WALKING FOOLISHLY

Well, life being as it is, it seems I may be about to become a talking head.  Over the weekend I was filmed to be part of a documentary titled Walking Fool, directed and starring Mark E. Phillips, produced by John Maslowski   I was there as the bookish, professorial, “walking expert.”  Want to know about the Savannah Theory - I'm your man.  Here are Mark and I faking spontaneity:

Mark is the kind of pedestrian who makes me feel like a complete trifler.  He has made several attempts, only the last one successful, to walk across America.  Cheap technology means that he’s been able to film pretty much all of it.  Editing is currently underway.

I don’t really know Mark at all but having met him briefly, having seen his website and the various clips I’ve seen, he seems to be a man with the kind of sensibility I like, essentially serious (nobody who walk thousands of miles across America is completely frivolous) but he’s also well aware of the unbearable lightness of being.  He ain't no Cheryl Strayed, I'm pleased to say.  Above and below are some of his postings.

Of course he suffered for his art, so that we don’t have to, but it’s seeing that back pack that really makes me feel his pain.  There are times when I that even carrying a camera and some water is an impediment to walking, Mark’s pack sometimes weighed as much as 70 pounds, I’m told.

The idea of course is that the film will be shown at film festivals, win prizes, and then there’ll be a spin off TV show and a web series, and a lot more walking.  I do hope it all happens, and I also hope I don’t end up on the cutting room floor.

The website, with trailer, is here:

http://www.walkingfool.com

Outfit: Crochet Rainbow.

Multi colored rainbow crochet dress: Glad Rags || Necklace: Forever 21 || Boots: Vagabond via Urban Outfitters

This week it seems like I show you all of my favorite summer looks, here's another one. Rainbow crochet is probably the coolest & most beautiful way to wear crocheted things. Especially when it comes to dresses, I'll get weak. At first I saw the Zeppelin Dress on the Rat and Boa website a couple of months ago and I couldn't stop thinking of it - unfortunately it's been sold out for quite a long time now and I'm so glad I found the same dress on a different website. It's probably the most suitable dress for festivals and summer in general. The colorful, popping flowers on black background are outstanding and add that perfect happy hippie vibe to your look. 

Yeah I'm completely obsessed with this dress, probably the best purchase I've made this spring - I'm going to wear that beauty all summer long, that's for sure. :-)

WALKING WITH VLADIMIR

There’s a story, told by Alfred Appel, about a student who went to see Vladimir Nabokov when he was teaching at Cornell. Nabokov told the student to look out of the window, and then asked him, “Do you know the name of that tree?”  The student said no, and Nabokov said, “Then you’ll never be a writer.”

What an asshole.

I heard another version where Nabokov is addressing a whole room full of students and asks them to name trees they passed as they were walking to class, but it’s the same story with the same conclusion that they’ll never be writers.

As a matter of fact, these days, when I look out my window I do know the names of most of the trees I can see, but when I was a student I couldn’t tell the difference between one tree and another, couldn’t tell most trees from a hole in the ground.  It’s just not a young person skill.  Nabokov should have known that.  Perhaps he did and was just trying to be provocative.

Of course in Los Angeles these days it’s impossible to walk down the street without worrying about all the trees you see.  We’re in the middle of a drought and trees are dying on us left and right, while at the same time we’re being told to use less water, especially to water our gardens, and it’s all a big quandary. 

So it was a slight relief to be in Berkeley a week or so back where all the greenery looked incredibly lush and healthy.  Gardens were overgrown, big old plants were growing on every street corner.  This picture was taken in Berkeley, though admittedly not on my my most recent trip.

And there was an empty corner lot on Telegraph Avenue, which I’d vaguely seen before without really looking at, but as I walked past it this time it seemed to me that they must be keeping as some kind of urban wildlife reserve, leaving it for nature to take its wayward course.  There were not, to be sure, any trees growing there that needed naming, but there was a lot of grass that looked tall and healthy and I could certainly recognize that there were some exuberant fennel plants growing there.  It seemed a good thing.  I took a couple of photographs.

And then I happened to be walking past it again 2 days later and it was all different.  A crew had been in there and hacked everything back, no more long grass, no sign of fennel, every green thing had been cut down to ground level.  I guess it looked neater.  I am, as you probably know, not a great fan of neatness.

         I’m not sure that Nabokov was either.  He wrote, in Lectures on Literature, “Between the wolf in the tall grass and the wolf in the tall story there is a shimmering go-between. That go-between, that prism, is the art of literature.”  So, not really such an asshole after all.

Outfit: Golden palace.

Crochet insert blouse: Nasty Dress || Embellished vest: Zara || Necklace: Urban Outfitters & Vintage || Boots: Vagabond via Urban Outfitters

Here is probably the most beautiful vest which has ever been created - it's such a masterpiece! I remember it was selling out super fast at Zara which is no surprise when thinking of its affordable price and outstanding look. There is nothing more versatile than vests existing, they can be worn in so many different ways and seasons. In summer I love wearing them with blouses or long-sleeved playsuits/dresses whereas in winter/fall/spring they look stunning worn above jackets (especially leather ones), too! For this outfit I decided to go for a warm, golden and black colored combination. This cute asymmetrical, creamy blouse I received from NastyDress fits perfectly to the golden sequins/embellishment of the jacket, doesn't it? Its cute crochet inserts make it even more flattering and different compared to other summer blouses. Furthermore I'm wearing some of my most comfortable shorts I own - my black shorts with lace trim which are kinda basics but with a cute detail. Some tribal jewelry and my beloved platform boots et voila - here's my Monday outfit made of my dreamiest boho fantasies.

Kisses. x  

WALKING BOTTOMLESS

As some of you will know, I'm the author of a book titled Walking In Ruins.  Sales have been, let's say, modest.  In fact I actually like the cover very much, but maybe it would have done better with an illustration like this:

Outfit: Sunset Boulevard.

Festival bell sleeve dress in camel: For Love &; Lemons || Necklaces: Urban Outfitters & Vanessa Mooney || Boots: Vagabond

Yay finally got to wear one of my favorite dresses I bought myself for christmas last year - isn't it perfect? It's my first dress by For Love & Lemons and made me fall in love in the first second I saw it in a campaign. The camel color together with the black lace inserts and hems AND bell sleeves is freakin' beautiful! It also can be worn as an everyday outfit or a look for a night out - it's such a versatile dress! I love wearing it with my two favorite silver toned necklaces which I layered here. I think they highlight the whole outfit, so all in all it's a very romantic boho inspired combo I really love.

Kisses x