list twenty-three: ten things I love about ava

ava turned ten a couple of days ago. yup, ten. both feet into the next decade and there are a few things I'd like to say:

1. she loves cherry-flavored anything. almost as much as I do.

2. she is able to transform all tiny hidden nooks and corners into magic places.

3. she does not mess around when it comes to fountains and wishes. it's the same every time: she cups the penny with both hands, closes her eyes tight and whispers her wish with an impressive amount of intensity before flinging it into the water. so much hope in her eyes it makes me want to cry.

4. she totally gets why old banana seat bikes are cool.

5. she loses herself in books.

6. she draws pictures that are full of quirky characters and spectacular detail, pictures that tell the kind of stories I wish I could write.

7. she has a super silly side but only lets those closest to her see it.

8. she watches the world with wide open eyes and often sees things I do not.

9. she still lets me read to her at bedtime.

10. she is the girl I always wanted to be. and still do.

(twenty-three down, twenty-nine to go)

list twenty-two: things learned over the weekend

I spent time at the coast with some of my people this past weekend. I came away feeling totally and completely loved but also, I learned a few things. for example:

1. aqua net works serious wonders.

2. beet salads are the most beautiful salads in the world.

3. I can totally rock sandals with straps across the ankles. and this is really big news. because according to the fashion world, sandals with straps across the ankles break the natural line of the leg, therefore causing those of us who are shorter to look as if our legs have been reduced to unsightly stumps. therefore, not recommended. for years, I really believed this. apparently, the fashion world is wrong about a lot of stuff.

4. a big bowl full of tootsie pops is still a total crowd pleaser.

5. two pregnant bellies are infinitely better than one.

6. bright teal nail polish is so right now.

7. I might need to break down and read twilight.

8. attaching googly eyes to random household items like toilet paper rolls, hair spray cans and chocolate donuts makes for happy people.

9. painting with your hands is the best part.

10. the occasional splurge can always be justified in that it totally invites abundance. totally.

11. myriam's almond cake is magic.

12. blowing through two packs of polaroid film in three days is never a mistake.

13. think big. and when you're done thinking big, THINK BIGGER.

14. sometimes you find religion at the hot dog stand.

15. when in doubt, lionel richie.


(twenty-two down, thirty to go)

list twenty-one: films I could watch over and over

welcome to my teeny tiny film festival. below you'll find original trailers and favorite clips from films I could watch over and over forever and ever. if you're looking to get lost, today is your lucky day. in no particular order:

1. amelie

2. bottle rocket

3. crooklyn

4. in america

5. man on wire

6. junebug

7. slaves of new york

8. rushmore

9. flirting with disaster

10. muriel's wedding

11. roman holiday

12. bullets over broadway

13. basquiat

14. school of rock

15. fame

(twenty-one down, thirty-one to go)

number 2: ride the ferris wheel

and we did. about a month ago, when the carnival was in town, we rode the big ferris wheel. all eight of us in one car: me, ward, ava, ezra, my brother, my sister-in-law and my two nieces. did you know that there are no seat belts in those things? that they are totally open air? that if you move your body just the right way the whole car will sway back and forth? PEOPLE, I DID NOT KNOW THIS. I rode the ferris wheel when I was a kid but I do not remember any of this. I remember the whole experience very differently. this time, I could barely stand to open my eyes. at least not until we'd made it around a couple of times. and it's possible I died. two, three, maybe four times. it's possible I had a tiny panic attack. and I'm pretty sure it wasn't good for the kids to see me in such a terrified state but I'm going to be honest here and say that I wasn't really thinking about the kids. though eventually, I did manage to pull myself together. eventually, I opened my eyes my like a normal person and looked out over the city of portland. and I took a few breaths and I took a few photographs but I'm telling you, I did not look down.

despite the terror, it's possible I enjoyed myself. just a tiny bit.

(number 2 from 39 things)

you will not even need your passport

MWM via ekosystem

color from around the world, friends. a riot of color for your thursday afternoon.

summer so far

it may seem like we are doing a lot but really, we're not. what we're doing here is a lot of laying around. which is good because when it comes to laying around, we are practically professionals.

blue

friday! and the last of summer color week. on deck for the weekend: sparklers, water balloons, bike decorating, homemade strawberry cake. also, we shall be lazy. we shall be very very lazy.

how about you?

red and white

"a camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera."
-dorothea lange

green

dear garage door on belmont avenue, you are my favorite garage door in all of portland.

(summer color week, yo)

yellow

with a little orange and red thrown in for good measure. tuesday for me? polaroid happy-making plus a trip to the big downtown library and a little bit of turkish baklava. the best thing about color week is that it totally gets me out of the house.

pink

pink! oh, pink.

later on today: yellow. summer color week, I love you.

week of summer color

thanks to jan, the summer color party is totally on. starting today:

monday: pink
tuesday: yellow
wednesday: green
thursday: red and white
friday: blue

head on over to poppytalk for the deets. meanwhile, I'm off to shoot a little pink. also, I think I may be setting a new personal record for number of posts in one day. totally making up for all that ebb a few months ago. hello, summer flow.

hanging laundry makes me happy

I'm over at sfgirlbybay today with my love for hanging laundry. is there no sweeter sight than all those blocks of color, strung like pinatas across narrow alleyways and backyards everywhere? I think not.

about that list

I want to thank you-- for all the kind words, I thank you. truth is, that list came spilling out around four in the morning. effortlessly, as if somewhere inside I'd been waiting patiently for the right time to tell my seventeen year-old self all these things. and I feel a little tender about whole thing but in the best way, the best possible way. if you are at all contemplating putting together a list of things you might say to your seventeen year-old self, do it. even if you scribble it down on a piece of paper only to rip it up and throw it away, do it. chances are, your seventeen year-old self needs to hear it. and your grown-up self needs to say it.

because I think the the power is in the saying.

list twenty: things I'd like to tell my 17 year-old self

1. you are not fat.

2. he is not The One. it will seem like he is, but he is not.

3. you do not have to smile for every single picture.

4. you are not going to believe this but you do not know everything. also, your parents are right. about soooo many things.

5. your studio art class will spend a whole quarter on photography. pay closer attention.

6. that little 110 camera you love so much is a total piece of crap. people call it a toy camera now but that's hilarious because, really. it's crap. beg your parents to buy you an old used 35mm SLR. then shoot roll after roll after roll of film. and throw out the flash.

7. remember how good it feels to do a back handspring. in a few years, that skill will be long gone.

8. diet coke is not the answer.

9. do not listen to the people who tell you you cannot be a dancer because you don't have enough training, didn't start early enough and don't have the right body. more specifically, do not listen to that teacher who tells you to eat only saltine crackers for a week in order to drop a few pounds. in a few years, you'll discover modern dance and your world will crack wide open. suddenly, ballet will seem like a stupid idea and everything else will make sense. you will go on to do things you were told you could not do. and it will feel spectacular.

10. you know that awesome color photobooth at the kmart two minutes from your house? visit it regularly.

11. you will get a letter from that girl you stood up for in P.E. class. she will tell you that what you did really did mean something to her. her letter will make you cry and you will be glad you took on the mean girls.

12. wear anything you want. because you can.

13. enjoy the widespread availability of polaroid film.

14. keep writing. keep writing. keep writing.

15. do not wear those vintage spectator pumps you love so much to that choir competition. because your left heel will get caught in the crack of the risers and you will inadvertently flip it several feet into the air. it will land with a dull thud smack dab in front of the table of judges and you will be forced to walk (one shoe on, one shoe off) in front of hundreds of people to the center of the gymnasium to retrieve it. you will not die from the embarrassment. but you will want to.

16. for pete's sake, take that typing class.

17. and when your mom offers to teach you how to sew, do not blow her off.

18. do not stop writing letters to your french penpal.

19. stock up on vintage clothing before thrift stores everywhere are sucked dry by the masses.

20. make grandma corrona teach you how to make her bread. she will tell you it's nothing, that it's just ordinary bread but you will come to realize that it's not. you will come to realize that it is, in fact, the best bread in the world.

21. take bigger, scarier risks. because I promise, you will regret it if you don't. you really, really will.

22. the boys, they are not worth it.

23. stop with the black eyeliner. it's enough already and really, you don't need it.

24. and while we're on the subject, beware of all cosmetic counter makeovers.

25. you are never going to find that party on graduation night. your will drive around with your friend michelle for hours and hours, you will find yourselves in the middle of nowhere at three in the morning. you will feel a little scared but even worse, you will feel stupid. so not the way to spend graduation night, so not the memory you will want to have.

26. do not slather yourself with baby oil and lay out on foil mats. furthermore, wear sunscreen. ALL. THE. TIME.

27. turns out your dad was totally right about the whole time thing. twenty years, gone. just like that.

28. seriously, you are not fat.

(twenty down, thirty-two to go)