ohhellocupcake.

[snow day.]

2012-01-19T21:42:00.000-08:00

we've been snowed in for the last two days... and what happens when we're snowed in? adventures! we've been snowboarding and sledding down our street, hot-tubbing in the snow, making snow ice cream, and building snow people. here's a sneak peek...

these are the days... yes, these are the days.

[project 365.]

2011-12-29T21:34:00.000-08:00

i can't believe i stuck with it, but i finished my "project 365"-- a photo a day, every day for one year. i like the finished product so much, i'm thinking of printing them out and starting an album. mike and i looked through each month of photos a couple of nights ago, and it was interesting how each image brought back a memory; some of them i had forgotten, some of them i'll always remember. anyway, it's a really cool, creative way to remember your days, weeks, and months. here's my project, all crammed into one image.

what a year it was.

can't wait to see what the next one holds.

[fall.]

2011-11-08T12:52:00.001-08:00

[rainbow.]

2011-10-12T12:31:00.000-07:00

i took this photo yesterday after a crazy rain shower. it reminded me of one of my favorite poems by one of my favorite poets, "my heart leaps up" by william wordsworth.

"My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began;
So is it now I am a man;
So be it when I shall grow old,
Or let me die..."

i know a rainbow is a scientific phenomenon that happens when it rains from time to time. i know they have a logical explanation, blah, blah, blah... but there's something pretty amazing about them. and as i stood outside looking up at it yesterday, my heart did leap up. i'm choosing sides with the people who think that rainbows symbolize good luck and renewed hope... because that's what it meant to me.

[lots o' luck.]

2011-10-10T20:57:00.000-07:00

mike's leaving for south america this week, and with the recent run of bad luck around here i'm feeling a little nervous. we've had bad luck in the past (everyone has to go through it now and then, of course) but i'm having a hard time shaking the shit off lately.

mike's band, tumbledown, was robbed again last weekend. this time it happened in canada... CANADA of all places. those people are supposed to be peacemakers. just when you thought there was one country you could count on, they go and steal all your stuff.

at any rate, that's just one of a series of setbacks that have happened lately. i don't want to be a debbie downer and hash it all out here, but i thought i'd say i'm ready for the tides to change. i want this trip to south america to be a huge success with nothing but good luck raining down on mike and his guys the whole way. as a matter of fact, all that goodness could start right this minute and i'd be tickled pink.

let it rain.

[there goes the neighborhood.]

2011-09-28T20:53:00.000-07:00

we've only lived in our new house for a month and already we've had the police come by twice. the first time, our house alarm was going off and we didn't know it because we were outside. innocent mistake. the second time, it was actually the fire department. we built a fire IN OUR PERFECTLY LEGAL FIRE PIT by the beach this afternoon because we had some wood scraps and cardboard we needed to burn. i guess what we didn't know is that you're only allowed to burn firewood in a perfectly legal fire pit... and i guess our neighbors didn't appreciate the smoke from the burning cardboard blowing in their windows. boo hoo. at the suggestion of a friend, i think i'll go buy a meat smoker and put it next to the firepit, smoke up a ton of meat, and see how they like them apples.

feels funny being the bad neighbors this time around.

[fall.]

2011-09-17T20:03:00.000-07:00

even though it's supposed to be in the 70's again next week, i'm pretty sure fall is just around the corner... it seems to be getting cooler day by day. all of a sudden there's been no more short sleeves, no more shorts, and just when i was starting to get used to the possibility of summer hanging around for awhile.

when i took mike to the airport this morning it was raining and cool, and i couldn't seem to shake the cold all day. so instead of resisting it, i came home this evening and put a pot of soup on to cook, started a fire in the fireplace, and a load of laundry in the wash.

if fall's coming, i'm ready.

and so is hank.

[wolf.]

2011-09-13T16:36:00.001-07:00

also... can someone give me some pointers on how to cook on this monster?

[sweet home.]

2011-09-13T11:45:00.000-07:00

[front view]

[fish pond]

[entryway]

[living room]

[dining room]

[kitchen]

[bedroom]

[bedroom and sitting room]

[sitting room]

[backyard]

[cabana and firepit]

[my fave place to sit & look out at the water]

[deck]

[deck fireplace]

you won't see any boxes in these pictures because i strategically didn't take photos of the rooms that haven't been unpacked. there's still a ton of unpacking and arranging to do... but here are a few more pictures of our new home.

(sweet home.)

[oldnew.]

2011-09-07T18:12:00.000-07:00

mike and i have been breaking our backs moving into our new place for the last few weeks. it's beautiful and perfect and i'm totally in love... and i'm even actually starting to feel like it's "home." for the first few days we started sleeping here, it felt like we were on vacation and that we'd be leaving to go back to the old place at any minute. but now, finally, i'm not surprised when i wake up in the morning and see the water out my bedroom window. just happy.. very, very happy.

more pics to come.

[film. updated!]

2011-07-31T10:37:00.000-07:00

a friend of mine, catherine abegg, wrote to me a few months ago asking mike and i to be part of an upcoming photo shoot that she was planning. catherine is a beautiful girl who really knows her way around a camera, and just has the sweetest air about her. at first i didn't understand exactly what the whole thing was about, but i really like catherine, and i love her photos, so i immediately agreed to whatever she was asking us to do.

shortly after i got back from my trip home to texas, mike and i took the ferry over to seattle armed with a couple of changes of clothes, ready for whatever catherine had in store for us. at the end of the day, we'd been part of something very cool, and met a ton of talented people.

FIND (film is not dead) is a workshop hosted by jonathan canlas, a really sweet guy and an amazing photographer... other photographers came from all over the world to spend a few days learning from jonathan and working with one another. he was so laid back, approachable, and genuinely interested in helping everyone. we talked with him, and many of the others who were shooting, each one laughing and joking with us like we were long-time friends. it was so great to have the opportunity to meet people who were all working to be better at their craft, and who couldn't have been more gracious. there was never a moment when i felt uncomfortable or awkward, just really thankful to be part of such a special experience.

i've only seen one photo from the day, but i thought i'd share it with you here. this one was taken by fer juaristi, who simply referred to me as "girl"... but in the most endearing way.

[hooked.]

thanks to the FINDers for being so kind to us, and thanks to catherine for organizing the whole shindig. more pics to come... mostly for you, kcart!

update:

more photos, these taken by the beautiful and talented catherine abegg. LOVE.

8/9/11 update: a few more beauties from John Fong Photography.

...and the next photos were taken by the fabulous Jennifer Tai!

[coffee thief.]

2011-07-26T19:26:00.001-07:00

i went to barnes and noble yesterday and, while i was paying for my items, i set my iced coffee on the counter so i could fish my wallet out of my purse. i paid, left, got into my car, and suddenly realized i'd forgotten to pick up my coffee before heading out of the store. mike was with me, and i told him what had happened. i was bummed because i'm a really slow drinker, and i knew my coffee was over half-full. after i told mike that part, he agreed i should go back and see if it was still there. i ran in, made it to the counter, and saw that it wasn't there. i looked at the person behind the register (not the person who rang me up) and asked if she'd by any chance seen my coffee and thrown it out.

a moment passed. she looked at me, and then picked my coffee up from behind the counter. i looked down in relief, but then realized it was only about a third full. i looked back up at her, and she was still looking me right in the eyes.

she drank my coffee!!! it was written all over her guilty face. she'd seen my coffee there, thanked the coffee gods for leaving her this gift, and sucked down my delicious skinny cinnamon dolce.

i reached out and took the coffee from her hands with what i'm sure was a confused look on my face. she drank my coffee... this person had picked up a stranger's coffee, not even knowing what the stranger looked like, and had needed coffee so badly that they went ahead and helped themselves. finders keepers, losers weepers.

i was blown away.

mike and i talked about it all the way home. then we talked about it some more today.

the worst part comes now: i needed coffee just as badly as my barnes and noble coffee thief, and i finished it off on the way home. same straw and everything. AND i'm so crazy that i'm contributing the sore throat i have today to the weirdo at barnes and noble. i have her germs.. and i took them knowing exactly what she'd done.

i don't even know myself anymore.

[stay gold.]

2011-06-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

as i write this, my students are finishing up their final assignment of their last day of summer session. we watched the outsiders today, one of my all time favorite books and movies, and now they have to complete a writing assignment based on the film. in spite of my love for the book, and the lessons it has to teach, i'm as excited as my students are for summer break.

i'm leaving in a little over a week to visit my family in texas. i'll fly into dallas, rent a car, drive to my mom's, and spend a couple of days with her before driving on to my sister's new place in houston where i'll see my dad and step-mom as well. it'll be a whirlwind of a week, but that's the way it goes when you have to cram months of memories into a too-short amount of time.

the older i get, the harder it is for me to be far away from my family. my dad sent me a text a couple of months ago saying that he wished i lived closer so he could come to my house for coffee some mornings. that text had me in tears for longer than i'd like to admit, and it lingers in my mind. little things like coffee with dad, sitting on my mom's porch, and laughing with my sister till we cry... those are the things i'll never have a chance to catch up on.

there aren't enough hours in the day, or days in this life. guess it's true, ponyboy, nothing gold can stay.

[molokai.]

2011-06-19T13:09:00.000-07:00

[safe and sound.]

mike and i just got home from a very relaxing week of vacation on the island of molokai in hawaii- it was almost like a deserted island... very few tourists, and some of the most beautiful beaches i'd ever seen. we had a big adventure while we were there when we went to the molokai mule ride. the mules took us down a cliff with over a thousand foot drop, and at the bottom of the cliff we visited an area that was a leper colony once upon a time... this was back in the day when there was no known cure for leprosy, or hansen's disease. the poor people who suffered from the disease were literally dropped from boats with no supplies, no families, no homes, and left to die. it was surreal, and sad, and really made me appreciate this crazy life.

we also visited a macadamia nut farm and learned everything there is to know about macadamia nuts. it wasn't all crazy field trips and destination tours... besides the leper colony and the nut farm, we did a LOT of lying on the beach, soaking up the sun, and generally living the good life.

[the heretic's daughter.]

2011-06-02T10:35:00.000-07:00

The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I wish I could give this book 4.5 stars. It was a super slow read, but it's one that will stay with me for a long time.

My knowledge of the Salem Witch Trials was limited before reading the story of Sarah, her mother, Martha Carrier, and the rest of her family who were all persecuted and accused of being witches. The horror that they were put through, physically and mentally, is unfathomable, yet the author did an amazing job of conveying the torment and the deep love that kept this family from being torn apart.

It may take some time to get through the book, but it's worth it in the end. I couldn't put it down during the last few chapters, and was in tears during the last few pages.

View all my reviews

[dedication.]

2011-05-27T18:01:00.000-07:00

i don't usually use the same images twice, but this one is with a second post. the first time i used it, mike was leaving on tour for awhile, and i was sad. shortly after, he wrote a song about the post.. or the photo.. either way, it was a sweet love song that made my heart melt. he'd play it in the basement some days, practicing the mandolin while i was making dinner, and if he didn't play it, i'd ask him to. i have my favorites, and that song was definitely at the top of the list of them. unfortunately, he never got a chance to record it before the notebook he wrote it in was stolen from him in mexico on that fateful tumbledown tour a few months ago. he lost a lot of things when the van was broken into-- money, passports, gadgets, but one of the most devastating things lost was his song notebook.

when he told me that the song i loved most was gone and that he wasn't sure he could remember all the words, i was so sad. i listened as he sat back down in the basement on the mandolin, trying to re-write it and remember all the verses. there were some parts that just wouldn't come back to either of us.

fast forward to yesterday. i was in the kitchen again, making dinner (call me betty crocker) and mike came in. he started fiddling with the stereo and said he wanted to dedicate a song to me... when it started playing, the sound of the mandolin almost broke my heart. he'd worked the song out and had the tumbledown guys record it live at practice tuesday night. my sweet song, all shiny and new.

i've never gotten a better gift.

[more important things.]

2011-05-25T09:11:00.001-07:00

so, it looks like the end of the world got postponed until october 21st. whew! there's still time for you to buy me these... i'm in love.

[rapture.]

2011-05-21T10:57:00.000-07:00

the best part about today being judgment day is talking about judgement day. when i first heard that some wackos had pinpointed the day they believed jesus christ is coming back, i laughed and thought of all the other fake judgment days that have come and gone. the difference this time around is we have twitter and other social networking sites that give stories like this new life. twitter has become one big tweet about the rapture.. one joke after another about bodies ascending into the air and pets being left behind.

it's not only twitter that's stoking the fire (no pun intended)- it's also major newspapers like the san francisco chronicle and the new york times. if you haven't read any "real" articles about it, take a second and check these out. they're worth a look if only for readers' comments. hilarious.

The End of the World FAQ Sheet from the SF Chronicle:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/hottopics/detail?entry_id=89183

Make My Bed? But You Say The World's Ending from the NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/20/us/20rapture.html?_r=1&pagewanted=1

a few of my favorite comments:

diamonderek 11:05 PM on May 18, 2011

My wifes boss is taking us out for dinner at 7:00 that night. What a dick.

folgers 9:23 AM on May 18, 2011

Every day is judgement day in San Francisco.

agent_0702 8:38 AM on May 18, 2011

i thought the world ended 5 years ago when i was walking in the financial district and saw two

starbucks almost right across the street from each other.

hitch_hiker 1:33 AM on May 18, 2011

Yay then I wont have to floss anymore hi mom.

now, harold camping seems to think his calculations indicate that the beginning of the end will commence with a worldwide earthquake at 6:00 this evening. chances are, there will be an earthquake somewhere in the world around that time... i'd loooove to be a fly on the wall when those poor schmucks start to feel that rumble.

see you on the other side!

[it's kind of a funny story.]

2011-05-10T13:34:00.001-07:00

It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

i thought this was a pretty cute book. i may be getting old (yes, i am) and turning into a prude (ok, i already was a prude) but i'm not sure how it fits into the young adult category. i mean, how young are we talking? the kid in the book is depressed, checks himself into a mental ward, and is dealing with some pretty grown up sexual feelings and discoveries in the midst of all of that. i know kids these days are exposed to way more than kids were exposed to in my day, but that doesn't necessarily mean they should be. right?

i don't know. maybe i'm crazy.

View all my reviews

[molokai.]

2011-05-01T19:05:00.001-07:00

now that the weather around here is starting to warm up, (ok, 60 degrees isn't that warm. i know.) i'm getting suuuper excited about going on vacation with my guy next month. we're headed to hawaii this year, molokai specifically. i've heard so many great things about this place and am anxious to do some serious exploring and embark on some crazy adventures. mostly i'll be lying on the beach and reading, but there'll be serious exploring, TOO.

the picture above is of the famous 2.9 mile kalaupapa mule ride down some of the highest cliffs in the world. see what i mean? ADVENTURE. i booked this today. if anyone else has been to molokai and can recommend some other adventures, let's hear 'em...

nothing is out of the question.. except going under water.

[couple of crazy kids.]

2011-04-20T19:51:00.000-07:00

mike left for an east coast mini-tour today. i took him to the airport at 4:30 this morning. FOUR THIRTY. i wasn't happy about the fact that he was leaving, and waking up so early to drive to the airport only made it worse. luckily, he'll only be gone a little over two weeks this time. no big deal.

after the airport run, i spent my day catching up on the things that get shelved when there's 7,530,045,020,475 things to do to help mike get ready to go out of town. i'm teaching a new class at the college starting TOMORROW so i had plenty of planning to do to prepare. it's an english class and i'm using a textbook that i've used in the past, so it should be a breeze. (in case you were worried sick about me getting such a late start on the planning... on second thought, i'm probably the only dummy who has panic attacks and a burning stomach ulcer over things like that.)

while mike was home for the past couple of weeks, we did a lot of fun things like picnics, dates, and bike rides. for your viewing pleasure, here's a little video he made for me of our last bike ride before he left.

(don't kill me, mike.)

[music by lucero. video by my boo.]

[white shed: easter edition.]

2011-04-13T21:52:00.000-07:00

on my daily walk with the pups this afternoon, i decided to see if there was anything new to see at the kooky white shed down the road. for those of you who keep up with my blog, you know what i'm talking about... for those of you who are slackers, read here and here for the backstory.

i had my camera ready, but there was no one around... no hints as to who keeps this hot mess updated, buuuuuut i got to snap some close-ups of all the new crap. welcome to crazy!

[frosty the snowman just in time for easter. oh, and anyone else have those little plastic guys with no arms when they were little? ...ah, memories.]

[the rusty old typewriter is a nice touch.]

[groucho glasses, vampire teeth, blocks, metal truck, barrel, and i think that's a tiny reindeer stuck in the glasses.]

[happy easter! faded old easter bunny woodcut.]

[bookworm.]

2011-04-12T13:16:00.000-07:00

some guy on npr.org put together a list of what he thinks are the 100 best novels written in the last 100 years. i don't know the guy who made the list so i don't know what qualifies him to decide which books should have made the cut. did he read each and every book written in that span of time? i can't imagine. does it still give me a panic attack that i've only read 13 books from his list? yes, yes, it does.

check the link for the full list. here are the Top 25:
1. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, James Joyce
2. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
3. The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger
4. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
5. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
6. The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck
7. Angle of Repose, Wallace Stegner
8. Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
9. Humboldt’s Gift, Saul Bellow
10. A Passage to India, E.M. Forster
11. To the Lighthouse, Virginia Woolf
12. U.S.A. Trilogy, John Dos Passos
13. The Untouchable, John Banville
14. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
15. Rabbit at Rest, John Updike
16. All the King’s Men, Robert Penn Warren
17. American Pastoral, Philip Roth
18. Beloved, Toni Morrison
19. The Remains of the Day, Kazuo Ishiguro
20. Of Human Bondage, W. Somerset Maugham
21. Light in August, William Faulkner
22. My Antonia, Willa Cather
23. The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway
24. A Lesson Before Dying, Ernest Gaines
25. Rabbit, Run, John Updike

[bossypants.]

2011-04-10T19:33:00.001-07:00

Bossypants by Tina Fey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

loved it. love her. the whole book reads like consecutive episodes of 30 rock, complete with genius one-liners. i started to write down all of my favorite quotes, and then i realized i was transcribing the whole book.

read it. you'll laugh, and laughing is good.

View all my reviews

[over the moon.]

2011-04-08T23:40:00.000-07:00

last week, mom came from texas and my sister and her girls came from california. i love when my family comes to visit.. i love planning road trips and movie nights, crafts and cocktails (not all in that order), and i love having the house full of movement and laughter and warm bodies who love each other and tell each other so a LOT.

here's a glimpse into some of our fun times... moments and memories with my favorite people that i'll tuck into my closet and pull out again and again when i'm feeling lonesome and blue.

[graci & granna crafting @ the studio.]

[graci, aka banksy.]

[me stenciling w/ graci.]

[alli taking a time out @ the studio.]

[me w/ sis & mom @ lake crescent.]

[bambi.]

[w/ my sis in forks.]

[graci & cherith @ hoh rainforest.]

[graci on the ferry from port angeles, wa, to victoria, b.c.]

[graci & granna in victoria, b.c.]

[w/ graci in victoria.]

[granna & graci again in canada.]

[w/ the fam @ hi-lo's cafe, our fave.]

[my sis, the girls, & mike on the ferry to seattle.]

[rainy day in seattle.]

[key chain my sweet niece made for me.]

[my mom on the ferry- port angeles, wa, to victoria, b.c.]

we couldn't have crammed any more activities into the week... believe me, i tried. i'm pretty sure everyone left totally worn out, but i am so overwhelmingly thankful for our time together. i'm thankful that my sister and i can finish each other's sentences to the point where it seems like we're speaking our own weird language, thankful for my mom who loves us so much that it overflows out of her eyes and she hates it but it makes me love her even more, i'm thankful for those sweet girls who don't know how much they're miniature versions of us, and who won't truly appreciate that fact or what it means for another 20 or so years.

can't wait until our next adventure.