You know, stuff

Parsnip Goes to the Beach

2012-01-29T21:37:00.002-05:00

Parsnip enjoys getting out of the house now and again.

She really does gloat to Cappy when she comes home.

Year of the Water Dragon & Android Jones & My sister's wedding

2012-01-28T13:53:00.013-05:00

An incredible bit of artwork by Andrew Jones (AKA Android Jones) is going around the interwebs, especially on Facebook. It's the water dragon, created in honor of the Chinese New Year, that of the Water Dragon. You can download your own large-sized desktop version of this beaut here. I love the zipper mouth. He does lots of digital artwork for musicians, often live art during shows. Here's another piece he did in which my friend, Dusty, is the muse:

In addition to digital art, he is an airbrush artist:

He is known in the underground/alternative fashion world here on the West coast as an artist and make-up artist. Here's a brief article including him on this phenomenon.

Andrew is a dear friend of my sister and her husband. He was the best man at their wedding where I met him. He stencil/painted my sister and Vinny for the ceremony. Best wedding 'make-up' I've ever seen.

Chelsea, 1/2-way through getting painted.

Hands like lace

There he is, after the ceremony, chillin on the zabutons with Vinny & another groomsman.

Chelsea, face and decolletage spraypainted.

Her back was beautiful too!

Vinny's paint up close. Like a bird!

Chelsea's final look.

Andrew roasting Vinny at the reception.

My sister's wedding (2006) was brilliant. Many of their friends are artists, and thus poor, and thus talented. By asking everyone to participate in the creation of an awesome wedding, people were able to contribute without having to spend money. Chelsea spent less than $500 on her wedding (!!!) because of this. Her dress was sewn by her friend Lenna, another friend did her hair, someone made an Indian feast for the reception, someone made the cake, and at the reception people were invited to perform if they were so inclined, to the delight of everyone there! There were comedians, musicians, dancers. When Andrew learned that my mom and I were going to bellydance, he asked if he could do our makeup too. Sweet! Here's that process:

If you still want more, here's a video of his creative digital process:

Under the weather

2012-01-28T00:49:00.003-05:00

Alexander Starodubov

I feel like this painting today:

kind of pretty, but under the weather, groggy, and rainy.

DPMI bonfire fun

2012-01-15T19:38:00.005-05:00

(DPMI= Development Project Management Institute; i.e. the class I'm taking for 3 weeks). Many of the participants of DPMI convened at Carmel beach on Friday night for some bonfire fun. Chatting, s'mores, roasted hotdogs, beer/wine/juice, photo-taking and light painting in the sand, guitar playing, singing, lit LED frisbee, om circle, power clap and power nap, and one dog Satchmo. Trés fun.

This is the frisbee...

Today's Tonic

2012-01-15T01:02:00.002-05:00

Ben's feeling under the weather. Having been asked to create a Get-Well-Potion, here's what I concocted.

Step one: pick several fresh lemons from neighbor's lemon tree. (Thanks, Chris!)

Step two: squeeze lemons with circa 1976 JuiceKing.

Step three: grate ginger into lemon juice, add half an eye-dropper full of echinacea extract, add a tablespoon of molasses, and some water.

Step four: stir. Gulp it down. Good for you. And surprisingly tasty. Wakes you up.

Krafty

2012-01-15T00:21:00.004-05:00

The conference I went to in DC in October had continental breakfast with these teeny jam jars. I took five to use in organizing efforts at home.

Which means I had to empty them. Yum.

Last time I was up at the Alameda Flea Market, I bought some old Kraft cheese boxes, thinking they would be the perfect thing to hold my little jars. Also, I was thinking of using them on my craft table...Kraft...craft...get it? (Oh, puns). After several months (I don't eat a lot of jam), I finally washed them all out, and also used some baby food (squash for a pumpkin recipe over the holidays) so I could use those jars in the larger Kraft box.

They stayed there for another month while I finished the semester. But now, here they are in their glory, holding small hardware, beetle wings, sharks teeth, with room to hold a few more items.

How I Choose my Outfits

2012-01-14T21:37:00.004-05:00

One of my friends said, "I'd like to be in Alyssum's head in the morning when she's choosing her outfits." So here's what happened this past Wednesday. I woke up looking like this.

Crazy bedhead. For a second, I thought about going to school just like that in a whatever outfit. Then I thought better of it. Instead, I was inspired (by my hair) to wear something ruffly in my wardrobe. I showered and then chose this aprony, ruffly, tiedied dress. It was too cold to wear alone, so I wore a plain black long sleeved tee underneath, and some ruffly green pants and green knee high socks. And, here we are.

I had many comments on this outfit. Ben said I looked magical, like a "special elf." Another friend reminded me of when someone called me "Queen Dancing Artichoke" when I wore those same pants to school. Lots of laughing, bewilderment, and compliments. Here's my interpretation of how all those comments/impressions painted me:

Ha ha.

Bad Ass

2012-01-12T00:13:00.003-05:00

When we took this picture, Anne-Claire, Ben and myself were feigning übercoolness (too cool to smile). I mean, we're boogieboarding. Not like we're even surfing. Anyway. We had no idea how crazily the day would end there. The rip current got so strong that it knocked me off my feet in water not even up to my hips. Not surprisingly, then, two kids who couldn't swim, and who were wetsuit-less got pulled out into the dangerous tumbling waves. Anne-Claire and our other friend Travis went in after one, and managed, with some difficulty, to get him safely to shore. The other child was pulled out beyond the waves, and a 3rd boogie-boarder man went out to save that kid. After ~45 minutes, he was still unable to get back to shore because the current was too strong, and a lifeguard had to go out and pull them in. The guy was so exhausted he puked and couldn't stand and passed out. The kid was safe, but the guy was rushed to the hospital. That's the short version of the story. It was crazy. That guy, and our friends are absolute heros. Dangerous situation. Yipes.

14 year Calendar

2012-01-11T23:40:00.007-05:00

On my super creative day, I also finished these two 14-year calendars. I got the idea from pinterest. I printed 2 sets of the calendar on large index cards.

Cut them in half, cut 12 colored index cards slightly taller than the date cards to act as separations between the months.

Cheapo box from Michael's: I took the hinges, fittings, and top off.

Cut origami paper to match the size of the sides of the boxes.

Mod-podged them to the boxes.

Here's the stack of cards. Clearly, the whole box would be too big for this little stack of paper cards. I didn't want them to slump over, but I also want the box to remain this size so that if ticket stubs or other paper ephemera turns the stack fatter over the years, it will have room to grow.

Solution? Cut bits of foam to size, so that the box is the size I want it to be now. If the user of the box wants more room in the future, they can easily cut the foam down to size again. I then cut a piece of contrasting origami paper to fit over the foam so that it's not so unsightly. First I tucked it under the stack of foam (I would have used straight pins to keep it taught if I'd had any).

Wrap it up and over.

And tuck it in, behind the foam.

The box on the left is finished, the one on the right is still being finished.

Ta-Da!

Now, every day for the next 14 years, I write something about that day on one line of the index card. The calendar will be more and more fun to read as the years go by. It's an exercise in brevity and patience.

DPMI and creativity

2012-01-11T20:07:00.007-05:00

The first three weeks of January, I am taking an intense course called Development Project Management Institute. Lots of sitting in class, working in groups, learning new tools, practicing using them, sharing our respective experiences working internationally (there are 40 us). Long days. But amazingly little homework. I am loving having some free time. I feel like a whole person again, being able to be creative in the evenings and on the weekends.

I had time to go collect seaglass on Asilomar.

I also restrung/revamped a necklace for a friend.

Before: Pretty, but full of wood and leather. A bit too earthy for my sophisticated friend.

During

After: shorter, double stranded, hematite and glass to shine at night & pair with silver.

Leah, happy with her new necklace.

Artsy prism + Cappy photo.

Crystal ties.

2012-01-11T19:36:00.004-05:00

I have been ogling these for a long while. I bit the bullet and bought them as a present to myself. I agree that they're intense, but I love the combination of sharp crystal prisms, supple old leather, and ribbon. It's an unlikely and collagey group of materials.

I loved the presentation. Satin ribbon with the name of her blog wrapping the box.

I look forward to my first performance with them. I can imagine them on my head, around my neck, as epaulettes, on my hips, ankles...

The woman who makes them, Lauren Tennenbaum, keeps a blog [ (IN)DECOROUS TASTE ] that I've been following and admiring for a couple years. I think she is genius. I don't always love her work, but I usually do. And I always appreciate her creativity and drive.

2012!

2012-01-11T19:06:00.002-05:00

Start of the new year! We went boogie boarding for the first time, on Carmel beach. It was super busy; everyone and their dog was there because it was a balmy 68 degrees and a holiday. Still, there were only ~a dozen people in the water (~1 mile beach), and we made up 5 of the dozen. Cold water keeps the riffraff away! (o: By the end of the day, I figured out that to catch a wave that will carry you all the way in to the shore, it needs to be one that has a wall of water behind it to propel you. The more water, the more momentum you'll have.

It was amazing how some swells wash past you softly, while others feel like they're punching you in the gut.

At one point, the waves became really intense. Despite holding on to the boogie board for dear life, I was pummeled, like I was in a washing machine for 3 waves in a row. Between the 2nd and 3rd, I came up for air and couldn't see. I realized I had blinked a contact out. I caught sight of it on my wrist, pinched it between forefinger and thumb, embraced my board, got tumbled by the water, came up and put my contact back in my eye. Voila! I can't believe I didn't lose it.

Christmastime in Lexington

2012-01-11T17:08:00.006-05:00

New hat

Woodpecker holes at Ashland

Osage orange tree at Ashland

Really cool book found at an antique store on Leestown Rd.

Wall of bourbons. Can't find it anywhere in CA. (Bourbon ball recipe here)

2 lb. candycane.

Kentucky proud. *facepalm*

Shana and baby Theo.

Uncle Rick, Mom (don't they look similar?), Daniel.

Incredible meal prepared by Susana. Ho ho ho.

Ben and Country ham. He is so happy

Christmas dinner at Sue's.

The ugliest house. Arches! Triangles! Stones! Bricks! Red! Yellow!

Christmastime in Monterey

2012-01-11T16:43:00.004-05:00

Mostly, December was full of me writing papers. But I took a few pictures on my walks to and from school/work.

Kitties snooze.

Patron Sicilian saint (Rosalia) of fishing in Monterey.

Lights on sailboats. Reminded me of living on Feather!

Poinsettia grows big and full all year round here!

Kitties dually enjoy heater warmth. Heh heh.

Wild Salmon Center dinner at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Ben came and enjoyed the meal while I networked.

Thanksgiving grub.

2012-01-11T16:08:00.003-05:00

Ben made 4 pies.

I made a bunch of roasted squash.

Thanksgiving dinner with Colleen and Travis, our friend Mohammed from Bangladesh, Travis' uncle Steve.

Recy-turkey.

Asilomar Tidepools at Sunset

2012-01-11T14:14:00.005-05:00

Colleen forced me to leave my computer/homework, and thank goodness! Ben and she and I enjoyed a lovely sunset at Asilomar. We watched an anenome eat a hermit crab, found a little starfish piggybacking a larger red starfish, and watched the waves roll in. This was, unfortunately, the fateful day when I slipped and broke my camera and then lost it. I don't know why or how, but it has since resurfaced and healed itself.

Ben's Surprise Birthday Party

2012-01-10T18:51:00.002-05:00

Phillip came to visit for a week, which was super awesome. I was so bummed that I was busy with school and work the whole time and that I didn't get to spend more quality time with him. But he and Ben had fun exploring, snorkeling, etc. And at the end of the week, we threw a surprise party for Ben at our friends Travis and Colleen's house.

Snorkeling equipment

Ben's favorite game is rook, but it got to be a running joke with all our mega-game-playing friends because we never played it with him. So, we decided that his birthday was a great time to play rook, rook, and only rook. A hit!

Shannon, Ryann, Phillip and Ben rooking it up.

Dodon, Travis, Laura, Lisa

Incredible strawberry cake made by Laura, in memory of this strawberry cake fiasco

James cooks up the beer-soaked brats with gusto

Parsnip is pleased with the trappings of birthday spoils.

Morning walk with Leah

2012-01-10T18:19:00.006-05:00

One morning before school and work, my friend Leah and I went for a stroll on Monastery Beach. Lovely early morning landscapes.

Leah indulging me, posing for my new camera.

Starfish, hanging on, upside down

Gorgeous aqua color on the inside of this...thing... (know what it is??)

Smooth, empty, lovely beach all to ourselves.

Crow

2012-01-10T03:04:00.002-05:00

One morning on the way to work, I saw this crow (red circle) carrying a catfood or tuna can in its beak. It landed and pecked out the rest of the food. They're so smart.

Moonlight Hike at Garrapata

2012-01-10T02:39:00.004-05:00

Althea, one of my friends from WWF in DC this summer, came to enjoy a wedding in Monterey. I was mostly busy writing papers, but we had a lovely visit, and were able to go hike up a hill with some other friends one night before she left. We were all amazed at my camera's ability to shoot in the dark. What a night.

Using Google SkyMap to identify constellations

Stars over the sea.

This is how dark it was to our eyes.

This is how much light my camera liked to let in (o:

Me and Althea

Ben and Travis. Bad-ass pose.

John, Ben, Althea, Travis, Me. Moon.

Orion.

Moonlight on the jackets.

Looking to the heavens.

Cats, Garden (camera)

2012-01-10T02:17:00.004-05:00

Fun with my new camera.

rainbow bookshelf

Community garden at my school. Ain't she purdy?

Outfit with antique cloche hat thingy.

Our plot at the beginning of November.

Lisa and Dodon's new house

2012-01-10T02:00:00.002-05:00

Photos from a cozy evening spent playing telephone pictionary, drinking cider, and sitting by the fire. (and playing with my camera)

Shannon, BrieAnn, Superkate, Amanda Palmer and Neil Gaiman

2012-01-10T01:43:00.005-05:00

My dance buddy Superkate works for Amanda Palmer, so she got me some tickets to see the show Amanda did in SF with her husband, Neil Gaiman. My friend BrieAnn who I know from MA and dancing joined me. And my friend Shannon, from school, is a big Gaiman fan, so she and I drove up together. Ben hung out with a friend while we were at the show, and we found him at his first dart tournament afterward.

Another (somewhat disturbing) photo I took that night, here.

We all stayed at BrieAnn's house and had kick-ass strawberry shortcakes in the morning.

Pre-show vietnamese yumminess.

Neil & Amanda

My worlds collide: Environmental policy friend, MA dance friend, me, Lex dance friend

Shannon and Amanda.

Shannon was giddy that I got her backstage and that she got to shake Neil's hand.

Ben bought his first set of darts that night.

New Camera

2012-01-10T01:21:00.003-05:00

Here it is, I will geek out a little bit here. At the beginning of November, I bought my dream compact camera. It's a Canon S95. I took photography way back in high school and won some photography awards in high school and college, but ever since my film camera broke in college I have not had an SLR. My point and shoots have been pretty fun, but this camera really allows me to do anything I would do on an SLR (minus changing the lenses). The different functions are not too buried in menus, so I can access them easily enough right at the moment. And the way it allows light in is incredible. I can take damn-good photos in extremely low light. I love that. And it's still small enough to tuck in my pocket! Psyched!

And it has a smile sensor that I can turn on so it only takes pictures when it senses a smile. Weird.

Brooding Pacific Grove Beauty

2012-01-10T01:13:00.001-05:00

And sometimes it's beautiful for its ominousness. This is a color photo, but the world was in shades of grey that day.

Pacific Grove Beauty

2012-01-10T01:10:00.002-05:00

We are regularly struck with the beauty of this landscape. Walking along the coast one day, the fog parted, to reveal the mountains. It looked like they were floating in the clouds. 3 sailboats against the fog bank too. This photo doesn't capture how awestruck we were.

Halloween 2011

2012-01-10T01:02:00.003-05:00

So our neighbors go a little haywire with the halloween decorating. It's incredibly overly-spooky both in the daytime and at night.

Ben and I didn't really do anything for Halloween which was a bummer because I love the holiday. That's not entirely true: we did go to a friend's house for a quiet snack get-together for an hour or two on Halloween night. But no parties or real costumes. I made some pumpkin hummus earlier in the month when our friends hosted a jack-o-lantern carving party. Everyone brought pumpkin-something (ravioli, curry, etc). Very yummy.

Here are our jack-o-lanterns. A ghost coming out of a crack and some vines.

And a picture of a lingcod skeleton for extra spooky factor.

Chelsea and Caroline Visit

2012-01-10T00:38:00.003-05:00

My sister and her best friend from childhood came to visit for one day (her birthday!). The visit wasn't long enough, but it was wonderful to see them, resting, sans kids for once (they both have 2 little ones). We took them to brunch on the wharf with Travis and Colleen, went to the aquarium, and watched the sunset by Bixby bridge in Big Sur. Caroline got teary-eyed because of the beauty. Both of them were overwhelmed with the amount of wildlife and wanted to bring their families here for a visit. We look forward to it!

Gardening with Friends and Parsnip

2012-01-09T22:14:00.002-05:00

When Parsnip was a tiny kitten she came with me everywhere. Work, dance studio, in the car, on walks around town. I was super clingy to her b/c I needed the extra love in my life at the time (just kicked out of vet school), and also because she was teensy and needed regular feeding. I wanted her to be well socialized despite not having another cat in the house too.

Anyway, all that went by the wayside when we got Cappy. But occasionally Parsnip gets stir crazy and we indulge her curiosity of What's Beyond The Front Door by taking her with us on walks and such. One day we took her to the community garden at school. We all composted and hoed and planted while she chilled, enjoying the sunlight and new surroundings. She did not enjoy wearing her gardening hat. Ha ha.

And! Breathe.....

2012-01-09T20:38:00.002-05:00

Wow, the past 3 months were crazy busy. School, work, and some personal matters meant that I had no free time in which to luxuriate, be creative, or express myself. No dancing, no blogging, no movie-watching, no pendant-making, and very little music listening. I've been boogie boarding twice in the past week and a half, so I'll liken it to that metaphor: It's like I've been underwater, being tumbled by the waves, with just enough time to pop up for air before another wave overtook me. Extending the metaphor, I feel like I've finally had time to go home, take a shower, take a nap, and now I'm waking up a bit refreshed.

So. The meantime. I bought a new camera that I was SUPERDUPER excited about, and about the 3rd time I took it outside, I slipped on a rock and even though I tried to keep it up in the air away from the rocks (my funny bone got smashed instead of my camera), the lanyard on it was long enough to ricochet from my attempts to keep it safe and it hit a rock anyway. The lens wouldn't go back into the body, and it kept giving me a "lens error" message and shutting down. SUPER SAD FACE. And then I lost it, too. So I couldn't even send it off to be fixed. Lotsamoneydownthetubes.

.....or was it? Ben came to the rescue the other day and spent some dedicated searching time and found the camera (thank you!!), and when I charged up the battery, it magically had enough hutzpah to retract the lens all the way back into the camera! Knock on wood, but I think it's fixed. *sigh of gratitude and relief to the camera gnomes at my house*

Anyway. Now that it's back, I was able to download the pictures that were on it, take some new ones, and finally I can catch you back up to speed. Here goes. Thanks for being patient.

Homework on the Beach

2011-10-17T02:37:00.002-04:00

It's been very warm (over 70 which is rare for Monterey) this week. Ben and I took advantage of the temperatures by sitting out on the beach a couple days ago. I sat and read/listened to my kindle (homework/readings) (I love my kindle) while Ben went for a walk. The seagulls became bold and inched closer and closer to me. I got a bit sunburned--something I don't usually worry about when it's cool and foggy!

World Seafood Congress in DC

2011-10-17T02:16:00.003-04:00

Clouds from the air

I flew to DC again for a week, to go to the World Seafood Congress. It was the perfect conference for me to go to: sessions on aquaculture, sustainability and certifications standards, and challenges in fisheries and aquaculture in South America, Africa, and Asia. The biggest thing I gained was more of an industry point of view, and of course, the opportunity I had to meet several people in the field.

I definitely didn't get the memo that everyone would be wearing black blazers. Oh well, easily excused by introducing myself as a student. Still, it was strange. I'm used to being one of the best dressed people at scrubby-scientist meetings or polo/khaki-wearing-vet conferences. I was dressed up, but not corporate business attired enough, despite my high heels.

Super nice: they provided us with cough drops, pad of paper and a pen, and water at each session.Gorgeous deco wave railings in the hotel

I met the new CEO of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council, and shared with him the work I did at WWF this summer on the ASC certification standards. He was grateful for my work, yay! I got to use my Spanish, speaking with a lady in the fisheries dept of Uruguay, and I got to use my Swahili, (finally, after 10 yrs of trying to keep it up with no one to speak to) with a vet from the Fisheries Dept of Tanzania. Very cool. One academician whose papers I have been reading all year came up to me and said he recognized my name, and that he used to work at Seafood Watch too. Such a small world. I couldn't believe someone came up to me, as a student!

Panel discussion

I was so happy to be back in DC. I stayed with Na'la, one of my dance friends for one night, and I stayed with Althea, one of the ladies I met at WWF for the rest of my time there. I saw other friends/coworkers at WWF one afternoon, catching up, re-connecting. As I left DC, I could see the soccer field behind the WWF building, and was able to pick out the WWF building; I could see the bridge I rode my bike over every day this summer, I saw the cathedral where I took a couple strolls, and the neighborhood where I lived, and teared up. I didn't want to leave all over again.

Appalachia from the air.

Still, coming home to Monterey is a pretty rad option. I feel so blessed to have 2 places I really love. And now, on to applying to jobs in both locations...I wonder where I'll end up. I think it really has me stressed out actually. This is big stuff! Last time I was a year away from graduating from a graduate degree, that's when the sh*t hit the fan...so my body is certainly reacting stressfully to that expectation despite the fact that I'm doing really well in school and am excited about what my future holds. *Sigh* How do bodies internalize so much scar-emotion??

Point Lobos

2011-10-17T02:11:00.005-04:00

One day, I had tons of reading, but I opted to walk around Point Lobos with Ben instead. It's so beautiful there!
How do these top-heavy seaweeds stay standing up, getting bashed by water all day long!? Amazing.

Mussel bed

4 Deer, walking toward us!
Whalers cove, where we went snorkeling last weekend

This is actually not at Point Lobos, but up the hill from my house. curlyque tree!

which side?

2011-10-17T02:08:00.005-04:00

Does it matter which side I sweep my hair to? Which do you prefer? Picture 1 (with Cappy in the background?) or Picture 2?
[pic 2 is my normal method]

Sustainable Seafood Man

2011-10-12T13:15:00.001-04:00

My coworker just sent me a link to Beatrice the Biologist's blog where she did a comic strip (sort of...what would you call it?) on Seafood Watch. Nice. Beware SSM. (click link to her blog to see).

Tanzanian names

2011-10-12T03:03:00.004-04:00

The internet is awesome. I just chatted with Goodluck (AKA Salt), a guy I knew in Tanzania 10 yrs ago on facebook. I can't believe I still remember Swahili at all. Just goes to show it's such an easy language! Side-tracked, I looked at some of his friends' names, and I was reminiscing about all the awesome English words that make their way into Tanzanian Name Lexicon. Here are some winners:

Bricklilian

Oceanshelle

Sweetmina

GotWings

Success

Marygiven

Loveness

Leliciouzy

Tiny Home Obsession

2011-10-07T18:13:00.007-04:00

A couple weeks ago, I went through a re-invigorated obsession with tiny homes. I have always loved the idea of living in a tiny home since before we lived on Feather (10 ft wide at it's widest by 38 ft long).

When I was 18, I lived in an RV for a few months with my boyfriend at the time. Amazingly, it was a step up from most of the living accommodations of most of my friends, since we were all full-time climbers, and they were all camping in tents while Erick and I were cozy and shielded from the winds of Nevada's winter. We'd have 'dinner parties' for like 8 people in the Chinook.

Then, after my house burned down and I had the opportunity to gather only what I needed, I felt like a free vagabond for a short bit. It's amazing how fast the stuff builds up again, but I try to purge on a fairly regular basis, selling stuff on ebay or giving it away on craigslist. Still, there's plenty I could do without, I'm sure.

The urge to look into tiny home living was in full force again after I saw this video on an apartment in Japan that is sort of like a transformer:

Then a couple days after that, I saw pictures of these awesome "Idaho sheep wagons". You can buy one for just over $8000, definitely the cheapest tiny home I've seen yet. But it has a canvas roof, which is not the most durable separation between you and the elements.

I have a whole board dedicated on Pinterest to places I wouldn't mind living, or architecture that strikes my fancy, and probably the most common thread is small spaces. Here are some of my favorites from over there.

"The greatest innovation anywhere for space is boats. Even more than spaceships and submarines."

Airstream Trailer Renovation by Hofmann Architecture

Swedish designer Torsten Ottesjö's Hus.Ett

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company

This latter one I first saw on treehugger.com, but it's where I first started my obsession a couple weeks ago, delving through all the plans of their tiny homes, and watching videos of people showing me around their Tumbleweeds. What I like about them is that they are very liveable, and many of them are built on a trailer bed, so you can park your home wherever someone is kind enough to let you park. And it's much less wasteful (to build) than a similarly moveable (in theory, anyway) mobile home. Those

I really like this video, of a family of 3 who lives in a 320sq foot home, because you really get a sense for how it is to live with them. They don't concentrate on the square footage, but on what they really felt they needed. Thus, they have a full size washer and dryer, as well as a full size refrigerator whereas most tiny home livers chose not to have either, or else only a small dorm-sized refrigerator. I also like that they have a cat.

Similarly, this guy insists, it's not about minimum space, but having the minimum that works for you. He really wanted to have a full sized couch in his place, so it's a bit larger than some of the Tumbleweeds. I like how conversational and philosophical he is about the sort of living you undertake when you make a decision to live this way:

I like how bright and open this one is

I like how big the windows are here, I bet if feels much larger inside than it looks from the outside. I'm not sold on this exact design, but I do like how it doesn't look just like all the others. I mean, if I'm going to build my own house, thinking about design is interesting to me too, not just function.

This one appeals to me some

In all, I gorged on these sorts of images and videos. And then looked around and decided I live in a pretty small apartment already, even though it's not portable or tiny, and I like the open space that I have in the front room. I think I would like putting the bed in a loft and thereby not having to use as much space. But otherwise things are pretty good as they are. I think there's a ton of clothes and craft stuff that I could purge, but right now living in a tiny home is a dream. And I'm working on one dream at a time. Currently, finishing school. There's time for this tiny home dream later.

Monterey is a Beautiful Place to Live

2011-10-07T17:55:00.005-04:00

These are shots taken on my walks in the morning to work, just 7 blocks from my house.

These were taken one morning after it had rained, on a walk I took before my weekend workshop class.

You can't tell, here, but that's a wild bee hive I found in that tree!

Super Busy

2011-10-07T17:39:00.003-04:00

In the space of just a month and a week, I have only had one weekend (that's when we went up to San Francisco to visit Mira and BrieAnn and went to the flea market). The 2nd and 4th weekends, I had a weekend-long course on Improving Governmental Efficiency. It was fascinating, wholly worthwhile, but exhausting. In a class with just 10 students, the demographics could not have been much more diverse: 2 Kentuckians, Hungarian woman, Croatian woman, Afghani man, Ecuadorian gay man from Miami, Native American woman, Kyrgyzstani professor, woman in her 50s, and 2 other white ladies. Classes like these are why I chose to go to MIIS. So cool.

From my Improving Governmental Effectiveness: a Cross-Cultural Perspective class.

The weekend in between, unfortunately, was spent in bed, as my neck went out and I had to convalesce. Uggh. Not restful. Very stressful. I think it was related to decreased exercise since I left DC, and also just all the intense life-examination I've been doing.

Cats help me heal.

Then this past weekend I spent traveling (back to DC, that's another post coming up soon)....This weekend I technically have free, but have to spend writing papers and catching up since I was in DC all last week. Ben and I both feel the constraints of my busy-ness very acutely. How do I stop? Do I want to? How do I lead a more balanced life?

Cupcake for dinner at the farmer's market one night.

At least in the midst of all this, my 2nd nose ring piercing has healed. Here I am with my newish "magic snake bite" look.

Impromptu visit North

2011-10-07T17:32:00.002-04:00

One night, Ben and I went to stay with Mira in Oakland. Just a chill night at home. The next morning we went to the Alameda Antique Market. I got some hardware for making things....

And we had lunch with Brie Ann which was good too.

Philip Glass Concert

2011-10-07T17:11:00.002-04:00

Ben and I went to a Philip Glass concert in Carmel Valley, something he was excited to do all summer. It was intense! There were only 7 members in the orchestra, and the venue was small, so the music enveloped you completely. I felt like you could not have much more sound simultaneously without devolving into complete chaos. It somehow maintained order, though. Genius. The people next to us had obviously never really listened to Philip Glass, they didn't clap once, and looked perturbed the whole time. Hee hee!

This is not from the particular show we went to, but was probably the most intense song.

Working at the Aquarium

2011-10-07T17:03:00.005-04:00

Mural on a gorgeous sunny day. I love living in Monterey.

This semester, Seafood Watch has decided that I should be considered an employee of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, not just an in-between intern (between employee and volunteer). That has its perks! It means I can get into the aquarium for free any time I want, and I get food for 50% off (Ben and I have enjoyed that a couple times thus far). I never get tired of going to the aquarium. Animals are so incredible.

New great white shark in the Open Sea exhibit, with the Mola Mola

Hammerhead, mola, great white.

School of sardines

Mola's wacky proptosed eye up close.

The tuna are so fast, it's hard to get a decent picture of them.

This is my favorite right now. It's a skate (similar to a ray) egg pouch that has a window cut into it, so you can watch the embryos develop. Incredible.

Thoughts once school started

2011-09-30T05:10:00.002-04:00

Portland was an excellent trip, but with being gone from Ben over the summer, followed by an intense course in Monterey, and finally some down time to process it all in Portland, I was going through some heavy internal searching that week. Here's an excerpt from an email I sent to my friend Dave.

"Last year Ben and I listened to a spate of This American Life and RadioLab podcasts that all had to do with happiness, and how the human brain is wired to remember the good, forget the bad and thus be happier. Or how people choose to focus on the good to be happier (some people don't chose that). I've always thought of myself as being and optimist, and some people see Ben as a pessimist although he sees himself as a realist. Meaning that I'm probably happier than he is, but at the expense of "lying" to myself to be happier. I don't know whether truth or happiness is more important to me at this stage. I think I am going through some pretty heavy soul searching these days. Ben recognizes my reticence & forlorn-ness (word?). I question things that I always took for granted before, like my ability or wish to maintain a single relationship most of my life, the independence and self-sufficiency I always felt before. I find respite in schoolwork and thoughts of a career (finally), but wonder if I'm just distracting myself from facing issues that seem to be bubbling up now that I don't have destitution breathing so hard down my neck."

Lots of questions, lots of reflection, and not-taking-things (good or bad) for-granted. My skin is broken out with the stress of these questions. Doubt is not an easy thing to deal with, though I believe it is important for learning, growth.

Portland 2

2011-09-30T05:09:00.005-04:00

Bear with me, as I dump some pictures to catch up to my life now. Here are some more of our awesome Portland week, back in August. We hung out with Emily and Joel, who I became friends with in vet school. And I had a fancy piña colada at one of Portland's tiki bars.

This is Ben with his Viking wrap, at the food cart parking lot near Phil and Tara's. They had this viking helmet sitting on the picnic table, ripe for photos.

Ben and I really enjoyed going to the Japanese Garden. I went 4 years ago when I came out to Portland for the first time, to go to Joel and Emily's wedding. It's so beautiful there. Definitely worth paying the entrance fee.

The coloring of this photo doesn't reflect how well ben matched the color of the foliage he was touching:

Then we went down the hill to the rose garden, which was free. And very cool. Roses are not my favorite flowers. But the sheer variety amongst them was impressive and interesting. Lavender roses:

Enormous roses:

Roses with spots:

Ben photographing some of his favorites there:

Some of my favorites. I love the multi-hue:

And this yellow one was my very favorite. It grows short like a bush and is extremely prolific.

Here we are outside of the place where we ate brunch. It's a picture of Tara, but really, it's a picture of the hipsters behind her who were not only eating brunch next to us that morning, but were also at the bar we went to the night before, literally burning money. What's up with that?

Portland!

2011-09-30T04:47:00.004-04:00

At the end of the COS MARINE course, Ben and I finally had some time to enjoy with one another; we spent a week up in Portland.

Portlandia: Put a bird on it! It's not even a joke. That shit's for real here.

We stayed with our close friends Phillip and Tara. And, basically, we ate well and didn't do a lot more than that. It was my only true vacation this summer!!!

Eating at a Japanese ramen house

Me ordering food at one of Portland's ubiquitous and genius foodcarts

Brunch

Next door neighbor's colorful garden

Phil, Ben and I took a walk to watch the colors change on Mt. Hood as the sun set

We made a rhubarb pie

Ben chilling

We picked and ate a million delicious figs at P & T's friends' house

Mmmmmm, figs

Back home in Monterey--COS MARINE Short Course

2011-09-30T04:10:00.006-04:00

Driving back to Monterey, there's this little portion of Highway 1 where you peek over the edge and see Monterey Bay and Del Monte Beach...and it's there that I always get this rise in my chest of gratitude to live in such a beautiful spot.

Arriving at home, the naked ladies were in full bloom (that's what these flowers are called):

And unfortunately for me and Ben, I was thrown immediately into an intense 2 week course hosted by the Stanford's Center for Ocean Solutions (COS) Monterey Area Research Institutions' Network for Education (MARINE) program. It was AMAZING. But super intense. I had to tell Ben to pretend I wasn't home yet so he wouldn't get disgruntled by my 10-13 hr days away. Most of the students were masters (of science) and Ph. D. candidates (also of science), though there was one law student and 3 of us from MIIS (policy). That means I was the one of the few with both a policy and science background. We had excellent speakers, it was a great review of everything I've learned this whole past year, and we were treated like royalty.

We had a special dinner prepared for us, and set in front of the newly re-opened Open Sea exhibit at the aquarium, where we were also addressed by Julie Packard, the director of the aquarium.

I thought that was pretty magical.

And of course Monterey is so lovely, and with the alyssum blooming, I feel ever-so-welcome here.

The flower on the right is lantana...I finally learned the name of it this summer.

During the 2 weeks, the pacific islanders sailed in on their navigate-by-stars-and-wind-only boats, and we were able to watch them sail in, through our classroom window:

We had a special welcome party for them one night. (Our illustrious law professor, Meg Caldwell on the left, and the captain of one of the boats on the right)

But I got sick going from 100 degree weather to 50 degree weather (this is me feeling a little crappy):

But the course was awesome overall.

A beautiful german boat in for the pacific islanders

Buck by the sea

I was an extra on the set of Otters 501 that week too.

Teensy dead crabs washed ashore.

One day our lecture was on the beach, and our blackboard was the sand.

And the last night, we got to spend the night at the aquarium

in front of the Open Sea exhibit again.

That was cool.

Saying goodbye to WWF and DC

2011-09-30T03:56:00.002-04:00

All in all, I learned a ton. When I started working at WWF, I was exhilarated by how In-The-Vortex of policy I was...but I was relieved by the fact that I was an intern which meant that I wasn't ultimately responsible for what I was doing. Wonderfully, by the end of my 10 weeks, I felt like I was doing really good work, and that I could have been responsible. What a great confidence builder! I also met amazing people, and am so thankful for those connections.

The atrium at WWF

Looking down the central atrium.

Some reading material

As you can tell from all my other posts about the summer, between work (dream job!), a regular exercise routine (yoga, kettlebell, swimming, biking, walking), evenings at the Kennedy Center, the kickin' dance scene in DC, and the friends I have there, I really didn't want to leave by the end. I felt confident, healthy, worldly, mature, productive, artistic; I felt like the best version of myself. Here's a self portrait of my last day there that I feel embodies those sensations.

Dancing at DC Tribal Cafe

2011-09-30T03:04:00.003-04:00

As I've mentioned before, DC has a great dance scene. I was so pleased to be included in the July version of DC Tribal Cafe, at their new location, Bossa. My mom and Daniel were in town, and I'd been practicing a bunch again (nice to brush up my dancing chops!), so it was fun to perform with them there.

Kaelan, my best friend from high school was there, and so was Marjorie, a woman I went to Tanzania with ten years ago. DC is a small world, that way. The crowd was really supportive, and I had a great time. So, so fun. Na'la danced, then me:

Mavi finished the evening, but then Na'la and I snuck up on Mavi to spring this silly collaborative piece at the end.

World Ocean Day

2011-09-29T23:48:00.004-04:00

Early on in DC, (back at the beginning of June) World Ocean Day happened. On the metro, I passed Elliott Norse who is the President of the Marine Conservation Biology Institute, and lectured to my Emerging Issues in Ocean Conservation course last semester, as well as Mike Sutton, the Vice President of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and boss of my boss's boss's boss. He's also my friend (o: . My point being, there were so many ocean conservation people in DC that day that I just happened to see 2 separate people that I knew who were there just for that occasion! After work, I went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History where National Geographic explorer, Enric Sala was giving a talk.

The coolest thing I learned in that talk was that in some 'pristine' (human-excluded) ecosystems, top predators dominate the scene--the opposite of how we tend to think of it. But that sort of makes sense, right? We're top predators, and we dominate! If we weren't around, other top predators could fill our shoes! The things lower on the food chain live shorter lives than top predators, but they reproduce quickly. Here's some of his talk, I hope you can hear it well enough. I put some subtitles on, but didn't quite get all of what he's saying. In the 2nd half, he's explaining (better than I can) why this phenomenon may be.

Extra Funs in DC

2011-09-29T22:09:00.002-04:00

I'm going the proverbial extra mile this evening and finishing my DC blog posts so I can catch you up to the rest of my life! (funny, because I'm headed back to DC this weekend...more on that later)
A random collection of other fun things I did in DC:

Walking around one day, I tried this dress on. I liked it, but decided it was too short and airy for cool Monterey weather.
Walking around Georgetown one day, the clouds were ominous, and the gold dome on this building was extra shiny.
I hung out with Danielle from vet school one day--we caught up over lunch and then had frozen yogurt. Very good to see her.
I went to a burlesque show one night. I'm not much of a burlesque fan, despite having taught at a burlesque festival once... But the girl on the left, she rocked! She was everything that I wish all burlesque was (funny, confident, raunchy, clever, adorable, technically proficient, lovely to see), and nothing that annoys me about most burlesque (girls trying too hard, girls with zero talent simply undressing, predictable, obvious "tricks" with boring filler between, uuugggh).

Lightning Storm

2011-09-06T18:55:00.002-04:00

I woke up one morning at 4am to almost constant lightning. I scribbled sleepy notes on a scrap of paper by my bed, in the dark: "I don't remember ever experiencing a thunderstorm like this. rolling thunder like the amplified bowling ball rolling down a creaky wooden hallway. constant strobe. cracks like explosions. blinding my eyes so I see blackspots tho my eyes are shut. thru my sleepy eyelids. dreams like an armageddon movie. in 1 minute: 10 flashes of lightning or more. some that strobe & last as long as 5 seconds at least 2 that give me black spots through my eyelids." Just before dawn, I woke up enough to think about trying to catch some of it on video. This is the tail end of the storm, the tamest portion.

Karmapa and WWF Roof

2011-09-06T16:52:00.004-04:00

WWF has a living roof garden. I went up to see it, but found this message on the locked door:

However, if you're the honorable Karmapa (2nd to the Dalai Lama, who was also visiting DC), and you come to WWF, you get a special tour of the roof-top-garden:

And if you work at WWF, you get to enjoy hearing the Karmapa speak, thanking you and blessing you for the important environmental work you're doing. So it evens out.

He gave WWF this beautiful thangka.

Old man on the left is the guy that founded WWF, 50 years ago.

HOT HOT HOT

2011-09-06T16:37:00.004-04:00

July 28, 1921. Washington, D.C. "Relief from hot weather. Bathing at Rock Creek Park." National Photo Company Collection glass negative

The temperature rarely dipped below 85 degrees this summer in DC. There were 3 weeks straight where the temperature hovered around 100 degrees, and one weekend (when Mom and Daniel came to visit) when the temperature was 105. Add the humidity to that equation, and you get heat indices of 123 degrees!!! It was truly brutal.

Ugh. Hot. Collapsing on the couch is all I could do sometimes.

I was really looking forward to a real, hot summer, complete with humidity and all. I am one of those few people who enjoy humid heat. However, my comfort level is best when it's 80 degrees and humid, giving the feel of a wet 90 degree day. More than that and you just feel like you're walking in hot soup when you leave the comfort of your home. I made the best of it, though, continuing my exercising routines, and biking to and from work despite the heat. I really only crapped out on those few days that felt like 120 degrees. I hit a new record for myself the day I took 5 showers one day, trying to feel refreshed despite the sweat/heat/yuck. Swimming at my gym was a nice thing to do in the evenings. I got out of the city once, when a friend and I visited Great Falls on the Maryland side of the upper Potomac. We got stuck in a rainstorm, but enjoyed putting our feet in the water.

Hair Cut

2011-09-06T16:27:00.003-04:00

Eventually my hair grew out to epic disarray proportions. No amounts of headbands or barretts could reign it in sufficiently. Here I am at my gym with my disarrayed hair.
It's not bad for just going to work out. But in the ultra suit-ready professional work climate of DC, this is how I felt I looked:
I had a good idea, "I know, I think I'll get my hair cut." Exciting prospect!
So I found a little barber shop down the road, made an appointment, tried to explain my haircut to a barber named Mario, and here's how it ended up. I like it!

Flowers of DC

2011-09-06T15:56:00.004-04:00

Summertime in the south. I love how very verdant the south becomes in the humid summers. Here are some flowers in and around my neighborhood. I'd walk by on my way to work or the gym, enjoying their textures, ferocity and sunniness.

Rosedale Conservancy just a few blocks from my house. I enjoyed a couple picnics here.

Crepe Myrtle. Somehow had never learned this flower/bush's name before.

More Millenium Stage

2011-09-06T15:45:00.003-04:00

I saw 12 shows at the Millenium Stage at the Kennedy Center in DC. That averages to more than one a week! At the price of FREE, it was an excellent use of time.

San Bushmen and Bushwomen storytelling/performing ritual dance & song

Ominous clouds one day.

Here are some notes I took when I saw the Persian Zither player:

Santour (Persian dulcimer/zither) (written as listening to 3 songs at the Kennedy Center)

Raindrops in a pool, the occasional bittersweet minor tones of the Orient.

Flourishes and full of richness like a fanned peacock’s tail.

The beauty can be found both in the grander patterns and in the individual note, akin to the walls and individual tiles of Islamic mosaic.

Dulcet dulcimer, loved in Appalachia and medieval courts

Drone of fast-hit hammers, echoed by the tombak, causing trancelike buzzing content like the word ‘zither’. Dervishes.

Twangy scales of Japan. Pointed and exact but softened by this improvisational and reverberating medium.

Golden clad Indian jewels laid upon strong Arabic rhythms walking in. Solid & heavy. Persian melody lifts it back up with levity and grace.

Heart pangs with the lilting upper echelon strings.

¼ notes medley like a kaleidoscope. Again into trance, like a cat kneading a pillow. Gently galloping fingers on the skin drum head. Legions of digital horses running softly through the desert.

Pandas in the Capital

2011-08-27T21:46:00.000-04:00

Cute picture of young pandas, not in DC. Had to have at least one photo of the real McCoy.

The National Zoo is one of four zoos (Atlanta, Memphis, San Diego being the other 3) that displays pandas on exhibit. Washington D.C. seems to take this as a point of pride, and capitalizes on the creature's appeal. PandaMania (2004) allowed artists to paint or decorate 150 pandas and display them citywide before auctioning them off. WWF had one in their building:

but the library near my house had one too:

This panda was painted on the wall behind the same library.

And of course, all the staff at WWF refer to themselves as pandas (mascot-like). Here we are, the 2011 summer intern pandas:

These pandas were statues at the zoo (I never saw more than a foot or an ear of the live versions when I went to visit them).

And I saw this bit of urban art on the bridge on my way to work.

After 50 years, the WWF panda symbol is one of the most widely recognized logos anywhere. If people don't know what "WWF" is, they are sure to recognize the environmental work that has been done by "that panda group". I was proud to call myself a panda this summer.

DC Nights

2011-08-27T20:54:00.004-04:00

Most nights I'd get home around 9:30 or 10 after exercising and finding something to eat. I'd wind down, maybe read or watch something on hulu, and head to bed. My roommate, Pauline, a young French woman, would inevitably stay out late going to bars and hanging out with other interns, and making me feel old or at least stodgy.

One night, though, I was invited to a freestyle hip-hop/funk show at Althea's house. Althea works at WWF as a new hire, in the Coastal East Africa program, and is applying for a Fulbright: I was going to do that! (o: The show was rad: the band had their full sound system set-up in her living room. The house was full of cool people, and we had a blast encouraging the music, and dancing our funky hearts out. It was HOT. You could say sweltering, even. But totally worth the drenchedness, and accidentally getting pulled over by the cops when I tried to take a short cut biking through the zoo after hours that night (oops!). I excused myself around midnight "lest I turn into a pumpkin" I explained to the younger stay-up-all-night-Australians.

Another night, I talked Pauline into staying home with me. It was the night after the full moon, and we decided to go for a midnight walk to enjoy the lunar orb. We had a hilarious and fun time walking around our neighborhood, attempting to snap pictures of the moon with the poor functions on her camera and the camera I was borrowing.

Animals at WWF US

2011-08-27T03:39:00.000-04:00

Several of WWF's environmental conservation efforts are centered on charismatic megafauna (yes, that is actually a technical term) to garner the support of its members and donors. People connect with rhinos, pandas, tigers, and lemurs more than they do with moles, small fishes, and insects, and are more likely to support endeavors related to big cuddly looking animals. Luckily, these large creatures are often great sentinels for the health of the rest of the ecosystem where they live. "If we save the tiger's habitat," the theory goes, "we'll be saving the habitat of hundreds of other species as well." Over the years, many of the staff have collected plush versions of our conservation efforts. It's kind of fun walking around and seeing so many smiling doll-eyed creatures in so many cubicles and offices. While the office is smack-dab in the middle of urban DC, these creatures/toys remind us of the important work we're doing.

long armed monkey blind-fold/riding rhino, some wolves, iguanas and a snake, birds and the regulars

luau white tiger, snowy owl, blue-footed booby, and friends

Okapi, snow leopard & prairie dog, whale shark & chickadee,

octopus & clownfish & seaturtle, some sculptural creatures

giant salamander, 3 toed sloth, some rhinos, primates, and more

Perks at WWF

2011-08-26T21:40:00.003-04:00

One perk of working at WWF is "the junk mail" listserve. It's how I found my awesome apartment (offered at discount price to WWF interns by a regular staff member), it's where people posted "hey look at this awesome press WWF just got!" messages, and it's how you find out when there are extra cookies, sandwiches and snacks in the kitchens. You have to be quick responding to these sorts of things if you want to take advantage of them, but it's well worth it. My favorite fringe benefit from Junk Mail was getting 4 free opening night tickets to see the play Oklahoma! which I shared with Lisa, Dodon, and Leah (other MIIS students living in DC for the summer). It was rad! The theatre that it was in was really amazing from an architectural standpoint. The play itself was engaging and really freaking fun. It's amazing to me how good professional plays are after years of seeing amateur local plays. I'd go to another, absolutely. Thanks WWF for hooking us up with these rad free tickets!

Another perk is that every other friday at WWF is a day off! Why this is an excellent way to run an NGO:

-for only ~35 more minutes of work/day for the preceding 2 weeks, you get a 3 day weekend regularly!

-the NGO gets to cut down on electricity and cleaning by 10%

-commuter energy is cut down by 10%

-thus the environmental NGO practices what it preaches

-did I mention regular 3 day weekends?!

Ascot

2011-08-26T21:35:00.002-04:00

As promised, a couple photos of the ascot I bought at Ginger Root Designs. I love it. I'm even wearing it today (in realtime, in Portland).

SIT Rafiki and Indonesian Festival

2011-08-26T21:19:00.003-04:00

One day, I (aka Amana) met up with Julie Narimatsu and Marjorie Mulhall (aka Jaribu and Macho)--two ladies who were in the same study abroad program with me in Tanzania ten years ago. It was so wonderful to see them. They're both working to make the world a better place, and I'm happy to know them still. Julie had a crazy year: she got married, pregnant, bought a house, a new car, and will have her baby. Major changes! Marjorie recently moved from a NYC law firm to DC to work at Earth Justice. Very cool.

We met up at an Ethiopian restaurant where the ceiling was painted like the sun, with a skylight in the center. Cool.

After our meal, I went to the Indonesian Festival where I was supposed to wear the WWF panda costume on stage (in 100 degree+ weather). I was looking forward to being the WWF mascot, but alas, the time for WWF's spot on stage changed and I was unwittingly about 40 minutes late. My friends were glad I didn't die of heatstroke inside the costume, though.

Black Squirrels in DC due to conservation efforts 100 years ago

2011-08-26T17:35:00.003-04:00

Apparantly, in 1889 the grey squirrel was an endangered species in Washington DC, due to overhunting. They began a rehabilitation/breed/release program in the city, which has clearly done well. However, since the current population started from such a small population, the genepool is thickly filled with dark-fur genotypes. Hence, these normally rare black-colored Grey Squirrels, are in relative abundance in DC. Cute!

I am an artist.

2011-08-26T17:03:00.004-04:00

This summer, for whatever reason, I settled on this sentence: "I am an artist". In my life, I have always valued creativity, and thought of myself as being creative. I did artistic things, but was never comfortable saying "I am an artist". Perhaps I needed to feel a bit more self-actualized in my professional/career life, or perhaps I've been wrestling with that potential moniker long enough (or both), but I woke up one day and was at peace with the thought. I realized that being artistic is not just something I schedule into my life as something to practice; it has become part of what I do/the way I interact with my world whether scheduled or not. If I see something beautiful, I pick it up to integrate into a collage later on. If I see a picture of a Mona Lisa that reminds me of a cat, I add the cat features to finish the look. I just do these things without calculating or planning anymore. I am an artist. Happy.

My cat for the summer.

Grinding pendant glass outside in the backyard.

I bought these homemade glitter buttons and replaced the boring ones on this jacket.

I added the double sleeve buttons for more appeal and glitz.

Me, surrounded by creative collaged mosaic/shell balls.

Pre-'creativized' phone picture formats are fun,

but it can be difficult to really express yourself in spite of the hipstery-vintage formulations.

I try, though!

This is supposed to be lightning bugs outside my apartment.

I loved the lightning bugs, crickets, and cicadas this summer.

Mmmm.

This is my bedside table. The underwater scene came with the apartment, and I thought it was appropriate given my summer of working on aquaculture. The sash on top came from a jacket I bought in Lexington at an antique store--I tore the collar off (the sash), and plan to create a dance costume with it. Below is my mini travel 'altar'.

My mini travel 'altar' includes: Goofy's foot button (from childhood, represents silliness), jade fish (used to by my grandparents'--represents my dedication to marine conservation), pewter miniature castle (from my childhood, represents imagination), wax seal (the image is of a peace dove=peace. duh), 4 leaf clover bit (given to me in Lexington by Howie, my former boss. Good luck!), sparkly button (represents...sparkles?!!!), ceramic rabbit (my 'power animal' representing patience among other things). The doily was made by hand by a Japanese woman who was super thankful to me for offering uberfresh eggs to her daughter (whom I work with at Seafood Watch) last semester.

Eggs filling our fridge.

Independence Day in DC

2011-08-26T15:46:00.005-04:00

What a place to spend Independence Day! The Fourth was really fun. I headed down to the Capitol where I met up with Lisa, Dodon, and their friend Josie. Thank goodness they had gotten there early--we had a great spot in front of the stage. We picnicked on pie, juice, veggies, cheese and crackers, waved our large american flag, and snoozed while we waited for the show to begin. The show included Steve Martin and his bluegrass band, the best rendition of the Star Spangled Banner I have ever heard (sung by Jordin Sparks), Little Richard, Naval big band (I'm sure it's called something else), and lots more. Steve Martin said, "it's always been a dream of mine to play banjo on the steps of our capitol on the 4th of July, and tonight I think I'm one step closer to that dream." Ha haha. It was fabulous, and after the sun set, fireworks exploded beyond the Washington Monument. Unfortunately our view was a bit obscured by the smoke from the live cannons that had been shot during the 1812 Overture, but the cheering and singing of all those around us was super invigorating. Yay, America!

Security in front of the Capitol

Crowds of Amurikins

Carvings around DC

2011-08-26T14:33:00.004-04:00

I normally don't apologize for not keeping my blogs up to date: things happen, that's life, I'll get to it when I can. So here I am, I'm in Portland, OR, and have already been out of DC for 3 weeks, but it's time for me to update my blog, finally! So before I get to Monterey and Portland and the rest of my life, I'll catch you up to the rest of my time in DC!

DC has lots of animal carvings; on buildings, fences, bridges... It's fun to look up and see a buffalo running in marble above you on the bridge.

Those things that look like "H"s below the 2nd story windows are elephants.

Lion on a bridge, near the zoo.

George Washington and friends.

Ducks near the gym.

Zoo in my Backyard

2011-07-08T16:15:00.004-04:00

The National Zoo is only about 3 blocks from where I live. When I went in the first time, it was so hot most of the animals were inside in the shade, but I did enjoy watching the River Otters. Interesting to see these more amphibian versions (that is, they're more terrestrial than the nearly marine-exclusive Southern Sea Otter that I've become familiar with in Monterey).

I also liked the Zoo In Your Backyard exhibit which talks about all the native flora and fauna in the area, the importance of it, and how to encourage it's existence.

Double Nose Pierce

2011-07-08T16:04:00.003-04:00

I got another hole put in my head a few weeks ago. I've been wanting a second nose piercing for a while...lessee...since 2003? I figured internship time was a great time to do it since it will heal before I return home. The first one hurt so terribly--a major reason I put off doing the second one for so long--but this one was virtually pain free. In fact, I really didn't feel the first needle (that's right...the placing was just slightly off, and since it was painless, I opted for a do-over. So, I had 2 needles go through my nose to get the perfect placement.) Of course it was tender the second time around. Still I'm pleased. I'm looking forward to when the redness goes down. It's not really very red, but it will be good when it's completely healed.

Right after I had it done

Paired with my tiny more flat-laying stud.

Paired with a larger Indian nose stud.

Animals in Harnesses in DC

2011-07-08T15:58:00.002-04:00

I've seen several seeing-eye dogs.

I also saw some mules pulling a barge down a canal down behind M street.

Definition of an Artist

2011-07-06T23:43:00.001-04:00

“I am an artist. It’s self-evident that what that word implies is looking for something all the time without ever finding it in full. It is the opposite of saying, “I know all about it. I’ve already found it.” As far as I’m concerned, the word means, “I am looking. I am hunting for it, I am deeply involved.”--Vincent Van Gogh

Don't judge a book...

2011-07-06T23:39:00.005-04:00

I don't like Lady Gaga's music. I think its gauche. Therefore it was easy for me to criticize her without knowing anything else about her. I described her fashion sense to my stepmother as looking like she rolled in glue and then a glitter/junk yard stuff. As you might guess, I have no problem with glitter and/or junk yard stuff. However, I had the impression that, like her music, her fashion sense is over the top loud and in your face. Perhaps if it were one and not the other I would not have been so offended.

I adore Stephen Fry. His wit, his intelligence, his ability to connect.

So when I saw this picture of the two of them together in a hotel hallway, I was struck by how much they clash. What were they doing together in the same space, I wondered?

Eventually curiosity overcame me and I googled their names in a single search. And, lo, I found that Stephen Fry had actually interviewed her in this case. And, lo, I found that as I listened to it, I had to admit that I really liked what she was saying. She sounded intelligent too. She sounds sincere and generous. She's someone who stands up for the underdog. I was, astonishingly, impressed. My favorite part is when she says,

"I live halfway between reality and fantasy at all times because I choose to, and anyone can choose that, and I believe everybody has something so magical about themselves and why, as a society, are we so afraid of magic? Why is magic synonymous with artifice? Why is the fantastic synonymous with a lie? If art is a lie, then I will tell that lie every day until it’s f****** true’

She also eloquently busted me (and many others out there too, I'm sure) when she said,

"You all have an opinion about pop singers or public figures, that ... we only care about ourselves, and how could it be possible that a woman like me who loves theatre and loves fantasy and loves magic, how could it be possible that I could really mean what I’m saying? I would say that’s quite anti-feminism, isn’t it, to say that a woman based on the way that she wears her hair and her shoes would not be sincere."

So there you have it, I admit my fault at jumping to conclusions and making judgements. And I encourage you to listen to the interview in full, here.

Whales.

2011-07-05T17:40:00.002-04:00

Three of them. (from here, here, and here).

2011-07-03T15:50:00.003-04:00

In the past 5 weeks, I have deepened my knowledge about the technical aspects of aquaculture via the projects I’ve worked on. I created short documents for the Steering Committees of the Salmon Aquaculture Dialogue (SAD) and the Freshwater Trout Aquaculture Dialogue (FTAD), including “Relevancy of using Daphnia as an aquatic surrogate toxicity species,” “Species Threatened by Freshwater Aquaculture, by Region” using IUCN Red List data, a global list of banned chemicals, and persistence data on known toxins. On a grander scale, I collated and summarized 100s of pages of public comments for both SAD and FTAD, so that the Steering Committees will have an organized overview of the opinions of groups and individuals as they meet to discuss the final drafts for the aquaculture certification standards for salmon and freshwater trout.

What am I talking about? Well here's a video that describes the Tilapia Aquaculture Dialogues (TAD). Aaron McNevin, one of the participants in the TAD was my boss for the FTAD.

Reaching out

2011-07-03T13:47:00.004-04:00

There's a tree that apparantly lives on a deck in the middle of the office building behind ours. More than leaning out for optimal sunlight, I can't help but feel like it's reaching out to be happily planted on the ground, in the earth, with the other trees behind our building.

Lunchtime

2011-07-01T19:57:00.002-04:00

I love my lunchtime routine. At the beginning of the week, I head to Trader Joe's just a block from my office, and buy a bag of arugula, and some salad fixin's. I cringe at how over-packaged things at TJs are....and yet....the convenience factor plays a major part in my corroboration in this case. One package of pre-cooked lentils, one package mini mozarella balls, one package cherry heirloom tomatoes and a bag of arugula last exactly a week. I can put them in the fridge at work, and don't need to worry about packing a lunch each day. When the fridge is emptied at the end of the week, the food's gone anyway. It's delicious, colorful, nutritious...and a delight to eat outside on the back porch, even in the heat.

2 DC haflas in 1 weekend

2011-06-28T01:17:00.003-04:00

I have been taking a few workshops at the relaxing, organized, gorgeously thought-out Sahara Dance Studio when I get the chance. Lucky for me, there are some great tribal dance teachers there like Ebony & Na'la, and they hosted Mardi Love there last weekend too. But the studio is primarily cabaret/egyptian in background/taste/feel. Thus when I went to their hafla on Saturday night, it was not particularly surprising that I felt a little...out of my element. It was held at a dance club that they had rented out just for us dancers (Pasha Lounge). Unfortunately, the air conditioning was not functioning and the sound quality was pretty bad. Also, the DJ was not good at helping dancers dance (changing up rhythm constantly. Slow! Fast! Sl-ast!). Watching the beginner dancers show their stuff was sweet. I'm glad to support the new dancers--they're clearly having fun. But in all, there was a lot more pink and chincy coin hip scarves than I'm used to. Just not really...my scene...is all.

This was my favorite moment of the night: Na'la w/ her dance crew.

Sunday night, I ventured out to Adams Morgan, for DC Tribal Cafe's last event at Asylum. I was immediately greeted with hugs from Mavi and her husband Michael, Na'la, and friendly welcomes from everyone else. The bar itself is clearly in Goth (dungeon?) mode--dungeon stone painted on the wall, plastic skeleton parts ensconced in frames, draping blood red cloth and chandeliers...you get the picture. This backdrop didn't speak to me, persay, but the people did. There were a lot more piercings, dredlocks, tattoos, and, most importantly, wide-as-hell grins. These were the smiles of people 100% comfortable in their skin. Not the timid, polite smiles of many of the hafla-goers from the night before. THIS made me feel right at home. The evening followed: live sitar and whirling by Ever After (and some dancing on the bar!)

mesmerizing ATS (echoing in my head, Mardi saying, "the dance stands on its own, it's so lovely")

and Belladonna's raucous and intense renditions of Alien (?) and some Rage Against the Machine (FUCK YOU I WON'T DO WHAT YOU TELL ME!). Her swordwork was enviable and her costume perfect for the Extra-Terrestrial song.

I had an excellent time. It's so amazing to know I have people (these are my people!) wherever there are tribal dancers. Glee. And next month I'll be dancing at their new venue with Mavi and Na'la. Sweet.

[sorry for the crappy phone photos. I got my camera out so I wouldn't forget it, and then left it on the sink before I left the house.]

Magnolia

2011-06-28T00:48:00.003-04:00

A song by the Toids, "Magnolia," matches the purity and loveliness of a large, simple, full magnolia bloom. I encourage you to listen. Free download here.

Mimosa & Bottlebrush

2011-06-28T00:44:00.002-04:00

In Monterey there are bottle brush.

Here in the Southeast, we have the more delicate Mimosa.

Built-in Friends

2011-06-26T14:42:00.003-04:00

Leah Severino (IEP), Me (IEP,with full mouth) and Jonathan's roommate

Adam Fullerton (IEP), Lisa Johnston (IEP), her husband Dodon Dimyati

Jonathan Souza (NTS)

It's nice there are so many other students from MIIS in DC. We've had several opportunities to hang out: a happy hour put together by Nelle Sacknoff (MBA), the DPMI happy hour put together by Jessy Bradish (IEP) (which the rest of us MIISers crashed), MIIS alumni happy hour put together by Leah Gowron. And one night we all went out to Lisa & Dodon's apartment to make some pizza and hang out.

Antiqueing and Ginger Root

2011-06-26T10:50:00.006-04:00

Yesterday, I used the Capital Bikeshare bikes no less than three times. How freeing not to be hampered by the prescribed metro lines or the soreness of my feet. I love that I can bike DC.

I am on a quest to find some antique buttons to put on a jacket I have whose buttons fell off and were boring anyway. I visited a couple antique stores, like Ruff and Ready (this place is like going into a hoarder's house. But with antiques. If you truly wanted to find something here, it would take a loooong time to sift through everything)

and GoodWood (This place is beautiful! Treasures, all.)

and some other vintage stores in the neighborhood (U street corridor). I met up with Kaelan, one of my best friends from Powell County (high school), and we had fun making faces in the antique carnival mirror,

trying on shoes, and so on.

Then she took me down to her friend Erin's shop, Ginger Root Designs. I LOVED IT! TOTALLY MY STYLE! (Another super cute photo here).

Erin and Kristen take old clothes and jewelry and you-name-it, and upcycle it into super fashion-forward loveliness. Same ethos I have for Verdance--taking old things and giving them new life instead of throwing them away, and giving them a life that is current instead of outdated. For instance, check out this BEFORE:

and AFTER:

I bought an ascot, I just love it. Will wear it tonight....photos to come. In the meantime, a little video of them. I'm a little bit obsessed right now. I love finding like-minded people unexpectedly!

Sub-sea ice Mussel Hunters

2011-06-25T00:56:00.001-04:00

Whoa.

Exercising in DC

2011-06-23T00:11:00.004-04:00

Without homework, without my boyfriend or my kitties, without much to do, really, I've been devoting much of my time to dance classes, kettlebell/TRX (weight training) classes, and other exercise regimens. This, in addition to all the walking that DC demands, means that I am constantly in a state of soreness. It's the good kind: the kind that says "body, thank you for your ability to re-form itself."

Usually when I carry heavy loads, I let my bones do all the work. Today, however, when I walked home with 2 full bags of groceries, I felt my rhomboids and other muscles in my shoulders and back in a major way. It made me think of my friend Rebeckah Berry's beautiful back.

I'm super wimpy in my upper body, so it's kinda neat to feel whispers of strength.

(Incidentally, one really cool thing is that when I googled Rebeckah to put a picture of her here, this image was the first that came up, and it was from an article written in 2006 by Abbie Beane, one of my current classmates at MIIS. Small world.)

Dolly Dearest

2011-06-22T22:39:00.003-04:00

These incredible dolls have me very inspired. Like no dolls I've seen before, these are masterworks of art. Love them.

Not yet finished.

Finished. From the back.

Dolly dearest. Early 1900's "Boudoir doll"

Sir Robert Swan

2011-06-16T11:09:00.006-04:00

Last night I went to hear Sir Robert Swan speak for the Resources for the Future lecture series. He was the 1st man to walk to both the South Pole (900 miles) AND the North Pole (700 miles). Due to global warming and the melting polar ice sheet up north, he may be only person ever to be able to accomplish this feat. (Click here for video) On the way to the South Pole, they had food for 80 days pulled on sledges. They had to cross 6000 crevasses, averaged 12 miles per day, and only had a sextant and a watch to guide them. On days that they didn't move at least a mile south, they didn't eat (he lost 67 lbs). The average temperature was negative 65 degrees farenheit. They made it in 70 days. The ozone hole was discovered during the same time they were traversing the continent, and thus they were not prepared for their faces blistering and eye colors changing permanently. "We hadn't read in Scott's diary (first man to walk to the South Pole), 'chaps face fell off today, all blind, rather tricky'--it wasn't something we were expecting," he joked. He asked how many people knew that the ozone hole was patching itself up nicely nowadays, and I was one of only 3 people in the room of 150 audience members who was aware of that fact (thank you, Jim Williams' Quant class). Next year he plans to reverse the trip, starting at the South Pole and heading north to Cape Evans. He hopes to do it using only renewable energies (no coal or gas this time!), and they plan to harness the wind (imagine parachute/kites pulling them on skies), to complete the trek in only 45 days!

Sir Swan was super, super inspiring. As someone who has recently begun to explore the nexus between storytelling/inspiration/performance and intellectual/environmental/lecture-based presentation, his lecture was just what I needed to see how it can be done well.

He goes to Antarctica every February with a group of determined, passionate people; to share the awe of the place, so they can take back their stories and inspire others to care about Antarctica too. (Pick me! Pick me! I have always wanted to go to Antarctica, and am seriously scheming about this.)

Other notes from the lecture:

I try to live by, "If you can do or dream you can, begin it now. For boldness has genius, power, and magic in it."

I keep hearing "save the planet!". The planet will look after itself, it's our involvement in it that may suffer. However, "the greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it"

4 things I have learned:
1) I hate walking

2) negative 89 degrees Farenheit is cold. I don't like sweat ice in my underpants.

3)no insurance agency dares insure my life

4) there are so many negative people. We MUST be positive because no one is inspired by negativity.

You never forget starving, I hope you never have, but it makes you grateful not to starve.

People ask me "Why did you do it?" I remembered my dreams. Don't lose yours!

Leadership is delivery agains the odds, with minimum resources. If you make a committment, follow through. Inspire others by showing it, living it, don't just send an email. Get out there and DO it! Leadership is about response to challenge. But it's also about being RELEVANT, not just honorable and good. STAY RELEVANT.

On a team, choose different and strong people. Tell eachother the truth. Laugh. On the way, look for champions (people who will support you!)

Sometimes leadership is supporting people to do their jobs.

He was in debt $1.2 million at age 28 (the boat he borrowed to get to Antarctica sunk), and it took him 10 yrs to pay off (there's hope for me yet!). Later, with $12 million and 8 yrs, he was able to remove 1500 tons of Soviet scrap metal from Antarctica and recycle it in Uruguay.

We are overloaded with information, we don't need information. We need inspiration. The best way to be inspiring is to engage people rather than talking at them. He invites young people, globally to join him on his ventures to achieve this. It's about Sustainable Inspiration, which is not difficult to achieve in a gloomy world, but it is important to revist the inspiration ourselves so we don't get bogged down as we do our jobs.

Apartment landed

2011-06-14T10:10:00.006-04:00

My second day of work was spent looking for a place to live. I found a place, went to check it out, and though it was in a sketchy neighborhood, the inside of the apartment was very nice, each bedroom locked, and I would have shared the house with 4 or 5 other people who seemed very nice. One of their friends said, "yeah, we have parties here all the time"--which was a bit disconcerting for someone who doesn't really party. However, I figured I could just use my earplugs and lock my door if they were having too much fun without me. I agreed to the place and planned on moving in the next day.

Thank goodness I was offered a better deal the following morning! At $100 cheaper, 2 metro stops closer to work, in a much better neighborhood, with a single (excellent) roommate who is also a WWF intern (from France), only a block from the grocery and 2 blocks from the metro station: this place was a winner! It reminds me of the Lyndhurst apartment Ben and I lived in in Lexington: old building with beautiful original accents like a marble staircase in the entranceway and old glass 'exit' sconces, etc.

I snapped that one up, cancelled my other option, stayed one more night with Lisa & Dodon (thanks guys!) and moved into my new apartment the next day.

Time to unpack, finally!

All moved in. Cozy and organized.

All my special pretties in their own drawer. It's nice to be able to spread out.

Hostas in my neighborhood. Very southeast summer feel for me.

Sunlight on my ridiculous # of shoes.

The quality of light in this high-ceilinged apartment is wonderful.

Commuting. The Metro. Welcome to the rat race.

2011-06-14T09:45:00.005-04:00

These metro stations always remind me of the inside of the pantheon

I am so impressed and pleased with my workplace, my colleagues, my apartment, the opportunities here in DC (free concerts, free lectures, ample dance/yoga/exercise classes). But the fact remains: I'm just not a Big City person. It's great for a summer. And I might be able to handle it for a year or so, but the daily commute sucks the life outta me. Public transportation is SO much more efficient (and therefore better for the environment) than individual cars, and cities are more efficient than sprawl. But I am very happy in Monterey where I can walk to work from my house in 20 minutes and enjoy the sky above, the lovely flowers

gratuitous flower picture from my walk to work in Monterey

and zero hustling and bustling. Here, I am only 2 metro stops from my destination, but it takes me 40 minutes (on a fast day) to get from door to door. The plus side of that is that I get plenty more walking in than I do normally. In fact, the first week here, Lisa and Leah (other MIIS students here for internships) and I commisserated about our poor feet. We all had blisters up the wazoo from the extra walking. The heat and my new collection of shoes didn't help (although they did spread the blisters all over my feet instead of concentrating them in one place).

Here you can see a blister ON another blister. No joke!

Thoughts while I'm commuting:

(on the escalator going down, standing, people passing me) "Why are they all passing me? Why are they in such a rush? Do they know something I don't know? Should I be rushing to catch the last train or somthing?"

(on the escaltor going down, walking, passing others) "These shoes are loud, the way the heel smacks the step everytime, I bet everyone is annoyed at me. Whoa, this escalator is so long I'm getting vertigo walking down it. Muscles, just keep doing what you're doing because my vision is spinning."

(on the escalator going up, escalator turned off) "It was 75 steps to walk up when it was ON, now it's almost 200 steps to walk up. Isn't already hot enough without having to hike up this escalator mountain with a bunch of shoving people?"

(on the metro, air conditioning broken) "In the belly of the earth, broiling, OMG I hope we don't break down before my stop"

Working at the World Wildlife Fund

2011-06-12T20:57:00.004-04:00

Wow. Here I am. This childhood dream of mine, come true: working at the World Wildlife Fund. Yes, it's as an intern, and true, WWF is not paying me...but I am at WWF US headquarters, working on important documents and contributing to conservation in a measurable and meaningful way. Thirty-one years is a long time to wait for that dream to come true, and I have worked really hard to get here! Now that I'm here, I am trying my best to stay focused and produce high quality work as fast as possible, to help my team make all their deadlines preparedly. I feel welcome here with my own cubicle with a name tag. Sometimes, it's the little things.

I am impressed with how enormous the WWF building is (7 stories with 4 dedicated to WWF work), and how many people work here (I estimate between 400-1000 individuals). It's hard to tell, exactly, because so many people work from home or travel so often for work. Everyone is generous and friendly, and so far most people make a point of introducing themselves to the new people they don't recognize (me and the other interns). I spent a full day in orientation when I first arrived: some history of WWF, discussion of WWF ethos and projects, and nuts-and-bolts topics.

There's a Trader Joe's a block away, and a field out back where people play ultimate frisbee and soccer most days at lunchtime (phew, a bit too hot for me this week, though I did make it for one game). Mostly, I just work hard. More on what that entails later.