Ray

In the house

Ray is over for dinner with newlywed Monica - they are visiting Paris and hop across the Channel for a few days of London, staying in the cool part of town - Shoreditch - taking it all in.

Originally from Louisiana and now Berkeley longtime, Ray is busy making and selling art, teaching silkscreen printing as an ongoing faculty member at the Richmond Art Center and a seminal member of The Art of Living Black, the Bay Area’s longest running annual African American exhibition of its kind. His studio in West Oakland at American Street Studie where his interests includes Graffiti Art, Urban Art, abstract paintings, silkscreen prints and drawings.

"Painting is layers of time, media, gesture and color that allow for declarative expressions of documentation. The act of painting is like breathing; one never stops but is often unconscious of these subliminal acts. My finished paintings are products of balance, color, texture and gesture. The necessity to paint resonates within me and the painting informs me when it is complete."

--Ray Haywood

Madeleine: "He's pretty cool, isn't he?"

Me: "Yep."

Running

Crystal Palace

Eitan and Madeleine finish their term - summer holiday ! I own them for chores, and encourage book reading and running or other exercises. A few days in and already lethargy. 

Stan and Katie arrive for a two week visit. Katie a trained classical pianist and night owl and we are often to bed with kitchen lights dimmed and hushed voices and giggling. We have two sets of teenagers in the house.

Despite the clouds at Crystal Palace, the sun pokes through for a sunny afternoon. 

On Astorg

I am in Paris for a couple days and now in the midst of fundraising for Astorg's sixth fund. Our target is €1.5bn, a large amount, but in line with the last GP. Astorg has delivered strong performance while protecting retirement, workers and teachers money - since 1998, Astorg has lost €30m on €1.9bn of invested capital for a low loss ratio of 1.7% (the figure drops to 1.4% if co investment controlled by the GP include in the denominator).

Astorg's strategy similar to any value investor : buy niche leading global companies that enjoy large market shares and barriers to entry like economies of scale or scope. All the things I learned in a few key classes of business school (the best class, Value Investing, taught by Bruce Greenwald, close friend and advisor to Warren Buffet. Greenwald would tell his class of 300 students that he taught for the 2 or 3 students who would be able to employ his concepts. Bruce asked me to be his TA second year). Astorg has not had a write down or write off in ten years.

Eitan runs a 1500m in 3:35 at Crystal Palace.

Eitan: "Do I really have to do this again?"
Me: "What you will find in life is that if you don't do a good job on the final 2% you won't get credit for the 98."

Wimbledon And Greece

Outside Centre Court

It is that time of year, and the best time in Britain: predictably nice weather, late evening sunsets and August holidays around the corner. It makes up for the winter, almost.

The Germans should be the first to offer generosity to the Greeks, having had their own debts resolved in the 1953 London Debt Agreement. The total under negotiation was 16 billion marks of debt resulting from the Treaty of Versailles after World War I which had not been paid in the 1930s, but which Germany decided to repay to restore its reputation. This money was owed to government and private banks in the U.S., France and Britain. Another 16 billion marks represented postwar loans by the U.S. Under the London Debts Agreement of 1953, the repayable amount was reduced by 50% to about 15 billion marks and stretched out over 30 years, and compared to the fast-growing German economy were of minor impact.

No, the Germans just tighten the screws, also being the last and only hold-out for Eurobonds. The 2010 bailout was really from the Western banks, who provided over €300bn of loans - German's 56bn the largest.

Now the debt has been "nationalised" by the ECB or provisioned for by the private sector - hence, some comfort that a banking meltdown reduced.

That said, Greece will never be able to repay - the IMF says so - similar to Germany, Argentina and Brazil in the 90s. Eventually relief will come but how much longer will the Greek European citizens suffer ?

Warm Up

It's a fine thing when a bunch of brothers from the day regroup to raft down a river, which we do on the American River, South Fork. The occasion is Christian's wedding and replaces a stag night or boozy affair, though there is plenty of that.  Despite the terrible drought in California, the river is near full during peak runs due to dam releases for recreational purposes. My family did this trip in 1985 or 86 - photo on the living room piano.

My drama occurs when the boat capsizes dumping us in the current and .. glasses gone. It is a pickle for many reasons including my upcoming meetings and how to drive home? We are in the middle of nowhere.

Yet with 9 guys thinking creatively for a solution, I am able to get a new pair inside three hours (Jorgen: code name "Mission To Succeed"). Crisis averted.

It's remarkable to see friends I have been away from for many years. We have all aged, with ups and downs along the way, but the humour remains above all else.

Roger 49

Roger and I hang out in Palo Alto on his birthday. How the hell did we get here?

Roger's company Box famously went public this year and now he is living in an exclusive postal code in a beautiful house. No commute, either. Older daughter Sophie has become a serious swimmer - having been on the school record-setting 4X100 relay and swimming in state champs last month. She's also a violinist and damn good student. And she has a driver's licence for 4:30AM practices.  College is around the corner.  Thomas is jamming in Lacrosse. Sit back and enjoy, dude.

A Megawatt

I catch up with Tim who has been living the dream, having fully transitioned from Brooklyn to the West Coast, and CFO of Yingli, the world's largest solar panel manufacturer. The margins may be razor thin but the volumes, oi vey.

In 2013, 37,007 megawatts of solar PV power were installed and world solar PV power capacity increased about 35% to 136,697 MW. One MW can power thousands of homes.

Europe, thanks to Germany, has dominated annual growth until 2013 when China topped the tables (Germany's subsidies have allowed volume uptakes that have driven pricing down globally).

Installation of solars panels in the UK is now ca. £8k. When I looked into panelling our home in 2011, it was £15K. Solar PV today accounts for 3% of electricity demand in Europe and about 6% of peak electricity demand. Trending in the right direction but will it be enough?

Evolution of global annual installation:

Sweety Pie

The cat

I am at 1530 for several days and my parents surrounded by their wonderful pets and everything else: exercise (Moe: 5AM), the view, NYT, books, a dog walk, some afternoon television followed by cooking/ dinner, a glass of wine and early to bed. Life is good.

I spend the morning with the Stanford endowment, which is loaded, yet I am more impressed by the campus : it has everything including space and nice weather. I watch a team of athletes stroll by without a worry in the world. This really is the best university in America, connected into Silicon Valley, attracting the smartest minds in the country. It makes the Ivy League seem fuddy-duddy. Who cares about the East Coast ? The action is here and now. Get in while you're young.

L.A. Gehry

Catching up following a long absence from my blog . ..

Christian and I join Lisa for lunch in downtown LA then hang out at the LA public library and it's lovely art deco entrance space and soothing Greek fountains, surrounded by skyscrapers (NB, With more than six million volumes, it is one of the largest public funded libraries in the world). 

Christian and Lisa on course to be married in September. We are on course for a weekend down the American River, South Fork. Supposed to be a surprise but that cat long out of the bag.

El Lay

From Los Angeles I take a late evening flight to San Francisco, catching bart to the East Bay. A family joins with six rowdy 5-6 years olds who squeel and scream, climbing over the seats and trampling on each other. Dad has a gold grill on his front teeth and mom every now and then yells at the youngsters to 'shut the hell up." Eventually I move to another seat.

A nice thing, in Berkeley, are the train horns which waft up from the flats into the Berkeley hills. Fog horns boom at the entrance of the Golden Gate Bridge, doing so since 1937, guiding 100s of thousands of ships through the Golden Gate straight and forewarning San Franciscans when fog rolling in to envelope the city. They operate, on average, 2 hours a day (in the summer fog months, it is over 5 hours a day).  In 1994 the fog horns were to be silenced for better technology but the howling protests ensure the fog horns longevity.

Hipster

Following morning meetings, Christian and I connect at Sunset Junction just beyond the Downtown LA, in an area now called "Silver Lake". The mildly predatory skyline visible in the distance (I don't know if it is the concentration,  mismatching styles or height, but I find the center oppressive).  It reminds me of The Mission in San Francisco or Shoreditch - scruffy and tattered yet dotted with coffee shops, music venues and restaurants. We sit outside at a cafe and watch the cool people go by - models, artists, journey men and actors (I recognise at least one). It is sunny and nobody seems to be in a particular hurry.

Christian and I catch up on the usual life stuff. Can we be approaching late 40s ? He prepares for the September wedding which will be in Palm Springs. Otherwises its music and the various gossips that keep us occupied. We have lunch with Lisa then sit outside the art deco Los Angeles library.

Catherine And Anneke

I arrive from Paris to LA in time for dinner with Catherine, Peter and Anneke, who is going on 7 and cute as a button. Peter continues to pull money and projects together for Chinese-American films (he is in Beijing often) while he and Catherine or organising the first China Week in Los Angeles which will actually last three and include cultural events across the city. They are doing exciting things.

Southern California is brown following four years of drought. Yet it is blue skies, Pacific Ocean and balmy temperatures. One could get used to this fast.

Serge Gainsbourg

Rue due Vaneuil

Paris, May 23, 2007: Carefully avoiding eye contact with the tourists in the street, Charlotte Gainsbourg quickly lets me into the small, graffiti-covered house at 5 bis Rue de Verneuil. Two blocks from Boulevard Saint-Germain in the Seventh Arrondissement, the house is where her father, Serge Gainsbourg, lived and, on March 2, 1991, died at the age of 62. In the days following his death, France went into mourning, fans crowded the tiny street singing his songs, and the women closest to him sat in his bedroom with his body for four days because Charlotte didn't want to let him go. For 16 years this house has been shuttered and locked, with only the housekeeper or occasional family member allowed inside. Charlotte, an actress and a huge star in France, is now the owner of the house and wants, with the help of architect Jean Nouvel, to turn it into a museum. For the first time since Serge Gainsbourg's death, she has agreed to reveal the private world of France's most beloved and important songwriter.

--Vanity Fair, 2007

Update: the house has not been converted to a museum and remains locked. It is a curiosity for tourists.

Selfie - Eric And Simona !

Marias

Sonnet takes me to Au Bourguignon du Maria where we visited 15 years ago when the restaurant first opened and reviewed for its fois gras. Joining us - a complete surprise - are Eric and Simona, who are on their way to Romania and yet there they are for dinner.  We have a truly wonderful evening.

Today we join for a cafe followed by a Sunday at the Clignancourt Les Puces flea market, the biggest in Europe, on the outer edge of Paris. Once may find everything from antiques to taxidermy. It's not quite Kashgar on the Taklamakan Desert but it does have a similar broad variety of wares though not Kalashnikovs nor animal guts. Still, one may find about whatever one needs.

We wrap up a perfect day in the historic Jewish quarter with fafel.

Etienne-Martin

Étienne Martin was a non-figurative sculptor.

Eitienne-Martin (1913-1995) began making sculpture in the mid 1930s. During the Second World War he was a prisoner of Germany, being liberated in 1941.  Soon after,  in Dieuleft, in the South of France, he met the critic and collector Henri-Pierre Roche who would support him on his return to Paris. A modernist fringe-figure, E-M explored his 'individual mythologies', to quote Harold Szeeman, who invited him to show at the Document 5 in Kassel, in 1972.

Why not?

48 And Feeling Fine

Self Portrait XXXXV

Sonnet and I visit three museums: Palais Galliera, where Sonnet sees an exhibition on Jean Labin, a Paris coutuerier active from c. 1900 to 1946; The Musee d'Art Moderne; and Ives Saint Laurent museum for an exhibition on YSL's 1971 collection. That year, Laurent shocked the critics who chastised his revisiting a period of wartime deprivation as a source for inspiration. The collection includes bold prints, boxy jackets and garish colours. Of note, the models had normal shapes and not overly sexualised. 

1971

The Flight Path Is Blue

The schematic presents the areas of London to be effected should Heathrow build a 3rd runway (the area in blue). Basically it is everyone.

No doubt Heathrow needs a 3rd runway given the current operation is running at 98% capacity with planes swooping down every two minutes during the morning and afternoon run. Anyone can see the projections: an extra 25-30 million passengers a year by 2050.  Unfortunately Heathrow is horribly located. Not only that, the flight paths cross wealthy neighbourhoods including Richmond, Chelsea, Barnes and, yes, East Sheen. These communities have the political clout to fight. What London needs is some forward planning and a new airport. Good luck with that.

Study for the Dance Mural

Oo la la Matisse

Sonnet and I visit the Musee d'Art Moderne in the 16e where we check out a dry run of Matisse's "Dance", which he eventually painted for the Barnes Foundation (outside of Philadelphia) in 1931. The painting in the background was lost only to be rediscovered in Paris in 1992 and now on display at the Moderne. It is one of two Dance murals on display in the gallery. Sonnet says, "How they have installed the painting is amazing - as you approach it, down a set of stairs, the mural fills your line of vision."

We leave Eitan and Madeleine with our au pair for a long weekend in Paris. Eitan invited to a teenage party for popular twins at Eitan's sister all-girls school. Richard, our stand-in chauffeur, reports that there were no shenanigans at the 11PM pick-up.

Tyler, my childhood friend visiting from Berkeley, and I reminisce on Eitan's age: for us, it included naked hot tubs, alcohol and marijuana cigarettes (as Moe once called weed). Yours, truly, missed out on the fun for swimming laps (Eitan, Madelein: take note).  Tyler and I agree that the parents of that era or, at least, many parents in Berkeley, swung too far left on the freedom pendulum.

Night Of The Banana

Sonnet orders 13 lbs of bananas instead of 13 bananas in her weekly online shopping which means we have bananas everywhere. I've been giving them away by the dozens. Even Eitan, who is rarely seen outside of the refrigerator these days, balks. Sonnet plans to make a bunch of banana bread. I expect we will be serving it at Christmas.

Hiker

Moe in the '60s. My guess Yosemite or Tahoe.

Madeleine has the London Schools Athletic Championships coming up.
Madeleine: "Dad will you fill out and sign this form?"
Me: "You fill it out. I will do the signing."
Madeleine: "I can't! There is all this stuff on there that I don't know!" [Dad's note: I look at the form]
Me: "You can do it. You certainly know your address young lady."
Madeleine fills out the forms. Madeleine: "It says 'visual.' What does 'visual' mean?"
Me: "It's a check-box. You check it if you have visual problems."
Madeleine: "So do I check it?"
Me: "Is there a box for less-than-average intelligence."
Madeleine: "Ha ha ha very funny, Dad."
Me: "Where do you need me to sign it?"
Madeleine: "At the bottom."
Me: "Now that wasn't so hard, was it?"
Madeleine: "For you, maybe."