just laura

Photos by Rick Barry

The Another Hundred Artists gala was last night and the event was pretty fun. Phil did a great job helping organize and Caroline did a great job encouraging me to participate. I’m proud to report the event raised about $6,000 for the MoveOn PAC and I’m proud to report that someone bought my photo! Yey! And double yey for all of the artists, patrons, and organizers who made the event happen!

REMINDER: Today’s the last day you can send in your voter registration for November’s election if you live in King County.

Port Angeles, WA

I think I’m slipping into a cold. Last night by 10pm I could barely keep my eyes open over dinner. This morning I work up feeling like hell. This sucks.

“Scientists warn another blast is imminent; visitors told to leave”

Nature is really quite exciting if you ask me. I wonder if it’ll be big enough to see the effects from Seattle like in 1980. I wonder if it’ll happen before I leave town Monday night…

So I’m back in modest Baltimore, the self proclaimed “Greatest City in America.” Yep, land of crab cakes, the murder capital, John Waters, believe, The Corner, and hon. Last night was a red eye flight through Texas, today was meetings at work, then tonight was VP debate watching with Sameer and Can. :) Hope everyone is doing well!

I’m done with work meetings and am now in Montreal, Quebec to enjoy the 3 day weekend (Columbus Day in US, Thanksgiving in Canada). Highlights so far: Montreal is beautiful, the weather is a balmy 77 degrees, and the very sweet Samer met me at the airport looking quite handsome and offering me a bouquet of roses! On the downside, I think I’m still recovering from my cold that is still making me really, really tired. Last Friday I went out to dinner with Rod and by 9pm, I was yawning and by 10pm I was home in bed. This Friday Samer and I went out for a walk through Chinatown and Old Montreal, and while it was very beautiful, I was exhausted after just a few hours, ready to go home and take a nap by 3pm. I think I’ll vow to spend next weekend at home… no camping and no more going out of town every weekend. Wish me luck relaxing and recovering and working normal hours…

Sometimes when I get back from a trip I have a hard time remembering I was ever gone. It seems very foreign to think that less than 24 hours ago I was walking through the cobble stone streets of Quebec City (North America’s only walled city), listening to street musicians play the harp and watching the red and orange leaves fall to the ground. After a fantastic day, a quiet ride back to Montreal, and a night full of good discussion, I boarded my flight this morning quite groggy from the lack of sleep but too wired to sleep much on the plane. I’m now back in my apartment thinking maybe I should go into work, anticipating the avalanche that’s sure to fall the minute I walk into the door tomorrow. Or, maybe I’ll just make some popcorn and watch a DVD and flip through my copy of Let’s Go Egypt…

Tell them to get off your back. “The social and economic benefits of delaying parenthood more than compensate for reproductive health issues related to aging, according to new research by a sociologist at The University of Texas at Austin.” read more…

I’ve disconnected my home phone number (and only have a cell now) and switched my email to a gmail account. Please update your address books and let me know if you need any of the new info. :)

In Fremont yesterday morning during rush hour I drove past a Volvo with a “Smart Women Vote” bumper sticker that I thought was kinda neat.

After a meeting in the South End, I was waiting to cross the street and a guy in a black t-shirt riding a bike smiled at me and said hi.

During evening rush hour I passed the same Volvo with the “Smart Women Vote” sticker, now in the U-District going the opposite direction.

In the evening rush hour I also saw the same bike rider, now in Wallingford, who said hello earlier in the day.

At the Wallingford QFC grocery store around 10pm, I saw the crazy beer vendor that Samantha and I sighted at a Mariners baseball game earlier this season.

The condos next door to my apartment building decided yesterday to install lighting to the outside of their two story building. There are now six lights evenly spaced along the building wall, with two of them exactly opposite my living room windows. They’re not sensor lights that blink on with motion. Instead they’re apparently on 24/7. And while they point “downward,” they’re so bright I no longer need a light on in my living room at 5am to see where I’m going and not stub my toe. I also don’t think I can wander naked in the shadows anymore in my apartment since there are no more shadows. Ah, city living.

Just thought I ought to pass on all of these oh so pressing thoughts this morning at 6am. For some reason I woke up today at 5:08am and wasn’t able to get back to bed. Hence, surfing online and blogging in the semi-dark Seattle morning.

I’ve added about 20 more new pictures to the glossary for a brief look at some of the fantastic folks in my life. Mouse over newer images for Alt tags that tell you some of who’s who. :)

Richard Avedon, one of my three favorite photographers, died on Oct 1, 2004 in NYC.

He was most famous for fashion, but I liked his other portraits better, especially the American West series.

A tiny snippet from the NY Times article: “Thin and wiry, with a shock of unkempt hair, Richard Avedon had a terrierlike intensity that could exhaust those who worked with him. Although for most of his life he maintained an overstuffed schedule in his East Side photography studio, he found time to read, attend the theater and visit museum shows, staying conversant with cultural and artistic life. In addition, he supported civil rights and other social causes financially and with his photography; in the 1960′s, he trained young black photographers to record marches and sit-ins in the South.

When Mr. Avedon joined the staff of The New Yorker, which had previously used only small photographs, and those sparingly, U.S.A. Today suggested that calling Mr. Avedon a staff photographer was like calling Michelangelo the local house painter. But the staff photographer himself saw the new position as an opportunity to progress beyond fashion.

“I’ve photographed just about everyone in the world,” Mr. Avedon said. “But what I hope to do is photograph people of accomplishment, not celebrity, and help define the difference once again.”

Do I go to Cairo for 2-3 weeks and know that I’ll only be able to hang out with Samer for a portion of that time? Or do I wait and go later in the holiday season reducing my total available travel time?

Leaving later considerations:

pro – would save $200

con – less time there

Staying for a longer trip considerations:

pro – so much to see and do in Egypt! If I’m going to pay for a flight to Africa I might as well stay longer and get my money’s worth for the trip since it’s pretty cheap once you get there. :)

con – would have to spend a week or more traveling alone… is it safe for single white American women to travel alone in the Middle East?

Any thoughts? Anyone want to come with me? Do share!

I’m usually overworked and run myself on a hectic schedule… any chance for sleep in generally a good thing. However, there were a few days this week where I couldn’t sleep. This is RARE for me. I couldn’t get to bed until after 3am. My body woke me up at 5am against my will. Happily, last night I didn’t set my alarm and I slept a solid 12 hours! Of course, this meant I missed going to the pumpkin patch and corn maze like I’d told Erin I’d do with her, but that’s okay. I got a full night of sleep and Erin and I rescheduled for next weekend. :) Now I’m off to celebrate tyd‘s birthday.

Last night’s birthday party was both fun and informative. I learned more than I ever suspected about Mormon temple garments. (Apparently all Mormons are required to wear the same kind of underwear, complete with nipple protectors, as a “shield of armor” to protect them from evil).

In other news, today I attended KEXP’s listener appreciation brunch at the Triple Door. It’s one of the more GORGEOUS venues I’ve ever seen and I highly recommend everyone check out very soon! It was also full today of gorgeous donors and very cool KEXP DJs (Kid Hops and Abe win my award for most friendly DJs). The whole crowd was super social, and I had a great time eating (Wild Ginger… yum!), socializing, and seeing the Swedish band The Concretes perform a live show! I even won a door prize (yay American Apparel!).

I ask you, could the day get any better? You bet! On the way home a homeless guy gave me a rose and told me I was beautiful. Then, I arrive at home and find that my roomie has cleaned the apartment and I find a voice mail inviting me to a dinner party tonight. :) So, I’m off to socialize again! Hope your day treats you well! Take care!

There’s only one Michael Moore and he’ll be in Seattle tomorrow night.

Tuesday, October 19, 2004, 7:30pm at the Key Arena

Tickets: $15.00 Assigned Seating (service fees apply)

No stranger to controversy, An Evening with Michael Moore elicited boos at the Republican convention in New York while his documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11″ continues to break attendance records nationwide. Oscar winner for “Bowling for Columbine,” author of the bestsellers Dude, Where’s My Country? and Stupid White Men…and Other Sorry Excuses for the State of the Nation, Moore will be in Seattle one night only.

You too can study along at home…

• Mashi – okay
• mashi ya gameel – okay beautiful
• Sah? – correct?
• Enchala – god willing
• Manchala – by the grace of god/thanks to god
• El hamdulelah – thank god
• habib albi or habibi – dear/sweetheart
• salam – peace be with you
• Ramadan karim – happy Ramadan
• Walla – or
• Begad – surely or indeed
• Bardo – also
• Ba?a – “like the Canadian ?eh? it is used always for several meanings. Its presence in a sentence does not add anything to the meaning.”
• Bas – but
• Wallahi – I swear to God (always used to emphasize something)
• Mesh keda – like sah (see above)
• al salam alaikom wa rahmat allah wa barakatouh – peace, mercy, and the blessing of God upon you.
• La’a – No
• Awya – Yes
• Ras – Head
• Yalla – let’s go
• Yalla beena – let us go (more formal)
• ma’ lesh – life goes on or sorry
• sora – photo
• yanni – meaningless filler word… ex: um, uh, like

Guess who bought her plane ticket tonight and will be arriving in Cairo on Dec 20th? Buying the ticket was slightly scary (no refunds when you buy online) but was mostly just exciting (seeing Egypt and seeing Samer)! I’ll be gone from Dec 18th (with a day layover in Amsterdam) through Jan 5th. I think 19 days should be enough to see Luxor, Aswan, Alexandria, and Cairo. :)

Last night I left work at a decent hour! I talked to Samer for a long time about trip plans (always fun!). I decided to skip the meetup in favor of some downtime watching a movie… and it was totally worth it! I watched X-Men 2 (thanks for loaning it to me Andrew!). And I went hot tubbing at Jacob’s new house (lovely crowd!). Who knew you could do so much if you just left work before midnight??

In other news… Captain Mike has a new site! http://www.smoke-break.org “Virtually giving you virtual lung cancer virtually.” Enjoy!

Check this out… tonight I went to dinner with a guy from Fremont – whose sister lives in the Bay Area – who has a friend in the Bay Area – who now employees a girl – who used to be an employee of mine in Seattle. Getting a 4 degrees of separation email is pretty entertaining in itself. It’s just like week when I went to dinner with another stranger. (My grandpa – is dating a woman Marge – who has a granddaughter who lives in Seattle). Anyway, tonight’s stranger dinner was also entertaining… after “hello” and “you must be Cat” one of the first things out of John’s mouth was admitting that he googled me, found my blog, and read back a couple of months.

It’s like finding out your ex-boyfriend or your cousin’s wife or your friend’s parents read your blog. You’d never know it because they’ve never commented in the history of the blog, but then one day they casually mention they’ve been loyal readers for multiple YEARS. Someone knows all about you… all about the last ten years of your life… and you know nothing about them. At times blogs seem more silly, wildly personal, and a bit unfair (like I’m doing all of the work but they have the advantage). In moments like those, I think folks should be required to leave an occasional comment so you know they’re reading, or they should be required to keep their own public blog so you know what’s going on with them too. Equity, ya know? :)

Anyway, once I got over the shock and initial embarrassment, all was well. Dinner was good, John’s quite funny, and there was lots of good brainstorming for Halloween costumes. I suspect he’ll be back to my site and reading this, so I should probably give him a little free publicity. He’s a lawyer, he isn’t scary, and he’s a rock star. (I won’t mention his taste in movies… some things are better left unsaid). ;) Anyway, if you want to check him out or see their music, his band is playing a gig at the Vera Project on Saturday around 10pm. Hope everyone is well! Take care!

Tonight Erin and I stayed home, talked about boys, and watched movies (Thirteen and The Good Girl). Tomorrow I’ll be doing tea with Caroline and then house warming for Max and Dena. If time permits, it might also be a day for pumpkin hunting, a band downtown, or chaperoning a high school homecoming dance (I knew I saved my prom dresses for a reason!). :)

I’m cleaning the thousands of MBs of pictures off my laptop and just found some old stuff laying around.

** Rocky Horror pictures from the Seattle cast in 2001. A bit boring, but we’ll post them anyway.

** Jason Webley pictures from misc shows in 2001.

Found on my computer: Pictures from an Austin Rocky Horror performance from July 1999. I might be biased, but I think these photos are better than the Seattle Rocky pictures I posted this weekend. I think I’m probably just nostalgic because they include Danielle, Dot, Shawn, Naomi, Lindsay, and the old gang. :) (I was in both Danielle’s and Dot’s weddings, used to baby sit Naomi’s kid, and I was always impressed by Lindsay’s maturity… even while she was in HS). Join me on a trip down memory lane?

Me, Jake, Beal

Beal & Jake

Bart & Jake

I love Jacob because he’s one of my only friends who’ll randomly call me up at 4pm, or 10pm, or 2am to invite me to parties. :) Or course, sometimes I’m already asleep when he calls, and an earlier invite might have been handy, but he’s still pretty great. These pictures were from the luscious summer of 2001. :)

Anyone online, or in Seattle, want to read and discuss? Last week a Seattle friend suggested I read “The Map of Love” by Ahdaf Soueif and so this week I got it from the library. Looks pretty interesting… anyone want to read along at home and potentially discuss? There are even book group discussion questions on the web.

Ahdaf Soueif evokes Egypt in meticulous detail, describing age-old and modern-day customs, the stark beauty of the desert and bustle of the cities, and the interactions among Egyptians and between Egyptians and Westerners. In a compelling, impressive combination of historical fidelity and fictional artistry, she takes a culture little understood by most Westerners and makes it real.

Cat – at homecoming in high school (TX)

Cat – self portrait this weekend (WA)

m I? I’ve been doing visits to my work sites around town to check on my staff and I get some pretty creative guesses. This weekend one of my staff announced the need for additional chaperones at his site’s homecoming dance. I decided to help out and thought it’d be fun to wear my own homecoming dress from many years ago. (I was quite proud that it still fit!) Once at the dance I was entertained by some folks who said they were glad to see they weren’t the only parents chaperoning(!). My response: “Uh, I don’t have kids, thanks. I’m single and have no teenagers of my own already in high school.” The kids knew I wasn’t a parent, but instead thought that I was the girl friend of my employee. His response: “Uh… no, man! She’s my boss!” Today visiting another sites a few separate groups of kids asked another of my male staff members if I was his girl friend. He said no, and they told him they’d be keeping their eyes on us. Another student today asked if I was a photographer (probably since I had my camera out and was taking pictures). And yet another student today at tutoring tried to guess why I was there. She asked “Are you a lawyer?” I said “nope, I work with your tutor.” She didn’t believe me, and said she were pretty sure I looked like a lawyer. Odd… while I have been mistaken for a parent before, or a girl friend, I can’t say anyone’s ever mistook me for a lawyer. Guess there’s a first time for everything… :)

Halloween is my favorite holiday of the whole year! And while this town (as a city) doesn’t do much for Halloween, I’m proud to see so many of my friends hosting pumpkin carvings, having Halloween teas, making trips to corn mazes and haunted woods, hosting Halloween brunches, and most importantly, throwing dress up parties. Yey Halloween!