BRIGHT OCEANS by Magdalena Markiewicz

Oceans of wisedom and boring thoughts,
Rivers of silence and endless hopes,
Forests of shadows and sour tears,
The house of deep feelings or unexpected dreams.

Fathers of Earth are dying today,
Stars and the Sun are going to fail,
Mysterious faces beyond my sight
Still keep the truth
Still keep it inside.

Water won't see nor will it believe,
It'll always roar and show memories,
And the generous wind is going to dry
Her eyes full of tears - the remembrance of Light.

/2004/

" A Moveable Feast "

" A Moveable Feast" by Ernest Hemingway is one of my favorite stories. I travelled a lot between Europe and Japan, living in different cities every year. And I found it was interesting experience in my life.
I wrote an essay during I stayed in Paris, and when I came back to my hometown, my friend gave me this book, " A Moveable Feast ", because she said my essay reminded her his works. At first I confused this title, but I found a message from Hemingway inside the book which said,

" If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast" Ernest Hemingway to a friend, 1950

This book was based on Hemingway in Paris from 1921 to 1926 as a young American expatriate writer and it was his memoir describing city landscapes, cafes, society, people and life. It was published posthumously in 1964. ( He died in 1961)
His acquaintances in the story were Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald & Zelda, Ezra Pound, Ford Maddox Ford, James Joyce, Sylvia Beach, and other prominent writers, poets, and artists. His approach of writing was cubist prose, which means keeping clipped short sentences and free from adjective in writing. It was different from metric expression of verse. He was developing his fiction writing style during this early period. It was narrative, simple and short straightforward. He also read many of great Russian writers stories at this period, in special Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky. These authors books he borrowed from Sylvia's book store, "Shakespeare and Company" is located at 12 Rue de l'Odeon. This interest leaded him writing about the Wars. His first novel " The Sun Also Rises" was published in 1925.
In his memoir he observed their characters, conversations, attitudes, behaviours, tones, dresses, figures, appearances, and interactions with his acquaintances. At the time he was a young journalist who wanted to be a fiction writer to make a name for himself.
After Hemingway came back in America and resided in Key West and travelled different countries, such as Spain, Cuba, Italy, Africa and finally he settled in Ketchum, Idaho.
As you know he shot himself in 1961 suffering from bushfire accident(1954), life-long alcoholism, depression, ETC treatment, and memory loss. Some others believe it was caused by his hereditary disease called Hemochromatosis, because other members of his family, for example, his father, his siblings, and his grand-daughter were all committed suicide.

G3

04/11/07
Theater at Madison Square Garden

MSG witnessed on Wednesday night THE event of the year in the guitar world : a G3 show! You could bet that 80% of the audience, mostly male, were guitar players. The line up, that changes every year and that consists of putting together three of the best guitars players, was prestigious : Joe Satriani, (as usual), John Petrucci (from Dream Theater) and Paul Gilbert (ex Mr. Big). A recent poll of the Top 100 greates rock guitarists ranked Satriani #7, Petrucci #11 and Gilbert #14.
Continuing with the same successful formula as in years past, fans would be treated to individual sets by each with their own band, before joining Satriani on stage for an all-star jam session.
Gilbert opened first and played mostly material from his latest album "Get out of my yard" which is entirely instrumental, although he sings on his previous solos records. But of course, tonight was not about singing ! He popped out for a minute the famous electrical drill he used at the time of Mr. Big (copied that one on Eddie Van Halen), and was without a doubt the most technical dude on stage that night. Accompanied by his wife on keyboards and his usual musicians, he started the show on a very energetic note, almost ... poppy.
John Petrucci followed and played a little longer ; a new style, more atmospheric, less classical, great musicianship here, especially with fellow Mike Portnoy on drums, considered today as one of the best drummers in rock n' roll. Petrucci played songs from his solo album "Suspended Animation".
Then came the main man Satriani, the master of masters, the guy everybody was waiting to see, the guy who gave lessons to Metallica's guitarist (ok, that's what the legend says...)! In his usual black tshirt and black jeans with shades on, looking truely like an alien while playing, you get to wonder where does all these notes come from and how in the world can such a thing happen ? Keeping on pushing the envelop of modern rock guitar playing, from "Mystical Potatohead Groove Thing" to "Cool n*9", he played what all the audience had came to hear. And when they all came on stage together, to cover Hendrix's "Foxy Lady", "Purple Haze", and the Stones "Jumping Jack Flash", making the songs last ten minutes, you could bless your ears for having the privilege to hear those three masters together. 4 hours of amazing guitar playing, not for the average and uneducated ear...

WUTHERING HEIGHTS

Last year, I read (OK, I had to read) one of the British classics by the famous English writer, Emily Bronte. The book is entitled ‘Wuthering Heights’, and it was first published in 1847. The novel is more than a love story; it is about hatred, cruelty, delusion, frustrated yearning, obsession, deep despair and vengeance. Furthermore, ‘Wuthering heights’ contains certain elements from the Gothic tradition.

The action of the book is focused on two Yorkshire families who live in the remote Pennine Hills of England's North Country. ‘Wuthering Heights’ opens with Lockwood, a tenant of Heathcliff’s, visiting the home of his landlord in 1802. Back at Thrushcross Grange, Lockwood asks Nelly Dean, a servant who grew up in Wuthering Heights and now cares for Grange, to tell him about the history of Heathcliff. Nelly is the main narrator in the book. Mr. Earnshaw, a Yorkshire farmer and owner of Wuthering Heights, brings home an orphan, Heathcliff, from Liverpool. The boy grows up with the Earnshaw children, Hindley and Catherine. Catherine loves Heathcliff but Hindley hates and despises him. Catherine and Heathcliff are inseparable until the girl moves to the Lintons’ Grange. Heathcliff cannot stand the fact that Cathrine spends more time with Edgar so he leaves Wuthering Heights. Catherine marries Edgar, however, their happiness is short-lived because they are from two different worlds. After three years, Heathcliff returns and marries Isabella, Edgar’s sister, which is a part of his revenge. Soon after Heathcliff’s marriage, Catherine gives birth to Edgar’s daughter, Cathy, and dies. Heathcliff desires to gain control of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, and destroy everything Edgar Linton loves. He forces Cathy to marry his son, Linton. By this time he rules the Heights and with Edgar’s death, he has control of the Grange. The ghost of Catherine haunts Heathcliff and they are united in death at the end of the novel. At the same time Cathy is going to marry Hareton, Hindley’s son.
‘Wuthering heights’ is teeming with symbols, themes and motifs, nevertheless, the conflict between nature and culture is a leading subject. Bronte plays these two things against each other all the time. Nature is represented by Catherine and Heathcliff (the Earnshaw). The characters are full of passion and wildness just like Wuthering Heights. On the other hand, the Linton family and Trushcross Grange symbolize culture, sophistication, tradition and development. The destructiveness of love is a very important theme, too. Catherine and Heathcliff’s relationship is the source of the conflicts in the novel. Furthermore, their passion is stronger and more lasting than any other emotion because it is based on a conviction that they are similar. Their hearts and souls are made of the same materials.
‘Wuthering Heights’ is an intense story of love, hate, and passion. There is no real happy ending but the book does take along an interesting path that deals with race, class, and religious issues. Moreover, it can take into a world of the most eloquent emotions, and the deepest ties between the characters. The novel is compelling and displays the best and the worst of our own human nature. I think the ending is appropriate because the younger characters do not repeat the mistake of their elders. Surely, the book is a masterpiece with unforgettable characters despite the fact that I found it confusing at the beginning.

The Cambell Apartment

The Campbell Apartment

ADDRESS: 15 Vanderbilt Avenue. New York, NY 10017
BUSINESS: Bar & Lounge
HOURS: MON-SAT 3 pm-1am SUN 3 pm-Midnight

CLIENTELE: @@@@
SERVICE: @@@
DRINK: @@@@
PRICE: $$$$
ATMOSPHERE: @@@
MUSIC: n/c

The Campbell Apartment is located in the Grand Central Terminal Building in Midtown.
It is a cocktail lounge bar. This is my second visit. The previous visit was a couple years ago for my ex-senior designer's retirement corporate party. We cerebrated his retirement at this lounge. But I didn't remember there so much because there were almost two hundred people at the party. I just remembered the pool we played while we were here with drinks. This time I have a chance to observe more. I think the Interior is definitely an old school Medieval style such as an English Tudor.
There are a big bar along with a side wall, a tinted antique glass window behind the bar, seating areas, a big screen wall, and a balcony area in the space. Inside is very dark like a medieval castle or a church. There are lot of business people having drinks and conversation one another. The circulation in the bar is very fast, because of the time around 6pm-7pm in a weekday. I barely have a seat at the bar, and order a glass of wine. It is good. I give the bartender a credit card for a tab and wait for my friend arrival. The waitress doesn't give me a lounge seat at fist because of the time frame and my friend hasn't arrived yet. The first comes the first serve at the lounge. I feel that busy New Yorkers come here for drinks during waiting for the train to rush to home. For business people they need this type of environment to refresh themselves after hectic days in the office. If someone likes an old style of bar, such as ex-Oak room in the Plaza or Harvard Club bar at 44th street, this lounge fits his/her taste. It has a similar atmosphere, dark, traditional, and something smoky. The price of drink is mid-average; It is not extremely high price.
I will come here at a different time next, on weekend or an early hour or a late hour at the bar. It might be a different situation.

Taqueria y Fonda

Taqueria y Fonda
968 Amsterdam Ave. Between 107th & 108th
Tel. (212) 531 0383 – 531 0325

Menu:*****

Atmosphere:*****

Service: *****

Price: $

If you are looking for authentic Mexican flavors La Taqueria y Fonda is the right place. Very tiny, cheap, not trendy, clean and familiar, it is run by a very nice and friendly Mexican man, who gave importance to the quality of the food more than to the fashion of the place. And the result is great! When you seat you are served some tacos with spicy sauces and you can start ordering the drinks: they have amazing margaritas and Mexican beers. If you don’t want to drink alcohol I recommend their Orchata: it matches very well with the spicy plates. While you wait for the food you can put some music in their kind old fashion juke-box which plays only Mexican music…if you close your eyes the music and the smell will make you believe you are not in New York but in Mexico! The quesadillas are their best plate. The giant burrito is really big and very good. Two people can eat with only one of that! The plates with shrimps are also very good: don’t miss the “Camarones a la Diabla” if you like spicy food.

Cheap and trendy in NYC !!

"Oh myyyyy God! Emma you are just the most influent, talentive person
in the fashion world!! I need your advice. I am moving to NYC next month as
I've got a job in Vogue. Although I love clothes, I don't have the NYC look,
I live in a little town in Arkansas!! I think I need a makeover! Fashion
emergency Emma! I would like to buy new clothes to go to work to Vogue but
until I don't receive the first salary I am sort of bankrupt...Anyway, I've
saved a few bucks and I want to use them to go shopping. Is there any trendy
but cheap store I can go to? Which are the basic clothes a woman definitely
has to have in her closet? What is most appropriate to wear for work? I have
so many questions....so little answers...HELP, HELP, HELP!!"

Rose ( from a little town in Arkansas)


Hi Rose,
Don't panic !!! There are a lot of cheap stores in New York City, the problem is to know which ones and where they are !
Believe it or not, it happened to me too when I first arrived here, coming from a small town in the mountains, I thought I looked like a lumberjack !
So, scrap off the little money you have, and head straight to Conway. There are two stores in NYC. Lots of interesting things there. Do you dream every night of those leopard ballerinas you've seen everywhere since last year ? Well, you can find them here for less than $7 ( over $20 at Prada) ! And the leggings to go with it ? Here too, for less than $5 !! From jeans to blouses, tshirts to underwear (great choice of sexy undies for very little price, check out the sales department !!), you can dress like a real New Yorker ; a whole outfit for less than $30 (including shoes, though not a big selection, and lingerie). You can also find nice handbags. Men and children clothing as well.
Another really good and cheap store is Old Navy. They have three store in the city. A little more expansive than Conway but still very affordable ! Classy or cool, you can find the right clothes for the right thing !
Since you say you are going to work for Vogue, I guess you can find heaven in those stores to dress for work ! Jeans are the basics to have in your closet, because nowadays you can put them on with a nice pair of high heels to look fantastic. A cool tshirt or blouse, a nice jacket and there you go ! Choose clothes not too revealing and not too flashy, that could agress your co-workers' eyes ! Don't forget to accessorize, the secret is here ! You can find nice and cheap jewlery (don't get to attached to them, there are cheap in the real sense of the word !), belts and hats at Accessorize, there are a lot of them in NY.
So throw away your old cowgirl clothes and give you a makeover!You have no more excuses now !

CONWAY : 34th Street, between 8th Avenue and Broadway
1333 Broadway

OLD NAVY :34th Street, between 8th Avenue and Broadway
18th Street and 6th Avenue
Broadway, between Spring and Broome Street