Moving Again

Update your bookmarks, the blog portion of this site is moving over here! Apologies for the frequent moves... can't stay put physically or virtually it seems :)

Overbooked

Story of my life. Cannot wait til the end of the month.
In the meantime, this is pretty cool 
Cliché food for thought but possibly worthwhile 
READ BOOKS people 
Are you a feminist? Then you're a terrible girlfriend! ha

At some point in the future I'll be writing about my Pesach and Justice Scalia experiences, and in conclusion, a quote from the books article above:

"Though we can condemn ... the persecution of writers, acts of censorship, the burning of books, we are powerless when it comes to [the worst crime against literature]: that of not reading the books. For that ... a person pays with his whole life; ... a nation ... pays with its history."

Where's Betty?

Do you watch Mad Men? I think Megan (Don's new leading lady) is cute and fresh and unaffected, but the Don/Betty dynamic is so much more interesting. I also prefer the brusque not-in-love Don to the semi-caring doting Don. Who is this man who leaves work early because his new wife is having a temper tantrum? My goodness. Creative genuises can't be happy and fulfilled!

P.S. I enjoyed this article on why you shouldn't go into advertising mostly because it's a break from the articles on why you shouldn't go to law school. Not that I agree with either.

First Day of Spring

It actually feels like summer on this first day of spring. Wore purple pants for the occasion.

A Standard

“Men who corrupt, depress or weaken others,
tricksters and those who would regress
or move too slowly,
all become my personal enemies.
I resent whatever diminishes man’s stature,
makes him less wise, less confident, less ready.
I shall never admit that hesitation or suspicion
must accompany wisdom.
This is why I believe the child has
often greater wisdom than the old man.”
- André Gide, The New Fruits

from Le Corbusier Talk With Students

Lessons From The Piste

Leaving for Europe in the middle of a law school semester is wonderful. Coming back to law school after ten days in Europe is torture. But after a long and painful week of reentry into the thick of the semester, I finally have a moment to breathe and collect some of my thoughts.

I consider myself a city girl, but the week spent in the Alps was so pleasant and stabilizing that I'd almost characterize it as spiritual. Perhaps it's the stark contrast between the life I lead here and the respite I was given from it there that allows such a characterization, but one thing's for sure: I need a little more serenity in my life on a daily basis. Then there was the skiing, an activity I've neglected in the past few years, but one that I was sorely missing. When you ski you have the opportunity to act fearlessly. Gliding down the side of a mountain, no matter how often and how well you do it, takes courage.

There was a day halfway into the trip when I was at the edge of physical exhaustion from the hours spent practicing technique on a wide but steep piste. The friend skiing with me was a pro, but given the late hour and my imminent collapse, we decided to take a lift to a "blue" (easy) run and head home. We called the blue runs the "highway" because they wound around the mountain instead of diving straight down. As it turns out, we took the wrong lift and ended up at the uppermost point where the only way home was "black" (very difficult). Staring down the steep and seemingly endless incline peppered with moguls, I wanted to cry out in fear and will myself to the bottom. I decided to plead with the lift operator instead, and reasoned that as there was hardly anyone on the mountain this late in the day, no one would notice if he allowed one lone skier a ride to safety. His answer amounted to "rules are rules," and we all know how Germans feel about those. There was no flattery or flirtation or very Swiss-German-spoken persuasion that could have gotten me back on that lift.

I sat down at the edge of the precipice for a moment and tried to calm myself while the Swiss looked on with amusement and my friend paced in exasperation. My thoughts went from rescue helicopters to bribery to the possibility of piggy-back skiing, but for the first time in a very long time, there was really only one option: skiing down the thing myself. It was then that I realized how soft I had become. Given an easier option, and there always was one, I would take it without fail. My life involved much less boundary-pushing, and where some pain was once thought of as the necessary prerequisite and welcomed concomitant to gain, there was, of late, total aversion.

I skied down the mountain that afternoon with many stops, several temper tantrums, and a few painful tumbles. When we reached the bottom (3 hrs later - slight exaggeration), I swore off skiing forever and threw my poles at a tree. But I was back on the slopes the next morning with stiff neck, sore arms, bruised calves and all. It takes awhile to get used to that kind of discomfort, but I'm glad I did. To be fearless more often and to keep pushing on are the incredibly elementary but too soon forgotten lessons I learned on the piste.

Note: I'm trying a new photo format for the blog - you can see more photos by clicking on the arrows located on the main photo above.

A Week in the Alps

Just returned from a lovely week in the Alps... also known as winter paradise. Just the break I needed from life in the big city.

Fish, Loose and Fast

While reading my Property Law casebook, I came across this statement about property ownership that is contrary to most people's understanding of the people/environment relaitonship. I'm wondering what you think of it:

"We cannot have our fish both loose and fast. The common law gives preference to those who convince the world that they can catch the fish and hold it fast. This may be a reward to useful labor, but it is more precisely the articulation of a specific vocabulary within a structure of symbols understood by a commercial people. It is this commonly understood and shared set of symbols that gives significance and form to what might seem the quintessentially individualistic act: the claim that one has, by possession, separated for one's self property from the great commons of unowned things."

I gravitate toward cities and don't have much of a relationship with "the great common of unowned things," but I think it's a valid and interesting way of thinking about the world.

Photo from this website

Bob & Charlotte

Speaking of Sofia, I like this exchange from Lost in Translation

Of Interest This Week

If I hadn't decided to be a lawyer I would definitely be a film producer and screenwriter à la Sofia Coppola. What about you? Hope you have a nice long weekend and here are some enjoyable things I found this week:

Her West Village Garden abode

Adorable children's book that reminds us to read BOOKS! (found thanks to my writing prof)

Remembering Shadid - NYTimes journalist of the highest caliber

What do you think of this spring clogs collection?

Last week a tumblr dedicated to Blue Ivy, this week to CHEESE

Cannot wait to see Pina

Oscar de la Renta finale - love this picture

& I love Carolina Herrera

Be Mein

So, just when I'd resigned myself to a very sappy day, I found Dictator Valentines. Amazing. Please, be mein! On a more serious note, The Loving Story premieres tonight on HBO. It's a documentary about Richard and Mildred loving, a couple charged with a felony for... being married. Why? Well, Richard was white and Mildred was black, and in 1950's America that wasn't allowed. This is the reasoning the trial judge gave when deciding their case: "Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix."

Their case eventually made it to the Supreme Court, and in a unanimous decision, the law prohibiting interracial marriages in Virginia was struck down. Happy ending? Sort of. Anti-miscegenation laws remained in place in many states long after the Loving's case was decided. Still, their story is an embodiment of the power of love, and this is the perfect day to remember it.

And for those of you from Michigan, it might be interesting to know that the producer is from Grand Rapids!

Image via Benkling

Rand in Vogue

Question: is Ayn Rand "in" now? I remember a time not too long ago when people gave me either disdainful or "you're totally nuts" looks for even mentioning Atlas Shrugged or "objectivism". The graphic above was taken from a popular site, and is the third or fourth time I've seen Rand referenced in the wider world, i.e. not in libertarian circles. Rand's philosophy is essentially this: "man" is a heroic being with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute (paraphrased from Atlas Shrugged).

I have several problems with Rand's philosophy, but also find much of it intuitively righteous. Any opinions out there on her philosophy or on her recent popularity? If you're interested in hearing about her ideas from people inside her movement in a wider perspective, this documentary is a good one to watch: All Watched Over By Machines of Loving Grace.

Image from Note to Self tumblr

Of Interest This Week

Interesting stuff from last week:

Surprised by DFW's 10 favorite books

Blue Ivy Carter has her own tumblr

I like the minimalism of this iphone case

Slightly depressing, but gives some perspective

Do you have an opinion on Komen's choice?

I am not a sneakers girl, but I love these (and see above)

This picture made me want jeans like this

If you're looking for affordable ballet flats, try these

Sad about Whitney Houston. That woman was amazing.

Assad need to be stopped. Who's going to step up?

Wise words - must. work. harder.

Umm interesting family - slightly neurotic?

I love this drop cloth chair

& allegedly, one of Ryan Gosling's dreams is to remake Roman Holiday with Natalie Portman. That's the best news I've heard all week; I hope his dream comes true.

Urban Warriors

It's fashion week again in New York, and though it's all happening here on the Upper West, my involvement amounts to following a couple bloggers' front row photo streams and admiring the daring outfits surrounding the event from my couch. The photo above made me smile because I feel like I leave the house looking like one of Helmut Lang's "urban warriors" almost everyday. I have a couple scarves that, when wrapped, are definitely bigger than my head and wider than my shoulders. It is a little ridiculous, but, you know, I'll do whatever it takes to battle the relentless wind that blows right in your face and chills you to the bone no matter what direction you're walking. I may even have to go get some of those leather pants...

Photo via TeenVogue tumblr

Gateway to the City

“To pass through Grand Central Terminal, one of New York’s exalted public spaces, is an ennobling experience, a gift. To commute via the bowels of Penn Station, just a few blocks away, is a humiliation. What is the value of architecture? It can be measured, culturally, humanely and historically, in the gulf between these two places.”

This passionate article struck a chord because architecture matters to me, and I have a particular love for train stations and train travel. I'm hesitant to say that commuting through Penn Station is a humiliation, but I've certainly never been overjoyed at having to rush through its dingy, low-ceilinged corridors. Imagine catching the Long Island Railroad from Grand Central, or from the magical train station in the movie Hugo...

Photo from the New York Historical Society print collection