Morphine Miracle for Xmas

I have never been a fan of the xmas season. I'm so secular-minded that using the correct spelling of Christmas makes me feel a little uncomfortable. And I'm such an active person that having to wait around while the Holidays pass by is very frustrating for me. So, I'm predisposed to be cranky the last couple of weeks of December. It didn't help that I spent most of xmas eve writhing on a gurney at the Kaiser Health Village down the street from my apartment building. I had just gone to bed after preparing for my flight to the Chicago area to see my family. I was dreading the trip as I thought I'd be stuck at the airport while the various massive storms were swirling about the country. Then the slow realization came that I might not even be going.



Ever have kidney stones? Not much fun at all. Extremely sharp abdominal pain that builds up over hours, sometimes days. The kind of pain you can't ignore or escape effectively. Not really much you can do. I had to be sure that's what it was though, so I walked down the street to the hospital. Strangely enough I've walked to the hospital before while thus afflicted more than 20 years ago in Washington DC when I was going to art school at the Corcoran.

An IV of Morphine and Dilaudid later and I was singing a different tune. Heavy medicine is just so grooovy sometimes. It's an interesting sensation to be in serious pain but not able to feel it. I'm not sure exactly when the stone passed but, it really just didn't matter anymore. I had just enough time to walk home and get an hour of sleep before my flight.

And then the xmas miracle happened. Walking toward my gate at LAX an island of splendor filled my view. Truly a vision of crafty refulgence charmed me behind the pexiglass case. A little art show in the aisle, how quaint. Now I know how the three kings must of felt as they walked through the desert wilderness, guided by the light of a supernova toward a glowing Jewish baby in a manger.



Ok, maybe it was just the Morphine but I was fascinated and impressed by the whimsical display. All the art pieces were made from items bought at 99 cent stores. A clever idea. I like clever. The Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs put this show together that included assemblage, sculpture, and collage by Los Angeles area artists.



My favorite was a futuristic, Metropolis-esque cityscape made out of children's supperware, toy cars, and Spice Girls by Elena Siff. Other highlights were Bill Anderson's Bones and Roses made out of dog bones and plastic roses, Matthew DeHaven's Artemis Ephesus - Allegory of the Easter Eggs made of plastic Easter eggs, plastic flowers and basket. Also a favorite was Carolyn Mason's "Collection" made from various kitchenware items presented like a cache exhumed from an archeological dig.