We took one last trip to the beach, at least on this coast, to play in the sand and swim. We’re certainly not going to be swimming on the beach out west, but dare I say that it was a tad chilly out there yesterday. We usually go out to Robert Moses on Fire Island, but this time we took a trip to Jones Beach which is a bit closer. There was all kinds of seaweed, which make Mia very happy as she can occupy herself for a very long time, gathering up weeds and piling them up in a stash.

For dinner, we had one last Korean barbecue dinner out in the patio with my parents. The evening air was damp from rain and cool from lower temps we’ve been having. I heard that the NW was experiencing a heatwave, which made me chuckle as it would be so funny and ironic if it was super hot out there when we arrive. But, I think we will escape it by a day. THANK GOD.

And this was our Saturday:

Another perfect 82 degree, low humidity day (seriously, did Bill Clinton negotiate with the weather gods to have this perfect day for Chelsea’s wedding? I don’t know. He was able to bring those 2 women back from North Korea, so…)

A drive to Dia in Beacon. The first time I went to Dia was when they first opened their doors 7 years ago. We were visiting a client who had just moved there, to learn more about this Smithsonian Photography project which we would later design and we got a tour of the town and a visit to some of the art studios that were being renovated. Beacon was supposed to be the next big thing. I’m not sure it really quite got there.

The 2nd and last time I went to Dia was when I was 37 weeks pregnant with Mia. I was huge and uncomfortable and we met my friends from Amsterdam who were visiting family nearby. It was dead of winter and cold and I remember being at that final stage of pregnancy where you don’t really give a shit about what you look like, you just want that baby out of you. My friends had a toddler at that time and I remember being stressed during our visit to the museum because he was the only kid there and unlike the city museums, Dia is usually very empty so the guards have nothing to do but to watch a running toddler in the gallery spaces like a hawk. I think he may have even touched a painting. I’m telling you, it was stressful. Well you know what? Saturday’s visit with the girls was just about the same. It was hard to contain them from running around the minimalist, huge spaces (no photos allowed at Dia, btw).

The girls were more interested in finding every plush gray couch scattered all over the galleries than Sol LeWitt’s Drawing Series (ok, the couches *were* ridiculously comfy), but they did totally dig walking inside Richard Serra’s massive steel torque sculptures as I thought they would. That alone made the trip worth it.

And you know what else was worth the drive? Discovering Zora Dora’s popsicles after it was recommended by a few people on twitter. I had the Honey Lavender Bee Pollen and Mark had the Banana Curry Peanut Coconut. There were about 25 different flavors. Yeah, this was our kind of place and got us thinking about popsicles. Mark makes them for the girls, but holy crap! Maybe we should have a few flavors each week for the store!

We drove back to Brooklyn with the windows down. Another splendid night watching the sunset from the car. I can’t remember the last time we had a summer with so many days “off”. When we work, we work gangbusters hard and it’s rare that we both get 2 back to back days off on the same days, but this is the summer of doing things.

Sometimes, I can’t believe this is my life.

There are a lot of abandoned buildings and houses on Governors island, including churches, a fort and even a castle, but the examples of Colonial and Greek Revival architecture, particularly the yellow wood frame houses that were used as military housing, have been the ones that I’m most curious about (I have an interest in abandoned buildings). I don’t recall any of the houses being open to the public last year, but this year a not-for-profit group called No Longer Empty have curated site specific installations by a dozen and a half artists inside the houses of Colonel Row.

Thank god for art. I have to admit I was a little overwhelmed by how increasingly commercial and crowded the island had become, but stepping into these old houses instantly restored what I had loved about the island last year – a place not touched by time, eerily full of ghosts and a feeling of being transported to a different place, but not knowing exactly which place. It was a much needed break from the circus outside that was our visit last Friday.

Btw, have you checked out the plans for the future build out of the island? I have no idea what’s going on in these renderings (you gotta love those people dropped into architectural drawings). It all looks very interesting.

This summer is the year of unpredictable weather. We left our apartment Friday morning under clear skies, headed towards the Ferry to Governors Island, but as soon as we got on the ferry it started to rain. Not just a summer mist, but pouring rain. We stood under an awning with our umbrella and a makeshift tarp and waited for the rain to pass, which it did.

So Governors Island is totally crowded this year. The island was also full of camp groups on Friday despite the weather on the day we went so there were a lot of kids running around. I think you have to catch the first ferry or bike to the other side of the island if you want the quiet, island experience like we had last year. There’s also more “stuff” available like food and bigger bike rental stations. I guess that is convenient, but it also makes it more commercial and I far preferred the way the island was last year – slightly creepy and Lost/Dharma compound-like.

Still, the kids had fun playing soggy mini golf built by FIGMENT, with each hole is designed by a different artist. Yes, there is art on Governors Island! So much art that we didn’t even get to the other side. Photos to come tomorrow…

We spent the weekend in the burbs again and came in from swimming in the town pool just in time to watch the craziest storm from the huge windows at my mom’s house. It was the kind of storm that I thought we were going to get when we got a tornado watch in NYC Friday night (no tornado but apparently we had hail, say wha?). The hurricane-like winds shut the power down. We ate dinner out in the patio, cooking food on a little gas burner (yeah, the Miller can. That’s totally dad beer). With no power, no internet and no lights, I went to sleep around 10pm and slept nearly 10 hours for the first time this year. I didn’t wake up feeling well rested, though. I felt really tired all day. What gives?

The ocean waters at Robert Moses Beach on the western end of Fire Island was pretty rough today. The waves were huge and came crashing down much to the glee of the girls. They dared to go deeper and deeper in, all the while holding onto our hands in a death grip while squealing high pitched screams every time a wave broke. Girls.

We saw a few rescue situations from life guards though, so the waves meant business.

I’m trying to be very positive these days but to be honest, the sudden and unexpected changes with work all summer long is tiring. These waves are a spot on analogy. The last 2 weekends were a nice distraction, but we drive back into Brooklyn tomorrow early in the morning. Back to regular life. Staying positive is hard work. It’s up to me to choose what kind of week I’ll have.

What’ll it be?

Like last year’s visit to the spectacular Neto installation at the Park Avenue Armory, Big Bambu is a massive site-specific installation by Doug and Mike Starn for the rooftop garden at the Met. Part sculpture and part installation art, the bamboo structure is being continuously built from opening day in late April up until October by a group of artists and rock climbers. This work is one of those pieces you need to see in person in order to appreciate the complexity of the structure and the way the light playfully filters and dances through the intricate lacework that is created by the interlocking bamboo poles. It’s possible to climb the installation through a series of winding staircases and platforms that are being built into the structure, but you need to grab one of the limited guided tours in order to do so (to the big disappointment of the girls).

We couldn’t have picked a better day to come. Wednesday was the first day that the heatwave broke and we were treated to a sunny and comfortable day that couldn’t have been more perfect. The view from the rooftop garden overlooking Central Park and the surrounding buildings was a view that I hadn’t seen in about 20 years. Visiting an installation by the Starn twins on that roof also seemed fitting as I remember their rise as stars in the art world in the late 80s from my high school and early college days – their taped photographic assemblages to me, in many ways, represented the art of that era. It’s interesting to see how their work has evolved over the last 25 years from those early photo works to these large scale installations. That evolution and the fact that the brothers, who are identical twins, have remained a creative partnership for so long is sort of awe inspiring. But this is what art does. It inspires, it transports, it confuses, it confronts, it makes you think and seek out more. Maybe the girls will have a recollection of all this someday, beyond the funny butt jokes. Maybe Claudine will remember how the filtered sunlight inspired her to put on a dance under the bamboo ceiling, way up high on a roof one perfect summer day in NY.

Oh, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It may not be as hip or modern or cool as the “new” MoMA or the New Museum or even the Whitney, but it’s so glorious and I haven’t been there in years. Also, I’d been carrying around a free family pass in my bag for literally years and today was the day I decided we must use the pass before it became even more tattered.

The Met is one of those NYC places that is seeped in nostalgia. I had an art history class that met every Thursday at the museum during my freshman year at Cooper and so, I’ve spent many countless hours at the Met listening to lectures and sketching in my book with my classmates. Perhaps this is the reason why I often overlook the Met when we’re feeling like visiting a museum, but I was reminded today how glorious it really is.

We came for a specific exhibit (photos to come tomorrow) but we took a quick tour of some of the galleries, including the European sculpture garden.

“I went into this room and there were butts only”, Claudine later recalled at bedtime.

I guess that is what she took away from the visit because the girls engaged in a half hour of butt jokes as they giggled and pointed and remarked that while some of the sculptures were missing heads, arms or feet, they all had their butts.

Since the attention span of kids seem to be no more than 90 minutes for museum visits, it was just a whirlwind tour and we left to go to the Ancient Playground right next door before I could reminisce with my 18 year old self about that art history class, walking the galleries every week for a year, and a certain memory at The Temple of Dendur (the Egyptian temple above ) that I will always hold dear.

I don’t always have it. But I have some now.

I promise I won’t waste it.

But sometimes it’s good to just hang out with a friend all day. To go to the museum and not really see any art, but sit in the cafe or the sculpture garden for hours surrounded by beautiful things and talk, bitch, scheme, plan, commiserate, celebrate.

And it’s also good to end the day by joining up with another friend to go see a mindless movie that can only be seen with a group of girlfriends (OMG, how ridiculous was Sex and the City 2?). We were greeted with a sliver of waning light as the day transitioned into night when we left the theater, and we sought after a place to sit outdoors. We ended up at the Coffee Shop in Union Square and talked about all the stupid shit we did back when we were younger, here in NYC. The movie may have been over the top ridiculous (really, whose lives are like that? How completely silly), but escapism doesn’t necessarily have to be deep or even good to be enjoyed. If anything, it reminded me that girlfriends have your back.

Sometimes it’s good to play tourist and get a new perspective on your city. I’m also trying to get a new perspective on this sudden change in my schedule – something I seem to have to do, oh every 6 months or so. Whatever life is, it’s never predictable.

Central Park and Prospect Park might be larger and more grand, but Bryant Park has my heart. Located right behind the majestic New York City Public Library in midtown, it’s a perfect one city block long oasis of grass lined with tables and chairs, fountains, a carousel, gardens and an outdoor reading room. Unlike Central and Prospect Park, you never forget that you’re in an urban setting when you’re spread out on the lawn – 360 degree views of buildings and skyscrapers loom above you on all sides, but it’s bucolic all the same. Plus, it feels a little like Paris, no?