Monday, February 26, 2007

KITTY DAY!!!




SEE?
You really haven't changed all that much in nineteen years!

HAPPY
BIRTH
DAY
BABY!

XO

Saturday, February 24, 2007

Hannah?



Thinking of you (well, we all are ...) Me and my people ... waiting for you to get back from GAY PARIS.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Midnight Obsessions

Brent has been following the Scooter Libby trial with great interest and the kind of focus only the B-Rent can pull off for weeks. There are a team of political bloggers who have been in the courtroom typing live transcripts on the internet as it happens for the duration of the trial and then posting a video commentary at the end of each day, which we've been watching nightly. It's been fascinating... sorta like watching the World Series. The jury is in diliberation now.

Caught in the act of going politico....

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Mommy's Girls

I don't think I prattle on too often about my children -- you can correct me if I'm wrong and I'll sort of apologize. Mostly, I'm just inspired by what they are busy with and support them as they make their way in the world, the same as I would with any of my friends.

That being said, just thought I'd share a little of their recent work here, beginning with the oldest first.

Hannah is in London attending Central St. Martin's College of Art & Design, as most of you know by now, and if you don't, please peruse her blog, listed in the links on the right. One of the things she has done while attending to course work there is to take an elective (extra-curricular) in fashion design, which has been her passion since she was about 2 years old. When she was a senior in high school, I remember a conversation we had about her future, in which she stated that all she wanted to do was get a degree in fashion design but being the practical girl that she is, said at the time, "It would be like growing up to be a princess". Nonetheless, it is a passion of hers and she's damn good at it, as exhibited here. That's some serious haute couture. Good work, darling. If it keeps your ivy room in London humming, just keep staying up all night. Obsession is the better part of valor.... to rework a phrase.

Next, we have Kitty, who has been whining about her lastest assignment in drawing class. The prof gave them an ink pen and asked that they do a piece that uses ALL the ink in the pen. She procrastinated a bit, which always puts the pressure on and can call up internal protest, but I do have to agree that it's a dubious assignment.... a little too attached to our over-expensing "culture". She was not in the best of moods last night at the Sparklehorse/Jesse Skypes show at First Avenue as a result. But, today, she sends me this..... .... and all I can think is that if this is what comes of bleeding all the ink from a pen, then bring more of these assignments! She says she's getting rid of the rest of the ink on bigger bird on another piece of paper that will accompany this drawing, but I like Daddy Brent's suggestion as well... "you grab another piece of paper and scribble on it until the ink runs out... you know... cheat!" I'd have to agree. An artist knows when a piece is DONE. Expensing ink for the sake of it does not a good piece of art make.

Girls... you are busy. That makes Mommy grin. Keep me grinning, okay?

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

It's Been a Hard Day's Night

Here's a portrait of me after working an overnight Target in-store film shoot.

No, wait... here's another one.... In either case, I've been up for roughly 24 hours and I'm SO not tired. During some down time on the shoot, I was making conversation with the director about how strange it would be to work the night shift all the time.

I said, "I mean, when you get off work at 7AM you're thinking pot roast and cocktails... right?.... so while your kid eats Cheerios, you're having dinner and a Manhattan."

He said, "Well.... that's what I do when I have one of these shoots. It helps me get to sleep." Ah-ha!

I took his remedy seriously. I got home, heated up Brent's leftover's from that Mexican restaurant in Northfield where he dined last night and am now sipping a Jameson at 8:30 AM. I fed the dogs and let them out for their morning constitutional. As I write this, Brent is, no doubt, the Master of Ceremonies in his eternal Circus of Dreams above me. At some point soon, sleep will take me down for the day.

Meanwhile thanks to all of you, to whom I sent that outraged, overwhelmed, stumbling rant and supporting links regarding the profound and endless inhumanity of mankind, for your thoughtful responses. There are days when I just can't handle the profound depravity of the world we live in. A couple days prior to having said meltdown, I had taken this photograph. I think it may have been my prescient anti-war statement for the month. Working title: Peace

Sunday, February 11, 2007

All in a Saturday

First, it's about getting up late, not showering, throwing on yesterday's clothes, covering bedhead with hats and dragging to the car in 6 below zero temperatures for breakfast at The Cannon Ball. Then it's about deciding what kind of greasy breakfast food will slide down easily.

The customary locals were gathered around the counter. One of the men was complaining about the slow service, insisting that this kind of service is acceptable in the south but not in Minnesota. When the waitress brought him his meal, she leaned forward and said, "It took 11 minutes..." He harumphed. While they debated the finer points of service, I wandered over to the pie case. Romance has abandoned the pie case at The Cannon Ball and been replaced with convenience (pre-cut slices) and sanitation (lots of plastic wrap). Still, it has a certain charm.

After breakfast, we wandered over to the Countryside Antique Mall to procure a gift for one Master Chad Nelson. We would be celebrating his 35th birthday at Moscow on the Hill that evening. Vodka was plentiful. The food was... well... "for the people", as expected, and the party lively. The birthday boy is the one to the left in the vintage "safety goggles". Happy Birthday Chad! We love you!

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

1967 Plymouth Fury III


Who had the coolest car in High School? Me? Yeah, maybe ... but Buggy's was pretty cool, too (1966 Plymouth Belvedere Station Wagon "THE COW") Both sported the Heroic Mopar 318 C.I. motor. And as we found out through trial and error (mostly trial), they both could achieve - side by side - an average speed of about 115 mph.

This is how Buggy's car would have appeared had it been Black instead of all white (Rev. Boyce would refer to it as "the AntiCow" ... maybe he'll tell the story in the comments?):

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

OUR HOME: WINTER 1940s


The doctor who lived in our house with his family from 1941 to 1952, Dr. Karl Phuetze, loved to take photographs. Some of you have heard the story of how his daughter Mary visited us this past Summer and how awesome it was. Anyway, as Wendy and I sit alone in this cozy house after a fresh snowfall, I thought I'd post a couple photos from Mary. This next one is looking from our porch to the end of our driveway. Amazing how the landscape changes!

VICTORY DINNER: WHITE LIGHT RIOT


Dinner was awesome. Had a big ol' beef roast, potatoes, black beans, and horseradishy coleslaw. Watched "Idiocracy". Then, we finally all decided to head into the below zero coldness (Mark had been taunting us with ideas of sledding). So, we prepared. Wendy took the photos. Here's Mike and Dan suited up and obviously ready (even if they're not sure at the moment):

Anyway, the sledding became more interesting after I fired up the Allis-Chalmers. In the end, it didn't last very long (too cold), but Mark got his sledding in and everyone else got a good chuckle. And there we went:

Next morning (afternoon) ... Mark and Joe get to work:

Just another Scout & Navigator success story.