in a pickle

Ok, not a serious pickle, but some premature nostalgia for sure. Today when we were driving home, Orion turned to me and said, "we should have said we were leaving a long time ago, huh?"

I think what he is referring to is the fact that we announced that we were moving out of state last week and ever since it has been one fun thing after another. Thursday we went to the Hammer Museum to see bands (Dazzler, Amazing Baby, and Band of Skulls); Friday we went to a dinner party at Jason & Miriam's; Saturday we went to the Hollywood Forever Cemetery to sit on the lawn, have a picnic, catch glimpses of fireworks, and watch the Cinespia screening of JAWS; and last night Orion took me to the Hollywood Bowl to see Death Cab for Cutie play with the L.A. Philharmonic, Tegan & Sara, and New Pornographers. Awesome, awesome, awesome!

And if things couldn't get any crazier---or better, a twist of fate has O and I attending the MJ memorial tomorrow morning at the Staples Center (!!) What are the freakin' odds?? Well, actually 17,500 in several hundred thousand according to the last numbers I saw released. We both put our names in the hat for the lottery, but neither of us was selected, and then this afternoon I get a phone call that starts the multi-step process of actually claiming tickets. It involved a trip to Dodger Stadium in rush hour traffic and several police check-points, but proved to be worth the effort. The whole way there I was thinking, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained. It is a long shot, but maybe the stars will align. Wouldn't it be a kick if they did?..."

We have Irene to thank for the tickets. And, Irene, if you can get a flight to L.A. before 10am tomorrow, I'll give you my seat, er, your seat. xoxo

Paper Heart Extra - Paul Rust

Remember this guy from Iowa City? He's all over the place these days. Go, Paul!


Paper Heart Extra - Paul Rust

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ch-ch-ch-changes

I am in debate about whether or not to go back and finish the posts that are still pending (i.e. I started them but never finished). All of a sudden the month was over. I still have a list of things to post about. sheesh! For anyone who has been reading along through June, Samantha is hosting a blog challenge Readers' Contest. There is a prize for whomever has been a committed reader, so good luck!

We'll see if I get these other posts up....if not I'll put them in the queue for July. In the meantime, things are happening so fast that I am having a tough time keeping up (let alone blog about it all).

In tandem with the film festival I have been keeping busy away from Westwood. Top two tasks: working to communicate with my committee to finalize the steps needed to get to defense and continuing the application/interview process for the "anthropology job." I haven't offered much info about either of these, but as both seem to be sorting out I am getting more comfortable with the idea of some details. I am in the final stages of talking with HR about employment (!!!) particulars, O and I are signing a lease for the sweetest house in IC, and I am trying to figure out how best to engage a major move. On top of that we have four (all very important) weddings in a period of six weeks and my dear friend, Monique, is due to head back to France later this month to have her twins. My back up plan for unemployment was going to be nanny-ing in Tanzania for the twins this fall; now I am not even sure we'll get there for a visit :(
We will see what can be done.

In the meantime, Carrie was sweet enough to go check out the house we want to lease and take some pictures of the interior. I am kind of in love with this house and we haven't even met yet.




So that is a snippet of recent highlights. I now know why we have been in L.A. for seven years -- it has taken me that long to forget how much cross-country moving stresses me out. At least now we know why we have kept the IC storage unit for so long! If you have any recommendations on moving options/companies, I would love the info. Also, if anyone knows about relocating a worm composter (with worms in it), please let me know. This is happening.

no words to describe

Every once in a while I come across something that I want to share with you and I am at a loss for what to say about it. There is a short film at the festival that is called THE BLINDNESS OF THE WOODS. It is not long, as a "short" suggests, and you can view it here. It is not child appropriate (O is not sure who it is appropriate for), the biggest issue being that I think it would raise countless unanswerable questions. I know it does for me.

The film is Argentinian, but based on a variety of Swedish 70s porn I am not familiar with. I was most intrigued as a knitter, as you will see the medium has been taken in new directions. When I encounter a work like this one I often imagine the reaction of several of you I know to read this blog. ...heh.

No matter where I live, I pledge to always do my best to contribute to our collective cultural awareness. By the way, the bear is named Bjorn.

my michael memory

Is the death of Michael Jackson consuming the people around you the way it seems to have affected so many I am in contact with? Samantha is right, we are too young to see our childhood idols passing away. My MJ story (as it has become something akin to "where were you when Kennedy was shot?") is that I was on the #2 bus that travels along Sunset Boulevard from downtown L.A. to the ocean. Passing out of Beverly Hills and into Bel Air I noticed that consecutive streets were closed, with lots of cop cars and medical responders present. My exact thought was, "I wonder who died." Is it sad that this is where my mind went? I am not sure.




Arriving at work I was immediately engaged by the "Where were you..." question. Since I had not yet heard and was unfazed by the helicopters that accompanied me into Westwood Village, I was right there in the middle of the box office, listening to Bealene ask festival callers if they had heard the news when I found out. (I later found out Orion learned the news in the post office.) I was momentarily confused because I was also behind on the news of Farrah Fawcett and Ed McMahon -- (I am behind on the news; it is a film festival, I am trying to wrangle my committee, and pre-occupied about a potential job) -- but then I understood MJ was only blocks away at UCLA medical center and fellow staff were already sending photos of the assembling spectators to Facebook pages.




There were rumors about road closures and questions about the festival being canceled. Thursday night the candles were out in makeshift memorials near the house where he had been staying; the same streets that had been closed when I passed in the morning. I heard there was a memorial at his star on the Walk of Fame that was obstructing the flow of traffic and pedestrians on Hollywood Boulevard. Today the media descended on Amoeba and it is my understanding the Orion is on Japanese tv being interviewed about his own MJ memories.




Yesterday while riding the bus to work the driver made an announcement when we passed the streets (still closed) that marked MJ's last residence. There is still a steady stream of people, like ants, going to leave flowers and signs at both ends of the closed street. I keep thinking about what O said to me when I saw him late Thursday, "Didn't was all say goodbye to the MJ we loved a long time ago?"

Is that a slump I sense?

I have not done a scientific evaluation, but it seems to be that we all hit a blog-slump at the same time. Maybe it has to do with the moon.

I have a note stuck to my computer that says, "ask about prize." I put it up during week one of the blog challenge. My intent was to post about whether or not there is a prize at the end of the month if we challenge-takers successfully post every day. However, it occurred to me as I was drinking coffee after five hours of sleep and laughing out loud, that this is the prize. Jason's pork belly confession and Lexi's evening of performance art (she's says she's not doing the challenge, but it sure looks like she might be). I love feeling like I have a small sense of what is happening with the friends who feel so far away most days.

Jason and I often talk about how we are disadvantaged bloggers because we do not have kids or pets to post cute pictures of, nor do we have houses to renovate or gardens to report on. For us it is more a question of how many images can we "borrow" from Google Image before they start to pay attention....

In response to this handicap, I have been working on this post for a while. I am "borrowing" the lovely babes of friends. Samantha just wrote about how pictures of kids are a top three trait of winning posts, so here goes. (If your child is here, thank you for having an attractive kid, letting me take pictures, and share with friends. I won't name names so we can stay friends, ok?)













This last one looks like O is torturing a young lad, but in fact they are having a crazy face contest. The winner? You decide.

p.y.t.

This is the Michael I want to remember. It was a weird day in Westwood, blocks from UCLA medical. Is it a bad sign that the swarm of helicopters didn't tip me off that something might be happening. I am so used to them at this point? To clear up rumors, the streets were not closed and the film festival has not been canceled.

movie mania

So last night we had a multi-venue premiere of the new Johnny Depp feature. The Red Carpet was in the middle of Westwood Village, complete with old timey cars from the movie and "talent." I don't think I have experienced an event where so many patrons cry at the prospect of not being able to either *see* Johnny Depp, or be in the same theater as him (as if the talent ever stays to watch the movie!) It is fair to say that he has quite a loyal following. Something I still attribute to the 21 Jump Street days.

Personally, I was a little bummed to learn that Christian Bale had been there and I hadn't even known until after the fact. So is the fate of being 75 feet away from the action. My view was largely of crowds of autograph-hounds running from one side of the street to the other and shouting "JOHNNY! JOHNNY! OVER HERE!!" Good thing I am not collecting data any longer, I can stay out of the fray and focus on tasks like getting the Fire Marshall tickets to see the film (!)




Here's one of the moments from last night's premiere of PUBLIC ENEMIES in circulation among the festival staff today ---

There were "fan bleacher" along the Red Carpet that people slept out overnight to get into (it was first come first seated to the first 200 in line). In addition to having a clear view of the stars, there was a chance to be one of the lucky ten selected at random to get a ticket into the screening. Nine names had been called and on the last name, the receipient screamed and proceded to faint. Out cold. Because the drawing was happening at the same time the film should have been starting, the response was along the lines of, "can we get her up and into the theater or should we draw another name?"

You'll be happy to know that she was roused and helped into the theater, crying tears of joy all the while.

When I told Orion the story he said, "I love you, but I've never been moved to those kind of hysterics."
"Oh, just wait," I said. "The next time you see me and swoon on the spot I am going to remind you of this moment."

let's hope, shall we

Lex sent this to me and I have to assume it if from Rob Brezney...

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Here's a preview of the accomplishments I expect you to complete in the next four weeks.
Number of karmic debts paid off and canceled: 1.
Number of bad habits replaced with good habits: 2.
Number of holes blasted in your theory about why you can't do more of what you love to do: 300.
Number of "necessities" lost that turn outnot to be necessities: 1.
Number of psychic wounds successfullymedicated: 1.
Number of confusing messes that evolve into interesting opportunities: 2.
Number of romantic obstructions eliminated: 1 and a half.


I am at a loss for the artist behind the astrology cards. I see them everywhere, but *lifted* these from google image and not of the sources are the artist. If you know who should get the credit, please let me know.

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Technically this was last Sunday at the Hollywood Farmers Market. My parents were in town to celebrate my brother's graduation from business school at UCLA, and before they left we visited one of my favorite spots in the neighborhood. If there is one person who has taught me to love food and cooking, it is my father. Thanks, Dad.








Look at those thistles!! So amazingly beautiful!

What day is it?

It is like deja vu all over again.

I am back at a film festival amidst the baskets of promotional energy bars and the stacks of tickets. After returning from Iowa I had to defer my participation until the actual festival, and now, the time has arrived. The 2009 L.A. Film Fest is off and running.

One of the films I am excited to check out is called NO IMPACT MAN. It's a documentary by Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein about Colin Beavan who committed to a year of no carbon footprint living (along with wife and daughter) in Manhattan, NY. We are talking no trash, no electricity, only local food, no purchases besides food, and no public transportation. No shit.



[This pic is the one being used for promotion of the film. Thanks to whomever owns the rights.]

Speaking of owning, it turns out that this film has been picked up by:


And it turns out that Adam Yauch is behind oscilloscope laboratory . Funny when the world feels small. It has been a long, long time since I have seen Adam, but he was at the Opening Night party and knocked the socks off of my friend, Lili, who not only I.D.ed me as someone they had in common, but also let Adam know that he is her "favorite Beastie Boy of all time!!!!" I am sad that I missed this exchange, in the re-telling it sounds pretty entertaining. I am thrilled that he is finding innovative and entertaining films to support. Check it out if it screens near you; I'll let you know what I think later this week.

my excuse for missed posts

It is that time of year again and if you are in Los Angeles I encourage you to come by and say hello.

The fest blog/gallery is kind of fun if you want to see pictures of what has been going down in Lala Land. I can't say that I have seen much of it. I am hiding out in the box office most of the time and keeping a low profile (i.e., choosing home/bed over after-hours parties and the open bar). I know, it is crazy, but I am still working my other job (the diss) when I am not "on site" at the festival. I'll save that update for another post.

Hollywood at night

One of the things I like about living in Los Angeles is driving at night with the windows down and good music to listen to. If I don't have to worry about getting somewhere at a certain time, I can even forgive my fellow drivers for their craziness. I have been working (as distraction from the dissertation feedback*) in Westwood (near UCLA) and at the end of a long day I love driving along Sunset through Bel Air, Beverly Hills, the Sunset Strip, and into Hollywood, to get home. Tonight, the neighborhood was particularly nuts -- must be the summer or something. Maybe the new "it" club down the block has something to do with it. Orion took some pictures on the drive home from Amoeba. I like the lights. He even managed to catch the twinkle.








I have more job interviewing to do tomorrow. I need to punch up my anthro-moxie before the call comes. This will involve coffee, meditation, and affirmations before my bathroom mirror. I prefer interviewing in person so I can read the conversation better, but this will have to do, eh? I may know by the end of the month whether or not I have the option of working as an anthropologist (!!) Send me luck and eloquence.

*Note: the feedback is not all bad, nor is it as bad as I am making it out to be. It just seems that I have managed to get myself into a position where I am literally writing *by committee.* It looks like a fall defense is on the horizon. Not the worst thing. Not the best either, but what's a girl to do? Evidently the answer is: write more and put back in the stuff that I was encouraged to take out. Oh academics!

short & bittersweet

I don't really feel like posting.
Today was long. I spent the day at the box office for the film festival trying to make order out of chaos. It was a long day and more social than I have been for weeks, opting instead to be alone with my computer. The festival opens Thursday and right now it is in the madness before the free-fall.

For those invested in the the dissertation progress/process, I am getting feedback and it is proving to be more taxing than I am prepared for (kind of par for the course at this point, eh?) There are lots of dissertations I could have written, and I am told that to be challenged is a positive thing, but right now, I don't want to be challenged.

This mood will pass.
Something will change.
I have a lot on my mind these days and for the next few I can try and lose myself to adrenaline (and maybe a dark theater if I am lucky).

weeeeeeeeeee!!

She got it! She got it! Lexi is a post-doc at Wash U. Yippie!!
This is what a Ph.D. with a post-doc looks like (right). Sort of a before and after. Never fear, we'll both be smiling soon.
I am starting to hear back from my committee and I have more phone interviews that are potential-job related this week.

you gotta be kidding me

This was front page of the L.A. Times CALENDAR section today.




The article is about the new director of the Los Angeles Film Festival which starts this week. Do you think I have been talking about this whole *community* business too much? ...or might I actually be on to something?

June 10th: the lost day

There is a film festival on the horizon and it is an example ripe with things that don't make sense. For example, what is one to do if a film is announced but then there is no "BUY" button on the website and when you call the box office they tell you they cannot sell you a ticket? It is a puzzle. And how is it that the number of tickets sold and the number of tickets handed out never seem to add up to the amount of available seats? Likewise, the number of tickets sold and the amount of cash that comes back from venues often leads to conclusions like, "We must have gotten a tip."

These are the little mysteries that can keep me up at night. Kind of like: What happened to the June 10th post? I have the correct number of posts to correspond to today's date but no tenth, huh. Did I really post twice on the 6th and then get off date without noticing? It seems a simple enough task to post once a day for a month, but it's proving to be more of a challenge than I anticipated. A challenge because once I was released from the iron grip of my computer I was hard pressed to spend time within a few feet of it for more than four minutes at a time. Evidently, also tough since I can't keep track of the days as they are going by.

*Picture of black hole belongs to National Geographic

go little bro!

This is my little bro and his fiance, Lea, in Florence last fall. I haven't uploaded pictures from his graduation on Friday yet, but it ended up being a lovely afternoon on the UCLA campus. The predicted rain held off and it wasn't so sunny that we all left with sunburns. I learned that the color of Business (MBAs) when graduating is "drab." Too bad for Business... but it does go with everything. Along with Lea, my parents are in town and the last couple of days have been full of good food and lots of driving. Before my parents leave tomorrow, their assignments are to read my dissertation (heh heh) and finish the graduation cheesecake. Go to mom & dad!

...breathe out

This is the first day that I didn't wake up worrying about the work I need to get done. It was strange to say the least. The dissertation has been sent and should be arriving any minute (note: I started this email earlier in the day). I am still running on less than enough sleep and have a lengthy to-do-list, but I am aware that I am breathing a little more deeply and with a little bit less anxiety in every breath. It feels good. I feel like this -->

close enough

This is my total copout post of the month. I am not sleeping. BUT I am getting my dissertation off my desk for a few days (at least, right?) I have not left the computer in fore-v-e-r........

So Lexi found this video and she sent it to me on Facebook. I can't figure out if there is a way to get it off Facebook and put it here, so you just have to go visit my page. Samantha, ask Ernie. Jason, ask Miriam. Musn't there be one Facebook person per house these days?

It is called "I hate LA" and evidently the narrator and I are neighbors. It is not for the feign of heart -- or your children with growing vocabularies. seriously.

Too tired to link. Just go find it the old fashioned way. xoxo

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change?

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change?

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I thought there would at least be the picture of a cow with a barcode if I linked through the site. sheesh! Ok, here is something...that's better.



I know many of you are familiar with Michael Pollan already, but if not In Defense of Food really is a good and interesting read. If you have started seeing items in the grocery store marketed as having five ingredient, (I am convinced) that this is where it is coming from. It is a little bit ironic that a manifesto about manipulation of food knowledge for the purposes of marketing is being used as a weapon in the war it seeks to fight, but hey, if it is moving us a bit closer to "real food" then it can't be all bad, right?

I am thinking about all of this because I wish I had a garden. Even the White House has a garden now, and that hasn't happened since FDR was in office. We just might have to move somewhere that has space and soil.....

Keep Ling and Lee in Mind

I started a different post this morning, but with the announcement of the sentencing of Laura Ling and Euna Lee in North Korea I feel like this is more important news. The two are journalists and were detained along the N. Korea/China border in March while reporting for Current... tv. Al Gore's user-driven content network. The women were sentenced to 12 year is a work camp. Needless to say, this is not a good situation and with the recent N. Korean missile tests it is a complicated negotiation. Here in L.A. there are vigils but I just ask that you keep these women in mind and send them strength. I do not know either of them personally, but I have worked with the sister of one of them and my heart goes out to their families.

This picture is from the LA TIMES article published online earlier today.

"R"...at last!

Ah, you thought you would never see the "R" post, eh? Way back when I started with O-S-C-A....but never got around to the R. Well, all it took was the post-a-day blog challenge to make me go back to my unfinished posts. Yikes! What else is back there??




Cute crew, huh? This isn't the whole department, we are missing a handful who didn't have time for a photo (or had their radios turned down). It was a crackdown year when it came to pictures, so there are not many to share. Just one of the gang and one of me with the ubiquitous headset.



Ok, here is one more from a few years back that is on my desktop because I am going through images for the dissertation. I love the napping Oscars. Relaxing while his paint dries, what's not to love?

Nadia & O

Nadia has been on my mind this week, which I think must mean I am due for a visit north soon. These are pictures from this past winter when we were all in Portland at my parents'. Aside from being two of my favorite people in the universe, Nadia and Orion have always struck me as having a lot of viewpoints in common. This can be a good thing when O and I disagree, I call Nadia, and she says, "well, he has a point." They are both total champs. Just look at 'em.

someday I will have chickens

Until then, I will have to settle for living vicariously through my friend Nadia who lives on the Oregon Coast.

This is Jiji and May.

I think this is Bim and Bop.

Nadia, did I get this right? I love the names. Nadia is the best chicken-mama ever and I wish I was closer so I could watch the babies grow up. I have some serious chicken envy at the moment!