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When I'm with our designer daughter in New York, I recognize my own love of design.
When I made quilts, it was designing them that brought the most joy. Secondary was the feel of the cotton and needle, and the weight of the pile of fabric in my lap. Primary was the juxtaposition of colors and patterns.
Even on the flight out to NYC, it was the patchwork below that pulled on me.
Arriving in her apartment in Queens while she and Brian were at work gave us a chance to snoop around and see how the tight space was stacked for storage. I find it very satisfying.
We got to see her office in Manhattan too, and the relatively small space was efficiently organized, with a human touch.
After her office it was Peking Duck in Chinatown. Talk about patterns and color!
Below is the window of a chopsticks store.
Although we didn't make it to any of the art museums (not yet, ever), we did get to the American Museum of Natural History, which has its own designs on display. Such intricacies in Nature's patterns, such as this python skeleton.
And in Central Park, one day in the rain, and another in the sun, more color and pattern.
And then back home in the Queens neighborhood where there is lots more pattern in small spaces. I had to run out of the restaurant where we were eating brunch to ask these girls' dad if I could take their picture.
Today Lesley's at work half a day, and we're giving Brian time and space to work at home. After we play some Catan tonight we will watch the final game of the NCAA tournament's Final Four, with our beloved MSU playing North Carolina (President Obama's pick to win in his bracket), so keep your fingers crossed for the Spartan GREEN!
After some wonderful time with our daughter and her fiance we head back home to the farm tomorrow (Tuesday) - where Peter will be waiting for us, home from his Caribbean gig. From one joy to another!
77 comments:
Beautiful, beautiful -- what lovely pictures. By the way, you are missing a coating of 6 inches of snow in the mid-Michigan area. Check out my post today for pictures. Enjoy your trip. :) M
great pictures, the first one is incredible...really makes me want to go there.
Beautiful pictures Ruth! I'm so glad you had a nice visit. Be safe heading home!!
this is why i try my best to get friends from all around the world then i can travel hopping!
Oh Ruth, I love every single one of your photos! The snake skeleton is brilliant, Central Park gorgeous, those twins simply adorable. I love seeing the world through your eyes.
Long time....LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, all the NY pictures. The red umbrella is beautiful, the pearl engagement ring on a working girls well manicured hands, and sisters...Have a fun break and a safe trip home.
You found patterns everywhere (my favorite is the red umbrella, on the beautiful bridge--Central Park?)! Lovely post.
You are one lucky mom!!! From one wonderful child to another!
The python skeleton is amazing, I'll have to show Noah:)
Lesley handbags are adorable all lined up!
My husband is so excited about tonight's game:)
Have a great evening and a safe trip home...hopefully the snow will melt away by then.
there is no pace like home.
its like you and Don went abroad Ruth, without being there just watching NYC in the movies i feel that it is a different country, nothing to do with rest of USA,
i think New York has a culture of its own. i will not be surprised if it has a language of its own. the charm of big cities attract every one Ruth, though they may not admit it openly but its a secret desire. Your visit seems as refreshing as a trip to Aspen. (is that a nice place Ruth ?)
you little snoop - great!
Ruth, it looks like several of us were in NYC this weekend.
I was there with my youngest daughter and her two young sons. We took the train from upstate NY, had lunch at the Yale Club, went to Rockefeller Center, took the subway to Brooklyn and took in the activities at the Brooklyn Museum. Did a lot of walking, but it was fun seeing NYC through the eyes of a 4 and 6 year old who were there for the first time. It was also their first train and subway rides.
I go about once or twice a year for the day and each time I'm amazed by how much there is to see.
I love traveling vicariously with you, Ruthie! Those are really great pictures. The twin girls are precious in their matching outfits. I like the chopstick one because I still have the pair of abalone shell inlaid chopsticks that I bought as a souvenir on my high school senior trip to NYC in 1971!
I'll be doing a few cheers for the Spartans!
You all are just a jet set family, aren't you!!
Your New York trip sounds perfect ... the park, the little girls, the museum. But best of all, however, is the time you got to spend with your daughter and her fiance. Everything else comes in second!
Peony tulips! Beautiful!
Great shots Ruth! We visited a small art gallery here in Ontario. It was beautiful. My 25 year old son who has never been interested in art was taken with it. Then we got chastised for taking pictures of it. Oh well!
Since I got to spend time with my grown up children this weekend I can really relate to this post. It's a special time for sure.
I love the patchwork from the plane.
I've never seen it like that.
Usually I see the square/rectangular fields but ours never have those squiggly lines in them.
Actually, I love all these photos.
The hands, the yellowy leaves, the python and the little girls.
A real joy!
(and time together with those we love - does life get better?)
That first photo is amazing. I can't believe it's real.
Oh, Ruth ~ I just must learn to keep everything I find on the internet which interests me. I happened upon a blog done by a designer who does quilts based on kaleidoscopic images of aerial photos and maps - they simply were splendid, and your photo from the plane reminded me. Of course, now I can't find the site, and it's impossible to go googling with the word "quilt".
I've always loved NYC, and have wonderful memories of my times there - even the great blackout of '77!
Looks like a great trip (how could any trip to NYC not be?), and your photos really make that city sparkle; it's great to see it through your eyes! The photo of the little girls looks like a dust jacket to me! And I love the pix of Chinatown, one of my perpetual favorites!
Go State!!!Your photos are beautiful. Did you take the photo from the plane? So cool,talk about design. It's always so great to visit the kids,especially when they are happy,and then to come home and visit with your son... :) Forsythia blooming in NYC? I'm still waiting for my bush to bloom.
I am a big fan of patterns, so I adore the photos. Thanks.
There is a wonderful blog by two NYC architects called Lunch Studio. It's located at: http://lunchstudio.blogspot.com/
They blog & take photos about all their favorite places to eat in the city. You might check it out.
Wonderful patterns and design and I can understand how wonderful it was to be with your daughter. Great shots that go with everything you wrote about.
Your header photo is gorgeous!! and your top pic reminds me of a drawing I posted yesterday on my blog; one that I made in college, many years ago.
Wow - what a wonderful post! You're an amazing tour guide.
That aerial photo is quite stunning.
Wonderful.
And wonderful is how flights to NY can be.
Years ago I flew Pan Am into LaGuardia early in the morning. The plane was nearly empty and quiet, and we flew quite low, so that we could clearly see the hills and valleys of upstate NY brimming with the early fog.
Oh Ruth, what a wonderful kaleidescope of colour and patterns and storytelling. The skleton of the python is fascinating, who would have thought that they had so many delicate bones in their frames? Chris's son lives and works in Manhatten overlooking Central Park. I would love to go with Chris to visit him, but I have a great fear of flying. Perhaps on day......
Oh you sly one you! I thought you had me at designer daughter but it was the queens apartment that my heart melted. Hello Queens! Hello, my friend. The pictures are glorious!
xo
I've enjoyed this trip in Big Apple, Ruth! But I wonder who feeds the hens at the farm??? ;-)
Lovely photos!
Some of us just can't help seeing the 'design' in everything :O)
I like the patchwork landscape form the air,purses,three hands on blueprint,and favorite I think the adorable and colorful twins.
You sound almost giddy with the joy in your life right now.
By the way,that IS a little bit contagious. Thanks for sharing.carl
...Hope this isn't a copy post...
LOL! Those twins are just too cute!!!
m good, your snow photos were amazing, and I saw them before landing today in Detroit where it was only partially white. Here on the farm we have about 5 inches.
Hi, Sally, the aerial shot was over Pennsylvania. I was mesmerized by the farm field patterns around woods and ridges.
Thank you, ♥ Kathy. We're home safe and sound in a wintry Michigan.
Glad to have you as a stowaway, Renaye.
Thank you, Dutchbaby, and ditto right back atchu.
Enjoyed the whole post! We were in Manhattan about seven years ago, first time ever, I love everything about that place! We even by chance went into a lounge where a Sinatra sound alike and look alike was singing his last song for the evening which was New York New York...and ...well central park, and knowing Lennon and Oko lived across from there...and....Little Italy...and ....
I could go on and on. Sounds like you are having a great time!
No matter how many trips I've taken to NYC there is always more to see...your photos are wonderful and have transported me there for a nice trip too:)
What a lovely mix of pictures - and texts! It's so nice to back to a city when you don't have to run all the "must-sees", just walk around and feel the atmosphere! Like here! :-)
Thank you so much, Anon., it's nice to be back home after a satisfying time away. But snow on the ground is a bit bizarre.
Love these photos, especially the forcythia and park bridge. Nice!
Yes, DS, Central Park. And that's me under the umbrella.
Anet, I hope Noah likes the python. As we walked through the museum I wished I had seen it as a child.
Poor Spartans. And yes, I am ready for the snow to melt, we have quite a bit here south of you. I'll see today how much there is in East Lansing.
rauf, you're right, at one point during our visit we remarked how many visitors from around the world want to go to NYC. I think we heard more people speaking languages other than English while we were out. Yes, we definitely did.
I have never been to Aspen. I've always loved that name, and the trees by that name. Hope you have a good trip for Asokan's exhibit.
Sanna, I didn't open any doors. There was plenty to see without it!
Dakota Bear, I love the view from the top of the Rock.
At the natural history museum we thought it would be great to be a kid there, or to see it through a child's eyes.
Hi, Susie Q! Your chopsticks sound beautiful, and more so because you have a memory like that and you've kept them so well.
Thank you for your Spartan cheers. Apparently they needed more than our cheers - what a team NC is. We saw their fans in the Detroit airport yesterday, and I kept saying 'ouch.'
CottageGirl, you're exactly right.
NJ, "the fruits of our labors" right? Our children keep surprising me with insight and charm.
Letty, our loved ones are why we get up in the morning, right?
Helena, I was staring and staring - and suddenly I realized I could take a picture!
Hi, Linda, I know just what you mean about seeing something and regretting that I didn't save it. That quilt designer sounds quite innovative. I googled just a bit and found this map quilter, although I don't think that is what you were speaking of.
Laura, now that I love: dust jacket!
Yes, Cathy, I was admiring the view with my nose stuck to the window and I suddenly realized I could take a picture of it.
How sad that all the spring progress we had made is covered in several inches of snow now.
Thank you so much, Lluvia. There are so many things I saw and admired that I didn't photograph too.
I did check it out, California Girl - what fun. It inspires me to post more food posts. I think I live to eat (as opposed to eating to live).
Thank you, Sue. It was an inspiring trip.
Thank you, Kenju, I'm glad you like it!
I could see the resemblance between my photo and your drawing. I wonder if that was the kind of scene that inspired yours.
Thanks, Drowsey, how nice to see you!
(Now go dab your eye . . . )
Montag, what a great memory.
Delphine, I hope you can work up the courage to fly. I realized on this trip I have lost any fear of it that I ever had, which was there for a few years. My nephew lives on Central Park (though his view is not on the park), and it is such a treat to visit.
Thank you, my dear Christina.
Alice, how good of you to think of the brood. Our good neighbor Bill across the road took good care of them, and they are all healthy and accounted for.
Hi, Babs, the more I see, the more I see!
Carl, that was a nice way of putting that, thank you.
I know, Esther, a one-minute encounter indelibly imprinted in my brain!
I know, Aunty Sandy, it's a bit overwhelming how much there is, and then I don't know what to choose. But just wandering is nice too.
Thanks, Oliag, I most enjoy walking on the street and observing people and the little things around the sidewalk.
I agree, Peter, I had many walks like that in Paris, and it is the best.
Thanks for the visit, and for the nice comment about the Tar Heels. We DID enjoy that game!! You are very gracious, Ruth.
ruth--
welcome back we missed you! I loved the bit about quilting. It is something I did way back when and just loved the feel of the material and choosing the colors. Your photo spoke to that magic. You have the ability to capture the essence of a place while seasoning it with your own unique vision and personality. Just wonderful.
Two more things--1)terribly sorry about Michigan and 2)you must get to the art musuems--the Met and MOMA will mesmerize you and ultimately create some more beautiful posts here!
Best
C
Loved your photos--so lively..especially those two adoring kids!!
It is not the doing that makes the difference but it our being in doing that gives that special touch...wow! could feel it!
Thank you, Andromeda!
Thank you very much, C.M..
Yes, my future son-in-law told me Monday (wish he'd told me Friday) about the Met and how it's his favorite place, especially the room with a whole temple! I clearly need to research NY. I will see it, and the MoMA at some point.
Merging Point - "being in doing" - thank you for that, I will remember it as a mantra. I'm so glad you felt that here.
Ohhhhhhhhh. These pictures speak more than a thousand words...but I also love your words! :)
Boots! :D
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