Little People.

I have a lot of photos to take for the Merc, the Pub, and the Inn. Luckily I had some cute little people to shoot when I was at the Merc for the upcoming Ads.

Miss these girls.

Our Illinois girls...look how lovely they are! Miss you and Happy Bday Super Bug!

Goodbye Mom.

Cue Music (we both loved this song in MM). Pix from our last night together.













I am feeling a bit sad tonight. Mom is going home tomorrow and it has been quite the past 6 weeks that she has been here and we could not have made it out like we did without her. She has been absolutely amazing and is, hands down, the hardest working person we know. I am glad she is going home to Dad so he can dote on her and spoil her a bit but we sure do hope we see them again soon and next time Big Red is with her.

Having been away from home for so many years, I actually forgot how it felt to have Mom so close and be able to have someone around who actually knows you better than anyone else ever, in the whole world and is your total numero uno, advocate in life. I think we all needed a bit of that this summer, I know I certainly have, more than ever so here is a little tribute, to the one, the only, Chaz.

Lovely things.

It is a gorgeous day today. Mom and I went for a walk this morning and I could take pictures of everything I see for pattern and texture inspirations. One side of the lake is covered with lily pads and hundreds of water lilies. I love the pattern of the petal formation and the translucence.

So buck.

Mike and I are just watching some of our SYTYCD favorites on the internet machine.We like these because they show us when "internal artistry meets physcial expression" as Lil c so eloquently explained to us when he was a judge on the show. This is his definition of the word "buck" which, to me, sounds like a very harsh, almost offensive word but oh no, it is a very deep word. Lil c has a lot to teach us. So the next time you see something this is the manifestation of internal artistry meeting physical expression, just say buck. yeah.

Chelsea and Mark doing a sweet hip hop number by Tabitha and her sweater vest hubbie.
Katee and Joshua doing a Mia Micheals contemporary with incredible moves
Kattee and Will doing a routine only they could physically do
Katee and Twitch doing another Mia Michaels contemporary piece

My hero.

Let me just state, Meryl Streep is my hero.

She even looks great boucing on beds. It was infectious.

Yes, Mom and I went to see Mamma Mia this afternoon and it actually made my day on many levels. I was not expecting much and was actually rather thrilled at what happened on screen (sans Pierce Brosnan's solos which were awkward but funny)

Firstly, I think, for the most part, the music you heard growing up you like whether you actually love it or it takes you back to times past and brings comfort or a flood of memories. Well, I heard ABBA in the womb and grew up putting these records on and lip synching to all of their songs. ABBA is in the Larson kids genes whether we (and you) like it or not. So I knew all the words to the songs, reverted into choreography from decades ago, and sang right along.

A Record cover of my childhood.

Secondly, Mamma Mia is actually quite a clever little piece (for a musical) and weaves the lyrics to the songs perfectly into this little plot. Then to top it off, the songs were turned right into what they are, fun, cheesy, pop songs with almost ridiculous (but oh so fun) dance sequences. But then to top that off, the most brilliant actress around was having her fun with them and making them Meryl like only Meryl can. She rocked it (and so did everyone else and they didn't even try to make Pierce sound good but it sort of fit anyway)

Thirdly, it was visually enticing but then it is impossible to make the Greek islands look bad or people in the Isles look bad. Sometimes, I long for the days of long hair, tan skin, and turquoise from these days but the details were expressed in sets, the filming, and the costumes. Mom and I love Ann Roth as a costume designer and she had her way with this film as well in the wicked Disco attire and myriad of the fantastical (and hard to come by) Josef Frank textiles (also noted here at one of my favorite blogs) that were scattered all over the place and were perfect against the gorgeous backdrop. Also, be sure to stay after for a treat of costume genius.

Shots from our trip to Greece in 2006.

One of the Josef Frank Prints hanging as linens on clothes lines and looking oh sooo good.

Finally, (in my high school essay), I was nervous they were going to try and take this BIG broadway muscial ( a musical based on ABBA songs which makes it even more nuts) and actually film it in Greece so it felt real but they didn't. It had slow-mo leaps in the air, fuzzy focused filming, day dream sequences, big sychronized dance routines, and all out beefing it up edging ever so slighty on Bollywood.

Leave it all at the door and just enjoy. Meryl can do no wrong and listening to all that ABBA, seeing the beautiful Greek Islands and the lovely colors put me in a very good mood and helped remind me of some the amazing adventures I have had.

A perfect memory.

Midsummer flowers and gadgets.

Last week a whole bed of flowers began blooming in front of our house. They are gorgeous and I feel lucky to have inherited them. A stomach virus is going around the family and I have gotten a form of it today, but in happier news, I am the proud owner of a new Mac Book Pro and it is perfection to my fingertips. I didn't know a computer could be so fast and forgot what it was like to not be missing keys. Also, with Lucy's student ID we were able to get an Ipod touch for 100 buckaroos for Mike. It is sweet and sweetness is my weakness. Apple have us twisted around their little finger.

design central i have set up in my bedroom (Inn colors on my board)

my keyboard with new shiny keys

The night is darkest just before the dawn.

Last night Lucy, Mike and I went to see the midnight opening of The Dark Knight. My friend asked me how we got tickets forgetting this is rural Vermont. Granted there were only 13 left at 10PM when we got them but there were lines or waiting. We sat down in the theatre just after 11 and the next 56 minutes were a bit awkward as I reverted to being in the worst kind of high school assembly. I think there were 3 people over 20 who weren't on speed. The guy behind me was so cool and loud and talking about sex and ecstasy and he was just awesome. How can I be like that, how? When they started playing the Penis (sorry to write that word.) Game where you call it out as loud as you can (yeah, brilliant stuff here) I reverted right back into my high school coping mechanisims by sinking lower into my chair and keeping my head down. And right when we thought it wasn't going to end the movie began. The shorts warmed us up and we were away.

I really liked this movie. I liked the pacing, the character relationships, the filming, the script, the acting, the music, and the overall design. Christopher Nolan thinks about his movies and it is evident because they have a quality that is distinct and welcome, especially in what could be another run of the mill superhero movie. It was 2.5 hours but I found myself wrapped into these character and content to stay along to discover and uncover even at 2AM when I should be in REM. Even after getting into bed at 3AM, I couldn't really fall asleep. Here are several of my plethora of thoughts:

* It was dark, the Joker (well played,Heath) was dark and Batman was dark all to the 2nd degree dark. Rarely, in this genre of movie do we more substantially uncover much about the superhero/villian side of the character but we were pushed right into this space and even watched this place be created in Two-face. Then we got to watch these strange and forced personalities relate to eachother on a level other than fight level which was interesting and I couldn't get enough of it. It was a character driven/method acted "superhero" movie which made any of the lines that could sound trite, not, very not trite but valid and weighty.

* Tim Burton's Batman movies are coming from a completely different take on Batman so I won't compare but even Batman Begins had an element of comic book to the design of the film (that I felt) even though it was very very minimal. This one is totally stripped. Gotham City is Chicago and there is no CG to make it even a bit more gothamy. Gotham City is a real city in this world and against that backdrop even the absolute psychosis of the Joker and Gadget paired Intensity of Batman didn't feel comic bookish which I liked.

* I found myself very attracted to Batman. Sure, listening to him makes my throat hurt but good-ness. Can Windsor get Christian Bale as Batman to just pop in and out every once in a while? Maybe we could invite him to the Inn.

Just a few of my thoughts. We are going again tonight.

Thursday?!?

Thursday? How did we get to Thursday so fast? I feel like I haven't gotten anything done or my days just fill with other stuff and the things on my list never get done. I need a day just to get those things done. So I blog and take pictures of the shoes I got in India with our sexy macro lens. I digress, often.
This week we're continuing to work on the Restaurant that my brother's company just bought from a local family who has been running it 30 years! Mike and Lucy are both working furiously on this project (I don't think Lucy knew she would be helping the takeover of a restaurant while here, but either did anyone else) and I have been working on the branding.

We've also been doing lots of demo work at the Inn and trying to keep the Blog fully updated with the progress. Today there is a post with a bit of a family tree breakdown so the cast of characters can be outlined a bit. Sometimes I feel like we really are a bunch of characters. I know Jordan sure morphed into some kind of crazy wrecking ball machine the other night and we stood in awe as he ripped out ENTIRE WALLS and there's always Hobo Brig..

That actually felt sort of productive, even though it wasn't at all. The new Batman movie comes out tomorrow.

A little more about the Inn.

Just a little bit more about the Inn just to clarify. When the neighbors were thinking of moving, they mentioned it to N8 and he immediately thought of an Inn and the idea was born sometime in March. From there it has been go as we have lined up McK's dad's company to do the renovations, applying for permits, and cracking into the marketing and design. The family just moved last week and the demolition has begun but it is just the beginning. The home was built in 1825 and has a very interesting history ( more to come on the blog) as does the town. We have 9 bathrooms to either refinish or create, a dining room, library, entrance and 9 bedrooms to design and finish not to mention every other tiny thing one needs to do to create and Inn but we are all doing it together which will make for an interesting adventure. Anyone wanna be an Innkeeper? Let me know, seriously. We have run out of family members;) These next few months are going to be busy but exciting.

Oh and I went with Lucy to get her hair done and got mine done as well...You can't really tell but it is assymettric. I was needing something to change in my life. So now I have a haircut and an Inn to help create.

Our new Project.

I have kept this mostly under wraps for last few months since it was teeter tottering but today we are closing on an old estate build in 1837 that we are converting into a high end Inn right here in Windsor. Sibling Development is half partners in the endeavor and we have launched a blog today that will be following us along our way. Check it out HERE.