
Nabokov on Existence
Image

Windmill by Piet Mondrian (1917).
Mondrian was born on this day in 1872.
The artist sees the tragic to such a degree that he is compelled to express the non-tragic.
Piet Mondrian
“A woman has to live her life, or live to repent not having lived it.”–D.H. Lawrence (11 September 1885-2 March 1930), Lady Chatterley’s Lover
Reading (Portrait of Edma Morisot) by Berthe Morisot (1873).
Berthe Morisot (14 January 1841-2 March 1895).
“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.”–Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
Little house on a hill
“An old house that had lived its life long ago and so was very quiet and wise and a little mysterious. Also a little austere, but very kind.”–L.M. Montgomery
My momma’s birthday is today! We celebrated it last night with a tasty meal at home. I try to make those I love a special dessert for their special day. Our resources and mobility are limited these days, obviously. Because of this, I needed to make something with ingredients I had at home. I decided that it was finally time to make Emily Dickinson’s coconut cake. It’s been on my radar for at least 12 years. No joke.
Emily’s handwritten recipe
I used this post as my guide. Like that blogger, I mixed the cake by hand.
Since this was for my mom’s birthday, I embellished the cake a bit by adding a blueberry glaze* before topping it with walnuts and confectioners’ sugar.
Birthday cake
The cake itself is moist, flavorful, and not overly sweet. Perfect with a cup of tea.
**
*For the glaze, I added approximately 3/4 cup blueberries and 1 cup of confectioners’ sugar to a blender and mixed it until it was smooth.
**
“Hold dear to your parents for it is a scary and confusing world without them.”–Emily Dickinson
Happy birthday, mom! I love you.
**
I hope you are all well during these difficult, uncertain times. Have a great weekend.
“Elegance is elimination.”–Balenciaga
Ngaio Marsh by Henry Herbert Clifford (1935).
This 85-year-old photograph of New Zealand writer Ngaio Marsh proves that elegance, coziness, and individuality can be as stylish as anything out of the pages of a 21st-century fashion magazine.
Embellishments are minimal: an eccentric shoulder, a few buttons, an indifferently tilted hat, a bit of pattern and texture here or there.
Clean lines. Confidence.
She is, more than anything, mysterious.
How appropriate.