Rubin Museum of Art – I checked it out the other day; fascinating place. It specializes on Himalayan art. A lot of Buddhist thinking, plus some native Tibetan religion (Bon, which resembles Buddhism, but isn’t the same), with some Hinduism. The colors of the paintings and the sculptures were amazing. The decor was minimalist – made me feel like I was visiting the apartment of really rich Manhattanites (which may have been the idea – with the circular staircase to symbolize Buddhist thinking, but apparently also because it came with the building, which used to be a Barney’s; and because the Rubins were/are a generous couple who collected a lot of stuff). I recommend it as something really different to try in NYC.
I read Margery Allingham’s “Pearls Before Swine,” wherein detective Albert Campion is home in England, grateful to finally be on leave, during the waning days of World War II (it never changes, I guess; we feel bad for the soldiers stationed in Iraq who are missing their rotating leave for home; it’s no different 60 years ago). But, Campion can’t go see his wife just yet; he misses his train to go home, because he’s dragged into a real bizarre murder investigation in London. It’s a load of crazy stuff (as usual, as if Campion’s aristocratic friends don’t get into trouble): Campion’s pal Johnny, Marquess of Carados (a Royal Air Force pilot who’s got war stuff on his mind) is looking like a suspect in killing a woman who was found dead in his bed, on the eve of his wedding to another woman (whom he doesn’t love, but feels he owes, because her late husband was one of his subordinates in the RAF).
Campion gets mired more and more, until the real bad guy is finally revealed. A doozy, too – I did not see it coming. A taste of the homefront, during a time when they felt the world they knew really was gone. And, Campion gets his own personal surprise, when his wife Amanda (aristocratic aviation engineer extraordinaire) introduces him to the son she bore during the war and who he hadn’t met due to the war. Good subway reading.
Otherwise, it is just the lazy days of summer. I love this weather we’re having in NYC – perfect sunshine, and moderate temperatures. I just hate that it reminds me that summer’s almost over…