Beauty on the Inside

I was trying to figure out what beauty on the inside would look like. I think it is gold and sparkly and flowery. You might not be able to see the sparkles on this. It does sparkle. REALLY!

It is our last day in Maine, maybe I'll finally catch up on our trip before we leave for Paris. I believe I left us off on the Turnpike. Here is Esther in a different Turnpike bathroom. There sure are a lot of tolls on the east coast. DANG!

Next stop Lenox, Massachusetts to meet up with the people from Blue Q. Blue Q is a great company that makes funny cool stuff. You have seen there stuff everywhere. Cat butt magnets, dirty girl soap, I am not gay but I love rainbows air fresheners, always hilarious and smart. They published a book by Esther and one by her husband Mark.

Dinner was at The Dream Away Lodge. Couldn't tell you how to get there because it seemed like we went to another world via a small windy road through witch forests. It is a roadhouse type place that maybe used to be a brothel and hippie musicians used to hang there back in the day? I think that is what they told me. It was a perfect place, a nippy cool breeze through open windows, fresh flowers, lots of cool stuff to look at, packed with people and BBQ smoky smells wafting in. YUM.




I liked this place so I posted a bunch of pictures. I guess it is in the Berkshires. This sounds so fancy, the Berkshires dahling.

So dinner was with Mitch and Caitlin Nash and Sara Paul who works for Blue Q. After dinner we went back to the Nashes and talked about beauty. I think one of the reasons I am obsessed with wigs is because my mother had cancer when I was a teenager and she wore wigs while going through chemo. I guess it stuck with me. Wigs are used to cover up things or change your appearance dramatically or make you feel normal, so it was nice to talk to Caitlin about her experience with chemo. She has such a healthy attitude about it and she is so beautiful herself, glowing and confident.

One great thing she said was that while she was going through it she got letters and gifts and notes and help from the whole community. She said she had to switch from giving (I can attest for the giving nature of this family) mode to receiving mode and now she had a whole box of these letters and notes saved that she can go back to when she needs some good cheer and beauty. It meant a lot to me.

The next day we went to visit Blue Q and interviewed Sara Paul. She is the one who said "everyone has their shit they have to deal with, we should all just give each other a break." I love that, it really is true. We all have those things we worry about too much, like wrinkles or an extra 5 pounds, that really don't matter at all. We shouldn't judge other people over these dumb things cause we all do it. You dig? We should stop being so hard on ourselves too. Right? I gotta get on that myself. She also talked about her mother having cancer and dealing with it in a very different way using make-up and wigs to cover it up. Like she said, everyone has their shit.


So we left Lenox with chunky yummy sandwiches and goodies packed by the Nashes and set out for Maine which is where I am now, writing from Calef Brown's studio in Brunswick. We have taken a little break from the beauty part of the trip and are having a little vacation, although there is beauty everywhere and you can't really turn it off. I am looking at things differently. Here are some pictures.

Esther bought this awesome painting from a place called Spindleworks. They have amazing stuff here. I bought a beautiful handmade scarf although it was meant to be a table runner. If you ever come to Maine, you should stop here.

I had to have lobster and steamers and it was delicious and amazing. I thanked the lobster for letting us eat him cause you kind of feel bad when you crack his body apart.

Here's an apple tree. We used to have an apple tree in our yard. Brings back memories.

Calef and Anissa, our hosts in Maine. They rule. We miss them.

One more thing. I was born in Maine and lived here when I was teeny. Then our family used to come up here in the summers way back when. It is really wonderful being here. Maine is BEAUTY to me.

So our next stop is Paris. I hope to write while there but my computer is hit or miss. Right now it is working and I am happy. Think good vibes.

Martha