a good time was had by all, PART I:Jersey Shore

Thanks for all the birthday wishes! If you're going to turn 120, you might as well celebrate your birthday for more than one day. Right? Right.  This is what 120 looks like.

The revelry started when I went with a friend to an art opening at the Icehouse Gallery on a college campus down the shore.(Yes, That's what we say in New Jersey: not "at the shore" or "at the beach," but Down The Shore). But I digress...

The artist's name is Dahlia Elsayed and her work (acrylic on paper) is whimsical narrative that uses text and line in a maplike way , leaving the viewer to tell his/her own story. I love the ambiguity.

Before the reception, we went to Woodrow Wilson Hall, where Dahlia gave an artist's talk which focused on her creative process. The history of the building is fascinating; it was originally the Woolworth mansion and later, the summer White House for Woodrow Wilson.  What the official site does not show you is the drop-dead gorgeous ladies' room.

Can you believe this tilework???

These were the handpainted doors to the spacious stalls.

The campus is beautiful and since we were near the art building, it was only appropriate that there be some outdoor art.  This was my favorite.

And the old Public Service bus stop sign brought back a wave of nostalgia for the 29, 60, and 76 bus lines, long gone.

 

Then, some nature on campus.

After the reception, we drove over to the ocean - not far from campus.  The weather was nice enough to walk on the beach and there were even some people surfing.  I am not a shore person and I think the last time I walked on a beach was in Santa Cruz about 4 years ago. Some of the sights on this stretch of sand were rather strange, making me think we had stumbled upon a movie set or forgotten props for a photo shoot.

 

This is more typical, but these gulls were so tame, they did not run away when i came over to take their photos.

More tomorrow.  This time change is getting to me and I need to go to sleep. I travel time zones with no problem, but we turn the clocks back one hour and I am a disaster.