This week has been full of minor nuisances. Insignificant in the big picture, but they add up. Like a thousand tiny paper cuts. I thought the weekend ought to offer some reprieve, but not so much. Last night I had an impromptu gathering at my house. It ended with carbon monoxide poisoning. We noticed a strange odor coming from the basement. A brave friend went down to check. The boiler’s pilot light was still on. I called Xcel and they dispatched a technician who turned the boiler off, helped me air out the house and didn’t leave until the numbers had dropped to safe levels. I am happy the little man and I are alive and relatively unharmed, but now my house is cold and my nerves are shot.
Five items of interest:
- Thursday the Minneapolis Fire Department evacuated my office. It was minor, thankfully, but stinky. After we were allowed back in a co-worker came up with a fire playlist.
- This article, Why I Let My 9-Year-Old Ride the Subway Alone, was a fascinating read. And sure, it made me a little uneasy, but I totally see the author’s point. And she has a neurotypical child. The little man? I don’t even let him cross the street alone yet, because of his poor impulse control. The new psychologist correctly characterized him as “naive and vulnerable” - which makes me sad, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.
- Wired’s night photo contest. Neat stuff.
- Tonight I finally get to see Caribou, at the Triple Rock.
- I hope people think of more than just (wo)man bites dog when they think of local artist Amy Rice. Her artwork is amazing! And she’s having an art reception tomorrow, at Barbette.
OMG OMG tomorrow tickets go on sale for Flight of the Conchords! They’ll be at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis. Their show is the same night as M.I.A., but she’s playing out in the burbs at the creepy Myth Nightclub, so no thank you. I’ll see my beautiful kiwi boys instead.
Five good things:
- It’s been one year since I took in little miss Olive! Her first few months with us were blissful. She seemed so relaxed and happy. And then I had to eff things up by taking in Freddy. Sigh.
- I would love to play with Casio’s new Exilim EX-F1 camera - c’mon, 60 shots per second? Motion sensor activated? Cool! But at $1000 I probably won’t be picking one up any time soon.
- Two friends have started new blogs, Gwen with a photography blog and Shane’s with his Vegan Caliente.
- A friend bought a block of Teese Cheese from Chicago Soy Dairy and turned it into all sorts of interesting looking things. I’m not a huge fan of vegan cheese, but I’d like to try it sometime. Apparently it melts.
- Not sure how I feel about flickr video just yet, but when I was reading about it on the flickr blog I noticed some of the upcoming community events. The all night photo shoot in Paris sounds awesome!
Bonus: Planet B-Boy, a documentary about the evolution of breakdancing, is opening at the Landmark Theaters. Yet another movie I can take the little man to see!
Plus: Thao Nguyen will be featured on Morning Becomes Eclectic today.
And: At the library yesterday I could not resist picking up the most ridiculous-looking DVD ever. An 80s movie called Sword of the Valiant, featuring Sean Connery strutting about in a shiny green costume complete with glitter paint and a metallic codpiece, with his furry belly exposed. Wowza.
Before our vacation I’d been feeling overwhelmed, in general, and had been worrying about the little man in particular. But I took advantage of our new health insurance to make an appointment with an in-network pediatric psychologist. This morning was our getting-to-know-you session. She was incredibly reassuring, offering up a fresh perspective and some sound suggestions. When discussing my son’s coordination problems - he often trips over his own feet and falls down - she observed that it seems like he just needs to slow down. If he were more deliberate it might alleviate a lot of problems. Advice that applies to my own life just as much.
Bonus: Oh what a tease the Oktapodi site is! There’s a bit more up at cartoon brew, but I want to see the entire animated short.
Plus: This week is pretty quiet, thankfully, but soon there will be a slew of good shows happening. Next week Caribou is playing at the Triple Rock. Then the Varsity Theater will be hosting Man Man one night and Saul Williams the next. And A Silver Mt. Zion a few weeks after that.
And: The other day J was over. I was sitting on my favorite piece of furniture, which he called my “chouch” - like a combo chair/couch. Perhaps the term chaise is unknown to him, but chouch is still making me giggle. He also pointed out this video clip of a Home Made DS. Neat.
Ack, I have no motivation today and reality will soon be encroaching on my fun. It’s nearly 2pm and I haven’t showered yet (let alone gone to the gym) and I have a packet of paperwork to fill out for tomorrow’s appointment at the Children’s Hospital. But right now I’m zoning out so that means it’s time for five good things:
- Wayne Coyne’s science fiction feature film, Christmas on Mars, is finally being released.
- Last night was Emily and Taylor’s MEGA BIRTHDAY RARTY. I stayed out a little too late but it was totally worth it.
- Vegan grocery shopping at the 99 cent store? I’d hit that.
- My Dad now has limited internet access and has been playing with google maps, watching Crazy Frog clips, and video footage of the MN Rollergirls. I need to take him to the next bout.
- The morning after we returned from vacation the little man woke me up by handing me a note. It read “no more donuts” (more or less) and then he suggested we return to Portland immediately, to get a fresh batch.
Bonus: The Brooklyn Flea Market is today. I sure don’t need any more stuff, but it would be fun to check it all out.
Plus: A co-worker friend has been contributing to the Read Comics blog and has invited me to do so as well. I need to get on that.
And: Last night I missed “a poster party for bike people” because I totally spaced it. Doh.
I have such a crush on Portland. It was hard to leave. I feel like we just barely scratched the surface. Both the little man and I would like to go back again to really delve into it. Or just chill out at the Kennedy School some more.
Today, though, was spent recovering from our redeye flight. And then delivering doughnuts to fellow vegans. Tomorrow will be a much busier day. Planning to stop by the police station to say hi to my pops, then get my car cleaned out at the Downtowner Car Wash, and visit Sheela, and take the lad to see Run Fat Boy Run (fingers crossed that he’ll like it) and then head to Clockwork for another installment of board game night. Saturday I will catch up on some boring house stuff, but that night is my friends’ joint birthday party. Though a bunch of our peeps will be missing it - caravaning down to Chicago instead to see STNNNG play with Pissed Jeans and The Catburglars at the Empty Bottle.
Sunday and Monday are booked as well, some of it with less fun stuff…like an appointment with a new psychologist at Children’s Hospital. That’s when Spring Break really ends and it’s back to reality.
Bonus: “Carbon-Based Lifeforms Detected” - a wacky USB pregnancy test.
Plus: The trailer for The Pineapple Express had me LOLing obnoxiously. But anyone else notice this new trend of offering “restricted” trailers, for those over the age of 18?
And: How Many Five Year Olds Could You Take in a Fight? (which I first read as “on a flight” because I was at the airport at the time)
Our vacation is coming to an end. It has gone remarkably well (despite the lad’s new verbal tic, repeating the word “vomit” over and over again). Neither of us is really ready to leave. We could’ve spent all of our Portland time at The Kennedy School only and been content, but we’ve gotten out and about plenty.
Our Pacific Northwest photos, so far:
Checking out of the hotel shortly and I’m bummed about it. But we’ve got a few more adventures yet. Grabbing a “fishwich” at Vita Cafe for lunch, picking up some more goodies at Voodoo Doughnut, and then heading to Olympia for a little sightseeing before flying out of Seattle on the redeye. Ooh boy, won’t that be a treat.
I love the internets. Hotwire in particular. Our first leg of the trip went smoothly. Check-in and security at the airport were swift and the flight was all right. Getting from the Seattle airport to the shuttle to retrieve the rental car? Super slick. And I laughed when I was given the keys. I’m driving a black Mazda sportwagon, just like at home! Only thing, it’s newer and nicer. Driving automatic is a little weird but whatever. The hotel is just down the road from the rental car place. We got settled in right away but the little man didn’t fall asleep until 11:30pm, MN time, but woke up at 4:10am (Seattle time). Dang. We’ll see how he is later. The wireless here is maddeningly slow, and we just realized that the boy lost his headphones, likely left behind on the plane, but we’re on to Portland shortly. SPRING BREAK!
Seems I’ve got a knack for putting my luggage away after a trip without first removing everything from it. The other day I grabbed one suitcase and found in it a movie wallet - containing many DVDs - that had been missing since our trip up to Duluth. Last Fall. Yesterday I pulled out the bigger suitcase, the one with wheels on the bottom, and discovered a few decks of cards, other games, socks and a tote bag that had been stowed away since our trip to Iceland two years ago. I noticed the little tote bag was lumpy. Unzipping a pocket I found a pair of mittens, stashed in there since my first trip to Iceland. Over seven years ago. Yep. I am a packrat. And I’ve probably overpacked for this trip. Not that I’m feeling very prepared. We’ve been so busy that I never got around to overplanning our vacation like I usually do. Maybe that’s for the best.
I have some vague notions about the Alberta neighborhood, where we’re staying, and I know there are some lurvly parks about. And we’ll be seeing my friend Cathy Camper and the Afrojet family. I’ll be winging it the rest of the time.
Sadly I missed Cupcake Saturday today (two weeks in a row!) and a “stuff swap” at my friends’ house, but I’ll be back in time for their joint birthday party. Off to the airport soon. And yes, the laptop is coming with us.
Bonus: Street Art At Its Best #3: Plastic Bag Animals.
Plus: I made it out to the ‘Ride, Rueben, Ride!‘ benefit show that my friends put on. But I missed the “secret” headliner, P.O.S., because I had to get back for the sitter and had a parent/teacher conference first thing the next morning. Oh wells.
And: I’m so wary of the potential suck factor in the upcoming X-Files 2 that I haven’t watched the trailer yet. But I could. And probably will. Maybe later.
It’s for the best that I’m skipping The Boredoms at First Avenue tonight, even if it is “in the round” and sounds awesome and all. It can’t be all tattoos and shows and fun every night of the week (but I am hitting up a show on Thursday). Tonight’s been more on the mundane side. After work I dropped by the bank to set up a Health Savings Account. And said goodbye to my tax refund. Wheeeee! On the way home I had the following conversation with the little man.
Me: You might change your mind.
Him: I won’t change anything. Especially not my mind.
We were discussing soup. And his dislike of it. But it goes so well with grilled cheese sammiches!
Before we leave town I need to hire a plumber (to attend to a leaky faucet in the bathroom), pick up some sundries for the trip, hand over the spare keys to our housesitter, clean the house a bit, find time to work out at least once, finish packing, attend a parent/teacher conference, and have my annual review at work. Phew. I think I’ll pass out right now. Sort of a preemptive strike. Or something.
Bonus: Rock the Garden returns to the Walker Art Center just in time for my birthday. With a line-up of The New Pornographers, Andrew Bird, Bon Iver and Cloud Cult (all on June 21st). Neat.
Plus: A preview for an independent feature film, Stay Then Go, a film about autism and its place in the life of a mother and her son. Looking forward to the full length.
And: Someone called my land line this evening. Asking for Mrs. Wrisky. Wow. I haven’t been called that since 1997. The caller promptly received a 1-2 combo of “wrong number” followed by CLICK.
Enough already, with Americans co-opting movies and television shows from other countries. Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg are rightfully upset…about the American remake of Spaced that’s in the works. About which they were never even consulted. I really really hope the show doesn’t happen. But I fear it will.
In other news, the ex is going to Taiwan this summer. But I doubt he’ll be vacationing in these awesome mid century Taiwanese vacation homes. Because they were abandoned. And seemingly never occupied, due to the belief that they are haunted (via Aesthetic Outburst).
It was an eventful and frustrating morning at the school bus stop. One I’d considered writing about here. Instead I’ve opted to channel it into an essay for the My Baby Rides the Short Bus book. I’d been trying to narrow down the topics I could cover and this morning, as crappy as it was, really helped to focus the scope.
Bonus: The Simpsons-ization of Battlestar Galactica (bizarrely good), wee beasties, crayon sculptures, matchbox labels from Eastern Europe, and Dinoaurs and Robots (the blog) in general.
Plus: Found another dangerous etsy shop, one with a category called Octopus Tees. I am attempting to resist. For now.
And: There’s been some buzz around the office about this show, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. I’ll have to check it out.
