Hello, Everyone. The best bits of my life come when I let myself out the front door, slide the key under the mat, put my hands in my pockets, and wander out to see the world. I mosey – I ramble without a destination, and I watch and listen to see what people do with their time and talents.This column will be short stories and snippets of things; wonderful things people like you were seen doing, or moments when the world let itself be young and surprising.
The theme this time is “Beautiful and Useful”; ornamental things caught being smarter or more sensible than they had to be, or competent tools and gear that decided to look good while Getting it Done.
The first moment was a holy parade in Golden Gate park. The Hindu god Jagannatha travels by cart every year, pulled by his believers. In the day, the carts were huge and heavy and very dangerous; if you fell in front of them, they would run over you. That’s where we get the word “juggernaut” – something that cannot be stopped. But this Jagannatha parade was in Golden Gate Park, and we are who we are in Northern CA; underneath the wonderfully colorful cart in our parade, there’s a guy with a steering wheel and a hand brake. Even Jagannatha plays safely here. Beautiful carts – and an unexpectedly useful person.
This is an overpass in LA. There is no city less poetic than LA; there is nothing less poetic than a concrete highway. But just for a moment, this lump of concrete broke my heart a little, framed and lovely.
This is a museum in Mexico City. Are we looking at an exhibit? We are not, because I’m the dad and always keeping a wary eye out for leaks and mold and cracks … This huge brick and stone building is old and gorgeous, but the roof rotted away perhaps a century ago. They refurbished the building. The exhibits are good, the bathrooms are modern. The roof would have cost a fortune to replace, so the Museo Soumaya has a gorgeous parachute-like cover that keeps the rain off, allows great air circulation, and gives wonderful soft lighting. I went to a famous museum – and looked at the ceiling for a long long time.
And last, these little charmers were snuggled together in a shoe store in Fruitvale. They are good art, and they are sensible bedroom slippers that advertise themselves. Why yes, I do have a pair being functional and surprisingly pretty, in my closet right now. How did you guess?
Future articles will include Excellent Staircases I have known, Great Yards, and Fred the Cat Being the Best Supervisor in the history of the world. Stay tuned – and if you have a category you like, let me know. We may have moseyed in the same places.
