Yes, Suzie – who remains an elder sister figure in my life (she will always be two months older than me) as well as a bestie, because not being technically related makes it much easier to get along with each other. All the perks of sisterhood, minus the fighting. We are well within the range of not revealing our exact ages out of courtesy, so let’s just say we have crossed the midpoint of our forties, give or take a year, and the next milestone is 50, up in a few.
What can I say about Suzie at this point? It seems like so many stories that comprised our formative years involved her in some way, and sustaining such a friendship through the ensuing lifetime has only recently been appreciated as something rare and wonderful. Being so self-focused, I always just assumed everyone had a Suzie in their lives, and that was a comfort to me, but in fact not everyone is that lucky. A lot of people don’t have someone they have gone through life with since birth and remained close. Realizing that makes me appreciate our friendship a little more, and that makes the world so much better.
Bowen Yang is riding high on a couple of years of pop-culture crowning achievements, from that spectacular turn as an iceberg (and consistently strong and dependable hilarity) on ‘Saturday Night Live’ to his current starring role in the gay rom-com ‘Fire Island’ (with fellow Dazzler alum Margaret Cho). Now he earns his long overdue honor as Dazzler of the Day for all his ongoing fabulousness.
You don’t have to be fluent in mind-reading to understand what I’m saying, and I’ll boil it all down in this simple translation guide. (Print this out and keep it on your person for when we correspond.)
With our ever-growing tally of mass shootings, America is broken. No other country on earth has such an astounding number of fatalities due to guns, and I’m not sure we as Americans collectively have the will to stop it. Until we do, more people, and more children, will die. One person who gives me hope in all of this is David Hogg, who has fought tirelessly for gun reform since being involved in a school shooting himself. He and his sister wrote the book “#NeverAgain: A New Generation Draws the Line” and he continue to work tirelessly to save more kids from mass shootings. It seems a little silly to name such a powerful and important figure at this moment in history as a Dazzler of the Day, but it’s all I’ve got to give, and if it helps spread his message for gun reform, so much the better.
Straddling the gorgeous crux of spring and summer, the scent of ‘Soft Lawn’ by Imaginary Authors is my first foray into this fragrance brand, and it’s a surprisingly impressive entry. This was a blind-buy request as an anniversary gift, and quite happily it was a raging success, fulfilling the descriptive literature that likened it to the scent of a tennis match day in a lifestyle to which I have never been accustomed, but I love the way it smells. Taking its name from an imaginary novel by Claude LeCoq (an imaginary name if ever there was one), it’s meant to be worn as a leisure scent on weekends, or days that you wish were weekends, which is pretty much every day right now.
This was a welcome addition to my cologne cabinet, lightening the load of Tom Ford and filling in for the lackluster latest from the Hermes Jardin line. ‘Soft Lawn’ lists the tennis ball as one of its notes, but I find that may mostly be for the image it conjures instead of the actual scent. The other notes are more what I detect and adore, starting with the lovely linden tree, whose blossoms are just now coming on to perfume the local air. Some grapefruit helps open things up, before ripening quickly into something greener with oak moss, vetiver, and laurel and ivy leaves lending the dappled light of a forest to the proceedings.
It’s an ideal scent for this time of the year, and it is courteous enough not to stick around for more than a couple of hours. I don’t always admire that in a fragrance, but at $95 for 50ml, this is practically a steal. The packaging is exquisitely whimsical, conjured to perfectly resemble a book, and the bottle art is the sort of art-deco beauty that suits its lofty literary references. I’m going to order a sample set to see which one will see us through mid-to-late summer.
Good news!! Ariana Grande earns her very first crowning as Dazzler of the Day as she prepares for her role as Galinda (the ‘A’ is silent) in the upcoming two-part ‘Wicked‘ movie. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by Grande’s acting prowess when she’s appears in various musicals and shows such as ‘Saturday Night Live’, so I’m giving her a chance in Kristin Chenoweth’s vaunted heels. After all, it’s not about aptitude, it’s the way you’re viewed…
The month of Pride is upon us, and what a happy month it is. June has burst in with all her glory, brimming with peonies and irises and roses – the happiest flowers of the year on full display. As such, my attention was rightfully focused outside, and not in front of a lap-top, so we slip into the lazy summer posting schedule with glad disarray. Here’s a brief recap of what went down…
After a surprisingly intense therapy session, one needs a moment to process and simply breathe in the moment. There is always relief after talking about things, even if there is no simple solution. Sometimes it is enough to let it all out, and to be ok with not everything being neatly resolved, not every problem of the past put to bed for good. Most importantly, to be ok with putting certain problems to bed just for the night, just to make it through another day.
Summer starts off in such happy fashion, it’s good to appreciate these moments, even when they are tinged with slivers of sorrow, memories of melancholy. Such days need a proper soundtrack, and summer songs run the gamut from the happiest, boppiest bops to the slowest, saddest dirges. Some manage to create a sonic vibe and atmosphere that mirrors the suspended haze and heat of the season, functioning as both balm and barometer, a calming way to measure the minutes. This is one of those songs.
You can look at the menu, but you just can’t eat
You can feel the cushions, but you can’t have a seat
You can dip your foot in the pool, but you can’t have a swim
You can feel the punishment, but you can’t commit the sin
And you want her, and she wants you
We want everyone
And you want her and she wants you
No one, no one, no one ever is to blame
Summer begs forgiveness. Summer begs silence. Summer begs… and summer begs. Like its sting, its want can be paralyzing, stunning the world into focus or fracture.When that happens, you just have to chill, and slip into a song that embodies the days that can be languid and lazy and lovely.
You can build a mansion, but you just can’t live in it
You’re the fastest runner but you’re not allowed to win
Some break the rules, and let you count the cost
The insecurity is the thing that won’t get lost
And you want her, and she wants you
We want everyone
And you want her and she wants you
No one, no one, no one ever is to blame
Floating in the water, and surrounded by liquid that dispels the typical pull and drag of gravity, the body is more at ease. The mind is better-equipped to focus when the body is at ease. Sometimes summer grants a clarity that no other season allows; creating the space for contemplation can diminish a place for blame.
There is a conundrum to every season. For summer, it is often finding reconciliation of such tranquil beauty with the inevitable thunderstorms that pop up along the way. Memories can be like storms, lying in wait until the conditions are right for rain and release and, if we are lucky, relief.
You can see the summit but you can’t reach it
It’s the last piece of the puzzle but you just can’t make it fit
Doctor says you’re cured but you still feel the pain
Aspirations in the clouds but your hopes go down the drain
And you want her, and she wants you
We want everyone
And you want her and she wants you
No one, no one, no one ever is to blame
The preponderance of petunias I’ve planted in various places is popping its pulchritude as these poofs preen and pose. Pink and peppy, they pop their eye-catching color in hanging baskets for now, while other varieties in the beds are just beginning to sprawl out in bud.
After ignoring their ubiquitous omni-presence in all sorts of garden centers for quite literally decades, I’ve come around the power of the annual in recent years, and no annual gives quite as much bang for the buck as the simple yet spectacular petunia. Plant them, water them, feed them, and stand back for the show.
Actress, dancer, activist and ‘Sports Illustrated’ swimsuit model Leyna Bloom brings back the Dazzler of the Day feature thanks to her beauty, talent, and power. All of that is on luminescent display in her turn as Wye in ‘Port Authority’, as well as in her extensive modeling work. Trailblazing, groundbreaking, and a superstar-in-the-making ~ watch her shine.
Like lilacs, the Chinese dogwood trees in our yard have big years of blooms, and smaller years of blooms. This is one of the smaller years, making the blooms a little more precious. The last two years have seen boffo bloom shows, absolutely covering their branches with the creamy white bracts (the actual flowers are small and inconspicuous).
I used to be downhearted on the off years, but I’ve come to appreciate them as a natural part of the ebb and flow of life. They also make the floriferous and showy years that much more impressive, and appreciated. More lessons from the garden…
Once upon a time I was anal and adamant about definitive dates when it came to things like the start of summer. Over the past few years, I’ve softened and become much more flexible, and the ease of summer has taught me that. This song kicks off our unofficial summer season here at ALANILAGAN.com, and I absolutely love its easy-going vibe.
Sometimes you feel like you’re the only one To hold on for better days to come And when it seems like all is said and done Just hold on for better days to come
Along with the easing of strict delineation comes an easing of the posting schedule, as well as the content of the posts themselves. I just don’t want to stay behind a computer screen when the outside calls. These are the better days.
Bridging the blooming periods (and genetics) of the tree peony and the herbaceous peony, this is the Itoh Peony. Its hybrid form combines elements of both, though outwardly it veers closer to its tree cousins. (The manner in which it dies down to the ground each year is where it shows, or doesn’t show, its herbaceous roots.)
These are also smaller in form than the typical tree peony, and they manage to stand upright without staking – an improvement on the herbaceous forms that often require support or cages. The only tree peony I grow is a variety that absolutely does not stand up on its own, and as such it’s hidden away in a side-garden nook. Love the blooms, don’t love the form. These have improved on that, proof that hybrids aren’t all bad.
I’ve planted two varieties – one yellow, one white and fuchsia – in the front yard, which is where the strongest sun lands. This is not without some drawbacks. While they love the sun, their blooms would enjoy some shade, which I found out as the white variety lasted about three days in the high heat we had this past week.
That’s ok – it makes me love them all the more. Also, their fine and handsome foliage stays mildew-free all season, even in the heat and humidity of an upstate New York summer.
While these originally sold for anywhere from $500 to $1000 (hello tulipmania), hybridizers have made them available for $50 to $75. Yes, a bit of an investment for a plant, but who can put a price on such beauty?
“It was hypnotism. I was beginning to see that Phineas could get away with anything. I couldn’t help envying him that a little, which was perfectly normal. There was no harm in envying even your best friend a little.” ~ John Knowles, ‘A Separate Peace’
In lucky seasons, there is a summer read so good that it haunts me, and even though it’s not yet officially summer, I just finished this year’s stunner. ‘A Separate Peace’ by John Knowles tells the story of a friendship between two boys during the arrival of World War II. While the conditions that paved the way for war back then seem eerily familiar in today’s social climate, it was the descriptions of the tenuous yet unbreakable bonds of friendship that spoke most resonantly to me. This is a summer read that seers itself into the soul.
“It was surprising how well we got along in these weeks. Sometimes I found it hard to remember his treachery, sometimes I discovered myself thoughtlessly slipping back into affection for him again. It was hard to remember when one summer day after another broke with a cool effulgence over us, and there was a breath of widening life in the morning air – something hard to describe – an oxygen intoxicant, a shining northern paganism, some odor, some feeling so hopelessly promising that I would fall back in my bed on guard against it. It was hard to remember in the heady and sensual clarity of these mornings; I forgot whom I hated and who hated me. I want to break out crying from stabs of hopeless joy, or intolerable promise, or because these mornings were too full of beauty for me, because I knew of too much hate to be contained in a world like this.” ~ John Knowles, ‘A Separate Peace’
