Chris Nordquist
I hope imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, or at least of paying a compliment. Earlier this week I dropped by my friend John’s house in San Francisco for a little Holiday cheer (and consultation on his bathroom renovations), and I wanted to bring him a little gift. Early this year, John had brought […]
I feel like I’ve just finished the Toddler Challenge on Project Runway for Dummies, but Julia’s Halloween costume is finally finished. I hope she’ll actually wear it. Julia’s love for fish this year has bordered on obsession. “Fish!” was one of her first words, and she spent the first half of summer diligently searching for […]
I’ve spent nearly a week exploring this sprawling, crowded, orderly, clean and eminently civilized city, and I feel like I’ve barely begun to find what Tokyo has to offer. Every time I emerge from the city’s extensive (and amazingly clean and efficient) subway system it seems like there’s another delightful cultural, commercial or culinary surprise […]
“Is this your first trip to Marfa?” our landlord for the weekend asked. It was, we answered. “Well, I don’t think it’ll be your last.” I think she’s right. As soon as we learned that David’s brother Seth would marry his fiancee Lizzie in Marfa, Texas, David (always thinking ahead –small town, big wedding) jumped […]
Last week Julia walked into our bedroom wearing a plastic kitchen funnel on her head and singing “Happy Birthday.” Two of her buddies have had their second birthdays in the last couple of weeks, hers is just around the corner, and she’s way into the concept. The party hats seem to have made a particularly […]
Simple, almost obvious. And yet I’d never seen it before. Last weekend our friends Visnja and Franck visited us in Southampton and brought gifts for Julia and for us. They didn’t attach gift cards or tags, but, under the wrapping, they wrote a message for the recipient directly on the box. (The seam in the […]
Yesterday Julia and I were at our place in San Francisco, having returned the night before from our second annual Easter weekend in Palm Springs. (My partner David had to return to New York Sunday night.) Last year we rented a great midcentury modern house, but this year we were guests of our friend Keith […]
When I was in college in the mid-1980s, I took a course in rural economics at an institute out in the country outside of Bangalore, India. It was a beautiful place. Our simple but comfortable quarters had private bathrooms, but no running hot water. Each morning, I would carry a large bucket to a central […]
At 17 months, Julia already has a posse. Vivian, Charlie, Charles and Tess all live either in our building in Chelsea or very nearby, and the kids have regular play dates. Most days at around 5pm there’s a stroller convoy in front of one of our doors. To celebrate Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d make […]
One of the many unexpected benefits of having a child has been remembering some of the pleasures of my own childhood. Brownies, for instance. As I searched for the brownie of my childhood, though, I found that a really good one is hard to come by. Some were dry and chewy and tasted only vaguely […]
