’02 June and July

My neighbor Margaret off to a gathering of her fellow WASPs, veteran women pilots.

She mentioned recently that sadly, their meetings were getting smaller and smaller. I allowed that rather than smaller they could be getting bigger because if they looked behind them they would see many women had got in line to follow after and fly for the military. Well, she said, actually, they didn’t invite other women to join because they wanted to keep this group to the WWII vets. (Notice the redhead’s badge – not the same – she’s a daughter, not a Real member.)

What would you do?

Every view makes me smile and how lucky is that.

Ladies Who Lunch at chez Nancy…

and Sandy…

and Sandy.

Mom was the honorary Grandmother of the Groom (meet Mr Chris Stockwell) at this wedding. These were folks from her Church (I went too in place of the out-of-town Browns) and it was quite biologically impossible considering the hundreds of people greeting ‘Grandma’.

Brian and his harem girls.

Mama Stara.

“The Italian Cultural Institute is proud to host an evening with Italian Author Beppe Severgnini, who will present his book, “Ciao, America” in the Sala Rossellini on Thursday, June 13th, 2002 at 7 pm.”

Nancy at the Italian Cultural Institute in Westwood. We went to one of those Writer On The Road Book Tour presentations. The author did take visible joy in pointing out that really, only the Americans arrived on time and for their sake we might as well start (a half hour past starting time) and we’ll just let the rest of the Italians find a seat as they show up. Italians can do this because they are gorgeous.

I bought this plant at Trader Joe’s a week ago with about four blooms on it. Tres Zen.

Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl.

This is the twenty-fourth year of the festival, by all objective standards an entertaining, influential, top-talent all weekend long extravaganza. (…And if you want to read interesting articles subscribe to the New Yorker.)

The program opened with the LA Multi-School Jazz Band. While they played I was walking up the hill from Franklin. Then came this singer, Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers Band. They were swing-y and great. Next up was the Charles Mingus 80th Birthday Tribute Big Band that was very good in that straight-away way.

Maxine and then Jeanne’s Husband(!) (let’s call him ‘Too Cute Ken’) and Jeanne.

Nnenna Freelon sang next and we were all crazy for her. She did mostly great renditions of Stevie Wonder tunes. I’d never heard of the next act (as I hadn’t heard of Nnenna Freelon either, or the Red Hot Skillet Lickers for that matter…) – Joe Lovano – but he was pretty unmemorable.

Groovin’ on a sunny afternoon.

This segment, they call it ‘dinner hour’, the previous segment being ‘afternoon’ and the last segment being ‘prime-time’, was wonderfully lively and a dance-hall delight. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band with Pete Fountain Rocked and then the two Latin entries – Arturo Sandoval’s group and next a Cuban band named Maraca Kicked. Maraca seemed to play the same song for 20 minutes but the sometimes three, sometimes four guys in front looked Stunning and danced like the salsa-fa-cation of Angels.

Maxine Cooks. I love to eat Maxine’s food and where Ever Maxine is she has brought lip-smacking good food. Someday I’ll squeeze it out of her – how DO you make those baked beans?

In the closing acts Wynton Marsalis and the gang he was playing with this time were really engaging. Etta James sang well I thought but didn’t seem to go to the bother of getting the crowd as much into it as prior years.

You can get tickets to sit up here for 15 bucks – groups buy several extra seats so they can spread out and connect with some serious party. Being Californians and all, half of everyone, in a mad desire to Beat The Traffic, were packing up and heading out while the last guy, Marcus Miller, played his set.

Sorrysorrysorry this made me laugh so I’m not telling who it is and guys, I promisepromisepromise to take an entirely sensible picture next time.

We did have a great day though, a yummy picnic, the match between the ever-so Malibu polo team against the ever-even-more-so Palasades polo team, lounging around on lounge chairs, a scenic hike, a live action really fabulous Shakespeare experience, an after party party. How is it possible to have so much fun in one day? Easy with the L*p.. family.

Darryl and Angela sent flowers! for my birthday. Wow!. Then we had a lovely walk to a cool restaurant where we ate a tasty meal, had a pleasurable walk back, and then ate delicious pastry.

I mentioned my age, ‘hard ten’, and Darryl asked in a slightly apprehensive yet un-quavering voice ‘ahhh are we on to the age themes game?… like G-r-a-n-d-m-a…?’. Maybe.

The new cover page.

Having been messing around with the black and white setting on my camera and having forgotten to change back to color – I now have this opportunity to Colorize! A feature in PhotoShop I had yet to explore! Is there no end!

Saturday, besides on my Actual birthday (see flowers above), the kids treated me to Another birthday dinner. We walked, ate Chinese food, saw Undercover Brother and laughed A Lot, walked, ate Deli desserts and I had a generally all around Beautiful day. Like these Beautiful kids.

Friday night – at El Coyote for Roger’s Happy Birthday dinner. Of course Fred was late. Guest how late Fred was? Almost one hour late. ‘Oh, you know me, always late, ha ha ha.’

A Classic restaurant experience – but I think the color needs to be darker and richer – I’m going to work on this a bit…

More mirror magic.

Saturday morning – Japanese conversation class at UCLA. Fun!

Saturday afternoon – Maxine’s bridal shower for her daughter (getting all the names…)

A couple of the most adorable and photgenic cousins. That’s Hansen Dam down there and a big sky, panoramic view from Maxine’s back yard.

More of those cute kids.

The Bride and Groom’s Daughter and is she ever excited about being in a wedding!

Saturday night – Tom cooked Marsha’s favorite dinner for all of us to celebrate his birthday… Works for me.

(Put Sunday’s wedding pictures here…)

Sandy’s 4th of July BBQ, pictures complements of Nancy. God Bless America.

yeah yeah that balding gray head is mine. Wanna’ make sumthin’ of it?!? I rode my bike over and back, stopping off at Mom’s for a few hours of daughterly contributions. I hope I remember how pleasant and easy it was to do the bike ride. Good and good for you.

Look at that Madonna and Child.

Can you guess? Of course, it’s Mel Weinstein’s family at his unveiling. They done ‘im proud.

deee-lish.

Welcome to Celina’s mom, here for a long visit with her grandson. Gideon is making out like he doesn’t speak Spanish although his mother has been speaking Spanish to him since the day he was born. I am rather convinced there is some-sort-a scam going on but hey, how can you think that of such a cute, sweet little boy…

…so I just asked Robert and he said his kids do the same thing – they get shy about speaking Spanish with people they don’t know really well and they say ‘I don’t know how’ and ‘talk to me in English’. Interesting!

Early evening (sum-mer tiiiime, and the livin’ is e-asy…) in Sandy and Roger’s back yard.

Fine is Good – from an email of yesterday:

‘I’m on a summer campaign to physical fitness so I can enjoy a fall outing in relative good health. This means that I try at least to notice when I’m eating like a pig. Also I’ve done the Tai Chi Long Form every day (really, every Single day) since summer began. Not a Napoleonic campaign exactly, but something nonetheless.

We are in the dust of an office expansion. At first I was thinking oh this will be a piece of cake, much easier than the last move because then everyone had to move everything over one weekend and That was painful. This time we’ll be setting up new space in orderly and manageable chunks. Well, as it turns out, and as those who have ever remodeled their house will tell you and I simply ignored, being in the midst of things for what will end up being months on end is No Joy. The target date for the last bits is August 8…..

….The kids are doing very well for which I bless the gods. In May/June my sister was in Hawaii for more than three weeks and during that time I was in charge of my mother. I checked in with her every day, took her when she needed to go shopping or to the bank or to the doctor or to the post office and to a social occasion or two and etc etc. I was very very glad when my sister got back. I’m still amusing myself endlessly with photography and am in ever growing awe, like how can more awe be even possible, of the magicians who created PhotoShop. And I’m still messing around with a dark and terrifying mystery, the unknowable and yea even unimaginable – Japanese.’

A practically native landscape seeing as by order of the landlord, No Watering.

more. And the wall IS pink.

Smoo and her view of the world.

On the Venice boardwalk. We walked from 2nd and Wilshire to Mom’s and back. Why am I pulling on my shirt?

There he is, hauling himself up over that wall.

Sweet!

Our arts-‘n-crafts Not-A-Stalker effort.

Stylin’.

Another Maxine extravaganza (hurray, those kids are Married! Those kids have Their Own Home in mind! Hurray!). Party Hearty!

More of Maxine’s friends.

SisterSister.

Tele-Foto-Fuzzy but a kinda’ cool look at Becky and Jack’s back yard.

And can we be more cute? No we cannot.

Marsha at her new favorite home-away-from-home. The home of the $50 Happy Hour. The Bel Air Hotel. Quotes from the valet and from the bartender: “oh, I’m sorry that iiiis too bad, you just missed Mel Gibson. Oh! and there goes Tom Cruise – see him, just over there… ahhhh, too bad you just missed him…”.

I was stopped at a stop sign on 26th from Sunset heading towards San Vicente, cast my eyes to the right and was taken with this very view. It was really too dark for pictures – this shot has a flash, but the whole neighborhood for blocks around had far more magnificent examples of these mind boggling trees. I’m going back!