I Like Large Parties-- They're So Intimate

"Anyhow he gives large parties," said Jordan, changing the subject with an urban distaste for the concrete. "And I like large parties. They're so intimate. At small parties there isn't any privacy."

~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

What Poetry Does

“Poetry makes the half man whole by saying the things which he feels but cannot say.”

~Clyde Kilby, Poetry and Life (New York, Odyssey Press, 1953), p. 3 via here

"The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do not say."

~GK Chesterton

Write Music!

"This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am sure the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals-sounds that say listen to this, it is important.So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. Create a sound that pleases the reader’s ear. Don’t just write words. Write music."


~Roy Clark, Writing Tools via Justin Buzzard

June 1940 Paper Doll with Clothes

Back in December, I posted Miss Carey's paper doll wardrobe (from April 1941).  Now, I'm back with clothes from Cousin Sally's June wedding.  I'd love to have her trousseau especially the day dress with the cargo pockets and the turban.

Jack and Jill Magazine, June 1940 (via The Paper Collector)

A Beautiful French Film...

To have another language is to possess a second soul.

~Charlemagne


I think I've neglected to mention this before but when I'm not modeling and globetrotting and doing, you know, glamorous stuff (can you hear the sarcasm?), I do something else.


I teach English to international students at a language school.  I work one-on-one as a personal tutor to mostly students in their twenties-- people hailing from China, Korea, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Turkey, Colombia...


It's a W.O.N.D.E.R.F.U.L experience.  You know that bumper sticker that says, "I touch the future; I teach."?  Well, that's how I feel.  Everyday I get to work with some of the best and brightest young people from these countries.  And, I get to (help) teach them a language-- English-- which can only serve to further them along.  It's an awesome feeling.

I discovered this stylish little French film-- an advertisement for EF Language Schools- via this blog.  I LOVE it (especially because I studied abroad in Paris and ADORED.EVERY.SECOND).  The video sums up everything that is wonderful about learning a new language.

A Day Late and A Dollar Short

Fred and (not) Ginger in Holiday Inn

H A P P Y V A L E N T I N E'S D A Y

I always say "Better late than never." I hope you had a lovely day!

We Interrupt This Regularly Scheduled Program to Bring You...

I haven't posted in two weeks, and I break my blogging fast by sharing this:

via here

Why did I post this?  Because it's so near and dear to my heart.  My favorite response on the chart is, "If they don't like your hairy legs, they're not really your friends."  I think I have used this very thing as a friendship test.

Ballet Flats

Olivier Theyskens' Theory

I desperately need new flats.  My standby for years were a pair of M.I.A flats that I replaced twice.  I'd just order a new pair of those except that the last pair that I got must have been made in a different factory since the leather was different (cheaper with none of the buttery softness that I had come to love in the previous pairs).


The ballet flats above are velvet (I seem to be on a kick!) and lovely.  They're part of Olivier Theysken's new collection for Theory.  They also come in black and in blue but at $325 are out of my budget.