A Model Outfit For Spring

Here it is the middle of May and the weather can’t decide what it wants to do. Pretty typical for spring, I suppose. First a cold front, bringing with it the coldest night (34 degrees Fahrenheit) on record for May 13 since 2005 in the Mid-Atlantic region where I make my home, and now a warm front is pushing spring-like temperatures back into the area. It warmed today to almost 70 degrees, so I was eager to break out some warm-weather fashion, especially welcome since I found myself back in heavy, insulated barn clothes for my early morning volunteer work Monday feeding 35 horses at the stable down the road from my home where I board my own noble steed, Chubby (see A Horse Of My Own).

I gazed about my closet this morning, looking for inspiration from the hangers as I so often do. A pair of trousers covered in tiny yellow daisies on a black background by Liz Claiborne caught my eye. What could be more spring-like than flowered britches? I paired the sunny pants with a black square-necked tunic from Boston Proper. I haven’t decided whether I like the tunic or not, so today was an experiment to see how well it functions in my wardrobe. I added comfy wedge sandals by Aerosoles that I’ve owned for years and finished my look with a necklace of white enameled squares wrapped in gold chains, a Christmas gift two years ago from my beloved manicurist, Thao Pham, owner of Nail Splash Salon in Owings Mills, Maryland (410.902.5888), and a pair of vintage white and gold enameled earrings I’ve owned for decades which just happen to go with the necklace perfectly.

When I greeted the security guard upon my arrival at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., she exclaimed: "I saw you on television last night!".  I was amazed that the security guard recognized me in a commercial I filmed for my dentist almost two years ago.  My dentist has received quite a few new patients as a result of the ad, so she's keeping a good thing going.  Fine with me!


This model of Liberty Town Center in
Cincinnati is 1/16th scale

I stopped on the way home from work tonight to watch the employees of Lighting, Interior Design and Construction Management Corporation (LIDCM) put the finishing touches on a small scale architectural rendition of Liberty Town Center, a shopping venue planned for the suburbs of Cincinnati, Ohio, next year. Jesse Turner, who heads this high-end architectural model-making company in Baltimore City, looked like an air traffic controller as he simultaneously explained a roof design, accepted a rush delivery of parts from FedEx, and reviewed invoices presented by his office manager (LIDCM).

Stephanie uses a special ladder to position
tiny components in the architectural model

If it’s spring, it must be time for the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) convention. Thusly, the Liberty Town model will be air-freighted tomorrow to Las Vegas for the start of the annual week-long conference, attended by developers and political leaders from all over the country, so today represented a last frantic push to finalize construction of the model before shipping. At one sixteenth scale, this project is smaller and less intricate than most of the models Jesse constructs, yet LIDCM’s reputation is built upon its detail-oriented elements, so even at this diminutive proportion there was no shortage of tiny trees, automobiles and people decorating the realistic landscape.

Justin, left, and Marco work on a roof
design for the Liberty Town model

Leaving the workers to their tweezers, I ventured north on the freeway to Whole Foods Market, where I picked up some organic sorrel leaves special-ordered for me by their produce buyer, which I will use soon in a delightful sounding cocktail, a sorrel-lime cooler, that I’ve been wanting to try. I’d never seen a sorrel leaf before, but the soft green leaves tasted distinctly sour when I popped one in my mouth to see what it was like.

Upon my arrival home, I had only a few minutes to change into exercise gear, and then it was off to the gym for an hour of Body Step followed by an hour of yoga. Now, home once again, I will publish this blog post, eat some dinner and fall into bed, exhausted but pleased that there is a resurging market for commercial developments such as Liberty Town Center and the small-scale depictions which represent them; happier still that cold fronts mix with warm fronts this time of year, bringing coolness and warmth in alternating waves to create the season we call spring in the Mid-Atlantic.

Cheers,

Lynell