Nepenthe, the funky restaurant in the Sandpiper...still exists.

Wikipedia says that nepenthe means "a medicine for sorrow, literally an anti-depressant – a 'drug of forgetfulness' " It is also the name of the funky, artsy restaurant frequented by the artists in The Sandpiper. Delightfully it still exists and still seems pretty artsy-crafty complete with a gift shop that includes handmade jewelry, bath supplies and the heir to California Pottery, "Ocean Art Pottery".

I live in New Jersey, hate flying and am unlikely to visit Big Sur or Nepenthe any time soon. But I am still besotted by this movie, the scenery and the whole arts and crafts thing (despite my recent issues with Etsy). I think we can love Nepenthe and its history from a distance. If you visit the website,http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/ you can see the pictures, the menus and get the vibe.

I think we need a Nepenthe revival in the US, and not the anti-depressants, the opiates or any sort of drug that it could have historically meant. We need the nepenthe that this restaurant and its history promised us. The camraderie, the sitting around singing, dancing and enjoying life together. We need to hand make our life, not buy it at Bloomingdales from chinese workers. We need to entertain ourselves and not leave that job to a few hollywood "stars". Sing our own songs, read our own plays, and revel in our own company. Yes, The Sandpiper had "stars", but it was not about stardom. The nepenthe I'm talking about is the anti-depressant effect of good food, good company and a job well done....and beautiful scenery.

We can do it!

My Jersey backyard can't be transported to the Big Sur, but I can make it prettier. This fall I planted 800 cheap daffodils, and they look lovely. That is an anti-depressant! I am completely committed to my Economic Victory Garden and I think that will be a sight to see, it will also yield plenty of ingredients for terrific menus (the Nepenthe menus are not hard to replicate, and buying prepared meals needs to be rooted out of my life).

What is it we do that prevents this natural nepenthe from entering our lives? What do we do with our 24 hours a day that prevents us from "good food, good company and a job well done"?

Mindless hours of celebrity watching ranks high. When the Maximalist looks around her she sees way too many magazines devoted to this activity, this vicarious life led by so many. We have too many television shows devoted to celebrity for its own sake. What are "American Idol" and "Dancing with the STARS" but ways to worship celebrity, even if it's celebrity failing. Every hour we spend mesmerised with the lives of actors, singers or reality show big mouths is an hour we do not spend cultivating our own story, honing our skills and being creative. It is an hour we do not spend discussing ideas around the table with our friends and neighbors. It is an hour we avoid ourselves completely. And when the hour is over we have no more than we had before. Maybe we have a little more envy and a few hundred empty calories under the belt as we sit in front of the tube. This is the anti-nepenthe.

Let's go for the real thing!