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Eating the Bay 2

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Picasso Delicioso

After my breakfast at the Homemade Cafe, I found my way across Berkeley to the apartment of a man named Marshall. He is an 80 yr old retired uni professor and a friend of my very close friend Jesse who was visiting from Western Australia. Jesse was bunking there and we sat through a monthly Shakespeare gathering. Two years ago, Marshall was part of a university extension class on Shakespeare. At the end of the semester, the university cancelled the class. The members decided to continue on their own. They meet and read a play and discuss it. After two hours of Shakespeare, Jesse and I took our leave and caught the BART under the bay to San Francisco. Then a bus on the way to Golden Gate Park where the De Young Museum is located. We were on our way to the Picasso Exhibition.

“Masterpieces from the Musee National Picasso, Paris”. I have to say upfront that I knew Picasso more by reputation than by having viewed his work. Sure, I had seen photographs of some of his more famous pieces but that isn’t the same. A few years back, I went to an exhibition that included Renoir’s “Luncheon of the Boating Party”. I was familiar with the work through photographs. When I saw the original, I was stunned. It was so alive. After so many years, it still resonated. It was an eyeopener for me. So, I travelled to the Picasso exhibition with this in mind and the fact that as an artist his reputation was/is gigantic.

The exhibition is a selection of 150 works out of almost 3600 pieces in the museum’s collection. Imagine trying to curate that. (If you are a libran, it’s better that you don’t.) It covers the years 1901 – 1973. There are paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints. Sometime there are several drawings showing the evolution of a piece. The exhibition is displayed chronologically in nine interconnected  galleries.

Jesse and I rocked up to the cashier, got our tickets and headed down the stairs. Of course, there was no photography allowed, so, this is a text only email. There were audio guides available but we passed. That was fortunate for two reasons. The first being that you have to follow a set path through the galleries. The second is that it would have been feeding in someone else’s observations before we could have our own experience. I might use the audio if I saw an exhibition more than once.

OK, so, Jesse and I are let loose from the line monitor and as we move to the first piece, to the right through the opening, there is a cluster of people looking. Jesse looks to the left and says, “Let’s start there.” I say, “OK”. When we get to the end of the wall, there is an opening into the next gallery. We decide to do the entire exhibition turning left. This resulted in our seeing between one and three walls of every gallery and then the remaining walls as we move through back to the entrance. Going was still in chronological order and easy to follow but returning it wasn’t a matter of just reversed order, we lost all sense of order. Having gone through many emotions and exclamations we then moved through the centre of the galleries pointing out the pieces that resonated with us the most. “That one and that one and that one…” Jesse’s favourite was The Women Running on the Beach (The Race). I had a big yes to that one as well. But, than, being a Libran…” I also really like The cubist paintings Winter in Paris,  Man with Guitar and Man with a Mandolin …”.

What I discovered in experiencing this exhibition was a full recognition of Picasso’s greatness. His incredible skill was evident again and again but it was how he used that skill to stretch and stretch and, then, break the concept of what is possible to do in these mediums. As an example, take the Cubist painting “The Man with Guitar”. I looked and I thought, “Yeh, I can see the head of the man there and the neck of the guitar down there and the body of the guitar maybe there.” Then, I felt my labelling and searching with my intellect break down as I was overwhelmed by the power of the painting and was taken past my analytic mind to experiencing with all of my being.

I could say more but this is just an account of what went on for me. I don’t know how it would be for you. It would be best if you could go and experience this exhibition for yourself. All I can assure you of is that if you do you will be doing yourself a great favour. Jesse and I were over the moon as we walked back through the park to catch our bus.

At the De Young til 9 October.

Springtime for Kundan and California

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I have gone through four or more drafts of my travel update without settling on the right format to describe my journey. However, the title was too good to pass up and if I don’t write soon, I’d lose the chance to use it.

Last week, I spent three days at Harbin Hot Springs ( http://www.harbin.org/intro.htm ) in Napa county two and a half hours from my sister’s house in Chico, two hours north of San Francisco. If you have even the slightest chance of going there, please take it. It’s located up a fully wooded valley and is veeery relaxing. The centre is the main pool area. Six pools: a swimming pool that was a pleasant temperature for doing laps and fooling around. A heart shaped soaking pool. A cold pool. Sauna and steam rooms. Then, a large warm soaking pool about five foot deep. Next to it, the hot pool and above another cold pool. There are large decks for sunbathing and hanging out. The hot pool is 102+F (39C). The sign says to begin with no more than 2 minutes. I tend toward one minute. Then, off to the cold pool for a short dip. A pause for a long drink of my electrolyte enhanced water and back to the hot pool where I found that I was immediately enjoying the deep relaxing heat. I would do this circuit three or four times.

About timing of your visit. I arrived Thursday midday and left Sunday. The difference in population of the pools between friday and saturday was considerable. One way around it: I found myself awake at four thirty in the morning and went down to the pools. Only two other people there. After my rounds, I returned to morph into the most relaxing puddle of Kundan in my bed.

Other attractions are a number of varying degrees of difficulty hikes around the large property. Fabulous views. Many quiet spots. The restaurant is informal with a deck looking out on the wooded valley. I shared a table with some very interesting people.

There are events happening most nights and, of course, yoga, massage and other bodywork. I chose to have a Watsu session. This was a new experience for me. Watsu is described as “water shiatsu”, though, I would say that that is much more than that. The session happens in a shallow, maybe four foot deep warm salt water pool. I had a crick in my neck and a tight lower back, so, Patti, my practitioner, said that she would give me a gentle session. She put velcroed straps just below my knees to add floatation, then, I just lay back in her arms and let go. There was gentle massaging of my neck and lower back but mostly it was gentle movement of my body through the water stretching it in various ways. I felt totally supported. About three quarters of the way through the hour, my head lolled against her cheek and I suddenly felt like I was a babe in my mothers arms. My heart melted. Wow, wowww, wowwww.

And, it even released my neck and back.

On top of all that Harbin has to offer everyone, I also met up with a couple old friends. Sheelu was visiting and the Ramadeva lives there. Ramadeva teaches Feldenkrais classes twice a week and does other work. I first met him when he was the lead facilitator of the first Mystic Rose that I participated in. That day, he was walking the hiking trails looking for people who needed assistance. Nice work, especially on a cool spring day. Oh, and, did I mention how relaxed I was at the end of only three days. Truly and oasis.

So, that was the most recent treat of my journey in Californialand. Mostly this has been a time of enjoying being with my sister, brother and sister-in-law, as well as my nephews and nieces. I managed to bump into some friends along the way and make new friends as well. My sister Mary, in between quilting and playing bridge, has been attending a class about Rumi’s poems. I went along to a couple class meetings as well as a couple informal gatherings. The leader is a beautiful woman who is passionately absorbed in the poetry of Rumi and other Sufis. A great way to touch one’s heart. While in SLO town, I got to sit and chat with my brother John in the morning before he went off to work and spend time in the afternoons at the breakfast counter talking with my sister-in-law, Stephanie when she got home from work. It’s such a pleasure to just be together with each of them. John and Steph, had just bought a vacation home at Lake Shasta on the California/Oregon border. We loaded up a trailer and made a stop at Ikea on the way. Then, it was moving in and cleaning up (I am now an expert Ikea assembler). Next weekend, I go up to the Lake House again for Memorial day weekend and, then, head south to SLO again for the month of July.

In all, it’s just been a very cruizy time. Oh, yeh, there was the spring garden tour. I’ll be uploading some photos to my flickr pages.

Cheers

Consider this, then, read it again.

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“I will mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

Making it a Challenge

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After considering the question in my previous post, I decided that my bicycle tour of Europe feels too right to skip this year. So, instead, I have decided that my challenge will be to maintain my practice throughout the tour. This may take, will most likely take, some inventiveness at times. Finding a place to practice a wind instrument is sometimes a challenge, especially, in a city.