THE CREATIVE PROCESS

Last week I began taking a class called "The Creative Process" at UCSD. The class was filled with people of all ages and from all walks of life: Veterinarian, Lawyer, Astronomer, Engineer, Sales Person at NM, me....and from all coutries: Brazil, Italy, France, Switzerland, Inglewood...

The first week was very interesting and our first assignment was to create a "life line" for ourselves. Let's face it in a room full of people ages 18 to 60 some of our life lines are much longer than others. There was no restriction on the projects. They could be three dimensional or line drawings.

Tonight we presented our work and it was quite amazing. Twenty three projects all totally different.

My favorite project was a marvelous sculpture made of copper pipe with a shower head at the top with beads spewing forth (her future), a spigot with nails coming out of it represented the death of her husband.

The astronomer in the group did a fabulous painting on a piece of wood with a telescope attached....very early in her childhood she discovered the meaning of life (a yellow star-like burst that proceeded through the piece)...I am still searching for the meaning.

A girl from Italy did a small book that was utterly charming with a line drawing on different colors of paper to represent her moods. Terrific.

A jewelry designer did all of the phases of her life on acetate so that when you put them together they peeked through her "image" on the front.

A woman from Brazil did a large bell jar with different exhibits inside....it was truly wonderful. Half of the exhibits were empty because she was young and had not accomplished anything yet.

One woman did a collection of plastic bottles hooked together that replicated a wave and her life....incredible.

Then there was the woman from France who had to be 50ish who did a series of pictures of her mother with her in the uterus and images of her father like juggling balls around her...and her on a cross below all of this. She is trying to work through the fact that her father was having an affair while her mother was pregnant....did I mention she was 50?? Dear Lord!

Another fabulous work was a book that she had spraypainted all of the pages various colors and had ripped or pulled outward to indicate strife. It was terrif.


This is my piece, not so great, better in person than this picture. The red line on the left represents me, the purple line represents Henry...where we meet is where the shining light that is Clifford streaks out to the left (there is a little red shadowing Cliff, because he is his mother's son, and because it is my painting). Hen and I meander out upper stage right. Perhaps I should have spent longer than an hour on it???

Next week is a really tough project....more later.

HOW COULD HE BE 21??

We were in Las Vegas this weekend for Clifford's birthday. He was 21. Did I say that, he was 21! When did that happen? One moment he is two and I am ordering him an Espresso and now he is 21 and I am ordering him a Negroni (I do not even know what that is).

All Cliff cares about is food, politics, and law...I think in that order. Jeffrey Steingarten and Michael Pollan are his new fave authors, and Mario Batali his hero (Henry's too because of the Orange Crocs).

After a delicious sushi dinner Friday night
Cliff looks happy doesn't he. (Did I forget to mention who was in Las Vegas...Katie, Betsy, Henry, Judy, Cliff and I.) Over Saki we decided that Saturday would be a good day for a road trip to Hoover Dam.

Saturday AM we threw Betsy in the "far back" of the Jeep, and headed off, she looks happy doesn't she...
Off we went to Hoover Dam...
this is a new bridge that they are building over the dam...
Yes you are right...the reason I am not in this picture is because I have no sunglasses...

This year Henry and I have been married 30 years...
...but still it is exciting to find out that Henry and Judy were at Hoover Dam 40 years ago...

DAMN!!

After we were through with the dam adventure we headed back to LV for our birthday dinner at Mario Batali's B and B Ristorante. Clifford had spent weeks choosing the perfect restaurant...and this was his choice.

We toasted Clifford's new age status!

This picture of the whole group was taken by the woman at the next table (see below), who happened to be the wife of the Majority Leader of the House of Alabama, Ken Guin. Tell me his parents did not have a sense of humor...put his name together and it rhymes with Penguin...
Then we came home and googled him and found that nice as he is, he might be double dipping salary wise with several colleges. Nice guy though!!
Dessert...before and...
after!
A good night was had by all...HAPPY BIRTHDAY CLIFFORD....may there be many more.
btw Negroni is 1 part gin, 1 part Campari, 1 part Sweet Vermouth.

WORST/BEST INVENTION OF 2009

Depending on how you look at it...this is either the best or worst invention of last year.

What is it you ask??

An inventor from Barcelona, Pep Torres, was working on a "healthier vending machine" (an oxymoron if ever there was one) and decided forced exercise was the way to go.

He attached a stationary bike to the vending machine requiring you to use the amount of calories in the Ho Ho's you so desperately crave.

Heck....Ten bucks for the Twinkies and I am out of there.

For the record...the diet has been pretty painless....do not have any idea if I have lost any weight, but I feel great!!

DIETING TWENTY TEN UPDATE

I have received many emails....and yes, I did begin today. It was totally painless. OK...I did not exercise, I will add that tomorrow.

In the words of John Mayer:

"5-Factor is not a diet, in the sense that there's nothing to fall off of. There's nothing to say goodbye to, and nothing to long for. It is almost too good to be true!"

He is right....it was the most painless day. I had Kashi Go Lean for breakfast

a SpecialK Protein Shake for lunch (no time to prepare)



, an Apple, a cup of Cottage Cheese,
Then I came home and make Chicken Ropas Viejas.....it was delish!! And I made enough for the next two days as well.....YAY!

Oh, yeah, I also had a Grande No fat Decaf Latte--but I threw it out, it was terrible.

I might be able to succeed at this.

I bet I lost 10 pounds just today!!

DIETING TWENTY TEN

OK...it is January so you know that this must be coming. After my little stint in the hospital in December, it became a little more important to lose weight. But I figured it is the holidays, why worry then. Incentive was definitely there...how many times in a 24 hour period can you tell everyperson walking into your room at all hours that you weigh 183 pounds.

So...I began the process of selecting a "plan" to lose weight. Since I am so overweight the diet should be a punishment of sorts...right. I selected The Ultra Simple Diet by Dr. Mark Hyman...author of UltraMetabolism.
On page 96 of the book it says: "Ask yourself if there is something wrong with your lifestyle that doesn't allow you to make a few simple healthy choices for one week." OK! I figure I can do anything for one week.

Here is Day One:

• Wake up 90-120 minutes before you need to leave the house
• Upon Waking have 2 tablespoons organic, EVOO mixed with the juice of 1/2 of an organic lemon...drink to flush the toxins from your bile and liver into your gut to be excreted (I am not making this up)
• 1 tsp buffered ascorbic acid powder in 8 ox of water
• 20-60 minutes of yoga
• 20 minutes of journaling
• Breakfast is lemon juice from 1/2 lemon and hot water
• 1 cup of green tea
• 2 capsules of probiotics
• 2 capsules of liver supportive herbs
• UltraShake (trust me you do not want to know)
• If no bowel movement by 10AM take herbal laxative
• Morning Snack (10-11AM) 1 Cup UltraBroth (Vegetable Broth)
• Lunch (12-1) 2 capsules of Magnesium citrate
• 2 cups of sauteed veggies
• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice
• 1/2 cup fruit or berries
• Afternoon Snack (2-3AM) 1 Cup UltraBroth
• Before Dinner 30 minute walk
• Sauna
• 20 minutes of yoga
• Dinner 2 capsules of probiotics before eating
• 2 capsules of liver detox herbs
• 2 cups steamed veggies
• 1/2 cup brown rice
• 4-6 ounces of fish or chicken
• 1 cup UltraBroth
• Bedtime--20 minutes Yoga
• 20 Minutes journaling
• Herbal Laxative
• 2 capsules of magnesium citrate
• 20 minute UltraBath (this part I can do)

So, for some reason (use your imagination) I could just never get started.....heck, half of the things I could not even figure out where to get them. I knew I would never make it through a full week with the above diet. No artificial sweeteners (would just make you want sweet things).

This made me even more depressed, probably up to 185 by now.

Then I began reading Diet Reviews. There were a bunch of positive reviews for the Harley Pasternak 5-Factor Diet. I remembered that I thought that I had the book....I remembered seeing it in my last diet blog. I ran upstairs (count 1 minute of exercise) got the book and began to read.

Although I own the book, I had not read it. It was a purchase that I did not get back in time to B&N to return.

The purpose of the is 5 meals a day, 5 ingredients per recipe, 5 minute prep time. He believes in caffeine, ice water, Splenda, Diet Coke, frozen veggies, and frozen fruits. Here is the important part....he only thinks that you should diet 6 days a week....on the 7th eat what you want!!

So tomorrow the quest begins....lose weight....I will keep you up on my progress. It is all good news. If I have progress I will lose weight. If I regress I will be eligible for gastric bypass or at the very least a lapband.

So it begins tomorrow....by my scale I weight 175, so that is what we are going to go by.

Wish me luck...I will be hanging with Harley. Yum-o.

SO BROKE IT HURTS!!

No not me....although that is probably true.

You see the "homeless" people all the time at he stop lights with many signs. The sign that I feel is most poignant is the one that reads "So broke it hurts!"

The first time I saw him, I wanted to give him money.

The second time I saw him, I said....whoa, it is a different person, same sign.

Then I began being more observant, the homeless people rotate in shifts. They are literally working the corner of the mall....all of the corners of the mall. Do they pool the money, or do you take what you earned on your shift?

As it stands right now they will stay...

...so broke it hurts!!

GROUNDHOG DAY

I thought that the easiest way to do this is just to repeat last years post...because nothing has changed....actually I might weigh 10 pounds more...although I dieted all year, but no....I will do it all again!

I want to lose weight, gain money, exit unneeded or unwanted possessions!

Ebay here I come.

The only thing thankful and helpful this year is that the McDonald's at the mall closed yesterday.

Wish me luck!!