An Abundant Life - There's No Place Like Home

This past week I took a trip to Boston and Wilmington, Massachusetts, something that I've been doing quite a bit in the past year and a half, nearly every month or so I've been traveling for a quick turnaround overnight for some necessary meetings and other appointments that have to do with the home where I grew up. 

On other trips I've stayed in Boston and traveled by train to Wilmington or other towns nearby on the same route, but this time I decided to stay in Woburn, the town next door, and to spend more time at the house and property than I've been able to before.

A few weeks before I was planning this trip, someone I know reconnected me with a friend from my childhood, someone I've known my whole life. It was lovely to speak with her on the telephone, and we wanted to meet in person the next time I was in the area and had extra time at the house. This time was the right time, and when I told her about my trip and timing, she invited me for dinner and also said that her husband had offered to drive me to and from the station and my hotel and anywhere else I needed. It was an amazing gesture of generosity and kindness, and I accepted with gratitude, feeling so humbled that here I was after all these years receiving such goodness and blessing. The person who had reconnected me to that friend also offered to meet with me and drive me wherever I needed, and we planned a breakfast together on the morning after I had stayed overnight, and she treated me to a gorgeous feast at The Real McCoy, a place with a rich and deep local history and one of the best restaurants I have ever been to anywhere. I also reached out to another friend I hadn't seen in many years, and she also offered her help and to meet me on the afternoon of the second day I was there. Seeing her again brought back so many memories of beautiful times and beautiful days, and how beautiful life can be. It was truly a beautiful experience to have all of the beautiful people rallying around and bringing their sweet light and love and blessings to share with me as I found myself finally, after what seems like a very long time, being able to open the door of the house where I grew up and to begin again to feel I was home.

I have lived in New York City for a long time, and also in Jersey City, and have spent so many years in places other than Boston or Wilmington that I had begun to feel like these other places had become home. In a way they have, but home is where the heart is as the saying goes, and a part of my heart will always be in Massachusetts, rooted in the fields around the house where I grew up and in the house itself. Over these past years, before I was able to take this trip in the way that I did, every time I"d travel to Boston or take the train to the town of Wilmington or nearby I'd have this feeling that there were so many people who I remembered who I wanted to connect with and so much time I wanted to spend there, reconnecting with the land and home I've loved for so long. On this visit I had a chance to feel what it is like to really come home again, and I have to say that after all these years in other places I've loved, there is no place anywhere else like home.

A Gorgeous Breakfast

At The Real McCoy

110 Lowell Street

Wilmington, MA

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Art Inside

A few weeks ago I went to an event at the New York Federal Reserve titled "Investing In The Creative Workforce For A Strong Economy." It was a wonderful afternoon with so many wonderful speakers and panels, and a roomed filled with Artists and Art Administrators, Curators and Creative Art Small Business owners among many other people who make, support, and champion art of all kinds. 

As I was leaving I met a lovely young woman in the elevator who it turns out had a show currently at a ChaShaMa art space in Manhattan. As I've written in these pages before I've had many wonderful experiences with ChaShaMa over the years, as a performer and Artist myself as well as with other friends who are Artists, small business owners and founders of not for profits. The Artist I met in the elevator and I exchanged cards and I reached out to her, noticing as I did that her name was Kelly Olshan, a reminder of another woman withe the same last name who I worked with many years ago who had a boutique public relations company and who I learned so much from that I still remember and treasure in my life and work today.

Kelly Olshan's show is in one of the ChaShaMa spaces in the lobby of an office building, and she invited me to one of her private VIP viewing evenings. There was one that weekend coming up, and though my schedule has been really very busy and the weather forecast was not the best, I decided to make the time to go because my schedule may be getting even busier, and I wanted to take the time to see her work in a space where it could be seen at its best.

The show is a beautiful one, and the evening inspiring. I took a short video to share here as the work itself is so multifaceted and layered that it seemed best to allow the viewer to see it in the way that I saw it, walking through an open space on a February evening in a building that was brought to new life with the art that is being shown inside it.

Kelly Olshan

"Endless Ascent"

At A ChaShaMa Art Space

733 Third Avenue

New York City

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Living Love

I wrote last week about the decorations at YES Gallery and how the Christmas cheer theme lasted a bit longer than usual and Valentine's Day is keeping its glow through this cold month of February. As I take time to enjoy the beautiful views, I'm adding little touches here and there with things that enhance the decorative holiday scenes.

Last week on my way to the gallery I saw a box on the sidewalk in front of a beautiful neighbor's building that said, "Free", and was filled with all kinds of interesting children's toys, building blocks and tools and gadgets. People leave things often on the sidewalk in this way in the neighborhoods near where I live and where the gallery is,  and I usually take a peek and find something fun or beautiful or useful or all three. This box had a box in it with the name "weaving kit" on it, and when I looked a bit closer I saw that it was a potholder making kit which was something that I had when I was a very young child. I picked it up and brought it to YES Gallery, and when I opened it I saw that the metal base that is used for the weaving was intact and as red as I remembered from my childhood. The rest of the kit was gone, most likely used and finished up, but it didn't matter to me because just the memory began to bring back other memories, and now the kit is sitting under the Valentine's Day tree at the gallery where it can remind me of all of the love and joy from many years ago.

When I was very little my family was very poor. I never really thought of it that way then, but now that I am older I know that we were. I was always dressed in handmedowns, sometimes from my brothers and sometimes things that had been worn so many times by so many different people or given to us by other people that they didn't really fit right. Buying something new was a big expense that rarely happened unless I bought it myself. I started working in real jobs when I was nine to buy the things that I wanted and to have spending money when I went somewhere with friends. I never had an allowance, and the work I did around the house was expected and unpaid. Before I was nine I looked for every opportunity to try to make money, and when I was three and I had my little potholder kit, I made potholders and sold them door to door in the neighborhood for I think 25 cents or maybe two for 25 cents. It's hard to think of that now and to remember what prices were like then, but whatever it was that I sold them for, I always found people who were willing to buy them and I gathered my change together to save up for things I could buy for myself.

One day very near Easter, I was at a store that I think was Zayre's with my Mother and I saw that they had special racks with children's cotton Easter dresses on them. I fell in love with the green and white patterns with images of flowers, and told my mother to that the girls in the family needed Easter dresses. They weren't very expensive if I recall, maybe $1.99 or $3.99, but even at that price they were too expensive for my Mother to think of because they were an extra expense, so I told her that I would pay for them with my own money. It's a hazy memory, but when we got to the cash register somehow I either had enough or the woman behind the register gave them to me for whatever I had, or maybe my Mother decided to chip in after all. Whatever the math was, the dresses were bought because of the money I was making selling potholders door to door, and seeing that potholder maker reminded me of that.

God is always our provider, whether it's when we are small and selling potholders and want new Easter dress, or when we are older and there are other bigger and more pressing needs and wants. I always tell people that God provides for our wants, too, and for more than we need, and sometimes in ways we would never have thought of or thought were possible. As I go through my memories of the times and ways that God has provided, I realize that there was never a time that God didn't. Though sometimes I've worried and felt heartache, there really wasn't ever any need to. Just at the right moment, just when it can truly be seen as a miracle, God shows up and the blessing arrives. It's hard to wait sometimes when we don't understand or see where we're going, but when we can take a deep breath and take in the love that God is always pouring over us, we can find the peace to know that what we need and what we want will arrive on time and be even better than we'd hoped or planned.

A Beautiful Reminder

Of Childhood

And God's Provision And Love

A Potholder Weaving Kit

Arrives Right On Time

At YES Gallery

408 6th Street

Hoboken, New Jersey

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Lovely Days

I had left the Christmas decorations up at YES Gallery this year much longer than I usually do, and it was the beginning of February when I began to take them down and change into Valentine's Day mode. Usually I have some kind of Birthday celebration in the space itself, but this year I had the beautiful birthday celebrations at Halifax Hoboken and Little Bar that I wrote about over the past few weeks, and somehow the Christmas decorations seemed to be bringing so much joy not only to me but to visitors that I decided to leave them up until after my birthday. When February blew in, I began to take them down and to slowly put up the hearts and pinks and reds for Valentine's Day. I finished a few days before the day itself, and now that they are up I think I may leave them in all their sweetness through most of this often gray month of February. 

Valentine's Day for me is a reminder of all things lovely and sweet and joyful, of the loves of youth and the love of long time family, friends, and life. Hanging hearts and making decorations for the holiday have always brought me so much happiness, and many of the decorations I have are things that I created or found or put together or discovered in some way or another. The red foil hearts and heart shapes that adorn the gallery now were made from beautiful red foil wrapping paper I found last year. They bring such a beauty and glow to the vintage recycled wood tree and the tree branches in the windows, and the holiday lights that I've left up make them shine all the brighter, bringing more loveliness to every day. 

Celebrating Valentine's Day

At YES Gallery

408 6th Street

Hoboken, New Jersey

With Beethoven's Emperor Concerto

Sweetly Playing On My Vintage Stereo

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Jewelbox Gem

 I've written about Little Bar in Hoboken in these pages before, and the beautiful experiences that are curated there by the marvelous Chef Seadon Shouse, Executive Chef of Halifax Hoboken, and the marvelous owners and staff. On the week of my birthday, two days after I'd had the beautiful blessing of enjoying the new delightful Happy Hour menu and wonderful mixology at Halifax Hoboken on the day of of my birthday, I had the double blessing of being at Little Bar for their new Pizza and Cocktails evening. 

The beautiful Dena McCoy, who I've also written about in these pages before, took a trip across and under two Rivers, the East River and the Hudson River, to visit me from Long Island City in Queens, and she met me at YES Gallery first. We walked over to Little Bar, enjoying the loveliness of a Hoboken winter evening, and found ourselves at Little Bar where it's always so welcoming and precious and the most wonderful place to be. In warmer months it's a cool and inviting space and in winter so cozy, and I had been wanting pizza for a while so hearing that they had a pizza and cocktails evening they were starting as a regular weekly event was just what I had been wishing for and even more because of the place where it was.

Little Bar is one of those places where I could go every afternoon or evening, because everything on their menu is a treat. The wine list, as always with Chef Shouse, is wonderfully curated, and the cocktails have such fun and inventive names that add to the delicious experience of their carefully crafted flavors. Pizza night was such a beautiful experience, and the pizza was outstanding. We tried a mushroom pizza and one with prosciutto and were tempted to try even more, but we decided to leave that for next time as we know we'll want to go back for a visit to the sweet gem of a jewelbox place.

An Evening At Little Bar

For Pizza And Cocktails

With The Gorgeous Dena McCoy

The Marvelous Hector

Crafting A Smoky Chocolate Delight

With Palo Santo

A Very Happy Birthday Celebration

Photograph With So Much Gratitude

To The Gorgeous Dena McCoy 

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - The Happiest Hours

This past week I celebrated my birthday, and I was blessed to have two wonderful places to visit on two different nights, Halifax and Little Bar, both favorites that are connected together in Hoboken through the marvelous Executive Chef Seadon Shouse and the marvelous owners and staff.

I've written about both wonderful places before, so I'll just write a little here about the special evenings I enjoyed during my birthday celebrations. This week I'll share about Halifax and the new Happy Hour menu and I'll share about Little Bar and the wonderful Wednesday pizza and cocktails night that I had the absolute pleasure of enjoying there in a future post.

Halifax as I've written before is one of those places I could go to any time and have the most wonderful experience because of the beauty of the design and the wonderful creations of Executive Chef Season Shouse along with the wonderful cocktails and wine selections, and the wonderful staff, with a combination of talents and gifts and expertise that makes every moment so beautiful and so special.

On the day of my birthday I had been thinking that I wanted to go to Halifax and when I heard they had started a new happy hour with a special menu it was the perfect place to go on my own special day. I started the afternoon at YES Gallery and walked over to Halifax while the light was still in the late afternoon sky, so I was able to watch the view of the Manhattan Skyline from the restaurant as I enjoyed the menu tastes and treats.

Oysters are always my first choice, especially when they are as fresh and wonderful as they are at Halifax. Chef Shouse is such a wonderful Chef that even the sauces with the oysters are special. I usually use very little cocktail sauce with oysters, especially when they are this fresh and excellent, but the cocktail sauce that arrived with these wonders was so delicious I could have eaten it by the spoonful. Afterward I tried the Lamb Meatball Sliders with Smoked Gorgonzola Fondue and Parsley the Mini Fish & Chips, both presented so beautifully and so delicious with such layered flavors and textures that they brought a smile to my already celebrating face. I decided to try the Squash Flatbread with Squash Ricotta, Mozzarella, Pancetta, Arugula and Pickled Squash, a delightful and lovely way to end my evening's choices. For cocktails I tried the Boulevardeiro, the Kingfisher Manhattan and a Once In A Dream, all beautifully presented and layered with flavors of smooth goodness. For the sparkling part of my birthday as anyone who knows me knows is always a first choice, I tried the happy hour special of Veuve du Vernay which was wonderful, along with my regular favorite at Halifax, Benjamin Bridge.

Being able to celebrate this special day in this special place was truly a gift and blessing, and one that reminded me again of how beautiful life can be when there are such wonderfully talented and gifted Chefs like the marvelous Executive Chef Seadon Shouse and such wonderful owners and staff as those at Halifax Hoboken. Such happy hours as these are make every day more beautiful.

A Happy Hour

Birthday Celebration

At Halifax Hoboken

With So Much Gratitude

To The Marvelous

Executive Chef Seadon Shouse

And The Marvelous Owners And Staff

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Vintage Sweetness

A few years ago I found a wonderful and very sweet vintage music box Christmas carousel at a favorite thrift store. If I am remembering correctly the place where I found it is no longer there, but it was one of the places where I used to go and find all sorts of beautiful treasures. The year that I found the carousel I posted a video of it on Instagram, and then each year afterward for some reason, though I kept it out year round, I didn't find the time or the place to play and post it again.

This year, right before Christmas, I decided to move it from its year round place and move it to the table to see if it was still working. I wasn't sure if it had batteries or how it operated because when I had originally found it, the mechanism was turning and music was playing and I hadn't checked to see how. This time, when I turned on the on switch, nothing happened, and so I started looking for the place where batteries might go. There was a little door on the bottom that had a screw in it that looked as if it might house batteries, but the writing on it was so tiny and difficult to read I had to get my flashlight out and the magnifier on my phone camera to check for sure.

The words were still difficult to make out, but it seemed like I saw something that said batteries, so I tried to open up the screw on the cover of the case. It was very difficult to do, and though I tried for quite a while it seemed as if whoever had used it last had made the screw impossible to open, and so I decided to break open the hinges on the little door as carefully as possible in hopes that I wouldn't ruin it entirely. It took me a while, but I was able to do it, and when the hinges were finally broken away and the door was open, I saw the batteries inside that were needed. They were a size that I didn't have any extras of, and because of the schedule I had over the holidays it took me a little while to go find them at the store. When I finally did it was well into January, but I decided to post a video of it playing anyway because it was so joyful and sweet. 

There is something about music boxes that always makes me happy, and the ones that turn are even more special. My grandmother loved music boxes and my mother loved carousels, so this very sweet design with its German Christmas songs made me think of both of those wonderful women and all the sweet and joyful times we had together. Christmas has always been a special time for me and this year I have allowed myself to take time to savor it for a few extra weeks. It's coming up to my birthday and the Christmas decorations at YES Gallery are still there. I was thinking today that I might leave them until the end of the month this time, and as I was on my way home a saw that some neighbors still have theirs up too, so maybe the ones I have still up are bringing joy to other people too, along with the sweetness of the vintage holiday memories that I have from years gone by.

A Musical Vintage Christmas Carousel

To Sweeten Cold January Days

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - January Glow

January is a very strange time of the year sometimes, with cold and wet weather setting in, sometimes snow, sometimes rain, and days that feel gray or chilly in a way that December keeps away with it's holiday cheer. It's my birthday month, so I always feel like celebrating, but sometimes people seem to be staying home or maybe they've gone away, it's break time or just time to take it slowly and hibernate.

For me, the snow and cold of January reminds me that not only is my birthday and a time of celebration near, but after January we are really almost through winter. I've never been fond of the cold, although I do like snow when I'm able to be home and cozy, but somehow YES Gallery has been still feeling like springtime even though the plants are inside and the daylight is shorter and the door to the outside needs to stay closed.

Just after the New Year Casey Cotton Kirsch, whose gorgeous handmade ornaments are in the gallery now, stopped by to give me some Christmas lights she had just taken off of her tree. She had seen how I loved to decorate for Christmas, and had said she had some extra lights to share, and when she did I told her I would most likely be using them year round. Usually the lights I have are white lights, something that is left over from my own childhood and the way my Mother always decorated during the Christmas and winter season, but the lights Casey shared with me were multicolored and so I started to think about the best place where they could add their party glow.

After a short while I decided on trying them in the loft, and from the first moment it seemed like they were meant to be there. I had been wanting to figure out a way to add more light there, and there are some chandeliers I've found in different places that are not hooked up but are still pretty up there, so I draped the lights around the space and now it has a very fun and almost vacation den or private room feeling to it. People always loved that space before and it's so much fun to create different areas in the gallery that feel almost like their own spaces, so now in January we can feel like we're not only somewhere cozy, but also somewhere that could just be the nicest party spot of all.

Multicolored Lights

Adorning The Loft

At YES Gallery

With So Much Gratitude

To The Gorgeous Casey Cotton Kirsch

The Glowing Lights

Along With A View Of

Some Of The Beautiful Ornaments

Created By Casey Cotton Kirsch

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

 

An Abundant Life - Living Gracefully

I met the gorgeous Dena McCoy through Instagram first. She is a dear friend and colleague of some wonderful people I know and some who I have written about in these pages before, and so in the way connections through social media are made when wonderful people are connected through other wonderful people, we started following each other and I knew because of the people she was connected to that she would be as beautiful inside as she is on the outside.

Over time as I began to read her posts, I started seeing mentions of a book that she'd written titled Greed & Grace and when I looked up more information about the book I saw that it had some resonances with experiences I've been having in my own life. I kept feeling as if I wanted to reach out to her, but I am always aware of being very careful to respect people's privacy, and though she'd written about her life and published a book, I didn't want to presume that she'd want to talk to me about it. Then at one point she posted that the book was published by Trilogy Christian Publishing, and I have a very lovely memory and connection with Trinity Broadcast Network, or TBN, which is the parent company of Trilogy. When I was teaching community nutrition and health workshops I was introduced to TBN by an Episcopal Priest who was in one of my classes, and I was invited to be on their show Doctor To Doctor which at that time was filmed in their studio on 16th Street in New York City. Trilogy is a fairly new part of the wonderful work that TBN does, and seeing that Dena had published through this wonderful company made me even more interested to find out more about this woman who was doing so many wonderful and special things.

Not long after I saw the post about Trilogy, she began to post some truly beautiful performances and songs recorded by her daughter, Ava. I love to support Artists of all kinds through this blog, at YES Gallery, and in other ways as well, but because of my own background I am very careful about the people I write about and promote through my gallery and my work, making sure that it is only the best of the best, Artists, Writers, and Performers who are truly excellent in their work and who they are as people. Each performance and video Dena posted of Ava was so deeply meaningful, with songs and a delivery that were unique and memorable, and a voice that is completely her own. I felt again so strongly that I wanted to reach out to Dena, to offer to write about Ava and about her, but I hesitated again because it seemed that these beautiful and immensely talented powerhouses of women already had everything and everyone they needed. But as I prayed about it, I felt as if I should just go ahead and send a message to Dena and so I did, and when I heard back she was so gracious and kind and grateful for my offer that I immediately felt a warm and welcoming glow through the messages. We set up an appointment to meet and had a lovely brunch together that I wrote about at that time, at Cafe Henri in Long Island City on a beautiful afternoon that I will always treasure the memory of.

To say that meeting Dena was life changing is an understatement. That day she shared so much time with me, in a generosity of spirit and grace, and since that beautiful day we have shared messages and conversation that have helped me navigate some very challenging aspects of my own life. I began to read her book Greed & Grace right after our meeting, and not only is is very well written and enjoyable to read for the skillful writing of it, but it is powerfully empowering in its honesty, humility, and graceful telling of this beautiful woman's most vulnerable and difficult moments in her life's journey as she grows in faith and her walk with God.

In a featured Artist highlight on SohoMuse, she is described as the New York based writer and Author of Greed & Grace, a member of The Authors Guild, and a graduate of the University of California Berkeley with a degree in Humanities, an entrepreneur, commercial actor, occasional runway and print model as well as the proud fourth-generation Trustee and Vice President of her family's seventy-three year old philanthropic foundation in her home state of Oregon. The audio book version of her memoir Greed & Grace was recently recorded and narrated by Dena, and will be available on all platforms soon.

On her Linktree she describes herself as an Author, Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Creative and a Mom, and while she is all of those things she is so much more. Dena McCoy is a life force for good and grace and for uplifting and helping others to move through their experiences of darkness and feelings of weakness to find their power and joy.  She is an overcomer who helps others to overcome, and to walk in the light of who God has called them to be.

There are so many wonderful places where you can find out more about Dena, and here is a list with links for some of her podcasts, and the magazine articles and features that have been written about and with her:

Publications:

Red The Luxury Life October 2022

https://www.instagram.comETT Women and Bella Around Town Empower Overcome Succeed

https://www.instagram.com/reel

https://www.instagram.com/reel/NYFW

https://www.instagram.com/ElieBalleh

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Red The Luxury Life August 2022

https://www.instagram.com/Red The Luxury Life Post May 2022

https://www.instagram.com/tv/Bella Magazine Women Of Influence Issue April 2022 Post

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Bella Magazine Greed & Grace

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Red The Luxury Life March 2022 Post

https://www.instagram.com/tv/Red The Luxury Life March 2022 Introduction

Podcasts:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/The Julie Chan Show

https://open.spotify.com/episode/26elEwYjm8Jh8DloqI0kMv?si=DNoVMQHMQ2Gi8tcnZoz4Zg&nd=1&dlsi=073d44f704294fa6

https://www.instagram.com/tv/Madison Malloy Next To Madison

https://www.instagram.com/Madison Malloy Post

Article Written By Dena McCoy:

https://www.instagram.com/Metropolitan Magazine The Avadora Mimouni Collection NYFW

Link Tree:

https://linktr.ee/denamccoy

Dena McCoy

Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Mother

Multi Talented Creative

Author of Greed & Grace

https://linktr.ee/denamccoy

Blessings,

Jannie Susan 

An Abundant Life - A Very Beautiful And Special New Year!

On the morning of New Year's Day I woke up to see a very large bird outside of my window, perched on the top of the fire escape that goes up to the roof. It was such a very big bird that I said, "Oh, Wow!" out loud and took a picture of it. When I checked the time on the photograph it was 8:08 am. I had woken up much earlier but decided to go back to sleep for a bit, and this was what I would consider the time when I was really waking up. Later, when I looked up the bird to try to find out what kind it was, I saw that it was a falcon. I had seen it one day recently out of a different window, swooping out of a tree across the street, and I think it might have a nest there, but to have it appear at the moment I was waking up on New Year's Day felt like a very special and beautiful gift.

When I went to YES Gallery that afternoon, it was very quiet, and because I had arrived fairly early, I decided that I'd leave earlier so I could get home before the weather grew colder. There was a wonderful neighbor who had stopped by two days before and he had said that he might be stopping by with his wife to look at some art together and possibly get some ornaments and maybe have her try to find a pair of earrings she liked. I kept checking my messages to see if he was going to stop by and when I didn't see anything as it began to grow darker, I decided that they must have been planning to visit another day.

Just as I was walking out of the gallery and locking up, I took a little extra time to look in the windows and enjoy the lovely views, as as I paused on the sidewalk, the lovely couple arrived. They are so kind and pleasant and they said they could come back another day, but I didn't mind opening up again and so I did. They looked at art and chose some ornaments and a pair of earrings and we talked a bit and then they went on their way. Such a lovely way to end the day after such a lovely way it had started! Here's to more days like this and a very happy New Year!

A Wonderful Morning Visitor

Outside My Window

A Falcon Bringing Good Cheer

Lovely Visitors In The Evening

Who Brightened The Day

As They Admired Art

And Gave Their Support

To The Artists And YES Gallery

Blessings,

Jannie Susan