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April 29, 2009
So It's Not Exactly a Major Award...
But it's pretty fucking amazing nonetheless.
So you know how in my last email I said that Elinor Lipman's comment on my post about her book was the most recent of incredible things to happen to me on Monday? Well here are the other two things that helped to make April 27, 2009 one of those days I'll look back on in my life and say, "Damn, that was one fantastic day."
Cool Thing Number One, or Why the Chicago Move Timetable Now Needs Adjusting
I opened my email on Monday morning to a message from the Artistic Director of the Idaho Repertory Theatre. The subject heading simply read, "Nurse." The content of the email was short and to the point. Would I be interested in the role of the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet?
Um, yes. Yes I would.
Which is why the move is changing up a bit. The show closes August 8, so I'll be moving sometime after that, sometime closer to mid-late August than to late July. But I wasn't about to say no to the Nurse. Fortunately, rehearsals don't begin until June 17, so I can still go to Chicago (barring swine flu travel restrictions and awfulness) in early June for apartment hunting.
Cool Thing Number Two, or I Won? I Didn't Even Know We Were Competing
Also on Monday I received a second email, one that arrived completely out of the blue. I'm not even going to try to explain this, I'm just going to post the contents. It's from the Artistic Director of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival:
KCACTF National Selection Team CommendationsRegion 7 Festival- Moscow, Idaho
What follows are commendations reflecting distinguished achievement associated with productions invited to the regional festival.
TARTUFFE. University of Idaho.
Sally Eames-Harlan for her performance as Dorine
There are five other people from Region VII who were honored in this way, only one other actor, and I'm the only person from the UI. From what I could tell, given that I studied under two of the other honorees, this is a national commendation for people who weren't eligible for any of the other awards/competitions but who the selection team--the national selection team--felt deserved special recognition for their work. The others on the list are either faculty or not really theatre students, the other actor from Region VII is getting an engineering degree.
So as I said in the title to this post, it's not exactly a major award, but it is a national commendation. A National Commendation for Distinguished Achievement. For my acting. Which is pretty fucking sweet. Especially since I had absolutely no idea such an honor even existed. I was doing the show for the sheer and utter joy of doing it.
And then Elinor Lipman commented on my post about her book and I pretty much won the trifecta, near as I can tell. I mean, does it get much better? Monday was one sweet day.
On Tuesday, it snowed.
Posted by sally at 10:44 PM | Comments (8)
April 27, 2009
Elinor Lipman COMMENTED on My Blog!!!!
EEeeeeEEEEEEEEEEEeeee!!!!!!!
And that's only the most recent amazing thing that happened today.
But those other things can wait. Go read her comment NOW.
Meanwhile, I'll be rapidly fanning myself and possibly breathing into a paper bag.
Posted by sally at 10:57 PM | Comments (1)
April 25, 2009
Good-Bye, Bea Arthur. You, I'll Miss
Lovely obituary in the New York Times.
Posted by sally at 05:36 PM | Comments (3)
Baking Day
Took a walk to the Co-op for ingredients and then spent the afternoon making buttermilk oatmeal scones (they need more sugar, but should be damn tasty with jam) and mondel bread. The scones are for me, the mondel bread is for Collected Stories. It's baking right now. I'm not sure I did it right, though every set of directions tells me I did. I don't know, it just seems too simple...
Posted by sally at 05:22 PM
April 24, 2009
You Must Buy This Book!
(Note the tank top. It's 48°F here. I'm *still* in denial.
Also the new glasses. I can't decide whether they're
"Sexy Librarian" or "Dorky." Thoughts?)
Of course, The Family Man isn't in stores until May 5, but then you must buy it.
Why?
Because Elinor Lipman is a wonderful writer. Because I'm sure it's a fantastic read. Because my name is in it. On page 108 in the signed advance copy I received in the mail yesterday.
How did I manage this? Well. Three years ago, the First Amendment Project ran a fundraising auction. Right around the time of my birthday. They were auctioning off character names in authors' books. If you won the auction, a character in the book would be named after you or the person of your choice. Besides becoming a taxidermied rat in Carl Hiassen's next kids' book--which we have and need to read, now that I think of it--you could be a name on a gravestone in a Lemony Snickett story or one of any number of fun character options. And Dave won the auction to name a character in the next Elinor Lipman novel.
I love Elinor Lipman's work. Ever since I first pulled Then She Found Me off the shelf of my local WaldenBooks in the Boise mall, I have loved her books. That was her first novel, and it quickly became one of my very favorites. There are books I go back to and read again and again, and that is one of them. Joined on my frequrent reread list by her next novel, The Way Men Act, which was so beautifully representational of my then single state that I took it right to heart upon the first reading. Then I found her short story collection, Into Love and out Again and that tided (tid?) me over until the next novel, Isabel's Bed came out. (See what I mean? Big fan.)
When Dave and I started dating, we had lots of long car rides together, and I would read to him. It was nice. I liked sharing my favorite stories with him, and it was a great way to pass the time. It's how I got him hooked on the Harry Potter books. So of course one of the first books I read to him was Then She Found Me. (I have also, by the way, read both Bridget Jones and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason and Georgette Heyer's The Devil's Cub to him., along with much of Dorothy Sayers' oeuvre. He enjoyed them all very much. Now we read all of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's books that way. I know how to pick good stories.)
Anyway, since we became we, I have read Ms. Lipman's books to David. Because they're such great stories and the characters are so wonderful. And now we have a new one to read. ONE WITH MY NAME IN IT.
Which is why you should buy The Family Man as soon as it comes out on May 5.
But why do I have a copy now, when it's not available for another two weeks?
Because Elinor Lipman mailed me this advance copy as soon as she could. AND SHE SIGNED IT. When I opened the mailbox yesterday, it was just one more thing to do before I left for rehearsal. I noticed the big package right away, of course. It was the first thing I checked, so see what it might be. When I read the mailing label and realized what I was holding, I jumped straight up in the air and squealed, and then I ran up the sidewalk to the house like a five year-old.
I called Dave while I hunted for scissors to open it, and then read the accompanying card and the inscription. THEN, I leafed through the book looking for my name. Which I found on page 108, in such an interesting sentence that I'm hoping it means I'm in other bits of the book. (Though I'll soldier on if it's just that one mention. I mean come on, I'm still in the book. Eeeeeee!)
And then, even though I wanted to spend the evening stroking the book and cooing over it, I had to put it down and go to rehearsal. Which is kind of funny, given that I'm playing a 60-something writer/professor whose student uses the great event of the teacher's life in a book of her own. A character whose life is put into someone else's book with disasterous results vs. actor whose name is put into a book as a birthday gift, running around to tell the whole world. Just an interesting little contrast in my life right now. (Collected Stories runs May 7,8,9 at 7:30 in the Kiva Theatre, by the way. It's my last show in Moscow. You should come.)
So. Buy the book. You can share my brush with fame. Plus, if you've never read anything by Elinor Lipman before, you're in for a treat. You'll have discovered a brand new fabulous author. And that's always a wonderful thing.
Though I do need to mention that your copy of The Family Man won't have a title page that looks like this:
Posted by sally at 10:48 AM | Comments (10)
April 22, 2009
Denial
I am wearing shorts and a tank top. I will run around in sandals all day. I am NOT going to put up with this "partly sunny, highs in the 60's" bullshit. I have barely survived a long, LOOOOOONG winter and I want my spring. I don't care what NOAA says.
It's a government conspiracy, I tell you.
Posted by sally at 09:50 AM
April 21, 2009
Doing the "Oh My God, It's So GOOD" Dance in My Chair
On the way home from teaching today I decided to stop at our Co-op for some salad fixin's. I planned out a couple of salads in advance for this week, so I needed to get the fresh stuff for them. I intended to save this particular salad for tomorrow, but once I got home, it's all I wanted. And now that I'm eating it, I remember why. Every single time I have this salad, Every. Single. Time, I am convinced it's one of the best things I've ever eaten--EVER--in my life.
Whenever I take a bite, my entire focus, energy, soul moves into my mouth. I wiggle around and get all contorted, the better to taste it. I can't help myself. Just now, for instance, I tried to take a bite and then type. But my hands wouldn't let me. They didn't want to distract me from the flavors doing the lambada on my tongue.
It's from Everyday Food Magazine's website. (My comments/alterations are the lengthy parenthetical bits in italics.)
Orange and Avocado Salad
Serves 4, but I'm eating it all by myself.
• 3 oranges (Today I used 2 oranges and a grapefruit. Because that's what I had. Still amazing. In fact, perhaps even moreso than usual.)
• 2Tbs white wine vinegar
• 2Tbs olive oil
• Coarse salt and ground pepper (I'm not a big fan of salt & pepper, I left them out. Frankly, I don't think this salad needs them. I think they'd only detract from the amazing freshness that is this salad.)
• 1 lg head torn red leaf lettuce (I used about 3 cups of spring herb mix. Leafy greens are leafy greens.)
• 1 peeled pitted and thinly sliced avocado (Today I just cut the sucker into chunks. I gave the same treatment to the citrus, in fact. It doesn't have to be pretty. It just has to taste good. And it does.)
• 4 radishes, cut into wedges.
Directions
1. Segment oranges, reserving 3 Tbs juice (I got 3/4 cup of juice, all told, from these fruits, just from cutting them up and squeezing the empty rinds. So I measured out 3Tbs and drank the rest. That alone was worth the price of admission.)
2. In a small bowl, whisk together reserved juice, white wine vinegar and olive oil. Season with coarse salt & ground pepper.
3. In a large bowl, combine lettuce, avocado, oranges & radishes. Drizzle with dressing as desired and toss gently to combine.
4. Serve immediately.
And by "serve immediately," I mean grab yourself a fork and a spoon, tuck that bowl under your chin and growl menacingly at anyone who tries to get this amazing salad away from you. You won't want to share.
I don't know who invented this salad, but they deserve a medal or sainthood or deityism or something. As far as I'm concerned, they're already a magician or a god or the best human being ever to walk the earth. Seriously. Try this salad and tell me I'm not right.
Posted by sally at 03:50 PM | Comments (2)
Unshakeable
I have this, this... ailment? Malady? Health issue? I don't know what to call it, and that's part of the problem. See, I can't tell whether it's a cold or allergies. It could easily be either. Or possibly a combination of the two.
All I know is that for the better part of two weeks, I have had a runny nose, occasionally burning and/or dry eyes, sneezes, phlegmy lungs and a post nasal drip sore throat. Yesterday I even had muscle aches and a brain that wouldn't focus. I was exhausted. But my lymph nodes aren't swollen, and I'm not running a fever. It all sort of goes away when I take a Claritin--which is why I think it might be allergies--but only sort of, not completely. But it also doesn't seem to get better or worse. It just kind of hangs out. Like allergies would, only the Claritin doesn't fully deal with the issues, which is what would happen if I had a cold.
When it first started, nothing was blooming. Nothing. Now LOTS of things are blooming. Only, they're all things I've never reacted to before. Though it could be the house. I haven't had time to do a really thorough clean in months. But if that was the case, wouldn't things get better when I leave? And wouldn't having the windows open all day yesterday make a difference? It didn't.
I've even changed up my diet, to see if food allergies are playing a part in this. They don't seem to be, but that's always tough to determine.
So I don't know what to think. I'm not getting any worse, but I'm not getting any better. I'm just all drippy and scratchy. I have to carry kleenex with me wherever I go, and my voice is gunky. And I can't manage to maintain my normal activity levels. I'm fairly good if I have some time to sit mid-afternoon, but I am DONE by 7:30pm, which is an issue, since rehearsal goes from 6:30-10.
Is this happening to anybody else out there, or am I the (un)luckiest woman in the world?
Posted by sally at 09:15 AM
April 20, 2009
Shorts
I am wearing SHORTS. It is so warm here that it was actually a necessary wardrobe change today. It's not even noon yet and I'm wearing SHORTS. Next step: toenail polish.
All of the windows in the house are open. Good-bye winter stuffiness.
I also have laundry hanging on the line out back. It's an odd and interesting juxtaposition, I think. See, Dave and I have all of these high-tech North Face shells that we wear under our jackets when we walk. They're perfect for layering and keeping you warm in the cold without being too bulky. Or damp. But they're the sort of thing we hang dry because we want them to last, and it's either hang dry or use the no-heat cycle on the dryer. Usually, I just hang them up inside to dry, but the weather is so lovely that I untangled the lines of the drying rack outside, got some clothespins from the grocery store and hung them up. That's one less load in the dryer and they'll smell wonderful when they're done.
God. Spring may finally, actually be here.
Finally.
Posted by sally at 11:55 AM | Comments (2)
April 19, 2009
Borscht
A friend of mine is moving home this week. Home to Ukraine. Unlike in previous years, when he knew he'd be back in January to work with the Russian jazz musicians an Open World grant brought to the festival every year, he doesn't know when he'll be back in the U.S. The Jazz Festival didn't pursue it for next year.
I'll miss Vilyen. He's such a lovely guy. And last night, he invited me to his going away party.
It was a small affair at the farm where he's been staying this year. Just Vily, the couple who've been hosting him, some friends of theirs (whose daughters both know a former student of mine; my students are legion, I tell you, legion), two Lithuanian couples who are students at WSU and me. Everybody there was funny and intelligent, and I had meant to only drop in for an hour or so but ended up staying for dinner. Which was a marvelous thing, because Vily made borscht.
I'd never had borscht before yesterday. Surprising really, since it contains beets, which are one of my very favorite foods. You'd think I'd have gotten around to it before, but no. Well. Now that I've had Vily's and he's promised to send me the video they took of his making it, I shall be making it myself because DAMN.
The soup I had last night contained (along with the beets) carrots, cabbage, kidney beans, beef and maybe onions - though I'm not sure about that last bit. I dolloped sour cream into it like everybody else, and then followed my Lithuanian guides and stirred it in. It was so much like heaven by the spoonful that I ended up eating two bowls of it. I forewent the chicken, potatoes, rice and salad for a second helping of that wonderful, wonderful soup. ohhhhhhh. So good.
So was the company.
We told jokes, there were toasts and interesting conversations about the world, and then I got up to leave. Because I had an appointment with HBO and the premiere of Grey Gardens. Which was also good, but in a very different way from the borscht.
I will miss Vily. He's funny, intelligent, thoughtful and a really hard worker. The Open World projects went so well every year, mostly because of him. So many of the women here swoon over him, because he's a very handsome man and has that lovely accent, but I suspect also because he has a little bit of the air of a mobster about him, and that's kind of fun. Oddly, I've never really had a thing for him. He's been more like a buddy or a brother, but he's become a very dear friend.
We first met in a Not-for-Profit Arts Administration class, and he and I were the most vocal students in the course. It was kind of funny. We'd be going over a case (it was run like a business class where we'd look at cases and try to determine what the various issues were and how to solve them), and I would say things like, "Well, maybe if you invited the Director of blahblahblah to a dress rehearsal of the children's performance so she could see what wonderful things they're doing, maybe she'd be willing to budge a bit on the parking issue." Then Vily would say something like, "What if you bribed the contractor? With some good tickets to the opening performance." I had never considered bribing people before. I was frankly a little shocked. That seemed just a little too seedy for my upright American WASP background, but ever since that class, I have to admit I've looked for ways to indulge in a bit of it when things get sticky.
Then when I was working for the Jazz Archives, covering for an administrative assistant who was out on medical leave, Vily was there working on year two of the Open World grant. I would do things on that grant that he didn't want to do, like make phone calls following up on mundane details. In exchange, he would deal with the women who didn't want to deal with me. Because they'd tell me no practically as soon as they heard my voice, but they'd melt and get all gooey when Vily went to visit them.
I always said that if I needed a manager/bodyguard, Vily would be my guy.
There's an open invitation to stay at their (he has a wife, Ana, also lovely and VERY smart--she has a PhD in something environmental) home in Kiev if I am ever in Ukraine. I intend to take them up on it. There's nothing quite like getting to know a bit of the world through the eyes of the people who live there. Sure, I can stumble across things on my own, but to also get introduced to the good stuff for sure? That rocks. After all, I might have wandered into borscht on my own, but it was so much more pleasant to have discovered it through Vily.
Posted by sally at 11:10 AM | Comments (1)
New Post at Chicagosity
I'm definitely getting into the swing of the weekly Sunday post, just so you know. You can pretty much expect them to be up by early Sunday afternoon.
Posted by sally at 10:03 AM
April 18, 2009
Inducing Vague
Text from Dave: Hempfest today... If you care. Actually looked like some interesting stuff.Text from Sally: Interesting, how?
Text from Dave: I saw some pretty jewelry being set out.
So, since it's a lovely day, and the park's a nice little walk away, I put on some sunscreen and headed out.
I have never seen so many pipes and bongs in one place in my life. Seriously. There were at least five glassblowing booths that had dozens and dozens of pieces. Each. And the largest crowds at the festival. I can't imagine making a transaction like that in a place as public as a city park six blocks from downtown on a Saturday afternoon.
Hemp Fest isn't really for me. I should point out that I'm not a big fan of pot smoking. I think stoned people look (and behave) even more stupid than drunk people. And it doesn't seem to be as easy to moderate as levels of drunk. Though I've never actually smoked. I mean, that would be a really dumb thing for an asthmatic to do, wouldn't it? But vague has never appealed to me, and that's the overwhelming impression I have of pot smoking based on the smokers I've met and the couple of contact highs I got in college. It induces vagueness. Like mental novacaine. And I just can't see the appeal.
Speaking of vague, Two guys, walking down the street. Right now. Smoking up. Trading their pipe back and forth. I kid you not. I just watched them out my kitchen window. The fuck? Um, inappropriate, anyone?
Anyway, with one noteable exception (which would be the booth Dave saw, I suspect), all of the jewelry for sale in the Hemp Fest booths looked the same. Like the glassblowers had to have something else to sell besides their equipment, so they made these other things.
I've also never been a fan of tie dye (the three main categories of stuff for sale at the fest were glassware, hemp jewelry and tie dye); it generally looks cheap and half-assed. Though I do have a gorgeous tie dyed dress that I bought several years ago. NOT at Hemp Fest, I should add. I bought it from a fine arts catalogue. It's all blues and looks like water. I love it.
But that's not the kind of work I'm talking about. There are very few artists out there who are doing anything interesting with it. Most of the time it's just the same old thing. Like the glass jewelry and the hemp accessories. Nobody's trying anything new, they're just recreating the same old shit over and over and over again. (I would include skunk-induced drumming in this as well. Wherever in the world you go, if stoned people are drumming, it's the exact same beat. Very little variation or experimentation.)
Which to my mind is the best argument against weed, frankly. It's the rare person who can use it frequently and still manage to have enough brain left over for originality. I know that's possible, because I've met a few heavy users who are amazing jazz musicians. But mostly, no. Mostly it seems to sap the creativity right out of people and just makes everything blah instead. It might be comforting to float around in a relaxed haze, but what are you missing while you're there?
I mean, why would you deliberately seek out vague when there's so much interesting stuff to explore in the world?
Posted by sally at 11:59 AM | Comments (2)
April 16, 2009
Insane
If I'm not already for having somehow scheduled myself into this week from hell, I'm pretty sure I will be by the end of it. Sorry to not be posting. At this point, I'm barely finding the time to shower and brush my teeth. I'm hoping things will be different by this time next week.
Posted by sally at 12:17 AM | Comments (1)
April 13, 2009
I Am Going to Write Them SUCH a Letter...
Actually, I already have.
This morning I read these two blog posts from Vastly Different sources, but with remarkably similar content. Amazon, Amazon, Amazon. What the Hell were you thinking?
Here are the affected books. (What's been discovered so far, at least.)
Here is one creative response to the issue.
Here is an explanation of what might have happened and why it might be difficult to fix quickly.
And here is my letter:
Dear Amazon:I am a Kindle owner. My husband has two (one original and one Kindle 2). I recommend the Kindle to anyone who asks me about it because I love it so much. We are also Amazon Prime members. And now I find myself reluctant to purchase another book from Amazon—whether in paper or electronically—thanks to the ranking stripping you’ve been doing of LBTGQ books over the past several months. There are records of it occurring as far back as February.
You have reported the issue as a “glitch” in the media, but you’ve shown next to no remorse or embarrassment over the situation. I certainly haven’t come across any apologies to the authors or community who were damaged by having their title rankings removed and thereby their accessibility during searches on your site. I also have a very difficult time understanding (along with many, many of your customers, I suspect) how such a situation could be purely technical and not in some way involve a human being selecting terms for the culling of titles.
This whole situation may well have been the result of a glitch in the system. It may have been the unfortunate product of a poorly thought out addition to the website that was used or functioned in a way that your developers had never considered. It may have been one person’s ill-informed knee-jerk reaction to a community that frightens them. Whatever the source, the results are unconscionable, and your lack of regret is horrifying. You could at least take a bit of responsibility. Human beings played a part in this and human beings were impacted.
The upshot is this: I am no longer comfortable with making Amazon my primary source for books, games and movies. I expect that you are working to fix the issue, but I (and probably a lot of other angry people) am going to want to see some accountability and some apologizing. If I don’t, I will no longer purchase books from your company. I will no longer purchase books for my Kindle (no matter how much I love it). I will no longer recommend the Kindle to other people. I will no longer link to Amazon.com from my blog when I am discussing a particular book. I will, on the other hand, make sure the people I interact with know about this situation.
The worst part of all this? Even if you get this all cleared up, fix the problem, hold the responsible individuals accountable and apologize from the bottom of your hearts for this situation, I will still think twice before purchasing anything from you for a very, very long time.
Sincerely,
Sally
I sent it to them. Way to take up my precious time on a busy morning, Amazon. I don't much appreciate that either.
Posted by sally at 10:44 AM | Comments (4)
April 12, 2009
Thank You Thank You Thank You
Cherry Blossoms - Gracias
Some lovely women invited me to dinner at their house last week. It was wonderful and fun. The food was AMAZING. I wanted to send thank you notes, but decided to make them myself. These are them, minus some 3-D elements I'll be applying here and there. (3-D elements don't scan very well, and are also difficult to balance the sheet on for writing, so I'll be adding them AFTER I've written my notes on the other side.)
Stars - Gratitude
For those people who care, I started by coating pieces of cereal box with two coats of gesso on each side, sanding between the coats. And then I did the whole write, mask, paint with credit card thing over the top. Like I did here. The words on them are things like, "Gratitude" and "Thank you Thank you Thank you." And then I used these awesome new stencils I got last week from Maya Road, and some spray paint.
Scrolls - In Appreciation
I'm really pleased with how they turned out. And also surprised that though I started out just trying to make some attractive cards, when I looked at the finished pieces, I knew exactly which one would go to whom.
Butterflies - Thanks
So here's a question: Would you pay for a set of these? Because I'm thinking about creating some postcards like this to sell (minus the 3-D baubleies). These cards are 3 3/4 x 5 1/4 inches, so the post cards would be a bit bigger, probably 4 1/2 x 6 or so. The back would have space to write as well as an area for the address to go, just like on a standard postcard. And if you would pay for a set of five, how much would you pay for them?
Thank You Thank You Thank You
Posted by sally at 10:43 AM | Comments (2)
April 11, 2009
Sallyacious and the Refrigerator of Contradictions
Hmm... What should we have to eat today? Let's see what's in the fridge.
Oh. Yes. That is indeed a box of silken tofu sitting atop a package of bacon--MAPLE bacon--that is itself perched on a brand new carton of eggs. Obviously the Sallyacious household isn't into vegetarianism. (But we are into cinnamon roll french toast. What you can't see of tomorrow's breakfast is the four HUGE cinnamon rolls from the local bakery that are waiting several shelves down for their eggy bath and fry-up tomorrow morning.)
But what's that you say? What do you spy just a bit further to the right? Could it be? Yes, I'm afraid it is.
Chocolate peanut butter pie* on top of a container of celery sticks. Because my hips say one thing, but my lips are tuned to an entirely different station.
* Actually, that's Dave's pie. I think chocolate peanut butter pie sounds dreadful. My piece--eaten long ago--was coconut cream.
Posted by sally at 11:43 PM | Comments (5)
April 06, 2009
Spring at Last?
I really hate using that first word in the title there, for fear that I will jinx things. But yesterday evening, Dave and I stood in jeans and henleys under a big blue sky and enjoyed the weather. Because we weren't wearing coats and were comfortable anyway.
Today the temperature is supposed to get to a high of 60, and tomorrow the high is 67. That's practically bikini weather, though Dave pointed out that in July 67 degrees will feel like sweater weather.
Anyway, the sun is shining, the air is warming up, the snow is almost gone (this time). I hate to get my hopes up, given what this winter has been like, but it may actually--FINALLY--be spring.
It's been a long, dark winter.
Posted by sally at 09:23 AM | Comments (3)
April 05, 2009
Also, New Chicagosity Post Up
There's a new post on Chicagosity today. It's about needing to find a place to live.
For everyone who's been wondering, it looks like mid-late July for the move, with a visit in June for apartment hunting.
Posted by sally at 05:50 PM
Little Moaning Noises
Were what I was making as I opened the package from Dick Blick Art Materials. Because two weeks ago, I bought 20 sheets of Fabriano Artistico 140lb.paper (10 of hot press, 10 of cold press). It came in the mail last week and I finally got around to opening it today. As anybody who is a paper geek knows, there is something wonderfully sensual about good paper. High quality paper just makes my knees weak, and I was very, very glad that David wasn't home so he didn't have to witness my ridiculousness.
Seriously. When I opened the plastic bag and got that first sheet of the hot press out, it was practically a sexual experience. I couldn't hold myself back, rubbing my hands and face all over it, making outrageous noises of pleasure. In fact, I didn't even realize I was doing it for a few moments, so powerful is the lure of good paper. I sort of stopped mid-fondle and snapped into awareness. But then I went right back to what I was doing because that paper is just so awesome.
As I said, thank GOD I was home alone with the windows closed. Because that sort of thing can be embarrassing, you know? (Obviously not so embarrassing that I won't write about it here, just embarrassing enough that I don't want my neighbors to hear me.)
I got the paper because I'm making some wedding gifts for various friends/ relatives and don't have the option here of walking into a store and feeling samples to find the weight I want*. Plus, because of some of the techniques I'll be using, I need to test out the paper to see whether it will work. And Dick Blick was having a SALE. So I got $100+ of paper for (ready?) less than 60 bucks. Which made this afternoon's box opening orgy a cheap date.
Now I'm listening to snowmelt gurgle in the gutters and downspouts, as I sit with the windows open, waiting for the acetone** to dry so I can apply paint and see what happens. Curious yet?
* Though soon, soon, one of my favorite bookbinding suppliers and personal artistic meccas will be a six hour drive away from where I'll be living. That's a trip to Boise or Portland or Seattle from here. Eeeeeee! It means I could attend workshops if I wanted to. EEEEEEE!
** No, I didn't use it inside. I worked with the acetone on the porch. I'm strange, not stupid.
Posted by sally at 02:57 PM | Comments (5)
April 03, 2009
Here We Go a Journaling
I finished up seven (7!) new journal pages between yesterday and today, and thought I'd share them with you, along with the pages I finished weeks ago that I forgot to put up at the time.
I haven't been writing on them much because, well, busy. Ridiculously busy. Except for today of course, when I got online to find one simple thing and lost five hours of my life to the timesuck that is the internet. And I didn't locate the simple thing I was looking for either, baaaah.
I don't really have anything more to say. I'm going to settle for boring you with all these pictures. I hadn't realized there were so many.
Posted by sally at 09:42 PM | Comments (4)
April 02, 2009
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
God how I wish I was kidding, that this was some stupid belated April Fool's joke.
It isn't.
Yesterday it started snowing around 12:30 and never stopped. It was a weird kind of snow. There were moments it was coming down fairly heavily (I was coated when I came in from my 2.5 mile walk from campus), but it wasn't sticking to the roads or the sidewalks or even getting that much thicker on the ground. It was as if the snow was melting as soon as it hit. Very strange.
Here. Let me show you. There was a pheasant in our yard yesterday morning (one of those things I will miss when we move to the big city, wildlife) so I took pictures. I mean, even here that's a pretty rare event. But I heard that familiar cluck that sounds like an engine not starting easily and knew what it meant, so I grabbed the camera. This was our front yard yesterday morning.
This is our front yard around the same time today.
I actually checked with Dave, to see if I'd dreamed the last month or so, because this isn't April weather. At least, not where I live. He informed me that it was actually February 13 and he'd see me at Tartuffe rehearsal tonight. To complete the mindfuck, our neigbor from across the street and over one was brushing the snow off his car while wearing a Santa hat. I mean, why not?
I also have before and after walk-shoveling photos so you can see Just. How. Much. Fucking. Snow came down between 9:45pm or so when I got home for the night and this morning. Because it still wasn't sticking when I got home from a reading last night.
Addendum: (1:30pm) I wrote this post before heading to campus. I didn't have time to upload the photographs before I left, so I didn't actually post it. Which gives me the opportunity to post about the conditions during my drive.
Shitty.
The snow was no longer falling, but there were four or five inches of it on the ground. It was sort of raining/misting. Not a rain you could see, but one that covered your windshield and, more hideously, added enough warmth and weight to the heavy, wet snowfall that it was rapidly becoming four to five inches of slush. Which fell from tree branches. Onto your car, and once you'd parked your car and were walking across campus, onto your head. Plus, the roads were rutted from snowing, melting, freezing, slushing. They weren't like city streets at all. Sheer, unadulturated nastiness was what I drove and walked through to get to class this morning. Gah. It was awful.
And we're supposed to get more of this tomorrow.
P.S. (2:31pm) Now it's sleeting
Posted by sally at 08:32 AM | Comments (2)
April 01, 2009
This Is What 18 Looks Like
88 in people years.
It's also what stubborn looks like, since the annoying little crochety-pants would neither sit still nor hang out in places with decent lighting for a birthday morning portrait. But the fact that she's here at all, at 18, is an extraordinary blessing.
Happy 18th birthday*, Katala. I'm so glad we've had so many years together, my sweet little old lady. I look forward to several more.
* And as a special birthday treat, right after breakfast we're going to go register you to vote!
Posted by sally at 07:58 AM | Comments (4)
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