LACMA
14 Aug 2012
Eric and I kicked off our indoor exploration season this weekend at LACMA (the LA County Museum of Art). We’d been by before, but we were saving it for a really sweltering day. Our regular Saturday morning trip to the farmer’s market was completed in record speed and with mild hilarity (“Do you want an eggplant? Which one?” “I don’t know, just grab one, let’s get out of here!”) We knew LACMA was air-conditioned (and indeed they advertise this on such hot days), but we didn’t know that it is gigantic. There are nine buildings, all of them full of galleries. Wow. This light installation out front is a favorite of ours (and of everyone else who lives here, I think!)
One of our favorite installations was called Metropolis II, and it was a Matchbox car fantasy. This structure was way bigger than the average living room, and incredibly loud. We loved seeing all the little kids with expressions of awe on their faces. Apparently it is someone’s job to stand inside and make sure nothing malfunctions, and we wondered how she got in there. A mystery!
I don’t usually take photos of art in galleries (an old habit from my youthful traveling days, when I would just treat myself instead to as many gift shop postcards as my little heart desired, since they were, after all, by far the cheapest things on offer), but I made an exception for these giant billiard balls. I would have loved to hear them clink. And it is also true that I’m usually drawn to simple shapes and bright colors.
After we’d gone through a few buildings and at least a dozen galleries, we were pretty beat and decided to head to one of many little cafes scattered throughout the campus. On our way, we found this installation of yellow tubes, so, of course, we had to play in it.
I had my heart set on a cookie and a cappuccino, but Eric really won the deliciousness award with this…
An ice cream sandwich on homemade cookies. Oh my goodness. This clearly needs to be our next project.
I love that we got this picture taken as we were heading out, since we have tons of pictures of each other from our trips, but not too many of us together. This trip reminded me so much of one of our very early dates, at the art museum in Berkeley, during which I first held Eric’s hand, and after which we stood under an awning in the rain for ages, talking and talking and talking. I treasure the conversations we had then, and I treasure the ones we have now. It makes me happy to think that some years from now, we’ll look back on this picture and say, “Ah, we were just kids back then.”

Aug 14, 2012 @ 05:44:39
My two favorite pictures of this post, in no particular order: Yes! Eric’s dessert! It seems of Olympian proportions and and deliciousness! Next the picture of the two of you at the end. You ARE just a couple of kids. But kids who are having a pretty darned good time!
Aug 14, 2012 @ 20:52:53
Yes, definitely! Surely with some practice, we could make some of our own, no?
Aug 14, 2012 @ 07:38:35
Still being a kid on the inside myself, I highly recommend that you stay one yourself for as long as possible. Now if I could just figure out what to do with what’s happening on the outside…
Aug 14, 2012 @ 20:53:11
Hahaha, love you! And I love that you are a kid at heart:)
Aug 14, 2012 @ 16:43:51
What a sweet day out! I love your description of your first dates in Berkeley. And not only do those desserts look delicious; the photo of Eric almost looks like he is standing in the middle of giant strands of homemade pasta!
Aug 14, 2012 @ 20:53:51
Oh, what a lovely image! A pasta maker is the last standout on our list of kitchen tools to acquire, so maybe there will be some of that in our future!
Aug 14, 2012 @ 20:36:53
Ah you are just kids. And I would love to have been even a big kid in that matchbox car display. I saw that and just went, oh wow!
Aug 14, 2012 @ 20:54:19
It was really neat! We will have to take you and mom there, especially if you come when it’s this hot outside!
Aug 14, 2012 @ 21:35:39
Just being kids makes me giggle. The cool part is that we can each say that at any age–I’m betting 54 will seem like a kid when I’m 70! A great many people think that I still act like a kid even at ripe ‘ole 54. 🙂 Maybe “Who Cares” applies here?
Aug 15, 2012 @ 22:14:54
Most definitely! Forever young, right? 🙂
Aug 16, 2012 @ 10:01:35
Amen!