Happy Halloween!

Clara Bow

Happy Halloween! I love this holiday. You can dress as crazy as you want and eat loads of chocolate without anyone batting an eye. I'm working today but plan on heading over to the Village afterwards to see the annual parade goers. My Agent Dana Scully costume went over well at the party I attended this weekend but today called for something different so I am wearing my tiara as I type this (I will jump at any reason to bring the tiara out). Have fun everyone.

For more cute photos of Clara Bow, check out the Clara Bow Archive here.

Dogs on Parade

Last weekend I headed over to Tompkins Square Park for a special event—the 21st annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade. With 500 dogs and thousands of spectators, the area around the park's dog run was packed and filled with dogs of all breeds. Although I was unable to make my way up to the judging stand I had no problem seeing many of the dogs in attendance.

There were devils and angels, sailors and dinosaurs, and many, many more costumes to be seen.

Lady Gaga was there and Elvis too. Little Red Riding Hood made an appearance as did Cruella Deville (one of the few people in costume). 

It was a great day and definitely one of the most fun parades I've attended. After all, is there anything more amusing than a dog in costume?

Photos by Michele.

October Snow

Pumpkins and cemeteries in October make sense. But snow? Last week the air conditioning was on in my office. Today, the streets are a slushy mess and the radiator is blazing away. It is way too early for snow. Please, bring back fall.

This photo was taken last winter but you get the point. Photo by Michele.

The Truth Is Out There

I'm going to a Halloween party this weekend and instead of a vintage look (my usual choice), I've decided to go as one of my favourite television heroines—Agent Dana Scully from The X-Files. I recently re-watched old episodes of the show (which I love) so Scully was on my mind when I was thinking about a costume. It also doesn't hurt that I already have the same outfit as she's wearing in the photo; I just had to pick up a wig and FBI badge. Easy Peasy. Are any of you dear readers dressing up?

Law & Order, Part II

My days as a potential juror have come to a close. In the end, I was dismissed and cannot be called up again for six years. The whole experience was interesting but after two days of sitting in a courtroom, I think I’ve gotten my Law and Order fix. (The New York County Courthouse where I was will look familiar to fans of the show— countless scenes were filmed on its steps.)

On my last day, I stopped to take in the jewel of the building—a grand rotunda with stained glass windows, Tiffany chandeliers, and a WPA sponsored mural, “Law Through the Ages.” It was striking to look at. I just wish I had had more than my phone on hand to capture its beauty.

Photo by Michele.

Bookshelf

Myrna Loy in Evelyn Prentice.

While working my way through endless stacks of magazines and papers I managed to get some novels in along the way. Here's the latest.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah E. Harkness 

Dr. Diana Bishop is an American scholar studying at Oxford who just happens to be a witch with roots back to Salem, Massachusetts. One day in the Bodleian Library she orders up an alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, which draws the attention of every witch, vampire, and daemon in the area, including a 1,500-year old vampire named Matthew Clairmont. Bishop, who has always been reluctant to use her powers, is drawn to the charismatic Clairmont and the two are soon working together to discover the secrets of the manuscript. The book starts off strong; I loved the scenes set in the library and around Oxford as well as the initial dance between Bishop and Clairmont. Yet I felt the romance became too rushed and at 592 pages, certain sections could have been edited down.

13 rue Thérèse: A Novel by Elena Mauli Shapiro

American scholar Trevor Stratton, (yes, I read two books in a row involving American scholars) working at a Paris university, discovers a box filled with objects once owned by Louise Brunet, a woman whose story is pieced together by Trevor from the contents and his own imagination. Spanning both World Wars, Brunet’s tale includes a cousin she loved who was lost in the first war, her marriage to a good but boring man, and her fixation with a neighbor. Filled with photographs of the objects in the box, the book is both lovely and moving. The author states that she inherited the box and its contents from the real Brunet. I don’t know how much of this tale is true but in the end it doesn’t really matter. Shapiro vividly brings Paris and Brunet to life and that’s what’s important.

Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade by Patrick Dennis

 When ten-year old Patrick becomes an orphan he is sent to live with his eccentric Auntie Mame in New York. There he receives a most unconventional upbringing, from the notepad he is given to record all the words he overhears and doesn’t understand at her cocktail parties to the bohemian school in the Village he attends where the students study in the nude. When Patrick grows up and threatens to turn into a stiff like his father Auntie Mame intervenes, including a hilarious visit to his school, and shows how strong her love is for her ward. I had seen the film with Rosalind Russell (which is fabulous) but this was my first time reading the book and it’s by far one of the funniest I’ve read in years. Hilarious yet poignant in sections, it’s a must read for everyone.

Highland Fling by Nancy Mitford

 Sally and Walter are newly weds and as part of the group dubbed the Bright Young Things find things like budgets and living within ones means a foreign idea. When they are asked to go up to Scotland and host a shooting party at Dalloch Castle they accept, inviting their friends Albert, a painter recently returned from Paris, and Jane, who is always falling in love. The other guests, all older and highly respectable, soon clash with the younger set in a series of hilarious situations. I have to confess that Nancy Mitford is one of my favourite writers and love all of her work. Highland Fling may not be her best novel but it is highly entertaining and had me laughing throughout.

Law & Order

Instead of going to work today I sat in the building above doing my civic duty. That's right. I got called to jury duty. Cue the Law & Order music. The key word here is sat. For hours. I wasn't picked for a jury and have to go back tomorrow but hope that will be it. All that sitting has made me exhausted (it sounds like a lame excuse but it's true) and so I will try and post a more interesting story tomorrow.

Photo by Michele.