Canned Ham 2.0

What do you do when you've been a Broadway actor, adult film star, and house flipper, all in one lifetime? You write a one-man cabaret act featuring 12 different musical instruments, that's what you do! Better yet, have a fab NYC opening on your 50th birthday. Only Tom Judson could pull off such a feat. This time last year, James and I caught his early performance of Tom's show Canned Ham at Dixon Place. Since then, Tom has been on tour, playing to sold out performances in Provincetown for the summer. Don't miss out on his Dixon Place show on the 14th of November, 7pm. Tickets are going quickly.

500! Blog Entries

I don't normally put much stock in numerology, but it seems most appropriate to write about Potic Cottage for my 500th blog entry. Bouler Design Group, the blog, started about two years ago in an attempt to chronicle our addition to the cottage and Bouler Architecture's projects. What I didn't imagine was how blogging would take me on field trips, introduce me to other fantastic bloggers (hello modernemama, Ciao, Chessa!, and Tom Judson!), and become a space for me to explore ideas of all kinds. I've used it as a teaching tool, a family scrap book, and a sounding board.
The 500th entry coincides with 10-10-10, a magical number in itself. We celebrated by picking apples at a local orchard and picking up pumpkins at Black Horse Farms. Tom Judson and Jonathan Wilber popped by the cottage to check on the fort. But the big news was that it was also the day where Olivia finished the manuscript and illustrations for her children's book.
Needless to say it is remarkable how my life has evolved over 500 entries, and for that, I am infinitely grateful.

Ol' Blue

Cars are a superficial way we define ourselves and others. A new Corvette? Mid-life crisis. Mini-van? Make that a double mid-life crisis with a built-in DVD player along with the third row of seats. For me, I knew Potic Cottage would never be complete without a pick-up truck.

It was a magical moment-- me, the truck, Potic Cottage-- it all came together this weekend. The truck, yet another way actor/musician/fabulous person Tom Judson has enriched our lives, is perfect for bringing the kyack to Green Lake, or for hauling furniture, or for all those rugged things I've been known to do (uh, well, maybe not so much, but now with the truck-- definitely maybe!) Too bad I had to leave it behind as we cut our week upstate short due to heavy rain and coastal flooding back home in Islip. The perfect vehicle for that moment? Ark.

Elvis: An American Icon

Long before the celeb culture of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, there was Elvis. A boy from Mississippi, Elvis Presley, who would have turned 75 last week, remains forever etched in our minds as the quintessential American pop icon. With talent and good looks, Graceland's demi-god became a symbol of mid-century American prosperity, much like Coca-Cola and Campbell's soup cans. Ray Johnson was the first to make him the subject of a pop painting in 1956, well before Andy Warhol's silkscreened images in the 1960's. Johnson's image foretold the tragic hero Elvis would eventally become, entitling his collage, Oedipus Elvis. It amazes me that Johnson would have the insight paint this rising epic icon and the hubris which would eventually destroy him.
Warhol's depictions are far more straightforward-- his traditional photosilkscreens manufacturing images of Elvis in his studio aptly called The Factory. In this diptych, Elvis is taking aim at his viewer, and yet slowly fading out across the canvas.

More recently collage artist Louise Millmann shrank Elvis, reducing him to a postage stamp and a kiss.

On the homefront, our Canned Ham magnet, courtesy of Tom Judson, has had a recent makeover; it's been Elvis-ified.

Canned Ham: Live From NYC

Very few of us would have the courage to a) write an intensely personal memoir revealing our lives, b) perform it on stage to a live audience, and c) talk about sex in front of our parents. Tom Judson did all three last night at NYC's Dixon Place, with style, wit, and an accordion. The show, which was just a glimmer of an idea earlier this year, became a reality to a packed house of Tom's family and friends. Afterwards, we gathered at the Remedy Diner to recap the highlights of his performance. Producer Robbi Kearns shared with us his hopes to raise enough capital in order to kickstart a NYC run of the show this coming November before Tom hits the road in his camper for a national tour. If the life lessons of Tom's show hold true, anything is possible. For more on Tom, check out Wickham Boyle's article in Gay City News.

Tom Judson: A One Man Show

There's still time to get your tickets to Tom Judson's one man show, Canned Ham, a chronicle of his life-- from Broadway to adult films, to house renovation and beyond. Time Out New York's current issue features Tom and the show, which will take place Wednesday, September 23rd and Thursday, September 24th at Dixon Place on the lower east side. This is no ordinary event-- with a line up of Broadway's heavy hitters helping Tom put the final touches on his performance, so don't miss it. Otherwise you will have to hit the road as Tom travels in his camper, with performances criss-crossing the United States.

Labor Day Weekend

With the air a crisp sixty degrees at sunset, this weekend seemed like the perfect time to fire up the Preway fireplace for its inaugural use. In fact, I bought a set of 'new' glasses (6 for $18) at the Ravina flea market to mark the occasion. The fireplace and the glasses weren't the only new events of the evening. Check out our new view from the screened-in porch. Our potting shed, which was outfitted by Tom Judson to be a bedroom, was rolled back about 20 feet. No longer blocking our view of the sunset over the Catskill Mountains, the little cottage seems happier nestled between two evergreens.

Potic Mountain Evening

Last evening as the sun reached a perfect golden spot, we received a phone call from our Greene County cousin Tom Judson, who had just returned from the Dutch Caribbean Island of Saba the day before. After I bored him with renovation updates, Tom says, with his usual exuberance, "Well I'm headed right over your house in a hot air balloon. Look to the west." The family and I made our way outside to sit watch, Jackson with his binoculars, while I imagined Tom swooping down from the sky. Last time I saw that was a 1970's film version of Pippi Longstocking. We waited, looking this way and that, but no sign of Tom in his hot air balloon. We did, however, find a lovely toad we promptly named Tom in honor of the event.

Rattling the Canned Ham: A Bon Voyage Party

Leaving for the Dutch Caribbean island Saba for several months, Tom Jusdon's send off 'Hello, Goodbye' party was a smash success. With fab friends in tow, many of whom had never met each other before, Tom opened his home Idlewild and his camper Canned Ham for a sunny Memorial Day BBQ. Thanks to the name tags, our opening question thus became, "And how do you know Tom?" What was evident is that for many of us, beyond knowing Tom, we were creative folks who escaped our busy everyday lives to weekend places in the area. From Allan and Randy in Round Top, to Adam and Gregg in Freehold, Wicki and Zac in Germantown, David and Ralph in Athens, Bill in Cairo, Margo and Greg now in Earlton, and of course us on Potic Mountain Road, all of us agreed that our weekend places proved to be a saving grace, allowing us to unwind and in some ways, appreciate our weekday homes even more. As for the range of friendly people on hand, it also became clear that Tom collects people in the same way he collects careers: with wit and charm. We wish him well on his new adventure. Follow along with one of his two blogs: Rattling the Saba and Canned Ham.

Tom Judson: Part Two

As Tom Judson divests himself of possessions, I accumulate them, namely from his storage unit. With taste eerily similar to my own, it took great restraint not to be a greedy bugger, and choose pieces for Potic Cottage that would truly finish the place off. Only 665 square feet in size, clutter in the cottage is anathema, so bookshelves were in order. One of Tom's shelving units fit so well in the living room that all I needed to do was add books. As for the other shelf, a few quick coats of cherry stain integrated the unit into the bedroom and suddenly everything had a neat and organized home. But my favorite pieces were the small mirror I put over the dresser-- so sweet with its college banner stickers from the fifties, and the charming mid-century chair. It was fun to reorganize the cottage and do some much needed spring cleaning.

Tom Judson: Part One

The illustrious Tom Judson, who has reinvented himself more times than Madonna, is planning another journey. When we met Tom two years ago, we purchased Potic Cottage from him-- a place he renovated and decorated with taste strikingly similar to mine. He was in his "home remodeling phase" which is now leading him from his last renovation job Idlewild, pictured here, to Saba, a Caribbean island, where he will be renovating hotel cottages. His blog Rattling the Saba, is about the process of divesting himself of his belongings and heading on this very exciting adventure. While in Saba, Tom, a former Broadway musician and film actor, will write a one-man show about his life. In true multiple personality style, Tom is writing another blog, Canned Ham, where he chronicles his plans for adventure once he returns to the United States in the fall. Traveling cross-country in the camper featured above, Tom, armed with little more than an accordion and a smile, will perform his one-man show nationwide, interviewing and filming those he meets along the way. How could this not be an HBO special? Or at least a show on the Travel channel?

Now starring.... Tom Judson

While I am waiting on new floor plans, I felt it was a good opportunity to talk about the illustrious Tom Judson, or TJ as our children have started calling him. We purchased Potic Cottage from Tom in April of 2007, and in doing so, gained a friend in the process. Having gone from Broadway to house renovation, Tom did a great job making Potic Cottage charming and cozy, so much so that we bought all of its contents as well. The pictures above feature some of Tom's decorating style, including his homage to architect Frank Lloyd Wright in the form of a guest room with built-ins.
Better yet, Tom makes even the smallest moment fun. Just ask him about ordering pie at Koch's restaurant or the Town of Athens parade. His enthusiasm for life is contageous. When we first met Tom, he was housing a grand piano in his small kitchen, in lieu of a table and chairs. He can build a deck in record time, play the accordion, and quote Auntie Mame. What more could you want in a friend?
And wouldn't you know, he's even got a claw foot tub in storage---