Ceilings… Nothing More Than Ceilings

Ceilings, wo-o-o, ceilings… There were three accordion players (three very bad accordian players) in our plaza the other day. They weren’t here very long. Just long enough to mangle a song that, to my mind, was already mangled in the making. The song was “Feelings.” They played most of it. It was so bad, it was comical. I grabbed my camera to capture a video, but I arrived on the balcony to see a man get up from a table, walk over to the machine playing the back-up instrumentals, and abruptly switch it off. He said a few quiet words to the musicians. They packed up their accordions and marched off down the street. I only wish he had stopped them sooner, because that awful song has not stopped playing in my head.

So, today, when Tom and I paid a visit to the Museo de Bellas Artes (Museum of Fine Arts), and I once again saw the magnificent ceilings, the first word in my head was “Woe!” And, so, the song resumed. I thought it was only fitting to share the ceilings while I continue “trying to forget my feelings.”

The Museum of Fine Arts is a magnificent building with an impressive collection of art. Much of it is Christian in subject matter, and I lose interest in that quickly. But, there is enough other art and, of course the architecture, to keep my interest. I’ll share more of the museum and the collection in a future post.

My sincere apologies for planting the song in your heads. But, misery loves company.
Wo-o-o. Ceilings.
Wo-o-o. Ceilings.
Wo-o-o. Ceilings.

Nothing more than ceilings.

Author: Moving with Mitchell

From Brooklyn, New York; to North Massapequa; back to Brooklyn; Brockport, New York; back to Brooklyn... To Boston, Massachusetts, where I met Jerry... To Marina del Rey, California; Washington, DC; New Haven and Guilford, Connecticut; San Diego, San Francisco, Palm Springs, and Santa Barbara, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; Irvine, California; Sevilla, Spain. And Fuengirola, Málaga..

35 thoughts on “Ceilings… Nothing More Than Ceilings”

  1. I don't have Feelings or your version Ceilings stuck in my head, but I now have Lana Del Rey's Born to Die stuck in my head. (If you haven't seen the video, much of it is filmed in a place like the Museo.)

    As for accordions, I'm sorry about the bad accordion playing. I long to learn how to play the accordion (thank you, Yann Tiersen)…and the banjo (thank you, Sufjan Stevens). #thingsnerdsdesire

    1. Writer:

      I will shortly check out "Born to Die." I'd much rather have that stuck in my head.

      Jerry has also expressed an interest in learning the accordion, but he grew up on South Dakota on Lawrence Welk and Myron Floren. My father always wanted to learn the banjo. I DO love the sound.

  2. When we were at Biltmore last week, I kept noticing–again–all the fabulous ceilings, many imported in pieces from Europe.
    And yet the ceiling in owner George Vanderbilt's room was a flat, boring brown.
    Strange indeed.
    But it does teach one to look up every now and again.

    1. Bob:
      The Dowager Duchess wrote and told me she enjoyed this post but that her neck hurt from looking at all the ceilings. I am forever looking up when I enter buildings here. Just amazing!

  3. Too bad you were not able to capture the masacred tune for us to play as we enjoyed your ceilings.
    Ceilings, the fifth and often forgotten wall. This museum seems to be making up for all the awful, boring ceilings that we've all seen.

    1. Carole:
      You don't know what it means to hate that song until you've heard it peformed — with back-up — by three really awful accordion players.

  4. The trouble with looking at and photographing ceilings is "oops, sorry" and "ouch" and "oh, beg pardon". Some of those were beautiful, some made me cringe. Nice to look up and not be greeted by a fluorescent light or cctv camera!

    1. The Owl Wood:

      Fortunately, there was hardly anyone in the museum today except for about 100 little noisy school children. And none of them complained when I stepped on them. (Besides, one of the security guards thanked me for doing so.)

      The painted ceilings are impressive, but my favorites truly are the hand-carved wood ceilings.

  5. Now those are ceilings! Magnificent! You must have been crawling along the floor to get these shots, Mitch. Anybody look at you a little weirdly?! lol

    1. Jim:
      I actually took all those shots standing up. But, lying down would have produced much better views and much less neck strain. I'll have to try that at the next stop.

  6. Whoa-Mama…these are stunning…love the lines…geometry…colours…angles. Our country is so young…nothing like to see…I don't know what I'd do if I saw something like this…stand in awe!

  7. Ignoring your 'feelings'; those ceilings are beautiful, I particularly like the one in the final photograph, but they are all rather wonderful. Wo-o-o… Fe-elings ….. Nooooo…….

  8. To get "Feelings" out of your head, simply hum the Star Wars theme and then picture Bill Murray singing, "Star Wars, nothing but Star Wars…" as the bad lounge singer character he did so well.

    If that doesn't help, remember Carol Burnett as Eunice singing (at least I think it could be called singing) "Feelings" on the Gong Show.

    1. Walt the Fourth:
      Ugh, Bill Murray's bad lounge act. "Feelings" doesn't seem so bad anymore. As for Carol Burnett's Eunice, that is precisely the version that plays in my head whenever I hear the song. Priceless! (I had thought of finding it on YouTube, but that would really have planted it in everyone's consciousness and I figured I'd never be forgiven.)

  9. Damn! That's gonna play on and on in my head now.

    Right!!!

    'More than a ceiling (more than a ceilin-ing), 'til I see Mary-Anne walk away'…

    See if that one loops Mitch!!! Ha!

  10. #1 – You have a nice sense of humor
    #2 – I will call you at 3AM to tell you that awful song is still in my brain, and let's discuss it.

  11. Hahaha, hey Mitch. This made me chuckle. That song is totally in my head now and probably will be for the rest of the day. The pictures are beautiful and what an amazing space! When I was on tour in Italy I would go into nearly every church in every town and look up…not for divine connection but to see the stunning ceilings. Most of them took my breath away.
    Thanks for making me smile. Have a great day-I have a 'feeling' you will.

    1. It's so much fun parsing Spanish Architecture's different influence and all the hybrids thereof. The country is a never-ending visual delight.

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