I miss the shiny

there were two rainies and one shiny today, mama. that's what ezra said to me last week. meaning it rained twice and the sun came out once. it's true, the rain is here. we are currently experiencing our first long stretch of rain here in the great city of portland. and I'm okay. I think. actually, I cried like a baby the first few days and then ward said I was absolutely not allowed to break down this soon into it. the rains have only just begun. so I made a decision: I am meeting it halfway. I'm making a concerted effort. I'm taking the advice so many portlanders have given me in the past and I am getting out in it. the other day, I rode my bike in the rain. which was a mess. my feet kept slipping off the pedals and it was freezing and I couldn't see half the time (what with all that rain in my eyes) but I'll tell you, it felt pretty good. I rode for as long as I could take it, something like a very pathetic seven minutes (if that) but next time I'll go for longer. and I'll remember to wear my fingerless gloves plus maybe a raincoat. but first, I will have to buy a raincoat.

I'm not going to pretend like I don't miss the shiny. the sun comes out every once in a while and I stop everything (and I mean everything) to acknowledge it. I call out the arrival of the sun like a lunatic, like we've not seen it in a hundred years. SUN! SUN! and everyone in the house freezes, unsure of what their next move should be. what should we do? go outside? lay down in it? sing a song about it? and before we can decide, it's gone. just like that.

nothing to do but get on that bike and ride.

photobooth friday

also, there's a photobooth at the ace hotel. did you know? yes, I thought you did. I had my one dollar bills ready. I am not one to mess around when it comes to these sorts of things. I do not leave change-making to the concierge. 24 hour access to the photobooth and that's no joke, people. no joke.



so the plan was to sneak down to the lobby with ward around three in the morning (in our pajamas) and get in the booth. guess what? I like to sleep. apparently, my love for sleep trumps a midnight run to the booth. this concerns me. I woke up (strangely well-rested) around six and headed straight for the lobby, puffy eyes and all. dang it if there weren't already a slew of moody hipsters milling around, mugs of stumptown coffee in hand. all of them hogging the new york times. too bad I don't drink coffee. I could have used some coffee. but I got my strip and an entire morning of sleep lay before me like the land of milk and honey.

hey, what happened to me and photobooth fridays? I don't know. but I'm back. I'm back, baby.

numbers 18 and 36 (plus room 400)

last saturday, I surprised ward.



(which would be number 36 off the list)





I surprised him with a night at the ace hotel.



(which would be number 18 off the list)



sort of an unofficial very belated 14th wedding anniversary celebration, if you will. something to make up for the great wall of socks.



yeah, he was surprised.



and yeah, it was pretty fantastic.





that's all I'm going to say.



I do not kiss and tell.

begin

begin anywhere. (john cage)

today is the someday

I never talk about politics here. ever. but writing about anything else today would be like ignoring the enormous pink elephant (or donkey) in the room. never has an election felt so electric. never have I felt so excited to vote, never have I felt so nervous about the impending results. in case you're wondering: obama obama obama. but let me tell you, I hate how politics divides our country, our friends, our families. I hate how politics makes people say and do stupid, hurtful things. and if you are someone close to me who is reading this and you don't agree then please, let's talk. because I will drop some science. but lovingly, so lovingly. I will be open to any science you might have to drop too. I have done my research. and I have done the hoping. I will continue to do the hoping and the praying, no matter where we find ourselves tomorrow morning. I am a big fan of hope.

also, the world is watching.

this concludes the political portion of my blog. forever and ever, amen.

number 1

we took a little walk across the broadway bridge.



number one officially crossed off the list.




I think I love bridges.

into marvelous light

I found myself navigating tree-lined streets. for a second, everything was golden. entire trees screamed out light. leaves like bright yellow slips of paper twisted and flipped and spiraled wildly like so much confetti. I willed one to float in through an open window. I wanted to touch it, hold it up to the sunlight and examine the veins. music filled the car, sufjan's voice like butterscotch candy in my mouth. in that moment, it was everything-- the brilliant colors, the falling leaves, the ornate tattoo on the arm of the man in the truck just in front of me, the girl on the street with the pink balloon. the top of the fremont bridge off in the distance, like an enormous ferris wheel, like the promise of the last carnival. all of these things and all at once. beautifully orchestrated, ridiculously fleeting. and why I believe. God is good. all the time.

first day of november

and it's the beginning of nablopomo. I intend to post something here everyday this month. which is probably totally unrealistic but whatever. getting back into the swing of writing and posting photographs daily: yes. I am in. like flynn.

hello november, hello nablopomo.

tricks or treats

I love an excuse to wear a pink wig, I do.

happy halloween, friends.

I have abandoned ship

I am totally cheating on my blog with another. it's true. for the past couple of weeks, I've been guest-posting over at sfgirlbybay, filling in a few gaps while victoria is in thailand.



first I wrote about my love affair with cargo.



then I wrote about how rad susan's place is.

and there's more on the way. I've got more in the hopper. I don't even really know what a hopper is but I like the sound of it. but also, I'll be back here soon. like tomorrow or something. it's just a fling. I swear.

to hop on a plane

to go anywhere, everywhere. to quickly pack a bag with what first comes to mind. the essentials: a good book, an excellent pen, three different cameras and a tube of lipstick. to let go of tomorrow and feel the plane scream into take off.

to be in an unknown place, if only for a couple of days. where the food tastes different and the words sound different and people wear bright-colored everything. to throw out the maps, the itineraries, to wander for hours and hours for no other reason than to see. to collect scraps of paper, bits of conversations, to look through the lens again and again. to piece it all together and tell the kind of story that deserves a title.

I have been dreaming of this.

number 37

two months and four days before the year turns over for me, just two short months to work on the list. there are about 22 unfinished items on said list so what have I been doing all year? I don't know. but I have a lot left to do. yesterday I worked on number 37, which should have been a cakewalk except I forgot how awkward I can be with the typewriter. within an hour, I was swimming in a sea of white paper, a mess of partially typed-up lists. picture me hunched over that beautiful little hermes rocket, hunting and pecking to beat the band. but the sounds of an old typewriter are like no other and the jagged rhythm of the clack clack clack sings out the kind of song that makes a house come alive. after an hour or so, I had my list and promptly tacked it up over my old blue desk in the living room. at least there's that. number 37: done. and perhaps the most important item of all, the one I should have done first.

so I think it may have to be about the list this week. items I've actually crossed off the list and such. there are at least six or seven of those. but what should I do next? what? what?

today's list for tonight

the mister's first solo show
titled 'b-boy'
which is all about the exuberance and ingenuity
of the early golden days of hip hop
downtown at the grassy knoll gallery
a whole room of paintings by that guy I like
a whole room!
plus, a dj and b-boys on hand
to do what djs and b-boys do



and I'm proud, so extremely (almost unbearably) proud
of that guy I like, I love



and um, I have nothing to wear.

ttv monday and good morning to you

apparently, I cannot shut up for a second about through the viewfinder. I'm over at shutter sisters today, running my mouth, professing my love. again. it can't be helped, you know. I'm very much smitten.

(tracey, thank you. I wear the honorary shutter sister sash with much pride.)

the best things in life

also: you don't need diamonds to shine