highlights of T & J's excellent "earth day" adventures

A scrumdidiliumptious French lunch accompanied by one of the best 

glasses of vino I've had in some time: Domaine De Reuilly Pinot Gris. 

Oh Bethesda, how I love thee flowers but hate thee Starbucks' fake grande passion teas 

(note the fake grande in upper right-hand corner). 

We chopped off the Washington Monument but not our heads!

We were among the first in the National Mall in D.C. for the E.D. festivities, so we figured while there were no lines we'd give the pedal to power (my nickname for it) a try. The faster and longer you pedaled the more wattage you'd  produce. I think T and I got up to powering a cell phone or radio for, ohh, six seconds maybe. Meanwhile, two dudes were on stationary bikes powering the two laptops they had for visitor use....all day.

Oh but they do...

...to the soles of these killer boots. Thanks Timberland!

Off to the National Gallery of Art. Can you see the naked Spanish Dancer?

I can't remember the appropriate name for this piece, but we came up with one: La Crack.

These over-sized prints of the Oval Office caught my eye, mostly because they were so large and everything seemed so tidy, too tidy. Then I found the write-up...

Yeah, it wasn't the Oval Office after all, rather a three dimensional model of it. Awesome, right? So often I take pieces of art at face value, it's nice to know the many layers (if there are in fact any) that exist to be able to fully appreciate a piece.

Love, love, love Picasso's Blue Period (1901-1904). This is "The Tragedy," which was painted in 1903. In his early twenties, Picasso began to tint his paintings a pale, cold blue. The expressions, the color palette, and no doubt the title are in complete harmony. It gave me a slight chill. 

Here's a small section of Jackson Pollock's "Number 1, 1950 (Lavender Mist)." I was feeling really good about finding hand prints in the painting until I got shown up by this older gentleman (must have been an art teacher) who found the dead cockroach in the painting. See the "S" shape? That's where the insect wiggled it's way through the Pollock piece to its demise. You can see it, just follow the "S" up.

At this moment captured by T, I was contemplating what would happen if I ripped my new favorite Van Gosh piece, "Roses," from the wall and ran. Then I noticed the wires strung to it that ran all the way up the the ceiling...and that security guard at the doorway...it was a fleeting thought...literally.

Then it was back to the streets, Pennsylvania Ave. nonetheless. That's where the wrapper from the organic mango tango lollipop escaped my bag and where I made the decision to stay true to my "green" efforts (although I'd only be rescuing it to then throw in a garbage can to be taken to a dump anyway, but it was the littering that bothered me)...

See that fleck of white on the pavement? Just one more bus had to pass and it was mine for the taking!

Ready, GO! Nice shot T.

Hells yeah.

We needed something refreshing after all of that, plus we hadn't eaten since Bagel Bin hehe. A green tea yogurt in an oh so "green" ecotainer--nice choice.

And that's not even the half of it. It was a fun-filled weekend, one of many more memories to add to the book.

Thanks T for a superb weekend! xo

a yearning for clicks.

it's beautiful right? not my shot, but one that makes my yearning for clicks grow deep into my belly. i'm literally hungry for shots. clicks. it was less than a year that i got my new easy-to-travel-with digital. it's proven itself in its ability to fit into small pockets. but it's lacking in clickiness. i hate the delay. i want a true click. the kind that could give you a callus, the kind that has all the audible pleasures of taking a shot: the raised button click and the snap of the shutter. i want to bring my 35 out of hibernation, even if i can't get instant gratification, even if i can't download the photos to store electronically. i crave the click. snap. snap. snappity snap. i want to grab that 35 fill it with film and hit the streets with a bag of extra canisters of film on deck for when i blast through the first roll. i want to shoot all day until my hand is stuck in that half clenched position, my index finger has a stunning indentation and i can't look at anything until first viewing it through a small rectangle. i want to climb trees and shoot the world from above. and lie face first in the newly sprung grass to capture the world from beneath. only to gradually grow taller, taking shots all the way up to view the world through the eyes i once had at 6, at 10, at 16 and from that point on (give or take an inch or so). even if just for a few hours, i want to view the world through just my right eye. i want to document a moment in time that once was the future and tomorrow will be the past, and for no one but me.

Dear Mother E.

From the day I arrived
You were there:
The strength beneath my feet
The comfort at my knees
Give in; push back;
Receive my each collapse
Protector, keeper of my every breath,
Your mood swings pick me up,
To knock me down again
“You are…
Stronger than me”

You turn grey; dampness consumed
I smile regardless;
Hinting a resemblance

Time,
It has made you volatile
I would be too
Beaten
Every blow,
Proves one too many
Broken
Still giving,
Your soul remains kind

I could do more
Without you,
I would be nothing
Hardly thanked,
I thank you

new addiction: i can read

personification. it makes me giggle.

clever.

what haven't we done minchy? maybe tonight we could 28 while we 77. after dinner we could take a walk and 7. and then how about we 60 and 17, maybe even 4...? but if you want to 69, that would be okay, too. ;)

like it. love it.
not sure about #11 though. talking to people: yes.
talking to inanimate objects: hmm, no.

recently i've become intrigued by the world of Polaroids.

this was a winning words-meet-image combo for me.

i think that "unkown" should say "jpz."

visit i can read for some more enjoyable word/image play.

(i. just. can't. get. enough...you won't be able to either. sorry in advance.)

happiness is a journey, not a destination...

for a long time it seemed to me that
life was about to begin -- real life.
but there was always some obstacle
in the way, something to be gotten
through first, some unfinished
business, time still to be served,
a debt to be paid. at last it dawned
on me that these obstacles were my
life. this perspective has helped me
to see there is no way to happiness.
happiness is the way. so treasure
every moment you have and
remember that time waits for no one.

-souza

enjoy the ride...

grocery store thoughts revisited and a few iLikes.

First of all, I have an update on my fascination with grocery stores: fascination has turned to disgust. In the past when I said how I enjoy going to Wegmans (the Mr. T of grocery stores) I should have just said I like to waste my time and money on things I don't need, while also saying that I like to be subconsciously guided like a rat in a maze through produce. In the past two days I have been to the grocery store (GS) twice. In the past month I've been avoiding Wegmans like the plague. So yes, I've been to the GS two times too many this week. The reason why I went back today was because I had forgotten items I meant to pick up the day before. Did you make a list? Of course I made a list, I'm the queen of making lists. Then what was it? Well, I'll tell you what it was: I was sucked into the Wegmans Wonderland. No, I didn't leave with extra items, but I WAS distracted. My main issue: the store is just too damn big! So many aisles lead me to get disoriented. The organization purposefully sucks so that you MUST go from one end of the stadium--seriously it's as big as a stadium--to the other, which is great for the exercise, but not great in helping me keep my head straight. And do you ever notice the smell they pump through the vents or the way they have brick or tile strategically placed so that you, slow down. If you haven't, try noticing where they place it. Like in the entrance of the store so as soon as you get in you're started at a slow pace, allowing you to conveniently gaze over the towering pyramids of Doritos, TP and detergent...you grab one out of three (mine was detergent...so maybe one extra item). Okay, maybe I am still fascinated with grocery stores, but my fascination has shifted from positive to cynical. The psychology behind the interior design of these food lands is quite interesting. Apparently to me, since I've just spent more time carping about it than I meant to. Time to move on...on to other things...

Things iLike:

1.) Getting things organized = IKEA

The virgin chalkboard.

A much needed trip to IKEA happened (another 2009 list item checked off...oh yeah!) this Saturday. Many items were purchased in the effort to become more organized and refresh the home front.

Magazine rack.

(My hate of excess paper has been calmed by this piece of metal.)

2.) Creating.

Chirp, chirp.

New fabric I pinned to hang in the kitchen as a trial run. Making new curtains will be my next "create" project.

3.) New 'dos.

I get bored. Hi bangs.

4.) Sleep.

g' night.

awww.

This adorable print can be bought here on Etsy
“Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more.”

~Erica Jong

garbage day.

"garbage" was brought out to the curb today. i allowed one last look over for any salvageable pieces, anything to be recycled. my search came out negative. it's hard to throw away stuff you've had laying around for years, the kind you've grown an unhealthy attachment to only because you've been used to it being around; regardless of whether it was in plain sight or not...you knew it was still there. but with it all out in a bucket i know exactly where it is and where it's going. there's really no going back once it's gone. some things i'm already over loosing, others i'll sit on a little longer until i can no longer even recall a blurred out mental image of them.

i just hope i won't go rummaging through that bucket in the early darkness of the morning to save just one small memory from being discarded...

it wouldn't be worth it.

updates.

A West Coast trip will not be happening, but a fun solo trip to Baltimore will be. There will be slumber partyish eves, indie coffee shops in D.C., brainstorming, writing, maybe even a spinning class. That's what I call one well-rounded little weekend jaunt, ah?

I've already succumbed to the voice that's been telling me to "make a hair apt., no one likes octopus legs for hair." So I did. And yes, someone, a hairdresser, not my current rockin' hairdresser, once reamed me out for growing my hair out without a trim. Apparently instead of long locks I was adorning some tentacles. Charming. F-ing charming. Never again. Shit....talk about something sticking with you. Friday, 5:15 p.m., here I come Jules. But just a trim...

As for the other things on my "2009 To Do List" I will happily report that I am moving forward in my efforts to dump unwanted baggage. Not only does this include excess material objects, but also rotten, spoiled people. Yup. They're out there. Bet you have 'em too. Those people that just stink up your life. The kind that take all the good from you for their own and never give it back; they are not the kind of people to keep around. They smell, just like the little red-headed girls with freckles in grade school. You know what I'm talking about. At least one of you does... It's best to just stay away and dispose of such rubbish. Sadly, this type of trash usually isn't capable of going through the recycling process, which really irks me. I heart recycling. And as I've mentioned before, I'm annoyed by the fact that at this day in age, we are unable to recycle all paper, glass and plastics; however, now I'm starting to realize, maybe not all materials are made the same. Maybe some are incapable of changing form, resistant to it. Maybe someday that will change, but probably not anytime soon...

Tickets to Europe have been purchased. It's happening, for real, for real. And in something like 141 days or something. Life is fine, isn't it?

I can barely keep my eyes open today. Too much staying up late on "school nights" running around Buffalo being a groupie. I love my music, but I gotta calm it down. It's been worth it though. I've got spring fever. Side effects may include a desire to see and do all, inability to realize sleep is required for effective daily activities, and excessive craving for jelly beans (the non-spicy kind).

It snowed yesterday. It's melted today. Thankful the sun is out. And I'm out of this office. Peace.

shuffle this!

Dear iPod,

Get rid of the "sad bastard" music already. It does me no good when I'm out running. The sappy, slow (sluggish really) stuff just has to go. Time to sift through iTunes and start adding some new fava flav to your memory. Upload that shit soon, or else I'll show you something to shuffle about.

Signed,

Your disgruntled owner

p.s. I haven't lost all hope in you iPod: Your play of "Hope for the Hopeless" during the last leg of my run was clutch.