California Love

What can I say that isn't made obvious all the time? I have the dearest friends in the world. The cards were precious. Thank you both for making my Valentine's Day so sweet, and for making the 3,000 mile gap feel a lot shorter. You're in my thoughts always.

When Rilkean first showed me Julia Pott's work, I was enamored and sent the illustrative short to a bunch of people, insisting even that Bill sit down with me to watch it on youtube. 

Neatly packaged inside the card were the most marvelous stickers and little tags. Of course, she was right: as soon as I began to flip through the stickers, I thought to myself, How could I possibly use these? I don't want to give them away! We'll see...

And a valentine from Wynene... I had forgotten about this quote. Hilarity!

Wynene included cute little hedgehog stickies, much to the extreme delight of Jenny, who, upon observing them on the table, proceeded to tell me an enthusiastic account of the time she discovered a hedgehog in Italy one night.

Minnesota Love too

My valentine from Jenny

She told me to choose my valentine. I looked at the stack sitting on our coffee table. How could I pick? I simply took the first one off the top, scanned it briefly and knew that it was very good. She enclosed it in an envelope with the strict instructions that I was not to open it until 

V-D! Before work this morning I finally opened and read it entirely-- I had chosen a great one. Later when I thanked her for it, she told me that my poem was one of her favorites. I'd love to read the whole piece; Jenny included an excerpt:

... That day--that day you picked the first sweet-pea,--

And brought it in to show me! I recall

With terrible distinctness how the smell

Of your cool gardens drifted in with you.

I know, you held it up for me to see

And flushed because I looked not at the flower,

But at your face; and when behind my look

You saw such unmistakable intent 

You laughed and brushed your flower against my lips.

(You were the fairest thing God ever made,

I think.) And then your hands above my heart 

Drew down its stem into a fastening,

And while your head was bent I kissed your hair...

                  From "Interim," Edna St. Vincent Millay

A Day Spent With Across the Aisle

The following pictures chronicle a Sunday I spent with Across the Aisle, my coworker's band. Megg, Jay, Ashray, Jake, Jackie, and J.V. comprise this six piece ska ensemble, and when I heard that my other coworker, Colleen, was going to photograph them for their shoot, I tagged along to spend the whole day in New Jersey. I mostly assisted Colleen and snagged a few pictures of my own when I found opportunities. It was a lot of fun, even for Jersey.

Behold--Coffee in a box. Only Dunkin' Donuts

Colleen, situating everyone for a photo

Megg, posin'

Finding "Tink"

It was Don't Wear Any Pants on the NRQW Lines on a Saturday in the Middle of January While It's Snowing Outside Day. 

Mom's Visit to the Big Apple, Oct 2008

On her first day, we took the train down to the financial district.

Battery Park

We thought about taking the ferry over, but that would've been an all day event. This is a view from Battery Park.

Jersey? Yeah... I'm pretty sure it's Jersey.

Batch. What can I say except many thanks to a dear friend who pointed me in that direction. They always deliver the goods and I've never looked back since.

Sweets make Mom and me smile. 

Sensory-overloaded, tourist-CRAMMED, and features mediocre, high-priced food. Welcome to Times Square. But the gigantic ads are impressive, and I do believe it should be witnessed by everyone who visits New York City. However, once you've had your fill evacuate immediately because annoyance and anxiety creep upon you within a matter of minutes.

We were a bit tired and achy from sight seeing all day but still wanted to explore Central Park, so Mom suggested we take a carriage ride. We rode in a red, plush, canopied buggy while our driver directed us to points of interest, rattling of interesting little facts to us in his thick, Irish accent. "That's where John Lennon and Yoko Ono lived," and "Madonna currently resides over there," and "See the top of that building? That's where the final scene of Ghostbusters was filmed." We had a really nice time, then descended the carriage, refreshed and ready to press on.

 After our pleasant little tour of Central Park, we ventured across the street to F.A.O. Schwartz where we played with toys, talked to the gigantic stuffed animals, and surveyed the sugary confection bar. Mom, showing up the demonstrator. She got mad skills. It was basically a hackey sack that you play with using your hands rather than your feet. This guy made it look very simple.