Looking for something to wear on my museum outing with a friend, I rediscovered a warm wool sweater I had received from my aunt as a Christmas present when I was 25. You know it's old because it has a zipper in the back of the neck. But not a moth hole anywhere! And right next to it, a long-sleeved silk underwear top for an added layer of insulation. I was set to go out into the arctic cold.
The Van Gogh exhibit at the Philips was much more accessible than it had been the day after Christmas when we initially visited with every out of town guest in the DC Metro area. You could actually view the paintings without peering over someone's shoulder or stepping on the toes of the person behind you. The theme of the show was the repetitive nature of Van Gogh's work and it played out again and again as he painted and repainted the scenes and people that caught his eye. It was obvious he was a troubled soul when he cut off his ear. But the self-inflicted gunshot wound that ended his life just 2 years later was a sad reminder of just how troubled he really was.
It was a perfect dose of an hour of art followed by lunch in the museum cafe. I'm sure none of the other cafe patrons had a sweater older than mine. Fortunately there was no parking ticket because we used the appropriate combination of quarters and Parkmobile to fend off the parking cops.
Check out Ari below as he performs his lookout duty on the back yard. He is very brave when he is inside behind the glass window.
