Little Bro Comes South

OK, family, here is what you missed by vacationing during All Star's move to la la.

did you feel that?

I finally felt an earthquake! I usually sleep through them or am busy and miss the event altogether. Tonight I was getting ready for bed and had just gotten off the phone with my brother. O and I were sitting on the couch when we saw everything move. Maybe we heard it first, hard to say. Anyway, since I am up I figured I'd share the news. It is not as unusual as a tornado in Brooklyn, but it is a reminder that mama earth is in control. If you want to check out the details you can go here -- it was the big red square near Chatsworth.

watched milk never cools

I am waiting for my milk to cool so I can continue with my first attempt at making yogurt. It is a relatively simple process, but there is a lot of waiting involved. I know carrie has done this before, and I vaguely remember her tone of voice when I asked her how it went and if it was worth the effort. Regardless, I am committed to this. It's not like I make jams or can thinks, so yogurt is the least I can do.


Besides yogurt, the day has been quiet. I continue to spend the day with my computer -- writing, writing, writing. I am still working on Jackie's birthday present, but in the meantime...Happy Birthday, JMC! Hopefully you are eating cake all week.
If you decide you want some yogurt, let me know!

Um...so...do you like...stuff? -Ralph

Holy cow.


You can be a Simpson.



No joke.

This is me.











This is Orion.










Whether or not you like Burger King, I have to give props to this marketing. The King still scares me, but the Simpson e-treats are even better than playing with the Warner Bros. Marauders Map for Harry Potter.

Have fun!

10 years and a whole Saturday

I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. (Don't worry, I am not giving anything away here.)

While I have been anticipating it for weeks (ok, maybe longer) it worked out that we were in Iowa on the releases. I knew a copy would be waiting in Los Angeles, so I was able to stave off the initial urge to find a copy and stay up all night reading with millions of others. I did stare down a copy in the airport bookstore, but reason won out.

Once I was home I needed to commit to resuming life post-vacation. Days were passing and the book was still in the cardboard mailer covered in messages to muggles. I decided I really should read Book Six again since I was fuzzy on details, and I figured that would stretch out the eventual end of the series. I read Six, and started using Seven as a reward for working on my dissertation (i.e., write some pages, read a chapter). This had been working well. I was getting a Potter fix, the book was lasting more than a couple of days, and I wasn't neglecting my To-Do list entirely.

Then it happened that I hit the point in the story where you can't break away as easily. I had to keep reading. That pretty much sums up what happened to this Saturday. I did take a shower and make a blueberry (with a hint of lemon) pie, but these were tasks intended to keep the end from coming.
Here's the pie -

I feel satisfied with the end, and that was my biggest concern. I didn't want these past ten years (!!) to end in disappointment or too much ambiguity. It wasn't too neat, and to be honest I was as happy at the end as I was in the beginning. Having said that, I am sad that it is over. I don't need, nor want, it to drag on into Harry's mid-life crisis, but I will miss the feeling that came with reading the books. Not since I was a "Young Adult" have I found myself so caught up in reading something. When I was younger it was easier to get involved in stories, whereas lately I find myself reading just to turn off other parts of my brain; the books less memorable, or weighty with no sense of reprieve at the end. Harry Potter has been a good companion. I didn't start reading the books until I moved to Iowa. The books let me escape grad school and a new city. Later, Orion and I listened to one on tape driving West the first time. I remember Harry's adventures as we drove through Wyoming at sunset. I'm not sure what to say now that the series is over, I just felt like thinking about it a little longer before the book finds its place on the shelf with the others.

I have to start somewhere.

HI IOWA
I can tell already that August is going to be a fast month.
The end of July just disappeared into a blur for airports, laundry, accumulated (e)mail, and many, many naps. Never before have I been so exhausted by vacation. Given that this was the first extended traveling O. and I have done in two years, and given that this was the most activity I have done in the same two years, I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. While the logic is all well and good, I am still kind of freaked out that it is August(!!) I have a lot to get done in August! -- but that can be another post.

I know, I know, I am also the last to circulate my photos from St. Barths to the wedding attendees. Hold your horses, they're coming! Just not in this post.....

Even though this is backwards, the Midwest portion of our trip is a more manageable number of snapshots, so I am starting there. Again, the Iowa buddies have had pictures of our visit up for weeks on their blogs (see sidebar); I hope they have tided y'all over until I got around to my updates. I tell you, those ladies in Iowa are badasses! Babies to nurse and homes to run and dogs to walk and still they post. I tip my hat to you goddesses of the feminist forum. You know who you are.

Iowa is full of babies and consequently, parents. These are some of our favs.

I think we must has caught Bran in the midst of a response. I cannot recall a moment when she wasn't smiling and looking beautiful (leave it to the digital camera to catch everyone just off moment!)

We said hello to Iowa City before heading north to Waverly for Orion's family reunion. I am always impressed when a family this size gets (almost) everyone in one place at the same time.



From our much to short visit we journeyed further north into Minnesota for the wedding of our lovely friends, Heide and Griffin. Trust me, they looked lovely.


We stayed in MN to see my family and celebrate Tony's 50th (!!) Here we are at his birthday lunch, joined by Ruby and Ewald.


On the way back to Iowa we escaped thunderstorms by staying in Ames, where Jackie gave us shelter, allowing us time to sit and catch up. We also visited with Brandy and Jack at their house, and then again in Iowa City.


Samantha arrived from NC, and for a few days it felt like when we all lived close and could spend easy afternoons knitting and talking. Of course now there is an Eleanor...who is easy to love. I finally gave her the sweater I started last winter.



For whatever reason we didn't take many pictures on this trip. Maybe it was burn out after St. Barths and the photo decathlon? Or that there were so many other cameras around we figured the events were already well-covered? Whatever the reason, we have LOTS of family reunion and not lots of anyone else. Thanks to Jackie and the Iowa bloggers I know there are some good image out there and there is a record of our visit -- even if we don't have it. Feel free to send us the best ones for xmas. Thanks again to everyone who hosted us. We never feel like there is enough time, and there is always at least one person we fail to see. Miss you guys tons!

BYE IOWA

Golden Compass

Good thing there is another series now that Harry Potter is wrapping up! I have not actually started the new book yet, but it is sitting on my desk waiting patiently for me to ease back into my post-vacation life.

I know lots of other people have this item on their blogs, but it is fun and I am a monkey (for the moment). Go ahead and play with this until I can find time to look at the million pictures from the last three weeks.

knit 'n' paul

This is a brief one for the knitters. ***Monique, if you have wandered onto this page, walk away. seriously.*** I finally blocked the wrap for the friend whose wedding I am in this week. The festivities are taking us to St. Barths and I thought the colors would work will with an island environment.


The pattern is from Lettuce Knit and the yarn -- which I love! -- is the sea silk, silk and sea cell. Seacell comes from seaweed cellulose. It is highly breathable and very soft. When worn, your skin's natural moisture will release magnesium, calcium and vitamin E contained within the seaweed. It has anti- inflammatory properties and has been shown to protect the skin. Did I mention that I love this stuff?















Now that blocking is taken care of, I am working on laundry, packing, and cleaning. Also the running around getting last minute things. I am getting super excited. Having said that, I am watching the evening news and seeing the attack on the Glasgow airport. Man, what are we doing to ourselves? It hadn't even occurred to me that this is such a busy weekend to fly. Perhaps it is a bit of denial around the fact that July is close enough to touch. For me the 4th always signals summer's speedy passing.

Which reminds me, I won't be going anywhere if I don't get some more writing done!


p.s. The Paul McCartney show was really great. I love Amoeba Music. They even let in the people who had been camped out and waiting before the VIPs. That never happens and it made me smile. I tried to capture the scale of the show. The resolution is bad, but here's Sir Paul wavin' at ya.

Take Action against Hate Crimes

It is never too late to go to Human Rights Campaign's website and send a letter to our lawmakers. It only takes a minute. Thank you to Betsy, who I totally stole this post from.

the rundown

When I was in grade school we had music class and there was this song that went: "june is bustin' out all over. all over the meadows and the hills. june bustin' out of bushes and the ragin' river rushes..." I can't figure out where it was taken from, but some day I imagine running into it in a late night musical on cable. (Oklahoma?)

Thinking about music... yup, today is the day. Sir Paul is making an in-store appearance at Amoeba Hollywood. Said to be his first U.S. in-store and from what I have been told his only announce gig in town, it looks to be a scene. People have been camped out on Sunset (ok, Ivar) for the last two nights. We walked by last night after dinner, but I forgot to snap a shot. He must be an icon worth seeing because we are passing up the TRANSFORMERS premiere for this guy. Good luck, John Robinson! [and thanks google image]


Man, I am not even making the once a week posting. yikes! Good thing the three of you checking are patient and forgiving :) June has proven to be a slippery little month. As the last handful of days pass I am looking back and trying to figure out where the time went. Recovery from surgery numero dos took longer than I had anticipated, but I am no longer surprised by this kind of development. This provided lots of time for knitting -- and one of these days I might even get some photos posted. I made the journey to Palo Alto for my friend Irene's moya moya surgery. She is one of the strongest women I know and she has a great supporter who has been there through months of waiting to figure out what was going wrong. Now I hope she and Soo can both look ahead to feeling better. I am waiting in growing anticipation for my dearest Carrie to give birth to what I can only assume will be the newest most beautiful baby.

While I have been grinding out pages on my dissertation, the earliest guidepost and friend, Timothy Ford, passed away suddenly. It is a real blow and a loss to many. If TKF is reading blogs in the after-life I want him to know I am taking care of the person most important to him.

way to go, baby bro!

I am long over due saying congratulations on grad school! An MBA from UCLA is A-OK!

WWKIP

Lo, today is World Wide Knit in Public Day. No joke. Hard as it may be to believe, there was no scheduled event planned for the Los Angeles area. I hear that there were events planned for Portland, and that some die hard knitters were out even though it was cold and raining. Here, I recruited Ann to join me in knitting in public. We went to a movie. Alas, not much got done once the lights went down, but heck, why can't every day be knit in public day?!

...if someone had told me a year ago I'd spend this much time talking about knitting...

Big Sur

Knowing I might be laid up for a while, we escaped up to Big Sur a few weeks ago. I am behind on the blog posts, so with time on my hands I can catch up a bit. Who knew wild boars were such a problem in Carmel? The little one is cute, huh?

We stayed at a sweet little spot right on Hwy 1, the Carmel River Inn, and when we weren't on the beach or hanging out with the young elephant seals, we took naps and soaked up the view at Nepenthe.










It was a great trip with a great guy and we can't wait to get back!

Who knew it could be so hard?

When Carrie was here post-PTE, I tried to shave my legs. I am not supposed to use razors because I am so anti-coagulated and there is all this worry about bleeding. So I had ventured into the world of things that smell awful and *dissolve* hair. I know -- eewww! It was on that day that I managed to shoot myself in the eye with the foam of death. Luckily Carrie and O were her to let me know how bad the stuff smells, and to save my eyesight. This time I was on my own.

In honor of Memorial Day I decided it was time to take a shower. I was sick of washing my hair in the kitchen sink and even though I am an anthropologist and can go for weeks without showers, I was ready to feel clean and smell good. Because my wound was still dressed I had to keep it dry. When I left the hospital the nurse explained that to take a shower I just needed to wrap the area in plastic to keep the area dry. Armed with plastic wrap and tape I headed for the bathroom.

Now keep in mind that the wound is along the crease along my groin, that line at the top of the leg. [this is why there are no pics!] Not an easy place to wrap. Kind of like wrapping a big wheel. So I had myself encased in plastic. ...I was reminded of this Halloween costume when I used blue saran wrap to make a "dress" -- I was the ocean and I layered in plastic fish and aqua-plants. It was cute and kept me warm.... There must have been a hole somewhere in my protective coating because I hadn't even rinsed my hair and I found myself in a plastic diaper full of water. Needless to say, nothing was spared from getting wet. It was kind of a nightmare. I started writing this entry in the midst of my mess.

Ok, that was the highlight of my week.
Just wait until next week.....

purple shorts & a recovery sweater

I came through the surgery with flying colors -- literally.
Let it suffice to say that for a week I have looked like I am wearing purple shorts. Well, shorts on one leg anyway. The bruising seems to be the worst part, and it looks more painful than it is. This doesn't come close to the discomfort and impact of the last recovery (thankgodthankgodrhankgod). It has been great to have my family around, and again Orion has proved himself to be an absolute gem. Give me another week, a bunch of naps, some good cable movies, and I'll be good as new!
In the meantime, I started a project to pass the time. The Knit Cafe is on Melrose and it might just be the most beautiful yarn shop ever conceived.

The idea is that by the time I finish this sweater I'll be back. It is my recovery sweater. So far I have sleeves, a back, a hood, and part of the front. Almost there...

hello...?

Guys? You around?
I am afraid I have lost the three readers who were checking this with some regularity.

So it is already the middle of May and at the end of the week I am going back into Cedars for another surgery. This one is not really related to the PTE, except that the need might have come about during the PTE bypass on the heart/lung machine. This one, I am assured will be a piece of cake after the last experience "under the knife" -- yikes! Sorry to the weak of stomach. For all my feminist friends, you will be happy to know that I have been told I will still be able to wear a bikini after this one. Yup. That is still the measure of surgical impact on some level. I guess the giant chest scar and the small upper-abdomen "dots" couldn't be seen at the time of this assessment...and like a couple of scars would keep me out of a bikini. hahaha!

So this is my attempt to do a bunch of catch-up and then check out until June. Where to start....

For the knitters in my life, let me give you a sampling of what has been "on the needles" as they say. But first, there is the insane sale at Black Sheep Knittery in Hollywood; I'm talking 75% off everything in the store. Look at this.



After buying this morning I was like a junkie after a score. The nurses would talk about how people tend to shop when their health is stressful. Yup, makes sense to me. Did I mention that everything was 75% off?

This is my most recent finish, a tea cosy for my aunt's birthday.



Pi sweater vest for Lexi's birthday...

ok, turn your head.

A scarf for Margery
I am trying to embrace lace work. I liked that this pattern is called Rabbit Proof Fence.

A sweater for Orion. You know this is true love...



Babies, babies, and sweaters.





More (non-knitting) soon...

Where did April come from??

I have been looking for a good air quality report this morning, but so far have had to go with my lungs' assessment: not great.

It makes sense, there was a fire in the Hollywood Hills on Friday (not far from where we live as far as smoke is concerned), and socal is behind on rainfall so far this year. All I know is that my lungs hurt. It happens from time to time, and I feel more sensitive since surgery. Nothing serious, it is just what is on my mind this morning. The really important thing is that we didn't lose the Hollywood sign! Click on the photos sent in by viewers.

Crazy. And not an April Fool's Day joke.

Watch the slime!

I am closing out March by working the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2007. It has turned out to be a really enjoyable week; I had no idea how big this event is before taking this job. I am working with talent for the days leading up to the main event -- photo ops, autograph sessions, etc. I have to admit that a part of me finds this pretty cool even if I am not up on the latest trends in kids' tv...that is to say, even if I wasn't before now. I have found that I am really more of a Nick Jr. kind of girl. I connect with the Backyardigans and know Dora & Diego. I have even learned that childhood books now come in a tv format...




[thanks Google Image]

I know Brandy is out there waiting for more Oscar pics, but I am so far behind in posting that I may just have to come visit and bring some over! There has been knitting too...
This is the down-side of feeling better and getting busier (relatively speaking). Actually, as down-sides go, I'll take it! March was the month to get through where I was concerned. I marked all of the anniversaries -- into surgery, out of ICU, out of hospital, home to Los Angeles, last ER visit -- and with a year behind me I am ready to be back in the world.

Hey, I am finding there are still jobs to do (and the diss to write)!

And the winner is...

The Oscars was my first job in fifteen months, and it was f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c. I am too tired to say much now, but I will post a couple of pictures tomorrow. promise. This is a particularly intense time for me because I am coming up on the one year anniversay since my PTE surgery. Last year I watched the Oscars from the Cedars-Sinai ICU, so this exactly where I had hoped to be at this moment.

commitment

When I was doing fieldwork I could always justify going to the movies. Then I abruptly stopped when I got sick (however going to see KING KONG was one of my first non-doctor outings after the first hospitalization).

Last week the Golden Globes snuck up on me and I became acutely aware of how much I had not seen in the previous year. Orion was in the same boat, and we committed to a couple days of catching up. If I have not returned a call or answered an email, it is because I was at the movies.

In two days we saw: BABEL, LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA, LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, and THE DEPARTED. Then over the weekend I saw: THE GOOD SHEPHERD, NOTES ON A SCANDAL, and DREAMGIRLS.

Thank goodness for economy hours and vouchers! Now with almost a month until the Oscars I am feeling pretty good. The nominees are announced tomorrow, and you can bet that at 5:30 a.m. pst, I will be sounds asleep.

same but different

I was back at the hospital this morning; it was this third time in less than a week. It was the first time that I have had pulmonarythromboendarerectomy roll of my tongue before I had a chance to think about it. In the beginning I didn't know what I was saying and I would have to read the words in order to say them. For months I would picture the words in my mind broken down into pieces and go step by step -- brain, mouth, brain, mouth. Today I said it and then had to pause and wonder if I'd gotten it right, or close. It was like saying your phone number without thinking about it. If you stop in the middle you can't figure out what you are saying and the mind goes blank; so you just keep going and trust your body.

Once again I am having to trust my body. It is not as easy as it sounds or as easy as it was a couple years ago, but I am trying. I know for the most part I use this site for snapshot updates of whatever I have taken a picture of. I tend to be (at least) a few weeks behind -- Christmas IS coming -- and there isn't much critical evaluation or emotion in the posts. It still feels a bit strange in a public forum to do more, but I will take the observations that have been offered into consideration. In the same way that I don't feel I have sorted out what I am doing, and my body is evidently not yet ready to accept a new *normal*, this blog is still in the stage of early development. I, for one, am interested to see where it all ends up.

So as not to worry anyone, I have decided that no news is good news on this most recent round of tests. Things aren't quite what they were in September (I am told), but in my mind I am seeing all of this as a blip, like a cold, something that is on its way out so I can get back to taking long walks. Hopefully that last time I will have to hear, "just try to stay as still as possible," before my next birthday.

succulents rule

For the holidays I found this wreath made of succulents. The whole thing is alive and I figure that it can survive year-round since this is southern california. It is one of my new favoriate things. Ah, the ways to create a garden without any semblance of a yard.
I spent another day at Cedars-Sinai checking in with doctors and undergoing tests. My hope for this year is to reconnect with a sense of health and feel like myself a bit more than I do today.
Until that happens, I take comfort in watching small plants grow and feeling ok about reading fiction.

Ready, Set, 2007!

Happy New Year!
This is what Los Angeles looks like when you move while taking a picture.
Like most years, I wake up with an ambitious list of things to do -- resolutions, cleaning my desk for a fresh start, etc. I did go out to get a paper so I could do the crossword, and then I watched football and took a nap. So far the year is off to a good start.

new year...new blog?

I got sucked into the **new** fancy blog-o-rama that is no longer beta. Needless to say, I have no idea what I have gotten myself into, but I have managed to make things disappear, reappear, and feel generally out of my control. As soon as I figure out what I am doing (or get back to my old and trusy blog) I'll try to fill in some of the news since November (!!).

This is why I resisted all things blog for so long. I am really not cut out for it.
That being the case, I'll post more soon.

Happy New Year.
2007 has to be better than 2006.
[no surgery. no surgery. good health. good health.]
xo, s.

here's to the turkey!

Happy Thanksgiving!
It looks like I am slipping as a blogger. Is it because...
a) I am off jet setting
b) For weeks I have been busy writing my dissertation
c) I have fallen ill and taken to bed
or
d) Doctors have banned blogging
Well, it is a bit of "a" since mademoiselle lexi hosted me in Boston for a couple of weeks (you may remember her as the incredible email-updater when I was going through surgery). And, alas, a bit of "c" -- really just a bug I picked up out east where it is cold and people get sick. I have started thinking about my diss again, and as soon as winter settles in over Los Angeles I am sure I'll hole up with some cocoa and my computer ;)
Since the docs haven't outlawed blogging, I'll see what I can do to get some updates posted.
Hope the holiday was happy. Ours was just about perfect...except that Time Warner dropped the NFL channel that was showing the Chiefs' game, tsk tsk tsk. stupid time warner cable monopoly. We had a "young" turkey, which we believe is code for small, and I over estimated on the stuffing/dressing, so life is good and the leftovers are all starches. mmmmmmmm.
enjoy your naps and ignore the dishes.

feels like fall

Where is October going??
We are home from the bay area and while it was great to be away and see everyone, it is also nice to come home. I'll try to get some photos up soon. In the meantime, it has cooled off here and the overcast skies make me believe it is really fall. San Francisco was the perfect weather. I do love this time of year.