Spring in Door County 2023

“Come with me into the woods where spring is advancing, as it does, no matter what, not being singular or particular, but one of the forever gifts, and certainly visible.” ― Mary Oliver,

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Muguet de mai

« Un joli brin de muguet pour le bonheur toute l'année! » - Proverbe français

April 2023 in Pictures

"No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. April is a promise that May is bound to keep.” – Hal Borland

Currently • April 2023

“April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.” — William Shakespeare

READING:

• Books:

  • One True Sentence: Writers and Readers on Hemingway’s Art by Mark Cirino and Michael Von Cannon — “A selection of the greatest sentences by the master, Ernest Hemingway. Sentences that can take a reader’s breath away and are not easily forgotten… ‘All you have to do is write one true sentence,’ Hemingway wrote in his memoir, A Moveable Feast. ‘Write the truest sentence that you know.’ If that is the secret to Hemingway’s enduring power, what sentences continue to live in readers’ minds? And why do they resonant? The host and producer of the One True Podcast have gathered the best of their program (heard by thousands of listeners) and added entirely new material for this collection of conversations about Hemingway’s truest words…For readers of American literature, One True Sentence is full of remembrances—of words you read and the feelings they gave you. For writers, this is an inspiring view of an element of craft—a single sentence—that can make a good story come alive and become a great story” (Goodreads).

  • Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus — “Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel–prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results. But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Elizabeth’s unusual approach to cooking (“combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride”) proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn’t just teaching women to cook. She’s daring them to change the status quo” (Goodreads).

• Links:

  • A New Book Features Unpublished Photos of Audrey Hepburn (Harper’s Bazaar)

  • Google Flights Pilots Program to Provide Refunds if Airfare Drops After You Book

  • Recreating Notre Dame’s Iconic Spire

  • The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Takes Its Final Curtsy (NYT)

  • What Hemingway Means in the 21st Century

  • Life Itself: Vogue’s Grand Tribute to Karl Lagerfeld

  • 20 Beautiful Places to Visit in France — From Normandy to the French Riviera

  • Chanel Releases A New Fragrance That’s All About Paris - I’m eager to try this.

  • Pick a Practical Major, Like French

WATCHING:

• Transatlantic on Netflix — “Two Americans and their allies form a scrappy rescue operation in 1940 Marseilles to help artists, writers and other refugees fleeing Europe during WWII” (Netflix).

• The final season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Prime — What will Midge do and, more importantly, what will she wear?

LISTENING TO:

• One True Podcast — One True Podcast explores all things related to Hemingway, his work, and his world in conversations with scholars, artists, political leaders, and other luminaries. The show is hosted by Mark Cirino and produced by Michael Von Cannon.

• Instapuzzle Playlist for April:

  • Sugar, Sugar (The Archies)

  • They Say It’s Spring (Blossom Dearie)

  • Over the Rainbow (Israel Kamakowiwo’ole)

  • The Bunny Hop (Ray Anthony and His Orchestra)

  • April in Paris (Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong)

  • Les Tulipes (Iliona)

  • La Vie en Rose (Zaz)

  • Pussy Willow (Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra)

ENJOYING:

• A week of unseasonably warm weather (April 9-15) which cause my magnolia and wildflowers to bloom gloriously

• Editing photos taken in Paris last month and telling my Paris story on the blog

• A day at the Milwaukee Art Museum — Art in Bloom, Scandinavian Design and the United States, and the new White Alice II piece.

PLANNING:

• A long weekend in Door County in May with cherry blossoms, trillium, forget-me-nots, and lady slippers.

White Alice II

“‘Curiouser and curiouser!’ cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English).” — Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Chapter 2, The Pool of Tears

I was most curious about this piece new piece at the Milwaukee Art Museum. White Alice II by Timothy Rollins and KOS, an offest lithograph with silkscreen and collage, hand-painted with gesso. Beginning in 1981, Tim Rollins collaborated with a group of young people he called the Kids of Survival, originally comprised of middle school students from the South Bronx school where Rollins was a teacher. Since then, a number of students of various ages have contributed to the work which is often inspired by literary texts and current events.

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Art in Bloom 2023

"All art is but imitation of nature." - Lucius Annaeus Seneca

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A lot of the arrangements this year featured the same textures, colors, and flowers. I was also surprised by the art that was selected, but the installation above was my favorite.

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