goodnight, irene

This song has been playing in my head, nonstop, for like the last five days, so I'm giving you just an assortment of my favourites, to illustrate this post:





It's scarier, sometimes, being where something ISN"T. Just as when we had left the cat alone in London during the riots this summer (with a wonderful girl from the vet coming in), were concerned for all our friends and felt so helpless, while staying at the beach house on Long Island. And then: that very same beach house, and my mom, were basically sitting ducks for Hurricane Irene. It was just such a scary weekend. Holding vigil. So many, many people that I love, friends and all my closest family, just sitting right there, in her path.

My brother, having taken the cat and his daughter to my mom's beach house had to take the decision: stay put (downside: it's on water, high up, all that glass), house on top of a mountain upstate (dirt road, guaranteed at best to lose electricity, even on a good day) so they opted for his apartment in the West Village, NYC. They basically did a reverse evacuation: having heard Mayor Bloomberg's instructions, they drove, Saturday morning, right into town. One block from the evacuation zone. Then stocked up on water, got lots of blue tape (I love that it wasn't red) and taped up the windows, then cheerfully, bravely, like millions of others on the Eastern coast, waited and hoped for the best.





It all went well, of course. There were real tragedies, loss of life, and it would be disrespectful to the families who have lost loved ones to belittle this, but this was nowhere near the tragedy it could have been.

And I've got to say: for a few days there, I couldn't care less about fashion, or posting, or blogs. It really hit me, what matters, and what was at stake, and what I could have lost, in a heartbeat.

My husband - being all English and 'pull up your socks', was on a rant yesterday at how 'irresponsible' the media and, basically, the United States government were, for 'overreacting'. I could tell it was one of those situations where it was pointless to argue with him, but he wasn't going to give up until I 'took responsibility'. For what, I asked. My fellow Americans? The City of New York? The Media, he said. So - because sometimes, in a marriage, it's better to be happy than right, I sighed and said 'Okay, honey, I apologise on behalf of the Media, and take full responsibility.'





So to celebrate, we finally - after holding onto these tickets since last July - headed to Kew yesterday. I have so many photos I want to show you, I don't even know where to begin, so this is a start. KEW GARDENS is simply amazing: it is probably my favourite destination in London (just outside, actually, but easily reachable by tube). HUGE thank you to Frida, for contacting me and sending the tickets, and for your patience (we meant to go before our holiday - it was never the right time - yesterday was the right, the perfect, day). We couldn't have been in a better place to celebrate life, and nature, and all that is good and beautiful in this world. Can't wait to return. More - better, perhaps - images to come. I'm well aware that these aren't the most flattering shots - this isn't even one of the many outfit changes I'd brought for my shoot - but who cares. It's just good to be alive, and know the many people I love are alive, and well.

Goodnight, Irene, goodnight, Irene, I'll see you in my dreams.

Shot entirely at the Royal Botanic Gardens, in Kew.