Wednesday, May 19, 2010

weekday

My dad turns 57 tomorrow. I just realized in 10 years I'll be fourty, which is amazing. I think I'm still processing that one. And in 20 years I'll be fifty, and add 7 to that and I'll be 57 too. My brother turns 27 this year. The difference between my dad's an my age is the length of my brothers entire life so far. That makes 57 seem much further away. lol. I wish I had remembered my camera today.

I found a shop that I MUST visit at some point. Seems handmade and artsy and they carry my favorite magazine that I've only been able to look at online - Uppercase. The store just opened on the 15th - it's called Orange Beautiful. Check out their blog: http://www.orangebeautiful.com/blog/

I'm not sure what's going on in my life at the moment. It's like being a fiber on a sponge, and the sponge is sitting in water. The bottom of the sponge is soaking wet while the top is unaware of the impending changes. I know something's going on, but not sure how it will effect me. And I'm not aware of WHAT it is, but I have a feeling that there's something changing. Like leaves suddenly opening on trees in the early spring. Its a feeling of impending-ness I guess. I can feel it.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Toy Story 3

I saw a screening of Toy Story 3 yesterday, a special fundraiser screening for the Komer Children's Hospital. I really can't say anything due to a non-disclosure agreement. And I wouldnt' want to spoil it for ya anyway! It was a GREAT movie. They went all out for the screening - got popcorn, pop, twizzlers and rasinets as we were waiting for it to start. Then at the end they had goodiebags full of toy story stuff and toy story 3 posters. I got my program signed by the director and producer. They really went all out and it was the perfect way to see this movie. Cause it's going to get at you.

As for the movie - the story was great, I was bawling by the end. You'll see. There's also a LOT to laugh at, and they keep it coming during the movie. I was awed by the animation. I specifically loved the animation of Buzz Lightyear - and I can't really talk about details because that would give away some fun details to the story - but it was beautiful, very smoothly done and I was impressed.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Unworthy


Its posts like these that make me feel mundane and normal to the point of doldrums. Sasha Barr is a genious inventor of art and design. I could never reach levels of coolness like this. Heck I couldn't even get near that kinda cool kids table during lunch.

Check out the interview and art and studio/living space photos here at Grain Edit. Seriously cool.

Summer and Spring

Everything is finishing blooming, and one of my favorite noises - leaves on trees blowing around in the breeze - is back again. Not everything is going perfect in life, like usual, but I look at the happy little things. I'm excited about lily's of the valley blooming and the last few tulips popped open and sprawling their colors among the bright green grass blades in all the neighborhood garden patches. This time of year always makes me want to plant my own pots of flowers - since I lack a garden of my own, a teeny little pot of basil sprouts are slowly outgrowing their space on my windowsill. I'll get a larger pot for them soon so I can have fresh pasta in my spaghetti over the summer. Or maybe a fresh capresi salad.

Madge cat isn't feeling too well these days. She got shots yesterday and is quite grumpy and listless today. I found her sleeping in my sock-in-undies basket in my closet tonight. Such a funny but probably comfortable place to sleep for such a small cat. Once she's well we get to prepare her for tooth surgery which is REALLY costly and sadly infringing on my eating. There's really not that much good food available on the cheap, especially since I like fresh foods vs. fast.

Tonight I prepared a recipe from a new blog i found. I had all the ingredients on hand, and after I made my home-made pasta sauce I cracked out the kitchen aid and baked a cake. Its quite tasty. The best part is the cake has a silly name and a cute story. Check out the website - Smitten Kitchen - for the story and the recipe: http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/07/blueberry-boy-bait/

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Casey Bats Again

I decided to look up this short after getting a link listing for purchase some original Fred Moore sketches from this animation. I'm familiar with the original Casey at the Bat short, but NEVER saw Casey Bats Again. I as a softball player, and a girl, LOVE this short.

Friday, March 26, 2010

midnight snack

I was asleep, but I woke up not an hour ago with my heart racing and my mind awake and wandering. I thought it's supposed to do that while dreaming. sigh.

Cool canadian artist's ceramic solutions to broken sidewalks:

Roger Ebert just posted this on twitter, and it's kinda cool. It reminds me of Close Encounters:

Quick rant:

Uprinting.com's customer service SUCKS. Don't waste your time with them.

Carnivale: Pretty good, but not what I would say was fantastic. I enjoyed the company at dinner, hard to believe I've almost been working full time for a month. It feels much longer.

Chicago Hospital Emergency Rooms: Take too long.


Grossest moment of the week: Co-worker sliced her foot open. I thought I was squeamish, but it turns out I'm able to turn on "take care of the situation" mode and not have feelings about it during emergencies. Had her ready to go to the hospital for stitches in moments. She got 6. Made me think maybe I should have been a doctor or nurse. Too late!

Random comments:

I am sick of people telling me I'd be a good teacher. What about looking at me says "Teacher"???

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

wode is me

poetry strings along in my head when I'm walking these days.

I write more when I'm in my winter blues mode. Tho at the present I don't actually do any writing that makes it down to paper or type. The urge to document it doesn't quite last, or I feel silly to post it by the time I can. The diagnosis of winter blues is completely self-made. This is probably training from my delightfully unique mother who I've yet to write into a play of some sorts. My whole immediate family is quite quirky and while stringing along poetry, adding music to it, and contemplating my existence, i also wonder if I'd ever brave trying to sketch them on paper in a narrative of sorts. It would capture the essence of the family for future reference when i'm missing them. Might even amuse others.

I used to write quite well, during college there was talk about publishing my short stories in some compendium at the end of the semester, along with other English department submissions, but I never followed through with it. I have stacks of journals and sketchbooks I could write in - yet something holds me back. Can you imagine that? Stacks of half-filled journals strewn about. I finally got a side cabinet to hold most of them. I've been feeling a tiredness that seems pretty deep lately. Daffodils may be blooming, but nothing seems to get through the gloomy coldness I'm feeling at times these last few weeks.

I've taken a break from facebook, but like any addict I find it difficult to not check on. I also have cut down on texting my boyfriend, after he commented that I texted him too much. I'm of the mind that there is never too much texting, but I am probably wrong. So I've almost completely stopped. This task is even more difficult than the last. I don't know how to not communicate instantaneously. If I must wait to emote, the urge goes away, but there's a feeling of loss associated with the lack of communication of something I felt was important to convey at the time. I find I've been twittering more and buzzing a bit (these words don't seem like real verbs). This could easily become a similar problem as facebook though, and I fear I'll have to stop completely or suffer finding myself constantly checking to see what anyone has said so I can participate and feel like I'm part of something. The problem may lie in that in the last few months I found I don't actually talk to anyone in person outside of work or on occasion, with my roommates. I constantly crave communication with others and never learned to curb my need to comment. I find I need social interaction of some sort, and I feel alone much of the time, even though I'm not (alone).

The other day I was wandering a relatively new area of town for me, Bucktown. I've always equated it as hipster central. There's an eclectic mix of posh boutique and chain stores, interspersed with artists of modern form. I felt very out of place, but also intrigued by the varied quilt this neighborhood seemed to be patched together from. There were signs of the old stores, like the car repair shop hold-over that stood out of the block like a "what doesn't belong" problem from elementary school. I found a soup shop, where I got a fancy version of grilled cheese, and even fancier soup options, at somewhat fancy-shop prices. The day was grey and soggy, and me being cold as usual, needed something to warm me up. I went with the fancy-shop price and warmed up my extremities in a room full of neck-scarf and corduroy wearing gentlemen with jaunty caps, MAC books, and heavy conversations discussing projects undetermined. I fancy that these people live in lofts with CB2 furnishings, listen to music I've never heard of, and went to Universities with majors in English with a side of MBA. Its like going to a different country and learning about the local ways of life. I could be wrong.