Chanel's Secret Show in Scotland - Linthlithgow Palace

All the cool kids are obsessed with Scotland. Recently, Chanel hosted their yearly 'secret show' at the birthplace of Mary Stuart-- Linlithgow Palace. The guests were treated to a feast before viewing the Scottish themed line. As I watched the clothes head around the runway (I do not miss the word 'round' used for the word around) I thought to myself, "Yeah, that's pretty much how you  have to dress in Scotland. Certainly how I dressed. A combination of Bunny MacDougall from Sex & The City, Molly MacDonald, and the Olsen Twins. AKA-- a cross between a starlet and a multi-layered tartan hobo.) Basically, if I were rich, and didn't live in LA, I'd wear it. And the show was a beautiful little piece of theatre. 

Unfortunately, the show and its press were as steeped in inaccuracies as it was history (and layers.) The header of the show says Paris + Edimbourg. Which, while I can see their point, isn't totally true, as Linlithgow Palace is in West Lothian, technically. My favorite comes courtesy Vogue (UK Vogue no less! Something about this seemed so typical of England and Scotland.) where almost everything they said about Linlithgow was wrong. 

My favorite was a commenter who called them out in a quite Scottish manner. "It is Linlithgow Palace... not a ruined castle and never has been. It's Linlithgow Loch, not a lake and never has been. The Park is called The Peel," ...and always has been. You go, Brenda McMeechan. 

John Paul Gaultier may have an on-going fascination with Scotland, even saving clothing manufacturers in the borders, but I bet he doesn't know the town he saved (Hawick) is pronounced Hake. 

Vegas Road Trip Friday Links

Today I have the great honor of showing a Brit the wonderment that is Las Vegas. Even though we'll be there less than 24 hours, I'm excited to see my Tigerlily, my Emily and my Dad. I'm excited to begin steps (again) for getting my driver's license back. I'm excited to show people the Elvis Museum. Here are your links.

- My college prof/friend/mentor's new book comes out. Nice when the Times does a feature.
- Becoming a stylish writer
- Or! Just say whatever the hell you want. Then take it back. Works for this guy.
- This was good. I went to a University with the good sense to skip fraternities, but I get it. 
- I wholeheartedly agree with this in the nerdiest way possible.
- Milo Greene at the Wythe Hotel
- Forget your past

Today I Go Here Friday Links

As I embark for my fourth and final city of residence for 2012, I wish I had something more concrete to impart to you lovely readers. I live, for the most part, somewhere far below the surface of whatever city I am in-- the inner life my friend Trevor recognized about me when we were very young. It's not that I'm not present. I think I am. Most of the time at least. It's just that I make my decisions from that place that is... well, it's not the real world, is it, the way I've been lucky enough to live so far?

Whatever kind of inner compass I have, I try not to tamper with it too much. I just try to be so very thankful for the people around me who support me and encourage me to follow my strange, nomadic inner compass. It's hard to live out of a suitcase. And hard to accept so much help from people. But the more I see of the world, the more I know that's what I'm supposed to be doing.

Your links:

- The professional photos from Aly's Wedding. Such good memories. Such wonderful friends. 
- Very cool. The American story via music. 
- Let's hope Mc, Tom & I can avoid Carmageddon II this weekend... oh shit. Traffic. Welcome to LA. 
- On my reading list: Italy, Edinburgh, Hollywood, NYC? Sign me up.
- I never get sick of this. Mansplainers. Let's just say, I had a boyfriend recently who is the very definition of mansplaining. 
- More on gender gap whatnot. 
- Unspeakable, soul-crushing awkwardness.
- America's Top 50 Cities. Um. Always with the San Francisco. Whatever. And putting LA as 50th? Listen, no way. I'm sticking up for you today, at the very least, Los Angeles. Don't make me sorry. 

Here's my favorite two quotes about Los Angeles. And a whole page of them for some laughs:

"When it's 100 degrees in New York, it's 72 in Los Angeles. When it's 30 degrees in New York, it's still 72. However, there are 6 million interesting people in New York, and only 72 in Los Angeles." - The Great Neil Simon

"Tip the world over on its side and everything loose will land in Los Angeles." -Frank Lloyd Wright."

Finally, "keep it, use it, build it, move it."

Reclaiming the Birthright Friday Links

One week from today, I'll be leaving on a jetplane for Los Angeles and whatever my new life will be there. I'm a bit more excited about it than I feel is prudent-- especially considering my track record with moves panning out the way I envisioned them. A part of me feels like I can't spaz out; I just have to keep my head down in solemn gratitude that I have the freedom to reconfigure the way I do. 

Although, it was really just the one move that feels... tender. And even though this was not the time for me and London, I don't regret it at all. (Much.) And some of those other whimsical, determined, seeking or free-spirited moves turned out better than I envisioned, so perhaps I'm even.  

Ah, but California. California is different. Los Angeles, with all its many peccadillos, is different. A promise is made to you by the city you're born in. It says, no matter your opinion of it, or how far you may wander, you can always come back there and feel brand new. Here is where you came into this world. And where I came into the world is a major artery on an oceanside highway that never ends. A place where the sun shines almost all the time and a place that respects itself enough to never take itself too seriously-- or care if anyone else takes it seriously either. California, in one week, I'm coming for my birthright. I hope you're ready for me. 

And I hope you, dear readers, are ready for your links:

- The Stranger shows us our Country. California. Mascot: Tom Hanks. Motto: "You're Fat!"
- My friend Dave Elzer's new musical opens in LA. Justin Love!
- You guys, I think the Les Miz movie is gonna be amazing-- whole-heartedly approve of the approach. 
- The Top 50 Most Romantic photos of all time

It's International Book Week, in honor of that, check out Give A Book charity. A very cool organization that gets books to the people who need them. You get to pick the books though. Check it out. I'm a big fan! Like them on facebook too!

Some Mitt Shit:
- Amy Davidson in New Yorker
- Fine. David Brooks. 
- A Buddhist perspective on Romney's gaff.

- A West Wing Reunion for a cause
- The Soul of Scotland in pictures
- A beautiful essay on traveling
- Women speak 75% less when surrounded by dudes...

- NYC vs. LA and the winner is.... 

A throwback for you all.

Haw River Ballroom & My Future Artist Colony

After our awesome lunch at the Saxapahaw General Store, we walked the one one road in the town down towards the river. I fell a bit in love with this little condensed compound: a very British style pub called The Eddy, a coffee shop/arts/events ballroom, and the most amazing Sawmill-turned-exposed brick condos EVER. 

I'm dreaming of a next next summer spent living in a two bedroom exposed brick splendor for like $400 a piece and me and Steven finishing Tercio de Muerte or whatever else strikes our fancy. We'll sit outside in the mornings with coffee and strategize the day's writing. We'll write all day. One our days off, we'll go to the art gallery. At night, we'll hit up the ballroom for whatever band is has come to to this small spot on the map. 

The balance between being right in the middle of it all and being right in the middle of nowhere has become a key component of the overall balance of my life, I gotta tell ya. I wouldn't mind spending the whole summer with Lucie right up the street too. 

Everything about this area of North Carolina makes me want to sit outside and make things. Everything about it whispers in your ear how easy it is to be happy. Everything smells like cedar. Everything sounds like cicadas. The whole day, I just kept thinking, "Yep, this is what life is supposed to feel like...."

Positively Fourth Street, Always.

Fourth Street. Start on Avenue C. Losaida. Walk all the way from Avenue C to West 4th. Recalling every in and out, every short cut through a garden. Past my first apartment with no lock where I made my best friends, and Perbacco--  the best Italian restaurant in New York. Past the housing project where we watched that man look up at the sun and then die. Watching a group of friends help each other move a mattress. Remembering when my friends helped me carry my things west from 4th & B to 4th & 2nd, which burned down, but has now been rebuilt. 

Some things, I remember the old: the new bar, Dorian Gray, that once used to be the tribal jewelry store (no surprise that disappeared) and others, I only remember used to be something else. Some place else I never frequented. 

The same guys still work in the bodega. Belcourt looks exactly the same and I bet still serves amazing Bloody Marys, but it's called Caliope now. Past what was once Cuppa Cuppa, where a mean middle aged New York lady named Jenny eventually became my friend after about a year of me wearing her down with smiles when I bought my iced-coffee everyday. (Just proving every hardened New Yorker still wants a friend.) I wonder if the FAB center bought her out, or if she had to close anyhow. I hope she's happy and retired somewhere and not lonely. 

Past all the places along 4th and Washington Square Park where Steven and I dumped pieces of our set after VOTE! at Minetta Lane closed. We were so stealth. We didn't want to get arrested. We were high on margaritas. We had crowbars. It was one of the funnest nights ever. Who doesn't like being in league with someone? Being part of a low-stakes conspiracy? 

I'm in league with New York City. She's like my big sister who keeps my secrets from our parents. 

New York, in many ways,  is like that older sister. She taught you everything you know, She's cooler than you, She often pretends to be indifferent to you, or even annoyed by your presence, but actually, she loves you. And you love her. I may not always choose to live here in New York City, choose to live my life the way she does, but I'll always love her, conspire with her and look up to her best. 

The Fairy Pools on Isle of Skye

When you have to do something sort of scuzzy (like, say, cram all your belongings into a small estate vehicle and drive them South to London on an ugly sort of scuzzy Scottish morning) I find it's best to mentally project yourself somewhere else. Today, I choose the Fairy Pools in Glen Brittle by the Cuilins on the Isle of Skye. 

As you dear readers will know, Skye is a special place to me-- homeland of my friends, spot for good times, and setting of my novel. But I think it's easy to see why pretty much everyone is a bit in awe of the Fairy Pools. There's not a lot of modern day magic left in the world, which is why these little glittering things seem like a little portal to some more medieval time. In fact, they probably are, if you swam deep enough into one of the caverns. 

I'm about to wade in pretty heavily into Skye folklore and fairytales, so I'll let you know what magical stories about the Fairy Pools and the white witches I think you need to know about. Hope you're having a dreamy Saturday!

Valentine's Day Crush: Beau Willimon

You can catch my weekly SMASH recap tomorrow, but on Valentine's Day, I'm going to give you a real live person to crush on-- direct from the world of theatre-- Mr. Beau Willimon. He's a little fancier these days, post- Oscar- nom, but I'll always see him as an in-the-trenches, street-vetted playwright. 


Beau first came onto my scene when my pal Johnny was starring in his play, Farragut North,  at the Atlantic. Did you see it? It was excellent. It went on to play LA, etc etc. 


Or perhaps you saw the film. Because THEN! George Clooney & Leonardo DiCaprio  took an interest. Worked with Beau and Grant Heslov to adapt the play into a little film called The Ides of March with the swoon-worthy Ryan Gosling. (Sorry you got upgraded, Johnny. You're still fab.) They even tweaked the script so that Clooney had a part-- the previously unseen candidate in an election rife with scandal. The previously suave (played by Chris Noth) campaign manager was triangulated against Clooney and Gosling and became a khaki and anorak'ed Philip Seymour Hoffman. That last tweak threw me for such a loop, I failed to recognize that it even was Farragut North for a minute there. 


Good ol' Beau and I have a lot in common. We've both lived many lives in a short time. Beau was a pool shark too! And is branching out into film & TV. He worked on about a million campaigns including Howard Dean's 2004 bid. Then there's his MFA from Columbia. Like me, he loves maps and walls.  Basically, Beau Willimon just always gets it right. He writes about politics. He loves Tennessee Williams. And he believes playwrights should stick together. What's not to love?


Come back to London, Beau, and we'll chat Tennessee. 

Crush Week Begins: Ode to a Mews

During Valentine's Week, I like to crush. Whether or not I have a real crush in my life at the time, I use this opportunity be inspired by all the dreaminess out in the world. Crushing is my muse.  I have talent crushes, life crushes, and even little mini crushes on real-life hunky people. Some of them I actually know, some of them are even available, but they're all awesome. I'm going to cheat a bit today, since it's not actually Valentine's Day until tomorrow. I have a crush on an apartment. A mews apartment. No, not that kind of muse. Though the coincidence is not lost on me. This place is inspiring me to imagine my new life and I love it. 


I've pretty much always wanted to live in a mews. You want to talk about romantic? Mews are about as romantic as you can get in modern urban living. Rows of charming little stable houses once used for falconry (that's a great word) they spread from Britain-- and specifically London-- to Canada and the US. (Remember when I was always looking for a hypothetical mews house to 'buy' in NYC? Or the whimsical, delightful Washington Mews? Sigh.) My room in Edinburgh looks out onto a mews, but I feel like it's time to upgrade. To Ovanna Mews. 


It has its drawbacks. De Beauvoir Town is cool from what I can tell, but the mews is in a bit of no man's land in terms of trains-- somewhere between Islington and Dalston. It hits the overground, but other than going to visit my pals Carrie and Adam in Hampstead, the Overground doesn't really go anywhere I anticipate needing to go on a regular basis. I see solutions. I need to be better about taking the bus. I'm contemplating (as I have been for some time) getting a bike with a basket.


It's a bit out of budget. It doesn't come furnished. We could furnish it, but I'd rather not spend the money or get strapped with a bunch of furniture. And really, I wish I could take everything that's already in this place. What do you think? Is this as crush-worthy as I think? Or am I just in that stage in the relationship when I overlook all the glaring faults?

Borders Weekend

After a weekend of buses, trains, and even more buses, it feels nice to have this (albeit short) respite in my cozy room. Then it's off again tomorrow morning for the US of A. From one of the funnest London house parties and a late late night, I took an early morning train to Carlisle. The rather unfriendly folks in Carlisle didn't help much with me catching the bus to Selkirk, but I made it eventually. 


The most wonderful Sandy invited us all for a feast and walk-about at his lovely cottage. Sandy lives on the Philiphaugh estate and his cottage sits next to beautiful strawberry greenhouses. There were warm fires and fuzzy socks and plum gins and beautiful table settings and slumbers with great friends. I had never tried hare before, and now I can say that I have. Just checking off those game meats. And Anna's Guinness cake with orange icing was so delicious it may or may not have also been my breakfast the next morning in addition to pudding the night before. 


The next day, we read by the fire and went on a walk, where we had a run-in with some sassy cows and warmed up in the famous Tibbie Shiels pub before heading back to Edinburgh via car (mercifully.) Thank you, Sandy, for the warmest hospitality!

Twelve Hours it Takes Sometimes

Ever since being introduced to Scottish supergroup The Reindeer Section, they've been the music of road trips here. It's been one long ass week of road trips, overnight buses, too-early trains and good times. I'm about to crash. Enjoy a massive conglomerate of Belle & Sebastian, Mull Historical Society, Idlewild, Snow Patrol, The Vaselines, etc etc etczzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............

Postponed Thankful Posting

I know I post this every year. I just can't resist.

We postponed having our Thanksgiving for Brits until today. And while I agree with all the criticism of colonialism and certainly everything we ever did to Native American populations, there's a reason why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It's not just because I like feeling grateful (though I do). 


I suppose I like the idea (even if the reality of what happened in 1621 is not quite that ideal) that you can go out into the world, not knowing what you'll find, and trusting that the people you meet when you get there will look after you. I'm lucky enough that this has always been the case for my various pilgrimages. Be it Japan or Korea or New York or the UK, I've always felt taken care of in my quest to see the world. So thanks for that. 


And please send prayers that we won't have to resort to frozen pizzas. 

In the beginning, there were answers- Idlewild, Scottish Fiction

Today is brought to you by the drive between the Isle of Skye & Edinburgh-- with some of the most stunning views known to man. The colors! It's a palette deserving of some great music. So how about Edinburgh mainstay, Idlewild. I've never been so obsessed with a band's song titles: Readers & Writers, American English, Younger than America, Quiet Crown. 


Today is brought to you by "Scottish Fiction," -- something I'm writing, something I'm living, something I'm listening to. And so I share with you. 



For more, check out their website here. And this fun deal on the Beeb. They call them the fag-end of Britpop. In a nice way....Ha!

Subway Friends, or Who AM I??

Hi. My name is Ryann. You might remember me from such notorious stranger friendings as the great piano on the subway/Pete & Sooz friending of '09 and the riding in the big red truck with a stranger from the Atlanta Airport to Alpharetta in the middle of the night caper of '00. Basically, if you know me, you know I have a strange knack for falling into groups of people and becoming friends with them. Especially on the subway. 


The girl who lives inside my head? I know her pretty well. But sometimes, another girl gets unleashed on the general public and I come back from a bullfight with three engineers masquerading as secret agents, Lorenzo, Rodrigo & Stefan, from Italy, Brazil & Austria (respectively) leading me to ask myself, "Who. Am. I?" 


Here's how it went down. I got onto the subway after the bullfight (I have a lot to say about the bullfight-- and all your commentary regarding my attendance, and I will do so once the tiny monsters stop eating my  brain) and ran to catch a train. As I ran, my sunglasses fell off my head and one of the matching hat guys I had noticed sitting near me in the plaza de toros (I noticed them due to their matching hats) kicked my shades onto the tracks as they also ran to catch the train. 


I could have let it go, but I could tell they all spoke English and all had different accents, so I decided to let Subway Friending Ryann out and gave him some shit about it. We chatted, figured out we were getting off at the same stop, they all live in the Netherlands, yada yada yada, and we decided they owed me a beer for losing my sunglasses. I buzzed my flat and told Aly and Erin that I was back from the bullfight and I had brought friends! 


Many cervezas and paellas and much terrace chatting later, we're all pals. Even on the facebook. So.... trip to the Netherlands, I suppose. 


Thanks for the fun times, newest pals. And muchas gracias to YOU, Espana. Check ya later, Madrid. It's been re-al. Next stop, Lisbon! 

Glen Grant Distillery Tour

This post is late because Aly and I are in full-throttle Tour of Scotland mode. Today, I've been showing her all the fine stuff St Andrews has to offer, but yesterday, we had a super duper road trip which involved a four hour trip to the Glen Grant whisky distillery up in Rothes in the Highlands as well as some quality time at Bamff where we saw beavers!

But back to the whisky. The tour was pretty cool, and of course, I'm always happy to drink some delicious Glen Grant. I especially enjoyed learning about the Angel's Share and the interesting fungus associated with it.

"Angels' share" is a term for the portion (share) of a wine or distilled spirit's volume that is lost to evaporation during aging in oak barrels. The barrels are typically French or American oak. In low humidity conditions, the loss to evaporation may be primarily water. However, in higher humidities, more alcohol than water will evaporate, therefore reducing the alcoholic strength of the product. In humid climates, this loss of ethanol is associated with the growth of a darkly colored fungus, the Angels' Share fungus, Baudoinia compniacensis, on the exterior surfaces of buildings, trees and other vegetation, and anything else that happens to be nearby.

I can speak to the truth of this. All of the trees were black and leaned a little, as though they themselves might be a wee bit drunk. They also leaned in the direction of the store houses, like they just couldn't get enough.

Kris bought a bottle of 25 year old. I hope he lets me have some! Thanks to Aly for setting that up for us. And super special thanks to the captain of the ship, Torc, for volunteering for such an extensive road trip!!

Motivation on Monday

Dena made this is awesome idea board for my room on Olio Board. It's keeping me motivated while I schlep suitcases and heavy things all over this windy city. Today, I went out in a leather jacket and a winter coat and scarf and was still cold. Sigh.


I'll be excited to get everything in there and feel settled. Getting the room painted was a milestone though. Parma Grey turned out to be a much more straightforward blue than I had hoped for... I was hoping for some dimensions. But it is still a pretty color and I especially like the look of my new vintage Lothian map against it.

Even more, I can't wait for these heavenly sheets (you know how I feel about sheets!) and the curtains. Bad news about Edinburgh... anything that gets delivered to my flat when I'm not here goes to a Post Office that is a 40 minute (!!) walk away from here. Seriously? Makes me wish I could drive an adorable little Figaro like this one. I suppose I'd need to get my driver's license back to do that....

Florence & Florence

Finding adorable shops on the internets is no tall order. You could basically drown on etsy if you gave yourself the chance. Let's be real. That's why I like when you find places that add just a little extra twist-- like Florence & Florence. Not only do they sell those vintage Penguin books, but I love how they've bundled them by fun categories like "Animal Themes," "Comedy," and "Africa/Burma/India," in case you want to specialize. 


I also love their vintage maps and postcards section. They have Dublin, Glencoe & Glen Nevis, and even this Fife & Angus map I'm super tempted to buy. I don't know what year it's from and I love comparing maps from different eras. I think you can tell a lot by how we make and made maps. I wonder if, say, Glenrothes is even on there-- depending on the year. 


This mother/daughter shop has a great philosophy too, I think! 

"Beautiful things. We all love them. We all want them. And so we fill the world with more and more. But wouldn't it be wonderful to know that we can treat ourselves to beautiful things without adding more to the world? We think so. That's what inspired Florence & Florence."

Vintage Scotland Postcards

Fife & Angus!