26 August 2010

bee happy.

i'm not really posting today, so there's not much for you to read here. Instead, go read this funny article by Samatha Bee (of the Daily Show) about Being Hugely Pregnant.* Or this one where she and her husband talk about not getting divorced. The woman is funny. I kind of want to be her when I grow up... you know, minus the always pregnant bit.



*If you are in Seattle, get off your f*cking computer and go enjoy the gorgeous summer weather. Seriously.

23 August 2010

dancing with ira.


sorry kiddos, but i'm going to get all braggy on you here. See, I'm sitting at my red kitchen table on a beautifully sunny afternoon, finishing up a late lunch of leftover mussels steamed in white wine sauce, and I have just had the best weekend. the kind of weekends you can't really plan but that sometimes just pop up and make your life slow down and well, to run the risk of sounding downright cheesy, they are just... delicious. there. i said it. but it's true.

it all started with a slow Friday afternoon, which hasn't happened in months at my dear ol' job. I had gotten a cute haircut in the morning, busted out a couple super productive hours of work at a coffee shop, and gone on a nice run around greenlake. i got home around 1, checked on my to-do list and found it insanely short.  i celebrated with a wee bit of a nap, curled up on the couch which had just enough sunshine to be comfortable, but not too much to be hot. once awake, with a cup of coffee in hand, i actually wrote. yea. see the thing is - and i can only confess this now that i think i am coming out of it - i have been in a bit of a writers funk lately. blame it on the sunshine. blame it on the stressful job. blame it on the fact that a cute boy keeps asking me to go on long runs and eat nice dinners or go drink tall boys at dive bars, but i haven't been writing. and when i sat down... it wasn't pretty. i mean, i kept up as best i could on Jackson Riley, and the posts, while not awful, were not great. but there were something. and i'll take it. it's a little weird to have my writer's blocks a public thing, but i'll get used to it.


but on friday afternoon, i began to write a bit of my novel, which has been on hold for weeks upon weeks. and i didn't hate what i wrote. it's terribly long and doesn't yet have plot or much focus, but it's about a girl named Brooklynn and a mother named Adelle and a big farmhouse in eastern Kansas. i'm rather fond of the characters. i think i'll keep them around. i pumped out 6 pages, which is a ton for my little out-of-writing-shape mind. i was exhausted afterwards. i had to take another nap and watch the daily show to recover. (oh, and i did a little bit more work too, just to pay the bills).

friday night was out drinking a fresh (!) squeezed (!) whiskey sour. having never really had a whiskey sour before,i don't think i can now have it any other way that freshly pressed right in front of me. 2 lemons, a lime, and Maker's Mark. Mm-hmm. I sat and ate pot pies with friends and then sat and drank with friends on a huge patio enjoying the slightly chilly but totally manageable Seattle air.


Saturday was filled with trips to the Farmers Market to pick up ribs and veggies and fruit for the week ahead and salmon for dinner that night. We had to celebrate, to kick off our evening right. See, my friends, we were going to see Ira Glass. And while it may be understandable that some of you don't know who he is (a NPR radio broadcast host of This American Life) and some of you who know who he is might not care that much and wonder why I would be so excited (please don't underestimate the bounds of my nerdiness. srsly.) I. was. pumped. Before the show, friends were coming over and we were grilling salmon & asparagus with a side of cilantro pesto, eating a salad with fresh avocado and apple (a combination i had not previous thought of and now cannot wait to try again). We finished off the meal with beer popsicles, which were - surprisingly - very delicious. I was skeptical, and I am a true-blue fan now. I can't wait to try them with huckleberry beer and fresh fruit. Should you ever find yourself at a summer dinner party in my backyard, I fear you'll now know what I'll be serving for dessert.

We saw Ira, and for the most part, he lived up to my expectation. I wished he had a bit more depth to his show - another performer or storyteller would have been nice - but I enjoyed it none-the-less. Leaving the show, we headed to the only acceptable afterparty: a dance party DJ'd by Ira Glass and Dan Savage at the dive gay bar Rebar. It was (wonderfully) what I expected: terrible DJ'ing by two novices, a lot of show tunes set to a techno beat (Zanzabar and Cats, no joke) and probably the best people watching EVER. Ira danced exactly how you would think a 50-year old national public radio host would dance, and it was ever so endearing. Dan danced as one would expect a writer with an affinity for show-tunes to dance, and it was ever so perfect. Dan's husband, Terry, somehow was able to dance to every. single. song. and make it look good (to a disco version of Memories. I don't even know how that's possible). At one point (I think it was when GaGa began to play) everyone behind me pushed up and I found myself dancing on the stage, next to 100 of my new best friends and Ira. All fun and good, if a little surreal. But once people began to push past me, saying "Oh, I just need to touch him. I just need to touch Ira." I knew my stage time was over. There is only so much celebrity worship I can handle, especially of a radio host while in a fairly dive-y bar. Girl gotta know when to peace, you know?


So we left, and headed up to le capitol hill and ending the night with the best burrito ever from Rancho Taco Bravo, the place to stop should you be starving and slightly tipsy at 2AM (just note it for future reference). It's Seattle's answer to fast food - family owned, recognizable ingredients, slightly more 'spensive than Taco Bell, and a million kagillion times better. I highly recommend it. 'Specially the spiced pork Rancho Burrito.


And this morning, after saying adiou to my friends, Amos and I have had a nice relaxing time, cleaning up from dinner last night, looking into a future vacation, watching instant Netflicks. I may go on a bike ride later or I may bake a strawberry pie. It's one of those kind of days. And tonight we are seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark with more friends at this little theater that lets you eat pizza in a booth and brings you homemade popcorn in wooden bowls... seriously, don't mean to be braggy here folks. My life is kinda rocking for the past 48 hours and I just am soaking it up.

All in all, I think I'm coming out of my writers funk - this weekend sure didn't hurt - and looking forward to seeing you all again soon. Peace.

21 August 2010

bathing beauty.

This past weekend, I went swimming in a gorgeous mountain lake. The mountains were tall and deep green, the water was clear dark blue and there was not one cloud in the sunny sky. I, however, did not get much of a chance to look around as I was busy trying to keep my swim bottoms covering my (very) white booty. Here's the thing: On an impulse purchase from the Banana Republic sale rack, I now have a very cute suit that is a size or two too big. I mistakenly thought I could "make it work." (Never watch Project Runway prior to shopping. That phrase should be banned from retail environments.) As my bare ass could tell you, I was failing to keep it classy. Thus begins the search for a new swimsuit, preferably one that, you know, stays on.

i now know my correct size (thank you Nordstrom bra fitting department!) but - unfortunately - it narrows my options quite a bit. here are a couple i am thinking of... (and now, a-hem, please offer your suggestions. that's the whole reason i'm putting this shiznit on here.)

I'm nervous that the color of this suit and the color of my skin are too close... 


I like this one - though I'm a little nervous about the top, u-um, staying up.... (see above on keeping it classy). It's also back ordered until October, but the blue color would look good on my skin.

I love the retro look and folded over bottoms. But a white suit?! And it's super spendy.

Love the color... would I regret the ruffles? (And how weird is it not to have a model in that photo? It's creeping me out.)

19 August 2010

my first day bike communiting.


i was cleaning out my email and found this from last year, on my first day bike commuting (this is what i did prior to blogging... send random emails to my family):

I decided last night that, after 3 years of talking about it, I was going to become a true Seattleite: I was going to bike commute. I had my timbuk2 tote bag ready! My helmet and sunglasses! My spandex! The problems started when I couldn’t get my tote bag adjusted right… groggy Mike was little help. All the other cool bike commuters have their bags tightly cinched to their chest, and mine refused (inanimate objects are capable of such). Annoyed and hurried, I threw everything into a backpack (so dorky) and was out!


My route takes me along Stewart to Second. Both of these are under construction. Not awesome.


Upon realizing that I had no idea where the garage entrance was, I had to come in through the front doors, and take the elevator down with my bike (so uncool.) I got into the bike cages and taking out my lock, I found that they key had somehow gotten lost in the early morning bag switch. Darn it! Back in the elevators went I, switching to another elevator bank with a very nice young man from EY who wished me luck on my first day commuting and asked me if I had ever been hit by a car (really?)

I wheeled my bike into my office, hoping that it would be at least a little inconspicuous. (I did not make eye contact with anyone while I was wheeling in, and my bike does not wheel quietly. It clicks.) After resting my bike (which now takes up most of the walking room in my office), I went to the bathroom, and did the magic trick where one enters in Spandex and exits in a cardigan sweater and ballet flats. As I was applying makeup to my little red face (we all know how thin Irish skin handles physical activity) I thought to myself: This is what homeless people do. They get ready in strange bathrooms, out of a small bag, hoping that when they leave, they smell all right and no one notices.

On that note, I got a paper towel and tried to scrub some grease off my leg.

So now I sit, my bike resting comfortably in my office, my sense of self-righteousness riding high (I’m judging everyone who arrives to work already dressed), having to remind myself that I have to ride home (darn it again.) But I do feel like a more authentic Seattleite.

18 August 2010

Snap, son.

I may be late to the party on the celebration of Prop 8 in the United States district court, but I was rewatching these interviews of the attorneys -- including Ted Olson on Fox (!) -- and I had to share. Snap, son. That is how you win a damn court case.

Ted Olson with Chris Matthews on Fox News


"You don't get to vote on the Bill of Rights."
Conservative lawyer Ted Olson destroys above Chris Matthews on Fox.



David Boies on Face the Nation

"The witness stand is a lonely place to lie."
Best. Line. Ever. Said by David Doies on Face the Nation.


17 August 2010

prayers & thoughts, please.


this past weekend, i ran in the Spokane to Sandpoint relay, a beautiful race that takes a team of 12 runners on a 185-mile route from Spokane, WA to Sandpoint, ID. It was gorgeous weather, great to be back in Spokane (my college city, but I hadn't visited in years), and wonderful to run the race with such a fun team.


However, on Saturday morning, about 20 hour into the race, there was a terrible accident. While along a wide highway in Northern Idaho, a motorist heading east veered from their lane, across the other, and hit a woman and a young runner who were along the west-bound shoulder. During the night, runners could have pacers either run with them or bike next to them to help with running times and to increase visibility to traffic. The pacer in this case - a mother of one of the other runners - was killed. (News article is here). The driver has been booked on manslaughter charges and alcohol may have been involved.


Relay teams began in waves, and we started out at 8:50AM on Friday morning. Since the race is so long (our time was around 27 hours to complete), we got to know the other runners and teams, recognizing their support vehicles and their runners. This team was made up of high school cross-country runners and their mothers. Our team had been leapfrogging theirs and we were ahead of this on this particular leg (about 6:30AM). I saw the ambulance go by while I was waiting for our runner to finish, and I prayed it was not for a runner on the course. Over the next couple of hours, we got word of the accident, who it was, and the tragic death. The race - with teams spread over miles and miles of distance - isn't one that can be canceled, so we finished as planned.

Back at home now, I'm digesting. This situation is making me think about open-course races and their inherent danger, a danger I never understood. It's making me think of how random and tragic life can be. It's making me want to implore people to be aware of bikers, runners, and walkers on the road and to never drink and drive. It reminds me there is so easy answers or ways to ensure things like this never happen again. I haven't settled on some of this issues - like if I will do a race like this again - that will take some time. Meanwhile, I ask you all to keep those affected by this accident in your prayers.

10 August 2010

best. photo. ever.

Doing Dishes with the Amos.



Upon realizing that stacking bowls on top of bowls in an elevated dish rack is a bad idea, he says:

I'm in quite a predicament.

Gaw, with lines like that, I'd keep him around even if he wasn't so good looking.

05 August 2010

You're Kidding Me... right?

The Segway Seattle Tour:


When Walking is too Fucking Hard!

For reals, this exists. Check is out here, if you want to. Better yet, pay me the $125 fee and I'll carry you around to the Seattle sights.

Image from here.
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