civil wars

billy jean (michael jackson)


dance me to the end of love (leonard cohen)


falling

i had the pleasure of seeing the civil wars for the first time at the the wiltern in los angeles last night. a good friend turned me on to them - this is not the type of band she usually likes - they are totally me - so i knew they had to be amazing. it doesn't hurt that they both have gorgeous voices & that john-paul is so smoking hot its a bit insane. we pretty much swooned the whole time he was on stage! i put a bunch more videos up on youtube if you want to hear more.

magical mystery tour

joshua tree inn

off to dinner at pappy & harriets

the perfect photo at pappy & harriets!

we checked into the joshua tree inn & had dinner at pappy & harriets for the first day.

thuy & peter at pioneertown

noah purifoy art center

we started out day two by driving back up to pappy & harriet's so my friends could see pioneertown in the daylight. the we headed to the noah purifoy art center. the lovely couple that runs the foundation happened to be there with their dog freckles. they were so sweet!  we found out that ed ruscha had purchased the house for noah when he was still alive and creating the installations. also, some of the pieces will be traveling for an exhibition soon.

joshua tree national park

after noah purifoy we headed into the park.  it was as if time somehow slowed down to allow us to see & do as much as possible in one day!  (all of this before the sun started to set at 4:30 pm)

on the road the the integratron

at the dome

the dome

preparing for our sound bath

this hole marks the center & goes straight down....

on day 3 we headed to the integratron in landers for our private sound bath appointment.

the integratron is a dome shaped structure created by george van tassel, an aeronautical engineer & test pilot for lockheed. (the building was built without nails!) he was also a leader in the ufo movement. he spent 18 years creating the integratron - he called it "a time machine, a rejuvenation machine & an anti-gravity device".  the building is said to be on top of a powerful "energy vortex".

the sound frequencies are crazy!  you can stand opposite each other & it sounds as if you are standing next to one another.  after playing around with all the sounds & harmonics we settled down on our mats for the sound bath. a gentleman played a series of quartz bowls that vibrate & lull you into deep relaxed state. my friends were on the verge on sleep while i seriously hallucinated!  i thought they were playing a cd of rushing waters but apparently not.  it is definitely something to experience & i highly recommend it!

the rock

after the integratron we headed deep into the mojave desert to see giant rock. according to the indians, this was an indian holy ground, where the north & south tribes met annually. the chiefs held their seances & meetings close by the big rock, which they called the "great stone", because to them it symbolized the great spirit, as it was the largest single object in the area. today, it is still known as the largest single boulder in the world & is a meeting place for ufo conventions & desert travelers. a perfect end to our trip.

possessed 5

other than the amazing kimba puss these are the things i treasure the most. some of these books have been with me since junior high. i love everything about books - the way they smell, the way they feel, the way they age. just knowing how many different lives & worlds exist there sitting on the shelf - such an awe inspiring feeling. no matter how much technology exists i will never give up the feeling of holding a book.  i've also had many of these sticks & rocks and bits of fluff for years upon years. i remember each one of them, rocks that friends have brought from far away countries, yak fur i picked up in alaska, sticks & shells & too many knick knacks to count. i can't imagine my life without all this ephemera surrounding me - it's somehow comforting. they are horrible dust collectors (thank goodness for swiffers!) but i will never give them up.