just laura

How fun am I? In the last two weeks, I racked up over 45 hours of comp time. Sad but true. And I’m tired. Beyond tired. Sometimes at work I feel like I get the same amount of respect as the wicked witch of the west. And I’m moving to beyond being tired of my job. And then, it’s the little things that can give me just a bit more energy to go on. Yesterday a coworker gave me a gift (a DVD I’d mention wanting to see), and the week before a coworker gave me a long talk about their respect and appreciation for all I do on their behalf. And it’s those little things that make me think maybe I can stick around for the rest of the year to finish out the program, or maybe even stick around for the next year as they’ve invited me to renew my contract. We’ll see. Right now I think I just need some time off or some rest and relaxation before I make any snap decisions.

Noam Chomsky
Illegal but Legitimate: A Dubious Doctrine for the Times

Meany Theatre at 7 pm. Admission is Free and free ticket is required (contact the University Bookstore).

Noam Chomsky was born on December 7, 1928 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His undergraduate and graduate years were spent at the University of Pennsylvania where he received his PhD in linguistics in 1955. During the years 1951 to 1955, Chomsky was a Junior Fellow of the Harvard University Society of Fellows. While a Junior Fellow he completed his doctoral dissertation entitled, “Transformational Analysis.” The major theoretical viewpoints of the dissertation appeared in the monograph Syntactic Structure, which was published in 1957. This formed part of a more extensive work, The Logical Structure of Linguistic Theory, circulated in mimeograph in 1955 and published in 1975.

Chomsky joined the staff of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1955 and in 1961 was appointed full professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics (now the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy.) From 1966 to 1976 he held the Ferrari P. Ward Professorship of Modern Languages and Linguistics. In 1976 he was appointed Institute Professor.

During the years 1958 to 1959 Chomsky was in residence at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, NJ. In the spring of 1969 he delivered the John Locke Lectures at Oxford; in January 1970 he delivered the Bertrand Russell Memorial Lecture at Cambridge University; in 1972, the Nehru Memorial Lecture in New Delhi, and in 1977, the Huizinga Lecture in Leiden, among many others.

Professor Chomsky has received honorary degrees from University of London, University of Chicago, Loyola University of Chicago, Swarthmore College, Delhi University, Bard College, University of Massachusetts, University of Pennsylvania, Georgetown University, Amherst College, Cambridge University, University of Buenos Aires, McGill University, Universitat Rovira I Virgili, Tarragona, Columbia University, University of Connecticut, Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa, University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto, Harvard University, University of Calcutta, and Universidad Nacional De Colombia. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Science. In addition, he is a member of other professional and learned societies in the United States and abroad, and is a recipient of the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award of the American Psychological Association, the Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences, the Helmholtz Medal, the Dorothy Eldridge Peacemaker Award, the Ben Franklin Medal in Computer and Cognitive Science, and others.

Chomsky has written and lectured widely on linguistics, philosophy, intellectual history, contemporary issues, international affairs and U.S. foreign policy. His works include: Aspects of the Theory of Syntax; Cartesian Linguistics; Sound Pattern of English (with Morris Halle); Language and Mind; American Power and the New Mandarins; At War with Asia; For Reasons of State; Peace in the Middle East?; Reflections on Language; The Political Economy of Human Rights, Vol. I and II (with E.S. Herman); Rules and Representations; Lectures on Government and Binding; Towards a New Cold War; Radical Priorities; Fateful Triangle; Knowledge of Language; Turning the Tide; Pirates and Emperors; On Power and Ideology; Language and Problems of Knowledge; The Culture of Terrorism; Manufacturing Consent (with E.S. Herman); Necessary Illusions; Deterring Democracy; Year 501; Rethinking Camelot: JFK, the Vietnam War and US Political Culture; Letters from Lexington; World Orders, Old and New; The Minimalist Program; Powers and Prospects; The Common Good; Profit Over People; The New Military Humanism; New Horizons in the Study of Language and Mind; Rogue States; A New Generation Draws the Line; 9-11; and Understanding Power.

It was too freezing cold and rainy for me to want to go inside during this trip to DC, I’ve seen it enough times. I was content to snap pictures from across the reflection pond.

A:

I got the sweetest call from a friend yesterday… what a fantastic gift on a lazy Sunday afternoon! Among other things and just checking in, they wanted to know why I wasn’t writing on my blog anymore. It seems they’re right… I haven’t really posted much in the past week that wasn’t a picture or an announcement. So, while I don’t have anything profound to babble about right now, that’s never stopped me before. :) Here’s my weekly recap from last week:

I did brunch with Rod and Clare, Thai with ErinD, Indian with Renee and her husband, pizza with ErinB and Dot, dinner and coffee with Nitza, a party in Greenlake, and Sunday dinner in Queen Anne. A sweet friend gave me an unexpected thank you gift (the Terminal DVD), which I promptly watched the same night. Later in the week I watched an indie movie called Elephant. I worked out six times, including loops around Greenlake once with Caroline and once with Deanna. I silently rooted for Samantha’s blind date, for Caroline’s weekend, and for my brother who went into surgery on Friday. I went to one open house and to one house warming. I went on an Indian food cooking kick… I made mass quantities of yummy raita, cooked some spicy kaju paneer curry, and tried my hand at chile aloo. I did some beading and am content with my first few bracelets and (frankly) impressed with my first earrings. I got a $180 cell phone bill (I somehow went over my minutes for the first time in NINE YEARS of having a cell phone!). I got a long overdue haircut. I worked many late nights and went in again on Saturday to finish up some midyear reporting. I stayed in bed late each morning giggling at John and Cheryl on the radio. I donated more money to KEXP. I thought a lot about racism and white privilege. And I thinned out my closet a little bit so I could donate clothes I don’t wear anymore. That was my week in a nutshell, more of less. How was your week? Do anything fun?

Update from Ted, a visitor to the site who felt it’s very important that we clarify a few things:

“I was reading on your blog about the “clothing optional” wedding you went to in January. You said that it happened at the Longhouse, a nudist retreat center in Redmond.

The Longhouse isn’t a nudist retreat. It is a “sex positive” retreat center. It hosts many “sex positive” events which includes pansexual events, and light BDSM events among other things. It also hosts Pagan events.

It is clothing-optional in many areas (if not all areas) of the center, but just because it is clothing-optional, it doesn’t make it a nudist center. Nudists emphasize that their nude lifestyle doesn’t have anything to do with sexual behavior. It is very imporatant to distinquish between places like the Longhouse and true nudist facilities.”

Duly noted. Thanks Ted!

There are so many birthdays of fantastic people to mention, all within a week of each other! Happy Birthday to:
My friend Nitza
My buddy Moses
My cousin Meghan
My cousin Mike in NC
My cousin Jon in Iowa
My friend Alyssa in Austin
My friend Samer in Montreal
and my friend Dieter in NYC!

I miss all of my friends and family, but if I’m missing your b-day too, do let me know! In the mean time, additional congrats and best wishes go out to my Aunt Bobbie and Uncle Dave… congrats on your 31st annivesary!

Not sure which direction to go with today’s post….

• Do I talk about this week’s photo meetup and the upcoming photography exhibit I’m helping organize?
• Do I talk about work and the recent successes that have made me very proud but very busy?
• Do I talk about life and meeting new people and my wedding yesterday and the Save the Taxi fun?

This post might just end up with me rambling some and posting on some other stuff later… I guess the stuff on the forefront of my mind for this week and the past month has been family. It’s not the stuff that keeps me busy, and it’s not the stuff that keeps me going 90 mph, and it’s not that stuff that requires lots of time to keep in check. However, it is the stuff that makes me break down in tears when I finally do have a quiet minute to stop, rest, and breathe. While I’m spread out from my family half way across the country, and while our political ideologies aren’t always in alignment, I love my family dearly. While I dream of quitting my job and taking an around the world trip, I feel like I should spend some time on sabbatical and connect with/support my family.

Last month my grandfather in North Carolina was diagnosed with a terminal illness and given a few months to live. He’s receiving hospice care to help ensure his last few months are peaceful and comfortable. (My grandmother, his wife, died from cancer when I was in college). On Friday my other remaining grandparent was hospitalized and as of today it’s not looking much better for him. He’s had a distinguished career, a successful business, a growing family, and in retirement continues to remain civically engaged, surrounded by friends, and active in travel. In recent years he’s gotten on line and reads this blog from his home in Arizona. (My other grandmother, his wife, died when I was in elementary school). Sadly, my grandpa has had lots of illness in the last 10 years, to the point in 1996 he sold his home, had an estate sale, and gave away much of the family belongings. He stabilized since then, but is definitely showing his age (he’s almost 90 and he’s still sharp as a tack).

On Thursday he had a reaction to one of his medications and they performed an emergency tracheotomy on him (a surgical incision of the trachea through the neck to make an artificial opening for breathing). He can’t speak with the tube in his throat, his partner Marge is overwhelmed by the whole thing, and my uncle who flew to AZ has to leave tomorrow morning. This stress of the reaction and surgery on grandpa’s body has caused other problems and now he can’t breathe without the machine and they’re doing work to ensure the kidneys are functioning (now also with the support of a machine). Apparently the kidneys weren’t eliminating waste and there was an accumulation of fluids, so they’ve put a catheter in the jugular vein and he’s now on a kidney dialysis machine (this will last “indefinitely,” according to the doctors, though he can eventually do outpatient dialysis).

I’ve been planning a trip to North Carolina to visit my mom’s dad, but now think I might take a visit to Arizona to visit Dad’s dad too. I know my parents (in Texas) want to visit both of my grandpas, but they’re in the middle of an estate sale and need to finish a huge move. My brother (in Austin) had surgery of his own last week and he’s not able to use one of his arms (it’s immobilized after the surgery and will need a few months of physical therapy to ensure a proper recovery).

Anyway… took a break to call family as crying alone in front of the computer has been less than satisfying for me this morning. I spoke with my grandpa in NC and he’s doing okay (“barely doing,” Grandpa said, “which is better than not doing at all.”) He’s alone most of the day, every day, and he really misses my grandma. His eyesight is now legally blind from the immacular degeneration, but he can still see a few feet in front of him and passes much of his time watching TV. I also called my Aunt Bobbie (wanted to wish her a happy 31st anniversary and congratulate her on being a grandmother), but got her voice mail and left her a message. I then spoke with the hospital in Arizona, but they don’t accept flowers in the ICU and grandpa can’t speak with the tube in his throat. Happily, I got to speak with my uncle who was near the nurses’ station, and we both thought I should check on plane tickets. Most of the family is unavailable to make a last minute trip, but I think I might be able to do it. Work’s been busy for so long with the conference in Washington DC, with the annual assembly, with our first community event in 4 years, and with all of the mid-year grant reporting and evaluation. I’m now done with that string of deadline and it feels like I might finally be able to take off for a few days to be with family. So, I’m off to search expedia. Y’all take care and do send your prayers or warm wishes to my family.

I realized I hadn’t posted in a few days and thought I should this morning so I sat down to write that last post. When I started writing it, I was genuinely unsure what my topic would be. But once I got going, it quickly became clear to me that family was on my mind. Crazy how if you just write, something will always flow. You don’t always know what, but you know that it will happen. Like in middle school when we had to do journals or timed writings… topic was irrelevant, but putting the pen to the paper was the important part of opening the doorway to the mind. Funny how we just need an outlet sometimes. I’m surrounded by people every day at work, by people in the evenings for dinners and such, by people at big parties like last night, but even with all of that you can still feel so alone and just need a place to let it all out. I could’ve done it on scratch paper and it’d have the same effect, but computer is easier for me (habit forming as it is), so now y’all are subjected to my thoughts and family medical updates. I hope you and your own families are doing well. Take care…

I booked my flight last night and I’m leaving this morning for Phoenix to be with Grandpa. I plan to be back next Monday night, March 21st. Hope everyone is well…

“For temporary dialysis in the hospital, a patient will have a catheter implanted into a large vein in the neck. Once the access is made and healed, two needles are inserted in the fistula or graft, one on the artery side and one on the vein side.

Blood drains into the dialysis machine to be cleaned. The machine has two parts, one side for blood and one for a fluid called dialysate. A thin, semipermeable membrane separates the two parts. As dialysate passes on one side of the membrane, and blood on the other, particles of waste from the blood pass through microscopic holes in the membrane and are washed away in the dialysate. Blood cells are too large to go through the membrane and are returned to the body.

Dialysis can be used temporarily until the kidneys resume function or the patient receives a transplant, or for years if those options are not available.”

So Grandpa is apparently getting a bit agitated at the hospital staff… which doesn’t seem too bizarre to me. They poke, prod, suck blood, and connect him to machines without explanation, and he can’t comment or ask questions because he had the tracheotomy and can’t speak with the hole/tube in his throat. He’s a stubborn man any day of the week. You can’t stick him in a hospital and not expect him to swat away the nurses’ hands like he was doing today. Tonight they sedated him (heavily, apparently) and they’ve scheduled a CAT scan too. Things don’t seem to be improving.

Since I wouldn’t be able to see him during his sedation/scan, I took his partner/lady friend Marge out to dinner. We were dressed and out the door pretty quick, but it took a 20 minute search to find car keys, and another 10 minute search to find out how to close the garage door from inside the car (many thanks for the friendly neighbor for the garage door help). We got home and returned some phone calls (her son Hod then my aunt Kandy). We ate some pie from the Village Inn (french silk) and now I’m ready for bed. Hope everyone is well.

This is what I did for part of the day on Saturday. :) More wedding photos to come, most likely when I get back to Seattle.

This is what else I did for part of Saturday. More updates later on Save the Taxi. At the present time, I think we helped Jacob raise over $1200 through the BBQ, the website, the garage sale, the bake sale, the live bands, and the kissing booth. :)

CAT scan came back negative/clear. He was sedated, off the drugs, and then sedated again. He was also off the respirator, and is now back on again (too agitated, irregular heart rate, and irregular breathing). He is still doing daily dialysis for the kidney failure. Next up is a VQ scan (of the lungs). They’re looking for blood clots or anything else that could have potentially caused Grandpa’s problems.

On the upside, he was coherent for a little while today between the bouts of sedation. I gave him updates about all of the calls we’ve gotten of people concerned about him (lots of family and lots of friends). He opened his eyes, stroked my hand, mouthed questions when he didn’t hear something I said, and laughed about Marge’s hair. :)

Today Grandpa was doing much better than yesterday! Yesterday he was agitated, had an irregular heartbeat, was heavily sedated, was on a ventilator to facilitate his breathing, was not coherent, was not given food, sleeping all day, etc.

Today he was much calmer, and was able to come off the ventilator entirely. He was breathing on his own from around 10am onward. He was also off the sedatives, and the kidney doctor gave him a day off dialysis. The doctor did say grandpa would probably be on dialysis for the long term future, probably about 3xs a week in outpatient treatment. Grandpa’s still acting out… he pulled out his catheter again today (when Marge and I were away at lunch), and he got a bit of blood everywhere. (He wrote me a note saying he got in trouble for that one). Guess he didn’t get in too much trouble, as by 5pm they took out the trache and put in the passy muir, a smaller tube so he could actually talk. It was great to hear his voice! He didn’t remember anything from the morning… didn’t know he’d been x-rayed, didn’t remember that Marge and I were there all morning, didn’t remember that I’d hung photos of the family in the room and read him the cards, etc. By tonight he was more coherent, and by dinner around 7pm, he was eating his first foods in a couple of days. He had about 4 bites then gave up… wasn’t impressed by he “terrible hospital food!” I don’t blame him… the gray mushy roast beef puree smelled
and looked pretty awful to me.

I told him of my plan to sneak him some French Silk Pie tomorrow for breakfast and he just laughed. I don’t think he believed me at first, but imagine his surprise when I cleared my plan and got permission from Nurse Emma. It’s already in tupperware and waiting for breakfast. If you’ve ever wondered, I’m pretty sure my Grandpa is responsible for my two strongest additions: chocolate and ice cream. :) Least I can do is bring him some pie… it’s soft and mushy and fits the requirements of easy to swallow foods.

Hope y’all are doing well. I’m tired but otherwise doing okay… Take care!

If I haven’t returned your calls or emails this week, it doesn’t mean I didn’t get them, or that they’re going to junk mail, or that I don’t love you, or that I don’t sincerly and deeply appreciate your kind, supportive words. I’ve just been busy and tired and time alone for email and phone calls is limited. Promise.

Today grandpa did pretty well… minus the whole stripping buck naked, ripping out all of his needles and tubes, and dragging himself out of the hospital bed to a nearby chair. Alas. The nurses nipped that in the butt pretty quickly. :)

In other news, his old friend John Z stopped by the ICU today and was telling stories from Grandpa’s younger days. Stories involving road racing at 120 mph and stories involving hanging cats in trees and stories involving strip clubs!!! Shocking, I know! Believe it or not, this apparently is my same Grandpa… the one who requires suit jackets during family meals and has always been a yes sir, no sir rather formal, must have cloth napkins kind of guy. Quite enlightening. I’ll have to have John come around to visit more often! This is a very new side of Grandpa I’ve never seen or heard of in all my life!

As Erin pointed out, Jacob’s party was the subject of this week’s Party Crasher column in the Stranger. The writers must have been there after I left, because at 10pm they still had live bands and a large crowd out in the back. It’s the second one of my friend’s parties to be crashed by Stranger staff in recent months. The first one was in Capital Hill and the article highlights included mention of keg stands and underage girls. :) Yay small-world-Seattle.

Besides sleep, peace of mind, sanity, feeling peacefulwhen we go to bed, and feeling rested when we wake up?

A: SXSW.

“South by Southwest has been called “spring break for the music industry,” but it’s really a working vacation. What started out 19 years ago as a modest gathering of musicians and the people who make a living from them has swollen into a gargantuan schmooze-fest and band showcase. In recent years, an appended movie festival and “interactive” conference have made it even bigger.

Officially known as the South by Southwest Music and Media Conference, but usually shortened to SXSW, it’s held each spring in Austin, Texas, and now attracts 10 times as many people as it did its first year.

About 1,300 acts will perform between March 16 and 20; that’s more than 50 bands at any given hour on any given night. And that doesn’t include the invitation-only parties and showcases, nor the daily seminars. Some of these have considerable star power: When Robert Plant is your keynote speaker, it’s not your normal convention.

There’s a myth about SXSW being the place to discover the Next Big Thing. A few breaking bands, most recently Los Lonely Boys, do use SXSW as a springboard to national fame. But usually it’s a chance for fledgling acts to get a little attention, established ones to take it to the next level and, in a few cases, rock stars to remind people they’re still around.”

I might need lots of good hugs the next time I see y’all.

I’m feeling more than a lot exhausted right now. Part of me wants to spend lots of time with healthy people my own age who are of sound minds and bodies, going to do things like eat Thai or Indian or anything that’s not a 1/2 a ham sandwich with a side of chicken soup. And the other part of me thinks when I get home next week I might be antisocial for a while… catching up on sleep, reading, eating vegetarian, gluten-free foods with spices and flavor, not doing all of the driving, cooking, cleaning, crying, etc. I’m glad I could be here this week, but I admit I’m tired and feeling more than a little worn out.

Congrats Prentice & Mark! Wildt arrived Feb. 15, 2005 @ 7:21pm, he weighed 8lbs 12oz, and was 18 3/4 inches.

I really enjoy volunteering all over town… environmental projects, working with homeless, youth programs, boats, drug addicts, arts empowerment… all of the above. On one on my volunteer projects at a local food bank, we were delighted to see this scary donation. I mean really, what would one need to do with Pork Brains?

I’ve wanted to do a road trip through MN and WI again to see some friends and their growing families. My friends Mike & Eliz in Minnesota are having a baby in mid-to-late April. My friend Mary in Wisconsin has been saying “Come visit us!” for the last year! She had baby Owen in December and I haven’t seen the twins since they were super tiny. And I just got a wedding invite in the mail yesterday for my friend Rebecca who is getting married in Beloit, WI the last weekend of April. This wedding just happens to be three days after a recently announced social services conference in the Twin Cities that I was debating attending.

It’s all too perfect and after three quick emails, I think I’m ready to book my flight! I’ve got money in my training budget at work to buy my airfare and conference registration. Jens’ old roomie Lucas said I can stay with him in St. Paul, Eliz said I can come see them (and maybe the newborn baby), Mary said I can crash at her place in WI, and even more coincidental for dates… Mary is going to Beloit for a twin’s conference the very same day as Rebecca’s wedding! (Who knows… maybe I’ll even feel brave enough at some point to email Jens and say hi. Wouldn’t it be odd to meet his girlfriend and the baby this April 2005 when last year in April 2004 we were still involved and he made a trip out to visit me in Seattle?)

If there’s karma or a higher power, I think this is their way of making sure I get a break and see an abundance of life after my crazy intense time last week. After so many old folks and sick people in the hospital, I’m pretty sure seeing lots of babies and friends galore will snap me back into place. :)

I have a really, really long list of things I want to do in life. This handy little website lets me start to put a couple of them down in writing: www.43things.com. Do you have a list too?

I feel myself staying up later and later, even when I’m very, thoroughly tired. And it’s not like I have anything I’m wanting to do or anything I’m busy doing… I just finished a book a few days ago so I don’t even have the reading excuse to keep me awake late at night. And to top it off, my body has been waking up an hour or TWO early lately even though I have no desire to be awake in the five or six am hour. Alas. It’s 12:31 am and I think I’ll probably head to bed since I’ve succeed in boring myself sitting alone in my dining room.

On a side note, tonight David and I went to see the new Catherine Keener and Daniel Day Lewis flick The Ballad of Jack and Rose. While I don’t like the filmmaker (Rebecca Miller also did “Personal Velocity”), I did enjoy this film a good deal. And while I’m a long time fan of Catherine Keener, I think it was the first time I’ve enjoyed Daniel Day Lewis in a movie (a pleasant surprise). Might I also add that I thought Camilla Belle was stunning! It was engaging, interesting, and left me wondering. The ending left something to be desired, but I often feel that way after a movie I enjoyed. Conversation after the movie was also enlightening.

And on another, and final, sidenote… yesterday Samantha and Steph and I watched Saved! I’ve wanted to see it for a long time and it was worth the wait! It was a super cute and super funny movie… highly recommended… and not just because I love nuns! The girl time, brownies, and ice cream was the perfect complement to the evening. Next week girl night will hit the streets as we take girls night to Neighbors! As they say in the movie, “Let’s kick it Jesus style!”

In less than a month, I’ll be on my 2005 mid-west road trip. :) I’ve paid for my plane ticket to MN. I paid for the conference registration. And I even booked a rental car (kind of a necessity… it’s cheaper to fly into St. Paul, get a car for a week, and drive to WI than it is to get a three way plane ticket). Mid-west here I come!

Earlier this week I was lucky enough to see Low perform a private concert for KEXP listeners at my favorite venue ever (the Triple Door, of course). Last night I went with Erin to her band practice and they sounded really great too! I’ve got quite a talented roomie! If you don’t believ me yet, you can hear for yourself tonight at the Cascade open mic! Everyone’s invited to perform songs, beat boxing, spoken word, or whatever strikes your fancy. Or, if performing isn’t your cup of tea, just come on out for the free food, free entertainment, and good company!

Cascade is located in South Lake Union near the Denny Triangle, just 2 blocks from REI. Directions:
From I-5 or from Aurora/99, get onto Denny
From Denny, go north on Minor two blocks
Turn right on Thomas and park immediately
Cascade is at the intersection of Thomas and Pontius

It is on the same block as the park and p-patch garden, across from a white church. :)

As usual, Sunday is pretty much my favorite day of the week! I got up without my alarm. Chatted with my parents. Read some of my book (currently: The DiVinci Code). Worked out. Took a hot shower. And then went to brunch this with Rod, Clare, and Dot. The food was yummy as always (and gluten free!) and afterwards I busted out a package of HEB egg dye and a dozen medium eggs for some egg dying fun! I don’t think I’ve dyed eggs since living in Metropolis with Matt back in 1999 and it was crazy long overdue! After brunch, I headed straight to Queen Anne to the girl’s house for an early Sunday Dinner. This week’s focus was a giant Easter Egg Hunt (aka Ian’s first hunt!). At 2 years old, Ian is always the youngest in attendance at Sunday Dinner and he’s officially the cutest kid ever. He found a few of the 80 eggs that weren’t hidden too hard, and we gave him lots of help finding the rest. :) Sunday Dinner was great… it’s always fantastic to see the rotating crowd of friends who come together each week to cook and eat together. It’s just a great sense of community and always great fun! After Sunday Dinner I went to the Sonics game. The score was close, and the game was high energy, but it ended with us losing by just one measly point. Alas. After the game I returned to the small crowd left at Sunday Dinner and capped the evening with homemade peppermint ice cream.

And, in case you weren’t there, Erin’s open mic last night was great! Erik and I went to see her perform I think the whole crowd agreed they did terrific! One women was asking about who wrote all of the songs (Erin did!) and another as asking if they had a CD for sale!! I think that speaks tons about the quality of their performance… especially knowing it was their first time performing together! Yay Erin!

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, yes I did indeed finish my taxes this weekend. :) And pay my bills. :) And watch The Swimming Pool, Anchorman, and The Notebook on DVD. :)

Today was a good day too. :) Did a Greenlake this morning at 7am. Read my book for a little while. Worked 8+ hours. Saw They Might Be Giants play a 45 minute set at Easy Street. Capped the day with a fun dinner to celebrate the end of Dot’s time in Seattle. Samantha, David, and Jeff also made appearances tonight for some or all of the festivities. Everyone wish Dorothy well as she drives away from Seattle to the great unknown!

Too much to do, in every part of life, or so it seems right now. Too much work. Too much socializing. Too much photo stuff even, and not enough time to dedicate to any one thing. Life remains a balancing act as it usually is in my world. I think it’s time to hire someone at the office part time to give me a little more balance. Wish me luck.

The Photo Meetup was a few weeks ago and we had a good crowd! A few months ago Caroline & I decided to offer a photo challenge to get people taking new pictures and get people more involved in the meetup. I announced it last month (on Caroline’s birthday) and this month a bunch of new and returning members all stepped up to the challenge and came out with their framed photos on the theme “Performance Anexiety.” You can check out this group gallery show tomorrow night at the Black Box Gallery in Fremont. Hope to see you there!