Happy Halloween!

Image from here

Last night J and I watched Almodóvar's new film The skin I live in. Surprisingly, it was the perfect movie to watch to precede this holiday. Suspenseful and full of plot twists. I wish I could say more but can't! It was amazing.

I extremely recommend that you watch it, and if you do please come back and tell me what you thought.

My mind is still spinning about it!

On a different note, I have picked a few things that would complement the feeling in the air today.

I hope you enjoy them.

A poem:

Animated Billy Collins poem "The Dead".

(you might remember I posted a version of it read by the author here)

A story:

Tom Waits. What's he building in there? 

A song:

Bobby "Boris" Pickett and the Krypt-kickers. 

 

Collection of bones.

I am hoping this unveiling of my skull and bone collection will make some sense after my last post.

Wishing you tons of fun this weekend,

R

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)

La Catrina by José Guadalupe Posada

The air is festive in my adopted land, and as much as I enjoy Halloween and it's cheesy-creepy atmosphere, it makes me very home sick (more than any other holiday, in fact).
Dia de los Muertos is approaching and I miss terribly it's aesthetic and meaning. It is celebrated on November 1st and 2nd, and it is a cultural tradition that dates back to pre-hispanic times and that has been hybridized with Catholic holidays (All Souls day and All saints Day).

Día de los Muertos is less about Death than about celebrating Life. It is a day to be reminded that Life cannot be without Death, and that because of the fact that we will all die someday Life is precious and should not be wasted. Everyday matters and should be enjoyed. An acknowledgement of the ultimate dichotomy, a theme I have been focusing on for a while now and should probably write a post about sometime soon.

It is also a celebration of those we love that have died, a day to remember them and keep them close to our hearts. In Mexico it is a tradition to set up little altars with offerings to our beloved dead (Ofrendas) that include their photographs, candles, marygolds (xempazúchitl), paper banners and some of the  favorite things of the deceased (like jewelry, music, food and drinks).

Here are a couple of nice examples of Ofrendas: 

Image from here.

I particularly love this ofrenda, where the brushes used by the deceased are on display.
This image and many other nice examples found here.

Sometimes ofrendas are set up right on the graves of those who we miss. Graveyards on Dia de los Muertos become festive with people eating, playing music, sharing, remembering.

You can buy this image by visiting here.

Pan de Muerto (image from here)

Food is a crucial element of Día de los Muertos. Bakeries make a special bread decorated with "bones": tasty, moist, sugar covered goodness (oh, I could trade my kingdom for a slice of that right now); and at markets and plazas everywhere you find sugar skulls in all sizes adorned with colorful details. If you are lucky, the person selling them will have some colored sugar to write your name on the forehead of your skull. My sister and I loved getting our own and would put off eating them for the longest time, they were so pretty. Looking back, I believe those little sugar skulls were our first lesson on mortality. A sweet festive lesson.

Calavera de azúcar (buy your own here)

As you know we are new in our neighborhood and I am not sure wether there are any kids out here, but just in case they come knocking on our door on Halloween, I am off to buy some candy. 

And maybe this weekend I will venture out to San Francisco in chase of some Pan de Muerto.

Hope you are having fun!

PS. To see a Catrina slideshow visit here.

Bone collection, sneak peek.

I have been meaning to photograph a few of the skulls and bones in my collection to show you and have not got around to it just yet, so I figured you would like to get a glimpse in advance.

Expect more soon!

Hope you are having a nice weekend.

The little swallow is a paper cut I made for J on our anniversary. Or was it his birthday?

Long way home.

The morning was gray and I was moody.

Would you mind if we take the long route home? he asked.

I ended up in my first corn maze ever.

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Happy Weekend!

I am very excited about this weekend.

J's garden's official opening was a couple of days ago so we will be celebrating. Dinner with good friends, free music at Golden Gate Park, picnics and wine.

The weather is cool and breezy  and we are happy.

Have a good weekend!

Impending rain by RR

Recording our Dreams (Wim Wenders).

Today I woke up to the news that the future is finally here: Some scientists are working on a machine that will be able to record our dreams.

Top row shows images subjects saw on video. Bottom row shows the corresponding images reconstructed by a computer based on the subject's brain activity. (AP photo/University of California, Berkeley, Shinji Nishimoto).

I was transported back to my teens and to one of my favorite movies: Until the end of the World by Wim Wenders (better known for the movie Buena Vista Social Club). 

Over a decade in the making, filmed in 15 cities of 7 different countries, Until the end of the World was released in 1991. The setting is 1999 and the plot is part mystery, part science fiction, and the ultimate road movie. For the score, Wenders asked various artists to write songs as they thought music would be like in 1999. The result is one of my favorite soundtracks of all time. I listened to it ceaselessly! Even my dad would hum to the songs. I bet he can still remember them today.

A dream recorder seems like a very cool invention with tons of practical uses, but judging on how things turn out both in Until the end of the World and this other movie (coincidentally also set in 1999), I am not quite convinced it is a good idea.

I am pretty sure I would spend more time than necessary watching and re-watching my dreams.

What do you think?

Va Va Voom!

Image via Pinterest

I love, love, love Christina Hendricks and her beautiful curves.

She is such a breath of fresh air amidst stick thin actresses.

Gorgeous.

Art and image by el lohse. Purchase it here

Original piece and image by Jayne Tunnicliffe.
Make it yours by visiting here.

I also just found out that she has friends with an Etsy store and sometimes models their creations!

You can see here doing so by visiting Black Bird Design House.

Sigh...

Then and Now.

Mick and Bianca Jagger wedding portrait by Patrick Lichfield.
St. Tropez May 1971 (Image from here).

Kate Moss and Jamie Hince wedding portrait by Mario Testino. Cotswolds, England July 2011(image from Vogue)

Androgynous beauty, again.

In my previous post about androgynous beauty I mentioned I wished I knew what Bitch Magazine's take was about that particular dilemma. I know they have often in some form or another dealt with the topic of gender boundaries, but in their recent issue they have an interesting article titled Pink Scare about boys that display "girly" behavior and the possible impact such actions have on their development. 

In honor of that, and of androgyny in general, here are some fun photos of strong, talented females in masculine attire:

Frida Kahlo, far left, at a family portrait. Circa 1929. (Image via here)

Annie Lennox. (Image  via here)

Cher as Elvis. (Image via here)

Lady Gaga for Vogue Hommes Japan, photographed by Nick Knight (photos via here).