the 3rd dBro is moved in now courtesy of the siblings & significant others' moving company...teddy, lauren, lauren's boyfriend douglas (rouge douge) who's visiting from sweden, dave & i moved all of dave's stuff in one trip (thank god he got a truck & not a van like the last dBro/Sis move)...we were on a tight schedule because we had to move and watch the extended version of two towers by 5:45pm...dave, lore & doug were exhausted from snowboarding the day before, but we got it done, and started the movie a little after 2...unfortunately, jay's dvd player konked out, and then mine konked out too, so we had to quickly unpack dave's computer & skipped a bunch of scenes and watched the 2nd disc...ellen joined us after she got out of work, and then we all scooted over to the amc to watch a 6:15 show for return of the king...i have to say, i think those battle scenes were pretty spectacular...but for the whole movie, i was expecting a certain main character to die because someone told me that would happen, and IT DIDN'T...i can't tell you the amount of unnecessary stressing out i did to prepare myself for what i thought was the inevitable demise of a dearly beloved character, only to find out 3.5 hours later that i'd been duped...
...and as the year draws to a close, i just want to take some time to look back on what was definitely a year full of both joys and sorrows...
...i suppose the biggest part of the past year was my teddy...even now, teddy & i can't believe how an unexpected friendship blossomed into the relationship we share today...i feel like this is the first time i'm able to love like a grownup instead of a spoiled adolescent...teddy has taught me a lot about courage and humility...he's given me the purest and simplest of joys...i will never forget the lessons i've learned this year with my teddy...
...my momma thinks that teddy was god's gift to me to comfort me in life without my dad...and in some ways she's right...all good things are a gift from god...and teddy is definitely a good thing...and although there is nothing and no one in this world who will ever take the place of my dad, teddy has definitely comforted my heart in really big ways...and yet, there is still a shadow over my life...some days have been darker than others...like when i have dreams in which i relive those painful brutal last days of my dad's life...it's kinda like that wound frodo received from the ringwraith...it was a wound he would carry with him the rest of his life...that's what it like to lose my dad...getting pierced with a sword of mordor...
...and still, the days of shadow were outdone by days of joy this past year...when you get right down to business, i have to say i had a lot of fun these past 12 months...from teddy's new year's eve party to the jeff tweedy/wilco concert w/ caleb & crew to serene's visits to frolicking about town w/ teddy & his siblings & other friends to iowa city to seattle to new york city to falling in love with my own city to shows shows shows in between...
...it's been a lovely year indeed...
been listening to--
give up--the postal service
red medicine--fugazi
the argument--fugazi
start here--the gloria record
murray street--sonic youth
spoon & rafter--mojave 3
wanna know how big of a ditz i am? i'm cleaning up (i use the term loosely) my computer desk area, and what do i find but 'protein source of the future...now!' by the mountain goats...i don't even remember buying it! it was as if the cd had fallen out of the sky into my unsuspecting little hands, and all i can say is SING ON JOHN DARNIELLE!!!
...so i spent most of my actual working time today at work thinking i'd lost all my data for the past two weeks in my main database-of-the-month...only to find that i was looking at an older COPY which i had forgotten to rename cuz i'm an IDIOT! and i'm not going back to work until wednesday...tomorrow we move greendeeve into teddy & jay's apartment...hopefully it will be quick and relatively painless...i have my doubts though cuz half the moving crew has been snowboarding up @ devil's head all day today...it was lovely weather for boarding, i hear...damn...i really wanna go this friday but it may take some convincing of the significant other cuz i dunno why since we have nothing better to do that day...anyways...i must go and finish my loose use of the term 'cleaning up'...
been listening to--
oh mercy--bob dylan
blood on the tracks--bob dylan
and now i'm listening to protein source of the future...now! by the mountain goats cuz i know that i own it and can pop it into my cd player and listen to my hearts content...
p.s. i am going to give up all hopes of becoming a REAL photographer cuz of this person...if you, my dear readers, lose all respect for my photographic schemes, i wouldn't blame you...i'd join you...
...saturday night i got together w/ my bro jim & cuzins casey, kris & yonju & yonju's bfriend...teddy was working so he couldn't join us...we ate dinner @ joy yee's in evanston...my brother, the oldest amongst us, was either being very generous or very asian and footed the bill...we were missing the company of the other cuzins ike & inho who chose to stay in their respective states of residence for the holidays this year and yonju's little brother who isn't so little any more and most likely prefers the company of other 21 year olds, as opposed to us old farts...it's kinda strange growing older and watching my cuzins become adults and realizing that i guess i'm an adult too...we sure are a motley crew still...
...my friend david bruce was playing a last minute show @ the raw bar next to the metro, so we migrated the party there for drinks and to hear dave play...we stayed for a couple of hours talking and catching up and debating whether my brother should go and spend a year in korea or not and discussing why some asian guys can be so narrowminded and oldfashioned in their expectations for their girlfriends or wives...i was kinda out of it taking photos and pretty much just listened in......dave had his sequencer and bongos and shakers and other stuff and played a lot of loops in the background...he can play some really mean guitar...my brother was digging it, esp. when he played moon-something by van morrison...unfortunately, i had to leave before the show was over cuz teddy needed a ride from a coworker's bday party, and we left just when dave started playing his new stuff...he did give me a cd on my way out, which was nice of him...photos of the show are right here...
...i finally got around to doing the laundry i was supposed to do yesterday this afternoon...i think i've got a good two weeks worth of clean socks and undies now...after laundry, i got together w/ connolly & olarn @ cafe deluca's for dinner and to exchange presents...connolly got me the action heroine's handbook, which will give me the step-by-step guidelines on doing things vital to an action heroine like myself, such as choking a man with my bare thighs, winning a high-speed chase in high heels, and going undercover as a beauty queen...you know...regular everyday action heroine stuff...and i know this book is gonna work cuz last year connolly got me the survival guide to dating and that book totally worked in landing me with teddy......and now the christmas holiday is over and i have to remember what i'm supposed to do at work tomorrow...that'll probably take me all day...but i'm taking tuesday and friday off, in addition to the short day on wednesday and the holiday on thursday, which means i will be spoiled all over again until the reality of a 5 day week hits me like a ton of bricks next week...but let's not think of such unpleasant things now, eh?
...ok folks, i'm back! hope everybody's had a lovely christmas week! i sure have...the loveliness definitely outweighed the stress...one of these years i'm gonna figure out how to do a stressfree christmas so that it's just pure undiluted loveliness...but for now, i'm happy with whatever joy joy joy i can get...
quick recap...christmas eve, teddy & i went to my mom's for dinner...he & my bro jim made some totally yummy pizzas...we bought all the ingredients @ trader joes...here's a little secret guys...if you get one of them premade pizza crusts, just pour a little of trader joe's vodka marinara sauce on it and pile on the ingredients and bake @ 425 until the cheese is nice & golden...we made one with shrimp and pineapple and peppers and that was absolutely deLISH...the other one was a mushroom onion pepper pizza and that was good too...after dinner, we opened presents and then my mom's brother's family came over...my cousins sherline & debbie came over too and it was good to see them again...sherline lives in atlanta and is in school and so's debbie over in charlottsville, va...we had a little dessert, and then teddy, jim & i went to the christmas eve service @ the evanston vineyard...
christmas day, teddy & his bro jason & i picked up their grandma carol and we went to the p's house in the nw burbs...it felt like driving santa's sleigh cuz my little subaru was filled to the brim with christmas presents...every little crevice was overtaken by tokens of holiday cheer...when we got to the house, teddy's dad was beginning to decorate the christmas tree, so we got to help...this was the first traditional christmas tree i've ever decorated, with ornaments that have been in the family for years, and ones made by grandma sophie and the kids when they were little...it was fun, although somewhat awkward maneuvering around all the presents that were already piled beneath the tree...and i really couldn't reach above the 5' 8" mark due to my being vertically challenged...
unfortunately, jason had to be at work downtown by 5pm, so we kinda had to rush through things...dave and ellen got there maybe close to 2 and we had a late lunch and then started in on the presents...i mean, there were a LOT of presents to get through...with 4 kids, 2 significant others, mom & dad & grandma carol, the floor beneath the tree was beginning to cave in under the weight of all the presents......the way teddy's family opens presents is they roll dice to see who goes first...the whole process of opening everything must have take a couple hours...it was starting to get dark by the time we were finished...we let jason go second without rolling just so he could leave and go to work...
...one of the gifts i'd given to all the kids was this wind-up bath toy i'd found @ cost plus...they were all water related and could swim if you wound them up...and surprisingly, there was one for each color name...for those of you who haven't figured this out yet, teddy's siblings and friends play this game called the color game...it all started when teddy & his 2nd oldest brother charles (who lives in seattle w/ his wife ali) were kids...charles was picking on teddy by calling him "red ted" in a teasing way...so teddy got back at him by calling him "blue chuke" (for chuck) which was the most menacing color name combo he could come up w/ at the time...and thus the color game was born...basically, you pick a color that rhymes w/ the name (like red ted), or you make the name fit w/ the color (like blue chuke)...so you've got green deeve (dave the oldest brother), orange lorange (lauren the little sister), grey jay (jason the youngest bro and lauren's twin), chrome alisome (charles's wife ali), maroon keoom (dave's best friend keom), teal pheal (our dear phil k), modra jozka (my dear jozka a.k.a. joe), brown jown (john n. our dear poet), violetta brioletta (john's girlfriend brie), rouge douge (lauren's boyfriend doug), yellow ellow (dave's girlfriend ellen), pink erink (the boys' friend erik in utah), a few others, and yours truly is known as aquamarine sarahjean...sometimes i refer to a person by their color name (like greendeeve) or just their color (like maroon instead of keom)...
...anyways, i found these wind-up toys in different colors, and i got one for each of the kids...a green frog for greendeeve, a yellow duck for yellowellow, a grey shark for greyjay, and even an orange clown fish for orangelorange...unfortunately, i couldn't find anything red for teddy, so i got him an aquamarine seal instead...although lauren may be the only one of us who actually takes baths as opposed to showers, i thought they were fun little things to give anyway...maybe in the spring, we'll fill up an inflatable pool and have races......other color related items given were the monkeys...teddy got the twins stuffed monkeys in their respective colors, and they were a big hit...that orange monkey especially got around quite a bit the rest of the evening...
...after presents and dessert, teddy's dad drove grandma carol home, and the rest of us started watching fellowship of the rings cuz dave & mom hadn't seen it yet...teddy & i wanted to see two towers but we settled for FOTR for the 2nd time this month...i didn't mind...i love that movie...since it was the extended version, it took a long long time to get through, and then dave, ellen, teddy & i drove back into the city...
...the day after christmas, teddy & i went to meet my childhood chum ruthy for lunch in indiatown...it was good to see her again and catch up as usual...it's hard to believe we've known each other for over 25 years...crimeny...i still remember when the two of us would get tacos from the jack-in-the-box before going to tae kwon do...we were about as tall as hobbits back then...and now we're all grown up (sort of)...ruthy's been at stanford for a couple years or so working on her phd in education policy or something like that...i think she really REALLY likes living in california...i know i would...josh & i visited stanford once, and it was one of the loveliest campuses i've ever been to...the outdoor olympic size swimming pool, the tennis courts, the outdoor track, the buildings...not to mention the weather...i'd never get any studying done......so my apartment looks like the aftermath of a gift wrap tornado...i think i had better tidy up and do some laundry...
...tonight, i'm meeting some of my cuzins...at least the ones who are in town...we're going to joy yee's in evanston and then maybe shoot some pool @ pete millers...quite frankly, i'm exhausted...it's a good thing new year's week is usually quiet @ work...i'm probably going to take most of next week off anyway...
OH! i got the sufjan christmas cds!! all 3 of them! including the newest one, ding dong! with denison singing on 'come on! let's boogey to the elf dance!' heeheehee...sufjan was sweet enough to send them to arrive ON christmas...oh, he is lovely, lovely, lovely...and hearing denison's voice on some of the songs was nice too...i love that elf...
ok...time to do the laundry...
teddy & i would like to wish everybody out there a very merry christmas and a spectacular new year!!
i wish i could say that i was done with all my buying of stuff for the season, but i'm afraid i'm not...and this is after teddy & i spent all afternoon and evening running to and from various places that might house potential gifts for our respective lists...tomorrow is my last chance...
...and even though i object to the overcommercialization of the holiday, i can't help delighting in finding something special for the people i especially care about...i love to give gifts, i really do...
there is a beautiful white downy layer of snow outside now...it is really starting to feel like christmas...i'm just glad i don't have to go back to work until next monday! now THAT'S a holiday treat!tomorrow, christmas eve, teddy & i are going to see my mom & bro for dinner...we're gonna make pizzas and hang out...and then go to church for evanston vineyard's candlelight service...christmas day we are going out to teddy's parents for brunch and various activities...i'm hoping we get to see two towers on their tv...it's like 3x the size of my tv...
i dreamt the night before last that my dad & i were skydiving tandem...it was really cool...it felt like we were dancing...at one point, that important point when our parachute was supposed to go off or something, i got detached from my dad while we were freefalling, and for an instant, i was afraid of being separated from him...but he grabbed hold of me and i guess the parachute deployed, and i remember thinking to myself what a lovely feeling it was to skydive with my dad and i wondered how soon we could do it again...it was a really short dream, but it was so beautiful...i'll take any dream in which my dad is alive and well and we're sharing a breathtaking moment...
been listening to--
something about airplanes--death cab for cutie
100 broken windows--idlewild
...ok, so where was i?...oh yes...saturday night i went to see u.s. maple @ the abbey pub w/ dave & ellen & keom...it was fun hanging out, and phil joined us with his roomie kiara...teddy was GONNA go, and we even picked him up from work, but on the way to the show, he tells us that he switched schedules to do a 5am - 1pm shift the next morning so he could go to a christmas family thing in the afternoon...so we dropped him off at the 'L' so he could go get some sleep...the rest of us paid $12 for the show and sat around and read the reader and the new city (which had a nice blurb about watchers by the way...dave chamberlain considers watchers' to the rooftops one of the best albums of 2003...that's nice...)...anyways, the show was rather disappointing...the guys seemed really tired on stage, and off stage, some portions of the audience were annoyingly drunk and harrassing innocent bystanders...*sigh*...sometimes you see bad shows...part of life...
...sunday i woke up practically immobile from a sharp pain in the neck...i have no idea what from...i still have it, but not as severe...sunday evening was the last adventures in advent w/ my friend nanette...go see pictures here...we burned some frankincense that night, which you can see in some of the pictures...i swear, i thought the smoke alarm was gonna go off at one point because the entire sanctuary was filled w/ smoke...but it sure smelled lovely...
...so i got a call from my friend caleb last night...it was an unexpected and lovely surprise to actually hear his voice...caleb, for those of you who don't know, is my divinely appointed friend...no joke...you see, on the night my father passed away, god knew that with my dad no longer in the world, i'd need someone else to kinda help me along and be a source of assurance that there was hope and that not all christians were assholes or idiots...so two hours after my dad died, caleb sent me an email after finding my website due to some bill mallonee photos i had posted...caleb has been a most valued friend ever since...he is like my guardian prophet, telling me just what i need to hear, even though he may not know it...anyways, it was great to catch up with him and just hear how happy he is now that he's engaged and getting married next summer...
...talking to caleb last night made me think about what a great thing it is to be in love, to be commited to someone you are in love with, and just what a miracle such a thing can be...i was reminded of my friend andy out in seattle who also recently got engaged and the email he sent me in which he concurred that 'tis oh so grand to be in love...which led me think of track 2 from the postal service album...yes...i'm liable to be shot for this, but i can't help being sucked in by this little ditty of a song...for once, let's throw off the shackles of sophistication and snobbery that originate in our fears and insecurities...let's shed that thick coat of skin grown to defend ourselves against the next heartbreak which is probably just around the corner...let's be happy for once that there actually are people in love, even if we ourselves may have never experienced it in our own lives--yet...allow me to be sappy for 2 minutes...sing it altogether now:
i am thinking it's a sign that the freckles in our eyes
are mirror images and when we kiss they're perfectly aligned
i would like to speculate that god himself did make us into
corresponding shapes like puzzle pieces from the clay
and true, it may seem like a stretch, but its thoughts like this that
catch my troubled head when you're away and i am missing you to death
when you are out there on the road for several weeks of shows and when
you scan the radio, i hope this song will guide you home
they will see us waving from such great heights, "come down now,"
they'll say but everything looks perfect from far away,
"come down now," but we'll stay...
i tried my best to leave this all on your machine but the persistent beat
it sounded thin upon listening
and that frankly will not fly, you will hear the shrillest highs and
lowest lows with the windows down when this is guiding you home.
such great heights, lyrics by ben gibbard
like i said...ben gibbard's voice makes me swoooooooooon...
in other news, gapersblock.com posted one of my photos in the daily "rearview" photo section for today, 12/22/2003...if you don't see my photo, click on the little red back arrow beneath the current photo in the rearview section and scroll back a few times, depending on how many days AFTER 12/22 you're looking at the site...thank you naz!
been listening to--
no good for no one now--owen
s/t--owen
the denison witmer collection
hark!--sufjan stevens
noel--sufjan stevens
enjoy your rabbit--sufjan stevens
spoon and rafter--mojave3
univesal truths and cycles--guided by voices
reject all american--bikini kill
s/t--all time quarterback
dollar movie--goner
give up--the postal service
...ok, caleb, and everyone else out there who are wondering, here's the explanation...chicago sticker # 2 below is part of vincent dermody's "LOVE CHICAGO/HATE THE CIRCLE" project...you can read about it by clicking here...just scroll down till you see the graphic of the sticker...in short, it's a response to the "I (BLUE DOT) CHICAGO" t-shirt designed by local musician/danny's manager/blahblahblahster kevin stacy...reckless sells those shirts...you've seen 'em i'm sure...it's all silly serious silly blahblahblah apples and oranges lemons and kiwis...and i stand nowhere on this issue...i'd probably go more for the "I HEART CHICAGO" stance...but it's local *ster talk, and these stickers are pretty much everywhere, as you can see here...
so that's the scoop, dude...btw, i can't find your address, so your xmas card is going to the P's...
and in other news, today i do christmasy things AGAIN, this time involving a visit to my local favorite the art gallery kafe! yay!
and maybe a photoshoot...
and maybe us maple @ the abbey pub tonight w/ dave & keom, if i can convince teddy to go too...
i'm hungry...bye!
ok...so i stayed home from work to do christmasy stuff...what i have accomplished so far is finding a bunch of addresses for folks who live far away so that i can send them cards this year...i assembled around 20 cards using various photos from the past year or so...teddy & dave picked me up around 12:20 to go meet ellen @ bourgeoise pig for lunch...it was yummy & fun & a much needed break...teddy & dave had been working most of yesterday evening and this morning designing & assembling a flyer advertising gift certificates for drum lessons for teddy...it's a snazzy looking flyer...dave is great at that stuff...he even designed a font for teddy's name...i am rather covetous of that font...i want my own font too...after lunch, we went to various places to post the ad and then to trader joe's on clybourn so dave could shop and then we dropped off dave & teddy went into jinx cafe on division to post an ad and i saw these stickers on some poles by where we parked...it's gonna be my new project...taking photos of stickers on stuff...and these two stickers are somewhat unique to chicago for reasons that are obvious and maybe not so obvious to others...whatever...
teddy is cooking dinner right now...what a sweet boyfriend he is! i am a disheveled mess...i didn't go out last night to the watchers show, but i got showered and all dressed up and was ABOUT to go, but then teddy called me at the last minute and i got to see him a little bit and considering i've hardly seen him all week, it was not a hard decision to make to stay home...but to save time in the morning, i slept w/ my hair still in the little side braid and i didn't wash my face (i know that sounds gross, but i'd spent a lot of time on my mascara) and so when teddy gave me 5 minutes to get ready before he picked me up for lunch, i just put on the same clothese and ran out the door...i had to wear my hat though cuz my hair was hopeless...
after dinner, we're gonna go to the art store cuz i needs some supplies and then to transitions to buy some gifts or what not...looking for some old catholic mystics stuff...
ok, bye!
...our IT dept at work tried to upgrade our server the other day and basically crashed everything...no one really got anything done today...except for me perhaps...i had backups of backups on my old laptop that i got some use out of...the more than minor inconvenience of being unnetworked caused me to stay later at work than intended...everyone pretty much shooed home around 4...i was there until past 6...and then traffic was not nice, so i stopped at the target in highland park to buy some materials to do my yearly tentative christmas mailings...every christmas, i attempt to send stuff out, and except for the people in my immediate vicinity or the people i value very very highly, nobody gets anything from me...but i do think about you all...it's not like i don't love you or anything...
...another reason i stayed late at work is that i'm taking the day off tomorrow to do more christmasy things...like write cards...if i get 'em made that is...all i'm doing is printing some wallet size photos and inserting them into some little christmas photo cards that i found at target...i will be a real bitch tomorrow, for sure, cuz i hate printing photos...and what i hate even more is cutting them down to size...but i don't really have that many friends, so i think i'll be okay...
and the question of the moment is...should i or shouldn't i go to the watchers/joggers show @ the bottle tonight? i'm so tired...and i'm gonna go see lying in states tomorrow @ gunther murphys if all goes as planned...i've been feeling like quite the wus lately when it comes to going out...i think i need new hobbies or i need to join a knitting circle or something...bleah...i think i'm gonna hit the shower now...
been listening to--
the best of--denison witmer
s/t--hidari mae
get lost--magnetic fields
sufjan galore
...i think i suffer from SADD...i don't even remember what that stands for...but i know it's seasonal and a disorder, and i KNOW i'm at LEAST seasonally disordered, so i'm sure i qualify...i miss the sun...i miss outdoor warmth...my thoughts are drifting westward, towards the pacific oceanic states...my body on the other hand is stuck in frigid chicago...somebody really needs to invent teleportation...i have half a thought to follow my friend john b. to cancun this winter...he's been going w/ his mom every year around the beginning of february for all the years that i've known him...i've never been to mexico...it sure would feel nice & toasty right about now...i know i talk about moving west every winter, and this will be no exception...why break a longstanding time honored tradition such as this? i'm only half-joking though...if i really did find a job that could pay all my bills out in seattle, i'd break my lease in a heartbeat, throw as much of my shit in my subaru as possible and start driving northwest...although, i have to admit that part of the allure of the emerald city recently relocated itself to dansville, ny, which is like way in the opposite direction, when ryan & jesse moved back to the east a month ago...still, i think i could have lots of fun in seattle...ian would be nearby, allbeit on an island...and matt & laurel & erik are still there...and i'd actually get to hear some of my favorite music live a lot more often, with rosie & damien & hidari mae & others located out thataways...i'm all talk...but just you wait...one of these days i will surprise everyone including myself by following through on my threats...
...i've been trying to gather up all my lost photos that have wandered off munching on the neighbor's grass, and it's been a monumental task to say the least...my files are scattered across 3 desktops and 3 laptops in 3 different towns in 2 different counties...as far as i know, they're all in the state of illinois, however...so today's shots are old stuff that i dug up that i didn't think much of at first, but upon 2nd glance, i kinda like them...i need some kind of software to organize my photos online or something...it's really getting out of hand...i probably have around 20,000 digital photos, most of which are rubbish, but i'm as big a pack rat in the virtual world as i am in the material world, so i need to buy an external harddrive...
...tomorrow watchers are playing w/ joggers @ the empty bottle...i'm considering going to this show...maybe erin will be there...i do wanna see the joggers...watchers did a miniminitour w/ them a little over a year ago, and i met them @ the milwaukee show...the drummer worked @ the blackbird in portland, oregon, where i accompanied serene & the gloria record a year ago...anyways, it's been too damn long since i've been to a show...i really should've gone to schuba's tonight for the wluw xmas singalong...the detholz were on the roster as well as steve & liam from frisbie...damn...i wonder if jenn & john were there...oh well...
been listening to--
when we were small--rosie thomas
you are free--cat power
'cross the big pond--VoL
lost souls--doves
...ok...this is an historic moment...at 20 seconds past the 3rd minute of 20hundred hours on tuesday, december 16th in the year 2003, i am making my very first wireless post...holy cow...let's take a few moments in honor of this moment, shall we?...................ok...that's good...
coming to you LIVE from the art gallery kafe at 1907 n. milwaukee in chicago, IL, i am surfing as i sip a delicious cup of organic blend here at this lovely place that kyoung & ginny, the proprieters, have done such a great job of creating an atmosphere that can be a 3rd place for folks in the neighborhood...currently, teddy is the only male (except for kyong, the owner) within a 20' radius, and he's all mine! ha ha ha! it is amazing that i can turn on my laptop, no wires going anywhere, doubleclick on explorer, and see yahoo pop up instantly, all perky and ready for me to surf...it's a wonderful world we live in...i am very close to fenegling one of my IT techie boys to get a wifi for my work laptop so that on the days i work from home, the boundaries of 'home' can stretch as far as any neighborhood tech savvy cafe...most likely the art gallery kafe cuz here it's free as long as you make a purchase...other cafes usually charge something like $3/hour...
...so it's been ages since this laptop's seen the world wide web...i've barely been using this thing...there are a million photos on it, mainly from the weeks during my dad's final illness and the weeks immediately following his death in may of 2002...seeing all those photos i took during that time was like being reunited with old friends...i don't know quite how to explain it, but the photos that i take, some of them actually find their way into my heart, and there they stay...each evokes the emotion related to the memory or the story behind the photo...and there were a lot of emotions flowing in me during that time...well, actually, i guess there's usually a lot of emotions flowing in me at any given moment...
teddy and i are here at art gallery kafe doing an experiment on third spaces...at least I'M doing an experiment on exploring possibilities for a third space...if you're worndering what a third space is, go read this article here...it's something i've been thinking about...in this day and age of fragmented relationships and isolation, i think there's a longing in a lot of folks to find a place they can go to outside their homes where they can connect to other people and to RELATE in a genuine and vulnerable way...families don't take care of each other the way they used to, and they tend to be spaced so far apart now, as opposed to the days before modern transportation when you basically stayed on the family farm or stayed in the same town and found a job you stayed with for life...
...there are about a dozen women in the cafe grouped together in two separate clusters...KNITTING...yes, i know this phenomenon has been going on for some time...my X and his best friend used to bring their knitting bags to church and fiddle with their needles and yarn during the service...this definitely got the attention of the young females in their visual vicinity...i unfortunately lack the dexterity or the patience to knit anything worth admitting ownership to...but i do find it fascinating...i can hear the conversations going on, and i am amazed that these women can talk about their relational problems, current hypochondriatic concerns, and the usual chit chat whilst their fingers perform these microscopically complex tasks (at least they seem that way to me)...oh that i should be blessed with such talent...alas, i'm just a shutterbug & blogger...those are my only talents that i'll actually claim to have...
*sigh*...i want to be in a knitting circle...ok, maybe not a KNITTING circle...but a SOMETHING circle...an ANYTHING circle...or square...or rhombus...beggars can't be choosers ya know...
anyways, everybody, run out to the art gallery kafe...mon-wed open until 9pm, thursday until 10pm, friday-sunday until 6pm...they're at 1907 n. milwaukee...i had a hummus plate w/ a huge veggie selection...FRESH TASTING VEGGIES...YUMMY! good coffee too...intelligentsia of course...
...HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY COUSIN IKE!!! way down deep in the heart of austin, tx! ike & i were born in the same year, so we're closest in age among the cousins...we're also the shutterbugs of the family...and the ones w/ independent tastes in music...actually, even though i'm 7 months older, ike was the one who first got into the music (and introduced me to it) and then to digital photography...he hasn't lived in chicago in years and years though and i only get to see him for the holidays...except this one cuz he moving into a snazzy condo...
...in other news, i've installed my wifi on my laptop & i'm hoping to try it out tonight @ the art gallery kafe, where they have free wireless internet for their customers...quite the deal, in my opinion...
been listening to--
perfumed letter--bill mallonee
the covers album--cat power
s/t--blonde redhead
s/t--all-time quarterback
oh, i totally forgot...just found this link on the ooze today...heeeheeeheee...i guess it's the christian version of the onion...here's the holy observer...
...ok...photos from week 3 of wicker park grace's advent series are right here...last one is this coming sunday...
...got home not too long ago from work...my throat definitely still hurts...oh well...not much i can do about that i suppose...
...the good news is that it seems that divine intervention will land me my most coveted sufjan stevens xmas cds! i guess emailing god (godcubed@throneroom.com) and cc:ing sufjan worked...i sent god an email requesting that he make sure sufjan read his email, specifically mine, and to give me further instructions if necessary via fortune cookie...that's how i get people at work to pay attention when i send them an important email...i send a copy to a vp of something or other, and then the person is more apt to read the darn thing...actually, sufjan wasn't dissing me...he's just been swamped, what with recording another christmas album and all...denison had told me they had recorded one last weekend, and it turns out that denny does a few songs on there too, one of which involves elvish boogying, which is quite funny because i've been convinced for quite some time that denison is an elf...at least part elf...
...oh, and the funny thing was, yesterday, teddy, dave & i went to brunch @ the riverside cafe...they have this scrumptious all-you-can-eat buffet on sunday mornings for $10.95...i'm talking french toast, huevos rancheros, biscuits, butter pancakes, blueberry pancakes, potato pancakes, scrambled eggs w/ veggies, eggs benedict, eggs-something-else, ham, half a dozen pasta salads, bruschetta, blt's, other sandwiches, all kinds of fruit, twinkies, hostess cupcakes, wafer cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and all kinds of other stuff i can't even remember...well, of all things for a breakfast/brunch buffet, they had chinese fortune cookies! ha ha ha! and my fortune said 'everything will come your way', which i took to mean of course the sufjan stevens christmas cds...and voila, i get home that afternoon and i have an email from sufjan...absolutely lovely...
been listening to--
folklore--16 horsepower
s/t--the innocence mission
slow dark train--VoL
philadelphia songs--denison witmer
daydream nation--sonic youth
give up--the postal service
spartacus--the farm
i am so exhausted...thank you everybody for caring about my mom...
i am getting sick again...sore throat...sinus problems...yuckity yuck yuck yuck...too tired to blog...so i'm just gonna cut & paste something i posted on the VoL/Bill Mallonee grouplist...for those of you unfamiliar with the music of bill mallonee & the vigilantes of love (VoL), you're missing out...anyways, the fans on that grouplist are very opinionated and love to spew their opinions about (don't get me wrong, i actually like a lot of them), and so many of them, at around this time of the year, post their top 5 or top 10 albums for the past year...so this is my post for my top 10...please excuse the formatting errors...i'm too lazy to fix 'em...oh, and the photos are just miscellaneous snapshots from me & teddy's latest outings...
begin transmission:
...i'm very indecisive about these things...i never make lists, which is why i usually come home from the grocery store with unintentional things like a tigger pez or avocado muffins...i could never do santa's job...but i'll take a stab...
not all these were released in 2003, but i'm pretty behind the times as i am skeptical of most new music... and now, in no particular order because to prioritize would simply drive me over the edge:
DISCLAIMER: SARAH-JI, THE AUTHOR OF THE FOLLOWING LIST, IS AN INDIE ROCKER ON THE CHICAGO SCENE WHO WEARS HOODIES AND JELLY BRACELETS AND COLLECTS BAND BUTTONS...IF YOU MAKE FUN OF HER, HER BOYFRIEND WILL KICK YOUR ASS, BUT SHE'LL PROBABLY LAUGH RIGHT BACK...
1. GREETINGS FROM MICHIGAN--SUFJAN STEVENS (http://www.sufjan.com) sufjan is an adopted sibling of the danielson famile because he is pretty damn useful, playing something like 20 instruments on this album alone...i know a while back we had some nuked discussion back and forth regarding worship music...this album is my vote for album most likely to get me to experience the presence of god in recent memory...or distant memory for that matter...i would include his christmas albums NOEL and HARK! on this list as well, but then
someone might accuse me of favoritism...esp. if they ever see a photo of sufjan...besides, the christmas albums are next to impossible to get except at a live show...
2. INFINITE KEYS--ESTER DRANG (http://www.esterdrang.com) they're cute...oh and they make beautiful music! i saw them open up for starflyer59, and i gotta say, you needs to see them live, these blokies from the okies are worth spending $$ on...
3. GIVE UP--THE POSTAL SERVICE...ben gibbard's voice mixed w/ one of the jen's voices (jenny lewis of rilo kiley & jen wood) makes my knees shake...gets dangerous when i'm behind the wheel...
4. NOW YOU KNOW--DOUG MARTSCH (of built to spill)...granted, BTS is one of my favorite bands...but this is doug playing the BLUES...and it's absolutely lovely in an indie rock kinda way...and he does a version of 'woke up this morning w/ my mind on jesus' that i really love but which most folks probably wouldn't like too much...
5. ONLY WITH LAUGHTER CAN YOU WIN--ROSIE THOMAS (http://www.rosiethomas.com)...i love rosie on and off the stage...her songs are so simple and yet brutally honest...unlike her good friend damien jurado who makes up a lot of the stories behind his songs (thank goodness, or he'd be a murderous adulterer), rosie's are pretty much all true...i love how simply she fingerpicks her songs and how sometimes eric has to tune her guitar...and i love how her voice lingers in your brain and haunts you for days...
6. WHERE SHALL YOU LEAD ME--DAMIEN JURADO (http://www.damienjurado.com) you could say that my current state of marshwigglish-a-la-puddleglum outlook on life began the day i found out i was older than damien jurado...nevertheless, i cannot help but love his music...and this new one is no exception...he makes me cry tears sweet enough to drink...
7. NO GOOD FOR NO ONE NOW--OWEN (MIKE KINSELLA OF CAP'N JAZZ/AMERICAN FOOTBALL/JOAN OF ARC)... the kinsella brothers are indie rock icons in the chicago hipster scene and mike has been playing solo stuff under the moniker OWEN in recent times...he plays all the instruments himself and records the stuff in his bedroom @ his mom's house...the result is very simple, beautifully melodic sometimes heartwrenching songs...
8. FOLKLORE--16 HORSEPOWER ... ok, i'm kinda slow...just started getting into this band, and like woah...it's possible if i found this album last year when it actually came out, it would've proven itself too much for me to handle, but i have a better grip on my emotional well-being now, and i can handle the thick lush darkness and just let it wash over me without damaging me...
9. SELF-TITLED--HIDARI MAE (http://www.hidarimae.com) this is my friend andy myers' band...andy plays drums for damien jurado & rosie thomas, but he fronts this band on guitar and plays other interesting instruments like the theremin...eric fisher, damien's & rosie's guitarist, plays keys on this one...when they play live, dave broecker of the prom plays bass...andy has a hauntingly beautiful voice, and for a debut, i think this album is quite lovely...
10. PERFUMED LETTER--BILL [MALLONEE (http://www.billmallonee.net)]...ah yes...do i even need to mention this one? everything i know about love and loss and life, i learned from bill mallonee...ok, not 100% accurate, but i sure have learned a lot about coping with love, loss & life from bill's songs as well as from bill the man, bill the husband, bill the father, bill the friend...that's why when i am most despondent, i can take comfort in bill's songs, new & old, knowing i'm not alone and realizing that somehow there's always a hint of hope, whether it's a really huge obvious brick-over-the-head hint or as subtle as a daydream...PERFUMED LETTER is one of my favorite albums to listen to on a cold starry night, when i'm driving down a dark road outside the city limits, as i think about the boy i love, and sometimes about the boys i thought i loved...
maybe in 2004, i'll actually buy albums the same year that they're released, but considering my backlog, i probably still won't get to them until 2005...
hugs & kisses to everyone everywhere!
sjr
end transmission
i am getting sick again...sore throat...sinus problems...yuckity yuck yuck yuck...too tired to blog...so i'm just gonna cut & paste something i posted on the VoL/Bill Mallonee grouplist...for those of you unfamiliar with the music of bill mallonee & the vigilantes of love (VoL), you're missing out...anyways, the fans on that grouplist are very opinionated and love to spew their opinions about (don't get me wrong, i actually like a lot of them), and so many of them, at around this time of the year, post their top 5 or top 10 albums for the past year...so this is my post for my top 10...please excuse the formatting errors...i'm too lazy to fix 'em...oh, and the photos are just miscellaneous snapshots from me & teddy's latest outings...
begin transmission:
...i'm very indecisive about these things...i never make lists, which is why i usually come home from the grocery store with unintentional things like a tigger pez or avocado muffins...i could never do santa's job...but i'll take a stab...not all these were released in 2003, but i'm pretty behind the times as i am skeptical of most new music... and now, in no particular order because to prioritize would simply drive me over the edge:
DISCLAIMER: SARAH-JI, THE AUTHOR OF THE FOLLOWING LIST, IS AN INDIE ROCKER ON THE CHICAGO SCENE WHO WEARS HOODIES AND JELLY BRACELETS AND COLLECTS BAND BUTTONS...IF YOU MAKE FUN OF HER, HER BOYFRIEND WILL KICK YOUR ASS, BUT SHE'LL PROBABLY LAUGH RIGHT BACK...
1. GREETINGS FROM MICHIGAN--SUFJAN STEVENS (http://www.sufjan.com) sufjan is an adopted sibling of the danielson famile because he is pretty damn useful, playing something like 20 instruments on this album alone...i know a while back we had some nuked discussion back and forth regarding worship music...this album is my vote for album most likely to get me to experience the presence of god in recent memory...or distant memory for that matter...i would include his christmas albums NOEL and HARK! on this list as well, but then
someone might accuse me of favoritism...esp. if they ever see a photo of sufjan...besides, the christmas albums are next to impossible to get except at a live show...
2. INFINITE KEYS--ESTER DRANG (http://www.esterdrang.com) they're cute...oh and they make beautiful music! i saw them open up for starflyer59, and i gotta say, you needs to see them live, these blokies from the okies are worth spending $$ on...3. GIVE UP--THE POSTAL SERVICE...ben gibbard's voice mixed w/ one of the jen's voices (jenny lewis of rilo kiley & jen wood) makes my knees shake...gets dangerous when i'm behind the wheel...
4. NOW YOU KNOW--DOUG MARTSCH (of built to spill)...granted, BTS is one of my favorite bands...but this is doug playing the BLUES...and it's absolutely lovely in an indie rock kinda way...and he does a version of 'woke up this morning w/ my mind on jesus' that i really love but which most folks probably wouldn't like too much...
5. ONLY WITH LAUGHTER CAN YOU WIN--ROSIE THOMAS (http://www.rosiethomas.com)...i love rosie on and off the stage...her songs are so simple and yet brutally honest...unlike her good friend damien jurado who makes up a lot of the stories behind his songs (thank goodness, or he'd be a murderous adulterer), rosie's are pretty much all true...i love how simply she fingerpicks her songs and how sometimes eric has to tune her guitar...and i love how her voice lingers in your brain and haunts you for days...6. WHERE SHALL YOU LEAD ME--DAMIEN JURADO (http://www.damienjurado.com) you could say that my current state of marshwigglish-a-la-puddleglum outlook on life began the day i found out i was older than damien jurado...nevertheless, i cannot help but love his music...and this new one is no exception...he makes me cry tears sweet enough to drink...
7. NO GOOD FOR NO ONE NOW--OWEN (MIKE KINSELLA OF CAP'N JAZZ/AMERICAN FOOTBALL/JOAN OF ARC)... the kinsella brothers are indie rock icons in the chicago hipster scene and mike has been playing solo stuff under the moniker OWEN in recent times...he plays all the instruments himself and records the stuff in his bedroom @ his mom's house...the result is very simple, beautifully melodic sometimes heartwrenching songs...8. FOLKLORE--16 HORSEPOWER ... ok, i'm kinda slow...just started getting into this band, and like woah...it's possible if i found this album last year when it actually came out, it would've proven itself too much for me to handle, but i have a better grip on my emotional well-being now, and i can handle the thick lush darkness and just let it wash over me without damaging me...
9. SELF-TITLED--HIDARI MAE (http://www.hidarimae.com) this is my friend andy myers' band...andy plays drums for damien jurado & rosie thomas, but he fronts this band on guitar and plays other interesting instruments like the theremin...eric fisher, damien's & rosie's guitarist, plays keys on this one...when they play live, dave broecker of the prom plays bass...andy has a hauntingly beautiful voice, and for a debut, i think this album is quite lovely...
10. PERFUMED LETTER--BILL [MALLONEE (http://www.billmallonee.net)]...ah yes...do i even need to mention this one? everything i know about love and loss and life, i learned from bill mallonee...ok, not 100% accurate, but i sure have learned a lot about coping with love, loss & life from bill's songs as well as from bill the man, bill the husband, bill the father, bill the friend...that's why when i am most despondent, i can take comfort in bill's songs, new & old, knowing i'm not alone and realizing that somehow there's always a hint of hope, whether it's a really huge obvious brick-over-the-head hint or as subtle as a daydream...PERFUMED LETTER is one of my favorite albums to listen to on a cold starry night, when i'm driving down a dark road outside the city limits, as i think about the boy i love, and sometimes about the boys i thought i loved...maybe in 2004, i'll actually buy albums the same year that they're released, but considering my backlog, i probably still won't get to them until 2005...
hugs & kisses to everyone everywhere!
sjr
end transmission
well, i have returned from my most recent family medical crisis, and thanks to all for your lovely thoughts and prayers and comments and emails and phone calls...my momma woked up from her anesthesia after all...she's actually home in glenview, gently snoring the night away hopefully...the surgery seems to have gone well, although we won't know the results for sure until we have the pathologist's report next week...it was a tiring day to say the least...3 cheers for my teddy who stayed at the hospital w/ me & my bro until he had to trudge off to trader joes at 5pm...the surgery, sheduled for noon, was postponed until 3:45pm...my poor momma had to lie in on that terribly uncomfortable hospital cot that whole time, waiting her turn to go under the knife...
...it was really weird going back to that place...it was the exact same waiting room where my dad's surgeon broke the news to me that my dad's cancer was inoperable...teddy & i went to the chapel where i'd gone and taken some photos of the stained glass back during that month when i practically lived at swedish covenant...the stained glass is different now...the world below outside still looked strange through the deep colors of the glass...
...i was okay with it all until teddy & i took a lunch break at jimmy john's for some sandwiches, and i explained to teddy what the cancer had put my dad through, and then remembering how much he suffered, and thinking back to that one night, his last night, the night i stayed with him in his hospital room, it all came back to me, how he struggled for every breath, and how at 1 am he could speak and understand what i was saying and how at 7:30 am i couldn't get him to open his eyes or to say anything...and as i remembered that night, that's when i started cyring into my jimmy johns...
...today i finished reading the silver chair, book #4 in the chronicles of narnia series, and i read the part where king caspian is dead and floating in the water in aslan's country, and aslan makes eustace pierce his paw w/ a thorn and the blood from his paw brings caspian back to life...and i wonder what it was like for my dad, to leave this world and go to aslan's country, for that is where he must have gone...and what was it like to come back to 'life', not life like we know it, but to become ageless, to be freed from that decrepid body that was eaten away by cancer, and what was the first thing that he did, and could he see me crying over him in that hospital room, and can he see me crying even now?
...i feel bad for my mom...being sick is not easy...being sick as a widow must be doubly bitter...i realize that i never gave much thought to how much my mom must feel alone after losing her constant companion of 34 years...i've grieved over my personal loss, but never gave much thought to my mother's loss...i can't even begin to imagine it...
...it was really weird going back to that place...it was the exact same waiting room where my dad's surgeon broke the news to me that my dad's cancer was inoperable...teddy & i went to the chapel where i'd gone and taken some photos of the stained glass back during that month when i practically lived at swedish covenant...the stained glass is different now...the world below outside still looked strange through the deep colors of the glass...
...i was okay with it all until teddy & i took a lunch break at jimmy john's for some sandwiches, and i explained to teddy what the cancer had put my dad through, and then remembering how much he suffered, and thinking back to that one night, his last night, the night i stayed with him in his hospital room, it all came back to me, how he struggled for every breath, and how at 1 am he could speak and understand what i was saying and how at 7:30 am i couldn't get him to open his eyes or to say anything...and as i remembered that night, that's when i started cyring into my jimmy johns...
...today i finished reading the silver chair, book #4 in the chronicles of narnia series, and i read the part where king caspian is dead and floating in the water in aslan's country, and aslan makes eustace pierce his paw w/ a thorn and the blood from his paw brings caspian back to life...and i wonder what it was like for my dad, to leave this world and go to aslan's country, for that is where he must have gone...and what was it like to come back to 'life', not life like we know it, but to become ageless, to be freed from that decrepid body that was eaten away by cancer, and what was the first thing that he did, and could he see me crying over him in that hospital room, and can he see me crying even now?
...i feel bad for my mom...being sick is not easy...being sick as a widow must be doubly bitter...i realize that i never gave much thought to how much my mom must feel alone after losing her constant companion of 34 years...i've grieved over my personal loss, but never gave much thought to my mother's loss...i can't even begin to imagine it...
...so my mom is having surgery tomorrow...yeah, that lump turned out to be cancer, but it's very early stage breast cancer, which means she doesn't need to have radical surgery, but she has to have a less serious surgery, but it's still surgery and it's still cancer and it's still my mom damn it...to top things off, her preoperative physical revealed that she's got heart problems and they almost canceled the surgery cuz her EKG showed that she'd had a minor heart attack...like frickin' ay, just what we need...my poor mama...she lost her mom when her mom was only 50 during surgery...my grandma never woke up from the anesthesia...i think that's what my mom's worried about...cuz she's so weak and little and all...so i'm gonna be back at the hospital where my dad died tomorrow while my mom has surgery...not what i would choose to do on a day off, but oh well...
...just to clarify regarding the whole U of Chicago bathroom thingie...i don't have a stance on gender neutral bathrooms cuz frankly, i don't care...i have been known to walk into boys' bathrooms since i was in high school cuz i mean, usually the door's got this picture of a figure w/ pants on, and since that's what i normally wear, it makes sense to me to walk through that door, and the other one's got a picture of a figure w/ a dress on, which i don't relate to, so yes, sometimes just cuz i see a door in front of my face w/ a picture of someone in pants, this does not trigger an alarm to go off in my brain to warn me that i'm about to walk into the wrong bathroom...i really don't mind sharing a bathroom w/ a guy as long as there are stalls with nice secure doors, not the kind that swing back open at the slightest vibration of the walls or floors...and what my friend carlos tells me (he graduated from the UofC this past year), a lot of the dorms already have gender neutral bathroom facilities...so that's that...
...so remember my friend steve who is on the campaign trail writing a book? he's got a newsletter you can sign up for at bamboozled2004-subscribe@yahoo.com...it's not like a lot of politics schmolitics...i like reading his updates for the stories he tells...like the last one was about how no one picks up hitchhikers anymore, and he was trying to hitch a ride to the bus station in new hampshire...the boy is a poet at heart, and i have to say that his writing has probably influenced my own blogging style...just to warn you, his writing would be rated R for ocassional strong language and sometimes stuff that may be considered of a sexual nature...but i think it's worth reading...steve and i were in a.p. english together our senior year of high school...i think we sat near each other...one of my favorite high school memories is of steve and chris schenk (now one of chicago's finest preserving the peace in the windy city) seranading me with a beatles song...8 days a week i think...steve has had quite a life...and since i'm too lazy to type, here's an excerpt from his bio from one of his books:
"Stephen Elliott left home at thirteen and, after a year sleeping on the roof of a convienance store on Chicago's Northside he was made a ward of the court and channeled through various large and small group homes and institutional learning facilities.
Against all odds, he earned his Bachelors degree at the University of Illinois and went on to obtain a Master of Arts degree from Northwestern University. To support his writing habit he has since worked as a stripper, a cabdriver, a bartender, and a marketing executive.
Stephen Elliott has recently been awarded the 2001 Stegner Fellowship from Stanford University, offered to emerging writers in fiction and poety."
steve knows a lot about life on the fringe...it's good to see someone deserving of recognition actually getting some...so steve's been teaching @ stanford the past couple years...my first time getting drunk on sierra nevada was his fault...josh & i went to meet him at his local neighborhood bar called the uptown near mission & 16th st. in san francisco, and the bartender kept giving me free pints...i wasn't too familiar with the potency of the brew then, but i learned it pretty good when i got up to go to the bathroom and the bar started spinning...anyways, steve just quit his job @ stanford to go on the road to write this book about the 2004 elections, and i'm sure it'll be an interesting read...
been listening to--
burning my travels clean--rocky votolato
it's hard to find a friend--pedro the lion
in the aeroplane over the sea--neutral milk hotel
measure--matt pond pa
team boo--mates of state
time (the revelator)--gillian welch
infinite keys--ester drang
we have the facts and we're voting yes--death cab for cutie
where shall you take me?--damien jurado
...*big long sigh*...*ditto*...*repeat*...
...a rainy night in the windy city...but it's definitely not raining men at my place tonight cuz my teddy got called in to work a 4pm-1am shift cuz the store's having some guests tomorrow which means i won't get to see him until i get home from work tomorrow night...it seems like we've hardly seen each other in days...i'm talking quality alone time...between his working weekends, and my working weekdays, it just SUCKS sometimes! i was looking forward to a lazy evening with teddy just watching democrats talk bullshit (cuz my friend steve's on the campaign trail w/ howard dean, so i have a bit of an interest in the whole affair now)...and yeah, i know...gore endorsing dean...what does it all mean? tiddlywinks! that's what! i ain't on any side of no fence cuz i'm all up in the air and ain't coming down yet till i get too tired flapping my wings...all i knows is i ain't voting for the incumbent, so i had better come to some sort of a decision in the coming months...an intelligent one would be desirable...
...in happy news, i am pleased to announce that some of my photos of rosie thomas were included in the most recent issue of bottlebreaker mag for an interview one of their writers did with her during the fall tour w/ damien...bottlebreaker is a fanzine out of canada, and although it's not like getting my photos published in rolling stone (which i don't read anyway), i really like the folks at bottlebreaker...dave & todd have been total gentlemen and absolutely lovely to deal with...and even though it's a small fanzine with limited distribution, i thought it looked pretty darn good...nice and clean...i highly approve! and since you all have been so supportive of my shutterbug addiction, here is a link to the pdf file of the interview...it's also a very good interview...laid back and chill, ya know? and there's a review of rosie's latest album in there too...oh, and dave's sending me bottlebreaker buttons!!! yay! there's nothing more thrilling than pinning a new button to my purse or vest! oh sweet little joys...oh! and in the article, my credit is in FRENCH...like how cool is that??!! i don't even care that my name's misspelled...some sara(h)s don't have to bother with the 'h' at the end of their names...
...i'd like to send a shoutout to my skinny hoosier friend brandon pfeiffer as he travels to kansas city to record the first few songs of his next cd w/ someone who's too important and successful in the music biz for me to remember his name...uh...his first name starts with uhm uh uh a D but the rest escapes my sad excuse for a memory bank...have fun brandon! hope you learn a thing or two by saturdee! come back to chicago real soon now!
been listening to--
rosie
sufjan
that's it
oh & future bible heroes
...a rainy night in the windy city...but it's definitely not raining men at my place tonight cuz my teddy got called in to work a 4pm-1am shift cuz the store's having some guests tomorrow which means i won't get to see him until i get home from work tomorrow night...it seems like we've hardly seen each other in days...i'm talking quality alone time...between his working weekends, and my working weekdays, it just SUCKS sometimes! i was looking forward to a lazy evening with teddy just watching democrats talk bullshit (cuz my friend steve's on the campaign trail w/ howard dean, so i have a bit of an interest in the whole affair now)...and yeah, i know...gore endorsing dean...what does it all mean? tiddlywinks! that's what! i ain't on any side of no fence cuz i'm all up in the air and ain't coming down yet till i get too tired flapping my wings...all i knows is i ain't voting for the incumbent, so i had better come to some sort of a decision in the coming months...an intelligent one would be desirable...
...in happy news, i am pleased to announce that some of my photos of rosie thomas were included in the most recent issue of bottlebreaker mag for an interview one of their writers did with her during the fall tour w/ damien...bottlebreaker is a fanzine out of canada, and although it's not like getting my photos published in rolling stone (which i don't read anyway), i really like the folks at bottlebreaker...dave & todd have been total gentlemen and absolutely lovely to deal with...and even though it's a small fanzine with limited distribution, i thought it looked pretty darn good...nice and clean...i highly approve! and since you all have been so supportive of my shutterbug addiction, here is a link to the pdf file of the interview...it's also a very good interview...laid back and chill, ya know? and there's a review of rosie's latest album in there too...oh, and dave's sending me bottlebreaker buttons!!! yay! there's nothing more thrilling than pinning a new button to my purse or vest! oh sweet little joys...oh! and in the article, my credit is in FRENCH...like how cool is that??!! i don't even care that my name's misspelled...some sara(h)s don't have to bother with the 'h' at the end of their names...
...i'd like to send a shoutout to my skinny hoosier friend brandon pfeiffer as he travels to kansas city to record the first few songs of his next cd w/ someone who's too important and successful in the music biz for me to remember his name...uh...his first name starts with uhm uh uh a D but the rest escapes my sad excuse for a memory bank...have fun brandon! hope you learn a thing or two by saturdee! come back to chicago real soon now!
been listening to--
rosie
sufjan
that's it
oh & future bible heroes
DISCLAIMER: THIS IS GOING TO BE A SERIOUS AND LONG RANT...DO NOT PROCEED IF YOU'RE ALREADY HAVING AN ENRAGING DAY...
a few days ago, a friend of mine forwarded an email to me from a woman who was outraged about an article reporting that the university of chicago was discussing w/ their GLBT community the possibility of putting in gender neutral bathrooms in several campus buildings...in her words "HERE COMES ANOTHER TUITION INCREASE FOR US PARENTS! CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS IS EVEN OPEN FOR DISCUSSION? WE ARE BORN MALE OR FEMALE......THE CLOTHES WE WEAR DO NOT DETERMINE OUR SEX......WHAT WE ARE BORN WITH SHOULD DETERMINE WHAT BATHROOM WE USE......END OF DISCUSSION! SIMPLE!"
i probably should've sat on my fingers, but instead the naive silly girl that i am, i responded...you see, i'm just sick and tired of people assuming that all christians follow the same party line, and i'm saddened that so many christians do sit back and remain silent and allow themselves to be bullied by the opinions of some overbearing allbeit passionate individuals...so i spoke up...sue me...anyways, in my response, i expressed my concern at what seemed to me a lack of compassion, let alone the facts (not everyone is born simply MALE or FEMALE; some are born anatomically both MALE AND FEMALE)...she responded to me saying that she didn't think that the majority of taxpayers should have to pay more in taxes to help out such a small minority of the population but she thanked me for my comments because she enjoyed delving into the topic of "abnormal thought processes"...
two things bothered me (ok, more than 2 things, but for the sake of brevity, i'll only mention 2) about her comments and her clarification of her stance...first, i couldn't believe that someone could just write off an issue that is of concern to a segment of our population and say 'END OF DISCUSSION', just because that segment happens to be so small and i guess therefore insignificant in her scheme of things..."END OF DISCUSSION"?? when did she ever participate in a compassionate and empathetic discussion? "SIMPLE!"?? is it really that simple?? c'mon folks, let's at least DISCOURSE and COMMUNICATE, even if we don't agree with one another...secondly, i was dismayed at her unwillingness to part with money because those in need of help were such a small minority...if i remember correctly, there was a shepherd in one of jesus's stories who left 99 perfectly obedient and docile lambs alone exposed to the dangers in the wilderness, to go after the one stupid one who wandered off and got lost...that shepherd didn't sacrifice that one stupid lamb that was probably doing its breed good by eliminating itself for the sake of the safety of the VAST MAJORITY of the flock...jesus was always after the fringe of society...and i don't care what you believe about gender/sexuality issues...when you have a segment of the population that has historically suffered discrimination and mistreatment and rejection and disdain from society at large, don't tell me that the christian response is to throw your hands up in the air and say, 'hey, god didn't make them that way! end of discussion! simple!' because if that's what the christian response is supposed to be, i know nothing about who jesus is and who god is and what grace is and what mercy is and what compassion is and what love is...all these things that are supposed to be the indicators to the world as to who christians are...that the world would know that they are christians by their love...
and then to top it off, the same woman, who i am going to give the benefit of the doubt to and assume is just insensitive and lacking in common sense and not really deliberately malicious, sent me the following email, which i am posting in its entirety...please keep in mind that my family and i immigrated to the states from korea when i was 6 years old, that i had a grandma who came to the states in her 60's who never learned english, and that i have numerous aunts and uncles and a mom to boot who came to the states as adults and who still struggle greatly with the language...anyways, I DID NOT WRITE ANYTHING THAT IS IN RED AND IN GARAMOND FONT...this is the email she sent me:
"Sarah.....thought you might want to get a 'rise' out of this opinion, too. We American Christians have our beliefs and our heritage to protect....and I intend to do my part!
Story in Tampa Paper - September 30, 2003
Will we still be the Country of choice and still be America if we continue to make the changes forced on us by the people from other countries that came to live in America because it is the Country of Choice???????? Think about it........
All I have to say is, when will they do something about MY RIGHTS? I celebrate Christmas, but because it isn't celebrated by everyone, we can no longer say Merry Christmas. Now it has to be Season's Greetings. It's not Christmas vacation, it's Winter Break. Isn't it amazing how this winter break ALWAYS occurs over the Christmas holiday?? We've gone so far the other way, bent over backwards to not offend anyone, that I am now being offended. But it seems that no one has a problem with that.
This says it all!
After hearing that the state of Florida changed its opinion and let a Muslim woman have her picture on her driver's license with her face covered this is an editorial written by an American citizen, published in a Tampa newspaper. He did quite a job; didn't he? Read on, please!
IMMIGRANTS, NOT AMERICANS, MUST ADAPT....
I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Americans. However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled when the "politically correct" crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was offending others.
I am not against immigration, nor do I hold a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to America. Our population is almost entirely made up of descendants of immigrants. However, there are a few things that those who have recently come to our country, and apparently some born here, need to understand. This idea of America being a multicultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Americans, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language and our own lifestyle. This culture has been developed over centuries of struggles, trials, and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.
We speak ENGLISH, not Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society, learn the language!
"In God We Trust" is our national motto. This is not some Christian, right wing, political slogan. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture.
If Stars and Stripes offend you, or you don't like Uncle Sam, then you should seriously consider a move to another part of this planet. We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things where you came from. This is OUR COUNTRY, our land, and our lifestyle.
Our First Amendment gives 'every' citizen the right to express his opinion and we will allow you every opportunity to do so. But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about our flag, our pledge, our national motto, or our way of life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great American freedom, THE RIGHT TO LEAVE."
granted, this woman had no idea i am an immigrant and that many of my extended family members are immigrants or that i was raised in an ethnic culture that has tried hard to maintain a sense of its own identity in the midst of the new and often clashing culture surrounding it...i suppose not too many folks know that my last name is of asian origin...
well, i haven't responded to this woman...i almost cried when i got the email, not just because i was offended as an immigrant, but just because of the FUCKING IGNORANCE...sorry...
i wanted to take all these emails this woman had sent me (and some others who were on that distribution list) and forward them to caleb and demand that if that's what christians really think and believe, i don't want to be a christian...now that would've been unfair to caleb, so i didn't...caleb is not a perfect christian, and i probably don't agree with everything he'll tell me, but one thing i do know and the reason i haven't thrown christianity out the window yet, esp. after my dad died and wasn't around to be an example any more, was that with caleb, in all his imperfections and sometimes not-knowings, i've always seen humility (or at least his acknowledgment for his need for humility) and compassion and grace in his response...he gave me hope that not all christians are morons...
anyways, like i said, i haven't responded yet to this last email, and i've decided i'm not going to because i realize that in some ways, i'm just as much at fault in my lack of grace and compassion for christians...this is something that teddy wisely pointed out to me...so i confess that i have my prejudices towards christians, which are not too dissimilar from the prejudices that i've experienced towards christians from non-christians and have been upset by for so long...i am weak and human...that is quite obvious...i really don't even consider myself a 'good' person...'good' is a word i don't understand anyway...
so i'm not gonna repond to her personally, but if i WERE to respond, here's what i would say:
"dear _____,
thank you--
as an immigrant myself who has never even celebrated a traditional "american" thanksgiving until this year after 25 years in this country, i found the article quite enlightening...gosh, i've gone a quarter of a century without even knowing there was an american christian heritage!
would this american christian heritage also include the genocide of a race that was here hundreds of years BEFORE anyone from europe decided this would be a nice piece of land to colonize? or manifest destiny, the proclaimed mission of the united states and justification for expanding its borders in unwanted areas? or how about being beaten by both england and france to abolish slavery? or how about the unparalleled greed that's gripped this nation as the masses pursue the "american dream"? or what about ransacking the environment and our natural resources (not to mention other nations' natural resources) to achieve those american dreams? or maybe exploiting foreign cheap labor in the name of capitalism to stock the walmarts and provide nikes for the masses? would this 'american christian heritage' include numerous military operations and wars made on other sovereign nations, wars that were (are) funded by american tax dollars but not sanctioned by the majority of its people and condemned by most other democratic nations?
i know we're not the only nation to be guilty of such ills...we're just the biggest and baddest...and you know what they say about those to whom much has been given...well, i suppose i don't really know what "they" say, but i hear it says somewhere in the bible that from such people, "much will be required."
if this is the american christian heritage you are refering to, i question your desire to do your part in protecting it...
as an american and an immigrant, i think that the insistance on speaking english and ONLY english is absurd and cruel...how many languages does the average american speak well enough to get by with that language in a foreign country? why is it that americans expect people to be able to speak english regardless of where they are in the world? if most americans, as youngsters, can't master a foreign tongue, do you really expect 30, 40, 50, 60 & 70 year old immigrants to master english, which is linguistically notorious for its lack of rhyme or reason in its crazy rules? well, my parents did what you wanted them to, and at the advice of our school principal, they stopped speaking korean at home so that my brother and i could learn english more quickly...i lost my mother tongue for over 10 years because of that and had to relearn it later in life...even now, i only have a child's level of understanding and mastery of my first language...for that, i am regretful and ashamed...
i realize that i have the right to leave this country, and believe me, if i could move to vancouver, b.c., i would in a heartbeat...besides, i don't see why i should give up what is mine as much as yours just because i don't believe in your version of an american culture or heritage which i think is absurd and parochial and xenophobic...
if i had the energy or the smarts, i could give you a scholary dissertation on why the editorial you forwarded to me is historically and philosophically flawed...all i can say is that it does not resonate with what i, at my gut level, believe america to be about...besides, last i checked, americans are not god's chosen people, english will not be the official language in heaven, and christians are said in the bible to be aliens in a foreign land whose allegiance is at face value treasonous cuz it's supposed to be to god first, not to some fairytale patriotic heritage...
yours truly,
sarah-ji"
i know...i know...it's harsh, isn't it? that's why i'm not sending it...like i said, i know what i myself am guilty of...i hope to learn to give grace even before it is given to me...which is too late cuz it's already been given to me in abundance...but that's beside the point...
peace out folks...sorry if i brought you down...
a few days ago, a friend of mine forwarded an email to me from a woman who was outraged about an article reporting that the university of chicago was discussing w/ their GLBT community the possibility of putting in gender neutral bathrooms in several campus buildings...in her words "HERE COMES ANOTHER TUITION INCREASE FOR US PARENTS! CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS IS EVEN OPEN FOR DISCUSSION? WE ARE BORN MALE OR FEMALE......THE CLOTHES WE WEAR DO NOT DETERMINE OUR SEX......WHAT WE ARE BORN WITH SHOULD DETERMINE WHAT BATHROOM WE USE......END OF DISCUSSION! SIMPLE!"
i probably should've sat on my fingers, but instead the naive silly girl that i am, i responded...you see, i'm just sick and tired of people assuming that all christians follow the same party line, and i'm saddened that so many christians do sit back and remain silent and allow themselves to be bullied by the opinions of some overbearing allbeit passionate individuals...so i spoke up...sue me...anyways, in my response, i expressed my concern at what seemed to me a lack of compassion, let alone the facts (not everyone is born simply MALE or FEMALE; some are born anatomically both MALE AND FEMALE)...she responded to me saying that she didn't think that the majority of taxpayers should have to pay more in taxes to help out such a small minority of the population but she thanked me for my comments because she enjoyed delving into the topic of "abnormal thought processes"...
two things bothered me (ok, more than 2 things, but for the sake of brevity, i'll only mention 2) about her comments and her clarification of her stance...first, i couldn't believe that someone could just write off an issue that is of concern to a segment of our population and say 'END OF DISCUSSION', just because that segment happens to be so small and i guess therefore insignificant in her scheme of things..."END OF DISCUSSION"?? when did she ever participate in a compassionate and empathetic discussion? "SIMPLE!"?? is it really that simple?? c'mon folks, let's at least DISCOURSE and COMMUNICATE, even if we don't agree with one another...secondly, i was dismayed at her unwillingness to part with money because those in need of help were such a small minority...if i remember correctly, there was a shepherd in one of jesus's stories who left 99 perfectly obedient and docile lambs alone exposed to the dangers in the wilderness, to go after the one stupid one who wandered off and got lost...that shepherd didn't sacrifice that one stupid lamb that was probably doing its breed good by eliminating itself for the sake of the safety of the VAST MAJORITY of the flock...jesus was always after the fringe of society...and i don't care what you believe about gender/sexuality issues...when you have a segment of the population that has historically suffered discrimination and mistreatment and rejection and disdain from society at large, don't tell me that the christian response is to throw your hands up in the air and say, 'hey, god didn't make them that way! end of discussion! simple!' because if that's what the christian response is supposed to be, i know nothing about who jesus is and who god is and what grace is and what mercy is and what compassion is and what love is...all these things that are supposed to be the indicators to the world as to who christians are...that the world would know that they are christians by their love...
and then to top it off, the same woman, who i am going to give the benefit of the doubt to and assume is just insensitive and lacking in common sense and not really deliberately malicious, sent me the following email, which i am posting in its entirety...please keep in mind that my family and i immigrated to the states from korea when i was 6 years old, that i had a grandma who came to the states in her 60's who never learned english, and that i have numerous aunts and uncles and a mom to boot who came to the states as adults and who still struggle greatly with the language...anyways, I DID NOT WRITE ANYTHING THAT IS IN RED AND IN GARAMOND FONT...this is the email she sent me:
"Sarah.....thought you might want to get a 'rise' out of this opinion, too. We American Christians have our beliefs and our heritage to protect....and I intend to do my part!
Story in Tampa Paper - September 30, 2003
Will we still be the Country of choice and still be America if we continue to make the changes forced on us by the people from other countries that came to live in America because it is the Country of Choice???????? Think about it........
All I have to say is, when will they do something about MY RIGHTS? I celebrate Christmas, but because it isn't celebrated by everyone, we can no longer say Merry Christmas. Now it has to be Season's Greetings. It's not Christmas vacation, it's Winter Break. Isn't it amazing how this winter break ALWAYS occurs over the Christmas holiday?? We've gone so far the other way, bent over backwards to not offend anyone, that I am now being offended. But it seems that no one has a problem with that.
This says it all!
After hearing that the state of Florida changed its opinion and let a Muslim woman have her picture on her driver's license with her face covered this is an editorial written by an American citizen, published in a Tampa newspaper. He did quite a job; didn't he? Read on, please!
IMMIGRANTS, NOT AMERICANS, MUST ADAPT....
I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Americans. However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled when the "politically correct" crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was offending others.
I am not against immigration, nor do I hold a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to America. Our population is almost entirely made up of descendants of immigrants. However, there are a few things that those who have recently come to our country, and apparently some born here, need to understand. This idea of America being a multicultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Americans, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language and our own lifestyle. This culture has been developed over centuries of struggles, trials, and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.
We speak ENGLISH, not Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society, learn the language!
"In God We Trust" is our national motto. This is not some Christian, right wing, political slogan. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture.
If Stars and Stripes offend you, or you don't like Uncle Sam, then you should seriously consider a move to another part of this planet. We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things where you came from. This is OUR COUNTRY, our land, and our lifestyle.
Our First Amendment gives 'every' citizen the right to express his opinion and we will allow you every opportunity to do so. But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about our flag, our pledge, our national motto, or our way of life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great American freedom, THE RIGHT TO LEAVE."
granted, this woman had no idea i am an immigrant and that many of my extended family members are immigrants or that i was raised in an ethnic culture that has tried hard to maintain a sense of its own identity in the midst of the new and often clashing culture surrounding it...i suppose not too many folks know that my last name is of asian origin...
well, i haven't responded to this woman...i almost cried when i got the email, not just because i was offended as an immigrant, but just because of the FUCKING IGNORANCE...sorry...
i wanted to take all these emails this woman had sent me (and some others who were on that distribution list) and forward them to caleb and demand that if that's what christians really think and believe, i don't want to be a christian...now that would've been unfair to caleb, so i didn't...caleb is not a perfect christian, and i probably don't agree with everything he'll tell me, but one thing i do know and the reason i haven't thrown christianity out the window yet, esp. after my dad died and wasn't around to be an example any more, was that with caleb, in all his imperfections and sometimes not-knowings, i've always seen humility (or at least his acknowledgment for his need for humility) and compassion and grace in his response...he gave me hope that not all christians are morons...
anyways, like i said, i haven't responded yet to this last email, and i've decided i'm not going to because i realize that in some ways, i'm just as much at fault in my lack of grace and compassion for christians...this is something that teddy wisely pointed out to me...so i confess that i have my prejudices towards christians, which are not too dissimilar from the prejudices that i've experienced towards christians from non-christians and have been upset by for so long...i am weak and human...that is quite obvious...i really don't even consider myself a 'good' person...'good' is a word i don't understand anyway...
so i'm not gonna repond to her personally, but if i WERE to respond, here's what i would say:
"dear _____,
thank you--
as an immigrant myself who has never even celebrated a traditional "american" thanksgiving until this year after 25 years in this country, i found the article quite enlightening...gosh, i've gone a quarter of a century without even knowing there was an american christian heritage!
would this american christian heritage also include the genocide of a race that was here hundreds of years BEFORE anyone from europe decided this would be a nice piece of land to colonize? or manifest destiny, the proclaimed mission of the united states and justification for expanding its borders in unwanted areas? or how about being beaten by both england and france to abolish slavery? or how about the unparalleled greed that's gripped this nation as the masses pursue the "american dream"? or what about ransacking the environment and our natural resources (not to mention other nations' natural resources) to achieve those american dreams? or maybe exploiting foreign cheap labor in the name of capitalism to stock the walmarts and provide nikes for the masses? would this 'american christian heritage' include numerous military operations and wars made on other sovereign nations, wars that were (are) funded by american tax dollars but not sanctioned by the majority of its people and condemned by most other democratic nations?
i know we're not the only nation to be guilty of such ills...we're just the biggest and baddest...and you know what they say about those to whom much has been given...well, i suppose i don't really know what "they" say, but i hear it says somewhere in the bible that from such people, "much will be required."
if this is the american christian heritage you are refering to, i question your desire to do your part in protecting it...
as an american and an immigrant, i think that the insistance on speaking english and ONLY english is absurd and cruel...how many languages does the average american speak well enough to get by with that language in a foreign country? why is it that americans expect people to be able to speak english regardless of where they are in the world? if most americans, as youngsters, can't master a foreign tongue, do you really expect 30, 40, 50, 60 & 70 year old immigrants to master english, which is linguistically notorious for its lack of rhyme or reason in its crazy rules? well, my parents did what you wanted them to, and at the advice of our school principal, they stopped speaking korean at home so that my brother and i could learn english more quickly...i lost my mother tongue for over 10 years because of that and had to relearn it later in life...even now, i only have a child's level of understanding and mastery of my first language...for that, i am regretful and ashamed...
i realize that i have the right to leave this country, and believe me, if i could move to vancouver, b.c., i would in a heartbeat...besides, i don't see why i should give up what is mine as much as yours just because i don't believe in your version of an american culture or heritage which i think is absurd and parochial and xenophobic...
if i had the energy or the smarts, i could give you a scholary dissertation on why the editorial you forwarded to me is historically and philosophically flawed...all i can say is that it does not resonate with what i, at my gut level, believe america to be about...besides, last i checked, americans are not god's chosen people, english will not be the official language in heaven, and christians are said in the bible to be aliens in a foreign land whose allegiance is at face value treasonous cuz it's supposed to be to god first, not to some fairytale patriotic heritage...
yours truly,
sarah-ji"
i know...i know...it's harsh, isn't it? that's why i'm not sending it...like i said, i know what i myself am guilty of...i hope to learn to give grace even before it is given to me...which is too late cuz it's already been given to me in abundance...but that's beside the point...
peace out folks...sorry if i brought you down...
...ok...here are photos from the advent services that my friend nanette & wicker park grace have been holding...if this is something that looks interesting to you, we'll have 2 more the next 2 sundays...same time same place...
...also, my friend john is having a ceramics sale this weekend, sat. dec 13th (10 am - 5 pm) & sun. dec 14th (12pm - 5 pm)at his studio in ravenswood 4636 n. ravenswood (bulldog lock company building)...john makes amazing ceramics, and he's also one of my favorite people, so show some love...he always has affordable stuff for christmas presents, and it's always nice to give something that's an original and to support our local artists, esp. my friends...
...yawn...what a weekend...so saturday morning, i picked up my friend carlos and we headed for la crosse, wisconsin at around 11 am for our friend sam's wedding...that's like on the mississippi river on the minnesota border...it was a good thing i had company cuz i would've gone stir crazy in that car by myself for over 4 hours...my goodness...i have no idea how sam did that drive week after week to go see jenny...all that's over now...they're married and on their way to jamaica...i'm sure they'll be nice & tan the next time i see them...
