Painted angels and evergreens

September 28, 2001


she asked me if there were evergreen trees nearby. “i see palm trees everywhere, but no evergreens. i didn’t know LA would be like this.”

i scanned the streets in my mind but couldn’t think of anywhere with evergreens, not in the city. “i don’t know,” i said. “why?”

“i’m just looking for a place to sleep.”

she didn’t have camping gear, just a sleeping bag, just enough to wrap herself up and fall into slumber.

“but i can’t sleep under a palm tree or on the beach,” she said. “it’s too wide open.”

she paints landscapes and angels but does office work, any kind of office work. “do you know of any jobs?” i said no. “do you know of anyone who needs a housesitter?” i shook my head. “do you know anyone driving to arizona?” i wanted to say yes to something she asked, anything she asked, but i couldn’t.

she was in santa barbara before los angeles and new york before santa barbara. i don’t know where she was before new york, but she has no ties to the city. she needed to find somewhere to stay and something to do. a place to live, a way to make a living. a life.

“do you know any good spiritual places?”

i asked her if she practiced a particular faith, but she said no. “i take what i can get.”

 


  • I'm Christine, and this is a slice of my life—a sweet, rich, wildly indulgent slice that would taste really good with a scoop of Breyers vanilla bean ice cream. Read more >>


  • I run a darling, friendly, little graphic design studio.
    I look on the bright side.
    I take photos. Lots of photos.
    I wish on stars and on websites.


  • I built my first web site 7 years ago and got 15 seconds of fame. (It changed my life.)
    I launched, then relaunched, an online magazine.
    I admitted to several embarrassing crushes.
    I consumed more bacon than any human should and lived to tell the tales.






  • 5-Minute Crush
  • Baby Mama
  • Crafterrific
  • Field Trip
  • Good People
  • Good Things
  • Home Life
  • I Spy
  • Kitchenista
  • Newsflash
  • Shutterbug
  • Sketchbook
  • Special Delivery
  • Today
  • Worker Bee