Julia's Mexico City

366/2012: Day 144 Harper's Hair

So after her bath I combed her hair like this and she made a face. I'm still laughing! Dang that's a cute baby!

366/2012: Day 143 Exercise

Harper works on her core strength.

Graduation

There are lots of college and high school graduation pictures on Facebook this month and then I watched the finale of Glee this morning -- all the seniors graduating and off to whatever their futures hold. I was surprised at how moved I was at the thought of graduation (not the show itself). I thought back to my Seabury Graduation and how empty the day felt hours after the ceremonies were done and all there was to do was help Kevin pack up his room and wait for the party to start in the evening. It mimicked a big yawning chasm to cross before leaving for college. That afternoon was just odd and sad and quiet as Kevin and Lissa and I tried to pretend we were still having a great time.

Graduating from LMU was a little bit like that, though not as a sad. There was a trip to europe coming up that would extend the celebration. Instead of not knowing what came next, I knew I had to get ready to go traveling for two months. That was super fun. (When I got back from that trip and felt totally at sea, well, that was a different feeling entirely.)

Graduations are the symbol for moving on, closing one chapter and opening another. Maybe I'm moved more by these pictures and tv shows this year because of Harper. One chapter of my life is closed (before children) and this amazing new part has opened. I am loving this new phase in life so much and I am so happy, truly. Yet there is some melancholy and a few tears as I say good bye to the former life and move into the future. It's not because I miss that former life, more that it ended and endings can be hard even when all you want to do is move forward.

The day came to finally fly to Los Angeles to start my freshman year of school at LMU. We were going to the airport and I was so sad to say good bye to my home on Maui. Yes, I would be back for Christmas in a few months, but I wouldn't live there any more, I would only be back for visits from then on. I felt panicky and terrified and had that "what am I doing???" moment. But I couldn't turn back, no way! I had been waiting so long for that day. But dang it was hard to say good-bye.

But once you say good-bye, there are so many amazing new hellos to say.

Hello Harper!

(I just wish Jen could have come along in my future.)

366/2012: Day 142

Out to lunch with Judy! Fun fun.

What I've Been Reading

It's been a spate of non-fiction this last month or two. It started with a book sent to me by my mom called The Power of Habit-Why We Do What We Do In Life And In Business by Charles Duhigg. It's a combo of self help and business practices, all with fascinating stories around certain companies, products and society. A good read, but nothing earth shattering to learn for me. There is no magic bullet to changing habits!

Next I read Soldier Dogs - The Untold Story of America's Canine Heroes by Maria Goodavage. Ms. Goodavage was on The Daily Show promoting her book and it caught my fancy as I had recently finished reading about Rin Tin Tin. I was amazed at the amount of dogs there are in the military and the kind of training they go through. You have to be a very special dog to pass muster in the military. And yet they are still considered "supplies" like guns or vehicles. The stories of various events in Afghanistan and Iraq are amazing and the love the handlers have for their dogs is unsurprisingly touching. The dogs save lives and frequently give up their own as they are the first body in the way of bomb.

 

Lastly, I read Save The Cat! Goes To The Movies by Blake Snyder. This was also a gift from mom, or rather I should say Harper (with help from mom) on Mother's Day. If you are wanting to write screenplays, Save The Cat is a great book to read. This second book takes what is in the original book, styles of scripts and movies, and divides them into type ("Golden Fleece" or "Dude with a Problem" or "Monster In The House") and then uses a specific movie as an example, breaking it down to its elements. It's a fun read and very educational. I already had some ideas on rewrites for my current script just from reading this. Highly recommend!

I love reading.

366/2012: Day 141 Lamb Attack!

ARRRRGGGGHHH!

366/2012: Day 140

A nice hang out time with the Tedescos!

366/2012: Day 139 Sweater

Out to a dinner at a friend's house wearing the sweet sweater that I'm 97% sure was given to Harper by Grandma Diane! It was perfect! Super snugly and warm.

366/2012: Day 138 The Elephant in the Room

356/2012: Day 137 Toys

Harper loves the booger removal device.

366/2012: Day 136 New Hair!!

LOVE my new hair! Just couldn't take the longer hair anymore, plus it had begun the postpartum fall out and there is hair everywhere. Couldn't stand it!

The girl who was washing my hair before the cut asked what I was going to have done and I said I was cutting it short. (I mentioned having a baby.) She asked "pixie short?" and I said not quite that short. Then she said "mom-bob?"

OOOF! That hurt but I set her straight!

No mom-bob for me, ever!

366/2012: Day 135 Monkey Feet

366/2012: Day 134 Mom Enough

Just more discreet.

First Mother's Day

Yesterday was my first mother's day. It was lovely, but mostly still a bit surreal. I don't know if I feel like a mom yet -- that sounds weird, but when it's still so new, what is it supposed to feel like?? Crazy times.
We actually celebrated Mother's Day on Saturday by taking Kurt's mom to tea at The London (hotel) in West Hollywood. It's a fab place we go to for Mother's Days and Birthdays with Kurt's mom.  Highly recommend.

I received some beautiful flowers from Kurt's brother and sister in law for my first mother's day:

They arrived on Saturday and smell really good.

Harper sent me a box of lovely gifts via a little help from her Grandmother Jane. That was a nice surprise! Apparently Harper texts really well since she can't talk yet and that's how my mom knew to send these gifts. Harper also texted Grace who texted me to say that Harper loves having me as a mom. How nice is that??

Wendy came for a visit yesterday and also brought some beautiful irises and tuberose. Now the house smells even better! She brought gifts for Harper (See previous 366/2012 post) and we had a long lovely chat.

Someone asked how we celebrated Mother's Day on Sunday. We didn't really and I don't mind. I've never really been the type that needs to celebrate something on its specific day. I remember being in Belfast for Game of Thrones in 2009 and couldn't be with Kurt on our anniversary. No biggie to me as we would celebrate when I got home. But a work colleague seemed so sad for me that I was missing it, as though celebrating the day itself, not the actual marriage, was more important. I'm a mom every day so every day is mother's day! Plus all the sweet cuddles and kisses I have with Harper every day is the real celebration.

366/2012: Day 133 Travel Reading

Yesterday we had a lovely visit from Auntie Wendy and she brought Harper her first travel book. And what a wonderful book it is! I can't wait to read the book to Harper and more than that, can't wait to take her to Venice! Thanks Wendy!

 

366/2012: Day 132

Just love this picture, it makes me giggle. There was a one panel comic way back when, can't remember the name of it but occasionally it would be "People unclear on the concept". That's what I thought of when I turned and saw Harper with her pacifier like this.

Update: With a bit of googling after I posted it was "Mister Boffo"!

366/2012: Day 132 On The Lot

I was on the Sony lot for a job interview. Fingers crossed it works out.

366/2012: Day 131 Sleepy Time

She's starting to not like the swaddle so much so this will be a rare photo soon. Sweet little pea.

366/2012: Day 130 Again Nothing

It's just one of those weeks...busy and distracted so no pictures yesterday. Sometimes I borrow Kurt's photos but even he didn't take any. I even said to myself last night "after Harper goes to sleep I'll take a picture of something random" but then she wouldn't go to sleep right away and when she finally did I was pooped and went right to bed and forgot.

In Which I Wax Nostalgic About The 70's And Small Kid Time

I read a tiny blurb in Time Magazine that Albert Falco had died. For those of you of a certain age, this name might ring a bell. (No, not the "Amadeus" singer, he died in 1998.)

Falco was the Captain of the Calypso and worked for decades alongside Jacques Cousteau. Back when there were only four tv stations to watch (or five if you count the japanese station where I lived) "appointment tv" had a very different meaning. One of my favorite appointments was with The Undersea World Of Jacques Cousteau. I loved that show and hearing about Falco's death made me a bit sentimental, thinking about those nights in front of the tv, seeing the crew of Cylypso on their next big adventure. Today that show might be lost amongst Animal Cops Houston, Deadliest Catch and Hillbilly Hand Fishing. Would a soft-spoken French explorer have the same impact today? Would a network give him a show? Hard to say, but I'm glad I got to know Cousteau and Falco through the magic of television when I was most impressionable.

Au revoir, Falco, your work will always be in my best childhood memories.

Over the weekend I watched "Being Elmo" - the documentary about Kevin Clash who is most famous for, well, being Elmo on Sesame Street. It's a fantastic story and I highly recommend the movie. Kevin, like me (and so many of us) grew up on Sesame Street in the 70's. He became fascinated with puppets and began to make them and perform. He worked his ass off and soon got to work on two of the biggest kids shows ever: Captain Kangaroo and Sesame Street. He got to work with his idol, Jim Henson. Just seeing all these Sesame Street images from the very early days and Jim Henson himself made me nostalgic for that small kid time. When Jim Henson died in 1990, I was moved to tears. I felt similarly when Jacques Cousteau died in 1997. These were two huge icons of my childhood.

Lastly, I saw an episode of Iconoclasts on Sundance Channel with Bill Mahar talking to Clive Davis. At one point Bill was showing Clive his extensive record collection and he pulled out these sheets of paper. They were lists of songs that came on the radio when he was 12. He would meticulously write down all the info he had on these songs while listening to the radio. That made me remember how much time we would spend just listening to the radio. Not "listening to music" but listening to the radio. You'd have your one or two favorite AM stations (in my case there were only 2! KNUI and omg I can't remember the other one, was it KMVI??) and when you'd be at the pool or the beach with your transistor (!!) radio you would just leave it on and listen for hours. No individual headphones, everyone listened to the same thing. On Saturday mornings there was Casey Kasem and the top 40 countdown and we would wonder what song would be at #1. (Turns out there still is the American Top 40 with the ubiquitous Ryan Seacrest.) At New Year's Eve there would be a giant countdown to the year's #1. I remember listening for the whole weekend (or whatever days the holiday fell on) just waiting to see where my favorite song might come in. We'd stay up late then wake up and see what number they were on! So exciting.

And just to take you back to that time in music, here are the top ten songs from Casey Kasem's Top 100 in 1977 when I was ten years old:

10: UNDERCOVER ANGEL - ALLEN O'DAY
9: TORN BETWEEN TWO LOVERS - MARY MC GREGOR
8: ANGELS IN YOUR ARMS - HOT
7: DON'T LEAVE ME THIS WAY - THELMA HOUSTON
6: I LIKE DREAMIN'- KENNY NOLAN
5: YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A STAR - MARILYN MC COO & BILLY DAVIS JR.
4: THEME FROM "A STAR IS BORN" (EVERGREEN) - BARBRA STREISAND
3: BEST OF MY LOVE - EMOTIONS
2: TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT - ROD STEWART
1: I WANT TO BE YOUR EVERYTHING - ANDY GIBB

Oh man, I still know all the words! I'm amazed...Andy died way too young at age 30 in 1988.

I'm not a stick in the mud. I like new things like the interwebs and computers and ipods and smart phones and twitter. But I think about all those things we used to do together, like listen to the radio and watch particular shows all as a group and get to know characters like Cousteau and Kermit the Frog.

I'm so fascinated to know in ten years what kinds of childhood things will be a big part of Harper's life. What will she look back on and remember fondly in her small kid time? Will there be a collective group experience like we had? It's fascinating to think about.