Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Dirty Biter


Here's me with the beloved Dirty Biter statue. Dirty Biter was apparently the town dog in LaConner for a while, and there's that plaque next to us to prove it. I think Dirty Biter is the All-Time Greatest Dog Name ever!

Allison, you will be there soon, you will get to pet Dirty Biter!

Sorry for the lame post, I'm fresh out of inspiration without you!

Monday, June 26, 2006

A Shipboard Haiku

At thirty-five cents
A minute I have not got
Much to say but hi



ps. I couldn't fit cowgirl hat into my lugage, but I have the trashy top, jeans and cowgirl-ish boots covered. Bring on the Budweiser tallboys, I say! And it's the same rodeo as last year, so I think it's legit.

pps. I kicked ass at black jack last night (then Euge lost all my winnings) and tonight is karaoke. I plan to bring it, y'all!

ppps. The Mendels do drink. I should not have impugned them prematurely.

pppps. I am sorry to report that I am actually having a pretty good time.

xoxo

Le Puppy Sarah

Calling All Cowgirls



Hey, what's up cruise lady? I'm looking forward to seeing you soon in LaConner! Did you bring your cowboy hat for the rodeo? I'm trying to recruit a couple more cowgirls (Susan and Kirstin) for next Sunday - which rodeo is it that we are going to, anyway? And would we be using the term "rodeo" loosely here?

I was trying to think what to bring to add to the fun - any ideas? I'm definitely bringing a case of my new favorite beer, Skinny Dip, and clearly there will need to be some sock knitting, but other than that? What? Let me know so I can be properly equipped!

Saturday, June 24, 2006

Madness is right

I have to say, I wouldn't willingly sign up for any vacation that involved waking up at 4AM either. I like to stay up late too much. I stayed up until 2AM watching Veronica Mars last night. I'm on disc 4 of season 1, in case you want to know, the episode where Logan breaks down and cries in Veronica's arms in a hotel lobby because he thought his mom had faked her suicide and was staying in the hotel, but it turns out to be his bitchy half-sister who is using his mom's credit card and wearing her clothes.

That's also the episode where Meg makes Veronica go to the 80s dance, and Meg dresses up in a dress like the one Molly Ringwald made for herself in Pretty in Pink and that dress is just not cute, and little teeny Veronica dresses up in a Madonna outfit, with her hair all crimped and a black bustier and all the bracelets and even the boy toy belt and I fell asleep thinking about how it was supposed to be a thing where Meg talked her into going at the last minute so how come Veronica just had all that stuff to dress up in, because you know it isn't Meg's stuff since her parents are all religious and crazy and she mostly wears pink sweaters and a prim but sweet expression.

Oh, and it's the episode where Duncan is dressed up like Ducky from Pretty In Pink and how does he know that Meg was going as Molly Ringwald since he is supposed to be her SECRET admirer, so obviously he didn't talk to her about it beforehand and plan it out! And the police officer shows up and sort-of rescues Veronica from crying in her LeBaron convertible in the parking lot, and he's dressed up in a Miami Vice outfit and you realize he's really short because he and Veronica are almost the same height and she is teensy. And Logan shows up drunk and dressed up like Tom Cruise in Risky Business and if all this doesn't convince the non-believers to watch Veronica Mars, I don't know what will.

Don't bother with Dukes of Hazzard the movie though, even if you love Willie Nelson. Trust me.

Mountain Madness

I don't have much to say. Except that we got up at four this morning to see Mt. McKinley (Denali, y'all - for those who wanna keep it real).

It's HUGE! Bizarrely, it was hidden by clouds for the last week. As hard to imagine as it is that something so large could just dissappear. Of course, anyone from Seattle can imagine - with Mt. Rainier lurking around in your back yard.

Now I am tired.

I am going back to bed.

Every morning I have to have our luggage ready to move on at seven am. That part of this land cruise thing sucketh.

We get on the boat today and then I'll get myself some lobster and chocolate decadence! Heeeee!

xoxo
Nanook of the North

Friday, June 23, 2006

Helloooooooo!!!! From Alaska

I have a moment or two to say hey y'all!

It's cold. And rainy. But we've seen two mooses (moosi?) a fox, and some beavers. So far, Alaska is a lot like Vermont.

We got into Fairbanks Wednesday night and drove to see the house that Dad lived in here. I use the word 'house' loosely and generously. It was really a trailer with a bit of a shed built around it.

We're trailer trash, y'all! Woohoo!

I will post pictures later taters, I just thought you might like some validation of your suspicions. The Malcolm Sisters are a fraud! A sham! The veneer of sophistication is about a millimeter thick!

The really shocking part is that the trailer is still here some 40+ years later. When you see the pictures, you'll understands why I say that.

Any hoo, I'm off to catch a train. In the rain. So far the food is not all you can eat... but when we get on the boat .... step back folks!

xoxo

Bagel Face

I Know This Is What You've Been Waiting For!


More knitting content! Hey, look the funny blogger is gone, okay, too bad. She's off on her cruise, probably digging in to her second plate of lobster and chocolate decadence from the Buffet (emphasis on the first syllable, please!) as I write this. It's just me here, and I do what I can.

This weekend, I am hoping to spend some quality time with my knitting. The middle sock was chosen from these three by one of the members of my writing group, so I will set the other two aside and work my way towards the toe for her. Did you know that if I was going to sell my socks, they would have to cost about $150 a pair? Think about that if you ever find yourself on the receiving end of these beauties. Anyone want a grey and beige pair, men's size 11, I think? Ha ha. See May 1 if you care what I'm talking about.


I'm sure we'll have more interesting posting material on Monday, including my obsession with "AM Gold" and Lindsay Wagner's hair.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Baby Love


Do you love him, or what? This is my baby Rhone. I got to smooch him and give him his bottle last night while Kirstin was setting our big Thai feast out on the table. We had such a nice visit. It was clearly the longest day of the year since it was still light out close to 10, which is my excuse for why I didn't leave until then. Even though I meant to go home a lot earlier than that.

One thing I really appreciate about Kirstin is that I feel so loved when I am with her! Some people just have a talent for making you feel that way. When I got to her house last night I just felt myself breath a little sigh of relief, and everything in the world seemed good. Good thai food good beer (Skinny Dip, which Candice introduced me to) and two beautiful kids. Madelyn was particularly zany last night - I will provide photographic proof of her zaniness in a future blog post. I love that girl. She wanted to learn how to knit, but the only knitting I had with me was my socks (I know you wanna see those, don't you? No worries, I'll get to those in a day or two as well) and when I did a row in front of her she said "Oh, that's hard." Which I thought was funny for some reason. I promised her I would bring something easier for her to knit next time.

Pretty good week of girlfriend love, wasn't it? Now if only Kristen, Candice, and Amber were here....

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

More Girl Power


I keep getting all distracted from the post I mean to do, but here was my original idea... Over the past week, I've seen or am going to see most of my best Seattle-based girlfriends, so I thought I would talk about that. The photo above is me and Gena at her bachelorette party. I looked through the photos again and they made me laugh and I wanted to include more, but the still life of the wind-up penis with a whipped cream dessert? Well, I didn't want to be banned from Blogger for obscenity. Wait, can that happen? Maybe I need to know...

Anyway, on Monday night, Gena and my other fabulous colleagues from the old days at Pathogenesis, Pam and Erin, met me at Crow which was good, but not really great until we got to the dessert sharing part of the evening. The ladies WERE great though, as they always are. We try to get together one Monday a month, and every time I leave, I am always saying to myself "O! I love those ladies!" They are witty and wise.

I think the week of fabulous girlfriends started with last Wednesday, doing my writing date with the lovely and hilarious Lillian. We went to a wine bar near my house and nibbled on cheese and a drank a rose wine, which I was a little non-plussed about. Lillian helpfully informed me that if I didn't like that rose wine, I probably didn't like rose wine at all, since it was a typical rose wine. Now we all know something about me that we didn't know before. Aren't you glad? The best part was the cheese, though. Of course. We had a lovely cheese plate, including something from Cowgirl Creamery that was the best, though I liked the blue that was cured (or whatever) over smoked hazelnut shells, or some such thing. There was also a stinky runny cheese that I liked, but I don't think it did much for Lillian. Then I put Lillian in the Miata and drove her home, while we talked about cars with mold in them. Not that Natalie is moldy, mind you, but she has been known to leak.

Then of course there is always weekend fun with Susan.


This time that involved having a conversation that prompted the barista who made our lattes to say "Are you talking about boys?" and then when we said yes, to nod and say "Boys? Are dumb." Then we sat outside and watch the Queen Annies walk by and howled with laughter and just generally were loud. Then we took a walk. To the grocery store, where I bought mashed potatos for dinner.

Sunday was the Fremont Street Fair with Jenn, and that was lovely, except for the part about the loin cloths. She ate corn from the street vendors, the kind that's all roasted and dripping in butter, and then there's that counter where you can add about a million toppings. Jenn knows what she's doing at those counters, and I remember envying the corn she put together at Bumbershoot too. That girl knows what she's doing as far as the corn goes. Well, okay, as far as everything goes, really. And that makes sense for a woman who is just as good a roommate in a small town like Santa Fe as she is in the wilds of New York City.

And you know about the marathon catch-up fest (but not ketchup fest, more like guacamole fest) with Regan and Alexis Sunday night. We will have to feature Alexis sometime here. Oh wait, here she is - scroll down for the photo. She produces films, among other things. Quite the talent. Very ambituous knitter. And you know that's a quality to be commended.

Tonight! I get to see Kirstin. I hope! Right, Kirstin?

Still Heeeeerrrrrrrreeeeee!!!! For the Moment.


We leave for Alaska tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning I go for a haircut, then come home for the last minute packing spree. A horror show if ever there was one... then we go to Newark and fly (via SEATTLE!!!) to Fairbanks.

Wanna meet me at the airport for an hour? Didn't think so.

Any hoo, Oogie is now Elite so we get to hang out in the fancy-pants lounge with all the free cheese. That's right, folks, FREEE CHEEEEEESE!

Then we get into Fairbanks and one of Dad's cronies, I mean friends, meets us and will take us for a tour of North Pole. Where Papa became a man. A mountain man. He shot rats. He told me so.

Then we go to the Bear Creek Lodge and the Malcolm/Carroll/Mendel family bacchanalia (sp? you know what I mean) begins. Not much of one though, cuz the Mendel Famiglia doesn't drink.

Not ten days - as I originally thought - but ELEVEN! I am a lucky lady. Right?

There are two formal nights and many hiking/climbing excursions. So I continue to struggle with the packing. I am struggling right now - can't you see me? I may actually have to bring a real suitcase, instead of the carry-on that usually suffices. Yikes. A suitcase.

When did I become a person who packed a real suitcase? When did I become a person who goes on cruises?

At least I will be prepared for formal night in LaConner, right? We could wear evening gowns to the rodeo, right?

Looking forward to seeing you! I will check in on the blog before I leave. Maybe there are Internets aboard the ship. Right now I have to go research whether or not there are irons in our rooms aboard the ship.

We have a balcony. Did I mention the balcony?

Hugs and squishes

Bagel Face

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

NO! OMG! WAIT!!

Allisod! ALLEEEE-SOD!

Are you still there? Are you gone on your cruise? When willI hear from you again???!?

Waxing Poetic


I could say all sorts of things about the benefits of marriage but since I am about to embark on a ten day travel ADVENTURE with my in-laws, I think I will refrain until my return.

If I make it back, that is.

And if my marriage survives the trip.

Or, rather, if my husband survives the trip.

Right now I am CRAZY. BUSY.

And yesterday was a CRAZY. MONDAY.

It started with me realizing that I had left my wallet in our apartment. With my keys. Right after our self-locking door had shut. So I had to hike to Euge's office to get his spare keys. Then I had to go back to our apartment to get my keys and wallet. THEN high-tail it to a press check.

Then, at lunch, I went on yet another fruitless shopping trek to attempt to find a sundress that doesn't make me look like a completely drumstick-armed-pot-bellied-cow. Needless to say, I left Saks with significantly less self-esteem than I entered it with.

At least I wasn't looking for a bathingsuit.

When I got back to my office, I was blissfully walking the halls when one of my co-workers pulled me aside to inform me that I had neglected to zip up the back of my skirt.

Oh well, at least I had a charming white lace thong on. that must have given some people something to think about, hmmm?

Then after work (and a fortifying cocktail) I had to go for the dreaded waxing.

You see, when I am in my bikini on this cruise, I want to blind everyone with my voluptuous whiteness and I wouldn't want any stubble detracting from this. I even had my underarms waxed.

Can we say 'ouch' all together now?

The woman who was ministering to my bikini line was a bit distracted, but she said she was nepalese. So maybe she was meditating on the state of my thighs.

Any hoo, then I went home and tried on some of the dresses I already own. Then I wept my bitter tears silently (hi fellow-Pam-writing-workshop-people!)

At 2 am I realized that I had gotten some food poisoning from the Thai food I picked up for dinner and spent the rest of the night waking up every two hours to see if I could throw up yet.

The end.

BUT - at least I am not the lady I saw trip and fall down in the middle of the street in Herald Square today. She was dressed all in white and skinned her knee. You could hear the collective gasps of five grillion tourists as she tripped.

That would have been awful.

Coming Attractions

Tomorrow - more on my week of girlfriend love - in the form of photos from Gena's bachelorette partay!

One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn't belong


Hey there,

So, I wanted to put this post up to talk about all the girlfriend love and excellent dessert I've been getting over the last week or so. My friend Regan is next to me in this picture - could she be any more cute? Sunday night, Alexis and Regan and I went out to El Camino for dinner and drinks. We had my fave quesadillas with shrimp and fantastic coconut cake. The three of us hadn't seen each other in MONTHS so there was a lot to catch up on. One of the big announcements was that Regan and her boyfriend PETE NELSON! Oh, that's right, you know PETE NELSON from his South Shore Middle School heart-throb days!!! Ha! Anyway, they just got engaged. Pete's on the far left, in case you didn't recognize him.

The smiley guy next to glum Steven is another friend from high school, Scott, and the lovely lady in green in his fiance. They are madly in love to the point where we were making fun of them at a wedding last summer for the way they were gravitating towards the edges of things, dark corners, etc to make out . Love love love!

When I look at this photo, it reminds me of the studies they've done about how married men are healthier and happier than single men. Duh!

Friday, June 16, 2006

Five Things About Me? Yikes



First let me say that I think it is hilarious that you are carting around my stuff and here I am still living with stuff of yours... in the recent closet cleaning I found numerous pairs of your vintage heels. And I am pretty sure that there are a number of your journals and possibly your diploma from St. Johns around here somewhere.

What to do? What to do? I don't know how anything will be resolved in July, since I won't actually set foot in the city of Seattle. Can it wait until Thanksgiving when I will be there for a whole week?

In any case... five recent things for me...

1) I went cruise clothing shopping today at lunch and was painfully reminded of why I hate to shop. It is so bad for the self-esteem. I just feel like a totally fat blubber belly now. Thanks J.Crew! Thanks Saks!

Was there a scientific study of how to make The. Most. Unflattering. Lighting. Possible? Is this some plot against any woman who isn't a size 0? Is that why all the sundresses I liked were only available in size 0?

The only clothes I want to buy now are mumus and caftans. Like Britney y'all.

2) Speaking of the Britney. I TiVoed the interview... so don't feel too bad. I am planning on going home and watching it. Hopefully her gum-chewing, thick-necked whorishness will make me feel better about my food baby.

3) I had pasta with fresh sugar snap peas from the Farmers Market for dinner last night. Yum.

4) I will be doing more roofing work this weekend. Fun!

5) Our friend Dave Zebrowski had an opening at a bar last night and shockingly the painting he displayed was not of a nude Kate Moss (see above for reference) which I was sure was his favorite subject. Besides himself, of course.

I was shocked. Shocked and amused.

But that's because I am mean-spirited and petty.

Later, y'aaaaaawwwwwwwlllll!

Five Alarming Developments


1. The other day, I caught our favorite ex-patriot, Kristin, getting all caught up in World Cup fever and actually saying the following: "I was driving on the oxpens road, everything went all blurry, the ice rink, oh oxford I love oxford, I love England! I love football. I love fish and chips! Sniff sniff! What does that mean? I felt love for the queen in my heart."

This, my friends, is a witty and charming little bit of writing, but an alarming development.

Kristin. No. You must not love England. Or, if you must love England, it must be in the "it will all be a memory so soon" sort of way. Like how you might look at your son the first time he gets mad when you try to help him tie his shoe, or some such thing. I don't know what the analogy is with kids, but I know there is one. Love England in some nostalgic misty way, but then, let it go and come back to some place where I can come visit you even if I end up on a bookstore employee's salary. Will you look at your nice San Francisco yard? All the green, all wild California, with you all cute and mischevious looking. You like it there. Come back.

2. Speaking of love for the English Royals - Allison! I've been lugging around some of your belongings since Mom sold the house (and when you're here in July, something must be done about this) , lots of comic books, a painting Asa gave you, probably in high school, and one box that was marked "Ali's Doll Collection". I apparently had never opened this box, because I really thought it contained the doll collection. I opened it the other day thinking it would be funny to have a blog photo of the weird dolls, but noooo... no dolls in the box. BUT! There was a commemorative booklet from Fergie and Andrew's wedding. AND! Some big combs with poofy velvet stuff on them, and other really valuable things like that. I felt like Geraldo opening Al Capone's vault. There was a really nice Snoopy lapel pin though. Woodstock is on it. I like Woodstock. I'm wearing the pin this weekend. For sure.

3. I watched the Britney interview last night. I did. I'm sorry. I just kept thinking, "How can her hair look like that?" and "Is that a spider on her eyelid or is her fake eyelash on crooked?" I liked the way she looked away from Matt every time she answered one of his questions about.... Ohmigod, what am I doing? Sorry. I'm sorry. Let's go to the fourth thing...

4. For dinner last night I ate steamed green beans, sorry Haricots Vert according to Trader Joe's, with lots of butter and pepper, and some Sugar Plum tomatoes. And a handful of Amazing Corn Snack. I'm not on a diet, I'm just lazy.

5. I'm knitting myself knee socks.

I think that's all I have in me just at the moment. What's up with you?

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Fashion Police to the Rescue!


Well, the gentleman in the middle has an outfit suggestion for Eugene - what do you think? As for you, hey, pack a sarong and some flip-flops and call it good. How do they manage to make those Alaska Cruises tropical anyway?

Just kidding. Wow, I'm really loving that, uh, outfit. It looks like something the Capts daughter, what was her name, Skipper? No, Vicky, would have worn for the grand finale. I think there's one hiding in the back of Teri Hatcher's closet too. Looks good over a mermaid tale.

What do you wear on a cruise? Who cares? Are you single? Is it a Hedonism III cruise? No, it's a cruise to Alaska with your mother-in-law. Those people with their cataracts can't see what you have on anyway!

How about pajamas? That's it, for reals, you need a pair of silk loungey pyjamas to swan about in all day. And one black cocktail dress. And loud jewels that you will store at night in the Captain's safe, until the power goes out one night and someone sees a ghost and when the lights come on you shout "My Jewels!!" as your hand reaches for your empty throat. Then Scooby and the gang chase the ghost until they finally unmask it and it's.... Julie the Cruise Director!!!

Anyway, that's my answer. Lounge pyjamas and a cocktail dress. Alternate between the two. Have another cocktail, no one's watching anyway!

Calling All Fashion Police


I don't really know how it happened, but I am going on a cruise and I am at a total loss as to what I should pack! Plus, I think I've gained a couple (or dozen) pounds since last summer and I'm thinking that not all of my clothes will fit!

This is, of course, giving me major anxiety. Tonight I anticipate having a dream where I am walking around the deck of the Love Boat clad in either a Charo costume (ARRIBA ARRIBA!) or a naval jacket and nuthin' else. Undoubtedly, I will run into either Doc or Gopher. Maybe I will get lucky and they'll just offer me a piña colada but, more likely, Doc will say I need either a root canal or a pap smear and I will wake up in tears.

If Gopher suggests either, I'll probably need to be medicated.

So, what would YOU pack for a cruise? This is a sporty cruise, but there is a formal night and a couple of dinners where a dress would be appropriate... and there is also the world-famous (according to the cruise line propaganda) Skywalker's Night Club.

By the way, that photo is one of the top Google hits for "cruise fashions." I definetly won't be drinking the Koolaid on the boat.

#FW0027- Whimsical Butterfly....$545.00 (without stones..........$375) - Be sexy, delicate & alluring in yards & yards of chiffon petal skirting & butterfly type sleeves coverlet which is embellished with tiny Aurora Austrian Swarovski rhinestones throughout waistband & sleeves. It is included with a matching scoop neck body/swimsuit of gorgeous hologram metallic stretch fabric. A set definitely for just sipping your pina coladas by cruise ship poolside,dancing late in the evening or for dance exhibitions if you are a ballroom dancer.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Bloggity Blog Blog Blog


All day today I have felt in a fog. Like everyone who speaks to me is one of the adults in Peanuts going "wah weh wah weh" all the time.

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I couldn't fall asleep until 3AM last night.

Let me just give you a little piece of advice: if you can't fall asleep a 2 AM DON'T turn on an HBO documentary called Plastic Disasters.

IT WILL NOT HELP!

So today I look tired and older and have a big pimple. But. God help me. After watching that show last night, I know FOR SURE that I won't be having plastic surgery.

Also, it didn't help that the coffee machine in our office was inexplicably out of order.

Needless to say, I am going straight home. After I go grocery shopping.

Good Grief!

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

The photo you didn't see before


Hello,

So, you have become an indentured servant to your own "vacation" home! That's pretty funny. Do you feel a lot more handy now?

The way I feel today is... like someone ate all my cupcakes. I feel a little bit like I ate all the cupcakes too. They are two different feelings, but they are happening at the same time.

More blogging tomorrow.

XOXO
H

Do It Yourselfers


Well, I spent the weekend roofing with Eugene.

No, not taking roofers (sp?) - actually re-roofing our house. Needless to say, scraggly hair would have been an improvement over the frizzmop and overalls look I was rocking. And the work gloves, of course.

Work gloves are hawt!

We managed to get half of the roof ripped off and re-covered in bitchathane - a great product name, right? It's the membrane that protects your roof from water and ice. Theoretically the shingles are just to look purty. Theoretically.

After the many many hours of toil, we managed to watch Mrs. Henderson Presents, which I liked and Euge.. umm.. was lukewarm to. When you send your wife to the store alone, you gets what you gets!

Our other rental was Casanova - the town store has a very limited selection - and I won't even bother to comment. Except to say that we didn't even finish it. And it's set in Venice. VENICE!

It was just that bad.

I also did a ton of laundry, grilled some burgers, went to the farmers market for blueberries and yogurt, went to Home Despot and spent beaucoup dollars, went to W&W Hardware and spent even MORE money and went to the dump. Twice.

Today, I am back at work for some R&R before Euge puts me back to work next weekend.

I never thought I would say how glad I am that we didn't have any more time in Vermont. Work is sooooooooooo relaxing!

Monday, June 12, 2006

Totally Lazy & Mini-Scraggly Hair

Hi there,

Hope your weekend was grand. Let me know what adventures you had!

Kristin sent me this photo of the divine Ella, to show me that scraggly hair is all the rage. I think an ice lolly like the one she is eating should be my next task. There's a yogurt tube calling my name in the freezer here at work.

I was V. Lazy this weekend, due to some odd sinus ailment that left me with a pounding headache and nausea, not to mention frustration over the fact that I was totally worthless all of Saturday. The nice thing is that it resulted in extra motivation on Sunday, so I got several loads of laundry done and even unearthed one of my closets which had been barricaded by boxes of things. I also got to the yarn store and got some more yarn for extra sock samples, since one of my writing group folks wants oranges. I was more than happy to take it as an excuse to buy more yarn.

In addition to those accomplishments, you will be happy to hear that I did manage to get through the following:
- One whole DVD of Veronica Mars, the first season
- Mr & Mrs Smith (the Brangelina version)
- Elizabethtown
- Off the Map
- Broken Flowers

No complaints about any of the above, but nothing is getting added to my list of all time favorites either. Veronica is already there, of course. I have more videos waiting for me at the library tonight. I love the new policy they have that only lets you check them out for a week. Things come much faster now.

I also painted my nails, but they're already chipping.

That's the report from here.

XOXO
H

Friday, June 09, 2006

Scraggly Hair

Yes, the convertible does not really leave one with luscious locks. They end up a tangled mess, sort-of crunchy as though the wind were a particularly noxious form of hairspray.

You can see in this photo that I am wearing that skirt again. Wrap-arounds rule! (I want a faded denim wrap-around skirt next - have I mentioned that?) Packing for Santa Fe involved staying up until 2 AM trying on all my summer outfits. It turns out there aren't so many good ones. If I can just wear those safari-type shirts and the wrap-around skirt all summer, I'm good. I think I need a new pair of Jack Rodgers sandals though. Did you see the white/beige ones on Celerie Kemble on the cover of Domino recently? Why is everyone named after fruits and veggies? Celery, Plum, Apple... will you name your baby Avocado? You could call her Guac for short.

SFe was good. Walter indulged my need to visit yarn stores in every vacation spot, so I'm sure there will be yarn photos Monday. We ate good food, browsed in book shops, walked Canyon Road, and watched Wang KarWai's 2046, which I loved and you must see. Start with In The Mood For Love if you haven't already seen that.

Every weekend I say that this weekend I am going to get some things done. Organize, do the dishes, get rid of stuff. But really, this time I am! I have to. Pinky swear. Really. I must.

Thursday, June 08, 2006

'Well Worn' Shoes


Sometimes it's funny being married to someone who is as naturally social as Euge is. We can hardly sit at a bar or restaurant for very long before he is making friends with the people at the next table, which frequently leads to some funny situations.

Last Sunday, after the apartment lusting was through, we went out to dinner in our own 'hood. We went to the Telephone Bar - which you may remember - and we sat outside.

We had some delicious soft-shell crab, randomly saw my friend Bill (who now runs a burleque show in Brooklyn that is admirable in both the quality and humor of it's performers), and were getting ready to leave when it started to rain.

It was the kind of rain where it goes from nothing to torrential downpour in a matter of seconds. Not wanting to get totally saturated on our way home, we opted instead to have another drink and wait it out under the awning.

There was another group, who had been seated just outside of the awning. As soon as the rain started they moved to the table next to us and, in no time, Eugene was chatting it up with them.

As it turned out, the two women in the group lived together and ran a business together. We're not sure if they were a couple, but that it kind of irrelevant to the rest of the story. The business that they ran together was as resellers on eBay.

We asked them what sorts of things they resell and they said pretty much everything. We asked them what the most surprising thing was that they'd seen for sale and they said:

"Well-worn shoes."

Apparently there is a huge fetish market for well-worn shoes and there are a few suppliers who specialize in that category. To the extent that they have photos of nasty old beat up shoes being worn by some pretty looking legs. And all of them have "well-worn shoes" in the product title and then some sort of a write-up describing - in graphic detail - how the shoes got so worn and exactly how they were worn out.

I'm so bummed that I find out about this right after I threw out a ton of well-worn shoes.

That could have been my down payment!

Something to keep in mind when you are winnowing down your possesions for Colorado...

ps. I heart the postage stamp portrait. That is a V. Cool gift.

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

I Can Still Go To an ART Opening Even If I'm Not In New York

Hello,

I have big plans this evening. This great artist, Chris Crites (www.bagpainter.com) does these paintings on, you guessed it, paper bags! Lots of them are mug shots, mostly a larger format than the picture you see above. The picture you see above is stamp-sized, and yes, that is the ex.

At an art benefit a while back, I saw little postage stamp mug shots that he had done and I LOVED them. I thought it was so funny to do something that looked like a stamp, only instead of illustrious personages such as Presidents and Distinguished Figures, there were the faces of criminals. So I commissioned the stamp above for a present for Steven. Back in the day, when, you know, he got presents from me. Needless to say, the Bacon Thief loved his mug shot.

Chris is having an opening tonight at the coffee shop across from the Harvard Exit, so I'm going to go check out his new work. His latest series is really intriguing. Instead of the petty criminals and 80s icons that he was doing for a while, he has painted mug shots of people arrested during the Civil Rights movement. On his web site, you can see Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, I believe.

Should be fun! And I think his pieces tend to cost less than a pair of Sigerson Morrisons.

Did you know that the median price of a house in Seattle is now about $450k? Just as a frame of reference, the 2000 sq ft rambler that Karl and I lived in used to always be valued at almost exactly the median home price.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Mmmmm.... Cheddar Grits...




I hope you had a fun trip to Santa Fe! It sounded like you had the right kind of plans for a nice relaxing long weekend.

I did manage to succeed in cleaning out our closet. It was as monumental and frightening a task as I imagined, but somehow I persevered. And now our closet is in order - which makes me feel happy in an existential Feng Shue kind of way. Now if only Eugene could sort throught the 15 sweaters of his that I have never - in SEVEN YEARS - seen him wear... then I could go to Goodwill and be done with all the clutter.

No baby visit. Bummer.

Sunday I went to the gym and flailed around on the rock wall. Pathetic. Pathetic. Pathetic. Then I went to brunch at ACME and undid all of my good gym work by having cheddar grits. I heart cheddar grits.

After brunch we wandered around NoHo and even into the Sigerson Morrison Shop. And may I say that they had nothing nearly as cute as the boots you are wearing in the photo below. I was sad because I was hoping to feel motivated to blow some cash. But, alas, I held onto my cash.

After that (it was a loooooong day) we went up to Washington Heights to visit my friend's apartment. And it was huge. And the renovation was spot on - still period detailing but clean and updated with a GORGEOUS kitchen.

THEN we went to look at apartments ourselves. All two bedrooms around 500K. And my life was changed. They were so huge and beautiful. And the neighborhood is so leafy and green with lots of park space and kidlets running around. It's a bit suburban but you are still on the island.

See photo above

This is Hk's complex, where we saw an apartment. It is a gorgeous, rambling community with gardens and cheerry trees. The apartment was a hilarious place that had been decorated in the 60's with a lot of faux-tudor intentions. Eugene kept saying "It's just like the Canterbury on Capitol Hill! Dakota and Clay would love it!" And I think he was right.

It was the perfect place to have a move-in party so that everyone can have a laugh at the lunatic wallpaper and then redecorate with your own taste - rather than being stuck with someone else's newly-renovated taste

Eugene isn't ready to move from the shoebox just yet, but I am getting really close. I don't look forward to the mortgage (an apt observation on your part) or long subway rides. But I would like to be in an apartment with more than two doors. And views. And a neighborhood that feels like a home rather than an extension of student housing.

So I won't be buying any shoes at Sigerson Morrison... I'll be saving that cash for a down payment.

Friday, June 02, 2006

The Hair I Wanted When I was Seven


Hello dear,

If I was trying to stay anonymous on this blog, this would be the perfect photo. Susan took it the night of the cupcake caper.

On that particular night, I was feeling smug, thus the "Hair I Wanted When I Was Seven" title. But it's true! I do have the hair I wanted when I was seven! It's comforting on a day when I bought a 6-pack of Orange Blossom Beer at lunch (please note: I did not DRINK it at lunch!) and my cute 6'2", 26 year old co-worker made fun of me because the cash register screen said "Checker verified over 21", even though the checker didn't actually ask me for ID. I guess I can accept that now that I am 14 years away from 21.

As for the envy - be happy you can visit HK without having her mortgage, and happy that you can pet the chubby baby without, you know, all that baby stuff, specifically the stuff that makes women cry out of sheer frustration and exhaustion.

No prof in town. I'm off to Santa Fe tomorrow morning though, and it's a glad thing I wrote this, since I realize now that I have not printed out my e-ticket. I'm completely unprepared! I do know I'm packing the madras skirt and the socks I'm knitting, and beyond that, what else do I need to know? I'm looking forward to walking on Canyon Road, avoiding the cheesy galleries and enjoying the few I like, drinking coffee, sitting in the sun, eating some fancy meals, etc.

Hopefully lots of photos when I get back on Tuesday!

love you!
H

Envy


So this weekend my darling husband has a business trip to Toronta and I am left alone in the big city. It works out well because my closets need a major cleaning and - since it is also supposed to rain - I might actually motivate to do it! Cross your toes and light a candle for me.

However, it's my other plans that led to the title of this post.

Saturday, I am going to see my friend Brooke and her baby Declan again. And my heart will fill with envy over his gorgeous yummy toes and plump. delicious cheeks. And I will want to tuck him under my arm and run away with him to the Maggie B, where I can feed him giant peaches.

Sunday, I am going to meet up with my friend HK and go climbing at the gym - which should be entertaining in the most awful 'Oh how the mighty have fallen' way. Then we are going for brunch at Cookshop, which is my current most favorite brunch location - if I can just remind myself to refrain from ordering too much food because it all sounds so delicious.

Then we are going to Washington Heights so that I can see her newly renovated gi-normous apartment. A two bedroom pre-war combined with its one-bedroom neighbor - overlooking the Hudson. In a 1910 gorgeous brick tudor. Around 2,000 square feet I am guessing. And my heart will fill gain with envy for its size, views, old-world charm and brand-new amenities.

I have a very good life. I have a cheap-ass apartment that is molto convenient. I have a weekend house. I have a good job and a great husband and family and friends that love me.

I just hope I don't turn green this weekend.

What are you doing? Is the Professor in town yet?

ps. I am SUPER excited for you - giving notice and everything. You make me proud!