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| The horse-barn home that Heather built with her husband |
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| Heather and her husband with some of their menagerie |
Heather was one of the first eight people into YouTube, has done many other start-ups and is now founder of an interiors website called nousDecor. She started it after she was given a chandelier for her horse barn home and she couldn't find a match. Heather does the website all day - her "home office" is their bed in the 540 sq ft upstairs of their horse barn and the rest of the time she tends to her 28 animals, which incidentally she and her husband allow to wander through the downstairs. Long story short...she works all the time. (By the way I watched the start up comedy TV show Silicon Valley on the plane, the most hilarious show ever.)
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| Me (left) being Suzy reporter and Heather with her dogs (weighing a total of 450lbs!) |
It was Dad's Day this weekend, this is one of my favourite photos of Kevin with Tallulah and baby Cy in Santa Barbara. This was on a road trip we did from Southern California to Oakland... what were we thinking?
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| Tallulah, Cy and Kevin on our road trip |
I arrived back home to find end-of-school had happened without me. Here's the evidence in the mudroom crudroom, all the kid's project will reside there until the end of summer until I sniff and sigh and stick them elsewhere. What stuff is your weakness? I'm usually an unsentimental minimalist, but I can't bear to throw out even one piece of broken ceramics the kids have made.
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| Mudroom (called Sandals and Sunscreen Room in California) And you haven't even seen around the corner... |
In my jetlag-geded state I've watched a plethora of fashion documentaries (except for Bill Cunningham New York, none are that well made are they?) Loved the acerbic client stylist in Scatter My Ashes at Bergdorf's: "You may as well buy it, it's not that great, but it looks better than what you were wearing when you came in." And to the question: "If you didn't do this what else would you be doing?" "Probably drinking."
A short doco about old Anna showed that she looks way better now that she did decades ago - good work done or a good life lived?
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| Young Anna |
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| Anna now |
I returned to a don'tknowwhethertolaughorcry email from a friend about the end of school year for Cy,10. His class had been studying immigration.
Ziad, one of the parents (and father to J, one of Cy's best friends) went to Cy's 4th grade class to discuss his own experience of immigration. Ziad who is from Lebanon and a noted cardiologist, talked about deeper issues of growing up in the middle of a war, as well as issues of acculturation and leaving friends and family behind.
Each child was allowed to ask 2 questions.
It was Cy's turn. His question: "Who do you like more -- D or J?" (Ziad's kids)
When Cy didn't get a satisfactory answer, he asked his 2nd question: "What's the most embarrassing story about J?"
Still no answer given from the speaker.
Laugh or cry, friends?
He's only 10. Ya gotta laugh. When they are twenty...or forty eight...and still ask dumb ass questions well that's a bit different. I put all my kids ugly ceramics outside as lawn art. They only make it through one or two winters and BAM they are gone...yay!
ReplyDeleteWell, I always did want a "sculpture garden." good thinking 99.
Deletelaugh away at your bay. You do have to work all the friggin time if you want to get to that millionaire mark
ReplyDeleteEvery self-made wealthy person I know is a human dynamo of pure, endless energy. I don't know how they do it.
ReplyDeleteBetty from Bergdorfs once walked by me choosing something and told me I was in the wrong area and i should go to another brand. She is a legend but the Bill C docu is so inspiring. The fashion editor doco is hilarious and the funniest one! Self made wealthy people are so intense and even holidaying with them wore me out. I kept wondering what the heck they do when they work!
ReplyDeleteHi there! That is so funny about Betty. It struck me immediately that we all need her, she is so honest, wonder if she is still working there? Funny that they said some of their salespeople (or whatever they are called there ) earn $400,000 in commissions - good work!
DeleteSo that's why I'm not a start-up millionaire! Because I like a stress-free life and am a lazy sod! (or the other way round)
ReplyDeleteI bet a psychologist would have a field day with Cy's first question.
I've not got what it takes to make a million, I have what it takes to spend it though, if that helps?
ReplyDeleteYou have to laugh at the questions I guess, it's a perfect thing to ask your friends Dad, what is the most embarrassing story?!
And Anna, I'd say good work done!
Hello Jody,
ReplyDeleteWell, we are sure that we shall never make it to the millionaire mark......unless, of course, it is in Forints, the currency of Hungary, which is a target far easier to reach!
What we do enjoy now we no longer work is the ability to spend time 'stopping and staring' without having to think that this may be time wasted or time not profitable. One learns to appreciate the simple pleasures in life and to enjoy to the full the company of others when whole days and evenings can pass by in delightful conversation.
We think it rather touching that you keep your children's work. They will soon enough be grown up and leave to forge lives of their own. Until then, enjoy!
speaking as someone who often lacks a filter and is extremely interested in other people - and not in a creepy way - I support Cy, who asks the questions that many want to know the answer to! Go Cy!
ReplyDeleteClearly Cy is going to be a hard hitting journalist.
ReplyDeleteLaugh! Thank you for the Cy story, they always cheer me up, that kid is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteThat woman sounds incredible with the work and all the animals, I'll try to copy her energy today even for half an hour.
That picture of Kevin and the kids is gold!
I loved all your topics in this post. So fun and interesting. Regarding Cy, not only funny (IMO) but spot on. He asked what he wanted to know. Love it!
ReplyDeleteI know! I will be asking the follow-up questions when I see them next!
DeleteI have long ago accepted that I will never be a millionaire. I just want to be a thousand-aire!! LOL. Love the picture of you, heather, and the dogs!
ReplyDeleteNo answer to the CY dilemma ..............do you think he was listening??
ReplyDeleteNow, I would LOVE to see that barn and the animals........field trip in our future!!My Australian's friend SON just got a job in Woodside for the summer!
I think he has the instincts of a Sun (UK) journalist. I guess its in the genes as I was a tabloid journalist. He and Tallulah always used to give our babysitters the 20 questions about whether they had a boyfriend and whether they fought with their room-mate.
DeleteWoodside has the most billionaires of any town in the US doesn't it? or something like that...
It's the energy and also the ability to make instant decisions - I've never been able to tell if it's because certain people process information faster and analyze faster than ordinary humans, or because they've decided that any decision is better than dithering.
ReplyDeletewell, Cy is perfect, I've told you that before.
any remaining bits of children's artwork, especially ceramics, get superglued to ribbon or hooks and are kept in a box with the Christmas decorations.
WFF, that's a great idea about making them into Christmas decorations. Also gives me an excuse to buy a glue gun. And ribbon, DiYers delight
DeleteMy friend always says: "indecision is a decision in itself." Most of the startup people I've interviewed here in the last year have also started up loads of stuff tha were not a goer (all great ideas too) but they keep going. I for one am easily discouraged.
Look at the size of those dogs!
ReplyDeleteLoving the pic of Kevin on the road trip too.
The advantage of only having one child - less stuff to house. He did do a very arty tea-light holder in metalwork one year: pride of place on mantelpiece.
That sounds like a very usable art-thingy. I remember at school making a copper spoon which we put in the tea leaves as a scoop. Wonder where it is now. In woodwood we made nifty pencil holders
DeleteMatthew asked Ziad if he likes hamburgers. True intellectuals our sons. I throw all the school work away. Less to embarrass him when he is an adult!
ReplyDeleteThe other day I was wondering too whether Ziad likes hamburgers. (and which of his kids he likes the best..) apple. tree.
DeleteLove the barn house and the animals! The dogs are adorable!
ReplyDeletewhat a fascinating story about anna!! always love your stories!
ReplyDeleteThose aren't dogs, they're small ponies!! I think its good work done on Anna. Something very different about those eyes:). To be a millionaire...hmm. Yes that would be fun, till all the stray family came out of the woodwork with hands out.
ReplyDeleteYes, under the eyes is very smoothed out. The best of work
DeleteThe questions from your son were hilarious, surely someone would have found humour in that, I would have, haha!! Bless xx
ReplyDeleteI was all ready to be seriously impressed with Cy's questions. My mother's family is from Lebanon so I know a bit from them about moving to the US but was curious for more info.... what I got instead? A fantastic laugh. I think I need that more. Thank you Cy!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realise your mother's family was from Lebanon - how cool!
DeleteI had a start-up idea once [probably more than once, but I shan't regale you with my idiocy] and a few years later somebody else got the same idea and ran with it. The product made it into the shops... supermarkets etc... I was sort of thrilled that I wasn't the only one to have daft ideas... but the product failed... so maybe some things are best left as ideas.
ReplyDeleteIt was to do with dog food, of all things. I'll shut up now.
Sx
No! I need to hear more! Maybe they didn't have your marketing acumen. The best story I heard was about a friend who invested in a computer company very very early on, but sold his shares after a year. Stupid name, Apple, how would that succeed...
DeleteWow interesting woman! I have a bunch of ideas myself and one was the travel site with people's trip experiences. I also wanted to design swimsuits!! I can never find ones that fit right! I wanted to watch Silicon Valley but my hubs refused to watch anything like his real life..! Lol. xx
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, we watched the whole lot last night and it was Laugh Out Loud. I think he of all people would get an enormous kick out of it. I can't wait until the next episode.
DeleteUp until now the patterns on swimsuits have been so mumsy, that Coach one you have on your blog is one of the first ones i've actually liked. usually the patterns consist of really loud flowers. need to keep eye roving and lots of ruching was my philosophy with loads of pulleys and levers