Monday, February 02, 2009

My Desk

I was just tagged by Charlotte Tollstén, whose sensuous and delicate photographs capture the light of Finland Sweden as well as daily life.
My assignment: to show my desk. So here it is, awash in California sunshine! I always have fresh cut flowers on my desk, as well as a picture of my sister at age 6, and my darling little Mac laptop (Viva Apple!). Since I moved to Los Angeles, I've been reading a lot and using my desk as a bookshelf but I'm running out of space so I need to get bookshelves. Piled up on the right are the books I haven't read yet, including one about the collaboration between Stravinsky and Balanchine, two of my idols.
Ballet lovers, note two must-read works about this art, Noverre's Letters on Dance, and Akim Volynsky's recently published Ballet's Magic Kingdom, which dancer Toni Bentley called "a fantastic book" in her New York Times review. Also check out the Swedish DVD The Dancer, a classic documentary.
Sitting atop the pile of unread tomes is the sublime Leonardo Da Vinci book my friend Spangler gave me last Christmas.
I tag Hila, Chloé and Gabbi.

32 comments:

Njut i din trädgård said...

Dear Mary-Laure,
I was supposed to work with the accounting for my business. It is really urgent that I close the books today.

... then I got your lovely message and I just couldn't stop reading your wonderful blog. Thanks for sharing!

I will have to start follow your from now on.
I hope you will have a nice day.

B t w the photo you made a comment to is a challenge. Pick a view and take a photo of that view every month and share it. Would you like to join us?

Charlotte Tollstén said...

You have a beautiful desk!!
I am so happy that you wanted to show it!

All the best from Charlotte from Sweden, not Finland :)

Anonymous said...

Morning darling.
How r u doing?? I hope u´r doing great.
Thx a lot for ur comment :)
U have such a beautiful blog...a bit of everything.
Lovely!
Many kisses from Spain xxxx

MISS GLITZY said...

My desk is a mess compare to yours. When I read the NY Times review about Ballet's Magic Kingdom I was pretty sure you would mention it. Seems really interesting even for me who know little about ballet.

Unknown said...

Me encanta tu escritorio, incluso la mac, aunque yo me llevo mejor con pc.

Charlotte Tollstén said...

I forgot to say that it looks so nice with fresh flowers on your desk, and yes, Viva apple!!
: )

High Desert Diva said...

Your fresh flowers look lovely on your desk.

*pats duplicate Macbook*

Becky said...

Your desk is adorable. I love the fresh flowers.

mansuetude said...

I just recalled, I usually keep a photo of myself and my sisters about but must have buried it flat under a pile of stuff, ha ha... now I must "find" myself.

christina said...

I'm in love with your desk! The fresh flowers are lovely. I will have to put this book, on my to read list. ; )

d. moll, l.ac. said...

Very nice desk, you did straighten it up just a bit for the photo? Please say you did......

Kwana said...

What a beauty. Love the flowers and the books are just as beautiful.

Gabbi said...

I love your green desk dear Mary-Laure and there's something very endearing in such a nice collection of books. Thank you very much for tagging me. Tonight I photograph my mess... it's a bit scary I have to tell you :)

Mary-Laure said...

NJUT - I'm glad my blog distracted you from all that paperwork... and happy that you like my blog, as I found yours exquisite.
I really like the challenge photo you tell me about. The things is, as I live in California, nothing changes over the year because there are no seasons as such...

CHARLOTTE - I feel really stupid that I thought you were from Finland. I DO know the difference! My mum and a couple of friends visited Stockholm and just ADORED the city; ever since, I have been dreaming of going.

MISS GLITZY - you know me so well!!!

HIGH DESERT DIVA - there seem to be so many of us Mac blogger girls, no?

MANSUETUDE - maybe you can share the picture of the 2 of you when you find it? Sisters are SO precious. I adore mine.

D. MOLL - truth be told, I am obsessed with a clean, organized desk (and home, really) so no, it wasn't tidied up for the pic.

Rachel said...

Just beautiful! And I would love to meet up sometime, seeing as we are neighbors!

Joanna said...

I love this tiny peek into your daily life. I imagine you get a lot of work done sitting at a desk like this! Everything in its right place and spotless.

Seeker said...

Such a nice desk, organized and pretty, with cute details.

xoxo

Anonymous said...

lovely that you have fresh flowers....and a nice peek into your life...which reminds me i have to make my desk...more appealing...i seems to be working in the kitchen more..
(although steevy loves sleeping on the desk so he can also look outside when he wakes up..) :)

Mary-Laure said...

RACHEL - great! Send me an email:
petipaw@gmail.com
and we can schedule something...

JOANNA - or maybe the desk is spotless because no work is getting done, he he he.

NANCY - oh Stevie must be so adorable sleeping on your desk. Good thing Benjy can't climb up on my desk or else it would be such a mess.

Spangler Cummings said...

You doll...thanking me again for the joy of Da Vinci. Loved seeing your desk and...are those snapdragons? Did you know snapdragons make darling little hand puppets? (Pick a single bloom and squeeze to "talk.")

sealaura said...

thanks for sharing. my desk(s) are currently a disaster, luckily I can now see yours for inspiration.

Hila said...

It's a pleasure peeking at your desk :)
And of course I'll do the tag - I'll get to it sometime this week.

lune_blanc said...

I love your desk Mary-Laure, nice colour, and it's lovely you always have flowers on it! thanks for giving info on more great books :)

AC said...

Hi Mary-Laure! Thank you for visiting my blog! You also have some lovely pictures here. I'll be back ;)

Certain Creatures said...

what pretty photos! Love the flowers too!
;)

Solange said...

Hi Mary-Laure, Your desk is looking so lovely. Fresh flowers are one of my favourites and well, our Mac laptop too ;-) we love apple in this house here.
Books add up so quicly, but it's not an option to get rid of them for us, they are so personal and special.
Enjoy your day and the californian sun!

Solange

raining sheep said...

Mmm! I would love to sit at that desk and just write in my journal all day, sipping a nice cup of tea or even a lovely glass of wine.

Angora said...

Toi tu montres ton bureau au soleil, moi mon petit bout d'atelier, mais j'aimoins de bouquins intellos, plus de fourbis... envahissant! c'est mieux quand on a presque rien! Très joli bouquet, si délicat!
Ecris-tu??

Bonbon Oiseau said...

love seeing a little part of your world darling...so lovely!
i'm back to paris on march 1st...will you go for a visit soon?

Mary-Laure said...

SPANGLER - Yes, those ARE snapdragons, aren't they gorgeous? I buy some every week at the Santa Monica Farmers' Market.
What a great idea to use them as hand puppets.

ANGORA - non, tu sais, je n'ecris plus depuis un bon moment... J'ai des idees mais je n'arrive pas trop a m'y mettre...
J'aimerais bien que tu nous montres ton atelier sur ton blog.

BONBON OISEAU - I won't be in Paris, unfortunately. But do contact me if you come to sunny California!

heather said...

beautiful, inspiring

Anonymous said...

your desk looks lovely. i also top mine with plenty of reading material, photos and a bit of art to inspire.