WINE VALLEY NIGHTS

One year since seeking refuge in the Santa Ynez Valley.

We could not have chosen a more blissful place to repair and restore—and will forever be grateful to the wonderful, empathetic people in this valley of bountiful food and wine.

LONDON FLASHBACK

A trendy London boutique's winter holiday window display.

In the USA it would probably cause a public outcry, so weird we have become.

In England, crackers (the kind you pop and find a prize within) are associated with Christmas; snowflakes, too.  And women are free to be feminine.

It is tragic that the so-called "progressives" in the USA not only tolerate but promote reverse discrimination/ derogatory nicknames as part of contemporary culture's revision of the English language and banishment of writers whose only crime was using the vernacular of the period in which they wrote.

I am proud of my heritage, call it "snowflake" if it makes you feel better.  My grandparents (both pairs) lawfully emigrated to the USA and never wronged anyone, having suffered intolerance and injustice in their own homelands.

POVEY BROTHERS, PORTLAND

Even in churches, Povey stained glass celebrates the spirit-force that is nature.

Reputed to be "Tiffany of the Northwest," Povey Brothers stained glass can be found throughout Portland.

Portland’s Povey Glass - Northwest Travel Magazine

Afterwards, to see more Povey stained glass, I strolled to First Christian Church, but could not get inside because it was locked up tight.

So I paused to assess a series of stained glass windows just below eye level, from outside, and though it didn't seem worth taking photos, I snapped just one, a close-up of a shepherd in the larger mosaic.

After arriving home, I uploaded the photos of Povey stained glass from my camera to my laptop, including the pic from First Christian...

This photo inexplicably depicts a  clear-as-day traditional Christ-like image (and, no, it is not photo-shopped, a program I don't possess and never use). 

Had it been there and I missed seeing it?  

I am certain not.  It was a blank orange piece within the leaded mosaic.

MONTECITO: ONE YEAR LATER

Photos:  Thomas Van Stein

A LOOK BACK...

...while moving forward.

ONE YEAR ON

RANDOM IMAGE FROM MY iPHONE

THE SAATCHI GALLERY

One day in Hell...

"We are all monsters, Frankie."

THE HOLLY BUSH, HAMPSTEAD

LONDON: PLUM PUDDING

Glorified by Charles Dickens as traditional Christmas dessert.

And the right place to acquire one (along with cognac butter and rose petal jelly) is...

Fortnum & Mason.

LONDON: AROUND JERMYN STREET

The homes (87 and 88, successively) of...

And where Aleister Crowley ("The Beast") lived (during World War II) and died...

Jermyn Street pays homage to Beau Brummel, the madly elegant dandy who might have appreciated these slippers at the haberdasher's adjacent...

ZEN CHRISTMAS

LONDON: CHALCOT SQUARE (PRIMROSE HILL)

Where Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin has long resided.

And where Sylvia Plath once lived.

LONDON: AROUND TOWN (REDUX)