Curling up with Jr. and Raoul

I'm really not in a Cinco de Mayo mood today.  Early this morning I sat at my desk decked out in yoga pants and my favorite plum-colored wrap sweater, listening to the rain outside and Esperanza Spalding on Pandora.  I tried to write about something Cino de Mayo related, I really did.  A great recipe or drink or something.  All I could think about was a cup of tea. You see, for me was a perfect morning for reading and writing and listening and quiet.  I just couldn't throw myself into it, so I whisked Jr. off to look at books and play with trains at Books-A-Million instead.  I think Cinco de Mayo may be a bigger deal in the US than it actually is in Mexico, anyway.  Mr. M enlightened me today with the fact that it is only a regional holiday celebrating what turned out to be a fairly insignificant win against the undefeated-for-50-years French army in the Battle of Puebla.  The day to get really excited about is September 16th, which is Mexico's Independence Day.

I don't know why, but I've always soared on days like this.  It's overcast, with occasional patches of rain here and there.  It makes my struggling garden look like I'm taking better care of it and puts me in a bookish (more so than usual) frame of mind.  When I arrived at the bookstore with my excitedly wiggly toddler, I picked up a few books and magazines and settled in.  One of the last things I thumbed through while Jr. was making sure that Thomas the Tank Engine and all of his Friends had enough water was this month's issue of Veranda magazine.  I came across an advertisement for an auction of pieces by Raoul Dufy*.  I had not heard of the artist, but the equestrian watercolor that caught my eye let me to look him up as soon as I got home.  Apparently he started out working in an Impressionist style before moving on to the Fauvist and Cubist-style paintings that were featured in the advertisement.  It was difficult to find a whole lot of information about him on the internet, but I found some beautiful pieces.  Being a horsey girl at heart I of course fell in love with his race pieces.

Image from www.weinstein.com

Here's one for Cinco de Mayo! See, I'm not totally out of the spirit! It's called "Le concert Mexican".

Image from www.artnet.com

So, that's my day so far.  Please continue to be on the lookout for the blog makeover.  As soon as some key components which are a little late coming together are in place, it will be going live and you will be able to find lots of fun things at the new domain name.  You can continue to see my posts on The Columbia Cool, and I'll also be posting on Bloomacious Café, Bloomacious.com's new social networking site focusing on design, beauty, fashion and more.  I may wait until the new site is live, though.  We'll see.  I can't wait to show you the new look and to share great conversations, foodie musings, and beautiful things with you all!

*This is a French language link, so if your browser has a translator, get ready to use it if your French is as slack as mine.  Just another reminder that I need to get back in the practice of speaking and reading!