Ever Ever Land?

I ventured to The Everglades last month- my mother, a bottle of water and my trusted camera in hand.

The Everglades are a very endangered ecosystem, reinforcing their sad ironic name which begs to differ. 50 miles from Miami, you could never have thought yourself so far from the famed and glinting U.S. city. In fact, I couldn't stop getting that strange feeling I got around 10 years ago, sitting on my father's lap in a roofless Defender, as we strode through South African savannas and observed sleeping lions under the twilight. Just like then, my stomach was in a fluttering frenzy, prompting me to think: There is something too magical about this place. One day it will be gone. From the alligators all belly down, those sleepy dinosaur-like creatures, to the mangroves eating at the ground with their terrific roots- I can't possibly believe that my children may never gaze at what I did on that warm September day.

Considering this is our own bloody mess once again; I'm not asking, but just sayin': try and get involved with The Everglades Restoration Plan or The Everglades Foundation. There are simple things you can do, like writing a short letter, that may help to save some of this ecosystem.

South Florida may not be your backyard, not even a place you have fancied visiting, but there will come a time in your life where you'll daydream about The amazing Everglades, and wonder why you have never seen an Anhinga, a blue egret or a smiling alligator - older than the entire history of man - guarding a tiny, scaled khaki thing by his side. And if The Everglades are no longer there to welcome you, if we've managed to fully drain and discard of them (like we have so many other natural habitats) ; you will feel a jab of regret- I can promise you that.

OLB

neon nights + high-tech flights

In true nomadic form, my first post hails from 40,000 ft above all of your ant-sized heads.

Yes.

Last year, 2009 delivered some more sci-fi shit, when WiFi became available on all Delta flights across the U.S.

Where I'm flying as I type this, is NYC. I will be there for exactly 3 hours, and the only sightseeing I will manage is a tour of the JFK Delta Sky Club.

(They serve free drinks, which is why I keep coming back.)

Next stop is Nice, France. A sunny little paradise humans have dubbed La Cote d'Azur.

And an azur paradise it truly is (see exhibit A:)

St. Paul de Vence, 2009

My shirt in the previous photo boldly proclaims in french: "Except for this tee, I had nothing to wear." That was, embarrassingly enough, probably true of that specific day. I do tend to run out of clothes- there being nomadic themselves. ( I have fractions of my clothing in two different states and three different countries. It. is. a. nightmare. ) However, for this trip, I have packed very carefully as to avoid that humiliating fate again. Which is actually a complete lie.

Last night, my number one lady and I sat drinking rosé on our balcony, overlooking downtown Miami; and when I finally realized that, Shit, I needed to pack, the rosé had already worked its magic: pitifully weakened my organizational skills.

Speaking of downtown- it's actually got a very cool skyline, if you've never ventured to Miami and experienced its bright lights. Our balcony does a pretty good job at exemplifying this:

A + I on said balcony overlooking said skyline

I have sadly not yet fully explored Downtown MIA, but I did venture out to a Golden Filter show the other week-end, at the local warehouse/club/venue Grand Central. It was a very last-minute affair, and like all of those spontaneous adventures, turned out most pleasingly. A. and I were a bit stumped upon entering the very spaced out Grand Central with its barely there crowd, but soon, things took an unexpected turn for the best. (I'm telling you, these last-minute things are always worth the risk.)

Golden Filter finally came on stage - which had a large part to do with why things were suddenly so groovy - and my first thought was how intricate the light show was. Although we were in Downtown Miami, off of Miami Ave., we could have been at the most revered venue on downtown Mars. Seriously. Blue, pink, green, orange, purple- any color you could possibly want to stare at whilst drinking your vodka grapefruit and listening to happy-go-lucky music was bouncing out in front of us, as Golden Filter's Penelope Trappes sang her version of "(These Are a Few of) My Favorite Things."

Golden Filter 8/2010

The show went smoothly onwards after that; not only was it the perfect balance between 70s disco pop and upbeat modern electro- Trappes actually has that kind of really smooth, yummy voice you just can't get enough of. The band's cheerful tunes gave the perfect feel for Grand Central's rainbow colored array of lights circling the dancing fans. Cheered on by the disco party atmosphere, I found myself ordering a secondthirdfourth vodka grapefruit, and by the time The Golden Filter had put their electric genius to rest, my only regret was that I wouldn't stumble out onto the streets of Mars!

OLB