^ a particularly captivating italian peasant boy by william morris hunt in the mfa’s salon room

most rooms in art galleries these days seem spacious and sparse, giving each painting its own space. stepping into the mfa’s salon room, therefore, was a significantly – refreshingly – different experience to what i have grown used to. more interesting still is the fact that in the 1890s, all of the mfa galleries exhibited art floor-to-ceiling, styled after the famous parisian salon. the aesthetic and the idea behind the salon entice me. the mfa’s explanation describes the salon as

the epitome of worldliness and sophistication. a typical salon exhibition, which might include thousands of paintings, placed the largest and most prestigious works “on the line”, at eye-level. paintings by lesser-known artists were often “skyed” towards the ceiling – though part of the game at the salon was deciding whether your judgment was better than the judges’.

i want my mind to be shaped like a salon, containing art of all kinds: paintings, but also books, plays, cupcakes…some on the line and others skyed, awaiting further inspection. ★

^ the creamsicle and needham cream pie, two of treat cupcake bar‘s selection

as i have explained, one of my life missions is to discover the best cupcakes in the world. today i found treat cupcake bar in needham, mass., and would like to create a special honorable mention category just for them. their cupcakes hit my main targets: not too sweet, excellent balance of frosting and cake, and beautiful decorations (i mean just look at that presentation!). they are not up to par with my other favorites, but are unique. their cakes are more like muffins, and are quite large. the shop is perfect for kids parties (they have a “make-a-treat” option for personal decorating), and the cake – light and fluffy – tastes like childhood (you know, those grocery store sheet cakes with frosting flowers. but much tastier and more fresh!). see the complete updated list here  ★

^ the retro-cool illuminated letter sign atop the gramercy at charlene‘s concert last week

charlene kaye’s music is dominating my itunes right now. animal love is one of those songs that i always feel like listening to, even if i just finished listening to it a moment ago. her albums are the authentic, capturing-life kind of music that i can listen to on shuffle and repeat all day. my favorite kind of lyrics – the kind that blend into the song perfectly, but on the twentieth listen-through a phrase will strike for the first time and realization hits: this is not just fun to listen to but so true. in concert charlene is just as energetic as her recordings suggest (except it’s a controlled, directed, quiet energy. it’s cool.). she wears all white and so does her band (they’re such a team) but it’s with the edge of a fringe jacket. and she performs barefoot.  ★

^ before: connecting cords for my iphone, camera, and kindle. after: charge and go.

cords are messy and tangly and take up space. my new charge and go (by dci, the masterminds behind the tea duck and pop quiz clock), from urban outfitters, is not only adorable and pink, but also allows me to part with the above trio of wiry things. it is advertised as a “multi-use usb phone charger” but i am pleased to be using all three ports, as the micro and mini usbs connect to my kindle and camera. (and the iphone plug charges my…iphone.). i charge everything i can through my computer (especially because i have a uk adaptor for my laptop charger, so i don’t have to deal with messy conversions), so this makes doing so that much easier. ★

^ spotted in soho, one of those sights deemed worthy of digging out the fancy camera

the accessories: yellow walk signs and traffic lights and matching city cabs. the green street signs, the grey lampposts, the long wide streets and borders of sidewalk. the buildings: a wide copper one dominating the square, a strip of colored triangles crawling up the side of another in the distance, creating the illusion of dimension. one moment ago i was lost in my own head, calculating the time, planning my path. this is america, this is new york. for the most part – and there is much of it – it is a predictable grid, so much so that i lose focus of my surroundings, being used to their pattern. but certain corners strike me. ★