Monday, July 2, 2012
En route...enfin...
En route ... enfin...
A hellacious delay at Austin/Bergstrom makes me hate Delta even more than ever but I stop to remind myself how thankful I am for this trip. We were delayed, on the tarmac and both Creed & Zelda had to pee at least 6 times - per child - and listen to Green Day, a lot.
Finally in Atlanta, the amazing flight attendants put us on the big electric cart and whisked us off to our Air France gate.
Phew...now Zelda knows everyone in the airport and on the plane and everyone else thinks Creed is on his World Tour - complete with costumed get-up (his choice), his electric guitar on his back and his Scoobie Doo rolling suitcase.
Finally - in Premier Voyageur - and having a glass of champagne ( after 6 more trips - each - to the potty.) Creed is entranced by Lucky Luke, en français bien sûr and Zelda is singing above her headphones to Delta Rae. "Canard fumé" arrives any moment - it is dinner on Air France, afterall. A bit of Melatonin and then "dodo"...that's sleepy time. Fingers crossed...
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Angels at Target...
So, on Father's Day - aside from serving breakfast in bed to Evan - he and Creed took off to Lockhart for a boy's afternoon of barbecue, neon and old signs while Zelda and I ran errands in town and went swimming.
I told Zelda that we needed to go to Target - and she agreed:
"Yes, Mom, I need to go to Target."
"Zelda, why do want to go there?"
"Because Mom, the Angels live at Target and I want to see them."
Ok, then...
As she busied herself, pushing the cart through the aisles, I asked her,
"So, Zelda, have you seen the Angels yet?"
"Yes, Mom. I did already."
"And what did the Angels say?"
"Mom, they didn't say anything they just made sounds."
"Like what, Z?
"Like shhhhh...."
Pure magic.
Sunday, June 17, 2012
My kids are still cool...but I am lazy...
The first day of Kindergarten was a breeze compared to the last day. So many emotions, so much growth, so many stories, so much change...and here we are at the end of the school year - readying to spend another summer in Paris.
I guess that I can only highlight the change and growth that happened within our family with these amazing twins:
Creed: had the most wonderful teacher - Mr L. After 3 years of female teachers in French preschool, he was now in a classroom of 21 boys and girls with Mr L. Creed responded like a champ despite some learning difficulties. As yet undiagnosed, he is full of energy, creativity and imagination yet has trouble with retention, symbol recognition, and handwriting. He had a great tutor this spring and advanced by leaps and bounds but we have a long way to go in 1st grade.
Creed-isms and pertinent questions:
"Mom, do you love yourself?"
"Why, yes Creed. I do. Do you love you love yourself?"
"Yes, I think I'm pretty great."
When his Kindergarten teacher was murdered this past New Year's he told his class: "I know we are all sad but let's think about all of the good times." Creed and Zelda both loved Miss Esme very much.
When I told Creed that he would be spending a week at a day camp with a bunch of boys, he asked: "Mom, is this a sports camp? Because I am not really a sports guy."
Creed is wildly imaginative, writes books, makes up stories and tells tall tails. He won the Energy Award at day camp and was definitely the "cool cat" of Kindergarten. He likes to be kind and helpful and his latest endeavor is cooking: the other day he created grilled cheese nachos with rosemary.
Now as we ready for Paris again - in just 2 short weeks - we'll see what adventures he has in store.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
My kid is cool...
...well, actually they both are cool. But every once in a while, there is an anecdote that bears repeating. Tomorrow is their 6th birthday - that is, 6 years since that fateful night when they cut my kids out of my stomach. It's been an amazing adventure - not easy of course, but parenthood isn't supposed to be easy. But 21 surgeries, 4 shunts, visual impairment, blindness and seizures in foreign countries all add up to some pretty thick skin but also some very good life lessons.
Creed and Zelda are now in Kindergarten. They miss their beloved Ecole of 3 years and their friends that they made there, but are adapting very well to Kindergarten. They have dedicated and attentive teachers and classrooms full of new friends. But with a birthday at the start of a new school in a new school year, it's a bit difficult to put together that list of invitees for the Birthday Extravaganza at Kiddies Acres. Of course, we'll invite their old "amis" from Ecole as we try to sift through 22 kids in each of their new classes and find out who each of the twins calls a friend in only week #2 of school.
With Zelda, it's always a bit difficult to figure out who she likes. Everyone seems to love Zelda, as they call out her name each morning and cheerfully say "Hi Zelda." She, on the other hand, seems quite indifferent to almost everyone except for the teachers.
But with Creed, we try to pull information out of him. Creed had already decided on 2 friends that he wanted to invite.
Joey is his new best buddy - they met the first day of school - and Creed mentions him everyday. So, then I asked Creed, "Who else besides Joey would you like to invite from your class?"
His answer: "Mom, I want to invite Zachy. I know that he'll need extra help but I really want him to come to my party."
Zachy is in a wheelchair. He doesn't walk or speak. He was in Zelda's PPCD class last year (Public Preschool for Children with Disabilities) so we have passed the year with smiles and knowing looks between us and his parents and his sister is in Zelda's Kindergarten. Of all of the kids, Creed wanted to invite Zachy. I love that in him. I wish every kid would feel that way for Zachy, for Zelda, for Fin, for all those kids that are loved from afar but are not always included...I wish for every kid, parent, family and otherwise to have that kind of compassion.
Happy, happy birthday to my twins - I am so glad that they are not "normal"....I love you, C & Z!
Creed and Zelda are now in Kindergarten. They miss their beloved Ecole of 3 years and their friends that they made there, but are adapting very well to Kindergarten. They have dedicated and attentive teachers and classrooms full of new friends. But with a birthday at the start of a new school in a new school year, it's a bit difficult to put together that list of invitees for the Birthday Extravaganza at Kiddies Acres. Of course, we'll invite their old "amis" from Ecole as we try to sift through 22 kids in each of their new classes and find out who each of the twins calls a friend in only week #2 of school.
With Zelda, it's always a bit difficult to figure out who she likes. Everyone seems to love Zelda, as they call out her name each morning and cheerfully say "Hi Zelda." She, on the other hand, seems quite indifferent to almost everyone except for the teachers.
But with Creed, we try to pull information out of him. Creed had already decided on 2 friends that he wanted to invite.
Joey is his new best buddy - they met the first day of school - and Creed mentions him everyday. So, then I asked Creed, "Who else besides Joey would you like to invite from your class?"
His answer: "Mom, I want to invite Zachy. I know that he'll need extra help but I really want him to come to my party."
Zachy is in a wheelchair. He doesn't walk or speak. He was in Zelda's PPCD class last year (Public Preschool for Children with Disabilities) so we have passed the year with smiles and knowing looks between us and his parents and his sister is in Zelda's Kindergarten. Of all of the kids, Creed wanted to invite Zachy. I love that in him. I wish every kid would feel that way for Zachy, for Zelda, for Fin, for all those kids that are loved from afar but are not always included...I wish for every kid, parent, family and otherwise to have that kind of compassion.
Happy, happy birthday to my twins - I am so glad that they are not "normal"....I love you, C & Z!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Tumblr - STOP IT!
...well, I really don't hate Tumblr but I do hate how people use it. There has been this trend around for a while of posting photos - just cool photos, things people like, no words, no reasons, no descriptions, not even photos taken by the poster. They are usually photos found on the internet that people obviously like for one reason or another and want to share for whatever reason. There are entire blogs based on this. Entire magazines. Well, it pisses me off. I guess mostly because people are not giving reasons. There is an ingrained, unspoken and assumed "stamp of approval" without words. It's actually quite egotistical. "I like this, therefore you should." "I see validity in this, don't you?" But I want a conversation - is it the color? The beauty of the sunset? The shape of the clothing? The black and white starkness? The fragile patina of eroding paint?
I like photos, too. I like lots of things expressed by others in a visual medium. But recently I have realized why I need to describe what it is about something and why I like it. Zelda makes me open my eyes, my ears and my thoughts more and more each day. It's not good enough to just take a road trip with the twins and say "Hey, look at those cows!" I describe the shape, the color, how many there are, the sound they make, and the field they are standing in. If I see a cool building or a billboard or the right red ball of the sun coming up this morning - it's too easy to say to Creed, "Wow, look at the sun." The dialogue is needed. Why is it different or interesting or beautiful? How does the color compare to something else in nature? How does it make him feel?
So, I think Tumblr lets people be lazy. People who spend time looking at other people's work...the photographer had a reason to take the photo, the photo is his or her words. They are not yours. Challenge yourself.
This morning as I drove the kids to school, I did it in an almost unconscious kind of way. Usually, Evan and I pull in Circle Drive and I get out and walk with each twin to their Kindergarten classroom while Evan waits in car. The children are used to it. Zelda knows the route to Casis and that curve into the drop-off driveway as well as she knows the hill of our street, the turn down our alley and the slant of our driveway. But this morning, Evan had an errand and I took the kids to school alone. I parked the car on a side street and then began walking them down the sidewalk, up the concrete steps and around the back of the school. Creed was thrilled. He recognized the route and could tell we were entering the school from a back door. And then I heard it: Zelda asking, "Mama, what are we doing?" Shit, I hadn't told her. It was the Tumblr photo. It was the assumption. It was a lack of words. It snapped in me - the beauty of words is just as important, strong and inviting as the beauty of the visual. Have we become more and more steeped in a lazy expression of another person's declaration of their "vision"? Does any of this make sense to anyone besides me? I would appreciate your thoughts...
P.S. Oh, and another thing I have a hard time with is blogs by people that post what they are wearing every day. It seems to be a twenty-something phenomenon. Yes, you are all "super cute" and clever stylists. Bravo. But now really kids, do we really care about how you put together your "vintage find" with last year's belt from a designer sale?
Can you tell I am in a snarky mood?
I like photos, too. I like lots of things expressed by others in a visual medium. But recently I have realized why I need to describe what it is about something and why I like it. Zelda makes me open my eyes, my ears and my thoughts more and more each day. It's not good enough to just take a road trip with the twins and say "Hey, look at those cows!" I describe the shape, the color, how many there are, the sound they make, and the field they are standing in. If I see a cool building or a billboard or the right red ball of the sun coming up this morning - it's too easy to say to Creed, "Wow, look at the sun." The dialogue is needed. Why is it different or interesting or beautiful? How does the color compare to something else in nature? How does it make him feel?
So, I think Tumblr lets people be lazy. People who spend time looking at other people's work...the photographer had a reason to take the photo, the photo is his or her words. They are not yours. Challenge yourself.
This morning as I drove the kids to school, I did it in an almost unconscious kind of way. Usually, Evan and I pull in Circle Drive and I get out and walk with each twin to their Kindergarten classroom while Evan waits in car. The children are used to it. Zelda knows the route to Casis and that curve into the drop-off driveway as well as she knows the hill of our street, the turn down our alley and the slant of our driveway. But this morning, Evan had an errand and I took the kids to school alone. I parked the car on a side street and then began walking them down the sidewalk, up the concrete steps and around the back of the school. Creed was thrilled. He recognized the route and could tell we were entering the school from a back door. And then I heard it: Zelda asking, "Mama, what are we doing?" Shit, I hadn't told her. It was the Tumblr photo. It was the assumption. It was a lack of words. It snapped in me - the beauty of words is just as important, strong and inviting as the beauty of the visual. Have we become more and more steeped in a lazy expression of another person's declaration of their "vision"? Does any of this make sense to anyone besides me? I would appreciate your thoughts...
P.S. Oh, and another thing I have a hard time with is blogs by people that post what they are wearing every day. It seems to be a twenty-something phenomenon. Yes, you are all "super cute" and clever stylists. Bravo. But now really kids, do we really care about how you put together your "vintage find" with last year's belt from a designer sale?
Can you tell I am in a snarky mood?
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Oh là là...skipped on to Paris...
...first, let me say that we had a lovely time in Telluride, New Mexico and ended our southwestern trip staying with our friends who own Rocketbuster boots in El Paso, Texas. The twins then did 2 1/2 weeks at day camp: Ecole for Creed & Braille Camp for Zelda.
And, now we're in Paris.
Arrivé, hier.
Arrived yesterday morning, major traffic jams - embouteillages - so thank goodness my old friend Manu picked us up at the airport. Gillian (my assistant at Blackmail), Creed, Zelda and me...and 6 weeks worth of luggage. For this first week, we're staying with my very good friends: Elsa & Laurent. Elsa and I went to Esmod together in the '80's, showed our collections in the same shows and sold our designs in a gallery of "Jeunes Créateurs" for a few years. We've been friends ever since. They have a son, born the same time as the twins and a daughter who will soon turn 13.
I am lucky enough to have had Gillian accompany me on the flight - flying with twin 6 yr olds is exhausting and now we all divide and conquer with the kids. Yesterday at the park, then to a café with friends and a lovely late dinner.
I will try and update often on the twins and their reactions and experiences here: Paris is their oyster!
Otherwise, the chronicles of my teaching and design experience will be in: www.blackmaildesign.blogspot.com
And of course, "le grand projet", our book La Petite Zelda goes to Paris will be followed in www.lapetitezelda.blogspot.com.
And, now we're in Paris.
Arrivé, hier.
Arrived yesterday morning, major traffic jams - embouteillages - so thank goodness my old friend Manu picked us up at the airport. Gillian (my assistant at Blackmail), Creed, Zelda and me...and 6 weeks worth of luggage. For this first week, we're staying with my very good friends: Elsa & Laurent. Elsa and I went to Esmod together in the '80's, showed our collections in the same shows and sold our designs in a gallery of "Jeunes Créateurs" for a few years. We've been friends ever since. They have a son, born the same time as the twins and a daughter who will soon turn 13.
I am lucky enough to have had Gillian accompany me on the flight - flying with twin 6 yr olds is exhausting and now we all divide and conquer with the kids. Yesterday at the park, then to a café with friends and a lovely late dinner.
I will try and update often on the twins and their reactions and experiences here: Paris is their oyster!
Otherwise, the chronicles of my teaching and design experience will be in: www.blackmaildesign.blogspot.com
And of course, "le grand projet", our book La Petite Zelda goes to Paris will be followed in www.lapetitezelda.blogspot.com.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Godspeed, you road warriors...
...yes, that was supposed to be us. We were supposed to leave yesterday at the crack of dawn to start our drive to Telluride, spend last night watching the sunset and drinking wine from our the porch of friends in Taos and then lazily climb our way up the mountain to arrive at our destination for dinner. We'll be staying with Moon Bear - that's Christopher, Seth's boyfriend. Craig arrives - uh, yesterday. Yep, we're behind in our travels.
Oh, have no fear...we'll be leaving today. We'll drive like the wind, that's Evan's specialty even when he's sleep deprived from putting up a last sign for a client. And on the way, I'll complete the work on my course syllabus and write the toast that I'll give at Seth's party. Yes, it's his "retirement" party. A huge blow-out of a party. I met Seth in 1980 when we were both teaching at the same small, quite new, private Episcopal high school in a rented building in Cabin John, Md: St Andrew's Episcopal School.It was a magical place for students and teachers alike, but of course, like all schools, not without its problems. Now, they are like a country club, with an endowment and a lush, sprawling campus out in Potomac.
Anyway, I was straight out of college and freshly back from studying in France - a degree in French and a diploma in Secondary Education led me to answer an ad in the Washington Post for a teaching position in a small private school. The minute I sat down in front of the headmaster, Dr Borg - a wonderful man, he informed me that the French teacher had changed her mind and wasn't leaving. Could I teach Latin? (Well, I HAD taken Latin at Gettysburg although my professor was a drunk) Could I teach a course called Introduction to Languages to 7th graders? Basically, a course in Latin & Greek word roots, Etymology 101. Sure, I could do it. Could I teach Music Appreciation? I guess so. I had played the flute in high school. A month later: could I teach Spanish? Mrs XYZ had left screaming out of the classroom and they saw on my transcripts that I had taken it in college. I actually put my foot down when they asked me to coach field hockey (I did coach girls' basketball and volleyball, however) but not before I taught the last semester of Shakespeare to 10th graders and had one gifted student who qualified for Advanced French.
But a few months into that first year at St A's, Mr Phillips - the pain pill addicted Science teacher - was found out. The students used to say that he would disappear into his 1970's blue Chevy when he wasn't teaching and would fall asleep there. So, Dr Borg fired him, place another classified ad and here came: Mr Berg - the vintage tuxedo wearing, afro sportin', Jewish kid - fresh out of Oberlin.
Seth had been there about a week, and I, having just finished a lesson on the word root "homo" and building combinations with a bunch of howling 7th graders, was gathering up my "desk" (we all shared classrooms), as he paid me a vist. He sat down at in a kid's spot and quite seriously asked: "So, how do you keep them in their seats?" It was at that moment that I realized we were both the youngest, inexperienced teachers there - hired out of the newspaper want ads - and entrusted with these kids by the Patron Saint of lost causes, Dr Warren Borg. Seth and I bonded that day, needless to say I taught him all kinds of tricks on how to keep 12 year olds seated (!). He and I became fast friends. We went on to host an annual Beach Party every summer for the graduating seniors, chaperoned kids to concerts like the Grateful Dead and the Rolling Stones when their parents didn't want to go, introduced the older students to the worlds of picking vintage clothing and performing drag queens, he sang with the kids in a rock band and I in a musical...but most of all we shared with them our love of learning and our passions for the subjects we taught. Seth left St Andrew's after a few years and went off to teach at Burke Mt Academy. I stayed at St Andrew's and took kids up there during spring break to ski. When I went on to grad school and later design school & work in Paris, Seth visited me often. We made movies each summer and started Red Gun Productions with Craig, Alec and Edie. We traveled through France, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain. He was a "bridesmaid" in both of my weddings, took care of me when I had cancer and is the favorite "guncle" to my twins.
And throughout it all - he has remained a very, very best friend of mine. So, we are going to Telluride to celebrate the "retirement" of Seth aka Mr. Berg, aka ICE of Ice and the Bergs, aka the 2008 Colorado TOY - Teacher of the Year, after his 30 yrs of teaching. As I also celebrate our 30 years of friendship.
Seth, Alec & Kathy filming a Red Gun Production in Alexandria, VA:
Seth & Christopher, Christmas 2010, Austin ,TX:
Seth & Creed, Port Aransas, TX:
Oh, have no fear...we'll be leaving today. We'll drive like the wind, that's Evan's specialty even when he's sleep deprived from putting up a last sign for a client. And on the way, I'll complete the work on my course syllabus and write the toast that I'll give at Seth's party. Yes, it's his "retirement" party. A huge blow-out of a party. I met Seth in 1980 when we were both teaching at the same small, quite new, private Episcopal high school in a rented building in Cabin John, Md: St Andrew's Episcopal School.It was a magical place for students and teachers alike, but of course, like all schools, not without its problems. Now, they are like a country club, with an endowment and a lush, sprawling campus out in Potomac.
Anyway, I was straight out of college and freshly back from studying in France - a degree in French and a diploma in Secondary Education led me to answer an ad in the Washington Post for a teaching position in a small private school. The minute I sat down in front of the headmaster, Dr Borg - a wonderful man, he informed me that the French teacher had changed her mind and wasn't leaving. Could I teach Latin? (Well, I HAD taken Latin at Gettysburg although my professor was a drunk) Could I teach a course called Introduction to Languages to 7th graders? Basically, a course in Latin & Greek word roots, Etymology 101. Sure, I could do it. Could I teach Music Appreciation? I guess so. I had played the flute in high school. A month later: could I teach Spanish? Mrs XYZ had left screaming out of the classroom and they saw on my transcripts that I had taken it in college. I actually put my foot down when they asked me to coach field hockey (I did coach girls' basketball and volleyball, however) but not before I taught the last semester of Shakespeare to 10th graders and had one gifted student who qualified for Advanced French.
But a few months into that first year at St A's, Mr Phillips - the pain pill addicted Science teacher - was found out. The students used to say that he would disappear into his 1970's blue Chevy when he wasn't teaching and would fall asleep there. So, Dr Borg fired him, place another classified ad and here came: Mr Berg - the vintage tuxedo wearing, afro sportin', Jewish kid - fresh out of Oberlin.
Seth had been there about a week, and I, having just finished a lesson on the word root "homo" and building combinations with a bunch of howling 7th graders, was gathering up my "desk" (we all shared classrooms), as he paid me a vist. He sat down at in a kid's spot and quite seriously asked: "So, how do you keep them in their seats?" It was at that moment that I realized we were both the youngest, inexperienced teachers there - hired out of the newspaper want ads - and entrusted with these kids by the Patron Saint of lost causes, Dr Warren Borg. Seth and I bonded that day, needless to say I taught him all kinds of tricks on how to keep 12 year olds seated (!). He and I became fast friends. We went on to host an annual Beach Party every summer for the graduating seniors, chaperoned kids to concerts like the Grateful Dead and the Rolling Stones when their parents didn't want to go, introduced the older students to the worlds of picking vintage clothing and performing drag queens, he sang with the kids in a rock band and I in a musical...but most of all we shared with them our love of learning and our passions for the subjects we taught. Seth left St Andrew's after a few years and went off to teach at Burke Mt Academy. I stayed at St Andrew's and took kids up there during spring break to ski. When I went on to grad school and later design school & work in Paris, Seth visited me often. We made movies each summer and started Red Gun Productions with Craig, Alec and Edie. We traveled through France, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain. He was a "bridesmaid" in both of my weddings, took care of me when I had cancer and is the favorite "guncle" to my twins.
And throughout it all - he has remained a very, very best friend of mine. So, we are going to Telluride to celebrate the "retirement" of Seth aka Mr. Berg, aka ICE of Ice and the Bergs, aka the 2008 Colorado TOY - Teacher of the Year, after his 30 yrs of teaching. As I also celebrate our 30 years of friendship.
Seth, Alec & Kathy filming a Red Gun Production in Alexandria, VA:
Seth & Christopher, Christmas 2010, Austin ,TX:
Seth & Creed, Port Aransas, TX:
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