Cambridge Bikes ( Fiets in dutch)

AMSTERDAM

Biking Biking Biking
A few years ago we moved to The Netherlands for a fellowship that my  writer-husband procured. We find ourselves in the same position ( Radcliffe Fellow) again this fall but in another city, Cambridge, Ma., not quite as far from home. While I am not quite as visually inspired here, (hence the biking images above from Amsterdam) , I do find that biking as our primary means of transportation is quite a game-changer. All three of us delight in and have remarked on the morning jolt of energy, the excitement and clarity of mind that comes with a morning bicycle commute. The experiences, sights and even more - the human interactions ( we say hello to our neighborhood barber sitting on a bench every morning as we roll on by..) one has when on a bike, not in a car, are reason enough.

Cambridge's Bowtie Bike Ride  | Memorial Drive

Boston is really making a huge effort to promote itself as a worldclass bicycling city.  We participated in a walk/bike to work day last friday organized by gogreenstreets.org whose mission is to promote alternative ways of commuting. We certainly intend to help spread the word and encourage other families and bikers to do so as well. I think helping people get over the fear is the first hurdle.
While biking through an urban setting with your child in tow can be daunting, the Dutch and other Europeans can serve as our inspiration, they have been doing this for decades. Bikers have prescendence and the "right of way" over pedestrians and car drivers.
On Sunday we serendipitously joined in the Cambridge Bowtie Ride organized by Cambridge Bikes. We rode 13+ miles thru all of Cambridge, east to west accompanied by police & volunteers stopping traffic at every intersection. If you enjoy architecture, biking and exploring - this is a ride not to be missed. There will be another in May 2016.
If nothing else, I hope this blog post gets one or two more folks out there on their bikes. You will certainly not regret it. Just wear a helmet, stay alert and smile as you whiz past all those possibly - frustrated Boston drivers....

m a i n e c o a s t

suffice it to say, i am in the midst of a transition back to urban life and reveling in a look back at summer.
whether it be fall + school + work + apartment living or a move to a new city , i find myself in need of a connection back to the maine coast and my "other life " - often barefoot, frequently on boats, a dock or the shore.
these photos are just a few i took with my iphone ( many posted on IG  ) and capture the variety of weather and winds, color , texture and amazing maine summer light

* some of the boats seen here: sailboats racing in the err , pink beetlecat ( name: Inconcievable) , a harbor full of herreshoff 12 1/2's, optimists,  being sailed out of blue hill bay

B L U E

last winter i was determined to do a kids shoot inspired by my experience of living in the netherlands with my husband & son. the story, in my mind, was titled BLAU. this is dutch for BLUE. I had been begun this blog in Holland and all the original posts were based around a color; orange yellow, pink ect so it seemed to make sense. i keep coming back to these photographs, wishing i had done something more with them at the time, but too busy. c'est la vie. so here i am back sharing them again. in this post are some of my favorite images form the shoot, here you can see the printed story in Baby & me now called Smallish Magazine

G A R Z A M A R F A

jamie & constance = garza marfa. she creates the textiles, he makes the furniture. 

the photos speak for themselves. colorful. modern meets vintage, texas- trans pecos-mexico-meets dwell. 

i encountered their work 6 years ago, during our first season in Marfa  . exploring the town I happened upon their studio/compound. it's been thrilling to watch them develop their space/work/ business. 

as their website notes, they "debuted these designs at Health Ceramics Los Angeles location in 2012 and haven't looked back since."

their business really began when they created custom designs for austin's san jose hotel, then for the marfa thunderbird. they continue to outfit chic hotels, including the Ace and create custom work for clients' homes. they have had their share of press coverage. ( martha stewart feature, remodelista, texas monthly  ) What I most admire: they keep a relaxed, welcoming vibe in their marfa showroom and it's always a treat to stop by. the space is open and bright, rich with color and textures and fabulous things.

i own a few of constance's pieces , you can see them here in a ny times story on my novelist -husband. next purchase - a piece of their  sadle leather furniture - a must have.

M A R F A 1. 2. 2015

more marfa. more west texas.
photos:
livingstons ranch supply - we went in for some obscure tool but its mainly a ranch supply business so we ended up buying some great bison leather work gloves.
our friends goats & dog roaming the open landscape
barbed fence wire, my continued obsession
and out little pink adobe with the ever present strong west texas shadows