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| The Christmas season is officially over in New York. 11:30 AM. Photo: JH. |
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| January 15, 2010. Sunny winter’s day in New York. Brisk but mild. What they’re thinking: Wealth and identity, while being built, demand absolute self-awareness, discipline, and a constant understanding of context. Wealth, when it is being spent, is blind to everything but self-gratification. I once called this “the Saudi disease”: I am wealthy, therefore I am smart. It is now the Western disease. And the West will continue its decline until it has sunk so low, spent so much, that it is forced and humiliated into self-review. Even alcoholics — those who admit their condition — are aware of this phenomenon. — Gregory R. Copley of OilPrice.com [1] That is an excerpt from a post on a favorite web site of mine, zerohedge [2]. I went down to Swifty’s to dinner, a guest at a party of eight. The energetic conversation was about the New York magazine article about the Elizabeth and John Edwards marriage. I get the magazine and had looked at the piece quickly; a lot of dish about the histrionic relationships between Mr. and Mrs. Edwards. I didn’t read closely enough to learn but evidently this article demonstrates that he was not only heel, cad, liar, duplicitous; but that she was no day in the country either. I couldn’t help thinking where was BRAVO when they could have used them. They should have done it with cameras. It would fit right into the national sensibility of lives as circuses. |
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| From New York magazine article: Nathan Fox depiction of Rielle coming on to John when they first met. |
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| In national politics today we are interested only in politicians’ private lives, namely their sex lives. We love the details of he-said/she-said, he did/she did. As long as they’re not our details. The dinner table last night was loud and lively with the controversy of the Edwards’ turgid (and very sad) soap opera. The explanation for this intense interest (ignited once again by New York magazine), was Mr. Edwards was THISFAR from the Presidency. (And so it’s good we know what a tacky two-timing cardboard snake oil salesman he was.) In his dreams was he THISFAR from the Presidency. Sex lives of the rich and famous. If Mr. Edwards were some backwoods tort lawyer chasing hearses and carrying on outside his marriage the way he has we wouldn’t have had the slightest, and for obvious reasons, interest in anything about him. Mr. Edwards sounds like what used to be smartly known as a damned fool. They come in all sizes, and sometimes these days it seems like we’ve got a shelf-full of them in the hallowed halls of our nation’s capital. |
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| Meanwhile, since it’s HOUSE day on the NYSD, I thought it would be a good opportunity to run some pictures of the West Hollywood villa of our friend Nancy Stoddart, especially after another friend Bob Schulenberg spent some time at Nancy’s house with his sketchbook. Philadelphia born-and-bred, (she still owns property in Stoddartsville, Pa.) Nancy is a popular figure on the East Coast. She lived in New York 740 Park Avenue with her then husband Peter Huang (check out Michael Gross’ 740 Park). After their divorce, followed by a long relationship with Nile Rodgers, Nancy decided to move to the West Coast and start afresh. |
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| In the 90s, she bought an old Spanish style bungalow in the flats of West Hollywood. And did a number on it. She took it back to its original spirit. Nancy has the ability to engage and evoke with her powerful visual sense. It’s full of witty pastiche and cultural reverence. And comfy cozy. The climate of that part of the world creating an indoor-outdoor lifestyle. I introduced my friend Schulenberg to Nancy so that he could sketch some of her house for the NYSD. We’ve combined them with a few photos JH took when we were visiting. |
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