Today I’ve been completely devoid of energy, but the rest of the weekend was on the stellar side. Highlights included:
- Walking around Whittier and Uptown on a beautiful Friday night;
- Kinh Do;
- Paprika,
- Girl-talking on the phone with Maria (who will be visiting in a few short weeks);
- Oceans Thirteen (I know someone, not me, who remarked “I’m going to pretend I’m in a fourteensome with the cast.” - made me laugh);
- MC/VL and Low at the NE Block Party;
- Reading The Yiddish Policemen’s Union;
- Being hot;
- Procrastinating.
Just now I suggested to the little man, for the second time this evening, that I should maybe remove the big fat splinter from his palm. He doesn’t want to flat out refuse this idea, but wisely seeks to avoid pain. Instead he opted out by saying “awww, but it (the splinter) is my best friend!” Strange strange child.
Bonus: Death by Bananas and Death by Tupperware are my two faves in the Drop Dead Gorgeous series. Stunning stuff.
Plus: These cotton monsters are so so cute. And there are giant cephalopods in the photo album. I think I’m in love.
And: Welcome back from the wilderness, Emily!
On a recent visit to grandma’s house the little man saw The Chronicles of Narnia, a movie I haven’t yet seen (nor did I ever read the books). But now I don’t have to. Over the last several days he has been imparting much crucial plot information…because he still doesn’t grasp the concept of spoilers. Thanks, kid.
Bonus: A friend alerted me to the Summer Asian Film Series at the U of M. It kicks off Wednesday with the kitschy Tears of the Black Tiger, from Thailand. Can’t wait.
Plus: Faux quote of the day: “Pants are for the sensible, darling. BE UNHINGED.”
And: Today I received a special delivery from James. Thanks! I will start listening tomorrow. For now, I desperately need to go nigh nigh.
It may seem kind of backwards, but I get all of my news about teevee from other mediums. Like the internets, word of mouth, and the radio. Tonight I was listening to MPR in the kitchen, as I do, when I heard about yet another great British show being Americanized. Tonight saw the debut of the American version of Creature Comforts, which is already receiving rave reviews. I considered trying to tune in, except I most definitely don’t get reception for CBS. I’d rather watch it online anyhow.
So. The exterior painting is done (just wrote out a big fat check for the balance - ouch). But the front porch floor and door are still drying. The interior guy comes back on Wednesday. I feel for him. He’s going to have to figure out how to move all kinds of crap from one room to another to keep painting. At least I have more paint colors sussed out. I think. Slowly but surely we’re getting there.
Bonus: The Cat Cam made me smile. And reminded me of a short story I once read, years and years ago…and now feel a burning need to track down.
Plus: Oh man, do I want me some of these Get Cosy cushions for next winter. But a) they’re spendy and b) the little man and I would be fighting over them - I think he’s too big for the kid’s version. But what a good idea, especially for a freezebaby like myself.
And: I have a little rant a-brewing about some random men being creepy, but I don’t think I can articulate it just yet.
We’ve had enough excitement this weekend. When the little man declared we were staying home all day today, I didn’t argue. I might not make it out of my pajamas.
Yesterday we were pummeled by the same storm twice. Before we left St. Paul the hail started. Had to wait it out a little so we wound up ten minutes late for the Vampire Hands in-store at Treehouse, but still caught most of it. And that was a good time. But just as their set ended, the storm caught up with us in Minneapolis. Hanging outside Treehouse in the rain was fun, but walking in wet shoes is a much less pleasant sensory experience.
Looking to the week ahead there is much in the way of general grown-upness:
- Errand-running excitement, including hitting up the always hellish Home Depot.
- Going to We the People with J, for all of our legal needs. I like how divorce is listed as a “product” on their site.
- Need to transfer all of my automatic billpay stuff from my old checking account to my new one. Soooooo tedious yet necessary.
Bonus: Happy movie news abounds. I hadn’t been following the unfolding of Batman/The Dark Knight, but Veronica has an excellent summary. The movie doesn’t come out until 2008 but there’s already a Harvey Dent campaign site, and a similar one, hacked by The Joker. Also? The Golden Compass trailer is now up. As usual, with my favorite books turned into movies, I am a wee bit wary yet compelled.
Plus: Catching up at More Cowbell made me realize…I missed The Clientele show last Thursday night. I kinda forgot about it, but likely couldn’t have made it anyhow. Part of the Sharyn-can’t-do-it-all reality. But I can make it to the kid-friendly shows. Until this morning I’d never heard of Pershing Park in Minneapolis. But it turns out that Harry and the Potters are playing at the park on July 16th. We’ll be there.
And: Miss Amanda is alive and well in Alaska…and leaving bras behind on her travels. The sure sign of an excellent journey.
The last 24 hours have contained equal parts brilliance and annoyance.
Brilliant:
- Being sober when friends are not. Can be very funny.
- Hanging out with and hugging old friends and getting to know new ones. I am an extreme extrovert after all.
- Strolling down to the neighborhood coffee shop this morning for vegan cherry streusel and a quick fix.
- A friend painted my dining room “pepper spice” yesterday, which is a fancy way of saying kinda brown-like.
Annoying:
- Being sober when friends are most definitely not. Can be incredibly frustrating.
- It’s pouring rain, but my gutters are not currently attached to the house.
- The contractors have made such a mess. Understandably so, yes, but I don’t feel like cleaning up enough to cook anything.
- Knocking back three shots of espresso is not an adequate substitute for sleep.
- The city followed up on their vague warning letter by appearing, en masse, in my backyard yesterday. While it’s nice to finally have the lawn mowed, I don’t look forward to footing the bill for it. Also? They completely obliterated my Dame’s Rocket patch that lined the side fence.
- Not being able to remember where I stole this post title from.
Bonus: I’ve had a fangirl crush on Marjane Satrapi for years, and reported a while back about Persepolis being made into a movie. Now there’s a teaser up for it. In French.
Plus: A little preoccupied right now with the choosing of paint. Still need to settle on colors for the kitchen, the hallway and two bedrooms. Behr’s ColorSmart thingie helps, but it’s sooooooooo sloooooooow.
And: Listening to Radio K. They just played a song by Willy Mason and mentioned that he’s just 22 years old. I saw him open for Sondre Lerche and would never have guessed. He looks and sounds much older. But I have to quit getting all hung up on age.
It’s been nearly a week since my last post (what sort of penance must I make for this transgression?) and in that time life has rolled along in its usual exhausting ultimate roller coaster ride mode. Random highlights and distractions:
- Many of my most favorite people have already turned or will be turning 30 this year. One of them happens to turn 30 today. Happy Birthday Tom!
- Finally got my hands on Runaways Volume 3 (which is where this post title came from).
- I want the Destroyer Bot by Tubes. Hey, my birthday is coming up…
- Soon I Will Be Invincible is at the top of my reading list. According to wikipedia: The novel is a spoof and hommage[sic] to comic books, featuring a mad genius supervillain, Doctor Impossible, who suffers from “malignant cognition disorder.”
- Took care of a bunch of the boring stuff like bills, appointment making, and renting yet another dumpster. Which arrived yesterday and is already nearly full.
- The soundtrack of my life is often the soundtrack of the little man’s too, since we spend so much damned time in the car. It makes me happy when he enjoys what I play. Lately he’s given me the thumbs up for Andrew Bird, Love of Diagrams, Man Man, and The Plastic Constellations. Particularly the song Let’s War, because it’s about slaying a dragon.
- It totally looks like Robert Smith painted my toenails.
- Anton, who’d been out of town while I was in Chicago, gave me a ring the other day and broke the news…I had been staying very near the all-vegan Bleeding Heart Bakery but had no idea. I’ll definitely have to head back down soon to try it out.
- Courtesy of jeansays: the actual no one belongs here more than you site that everyone should click at
- Underground Artists Take on the Sith in The Vader Project - pop surrealist, graffiti, tattoo, lowbrow, comic and underground artists Shag, Tim Biskup, Frank Kozik, Marc Ecko, Amanda Visell, J. Otto Seibold, Gary Baseman, Joe Ledbetter, Urban Medium and Jeff Soto, among others, show their allegiance to the dark side by customizing Darth Vader helmets. Very cool stuff. More on flickr.
- The exterior of my house is now 3/4 painted and looking good. The other night I was tag-surfing on flickr, looking at other Dutch Colonials, and came across the porch project in NYC. Wouldn’t mind kicking back on many of those porches this summer, with a glass of lemonade.
Last night I took the little man to a vegan potluck/show. Both the food and company were excellent. It was especially good to see Chelsea, recently returned from ten months in Paris. Sadly we didn’t stick around long enough for Teen Eagle’s set, but the little man did get to play with their equipment. He wasn’t half bad on the drums.
On a grander scale, I would’ve loved to have been at the Secret Kitchen event in NYC on Wednesday…with an eight course gourmet meal prepared by vegan queen Isa Chandra Moskowitz, and entertainment by the band Man Man. The idea alone had me geeking out, but seeing the video only made it that much worse. Looks like it was a fantastic event.
Speaking of Man Man, they’re playing the Wicker Park Fest in July. That could be a good excuse to go back down to Chicago…
Bonus: This photo series, Dreams of Flying by Jan Von Holleben, is indescribably beautiful. Go look.
Plus: I have a love of Love of Diagrams. I’ve had their s/t release on repeat the last couple of days. Go listen.
And: I’d just come across the Control trailer via Stereogum when James sent me a link to the SuicideGirls article. I was skeptical when I first heard an Ian Curtis biopic was being made, but this sneak peek was pretty promising. Go watch.
The world is sending me mixed messages. When I was still high on life after my awesome weekend getaway, I was thinking that the Year of Sharyn had finally begun. It felt like it might’ve been slowly ramping up before Chicago, and that it had maybe gone full-blown. And that thought made me happy. Naturally life had to flip me off a few times, to keep me from getting too happy.
The bad:
- On the way to the co-op our car was rear-ended by an SUV, while the driver was talking on a cell phone, of course. The little man and I are ok but the bumper is dented. I’ll have to follow up with the dude’s insurance company and this is the last thing I want to deal with.
- On Wednesday I received some “Summary of Abatement” bullshit in the mail from the city. An inspector had been on my property on Tuesday and written up some vague comments about cleaning up my yard, ordering me to take care of these things by Friday (yes, giving me just three days to do so). I’ve been playing phone tag with the guy trying to figure out what the hell he is talking about. And now it is Friday already.
- The cherry on top? Some bad but not entirely unexpected news from the I.R.S.
The good:
- The little man is doing well.
- I feel like I’m kinda sorta getting this house stuff under control. Or at least on the path.
- Our new cat, Olive, settled right in like she’s always been with us.
- I thoroughly enjoy the folks I’ve been spending time with lately. I’ve been having all kinds of fun.
- Tonight? Vegan potluck/reunion with an old friend. Very much looking forward to that.
Bonus: Next weekend the Riverview Theater will be having a Buffy the Vampire Slayer sing-a-long at midnight. I imagine they will be playing the Once More, With Feeling episode.
Plus: Geeks of Doom tipped me off to Enchanted, a live action/animated rom-com, with music. The little man and I have watched the trailer four times now. We’ll be seeing it come November.
And: Last night I ate sushi in bed (vegan-friendly, of course) and I am ok with that.
My whirlwind weekend tour of Chicago exceeded expectations. So much so that I don’t even know how to recap it. Lists can’t adequately convey the fabulousness but it’s all I’ve got.
Friday:
- Rolled in to Chicago during evening rush hour, but was guided by the amazing Emily, over the phone, to her cute little neighborhood. I was a bit nervous about meeting her for the first time but I needn’t have been. She rules. Not only did she put me up for the weekend and play tour guide, she was hella fun to hang out with. And her boyfriend is super swell too.
- After getting settled in and coming up with a game plan we decided to venture over to Amitabul, an all-vegan Korean restaurant, for a little dinner before the show at Beat Kitchen.
- How awesome was it being chauffeured around by a Chicago native? Downright dreamy.
- Tornavalanche with their two drummers? So so good.
- After a long day of driving I apparently fell asleep while Emily was in mid-sentence. Doh! I could’ve at least done that while I was in mid-sentence. How rude.
Saturday:
- In the morning Emily led me to what is now one of my all-time favorite coffee shops, Atomix. It’s a big sunny room with gorgeous murals, a photobooth, an array of vegan muffins and other baked goods to choose from, beverages with names like Mr. Turtle, and a proprietor who looks like a young John Malkovich. What’s not to love?
- Drank WAY too much coffee and freaked out like a complete dork before going downtown to meet James.
- Calmed down and took James to Karyn’s Cooked for lunch. The slab of bbq “ribs” entree was delish, as were the slices of pie we ordered to go. (We wound up eating those for dinner later but hey, I was on vacation.)
- Mosied on to Rotofugi for a little toy shopping, then popped in to Vigilante Press, a lovely comic book store. Then it was back to Atomix for some coffee and photobooth fun.
- We went back downtown, to be touristy at Millennium Park before the Arcade Fire show (where no photography was allowed). Little did we know we were right smack dab in the middle of an evacuation zone, after a crane crashed into a nearby building. Weird.
- Post-show we ate vegan pecan pancakes at the Pick Me Up.
Sunday:
- We played it by ear. Started out at Atomix again, then moved on to the Garfield Park Conservatory, which was lovely. Especially as the weather had turned all cold and cruddy.
- Dinner was going to be had at the Chicago Diner, but that was too close to Wrigley Field, where a baseball game had just ended. Instead we wound up at Earwax. This was for the best. There was something for everyone (I was the only vegan in the group anyhow) and damn, my milkshake was good.
- I wanted to end the evening with a movie so we saw the light-hearted Waitress, which was just the thing.
Monday:
- In the morning I felt like I could sleep for a week but instead I hightailed it out of the city. Or tried to. Got stuck in morning rush hour near Midway Airport.
- Halfway through Wisconsin two things happened 1: I realized I wouldn’t be able to get to the little man’s bus stop in time to pick him and so enlisted J’s help and 2: it got crazy hot and I had to change clothes at a rest stop.
- After this point I was 1: hella bored and 2: not in such a rush. I allowed myself to stop a little more frequently, to take in the sights…such as a giant pink elephant wearing eyeglasses, and I took a long hike up to a scenic overlook.
Getting back into the groove of Normal Life mode has been difficult, compounded by intense forward momentum. Today’s highlights included closing on my home equity loan, procuring yet another epi-pen for the little man (who is now so large he needs the adult sized version rather than the epi-pen jr.), and having the Seestedt’s guy come over to measure the kitchen floor and stairs. This was all topped off by being home while the house was being powerwashed, which is a lot like living inside a car wash. Very weird. But the prep has begun. In the coming days there will be scraping, priming, and painting. Also? My friend Mike will be starting on the inside tomorrow. Patching plaster, tearing down the last of the wallpaper, and other general prep before he begins his painting. It’s all really happening. But more than one person has pointed out…now that the house will finally be fixed up all nice-like I might not want to move. Hmmm.
Bonus: Summer show season is upon us. Today I found out about two. Whitejazz plays again, Saturday night, at Memory Lanes. Then June 9th is a NE Block Party, featuring Low and MC/VL. I am so there.
Plus: I’m preparing to watch the season finale of Heroes (dang, it’s getting late, maybe tomorrow night) but I wonder how many viewers know about the Primatech Paper Company web site. I filled out their bogus registration form, and today was sent this link to the Yamagato Fellowship site. Check it out, if you are so inclined.
And: Tonight I missed both the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club show at First Avenue and the Michael Chabon reading at The Fitzgerald. It’s just as well. I was too tired to do either, and should really turn in soon.
Wherever people gather in numbers, in meatspace or online, trouble is sure to follow. This week two brouhahas have been particularly disheartening to me, as they involved my favorite photography-related venues. First there was the JPG magazine mess, and then the flickr=censorship fiasco.
A list of happier things:
- More Flight of the Conchords-induced joy. The pilot episode of their fictionalized adventures can now be seen online. Earlier I watched it in full, and may watch it again before bed. But I am not like their stalker-fangirl Mel. Honest.
- The little man asked me to get him some make up…so he can dress up like a mime. He must not know that mimes are nearly universally hated, much like their clown cousins. That, or he knows and just doesn’t give a damn.
- Tornavalanche will be playing in Chicago Friday night. Yay for me!
- Today the governor signed the statewide smoking ban into law. It goes into effect October 1st.
- I’m in love with Marmoleum. No, it’s not edible. Though it is billed as being “natural” - as it’s an eco-friendly flooring material made of linseed oil, wood flour, rosin, jute and limestone. Sadly it costs three times as much as vinyl flooring so I’ll likely be using something cheaper when I re-do the kitchen floor, but maybe at my next house…
Bonus: There’s a bunch of stuff going on this weekend in the Twin Cities, as usual, but I won’t be here. Chicago will totally be worth it but I do so love Art-a-Whirl.
Plus: Congratulations to Starbody and her brand new Starbaby - he’s beautiful!
And: I might have time to sneak in Fay Grim this weekend, but won’t get a chance to watch Henry Fool beforehand.
