Various Happenings...

Thursday night a group of us went to The El Rey To see Joanna Newsom. Opening for her was a performer called Smog, who was quite good. i thought. Joanna's newest album, "Ys", just came out and it's very unique and beautiful...her performance was, too.

She played "Bridges and Balloons", then "The Book of Right On", after which her band came out and joined her and they played her entire new record straight through. Which was breathtaking...

For the encore she played "Sadie", "Peach, Plum, Pear"...and finished with one of my favorites of hers, "Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie". All evening i was thinking to myself how wonderful it would be if she played that as the last song...and she did! i was immensely happy.

Tired and sleepy after the show...



On Friday i painted Sarah some more, and then she had to get started on a group project for school. She is in charge of doing a "documentary" about the life and poetry of E.E. Cummings. So i helped her write the narration while she searched online for pictures she could use. Later in the evening Alec swung by to grab his camera and say hi...and got roped into recording all the narration for the video.

At one point when i was out of the room i heard a horrible moaning scream and feet stomping on the floor. i opened the door and went in and this is what i saw...

Alec was bent over the computer...kind of freaking out and groaning and shivering a little...and Sarah was looking quite gleeful. i was very confused...and of course intensely curious...
Remember in the post about Sarah's birthday where i talked about how she is always trying to blow in my nose and make air come out of my mouth, and it makes this weird noise...etc...and i've been lucky enough to be able to dodge her every time?
well...unfortunately for Alec...she got to him. And something tells me it wasn't very pleasant. It literally took him a few minutes to regain composure and put his glasses back on and start recording again.
I think he said his ears popped...(shudder)

Hours later, the recording was done...with some pretty fantastic outtakes here and there...not to mention some amazing vidoes i took. i'm trying to figure out how to upload them online...

Saturday wasn't too eventful...i helped Pip rehearse for a few songs i'll be singing with him at a show on Thursday. One of them may be a cover of a song by Smog, who opened for Joanna Newsom (as i said before).

Today was potluck at church...

It was also Grandpa Floyd's birthday...



Now i have to drive back to Orange. i hope i get some painting done tonight...these next couple of weeks are going to be insane.

i hope everyone is doing well...thanks for your prayers. they are appreciated more than you'll ever know...(:

~~~~~~~~~~~

Lately (well, on and off over the last few years) i've kind of had a hard time going to sleep. Not necessarily falling asleep...but just getting myself into bed.

Like i'm afraid of leaving things undone. And yet...i still manage to do pretty close to nothing for 3 or 4 hours with not much to show for it but a shoddy night's rest...

i've been writing a LOT...Katie gave me a lovely journal for my birthday and i finished it in a month and had to buy a new one last week...

I write because i don't know what to say out loud. i'm just not good at talking anymore. i'm not sure how this happened, i've been reminded lately about what a loudmouth i used to be as a little girl...i always had "excessive taking in class" checked off on my report cards in school...there was alway one more thing i needed to say...
The lyrics i posted below are strangely akin to what i'm feeling these days. i stink at poetry too...which is why i'm thankful i can steal some from those more gifted than i when they happen to connect so strongly with my own heart...

It seems now that times when i'm feeling the most inclined to speak aloud to other people, are when i often tend to just keep my mouth shut. i can't get rid of this nagging doubt that there is always someone else that could express my thoughts better, or that there is always a more eloquent way for me to say something than what my forst inclination would be.
It is inevitable, these days, that after i've had a conversation with someone, serious or silly, long or short, i leave feeling restless and upset because i think i have somehow misrepresented myself...

I Don't Like it Like This

words fail me all the time
i don't even feel like talking

still i go on and on
i'm dying here and you keep walking

why are you asking me this
can't you see i'm trying

oh i don't like it like this
no i think i'm dying

i can't calm down at all
panic is what panic feels like

can't we just stay silent
speaking now seems far too violent

why are you asking me this
can't you see i'm trying

oh i don't like it like this
no i think i'm dying

why are you asking me this
can't you see i'm trying

oh i don't like it like this
no i think i'm dying

~The Radio Dept.

beautiful, beautiful song...have a listen.

Alec Tries Sushi, or, Longest Post Ever Done Ever

I think the title speaks for itself. This was actually last weekend...but i haven't had my computer all week (it's getting fixed). It's been quite frustrating having no internet for the last 4 days. That's gross...
But now that i'm back in Pasadena, i can post the pictures from this most great and glorious afternoon full of discovery and delight...

I met Sarah and Alec at Ichima...
stunning...


So here's the low-down. Alec had never tried sushi before. He's also a vegetarian, and this would be his first time consuming meat of any kind literally in years. In fact, as he informed us at the table, he really has no memory of ever eating seafood at all.
So this was a big deal for Alec. I'm still amazed he went through with it and humored us the way he did. What a champion!
We began with a seaweed salad...


...and some vegetable tempura.


Did i mention that he had also never used chopsticks before...?


a little help...




oopsi...


Now the adventure could begin...with something tame. Say, a California Roll...which isn't a big deal for most people...but remember. Alec doesn't eat meat or seafood...

Sarah and i watched and waited expectantly...




the verdict...

...that may have to be one of my favorite shots from the whole meal...

apparently, he doesn't like mayonnaise.


Now onto the bigger guns! Real live raw fish!! We ordered some Salmon. Alec was very very excited to eat it!!!





can't you see the excitement??

"You need to put the whole thing in your mouth," Sarah ordered him.



that good uh?
At this point, anyone else (including me) after trying a few really bizarre and yucky things, probably woudn't agree to eat any more...

...but Alec isn't anyone else.



Did somebody say...OCTOPUS?


"Now before i go through with this..."


i actually can't remember what he was saying to Sarah here...you can invent your own dialogue.





A couple more of my favorites...



Now what i don't have pictures of, is Alec trying a tuna roll, a rainbow roll, and some monkey balls as well.
That last one sounds a lot worse than it is.
At any rate, Sarah and i were amazed at what an awesome sport he was. Sarah must have told him 4 or 5 times how proud she was of him. When every dish had been generously sampled, Alec looked up and smiled and said "Do i have to eat any more? Am i done?" Sarah gave a sad little laugh and apologized for such a traumatic lunch.
He told us not to worry.
"It wasn't a bad experience," he said, "it just wasn't a good one."

PTBSS (post-traumatic blank stare syndrome)






At least he liked the Tempura...

(:




sisters
(i would like to point out how freakishly awesome my hair looks in these pictures)


Wanna know something funny? Sarah and Alec dressed alike. They didn't even MEAN to. i know. uncanny.








later, man...

yay