrote about our studio visit with Erica Schlueter. Today I'll tell you about our visit to Janice Ho's studio. Click here for the slideshow!

As an aside, we just got a new digital camera that takes close-ups, so I'll be able to post images of their work soon, too.

Janice's studio is in Madison, WI, a few miles from the beautiful State House. She shares the huge warehouse space with a few other metalsmiths. It's a pretty wonderful place to visit if you're like me and LOVE getting an inside look at working studios -- it's filled to the brim with mysterious tools, machines, and inspiring objects like jars of dried pods and funny cartoons.

Most of the studios I've visited house a couple of well-loved plants, but Janice's has a veritable garden growing along one window ledge. She showed us one plant that just the night before had produced a humongous hibiscus-like flower (which she's pantomiming in one of the slideshow pix), and another little succulent that had been retaining a tiny bead of water for the whole day. It is easy to see where Janice gets some of her ideas for the finely constructed botanical forms in her work!

Janice showed us some fresh pieces to pick from for Greenjeans, and as I sorted through the beautiful earrings and pendants and bracelets I came across a sweet little leaf-shaped ring that for some reason just looked like it belonged on my finger. It's a little sliver of oxidized silver textured with a thumb print and accented with a tiny sphere of gold, like some strange found treasure sleeping on my finger. I don't normally do this, but I asked her for one in my size. Now I wear it every day. Thank you, Janice!

Erica met us at the studio after we'd been there for a while and the four of us walked along the train tracks to State Street where we supped on delicious Nepalese fare and local brew. It was a lovely studio visit, and a splendid day in Madison.

Many thanks to Erica and Janice for their hospitality and letting us take a peek into their studios!

Studio Visit: Erica Schlueter, Metalsmith Jeweler

Two weeks ago, Jae and I visited the Midwest (see previous post) to celebrate a wedding, see some great architecture, and visit the studios of two wonderful metalsmith jewelers whose work we offer at Greenjeans: Erica Schlueter and Janice Ho.

Today I will share the story of our studio visit with Erica. Click here for a slideshow of pictures from our visit.

We arrived at Erica's home and studio late in the evening after dining with Erica, Janice, and Janice's husband, Adam, on State Street in Madison. The drive from Madison to Paoli (near Verona) took about 30 minutes, and ended in a short driveway in front of a massive white clapboard building, not a house, but an old dancehall and storefront. We stayed the night in Erica's cozy apartment at the back of the building, and in the morning she gave us a tour of the dancehall and all the strange antiques housed there, including a huge old map of Wisconsin on which she pointed out our location.

Then we peeked into her tiny studio and admired the works in progress on her old workbench, well patinaed with use. She showed us some of the fabrics she uses to create the texture in her pieces, and a little pot of filings to be sent back to the supplier for scrap refund, showing that recycling pays! She also showed us some cool new jewelry ideas further incorporating fiber and metals that I won't divulge here, but that I'm excited to add to the shop if she decides to make them.

We took a look in the garden, but the mosquitoes drove us out, so we headed up the street to visit Artisan Gallery and Creamery Cafe, a big, airy space filled with work by American craftspeople. Jae and I had to keep ourselves from drooling over the ample square footage and sculpture garden out front -- if you haven't visited Greenjeans, we have only about 350 square feet, including storage! But then, just about everything is bigger in the Midwest...

We also stopped in to Zazen Art Gallery down the street, a neat little space at the front of a woodworker's studio. We somehow managed to not buy cheese and frozen custard at the quaint little creamery along the way, where the proprietor watered her flowers while exchanging morning pleasantries with Erica. Ah, small town living!

We had to leave for Spring Green before noontime, but it was a pleasure to see where all those precious earrings and necklaces are made, to get a better understanding of her work in fiber and in metal, and to spend time with Erica, one of the first artisans at Greenjeans and someone we look forward to working with for many many years to come!

Dispatch from America: Midwestern Adventure

We're back! Since last I posted, Jae and I have traveled from Milwaukee to Madison to Spring Green to Chicago, through thousands of acres of cornfields, dozens of stunning buildings, several huge meals featuring butter and cheese, and one liquid-and-gel-free airport security check point. And we attended the joyful wedding of two very happy, dear friends. It was an epic trip through a beautiful corner of America, which is filled not only with natural wonders but also incredible architecture. Though I can't deny we're glad to be back home in Brooklyn again!

I've put some pictures together to share -- click on the purple text to go to the accompanying Flickr slideshows. (Place cursor on main image to hide obsuring thumbnails at bottom.) The yellow text links to websites.

The first group of pictures is from Milwaukee, including the lovely Van Hallgren wedding and the Wisconsin State Fair. (Check out those farm boys, who are totally cute even in a blurry photo!) Architecturally, Milwaukee is an interesting city with beautiful large homes, elegant churches, and pretty outsized theatres and civic buildings. The crown jewel of the city is the new Milwaukee Art Museum designed by the incomparable Santiago Calatrava. The museum building alone makes this city worth visiting, and their collection is excellent, too. My favorite part, besides witnessing the huge "wings" close over the building in the evening (silently, slowly), was the indoor Chair Park, a collection of different style chairs arranged on a huge area carpet for visitors to try out. We also visited America's Black Holocaust Museum to see an exhibition, called "Hateful Things," of common American cultural artifacts that degrade blacks and other minorities. Aunt Jemima and Little Black Sambo are the least of the story here. We also took in the Alterra Coffee Roasters cafe that came highly recommended by Sam and Carrie and was excellent. We wish our newlywed friends much success and happiness in Milwaukee, their new home!

From Milwaukee, we drove to Madison where we ate super fresh ice cream and checked out the enormous, gorgeous State Capitol building. (The caves mentioned below are also pictured here.) The building had only one guard on duty and you could just wander anywhere you pleased, even into the Senate meeting rooms! Now that's democracy. We visited Janice Ho in her warehouse studio in the afternoon, and that evening dined with Janice, fellow artisan Erica Schlueter, and Janice's husband, Adam, at a yummy Nepalese restaurant. My body was very relieved to eat actual vegetables and tofu after too many fried cheese curds and ribs... Next day, we visited two craft galleries in Verona with Erica, Artisan Gallery and Zazen, as well as her studio which is in part of an old dance hall. Click here to see the pictures. I'll post more in-depth Studio Visit blog entries later this week.

Then it was on to Spring Green, WI, the home of Frank Lloyd Wright's masterpiece, Taliesin, and his Hillside School of Architecture, which is still an accredited institution. We weren't allowed to take photographs indoors, but I did sneak some through the windows, including one shot of the seashell collection in his bedroom that is said to have inspired the Guggenheim. The pictures of the school (first) and the house are divided by the picture of Romeo & Juliet, the water towers he designed 100 years ago to supply the property. I've always wanted to see this place, and it didn't disappoint at all. In fact, it took my breath away, especially sitting in the living room with its marvelous “ceilingscape” and long vistas. An observer once quipped, credibly, that Taliesin is a Japanese-influenced Italian villa in Southwestern Wisconsin. It is incredible to imagine that the first visitors to Taliesin, such a modern opus, arrived by horse and carriage! We really went for the whole FLW thing and even stayed at the Usonian Inn, which was designed by one of his apprentices. Before leaving the area, we toured the Cave of the Mounds, a bit of a tourist trap, but it's always fun to see these underground troves.

Our final stop: Chicago. My friend Sam, of the wedding, lived in Chicago for years until very recently, and it is a huge shame that I never once visited him there, because I loved Chicago! Such vitality! So much street life! And fabulous buildings! We visited the Art Institute, and were dazzled by the wonderful paintings and their outstanding collection of Asian pottery. (Lots of the pix in this slideshow are of gorgeous Chinese and Korean pots, some of which look like they stepped off the pages of design*sponge.) We happened through the Cultural Center, which is a jewel box of a beaux arts building with its unusual marble staircase and green and blue Italian mosaic work. And we were honored to spend hours in Millennium Park taking in an open rehearsal in the Frank Gehry designed outdoor concert hall and watching kids play with the huge water sculptures. I love public places where everyone, even the adults, are all smiles and laughter! And we dined with Sho, a friend of Sam's we met at the wedding, who took us to a terrific restaurant, Lula, in Logan Square that is said to be the favorite of a certain creator of a certain well-loved, story-based Chicago Public Radio show.

After six days in dairy land, with our liquids and gels safely stowed in our check-in luggage, we departed the Midwest and returned home. We've taken the last couple days to holiday at home, catching up on cleaning and venturing out to see the Klimts at the Neue Galerie. (I thought they are some of the finest paintings I've ever seen, though Jae thought they look better in print.)

Tomorrow, it's back to Greenjeans, relaxed, refreshed, and ready for the fall. The Midwest may be an unconventional summer vacation destination, but it sure was an architectural and culinary adventure, and I hope you enjoyed this little vicarious bite. Many thanks to Sam, Carrie, Sho, Erica, and Janice for their time and hospitality. Hope we can return the favor when you come visit NYC!