A Glass Museum

A few days ago I came across some pictures I took last year when His Madness and I visited the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum of Glass in a nearby town. Recently I've been sidelined by a pulled muscle in my neck so it's been nearly impossible to accomplish anything, much less coerce Ivy and Burt into doing silly stuff. To pass the time I decided to delete unwanted photos. It also kept me away from the news and being outraged by Trump's latest offenses - why is that moron still president? Anyway, this was in one of the photos I was going to delete. It's from the museum mentioned above and although it's a saying that's been around forever, I suddenly felt the need to analyze it, concluding that it can apply to anything but it describes nothing. Or does it? I always thought it was just one of those things people say when they get caught off guard and can't come up with a positive response. This is exactly the kind of thinking that makes my brain hurt so I decided to do a post on the museum so I can delete the stupid photo and quit thinking about what it says. I do like it as a piece of art.

When HM first suggested we visit this museum I thought, paperweights? Really? What a snore. I did not say this out loud, or at least I don't think I did. Anyway, the thought of wandering through room after room of frilly glass balls wasn't exactly my idea of a good time but there was nothing else to do so off we went. After all, they could have a great gift shop or we might find a nice restaurant nearby.

Much to my surprise, there was an exhibit of neon art. It was actually pretty entertaining to watch the miniature lightning bolts flash to the buzz of the transformers although it could've used some spooky lighting. A few of them would be great as Halloween decorations but done in black, of course.   

There were plenty of the old fashioned, classic paperweights, around four thousand to be exact but also a few new styles with pop-culture themes from Star Wars and Harry Potter.

Then there was this one, I could definitely relate to it. Ha!

Betty's Big Night by Ricky Bernstein is undoubtedly the largest piece in the museum's permanent collection. It's made of blown glass on an aluminum armature. According to Google Arts & Culture, Betty is a 1950's housewife who hopes to win her husband's office party competition by steadying a broom with a bowling ball and one boiled egg on fourteen teacups while balancing on yet another bowling ball with only one foot. It is obviously a metaphor of the expectations of women in the mid-twentieth century but I'm afraid it's still kind of true now, except today she would also have a career.   

Indeed.

The Set for Luna was created in 2011 by Carmen Lozar. It's one of the loveliest little jewels on display, in my estimation anyway. You can see more of her beautiful work here.

It's very small, the catalog dimension are 12.5" x 5.5" x 2.5". I couldn't decide which photo best captured it so I'm including them both. It reminded me a lot of those cute paper dress blog parties. 

The museum itself is fairly small and even on the weekend it wasn't very crowded. After an hour we had seen everything and since the admission was free we left a donation and headed to the city of Appleton to check out the Houdini Museum.

Let's just say that things got a little more interesting there.

Don't worry, I let him out, eventually - but I'll leave that story for another time.

Would you care to share your thoughts on, it is what it is?

Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

A Day in Paris with Ivy and Burt

I started this post back in October but Halloween was right around the corner and it seemed a little irrelevant, then eventually I forgot all about it. Since we are currently stuck in yet another episode of sub-zero weather, it seemed like a good time to recall a wonderful day of sightseeing around Paris.

As you can see, Ivy and Burt acquired a couple vices on their trip to the City of Light. Now they begin each day with an expresso and macaroons. It's not like they have to worry about their health. 

I have no sense of direction, so it's a good thing that HM is totally obsessed with knowing exactly where we are ALL of the time. Consequently, I end up doing a lot of standing around while he stares intently at his phone. Usually it drives me crazy but every once in awhile, while I'm trying to be patient, I see something I might otherwise have missed. This time it was the legendary Maxim's restaurant and it was right across the street! I had just taken out my phone to snap a photo when a dune buggy sporting "aloha" on it's bumper whizzed by. Ok, it's not as exciting as seeing some celebrity come stumbling out of the door but still, one of the nearest beaches is Normandy. Wait, was that Burt behind the wheel? Isn't he supposed to be home looking after the kitties?

Then a few blocks away we ran into Ivy! It looks like she was doing some shopping! Earlier I had also stopped by the same Chanel boutique, although I found myself in the rather uncomfortable position of having to explain the Electoral College to my sales associate. He wanted to know how Trump ended up as president when Hilary got almost three million more votes. Due to sheer dumb luck, I had read enough about the creation of the Electoral College so I could explain how we ended up with this national disgrace. He was very nice and we commiserated on the outcome of the election. Throughout our trip, many Europeans I spoke with felt the same way. A lot of them were baffled that we would keep using such an antiquated rule. Most are just as disgusted with Trump as we are. At first I was a little surprised that so many people were concerned about our president but then it dawned on me that there is only one world and we are all in it together.

On a happier note, we eventually tracked down Burt and the four of us set out to visit some favorite spots in the city. Un chat joined us after lunch at le café. Luckily, the kitty didn't care about politics.

What can I say, sometimes it's just fun to take stupid photos. HM wanted to get this one right.

Our next stop, The Pompidou Center, is always a great place to see contemporary art. It's a lot more fun than the Louvre and there's a Dubuffet that's so huge you can walk around inside of it! The lines are shorter, too and you don't need to make an appointment to get in. 

The rooftop restaurant is a terrific place to catch some fantastic views, from the Eiffel Tower . . .

. . . to Sacré-Coeur in Montmartre. 

It's also a wonderful place for people watching but then nearly all of Paris is a great for that! I have to admit to feeling pretty guilty when I saw this book bag. Did Spenser arranged that?

Leaving our kitties always makes me a little sad, even though I know they are being well cared for.

After art and people watching we had to pay a visit to Shakespeare and Company since it's been described as the most famous independent bookstore in the world! It wasn't very crowded that day so we got a chance to leisurely browse around. Burt picked up a mystery for the trip home. If you are curious about it's lengthy history there's an interesting article that was published in Vanity Fair here. 

The final stop of the day was Sainte-Chapelle, the site of the most extensive collection of 13th-century stained glass in the world. It's the one place we always visit when we are lucky enough to find ourselves in Paris. King Louis IX built it in 1238 to hold what he believed was the actual crown of thorns from the crucifixion. He purchased it from an Emperor from Constantinople, although the money was actually paid to the Venetians to whom the relic had been pawned. Obviously, there was a lot of demand for relics at the time. Louis was eventually elevated to sainthood, so the whole thing apparently paid off. Five hundred years later he even got a city in Missouri named after him. Small world, huh? Whatever brought about it's creation, gazing up at nearly solid walls of beautiful stained glass is an awesome experience that never fails to impress me.

Ivy and Burt have been on hiatus for awhile. As I have mentioned before, they are usually banished during those times of the year when we have a lot of visitors. It's not like they are the only skeletons that hang around in private homes, I know of quite a few actually, but they do tend to upset some individuals. Now that the holidays are over they are free and ready to resume their usual antics.

See you soon! Thanks for wandering around a few of our favorite places in Paris with us.

    

This year's look at the Paine's Nutcracker Decorations

For over a decade, The Paine, our town's 1920's mock Tudor mansion turned public art center has been transformed into scenes from Nutcracker Ballet at Christmas time. It usually opens about a week before Thanksgiving and fortunately for us, continues through the first week of January. Thanks to a lack of planning and general inability to do things in a timely manner, His Madness and I usually make it there just prior to (if not on) the closing day. 

This year a new tree greeted visitors in the vestibule. Much to our surprise, it sported a rather unique double top, certainly a rarity among artificial trees.  

It's only been within the last three years that photography has been allowed and I've covered some of the highlights here and also here. This time around I've tried to included some areas and rooms that weren't in the previous posts. Above is one of the many life size Nutcrackers that stand guard around the mansion and seem to be tucked into every corner.

Most of the rooms throughout the mansion have been decorated to depict a specific scene from the Nutcracker story. There are scheduled tours, narrated by Herr Drosselmeyer himself with musical and ballet performances. For the self-guided ones, each location has a book open to the story with accompanying illustrations set in the actual room at the Paine. Sugary treats are available, too.  

The story starts off in the Gallery that has been transformed into the Stahlbaum's parlor on the night of Christmas Eve. One really nice feature in the Gallery is the children's play area.

    

There are costumes and special props available for those who want to indulge in a little dressing-up. 

The sign said, "you can choose to be a ballerina or a knight", so HM picked both.

Luckily, procrastination can have it's benefits and we soon discovered we had the place completely to ourselves, except for a lone docent that we pestered mercilessly with questions. To be honest, the lack of visitors was probably due to the fact that the temperature that day was well below zero and a stiff breeze made it feel even worse. So this is what the main hall looks like without a crowd of people!

Most of the decorations throughout the rooms remain the same from year to year but the treats on the dining room table get a partial make-over each season.  

I love the massive amount of ornaments on this tree and how the top of the it appears to be bent over from the weight of all of them! Wonder how long it takes to attach all those decorations?

The tree-shaped assembly of green macaroons is definitely new this season.

This amazing bronze railing is at the top of the steps that lead down into the conservatory breakfast room. Imagine finishing your cereal and then strolling out onto a terrace surrounded by beautiful trees and flowers. Ok, so right now it's actually covered in snow but still, what a way to live!

At the end of the first act of the ballet, after the defeat of the Mouse King the Nutcracker is transformed back into a Prince. He and Clara travel through a pine forest on the way to his kingdom and snowflakes dance around them in the moonlight. That seems like a good way to travel.

During the guided tours, the ballet numbers are performed in the Great Hall. 

The trees on the left rotate so they look like they're joining in with the dancing. 

These pages in the Great Hall storybook illustrate scenes from the Magic Castle in the Land of Sweets. When Clara and the Prince arrive, the Sugar Plum Fairy decides to honor them for defeating the Rat King. She brings in dancers from around the world to join in a celebration of sweets. 

The actual trees from the illustration above, unfortunately they were too big to join in the dancing.

Back in the main hallway, the staircase leads to more decorated rooms.

Clara's room wouldn't be complete without a Nutcracker.

Her Christmas trees were done up in pink and decorated with ballerina and castle ornaments.

Further down the hall is the dressing room/closet-to-die-for that belongs to Clara's mother. It's currently also the showcase for two bronze sculptures by hometown artist, Helen Farnsworth Mears.

It seems one of the Christmas mice has borrowed the kitty's collar.

Finally, up among the rafters in the Gothic Gallery, there is a magical golden forest.

It's a beautiful end to a fun and interesting journey.

I couldn't find any references to golden forests in the Nutcracker ballet. However, I did learn that librettos are never set in stone so maybe someday someone will add one!

After the marvelous extravaganza of sparkling light we headed outside to spend some time in the garden before the sun set or we developed hypothermia.  

At the far end of the property is the Conservatory where the Sugar Plum Fairy holds court. It was way too chilly for the fairies to be doling out cupcakes that day so we had to settled for a snoop around their new garden. It was looking so dramatic in the winter twilight, we didn't even miss the treats.

Hope everyone is staying warm, thanks for stopping by!