Rock Mama Birthday

Happy (belated) Birthday Rock Mama!
A big three cheers for you (and your happy family).

Pilobolus

If you watched the Oscars last night, you may have noticed the interpretive dance troupe who tumbled into formation to create characters that represented movie titles. Believe it or not, I have a childhood connection to this group -- Pilobolus. When I was a kid my mother insisted that we all get "cultured" through enforced attendance of an arts & performance series that was presented in the Sentry Insurance theatre in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. Every year she bought season tickets, and every year we had to get all dressed up (gripe) and drive forty five minutes to attend whatever orchestra, opera, ballet, musical that was being performed there. Standouts for me include HMS Pinafore and Chinese acrobats. However, also EXTREMELY memorable was the performance by the interpretive dance troupe Pilobolus. For some reason (my siblings were older and much better at excuses for why they were busy?) I think that night it was just me & my mom. Midway through the very modern what-the-heck-are-they-doing "dancing", the members of Pilobolus came out wearing um, next-to-nothing. I mean REALLY next to nothing. I think the men just had jock straps on and the women had sheer nude tights. This being a small town in the Midwest, everyone was aghast -- you could hear the shocked gasps rumble through the audience. I looked at my mom with big eyes of surprise -- you have taken me to see naked people?!?!? but she was surprised as I was yet shot me a look that said -- pretend this is normal. Wow, I thought. Naked people! I especially liked the crowd reaction -- lots of tittering and uncomfortable air. This was much more shocking than performance art, because well, you expect to be shocked by performance art, and this was completely unexpected. The thing that is most amazing about Pilobolus, is that after awhile their bodies cease to matter, as they expertly create bizarre formations and you stop noticing that the men (and women) are not wearing pants. (Again, a much greater achievement than performance art.)

However, when we got home I told EVERYONE that MY MOM had taken me to see NAKED PEOPLE dance. Yeah, NAKED! I was delighted to share this with EVERYONE. I SAW NAKED PEOPLE LAST NIGHT! MY MOM TOOK ME TO SEE THEM!

In the last twenty five years or so I've always enjoyed reminding my mother of this naked people grade school outing. So it was with great pleasure and divine timing that when I took my mom on a mother/daughter trip to Chicago for her 70th Birthday I noticed that -- who was scheduled to perform the weekend we were there? PILOBOLUS!!!!!!! It was their 35th Anniversary tour!! I told my mom I had "theatre" tickets but I kept it a secret until we arrived. There it was lit up on the marquee -- I pointed and squealed -- PILOBOLUS! It must have been a success because she got a little teary as we laughed on the sidewalk. It was fun that night to see them perform again, because even though they were still nearly nude, it didn't seem that shocking. We both enjoyed it and there were no gasps from the audience.

So this morning post-Oscars I sent my mom an e-mail. Subject line -- "PILOBOLUS!"

There was other stuff on the Oscars aside from interpretive dancing (safely hidden behind a screen.) My favorite speeches were from the Best Costume Design winner, Milena Canonero and the ultra-cool queen of film editing Thelma Schoonmaker. Knowing that someone like Thelma exists makes you feel that believing in dreams CAN make them possible (just like Forest Whitaker said). I'm so pleased how gaga everyone was over Helen Mirren, because that's how things should be. Gaga over Helen Mirren.

Also, please go and rent "Half Nelson" -- it's good. Ryan Gosling deserved his nomination, but Shareeka Epps should have been sitting next to Penelope Cruz in the best actress category. Broken Social Scene (who did the soundtrack) would have been a good wake up performance after Celine Dion. That was the only time I had to physically leave the room.

Shake-A-Shake

There was an earthquake here this afternoon. The Chinese guy who lives across the street and I both ran to our windows and looked at each other. We share a common bond, as we are usually the only people on our block who have an interest in loud outside noises, or as in today's case, the house shaking. Now that he has his curtains open I notice that he has some lucky tall red flowers too!

He is still looking out his window -- he is way more persistent than I am. Or maybe something else is going on outside, I better go to the window again and check.

Jem

Jem Cohen is in town. I'm a big fan of "Instrument" -- the "document" he did of Fugazi. This week he's flitting about at a few local film screenings. The one we are going to tonight is "Building a Broken Mousetrap" featuring a live performance from my all-time favorite anarchists from Holland, The Ex. Later he'll show up to present some shorts, one starring sad sack troubadour Elliott Smith. Save yourself a trip out into the rain, because you can watch it (Lucky Three) here:

Insert Baby

This was the second year that we ordered a special Mardi Gras King Cake from Arizmendi Bakery. Except that last year (as it should be a surprise) the baby was baked inside the cake. I'm guessing that something bad must have happened involving someone choking on melted plastic or other hazardous injury, because this year we found the baby in a plastic bag on top of the King Cake with these instructions.

When the Chef wasn't looking, I tried to insert the baby by using the above helpful tips. However the baby was too big for just one underside gash in the cake so when I shoved it in, some frosting fell off the top and there was a suspicious bulge. I tried to cover it up, but there was not a way to then turn the cake so that we both wouldn't know where the baby was, creating an easy opportunity for me to pick the slice with the baby --- and then I would be QUEEN FOR THE DAY. But you know me, I immediately 'fessed up to the Chef and told him I knew where the baby was, so we just picked pieces without the baby and ate them. That makes us BOTH King and Queen for the day because we got to eat delicious steaming bowls of gumbo and eat King Cake. Double Mardi Gras royalty. The piece with the baby is still left -- come and get it Helen Mirren!

Shirley & Lee

I've become obsessed with Shirley & Lee. They were a New Orleans R&B singing duo from the 1950's who are best known for their hit "C'mon Baby, Let the Good Times Roll." I re-discovered them last month when I was "working" on Mardi Gras programming and realized that Shirley Mae Goodman has this amazingly shrill out-of-tune voice! Granted, I had heard their hit song many times, but it seems that this was the first time I was paying attention. Not only is it a great happy party song, but it's also a great make out song. Of course when it was popular (1957) there were protests about it being played on the radio because of all the "close the door, let's ROCK some more" (if you know what I mean) -- maybe even "roll all night long" (nudge nudge). My favorite line is when Shirley sings "Feels so good, when you're home." So simple, so true! Need more happy feel good? Shirley & Lee also sing the songs "I Feel Good" and "Feel So Good" and "Two Happy People."

Take another listen to Shirley & Lee (and the rest of these Mardi Gras party songs) and laissez les bon temps roulez!


1. When The Saints Go Marching In - Louis Armstrong
2. Bon Ton Roulet - Bo Dollis
3. Big Chief - Professor Longhair
4. Go to the Mardi Gras - Preservation Hall Jazz Band
5. Hey Hey (Indians Coming) - Wild Tchoupitoulas
6. Yella Pocahontas - Champion Jack Dupree
7. Mardi Gras Day - Dr. John
8. Dance All Night - Boozoo Chavis
9. My Feet Can't Fail Me Now - Buckwheat Zydeco
10. Mardi Gras Mambo - The Meters
11. Bon Ton Roulet - Clifton Chenier
12. Gumbo Filet - Booker Ervin
13. Voodoo - The Neville Brothers
14. Street Talk - The Mardi Gras Indians
15. Mardi Gras! - Queen Ida
16. Beau's Mardi Gras - Beau Jocque & the Zydeco Hi-Rollers
17. Do The Fat Tuesday - Kermit Ruffins
18. Let The Good Times Roll - Shirley and Lee
19. Boogie Louisiane - Clifton Chenier
20. Junco Partner - James Booker
21. Mardi Gras In New Orleans - The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
22. What A Party - Fats Domino
23. Cajun Two-Step - Nathan Abshire
24. Jambalaya Stomp - Dr. Michael White
25. Do Whatcha Wanna (Part 3) - Rebirth Brass Band

Gung Hay Fat Choy

I love the symbolism of Chinese New Year. Tall red flowers (lucky!) mandarin oranges with the leaves on (lucky!) Pomelos (lucky!). We like to jump in whenever there are reasons to do things for luck. We went to the farmer's market with a list.

However, there are so many things to do (wear red) and not do today (no sweeping) to ensure good fortune it's hard to keep track of all of them so we just stick to a few and try not to worry about the rest. It's too much pressure to eat a bowl of noodles without breaking one of them in fear that this will shorten your life.

Yesterday we even went to Chinatown to find a Pi Yao charm. It's meant to ward off "bad energies" for Snakes during the Year of the Pig. The Chef (a dragon) read this somewhere and became very concerned for my well-being. Now I'm set! Fellow snakes, please let us know if you need a Pi Yao. It took us a while and involved some embarrassing crank yanker mispronunciation (uh, Pee Ying anyone?) but we finally found it.

We wish you all a Happy Year of the Pig --- full of luck and good fortune!

Chinatown

That's PortaSTATIC

Finger Food

We like a good excuse to be gluttons, so the Chef & I went to one of our favorite restaurants on Valentine's Day. It's a tiny diner-type place that only seats twenty people -- as this whole joynt seems to be the folly of the chef. Everyone who works there (all four of them?) is quite friendly, and despite the innovative fancy food, it's a casual place -- a five star meal in a diner.

By the time we got to the third course, we realized the trick. No cutlery! Even the meaty stuff was skewered on licorice sticks (not the droopy candy kind, but the stick-like root that tastes like licorice when you suck on it -- but do not tell anyone that I did indeed suck on a stick.)

Everything was finger-lickin' delicious and completely fork-less. Good trick!

Valentine's Day Make Out Mix

1. Hello From Cupid - Jonathan Richman
2. My Funny Valentine - Chet Baker
3. Valentine - Billy Joe Shaver
4. Be My Somebody - Norah Jones
5. This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) - Talking Heads
6. Lovely Day - Bill Withers
7. Valentine's Day - (with Steve Earle) - The Fairfield Four
8. Love's A Real Thing - Super Eagles
9. I Got Sumpin' For You - Guitar Slim
10. You Rock - Teenage Fanclub and Jad Fair
11. Sweet Talk - Peggy Lee
12. Valentine - Merle Haggard
13. To Be Alone With You - Sufjan Stevens
14. My Baby Loves Me - Martha and the Vandellas
15. Picture In A Frame - Tom Waits

Happy Valentine's Day -- press play.

(psssst, even non-subscribers get 25 free songs).

Arrest Warrant

Dear Grammy Awards -- were you not aware that it is illegal to use the words "Bob Wills" and the words "Don Henley" in the same sentence?

A warrant has been issued for your arrest.

Saturday Speakeasy

On Saturday night Dr. & Mrs. Virus invited us to join them at a speakeasy cocktail bar downtown. It's so secret that the exact address is a mystery and you have to make reservations and have a password to get in. While the place is called "Bourbon & Branch" on the sign outside it says "San Francisco Anti-Tavern League."

Once we got inside and were seated at one of the cozy booths, the lights were so dim we had to hold the giant book of esoteric cocktails up to the tiny light at the end of the table. I was all ready to dislike the people there for being foo-foo-trendy-heads, but our waitress was really sweet and friendly so I had to give up on that idea.

My favorite drink was the "Cracked Thumb" which involved Junipero Gin (I love you Fritz Maytag), mint leaves, lemon oil, and elderflower cordial. The Chef had a "Blackberry Bramble," Dr. Virus quaffed a fancy cucumber cocktail and Mrs. Virus loved her "El Diablo". We had another round including "The Aviation," the "1794" and um, well, perhaps we had too many cocktails because we can't quite remember the other Virus picks. "The Democrat" and a Tequila gimlet? Oh, Mrs. Virus -- please jog our memory! (aha! it was the "Rolls Royce")

We noticed that people were streaming into a secret room through a door that looked like a bookcase. We assumed that there was a party, or this was the room for people cooler than us, until our nice waitress told us that this is just where the riff raff without reservations go.... ha! losers!

Next time the Chef wants to sit at the bar and watch the bartenders make all the drinks.

Neko & Merle

Last night Neko Case and Merle Haggard performed at the historic Paramount Theatre in Oakland. While we had great seats (row 7!) we discovered that sometimes sitting way up close but far off to the left under the giant speaker creates not the best overall mix of sound. Oh well, at least we had a great view of the stage. I double dared the ushers to scold me for taking pictures, but they never did.

Despite the lopsided sound, Neko's set was fantastic as usual (though not as wonderful as the packed-with-stage-patter Bimbo's shows last summer.) Highlights -- the great cover of "Look for Me (I'll Be Around) and a few of my favorite Neko songs, "Favorite," "Star Witness" and a sped up swingier version of "Deep Red Bells."

Because of this odd double-bill, the audience was a mix of hipsters, old school country music fans, some rednecks and a few cowboy hat wearing frat boys out for a night of hick music (who the Chef said made him "embarrassed to be white.") However, there were also plenty of regular folks who like good music and during intermission DJ Big Cookie & Damon spotted us, so we had the pleasure of hanging out with them.

Merle hit the stage after his band (The Strangers) warmed the audience up with a few numbers, creating the delayed BIG INTRO which doesn't happen much these days but is very SHOWBIZ. Can't decide if the BIG INTRO is a good idea, but it works for Merle. He came out to a roaring crowd of hoots and hollers and lots of guys making the #1 sign - woo hoo! Perhaps it was then I started to not warm up to him. I'm all for the quitting-your-job-and-drinking-all-day songs, and who can resist the appeal of classics like "Closing Time", "Swinging Doors" and of course "The Fightin' Side of Me" (woooo hoooooo!) But, with the combination of the Branson-esque stage show, the badly written ballads and the semi-creepy uncomfortable vibe between the balding band members and Merle, I just wasn't feeling it. The duet of "Jackson" between Merle and his thirty years younger back up singer wife Theresa ( a hard livin' Chloe Sevigny look-a-like) made me wince. The only thing that could have saved it was if he had asked Neko to join him. Sigh. I do not deny that the man is a country music legend, but I prefer the enthusiasm and humour of Johnny Cash (who we also saw perform in his golden years) --- and Willie Nelson, Bill Monroe, Wanda Jackson, Dolly Parton, they've still got it going on.

Here is Merle doing his best Bob Wills impression.

After the show, we were able to find our uber-creative chopstick sculpture building/Holga camera toting/Chinese menu collecting/artist musician writer friends Indigo & Donna (as far as I'm concerned, this is one of the few good uses for cell phones -- as concert crowd friend trackers.) Indigo & Donna took us to a cafe in Oakland's Chinatown where we ate moon cakes and other tasty bakery items involving sweet beans. We hadn't seen them for a while (as the bridge between the Berkeley and San Francisco can be a staunch divider for procrastinators) so it was fun to catch up and trade stories about falling off horses (ouch), purple smudges, new jobs and being in a cool all grrlz cover band. After one more cup of hot tea the cafe owners kicked us out, which was a lucky thing otherwise we would have missed the last BART train home. Thanks for whisking us to the train station Indigo & Donna -- we made it!

When we got home there was a message from DJ Big Cookie on our answering machine. DJ Big Cookie had designed a t-shirt that Neko Case wore at her last performance in San Francisco (and on the cover of a magazine!) Since then, they had exchanged gushing e-mails to each other. In a very excited voice, DJ Big Cookie said "I'm calling you because on my way out, guess who we ran into?" (happy laughter) "None other than NEKO CASE, who was walking her very best friend to the BART station. (happy laughter) I introduced myself and she HUGGED ME! andshewasreallyniceandreallysweet. Ok Bye Bye."

Hooray for DJ Big Cookie!

Ripe Cherimoya

The exotic fruit smelled sweet today, so we guessed that it was ripe. It was! The Chef took this cool zoom picture (above) and finally I had to grab it away and spoon in. The only hard part is eating around the big black seeds, which the Chef tells me are toxic. How exotic. I just read here, "The seeds, like those of other Annona species, are crushed and used as insecticide." eek! Now my tongue feels numb.

Exotic Fruit II

When they are in season, we buy Cherimoyas from the tropical fruit lady at the farmer's market. They look like prehistoric artichoke eggs, but inside, they are white & creamy and taste like a cross between a tart apple and an avocado. It's true! These Cherimoyas aren't ripe yet. Stay tuned!

Ladybugs Get Busy

Yesterday there was a big football game on TV, so we thought we'd go where there would be less people -- outside! We went on a hike. It was quite peaceful and woodsy and we spotted just a few people there. When we were tramping down one of the trails, one of those people advised us "Keep an eye out for the big bunches of ladybugs mating!"

Huh?

So for about a mile, everytime the Chef would stop and look at a flower, or a stump, or moss growing on a rock, I would frantically ask "What? What are you looking at?! Is that the wild ladybug orgy?!?" and then "Where are they?!?! Do you think we missed it?" "Do you think it's subtle?" "Do you think we'll step on them?" "Do you think we need to be going the other way to spot it?" The Chef knows how to deal with this constant questioning, he just doesn't respond.

Finally, we turned a corner and there it was -- kind of hard to miss. Giant bunches of ladybugs mating. It was odd. Are they really mating or are they just bunching? Will there be a giant baby ladybug swarm in a few weeks? Will they attack hikers? Where do they lay the eggs? Will we step on them if we hike again on that trail? Have you ever seen so many ladybugs? Which ones are the ladies?

That's okay, you don't have to respond.





Oh yeah, we saw some big trees and stuff too.

Girl Geek Music Club #1

Saturday night was the inaugural meeting of the Girl Geek Music Club (although if the Chef is around, just call it the Geek Music Club so he doesn't feel left out.) A few girl geek pals of mine (Polyvinyl Chloride and Usher Grrrl) came over to our house to watch obscure music DVDs. We dined on jambalaya and garlic mustard greens (thanks Chef!) and watched:

"Dear John" (the BBC tribute to John Peel)
"The Fall -- The Wonderful & Frightening World of Mark E. Smith"
"The Passing Show -- The Life & Music of Ronnie Lane"
"Dee Dee Ramone -- Hey, Is Dee Dee Home"

I contributed the first two because not everyone is so lucky to have a great pal in London who records one-of-a-kind music documentaries on your musical heroes that only show on the BBC (thanks Marybeth - I'm still showing these off!) PVC & Super Usher were very interested in seeing them, so I was happy to watch them again. John Peel is my DJ idol and Mark E. Smith was just as hysterical the second time.

Usher Grrrl brought the Ronnie Lane documentary, which was quite a touching look at a talented soul who had lots of bad luck throughout his life. There were loads of great live music clips of the Small Faces (huh, they certainly were small!) and Ronni Lane's solo projects.

PVC (the world's biggest Ramones' fan) contributed the Dee Dee Ramone interview, which we all agreed, basically just encapsulated the tiny sad world of a junkie. We did roar with laughter when Dee Dee told the twentieth story about "Chinese Rocks' and someone turning blue and being put into the bathtub and then he "kind of forgot about them." I guess it's not that funny, but that's how some rock stars live their lives and well, as they say, that's why they call it dope. This Dee Dee interview was filmed for a movie about Johnny Thunders, but of course, when Dee Dee died the filmmaker released it, ka-ching!

Along with this evening of entertainment, there was Flaming Whiskey! Usher Grrrl was just getting over a bad cold, so the Chef offered to make everyone cure-all hot whiskeys. Naturally, they weren't any old hot whiskeys, but a flaming whiskey drink called "the Blue Blazer" (recipe found in the Savoy Cocktail Book.)

In the process of this drink, there is flaming whiskey (ON FIRE) passed from one shaker to another (ON FIRE) -- this process (LIQUID ON FIRE) was so spectacular that I didn't even have an opportunity to worry about our house burning down. I tried to take pictures of the flaming liquid pouring but (naturally) it could not be captured on film, or digital image. Really, you had to be there and I'm very sorry that you missed it.

However, the flame sort of shows up on these pictures. Just imagine that the flame is much larger (viewed minus the bright flash.) Later, the Chef said we should have turned the lights out to get better pictures. ha!


Fire! Whiskey! Music Geeks! It was a fun night. And, the house didn't burn down!

Girl Geek Music Club #2 is next month at Usher Grrrl's house.

Irrepressible

Molly Ivins

Tea Leaf Salad

If you go to Burma Superstar, order the tea leaf salad -- yum. Who knew that fermented tea leaves (imported from Burma, or rather, Myanmar) were delicious. Especially mixed with lettuce, tomatoes, fried garlic, sunflower seeds, peanuts and split yellow peas. It sounds like a strange combination, but sometimes strange combinations work.

The traditional name for this dish is Lephet Thote -- and also serves to "welcome guests to the house, as a peace offering after an argument, as a snack in front of the TV, as an appetizer or last course, a palate cleanser after a meal, and as a stimulant to ward off sleep."

Just in case you need to offer someone this salad as a peace offering after an argument, here's the recipe.

I hope I get some sleep tonight. I didn't know that it was like sprinkling no-doze on a salad.

Wizards & Wishes

This week the librarian and her sweetheart are traveling to "see the wizard" (as the librarian's sweetheart so aptly put it.) We are squinching up our eyes tight in concentration and sending lots of good wishes in their direction (with fingers and toes still crossed).

It's hard to be so far away when important things are happening. In my frustration at not being able to horn in on the St. Paul parade of well wishing, I thought I'd see if I could find something fun for the librarian and her sweetheart to do when they were in Rochester, MN. Sounds like feeding the geese at Silver Lake is a fun activity. Also, there is a vegan cafe called "The Back Room Deli" that is behind a natural foods co-op (making it sound like a speakeasy). Aside from that, there are museums (converted from mansions) where important doctors lived? It's hard enough to visit doctors, much less pay to take a tour of their fancy homes.

Here's my favorite review of Rochester, MN.

0 of 1 Yahoo! User found the following review helpful:

Horrible City

By A Yahoo! User from Rochester, MN

07/10/06

Overall:
Atmosphere
Convenience
Safety
Value

This is an awful, awful place to live. There is absolutly nothing here to do. Especially if you're under the age of 21. And even then there isn't much to do either. Though it's pretty safe here, I definetly would not recommend living or visiting here. Stay away, people..stay away.

Was this review helpful? Yes - No


Rochester kind of sounds like the town where I grew up.

Good luck on your journey librarian & your sweetheart and it's true, we are all stuffed in your pockets.

My Morning Walk!

My Morning Walk

Monkey license

Having a pet Bush Baby has been part of my rich fantasy life ever since we watched the movie "Duma" last night. In this film there is a trained (how did they do that?!) bush baby pal (Mashaka) as one of the so-cute-it-hurts animal characters (Duma is the cheetah.) However, in order to have a Bush Baby as a pet, you need to have a monkey license. That sounds like too much paperwork. Besides, I'm sure they would keep me up at night, being nocturnal wild creatures and everything (that, ahem, mark their paths with urine). Best to leave them to the jungle where they belong. Thank you internet for providing this clip so that everyone can know the magic cuteness of Mashaka minus the magic path marking stench.

Downtown Protest

Toast the Haggis!

It's Burns Night -- a birthday celebration in Scotland for the poet Robert Burns. The Chef & I have been fascinated with this holiday ever since we heard the Scottish band Camera Obscura on the John Peel show singing their charmingly twee music compositions to his poetry. We are big Camera Obscura fans, and now we are fans of the poet/lyricist Robert Burns.

Here are lyrics to his song "A Bottle and Friend."

There's nane that's best of human kind,
But the cheerful and the gay, man
Fal la la

Here's a bottle and an honest friend!
What wad ye wish for mair, man?
Wha kens, before his life may end,
What his share may be o'care, man?

Then catch the moments as they fly,
and use them as ye ought, man.
Believe me, happiness is shy,
and comes not aye when sought, man.
Nice, huh? Burns Night is quite elaborate and involves a Burns Supper where there is not only haggis eating but toasting and addressing the haggis ("Gie her a Haggis!") along with eating tatties, neeps followed by Typsy Laird for dessert. Don't forget there is also poetry reading, bagpipe playing and whiskey drinking. Note: I had no idea there was vegetarian haggis, but I guess there is! Mmmm, oatmeal and lentils are much tastier than sheep lungs.

We will not be eating haggis tonight for our Burns Supper. However, we will be eating lamb stew (seems Scottish) and roasted neeps (turnips) tatties (mashed potatoes) and again listening to Camera Obscura sing Robert Burns poetry on the John Peel show. I finally found the MP3 after searching through stacks and stacks of unorganized CDs. (let me know if you want a copy!)

Of course the Chef had to make a Bobby Burns cocktail. I don't think that's traditional.

Bobby Burns
1-1/2 oz. Italian Vermouth (the liquor nerd used Carpano Antica)
1-1/2 oz. Scotch whisky (the liquor nerd used Compass Box Asyla)
2 dashes Benedictine

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Also for the occasion, I rented the Michael Powell film "I Know Where I'm Going" AND Belle and Sebastian's "Fans Only" DVD so we can listen to Scottish accents all night long.

This is a house that loves celebrating theme nights.

"To the Immortal Memory of Robert Burns!"

Puppies vs. the Cat

I think I've watched this 50 times already. I still need to watch it again.

Everyday Memories

I've never minded being called up for jury duty. I love watching the process, milling about with the rest of the average citizens and (most of all) hearing their stories and how their lives relate (or don't) to whatever odd circumstance that requires selecting a random batch of people to make decisions. Once the Chef & I were selected at the same time and eventually we got into the same jury pool and eventually the same jury. It was a union case and at the time I was a union steward for that leftie radio station so the lawyer for "THE MAN" quickly had me tossed out. The process lasted a whole week and the Chef & I always hung out in the back of the courtroom together, ate lunch together, read one newspaper together. I think people thought we were a jury duty romance. That always made me smile. Oh and our groups were named after colors and I think at one point we were in the Black group and this guy (who was black) asked us, "What are you?" and we responded, "Black" and he said, "No you're not! I'm black!" and we all laughed. Ah, jury duty.

Mind you, I've never actually had to serve so maybe it's not the "duty" I enjoy, just the process when I end up getting out of it. I've been selected a few times, but I've always escaped and felt elated for the rest of the day. One of my favorite jury duty memories was the time I was dismissed after only a few hours so I decided to NOT GO BACK TO WORK and instead went to a bookstore. I skipped in and, to my amazement, realized cartoonist LYNDA J. BARRY was just about to start reading cartoons from her book "The Greatest of Marlys"! At one point she THREW OUT GIANT LEMONHEADS to the audience and I CAUGHT ONE! (note - Lemonheads are my favorite sugar crack candy.) Afterwards, I bought her book and she signed it. We discussed Wisconsin (she was born in Richland Center, WI) On this day I felt like the happiest luckiest person on the planet. I was on the verge of exploding.

The last time I went through the jury duty process wasn't as fun, because it was for the criminal court (not the civil) and going into that courthouse is super scary and (go figure) involves walking through a metal detector and hanging out with criminals. One of them kept crashing our courtroom and saying crazy things loudly and no one removed him. Isn't that the entire job of a bailiff? To keep the order? I was full of worry that I would get picked and have to tell my story (age, martial status, what neighborhood I lived in, renter vs. homeowner and have I ever had a heated argument with a neighbor?) in front of a crazy person. Things were definitely not in order in that courtroom. He eventually wandered out and I crossed my fingers he wouldn't attack anyone in the hallway.

If you've never been called up for jury duty, you should know that during the selection process, everyone and their uncle (and aunt) makes up elaborate excuses for why they can't serve (it's true -- the first time I witnessed this blatant weasel behavior I was shocked!) Because of this, the judge usually gives everyone a pep talk which usually is something like, "Be a good citizen! It's your CIVIC DUTY! If you were in a fix and needed a jury, wouldn't you count on your peers to serve?" As I'm a total Midwestern nerd, it would never occur to me to make up an excuse, so don't tell me that you've done it or else I will think you are un-American and never trust you again.

Anyway, when it got to the pep talk, the judge for this criminal case used a different tactic. He started off by saying that we all do the same things every day, day in and day out, and everything blurs into nothing and who even remembers yesterday? He called these "Everyday Memories." At this point, I laughed and then realized that it wasn't a joke, so I shut up. Then he said, if you served on JURY DUTY, it would be a completely UNIQUE and NEW experience that you would REMEMBER because it would something different from your usual grind of horrible nothingness and boring everything. I looked around at people, and a few were caught up in it and nodding. Wow, I thought. Everyday memories. They're supposed to be bad? It was one of the saddest pep talks I ever heard.

I ended up spending two days in that courtroom listening to all the stories. It got a little boring (even for me) by the second day so I was again, elated when my name was never called and I was excused FIVE MINUTES after they were supposed to release us back into the big jury pool for the rest of the week. This meant I was off the hook. Again, ELATED! SPARED! I didn't even mind that it was too late to wander around downtown in search of Lynda J. Barry.

When I got home I explained the "Everyday Memories" theory to the Chef. I started thinking about all my Everyday Memories and how much I like them, and, even though they happen nearly every day, I don't tire of them and I remember them and look forward to them and can't wait for the next one, and why would I want to serve on jury duty when I could be home having EVERYDAY MEMORIES?!

Here is one of my favorites. Each morning when the Chef makes fun of the crazy cat lady who lives in the house, I say, "Don't bother me! I'm having an Everyday Memory."

Considerate Desserts

It was only when I was washing the dishes left behind by eight dinner guests did I realize, hey! wait a minute, why is this so easy? Not only did a few of our guests bring desserts, but those kind folks brought plate-less, fork-less treats like delicious peanut butter brownies and fancy cookies from the $10 organic cupcake bakery! While at the time I was gobbling them down I was simply thinking, YUM - it's now I realize that it also resulted in eight less plates and utensils for me to scrub. This sort of thing brings great joy to a lazy hostess with no dishwasher. But who needs a dishwasher when you have such kind and considerate dessert-toting pals? We should invite them over to dinner way more often.

p.s. okay so I admit that I haven't finished washing all the glassware yet, but The Chef (and cocktail maker extraordinaire) said he would help me tonight. Yet another good excuse for not having a dishwasher.

Devil Juice

I married someone who makes devil drinks out of devil juice. Scary.

chicken

I'm sorry to disappoint everyone, but I walked up to Bernal Hill this morning with my camera but I was too chicken to take pictures of dogs in jackets. I thought maybe one would stray from their owner and I could snap a discreet photo without anyone noticing, but all the jacket wearing dogs were on leashes. I will try to overcome this fear and be direct next time. "HI! Would you mind if I take a picture of your jacket wearing dog for my BLOG?" I thought I would be more fearless as I got older, but I guess it still bothers me if people think I'm a weirdo.

However I did get a pictures of frost on the park road (above) and on the grass (below). Big whoop I hear you say -- but I've lived here for 13 years and I've never seen frost in San Francisco. (and look, there is even a dog way off in the distance. Unfortunately, no jacket.)

Brrrr...

It sure has been cold here. Well, cold for here. Not really that cold. When we were up in Anderson Valley (drinking wine and taking pictures of old trucks) it got down to 17 degrees, which is SHOCKING to Californians (and surprising even to us!) Check out Mrs. Duck walking on the frozen pond at Lazy Creek Vineyards. I bet she was also surprised.

That night when we returned to the hotel -- our room was FREEZING. Turns out the radiator didn't quite um, heat up so we just jumped into bed with our socks on and huddled together for warmth. The next day we discovered that other hotel guests had requested space heaters. Doh! Ah well, huddling together for warmth isn't such a bad deal.

The weather was beautiful -- crisp, clear and almost like winter. It is January, isn't it? However, the oranges, lemons & avocados are super pissed off. We will certainly pay for their ire at the supermarket. Revenge of the citrus.

The other plus of this cold snap is that all the dogs in our neighborhood are wearing jackets. I'll have to hang out on a corner w/ my camera and take a picture of one of them in a sweater.

Boonville

When the Chef & I need to escape, we head up to Anderson Valley. This year we got to visit the bear in Boonville.

One Bright Berry

Look! It's a berry (just one) on our "Seuss" fern. This snap goes out to the librarian and her sweetheart in hopes that it may brighten their weekend.

Absinthe Minded

"So that guy we met on New Year's Eve sent me an e-mail."

"Oh yeah? That's funny."

"He said that he's going to invite us to an Absinthe party in Mill Valley."

"Really? That's strange. Does he know that you have a bottle of Absinthe?"

"Um, yes. You told him."

"I did?"

"Don't you remember?"

"Oh wait. Did I invite strangers over to our house to drink Absinthe?"

"Yes. Yes you did."

"Oh yeah, I kind of remember that."

American Masters on Annie

For those of you who haven't been following the heated discussion in the "comments" section of this blog, we* recommend that you watch the American Masters documentary on photographer Annie Liebovitz. Not only will there be hot hot hot sexytime photos of Keith Richards AND Patti Smith, but also an incredible look into the life of one-of-a-kind photographer Annie Liebowitz. Check your local PBS station, right now! I was amazed at how they got all that incredibly personal footage and then the credits rolled -- the documentary was shot and directed by her sister, Barbara Liebovitz.

*Recommended by Haus Frau, Kim Bitter and soon to be, Irish Goddess. (um, the three readers of this blog. Wait a minute, do I count? Make that two.)

Ring Fetcher

Our cat Clementine chases (and retrieves) Odwalla ring tops. However, if the toss isn't good enough, she will demand a better one. She is a genius!

Patti Smith is Hot!

The Chef expressed some disappointment that this blog had not been updated, so I'll just take this opportunity to remind him of what we did yesterday. Because I wanted to see the movie "Little Children," and The Chef likes science fiction, we went to see "Children of Men." It was our compromise. However, watching this movie was very traumatic for the both of us. Generally, I don't like to waste such a high level of stress on made-up things, which is why I don't like horror movies or riding rollercoasters, or having people sneak up behind me and shouting, "BOO!" See "Children of Men" at your own risk. It's way more traumatic action than story.

Afterward, we sped home to hide from the future and The Chef made hamburgers for dinner. I grew up eating hamburgers for dinner on Sunday -- EVERY Sunday. It was also the only night as kids we could watch television and eat dinner at the same time. It was a big treat. The Chef & I usually eat recover-from-the-weekend soba noodle soup on Sunday but tonight we needed comfort so we ate our hamburgers and watched Helen Mirren being interviewed on "60 Minutes." I nearly felt that fear of having to go to school the next day. I bet you a zillion million dollars my parents were also eating hamburgers and watching "60 Minutes" last night. I'll have to call them and ask, "Who knew that Helen Mirren was a English seaside town carny girl?"

Today (not as bad as going to highschool) I had to go into the office, which reminded me of reason #823 it's nice to work at home. This morning I heard one of my co-workers say, "I CANNOT find an "attractive" picture of Patti Smith!" I sighed to myself, "Idiot." But THEN they said, "I can't believe she found someone to marry her!" WHAT?!? I automatically snorted in disgust and then there was silence coming from the other cubicle. Like without big tits and blonde hair, Patti Smith doesn't have anything going on. IDIOTS! Working from home, it's easy to forget how stupid and shallow people can be. I want to say it's a good thing to be reminded of this reality, but it's not. It made me feel better that a rock goddess like Patti Smith wouldn't give a rat's ass. Cool.

Full Moon over Oakland

After a Kim Chee-tastic dinner in the Outer Sunset, we spotted the full moon and went up to Bernal Hill to get a better look. ooooooo. Full Moon. Amazing. If I had a fancy camera w/ a zoom lens this picture would be better. But even BETTER, we'd ALL walk up to Bernal Hill and say, ooooo, look at that full moon. No camera necessary.

Greed

Tonight we finally finished watching a movie we've had on our Tivo since July. At the time, we thought it would be a great idea to record the 1924 silent film classic "Greed" directed by Erich Von Stroheim. It was set in San Francisco (we live here), co-starred Zasu Pitts (Zasu!) and Gibson Gowland (!) and it was the FOUR HOUR RESTORED VERSION making it a lesson in film history. That obsessive nutso (he wears a monacle!) Erich Von Stroheim originally filmed a NINE HOUR VERSION and it was clipped to around two hours, with the additional footage (filmed in SF and Death Valley) "tragically" destroyed.

The restored version that we watched (over a period of six months) was reconstructed using a combination of silent film and still photo (read hypnotic slideshow) segments that caused us to become very, very sleepy upon viewing -- only able to watch short stretches at a time along with coming up with lots of excuses for not being in the right "mood" on most nights to continue the endless horrific saga of Trina and McTeague. For why would one want to watch "Greed" when there was a third season repeat of the "Gilmore Girls" on TV? Or um, "Dogs with Jobs" for that matter. So, that's why it took us over six months to watch.

There were a few times that we almost packed it in, but then I became determined and obsessed to finish watching it. I'm like that about movies, books, magazines, newspapers, food and the need to listen to every CD released on the planet. Uh oh. At the risk of being attacked by film students, I'll just come out and say that it probably didn't need to be nine hours long. The four hours alone makes you feel like you are being tortured. We tried to hang in there by making comments like "Good thing they didn't take THAT scene out!" Plus, it ends badly. Very badly. Death Valley. I won't give it away.

However, I discovered they filmed the SF dentist office scenes on the corner of Hayes & Laguna and that the original building is still there! I'll have to look for it (unless that proves I'm obsessed and tortured.) I also discovered that there a bunch of funny"Masterpiece" vs "Trash" arguments about this movie on Amazon.com.

I glad it's off the Tivo, now there is more room for feel-good fluff. We could all use a bit more of that sort of thing these days.

P.S. This is a good time to thank Irish Goddess for my X-mas gift, the funny book "Television Without Pity-752 Things We Love To Hate About Television." It's the perfect antidote -- it even has an entry on "Urkel." Thanks Irish Goddess!

My (hic) reward

I fixed some stuff at work today, and as a reward they gave me - a bottle of champagne.

Ironic, no?

hic.

Just One Dot

Usually on New Year's Eve the Chef & I stay at home watching "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve," nodding off before midnight. But this year we went to a party! At Mr. Alex Trebek's house! It was within stumbling distance, so it was hard to come up with excuses of why we couldn't attend. Plus there were lots of nice people there including Leslie and Quami Quami and some of the Scrabbel posse. There was even a funny guy there that trailed the Chef, convinced that the Chef spoke as slowly as he spoke rapidly -- the two extremes of the language speed ladder. Eventually they figured out that they used to work together at the video game place. There were a bunch of people playing "Dance Dance Revolution" which is usually one of my favorite things to point and laugh at, but I must have been too drunk to focus on them. Dammit!

Alas, I had so much fun that I made the mistake of drinking too much champagne, which despite being used to celebrate things, usually just makes me feel queasy. Stoopid bubbles. After midnight and all the hooting, I turned into that drunken hiccuping person and (hic) the Chef and I (hic) stumbled (hic) home (hic). Then I threw up while the Chef went back to the party to retrieve my favorite scarf. The Chef took pity on me and got me to bed, which is kind of a Freaky Friday scenario as I'm usually the caretaker of the drunk person in our house. Thanks Chef!

I woke up to the glorious new year not being able to stand upright. Proving once again that even old people who know better sometimes act like idiots.

Already, 2007 rocks!