Oh, gosh. I hate to say it but George Michael's new song is awful. It starts off with him singing in autotune! This isn't an actual video but it's a lyric video from his website. So if you want to learn all the words, this is perfect. If you never want to think of this song again it may be a bad idea.
I'm ready to forget that song and go back to favourites, like these:
I could post George Michael videos all day but I have to get moving to go to San Francisco. I'm picking up some art at the YBCA, we're going to check out a surf shop and V's going to surf. I imagine the scene will be a lot like these ones from last weekend.
This article by RC about what could be bought instead of healthcare is funny and sad. I've been making my healthcare choices for the new job I'm starting and it's still not cheap.
Listening to:
George Michael
Orb & Lee "Scratch" Perry: Hold Me Upsetter
Last night we had tv night at my house and I watched a movie while my friends farted around on their iphones playing games and looking at Instagram. The movie was about a dude who broke up with his lady and how sad he was about it. Not recommended. There was cake and Llorca licked the icing off the leftovers when I wasn't looking.
I went to get my glasses adjusted today and the store owner, who is always very chatty and personable gave me a hug when I walked in. Like a big serious squeezy hug. I barely hug my closest friends so that made me uncomfortable. He asked about my name change and told me I looked really great and asked if I was doing yoga. Creepy, right? He also gave me another hug when I left. It was weird but at least my glasses aren't falling off my face anymore.
Did you know there's a genre of music called Funeral Doom? I had no idea. It's very slow with heavy guitars and low growling. Definitely not as bad as I thought it would be. Thank you, Pitchfork.
If you're not on facebook and didn't see my horrifying news, the other night I stepped in dog feces in sandals, a pine needle flew into my eye and stabbed it and then I drank some wine and almost swallowed a spider that had fallen into it before spitting it out. A SPIDER! Vann tried to tell me it was a piece of a grape so I wouldn't freak out too much. Nice try.
Last night was much better. Have you bought those marinated eggplants and zucchinis from Trader Joes? They're delicious. I baked those and made some mushroom and parmesan polenta for dinner last night. I paired it with a very fine cabernet from Trader Joes. Yes, that one.
Some of our figs are ready and they don't seem happy about it.
I went to the library yesterday and I am reading the book that I said I'd only read if it was sitting on a shelf on the library and I didn't have to request it online. I did the self checkout too and made it out of the library without anyone seeing me with it. It is SO bad. There is very liberal use of the word "murmur", which I hate and a lot of "she looked up at him through her lashes", and lots of "groaning" in various verb tenses.
Can we talk about cropped pants? They aren't the best look for tall people and I am a tall person. I bought one pair of navy cropped pants (the minnie from J.Crew) last summer. I bought them because I needed something to wear on casual Friday at my last job because my coworkers were on my case about wearing skirts on Fridays.
Anyway, I want some actual pants. Everything out there is cropped! Pants are so frustrating. I'm going to say it, can someone please make a respectable trouser? Preferably in kelly green, please. And no chinos! I hate that word.
Last weekend I tried on some purple denim cropped pants. They were cute but I decided that I didn't need them and the sales lady was being too pushy. Also, they were Ivanka Trump brand, which gave me second thoughts about buying them. Is Ivanka Trump going to be the next Jessica Simpson? For a long time I wouldn't even look at a J.Simp shoe. Last year I bought a pair from na-na-na-na-na-na-na-naaa TJ Maxx and they are cute, quality leather.
Another small whine: The Macy's in SF is a million times better than the one in Sacramento. They have a way bigger selection and almost everything was 30-50% off.
Moving on....
A handful of us did Zumba last night and we survived! It was pretty fun but seemed just like an aerobics class. We sweated like pigs. I'd do it again.
I was so excited about seeing David Shrigley's artist talk that I thought I was going to be sick on the drive there. I get anxious for boring things like interviews and I get anxious for exciting things like art talks and art shows (also concerts, weddings, vacations.). Apologies to my stomach for making it churn so much all these years. Hang in there!
We were first in line which meant FRONT ROW. He had some great stories and jokes about being an artist even though he didn't do well in art school because all his teachers thought he was messing around. The talk was an hour and then he took about 30 minutes of questions. V asked a question, which was funny (of course)! I was too shy. Also, I didn't have a question.
The YBCA had a big sign that said "No Photographs" and I had my huge camera with me so I obeyed the rules because I couldn't be sneaky. The security was very diligent too. The last time I went to a show here there was only one security guard in the whole place. This time there were three. I didn't have a chance.
I also did some Union Square shopping. I didn't find a single thing. Not a thing! Me! Since I struck out I decided to spend my soon-to-be hard earned money on some art instead of an expensive suit that I probably won't wear anyway. I'm going to enjoy it so much more and I have that nervous excitement just thinking about it hanging on my wall. Quick, I need to talk about something else.
We stayed at San Francisco's first motel, built in 1936! It was very cute and our room was teenie tiny but clean and cozy. Some of the rooms have kitchens too but you need to book them far in advance. The place was less than 2 blocks from the beach so V was able to surf Friday and Saturday and we took the MUNI around town on Friday night. What a fun weekend!
So much for sticking to my "listening to" plan. I listened to this album today. I went through all my old mp3's yesterday afternoon to make myself a new mixtape for the car. I put this song on the mix. Talkin' all that jazzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Only two more weeks to go until I start my job! This weekend we're going to San Francisco for some good times. Yesterday I thought I bought tickets to the David Shrigley artist talk at YBCA but then realised I'd bought tickets for the opening night party. I called the YBCA and they reversed the charge. So nice!
This morning I was looking at the website again and saw that the talk was on Saturday when until this morning I thought it was on Friday. Scatterbrain. Now I'm trying to find a hotel online so we can have a little getaway. Why does that seem to take hours to pick a hotel online? I'm thinking Ocean Beach so V can walk to the beach and surf if the waves are good.
Holy moly! Mayer Hawthorne was sososososo good. Thanks to my pals who met with me at Shady Lady for a few hours before the show while I waited for my hot date to get off work. I didn't take any photos of our friend times. I was TOO EXCITED. I did get one photo at the show, which is terrible. I wasn't sure if I would get away with bringing my good camera in but security is pretty lax there. They didn't even look through my bag. Unlike certainplaces.
Ace of Spades is a good venue. The sound was great! I was surprised because every time I've been in the R/15 area it always seems to be insane metal bands that you can hear all the way down the street. Apparently there are also fights there when certain bands play. Obviously that didn't happen last night.
Sacramento crowd. We are in there somewhere!
I went looking for professional clothes yesterday afternoon and I'm sorry to announce that I will not be wearing a matching suit EVER. They are totally unflattering on women! The suit I tried on at Banana Republic was lightweight wool. For a jacket and skirt the cost was just under $300. I felt like I looked 15 years older in this thing!
That is my "you're hired" pose in the first one. The second photo is to further prove that matching all over is a very bad idea.
I did find some pants, two tops, and a leather tote at BR. They were all on clearance with an additional 30% off so my bill came to just over $100. I hate pants usually, especially work pants. I was telling Matt that ladies work pants often make you look like you're wearing a very loose fitting diaper under the pants. I don't want to go nuts on buying new clothes since I'm not exactly sure how people will be dressed there. The nice lady who interviewed me told me "you don't look like someone who works in insurance claims".
Listening to:
These crazy recordings on you tube. The episodes are from a webcast called "Live from Daryl's house". I've never heard of it before. It's bands performing their own songs and "I can't go for that" (duh) with Daryl Hall. I might be spending most of the day listening to the episodes.
No Strings: Mayer Hawthorne and Daryl Hall
I Got a Thing on my Mind: Sharon Jones and Daryl Hall
The check battery light came on on my car the other day so I had to have it looked at. I was worried after already spending a bunch of money on tires, an oil change and to fix the alignment. Everything's fine! Here's a toast to having friends who are mechanics.
Does anyone know anything about dishwashers? That is high on my wish list once I get a paycheque. Our kitchen has an old set up with the stove on one side, the oven at eye level on another side and a sink squeezed into a corner. The space in there might be an issue but I need a professional opinion. I really want to make it work even if it's a tiny one.
Next question: Some of my clothes are torn when I get them out of the dryer and I'm not sure if it's the dryer or the washing machine that's doing it. Has this happened to you? I've totally torn up one sweater and the other day I noticed my long summer skirt had holes near the bottom. Maybe I should wear them together in a park and hold out a jar.
Third question: Does anyone wants to meet for happy hour tonight at Shady Lady before the The Mayer Hawthorne show at Ace of Spades tonight? (If you want to go to the show it's $24 at the door. It starts around 8.)
We had a real Sacramento Saturday with friends. We breakfasted at Pancake Circus, swam in the river and went to the Drive In. Rock of Ages was awful. I spent most of the movie trying to read lips on the Men In Black screen next to ours. Men in Black actually looked pretty good! About halfway through the movie, we deserted our friends and drove over to another screen. V had wanted to see the Lorax and I was surprised at how good it was. I laughed in a few spots even though I traditionally don't like animation. The singing fish were my favourite.
The night before we went to Pizza Rock. I don't get it. The pizza we had wasn't as good as I'd heard it would be and the wings were awful. Those of us who had them decided they tasted like they'd been covered in jam. Way too sweet.
After, we hung outside and people watched. District 30 and Dive bar are on either side of Pizza Rock. I felt like an old marm next to all the tight dresses and super high heels. All the girls were wearing different variations of the same black stretchy lace dress. I haven't been to either place but I want to. It would be a good time if they'd let me in. I think we saw some people get turned away but maybe they voluntarily left. They weren't wearing black lace.
Is anyone else going to Mayer Hawthorne at Ace of Spades tomorrow? I've had my tickets for months, or at least weeks. Doors at 7. I just looked at their website and Talib Kweli and Too $hort are going to be there next month. Anyone? Anyone?
My friend Danielle posted her running playlists on her blog and it made me think that I might want to keep track of the things I listen to. I only make mixtapes when I have a handful of new songs that I love and I'm picky with my music so it only happens about once a month. I'm going to do a new thing where I'm going to post what I'm listening to while I'm writing. I do most of my album listening on Spotify. It has ads but it's freeeeeeeeeee!
I forgot to write yesterday because I got a haircut, did some grocery shopping, cleaned the house (gasp!) and sat around outside and enjoyed the 98 degree weather. Hatcha-cha-cha-cha!
This is our backyard oasis. It makes me laugh.
My little side table. I got it at Talini's when I was waiting for the alignment on my car to get fixed. Has anyone else noticed that one of the guys who works there always smells of alcohol?
Bee balm , Pineapple sage and basil looking a little thirsty. There are already so many bees in our yard (three landed on me when I was "swimming" in the pool the other day) but I love the bee balm flowers. I'm still deciding where to plant these.
Some pals and I went to a tweet up the other day at Red Rabit. It's like a business mingling thing but it seemed more like a cheesy singles meetup. We had a nice time people watching and averting our eyes when people got too close. There were so many short dresses and heavy makeup which is insane in this heat. The misters were going full blast so it felt like it was raining on the back partio. (That was a typo but I like the thought of a patio being a partio).
I made a new friend at Marshall's this afternoon. I was looking at the sun hats and an older lady dressed in white with turquoise jewelry and long white hair offered the hats she was returning to the pile to me to try on. We had a discussion about how annoying floppy hats are and how large the brims were. Brims these days, let me tell you!
She left me at the hat rack but kept coming back with more things to get my opinion. Her cart was HEAPED with clothes, belts, and scarves. I never really get excited about the clothes at Marshalls but the purses, accessories and housewares are good.
I can cool it on the hat search for now because I bought this. It's light blue with a white ribbon and gold tone circle thingy around the crown. The edges are bendy which is nice so I can move the brim to hide my face more if I don't want people to talk to me on the beach. It also came in green with a navy ribbon that I really liked but how many hats does one lady need? I figured this would be more versatile. The brim is larger than I wanted but I'm sick of looking and this will do for now. I got it for $20 and you can get similar styles on the RL website
I forgot to post the card I made for my man last month for our date-iversary. It's a linoleum block print. I love almost all kinds or printing but the beauty of linoleum block printing is that the tools are minimal and inexpensive and you don't need a giant press.
I noticed the Verge gallery had a couple presses out last weekend. One looked to be a monotype pres. I remember seeing some information about classes a while ago but I checked online and there aren't any upcoming classes. Does anyone know, will they be doing classes? Is anyone wondering if I will use the word classes again in this post? Classes would be awesome.
A beautiful couple, delicious food and drinks and a packed dance floor made for a super great wedding this weekend. Congratulations Scott and Becky!
Celebrating with the Four Eyes
V woke up the day of the wedding and thought. "I think we should have a mojito zone." and he made it happen. On the way to the wedding set-up he realised he'd forgotten the muddler so we stopped at a local restaurant and they offered to let him borrow theirs for the weekend.
Well, who wouldn't want to protect themselves from the sun with a giant face guard with a shark on it?
This is for real! These masks protect you from the sun while you're doing what I can only assume to be some sort of insanely extreme hikes or mountain climbs. Other designs too! From patagonia
(If you're wondering how the heck I came across this weirdness, I'm still on the hunt for a sunhat. I actually found one I like but it only comes in black and that doesn't make sense in this heat.)
Just kidding, but it feels like it. I just spent an unreasonable amount of money on two new rear tires. Unreasonable to me is any money that is used for boring car maintenance. Groan.
The good things that happened today were that I got a copy of the Science Fiction issue of the New Yorker, I picked up James Tate's latest poetry book and I watched this amazingly cute video that made me laugh out loud with cuteness. Oh, and also, I saw a smiling husky riding in a passenger seat. The good and cute things have overcome the boring money things once again.
Most of you know I am often thinking about huskies. I see them all over the place in town and on our travels and try to sneak in photos whenever I can. This morning when I opened the curtains I saw that the neighbour across the street had a good looking white one! A HUSKY RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET! I would have actually run out to see it but I was still in my nightie.
For "fun" I like to look on craigslist to see what kind of pups are posted. This is one I found this morning. Too funny.
FOUND TIMBER WOLF: I was chased down by a fat uncooperative Timber Wolf today at the park at Jacinto and Center Parkway. He found my husky appealing and they played while we waited for Animal control who never showed up because apparently me sitting in the rain waiting for 2 hours isn't their concern. Timber Wolf did NOT like sitting in the dug out, and so I leashed him up and drug him howling and fighting home. I put him in my dogs kennel and then lifted the monsterous beast onto my truck and sent my husband to the local shelter on bradshaw to drop the fluffy smelly monstrosity of a dog off. Earlier at the park the dog jumped into the pond, so he's wet, and has a whine like no other dog I have heard. He's a good dog, never bit me, or showed anything but a lustfull interest in my... girl parts, and the girl parts of my husky. Any ways, if you lost this dog, as he looks to be expensive, groomed (and now a mess), he will be at my house. Yes my house. Not the shelter. Why you ask? Because one shelter was closed, and the shelter that was opened refused to take your pretty pooch on account of he was not found in their area. If you want your dog before animal control gets here (within 3 day )email me for the address of where your horney, giant, smelly, very sweet dog is. BTW I'm only assumign it's a timber wolf, it MIGHT be a husky. Black and white, and humping all over. probably weighs 70-80 lbs. VERY furry. Furry like, I can't take a shower because I'll clog the drain. Furry like I'm going to have to vacuum myself. Furry like I lost my son in his fur as he was petting him and will be needing him back.
The new Nordstrom catalogue arrived yesterday and it's full of summery goodies like this one piece swimsuit.
Marc Jacobs : Interesting take on the peplum trend.
The same print is available as a romper, which is also cute for lounging around at home.
I would really appreciate it if someone would buy these and hang out with me so I can look at you wearing it. I can't wear a one-piece swimsuit or romper to save my life without having to hunch over to make it "fit". The woes of having a long torso.
I was browsing on asos.com and came across some curious clothing finds.
This is the most unflattering pose I've ever seen! To be fair, the outfit is awful.
In shopping news, I will soon be able to actually shop again instead of just browsing endlessly online! I was offered a job and start in 3 weeks once my background check has been completed.
Not to get too personal but I have to tell you that the stress of not being able to find a job immediately and having personal savings nearly run out is something I haven't ever experienced before. A couple of weeks ago I finally decided that I may as well apply for unemployment benefits to see if I'd be eligible. Thankfully, I found out on Saturday that I'd been approved and will be getting a little bit of money from them until I start my job. It was/is a huge relief. V even said, "Now that you've been approved for unemployment, you'll get offered a job." He was right!
I am very lucky and thankful that my Mr. has been able to take care of us both. He has never ever complained about it or made me feel bad and has constantly told me that things will always work out. I'm happy that soon I'll finally be able to contribute financially to our family! I'm also very thankful to have such great friends who have listened to me whine about my job search and helped me keep a positive outlook throughout the whole search.
We saw the Beach Boys on Friday and it was fun! I saw a lady with a mullet, a lady making giant bubbles with a huge wand, some goths who didn't look happy to be there and an older man who was super, super pumped about the show who I suspect may have been hard of hearing because he kept cupping his hands to his ears while dancing. It was great!
V made shirts for his pals and they were a hit. My camera died when it was time to take a photo of everyone wearing their shirt but a friend managed to get a quick snap.
