Liz!

May is a big month for me. This will show in my posts or lack thereof...

In addition to Mother's Day and Memorial Day, May is a month of family birthdays.
(And I'm starting to have quite a few friends with birthdays in May as well.) So, I hope you will indulge a few more tribute entries.

Friday was my sister's birthday. My sister, Elizabeth, is my only sibling and it's a miracle we didn't seriously maim each other when we were younger. (I would say "it's a miracle we didn't kill each other when we were younger", but I've come to learn that our sibling rivalry pales in comparison to others.)

Liz and I were pretty adept at bringing out each other's dark side back then. My dark side was sardonic and dismissive. Liz could be obstinate and explosive. She threw the most physical punches, but my verbal darts could be even more painful. As the older sister, I tended to ignore her a lot which created a lot of resentment on her part. I believed, on the whole, life would be a lot easier without an aggravating little sister.

Thank goodness the universe doesn't give in to such naive little desires.

Who could guess that the one person who causes the most vexation in one chapter of your life would turn out to be the most supportive in the next?

At some point in our 20's, I think we both realized the impact of having an estranged sibling. It just feels wrong on a molecular level. Something is not quite right with the universe when your sister isn't talking to you. Yes, life goes on and, yes, it's a pretty good life, but something is missing!

So, we started doing what it takes to forgive those childhood injustices. Sometimes that forgiveness takes a lot of work. But, Liz and I are no strangers to hard work.

I am so proud of my sister for who she is today. She is a direct, yet compassionate communicator. She is incredibly generous. She supports me in all the paths I choose to take, but she's also the first to hold me to account for my actions. There is the most wonderful connection between us that I guess you only ever have with a sibling.

I love you, Liz. Happy Birthday....

The Mother's Day cycle...

Sheesh - time got away from me this week!

So I promised in my last post that I would tell you what impact having my particular mother has had on my life, so here goes. (We have birthday "cycles" in my family largely due to the fact that a few of us have a hard time getting things in the mail in time to arrive on or close to the actual day, so we'll just call this the "Mother's Day Cycle" and extend M's Day another week since I'm late getting back to this post.)

In the last post, I laid out some quirky details about Mom. In this one, I would like to tell you about the three most important lessons she has taught me during my lifetime.

Lesson # 1: How to stand up for myself and say the things I need to say even when I'm terrified to say them.

I started dating my first real boyfriend in 8th grade. I was crazy over him! Gargantuan butterflies in my stomach kind of crazy. We went to 2 different schools, but had the same AG teacher and I met him on an AG field trip. I was stunned that he was interested in me and life was very fairy-taleish for a few months! Until he called one day to tell me that our AG teacher had approached him and asked if I was really his girlfriend. When he said yes, she proceeded to tell him that she couldn't see why he would be interested in me. She said I was irresponsible and immature and that he could do better than me. He told me all of this while I sat dumb-founded, cradling the receiver in my hands. I can't remember saying anything. I think I just hung up and sat sobbing in my room until my mom came to ask what was wrong.

I told her what my teacher had said about me. Needless to say, my mother was pretty irate. I was sure she was going to go down to school and read that teacher the riot act! (My mom is great at reading the riot act to people when needed. I myself have been on the receiving end a time or two.) Instead, she sat me down and told me I was going to have to confront this teacher myself. She told me what to say, which was good because I had a huge mish-mash of hurt and confusion in my brain. She told me to do it first thing the next day and that if I had any trouble, well... she had my back.

And I did. My heart was pounding out of my chest! I had never had to confront anyone before, much less an adult! I stopped the teacher in the hallway before the first bell and said how hurt I was and how disappointed I was in her as a mentor. That if she thought I was irresponsible and immature, what does she think of herself for saying such things behind some one's back. (Sounds pretty good... huh. Just followed the script Mom gave me, but it summed up all of my tumultuous feelings nicely.)

Since then, I've always had that ability to have the hard conversations. I can say things I need to say even when my heart is pounding and I feel like I might pass out. And, if I ever need to sort out the main issue from the mish-mash, my Mom is only a phone call away.

Lesson # 2: Never sacrifice my self to make someone else happy. (This is quite different from making sacrifices for other people.)

Most of you know that I am married to a wonderful man who happens to be Muslim. You also know that I love him and, in spite of that, things aren't going to work out for us marriage-wise. It has taken us 5 years to come to that conclusion. During those 5 years, I was confronted on so many levels! Do I convert to Islam so I won't lose the man I love? How can I honor his traditions and be myself at the same time? How do I live in the same house with someone who truly believes I am going to hell?

My marriage to Ahmed is one of the greatest miracles of my life. Our relationship could have turned ugly very early on. Part of the reason that I have been able to stay the course and build a loving relationship with Ahmed as well as honoring my own belief system is because I have my mother's voice ringing in my head. "Sarah, stay true to who you are."

My mother presided over our wedding. She has adopted Ahmed as her own son. She has a lot invested in our relationship and supports us as a couple, no matter what the future looks like. Still, whenever I call her for advice that one sentence is her most passionate precept. As a result, I have done the work it takes to draw my boundaries and to let Ahmed know who I am and who I'll never be. Because I am doing that work, he is as well. We have stopped pretending with each other. We have stopped trying to mold each other into the perfect spouse. We are happy. And we are happily getting separated. And we have an extraordinary future ahead of us. My mother will continue to love him as a son and to teach him the same lesson she has taught me... "Stay true to who you are."

Lesson # 3: The world is a spectacular place to live.

I told you earlier that my Mom loves bird-watching. That is just the pinnacle of the love-affair she has with life in general. I remember driving with her around the mountains of western NC and listening to her exclaim about the flaming azaleas and dogwoods. She is constantly delighted with the natural world. She loves the stark beauty of Winter as much as the extravagant florals of Spring.

I often meet women who are fighting the natural cycles of life. Women who defy age as long as they can with cosmetic surgery and expensive anti-wrinkle creams. My mother is 57 and she is one of the only women I know who is looking forward to turning 60! I have never had a fear of growing older because my mother makes it seem like so much fun.

My hope for the future is that Mom and I will be able to explore the world together, that we will continue to delight in growing older together, that we will help each other to unlock the many facets of who we are, and that we will always know that we are in each other's corner.

I love you, Mom, and I am honored to be your daughter.

Happy Mother's Day cycle!

Happy Mother's Day!

I thought I'd come out of my recent reticence for a very important post on a very important day!

This is the day I get to honor my mother.

I was born 30 years ago to a truly incredible woman. Her name is Helen Louise which is wonderfully descriptive of who she is in the world; Helen meaning "light" and Louise meaning "renowned fighter". She is a notable warrior for goodness in the world.

For those of you who haven't met my mother, here are a few of my favorite details about her:

1. She was a hippie. She believed in all of the great hippie values: peace, love, and happiness. She still does! Even better, she was a hippie who somehow avoided naming me Moonray or Sundance.
2. She was a debutante. I love this little piece of my mom's history. You should see the pictures... she was so gorgeous with a huge bouquet of roses and a sixties flip. She actually tried to get out of "coming out", but you know how southern aristocratic families are.
   
3. She was a theatre major. I remember growing up watching my mom in community theatre. She was Nancy in Oliver and Peter in Peter Pan. I have very vivid memories of watching her being strangled by Bill Sykes in rehearsals. I was only 5 or 6 and was horrified the first time, but then, when she miraculously came back to life backstage, I was able to watch her being killed over and over with no apparent psychological scarring! If you have a chance, ask her about kissing a Prince in Into the Woods. Very funny story Here she is singing a solo in Coming of Age.
4. She has never been afraid to make a career change. My mother has tried her hand at many jobs during my lifetime: College Counselor, Psych Ward Director, Ski Patroller, Hospice Management.... and she always seems to know when it's time to make a change. A few years ago, she was ordained as an Episcopal Priest and is very committed to this calling. Still, she has an inner entrepreneur and I wouldn't be surprised if she opens a business on the side!
5. She is an avid birdwatcher. My mother is as excited to tell me about day-to-day birdfeeder dramas as she is about a great movie she may have seen. She always seems to be shocked and honored when a rare "crested whatsit" chooses to grace her back porch. If George Clooney rang her doorbell, I don't think he would get the same reaction! Poor George!
6. She is one of the most open-minded people I know. Um - I could go into some detail here, but probably shouldn't. Let's just say, social scandals never phase my Mom. She is as gracious to a surprise child born out of wedlock or an overly rude elder or the neighborhood vagrant as she is to any upstanding citizen. This comes in quite handy when a certain daughter calls home announce a sudden commitment ceremony to a foreign man her mother has never met.
7. She has a strange and unwavering commitment to make a Christmas dessert that no one ever eats. The desert is called Ribbon Salad and if you have a hankering to try such a thing, please come by our house around the 25th of December. Bring some friends. There will be more than enough to go around seeing as how, otherwise, it will sit untouched in the fridge until the New Year when it is thrown out with the tree.
   
8. She was allergic to cats and avoided having an indoor cat until she was tricked by the bleeding hearts of Holy Cross Church into saving a stranded kitten. She named the kitten "Dipsh*t" because she was pretty annoyed at having to care for a pitiful animal she never wanted in the first place. The more time Mom spent with that kitten, the fonder she became of the little fuzzball. "Dipsh*t" became "Dingbat" then just "Ding" and then "Ring". At some point Mom added the Ms. and Ms. Ring wound up living with us until she died many years later. She was my mother's favorite pet.

So there is an introduction... later today I'll tell you about the impact she's had on my life and the many gifts she's given me over the years. I love you Mom!

Treasures for the Senses

I woke up feeling particularly wealthy this morning.

Not in the monetary sense, (I tend to fall in the starving artist category), but more so in the details-of-life sense. So, I thought I would share the wealth today and this will probably turn out to be a long entry! I am opening my mental treasure chests. These are my personal treasures, but maybe they will spark a query about your own.

A Treasure of Words: Words are the simplest treasure. They are exquisite on their own, little sparkling gems without a setting, or strung into opulent aural necklaces. Here is a gem for each letter of the alphabet and a list of my favorite master-jewelers.

astonish * beetle * coriander * denizen * ellipse * frisky * gossamer * harlequin * incarnadine * jinx * kimono * legendary * macabre * nimble * oubliette * pepper * quince * rascal * sphinx * tempest * ultramarine * vertigo * whisper * xylocopa * yonder * zombie

Dorothy Dunnett * Angela Carter * Edgar Allen Poe * Neil Gaiman
William Shakespeare * Dylan Thomas * Charles Dickens * Mary Shelley

A Treasure of Creatures: I am an avid fan of shows like Nature and Planet Earth because they allow me to revel in the varieties of species. Technology is now so advanced, we can view the nocturnal habits of creatures we once thought were pure myth like the Hawk Moth. Here is my top ten list of bugs and beasties, (click on each entry to find out more about them:

1 - Bower Birds
2 - The Black and White Colobus Monkey
3 - The Flamboyant Cuttlefish
4 - Coleoptera: Lampyridae
5 - The Polar Bear
6 - The Emperor Tamarin
7 - The Golden Orb-Weaving Spider
8 - The Giraffe
9 - The Snowy Owl
10 - The Pygmy Marmoset Tarsier

A Treasure of Music: There are pieces of music that make my molecules hum. If only you could be a fly on the wall to see me dancing in my living room! You'd get a good laugh. I am so happy these soundtracks were put out into the world! They cover all kinds of emotional ground: triumph, wonder, desperation, madness, comfort, loss. The ones I've listed may not be the most well known by that particular composer, but they are the ones that I employ as the soundtracks for my own story.

1. Close Encounters of the Third Kind - John Williams
2. Edward Scissorhands - Danny Elfman
3. The Last Starfighter, (main title) - Craig Safan
4. Twin Peaks - Angelo Badalamenti
5. Sommersby - Danny Elfman
6. Glory - James Horner
7. Requiem For a Dream - Clint Mansell
8. Batman - Danny Elfman
9. The Mission - Ennio Morricone
10. Amadeus - Mozart and others

Not so Manic...

Hello all -

I hope you had as great a weekend as I had. The sun really does wonders for my whole outlook on life. It's a good thing I don't live in Siberia or Seattle or a cave somewhere... no offence to Siberians or Seattleans or hermits.

I am sitting here at my little wooden desk next to the window and the breeze is so nice! I was out and about over the weekend and here are a few pictures I took:

:

Those are the spires of Grace Episcopal Church in Manhattan. It's not the biggest cathedral, but it's one of the prettiest. Lots of buds still waiting to flower.


And - I went yarn shopping. Yes, I hate to admit it, but yarn shopping is one of my vices. Nope - don't drink. Nope - don't smoke. Nope - don't do drugs. But, boy, I can spend a ton of money on yarn! I had to learn how to knit so I'd have something to do with all of that stuff! My favorite 2 yarn shops in the world are: Purl Soho in Manhattan and The Quarter Stitch in New Orleans. Purl Soho has a great blog called The Purl Bee with lots of good tutorials if you want to learn how to knit or crochet. The Quarter Stitch is slightly behind when it comes to online presence, but their storefront is the best! I'll dig up a photo and post it soon.

Here are the yarns I bought. And below is one of the projects I'd like to use them for... who doesn't need a pair of harlequin knee-highs? Yummy.

Woah - way past my bedtime! I have a ton of drafting to do tomorrow and Leese is a whipcracker, so I'm off. Have a great Tuesday!

Meet Olivia Grace

I finally have some pictures of the newest member of my family: Olivia Grace! The first picture is my uncle Casey with his tiny daughter. I wonder if she's going to be as tall as he is! Look at those teensy fingers against his giant ones! She has a ways to go.

Here is Olivia with 1) Grandma, 2) her mother, Cathy, and 3) her big brother Ben.

Great job, Cathy! Hmmm... now I have a baby to knit for! Yay!

A Sun Infusion

We finally got a bit of sun in the city today.

*dancing a jig, dancing a jig*

It made me so happy, I decided to come home and create some abstract color pieces in Adobe Illustrator. I just allowed myself to play with colors, patterns, and overlays... I had no specific vision in mind.

Here are the results:

The ringmaster returns...

Thank you, everyone, for participating in my previous post.

The Parlour Room will remain open for several days, so, if you haven't introduced yourself yet, please do so! I did find out that some people have the email feature confused with the comment feature. Also - please know that you don't have to leave an email address or url to leave a comment. Just your name will do. Or an alias if you are paranoid about little "looking glass spyders" tracking you down!

To our lurker: thanks for saying you are out there! I love mysterious messages from mysterious people. And - somehow, I don't think you are the only one.

I received a request for more pictures and saw that Julie said something about that on Joe's blog as well, so I will honor that request.

One other thing:
If you look to the left you will see a feature called "Sarah's Amorphic Library". This is a collection of entries on other blogs that might interest you. Adventures in chicken knitting, for instance, and regular posts from Neil Gaiman's journal, among others.

Stay tuned for a few more Stardust stills and a few other tidbits.

Parlour Room

OK - so this is a special kind of post.

This is the "Parlour Room" of posts.

Most of you visit on a regular basis. Thank you! That's exactly what keeps me writing. (I was never much of a journal writer mainly because I always thought: what's the point in writing something no one is ever going to read?)

The great thing about blogs is that it gives the reader a chance to respond. See the tiny little link below this, (and every), post that reads "comment"? That is the interactive element on this page! That little button gives you a voice! How exciting!

OK - so most of you know this. Please be patient while I bring the rest of the class up to date. (My mom, for instance, may have a ton of trouble figuring this out... sorry, mom, but you know it's true! )

Bloggers love comments. Comments validate our existence. Comments make this whole exercise feel more like a conversation than a dissertation. Comments also let you know who else is reading...

Let me tell you that one of the driving forces for me to be here is to build a community of people who love life, art, and unique expressions of existence. Thanks for being here! Please spread the word... and - since this is the "Parlour Room" post, please introduce yourself! BTW - anytime you see Parlour Room, that will be an opportunity to make your presence known. Shall we see how crowded it will get in here by the end of the year?

And now, your host will take her seat and give you the stage.

*much clapping and whistling from the audience*

Infuriated by Lost? Get your answers here.

After my first aid class yesterday, I received a number of phone calls from various people. We chatted. I filled them in on my Saturday whereabouts. Then they would ask the inevitable question... "Sarah, you are a designer. Why on earth would you want to take a first aid class?"

Here are my answers listed in chronological order. If you get the heebie-jeebies easily, I would skip this post.

In 2001, I worked at a scenery shop in Manhattan. My boss had a sudden seizure. He flipped out of his rolling office chair and cracked his head on the concrete floor. His eyes were rolled back into his head. There was blood seeping out of an abrasion somewhere on his skull. No one in the shop knew what to do.

In 2003, I was riding a bus on my way to work one morning. As we pulled into the bus stop, everyone on the bus jumped up and started screaming. I was the last to get off the bus. I saw an obviously mentally ill man flailing his arm in the air. His arm was flopping in an unnatural manner. Blood was spurting from the place where his bone was jutting through the skin. (He had been riding on the bus with his arm out the window. When we rounded the corner, his arm was crunched between the bus and a parked truck.) Everyone who had been on the bus was standing in a circle around him, but no one was making a move to help him. And, I admit, it was an intimidating situation.

In January of this year, I was riding the subway when a man tried to hop on the train before the doors closed and didn't make it. The doors closed on his shoulders and he fell forward onto his face. Apparently, something had broken in his back and he couldn't move. It took 15 minutes for the paramedics to arrive.

In March of this year, I was walking down the street when a teenager walked up to me and asked where the nearest emergency room was. He was holding a bloody napkin over a cut on his arm. I asked him what happened and he said he had been attacked by another group of kids. Then he showed me the stab wound in his back.

In all of these situations, I immediately jumped in to help. It's not something I think about. When I see someone who needs help, my first thought is how to help them. Unfortunately, my second thought is: "Crap... what if I just wind up making the situation worse?"

Up until now, I've been lucky. I did exactly the right thing for my boss. I could have done more for the guy on the bus and the kid with the stab wounds if I knew then what I know now. And, lucky for the man on the train, there was a doctor in the subway car.

Like I said, when your living in a city packed with 8 million people, you are bound to run into a few injuries here or there. So, if you are a designer, (or a lawyer/writer/producer/ad exec/house cleaner/etc...) with a penchant for responding to emergency situations, I highly recommend studying up on your first aid skills. You could very well save someone's finger/leg/memory/range of motion/life.

Here is the link for class listings at The American Red Cross of Greater NY. And a link for Red Cross websites anywhere else in the country.

Early Bird Gets the Splint

Hey everybody.

I don't think a single one of you is up yet. Well... maybe a few of you are peeking though puffy eyelids at 7:30 on a Saturday morning.

I am up! I've had my Joe and I'm ready to go...

My friend Julie and I are off to a Standard First Aid class today. Why? you ask...

Well, it's a long story. And a gross one. But, I'll tell you about it later. Don't worry, I'm not concerned about your knee-jerk disgust reflexes. I just don't have time right now. Suffice it to say, I have Samaritan tendencies, but don't know a darn thing about first aid. And, when you're walking around in city packed with 8 million people you are bound to run into a few injuries here or there.

Yikes! Time flies when I'm here and it's almost 7:45... so I'm off! Have a great Saturday and I'll see you on the other side of the CPR dummy.

Over and Out

Papaya!

Here is another flower in my Garden of Bizarre Delights. I love PaPaYa's artwork. Here is a link to Anahata Katkin's blog so you can get to know the mind behind the makings. Whenever I need a good visual infusion, I go there or to Papaya's online store to gorge myself on the color. What a feast!

I miss you
Originally uploaded by Anahata Katkin.

Wednesday and a Star...

I love Wednesday nights...

Well, for the next 3 months I will. I am taking an incredible seminar at Landmark Education called the Living Passionately seminar. (Those who know me know that I already live life pretty passionately - but hey if you're addicted to chocolate, what is there to do but eat more chocolate?)

This is what I am aiming for during the course of the seminar:

1) Getting my own studio.

2) Generating a new, (and very different), future with my husband.

3) Setting myself up so I can move into my dream apartment with joy and ease.

4) Playing for the sake of playing... games that I make up.

Hmmm - I am sure there will be more to come, but that's a good start.

I am so grateful that Landmark Education is on the planet. The Landmark Forum was the greatest ride I have ever taken. I wish I could do it all over again just to experience those first time mind-blowing realizations. If you register - let me know. I love hearing the stories of Forum graduates!

OK - so on to other news: Stardust is coming out this fall. Just in time for my birthday! I have been a fan of Neil Gaiman since highschool (early 90's) and this is one of my favorite Gaiman stories. Here is a picture of Claire Danes as The Star.

Isn't she gorgeous? There are more yummy photos that you can see here.

The design is so delicious - I can hardly wait... OK- off to bed. Sleep tight. Don't let the bedbugs bite!

The Garden of Bizarre Delights

Super (Mario) Cake
Originally uploaded by alt text.

So, I am starting a segment entitled above. It is to be a smattering of strange and whimsical curiosities. Click on the related label periodically to find what other objects I may place in the Garden...

Here is the first.
*sigh*

Makes me a little nostalgic.

By the way - it's a wedding cake incase you didn't notice Mario and the Princess perched on the top. I wish I could see the rest of the wedding decorations!

Itty Bitty Monday post...

Just peeking in to say hi...

Oh! And I have an announcement to make. I have a new 1st cousin! Her name is Olivia Grace and she was born today to my Aunt Cathy and Uncle Casey. If they send me a picture, I'll post it up for all to see. Everyone says she's beautiful!

That's one of the only drawbacks about living so far from your family... never being there for those moments. Maybe Casey will get a webcam and I'll be able to see them that way! (Hint hint, Casey... and congratulations. I hope she inherits your hug and Cathy's smile.)

On other fronts, another cousin is in town this week who happens to be the managing director of the Richmond Ballet. He always brings a few comp passes for me and my friends... lucky, lucky us! He is also partly responsible for:

1) Taking me to my first live Rocky Horror Picture Show extravaganza,
2) Almost killing me several times during bumper cars at the beach,
3) Getting me an audition at NC School of the Arts... whereby starting my illustrious arts career.

And he put up with me during my loony teenager years. Ask him about my wardrobe sometimes...he loves to tell that story.

OK - off to bed. Sleep tight, peeps. (Not you... all those other peeps I didn't eat for Easter. Lucky little ducks... er... chicks.)

Here is part of one project I am working on...

As you can see, I was a little gloomy this week because we had a great Spring teaser and then the winter weather returned! Sad for me! So, I was in a Poe mood. Those of you who are fans of The Labyrinth will know about oubliettes. For those of you who haven't seen The Labyrinth, you should. Here are 3 good reasons:

1 - classic Henson puppetry.

2 - The Bog of Eternal Stench

3 - David Bowie in tights with killer glam-rock hair.

OK, now that I have Bowie in my head, I guess I'll head off to bed.

*squeezes*

How do you trick a trickster?

So - I hatched a brilliant plan this week.

Luckily, I had the help of two cohorts: Julie and Leese.

But, before I get to that... let me out myself on one small character flaw: I am terrible at creating my own artwork! I mean, I have no stick-to-it-iveness when it comes to self promotional pieces. ARGH! I have battled with myself over this issue for years!

This is how it happens:

SCENE: beautiful Saturday in cozy NY apartment. Sun streaming in windows. Cats purring. Girl sits on couch sipping the last bit of coffee and pondering the agenda for the day.

GIRL: "Hmmmm... great day to start that Kabuki-inspired floral self-portrait I've been meaning to do. Don't you think so, Gizmo?"

GIZMO looks at girl steadily as if to say, "Yeah, right... we've been through this a million times..." GIZMO yawns and goes back to sleep.

GIRL pulls out her sketch pad and starts to clean off the coffee table so she will have a clean work surface. In the process, she uncovers:

(any of the following could work for this scene)

a half finished scarf made of a gorgeous hand-dyed wool/mohair blend...
a scrap of paper with the phone number of an old friend she's been meaning to call...
an unpaid bill that was due two days ago...

which, predictably, throws her totally off the self-promotional track! Kabuki-inspired floral portraits fade from her memory as she gets lost in the task at hand. If only she had uncovered a wacom tablet and the Porcelain font! *sigh*

Happens every Saturday! Sheesh!

So, here's the plot twist that will save our heroine from her self-sabotaging foibles:

SCENE: gorgeous spring day in Central Park. GIRL sits with two friends and adorable Boston terrier. (Scene has been paraphrased due to terrible memory of scriptwriter.)

FRIEND ONE: "So, when are we actually going to see all of these brilliant works you are always going on about?"

GIRL: "I know, I know... I need to get them done. Especially of I'm going to set up my own web-site soon! I just never seem to have the time!"

FRIEND TWO: "Wait a second... every time I call you, you are at home lounging around! What about all that time?"

GIRL sighs a huge sigh. "Oh... crap. The truth is the only time I ever get anything creative done is when (A) it's a present for someone's birthday or (B) I'm doing it for money! I just can't seem to get motivated on my own time!"

FRIEND ONE: "So who has money to pay you for all that self-promotional work you want to do? Seems kind of like the chicken-or-the-egg problem to me."

GIRL: "Yeah, exactly! See how frustrating that is? Why do the work if I'm not getting pa... HEY! Wait a second! I've got it!"

SECOND FRIEND: "By George, I think she's got it!"

GIRL: "What if I pay myself? I just need to put a huge chunk of money in a safe place and make sure it doesn't get back to me until I deliver the pieces I've commissioned from myself! Ha! That'll show me! Yes! Just when I think all is lost, I go and think up something brilliant!"

FRIEND ONE: "Brilliant!"

FRIEND TWO: "Brilliant!"

SCENE 2: ATM machine on a busy Manhattan street.

GIRL takes out large sum of cash and hands it over to FRIEND ONE. Smiles all around. Even the Boston terrier seems to be grinning. GIRL goes home happily, knowing she can't possibly pay her bills until she follows through on some very important commissions.

THE END

So, you see? Who says you can't be your own boss? You just also have to have an extremely trustworthy accounts-payable representative and a little bit of start-up cash. Keep an eye out. I'll post the fruits of my labor here.

I hope you all have a very productive Saturday!

Dancing a Jig!

Dancing a jig... dancing a jig...

So, by now you've noticed that I have a tendency to disappear for long periods of time before popping up again. 'Tis a function of being a whimsical person. I am working on being much more consistent! I really am! It just may take a little time to build up my blogging muscle, so be patient with me!

I'm in a rambling sort of mood, so keep your eyes on the road... some curves are coming up.

Lots going on lately. I...

a) went with Leese tonight to see The Year of Magical Thinking starring Vanessa Redgrave. Not bad stuff, although I think Joan Didion and I have differing opinions on the definition of the word "magical". VR was pretty amazing, though, and I'm glad I can now say I've seen her on Broadway. We will be seeing Kevin Spacey in A Moon for the Misbegotten on the 29th. Leese has made all of the arrangements and I am hugely grateful because I need some good other-people's-drama in my life right now. (fyi - other-people's-drama is always much better on Broadway with respectable stars and a curtain that closes at the end of the show. I don't recommend the other kind... it's always more costly than the most expensive orchestra seat!)

b) have been swamped with work on the Kid's Choice Awards post party. Luckily, I love working in Adobe Illustrator and the days are flying by! It's a great job because Nickelodeon gives me all the ingredients and I get see how many successful recipes I can come up with. If they weren't all studded with sponsor logos, I'd put some up for you to see. Unfortunately, corporate America frowns on that sort of thing.

c) found out I have a thyroid issue that requires medication. Sad! On one hand, it explains tons about my energy levels over the past few months. On the other, I hate being bound to a regimen of meds. *sigh* Still, they may help me overcome the strange aversion to exercise that I seem to have developed. Of course, that could just be due to the fact that I have winter hibernating tendencies.

d) have a overwhelming need to introduce you to one of my favorite people in the world. Her name is Leese and her birthday was February 27th. We met back in (yikes!) 1996, so I have known her for 11 years. She is one of the universe's great gifts to me... and when you meet her, you will not be able to see the depth of her courage, or the breadth of her compassion, or the intricacy of her humanity because she is a humble thing and doesn't let it all hang out until she gets to know you better. She's a lot like a Shakespeare play... she takes some studying to understand, but when you figure out the details, she's pure poetry.

Here are some of the things she has done and been for me that has made my life a little brighter:

1) Caved and picked out a kitten for herself so that the kitten I adopted wouldn't be lonely.
2) Drove a gigantic U-Haul 9 hours from NC to NY because I was too chicken to drive a vehicle that large. (With previously mentioned kitten mewing piteously the whole way there!)
3) Looked appropriately shocked, but equally supportive when I announced I was getting married.
4) Was a gorgeous bride's maid at my wedding who did her job and caught the bouquet!
5) Became a formidable advocate for my well-being during a 4-day stint in a city hospital.
6) Endured, with a grace uncommon in best friends, some of my poorer choices in men.
7) Has become a geek with obsessions rivaling my own.
8) Gently persuaded me into a vegetarian lifestyle.
9) Keeps me inundated with Judy Dench movies, sitcoms, and interviews.

I am very glad she's here. She makes this story so much more interesting.

So - there... someone else for you to meet. Someday, when we're both 82, I'll write our memoirs and you'll be shocked at the details I have left out of this post. Ha! There's a cliffhanger for you. And you only have 52 years to wait!

Bleary-eyed, but standing...

Just a short little post before I crash into bed... which will be bullet pointed for brevity.

1 - Happy Birthday, CB!... it's 12:18 am and I know you're still working, (art directors always go home last!), but I wanted to let the world know that today is the birthday of a great woman. Good work this week. I hope you make it to Puerto Rico. You deserve a "calgon moment" after the last 2 days!

2- Casey found my comment link. Yay Casey! I love you too and I'm very glad you are reading. I think you are right about the mole. Big hugs...

3- J. Lin wrote in to tell me that a) there are too many Lin's in NY to be worried about anonymity and b) he doesn't actually know ALL the names of the Star Trek episodes, only a "select few." Still, if there was a standardized test for Trekkies, I bet he'd score pretty high,even if he isn't one himself.

So, consider yourself updated. I'm going to bed now. Sweet dreams!

Happy Year of the Pig!

Happy (Chinese) New Year, everybody...

This is the Year of the Pig and, from what I've read on my various web jaunts, a year for happiness, honesty, and good fortune. Luckily for me, that fits right in with my theme for the year.

I have been away for a while for 2 reasons:
1 - I am working on a great job for that involves a famous little red puppet, lots of fun graphics to produce, and hours of staring at the computer screen which makes one less inclined to boot up for personal endeavors later in the evening.

2- I have had a cold. Due to the cold, I have been taking drugs. I don't know about you, but I don't trust myself not to say/write/post strange things while on drugs, even if it is just cold medicine!

So - I took a little break. Did you miss me?

Anyway, I am here now. I will tell you that I am generally happy on this 2nd day of the year of the Pig. I celebrated the New Year with one of my favorite families in NY. If you are ever in the New York area, I highly recommend requesting an audience with the Lin's. (If you have been reading you will see that I have edited this post because I got one of my "yes,-you-can-write-about-me-on-my-blog" forms signed.) Mrs. Lin is just a gift to the planet. She is a lucious recipe of love, generosity, and joy packed into a tiny body with just enough room left over for a pinch of humor. Her husband, Mr Lin, is equally as generous and is also a very talented artist. Their son, J. Lin is one of my favorite people, (not the least reason being that he's married to a very dear friend of mine) incredibly intelligent, as big of a geek as I am, (he knows all of the Star Trek: Next Generation episodes by name! I can only recite most of the races,) and who will hopefully let me move into his old room if I go bust in my career and can't afford to get back to my own wonderful family down south!

Can you tell I love them?

Who knows, maybe you'll have the very good fortune of meeting them someday. Your life will be the better for it.

Anyway, we had a wonderful dinner. I got to try some new foods that I had never had before: a bread that is steamed instead of baked, sticky rice that you must eat so that money will stick to you in the upcoming year, and a rice cake with fruit in it that looked suspiciously like the Taiwanese version of a Fruit Cake. It was all delicious and I went home very full of good food and well-hugged by Mrs. Lin.

Thank you, dear Lin's for a delightful evening!

Of course, today, it was back to the grind. I'll be on set for the rest of the week, so I'll post if I can. I love hearing from all of you. Getting a comment is like discovering treasure in those old Sierra adventure games, (King's Quest... remember?)

Happy Tuesday!

S