More on London....

The National Gallery is located at Trafalgar Square.  It's been open since 1838 and houses over 2300 European paintings from the 13th to the 19th century.  I wanted to go mostly to see the collection of Impressionists but there were a number of other masterpieces that we sought out....Bottecelli, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Holbein.

Unfortunately they did not allow photography...which I found baffling.  And they are very serious about that.  I saw a guard yelling at someone trying to snap a quick pic.

Which made me really nervous when Lou and I started admiring one of the Rembrandt's.  Lou was pointing at the picture and I kept telling him to stop pointing.  He was getting too close to the painting and most of these museums have electric eyes that set off an alarm if you get close.  But Lou kept gesturing and I kept telling him to stop. 

We went back and forth like this until Lou said..."Gail, Gail, (and then in a hushed tone) Gail...shut the fuck up". 

Well if you know me...my mouth fell open and my hand went up on my hip and I said..."What did you say to me".  Lou looked a little sheepish and kind of mumbled something. 

I told him...."In 25 years together, you have never said anything like that to me".  Still looking a little sheepish he said...."Oh I've said it...this is just the first time you've heard it".

At which point we both cracked up laughing.  He is soooo lucky I have a good sense of humor.

More pictures of the sights around Westminster.  I love the architecture.


A look back to Big Ben from Trafalgar Square.


We finished the day by walking to Buckingham Palace. Below is Admiralty Arch.  It is at one end of The Mall and the Palace is at the other end. I read that this used to house government offices but has recently been leased to a developer to make it into a luxury hotel.



Buckingham Palace.  This was the balcony where we watched Charles and Diana kiss and more recently where William and Kate kissed.





This was only our second day in London and we walked our feet off.

Trafalger Square and the Big Blue Cock....

Our second day in London we really saw a lot.  After touring Westminster we walked down the street to Trafalgar Square walking past the Queen's horse guard...this day it was the Life Guards...

 

...and various pubs.  What I like about the pubs in London is that the majority of them have tons of flowers on the outside. I  haven't been able to find the reason why...but you can always tell if there is a pub down the street...you see the flowers first.

The square commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar which was a British navel victory during the Napoleonic wars over France in 1805.  It was packed with people, statues, fountains....

and a BIG BLUE COCK....

This thing was huge.  Surrounded by all this history and then there is this big-ass blue cock.  I had to go over an read what the plaque said...the significance of this thing.  It is called "Hahn/Cock" and it's a giant blue cockerel by the German artist Katharina Fritsch. 

From Wikipedia.....The artist notes that the surrounding area has a strongly male character, with numerous statues of "male persons standing on pedestals" and the male-dominated culture that goes with London's status as a business center. The statue is intended to be a humorous counterbalance, contrasting with the very formal equestrian statues on the square's other three plinths.  It was unveiled on 25 July 2013 by Mayor of London Boris Johnson. He pointed out the irony that the cockerel, an unofficial national emblem of France, was standing in a square commemorating a famous British victory over the French.  Fritsch and Johnson have both noted the sexual double entendre in the work's name – hahn in German has the same double meaning as "cock" in English – and the artist admits that it is consciously intended as a play on words.

A big blue cock is a first for me...LMAO.

Big Ben

Just like the Eiffel Tower is an iconic image for Paris, Big Ben is iconic for London.  As we came up the steps from the Underground, I could see him....and he is magnificent!!  Big Ben is actually the bell inside the tower.

We walked across Westminster Bridge and on one side is Parliament and the other side the London Eye (which we never did go up in).

 

Westminster Abbey is just across the street.  Another magnificent, historical building. 

Unfortunately you can't take pictures on the inside.  I snuck one before I was asked to put the camera away. 

Over 3000 people are buried in the Abbey.  We saw Charles Darwin, Issac Newton, Noel Coward, Chaucer....I feel like Miss Barbara on Romper Room with her magic mirror.  There were so many plaques and tombs.  The one I went there to see...Queen Elizabeth I.  I've read so much on her.  She was a force that shaped an empire.

I love the gargoyles on the outside...their cute.  Gargoyles aren't suppose to be cute.

 

 

The beautiful vaulted ceiling of the Chapter House.

 



London...Oh London

London is amazing.  It's huge and historic and modern and cosmopolitan.  We heard so many different languages as we walked around.  And we walked until our feet hurt.  And we ate...lots of great food...so it's a good thing that we walked a lot.

We went to the Victoria and Albert Museum the day we got there...after being up for 24 hours.  We walked around for a couple hours and then stumbled on the jewelry collection ...I guess I should say jewellery.  There were so many beautiful pieces but by then it was all a blur.  I'll have to go back to get another look at it all.

Here are some images from the museum.

By far the best thing that we saw was one of DaVinci's notebooks. 

There was a nice courtyard where we sat for a while and rested our tired feet.

And so it begins...

Lou and I are on our way to London. A long awaited vacation. We have lots of places we want to go and things to see.

One thing we didn't expect to be doing is contemplating "early retirement".  Our employer hit the news big time on Friday by announcing that we are cutting $330 million from the 2014 budget. Even though I knew this was coming, it was $130 million more than expected. This isn't a one time thing. The plan is to cut for the next 5 years so that we reduce the annual budget by $1 billion...yes...$1 billion.

In the next few weeks they will be sending out early retirement packets to select people ... the old ones.  At what point did we become the old ones. We already know that Lou is on the list and I would bet that I am on the list.  We have no details...just that it's coming.  If they don't get the necessary retirements there is also a list of people to be laid off....although neither one of us believe we are on that list.  We' both believe in making ourselves assets to our employer and we have been pretty successful at that.

Even if you do get a retirement package it doesn't mean you have to take it.  But it just feels like a slap in the face. All the knowledge and experience seems to mean nothing if you fit some formula. The idea is that younger, less experienced, and less expensive person can take your place

We've just paid off the house and I've been thinking that now is the time to really sock away the money for retirement.  I just assumed we would both maintain our jobs for the next few years...for me...the next 10 at least.  But considering the amount of this reduction there is no saying that if I survive the cuts this year that I will survive them the next...or the next...or the next...or the next.  I don't like uncertainty so this has really has me angry.

We got a break here while we are on vacation to figure out what we are going to do with the rest of our lives

And so it begins........

Bracelets!!!

Since I decided not to do art shows I find this new found freedom to blog.  Not that I didn't have the time before, but mentally I am allowing myself the time to do other things...if that makes sense.  Before I was sitting here thinking I had to get into the studio and work (even though I didn't) and that kept me from doing other things because I felt guilty I wasn't in the studio.

I know...I'm weird.

But since I made my decision I find that I am blogging again and taking photos.  Here are a couple of etched brass bracelets with fine silver metal clay overlays.  I actually made these last year as samples for one of the classes that Cris and I taught at Bead and Button.  It such a fun class and was popular so we decided to offer it again this year.  The first pic are the samples I dug out of my jewelry collection.  The second pic is the class pic.

Speaking of jewelry collections.  Wouldn't it be fun to see what is in each other's jewelry drawers?...and what we wear on a regular basis!!  I have different pieces that I wear based on if I'm going to work or if I'm just bumming around.  Some pieces do double duty and some are strictly for work or special occasions.  That's not a bad idea for a future post.

Pulling Back....

Work seems to be sucking the life out of me lately.  By the time I get home I don't want to do anything.  And it seems like I have an endless list of things to do...in the studio...to the house.

So, I've made a decision.  I'm not going to do any art shows for the rest of the year.  Maybe for next year too.  I dropped out of one show this November and decided not to apply to another in December.  It seemed like when I did get into the studio it was to prep for a show and I was making the same old thing over and over.  I didn't have the time or energy to play with new designs or new materials.  So the pressure is off.  I don't have to be in the studio for anything.  This could be a good thing...or bad. 

Part of my time I want to spend remodeling the house.  We ripped up the carpet in the bedroom last weekend.  That was a horrible, horrible job.  The carpet was ancient and the padding underneath was starting to disintegrate.  Besides the pain of pulling out nails and staples, we had to get on our hands and knees and scrape up this gummy brown stuff. 

We ended up spraying Goo Gone on the entire floor and scraping it up and then cleaning it.  The floor isn't too bad.  Most of it looks good but there are some problem spots.  The next step is to get the floors refinished.  The entire house is hardwood so this is going to be a long term project. Oh Boy!!!

Work and Play

Friday, we had a work retreat at the Cleveland Museum of Art.  I love this place and it was great to spend the day there.  We spent most the day in a meeting room but when we had breaks and lunch we could run around the museum and look at the art.

In the atrium there is an exhibit of bronze zodiac heads by Ai Weiwei.  The heads are huge.  The must be about 8-10 feet high. 

Bead and Button Classes 2014

Cris Leonard and I heard today that all of our classes were accepted at Bead and Button!!!.  We are teaching 3 workshops and 3 classes.  Metal clay, metal clay and more metal clay....silver and bronze!! Metal etching, riveting, forging, and fabrication in the creation of necklaces, earrings and bracelets. 

Two classes are back by popular demand and we've added 4 brand new classes.  Take a look!!