number 19

number 19 off last year's list and key tag jewelry might be my new favorite thing.



hours of fun, I promise you. the earrings, by the way, were totally ava's idea.



and the earrings are my favorite but the bracelets are such a close second.

make some, if you feel so inclined.

number 1

last friday night, I rocked the backwards skate. true story.



I totally channeled my 9 year-old self and crossed number 1 off the (now outdated) list.



though apparently, I am not an advanced backwards skater. which I (unfortunately) discovered during the advanced backwards skate. in my defense, I did not hear the announcer say 'advanced'. all I heard was 'backwards skate' and the 9 year-old in me yelled GO before I had a chance to properly assess the situation.



for the record, I do not recommend the advanced backwards skate for anyone who cannot skate backwards at a breakneck speed. but should you find yourself in this particular situation, hug the sides and pretend like you know what you're doing. lean into it with your hips but do not close your eyes. then slowly make your way to the snack bar. that's where they sell the cherry icees. you will most likely need a cherry icee after the advanced backwards skate. you will also need a deep tissue massage and a special medal of honor.

which are all things I will keep in mind for next time. and there will be a next time, I am sure of it.

number 13

I did a little wandering through san francisco's mission neighborhood monday morning. which just happened to be number 13 off the list. number 13, indeed. I highly recommend this wandering aimlessly thing.

number 28

a couple of years ago, I found a beat-up polaroid automatic 100 at a yard sale. the viewfinder was cracked and the battery compartment was completely corroded but I figured I could find a way to make it work. then, back in march, miss jenny frecklewonder sent a little package my way. nestled amidst the many vintage treasures inside? a beautiful polaroid automatic 100. in mint condish. fast forward to july and a nervous me holding said camera. freshly loaded, ready to fire. I'll admit, it felt totally foreign in my hands. did I even have it set right? was it in focus? was the light right? and most importantly, would I be able to yank the film out fast enough? first shot out the pack was this one of ava. and well, and that was that. totally hooked. and number 28, triumphantly crossed off the list.

so this one is for you, jenny. I cannot thank you enough.

p.s. I think I might love peel apart film. this should come as no surprise to all you peel apart lovers out there.

number 14

back in may, melissa and her crew of very cute people helped me cross number 14 off the list. which was to consume waffles from a favorite local food cart called the flavour spot. warm waffles folded in half and stuffed with things like sweet cream and jam. waffles meant to be eaten like tacos. madness, I tell you. mad. ness.



but sweeter than sweet cream and jam waffles sprinkled with powdered sugar? yup. lil manny with the blue hat. because that feather is sort of killing me. furthermore, that face has me considering procreation.

warning

for the next ten days, I shall be writing nonstop about a certain list and all the items I've crossed off. plus maybe some I haven't. apparently, I like to cram everything in at the last minute. everything and all at once.

number 25

joan from chicago was the last stranger I photographed before I flaked out. see, I thought the project would get easier with time. it has not. the truth is that it got harder and harder until I just couldn't do it anymore. yeah, I bailed. I don't know what happened but a different kind of fear took hold and that's when I ran for the proverbial hills. which is funny since fear was the impetus for the project in the first place.



it was seven months before I was able to talk myself off the ledge. we were downtown seattle way back in february when things started to change. the lighting was all wrong and the timing was strange but I saw this teenager and all I could think about was how much I wanted to photograph him. and that's what I did. I walked up to him, told him what I was doing and that was that. I have no idea where the courage came from. I think maybe I was just tired of being afraid. exhausted, actually. it's exhausting work, fear. it will run you ragged if you let it.



so I eased my way back into the project slowly. a few weeks later, I found myself in a tiny thrift shop in south texas. which is where I met stranger #17.



and then a few weeks later, st. louis and stranger #18.



stranger #19 was oscar. oscar of car lot balloon fame.



in august, I photographed stranger #20. the famous olga from illinois. olga of olga's house of stuff.



and most recently, new york city and stranger #21. better known as sevare, the girl with the electric smile.

at this pace, it will take me years cross number 25 off the list. but that's okay. because I'm not really in any major rush, not anymore. I just want to crack things open a little. even if it takes a couple of years. even if it takes forever.

number 36

number 36 off the list. well, sort of. I should probably explain.

on tuesdays, dance theater workshop asks their followers on twitter to 'tweet one physical movement (or nonmovement)'. the responses are then put together into one dance and filmed. people, this is brilliant. the very idea that these pieces are the direct result of an ongoing dialogue that takes place in the very strange online world that we all float around in is seriously brilliant. the idea that anyone, anywhere, anytime can intentionally contribute to these dances is nothing short of genius. collaboration via twitter. in this way, we are all choreographers. or can be, if we really want to. what I'm trying to say is that I'm in love.

when I put number 36 on the list I'll admit, I had something completely different in mind. but this is better, infinitely better. I had no idea what a rush it would be to see my one word performed in context with so many others. I love the idea that my word was plucked and thrown into a mess of words contributed by a bunch of people I don't know, that these words were then strung together and performed as one big gloriously athletic run-on sentence. I love it. me and the other 29 twitterers I do not know, we are the co-choreographers and collaborators of community choreography #16. my name is even listed in the credits. which makes number 36 official, so very official. for the record, my single action word was dangle. did you see dangle? good words contributed by others: explode, circumvent, rethink, simplify, flap, expunge, rest, convulse. see? good. so good.

check out the first community choreography challenge (or all of them, if you like). follow dance theatre workshop on twitter and contribute to future community choreography challenges. because you and I both know there's a choreographer inside just waiting to break out.

number 27

number 27 off the list and I can't help but feel that time is running out. in exactly one month, I will be 39. I wish I could say that I'm okay with turning 39. but I am not. I am also not okay with heights. actually, I'm horribly afraid of heights. which is sort of why I put number 27 on the list. but also, I love bridges. much as I fear heights, I am in love with bridges. yesterday, when the sun finally came out, I knew what had to be done. ward dropped the kids off at school and off we went.



one foot in front of the other is how I did it. and handrails. the handrails helped. I will admit to gripping the handrails all the way there. well, and all the way back. I will also admit to screaming every single time a semi-truck whooshed past and caused the bridge to buckle. but I did step outside my own completely terrified state long enough to look down at the water, to ooh and aah over the city skyline and the spectacular structure that is the st. johns bridge. with the sun shining on my face and the wind whipping my hair, I crossed the st. johns bridge. and as terrified as I was, I would do it again. again and again.

number 26

(nate and von)

number 26 off the list and I sort of can't believe it. because when I put this one on the list I thought, yeah. probably not going to happen. this is because trips to new york feel that much more impossible now that we live on the west coast. but sometimes I put things on the list that feel impossible. like number 12 and number 37. speaking of which, I came so close to crossing number 12 off the list while I was in new york. so. close. I can't even talk about it.

but number 26. that's something. and solid proof that there's power in list-making.

back soon

am currently having an adventure. which has everything to do with number 16 from the list. back soon, friends.

number six

dancing lions, flying yo-yos, candied mango, pale pink blossoms, shiny red envelopes, small pots of tea, fortune-telling boxes, tiny bridges, hanging lanterns. I'm telling you, I am a sucker for such things.

number six crossed off the list and the rest are calling. the year stands before me like a giant sun.

38 things to do before I turn 39

1. roller skate backwards.
2. shoot with the yashica.
3. visit canada.
4. cultivate a collection of found paper.
5. purchase a pair of rain boots.
6. celebrate the chinese new year in a garden. done
7. learn to embroider.
8. write one sentence everyday for a year.
9. take on the bins.
10. visit velveteria.
11. renew my passport.
12. take class at dance new amsterdam.
13. wander aimlessly. done
14. hit up the waffle cart on north lombard. done
15. take ava and ezra on a photo walk.
16. celebrate with nancy and kristy.
17. hike wahkeenah falls.
18. read five books.
19. make key tag jewelry with ava.
20. spend the night in the backyard.
21. fill a book with collages.
22. map out a photobooth crawl.
23. ride my bike along the eastbank esplanade.
24. wreck a journal.
25. finish the strangers project.
26. photograph von's studio. done
27. walk across the st. john's bridge. done
28. load up the polaroid automatic 100. done
29. have a bowl of pho on 82nd avenue.
30. orchestrate something awesome.
31. beat ward at pacman.
32. spend an afternoon at skidmore fountain.
33. teach ezra the rerun.
34. take back the basement.
35. fill a jar with magical thinking.
36. make (and film) a dance. done
37. finish the unfinished.
38. bake a pie from scratch.