Long Beach and Art and Stuff

Had an absolutely wonderful study group experience yesterday, in spite of (or perhaps because of?) it being a small gathering (six of us instead of the customary ten or so). I schlepped myself out to Long Beach, which is an incredibly funky section of Long Island. I have fallen in love with the place, which is a very odd mixture of urbanity and seashore - the Atlantic side is lined with apartment/condo buildings backed by a four-mile long boardwalk that runs along the beach. There's an interesting mixture of housing, and from Holly's apartment, you can see the Atlantic Ocean out the back and the bay (is it Oyster Bay?) out the front. Tiny little (vulnerable) spit of land - so cool.

Leeanne came all the way down from Maine and showed us how to weather brass foil with ammonia - we all got to play, and I brought home four little pieces that I really like. I'm going to use them in book covers, I think.

It was mentally invigorating to be with my friends - the lack of like-minded companionship around here is not very conducive to my creativity, but I came back yesterday feeling a bit fired up. The only bad part was the traffic on the ride home, which was brain-deadening and added over an hour to my trip. But my inner New Yorker was satisfied.