i'm your man

last spring my friends brian and margaret produced a short film titled, "i'm your man." margaret adapted her story to screenplay and brian directed the film. i cut it. brian is in portland, i'm in los angeles, so we were working long distance. after making a pass of the film i'd send a quicktime to brian. he'd watch it then send me notes. since he wasn't in the cutting room i wanted him to see what his film looked like on the avid. i sent him this pic.
the finished short is on brian's site: northern flicker films. i've cut two shorts for brian and one music video.
fun fact: i cut this during slower times while working on a tv show. we couldn't have afforded the avid rental otherwise. ;)
last week brian launched a short film podcast: last film i saw.

his and margaret's futon is often where i camp out when i stay in portland. last May they loaned me this folding chair and a flashlight for my sasquatch campsite. that chair has cupholders: brilliant!

what i'd inteded to be a "pic du jour" is shaping up to be a love letter to my pals m & b, so i'll cut this short.

in summation: they are amazing and i'm lucky my path continues to cross theirs. usually near terrific beer. and mexican food. in portland.

assorted snaps

yesterday i loaded all the pictures i've taken with my phone to my computer. while i'm putting a few together for posts about trips i've taken there are a few odds and ends.
I took the pic above while waiting at a drawbridge in south carolina. i'd just eaten at a beach front place called, poe's and was heading back into charlotte for a minor league baseball game. the camera feature in the phone was still new to me.
this is a knitting chart for the sleeve of a baby sweater. took this pic during a sunny afternoon sitting on the patio at Silver Lake Coffee. (i do log a lot hours on that patio.) i'm still knitting this sweater. just about to block all the pieces and sew them together.
this is another shot involving the baby sweater:
this one taken outside Kaldi Coffee in Atwater Village. i was just beginning to knit the right, front side of the cardigan. i'm one cappuccino down, and into an iced americano. :)
fun fact: the yarn is cascade's dolly merino purchased at Little Knittery a few doors down from Kaldi.

crutch-b-gone or: rock, sole, danger!

in mid-october i broke the fifth metatarsal bone in my right foot. it's the long bone connected to the pinky toe. it wasn't horrible or too painful, but it definitely changed my day to day life in small ways. Every two weeks i've been going to the podiatrist, having x-rays taken and looking for signs of healing in them. after four weeks of this i realized just how slow this area is to heal and that i could stop bringing that right shoe with me on appointment days. After 2 1/2 months of my using crutches, yesterday my doctor told me to walk without them. (!) i'm still wearing a fashionable black surgery-shoe with velcro fasteners for another two weeks. i might be able to wear sneakers after my next check-up.
since i've been given the go-ahead to ditch the crutches i decided this is a good time to list some of the things i've missed being able to do while i had to use them.

it is in no particular order. as more things come to me i'm going to add them, but i'll add them to the top so you don't have to scroll down to the bottom to see if anything new has been added.

• taking walks: haven't taken a walk since october. i've had to drive EVERYWHERE. (think the last walk was to the burger joint w-paul in nyc the day i got hurt)
• using non-disposable dishes and flatware at work: i gave up using the stuff i have at work b/c i couldn't carry it all back and forth to the kitchen in the next bldg to wash it
• climbing onto stools: i have 2 lightbulbs in my apt that have been out since oct. b/c i couldn't climb & balance on a stool to change them
• walking and carrying a coffee cup: the day i realized a travel mug fit in the side pocket of my backpack the world opened up!
• standing comfortably: i'm happy to give my left hip a break.
  
• wearing vintage jackets & sweaters: i haven't worn any delicate stuff since i put a hole in the arm pit of a lavender cashmere sweater the first time i wore it while on crutches.
  
• wearing shoes: been limited to wearing sneakers and one boot: my nicer shoes weren't cushy enough to bear all the crutching.
• doing my laundry
• putting away things that belong on shelves
• taking out my garbage without an ordeal
• going on coffee runs in the afternoon at work
• riding my bike
• sewing: i haven't been confident about pulling heavy cartons of fabric out of the closet, and couldn't stand for all the cutting and pressing
• cleaning my apartment: sweet jesus i can't wait to sweep behind the red chair in the living room
  

today i used my over-the-shoulder laptop bag to haul my computer to work instead of loading it into my backpack. i also climbed on a stool to pull a nice sweater down off the shelf.

it's a brave new world.

last tuesday afternoon of 2010 in postcards

**this one is to my pal, u. in san francisco. the CDR mentioned in this note is the podcast of Comedy Death Ray. I’m commenting on the Dec. 17 xmas episode. i've never seen "Bored To Death" but i'm a fan of its creator, Jonathan Ames, and actor Zach Galifinakas.**

Tues dec 28^th 2010 – closing in on the end of the year…

After what seemed like weeks of uninterrupted rain we’re having some bright, sunny, warm days here. Warm enough for shorts, but still I’m in pants. The weather reminds me that I haven’t worn flip-flops in 2 mos. TWO MONTHS! What kind of living is this, I ask? Thinking of popping in @ my local nail salon to just say hello. The new year provides a good excuse. :) ¶ Spent some time @ a new-ish used book store near Kaldi: found a 1^st edition of M. Chabon’s “Mysteries of Pittsburgh!” I’m not a collector, but picked it up. $15.oo cheap. I’ve read it so many times. :) ¶ Listened to the CDR xmas special. A Bob Ducca ailment caused me to laugh loudly @ SL Coffee. Good thing the patio was empty but for me. :)

**I once visited with my sister Deb while she made a meatloaf of ground turkey. At one point as I helped her by pouring dried oatmeal into the bowl as she mixed it she asked, “do you put oatmeal in your meatloaf?” Unless lentil burritos are considered “meatloaf”, I’ve never made one. That she thought I had my own “meatloaf method” killed me. this card is going to her.**

12.28.2010

So, Elvis’ cook used saltines where you use oatmeal. Maybe it’s a southern thing. :) Funny, I’ve had this postcard for years waiting for just the right recipient. When I saw it today I said, “yes!” ¶ Thank you for the merry xmas text your sent! @ 6:30 am. You are an earlier riser than the rest of us. The double whammy of broken-foot & torrential rains kept me from my xmas ritual of hiking followed by a movie. Spent the morning putting on soup in the slow-cooker. Spent the evening sitting at an outdoor café chatting w-a woman who reminded me of my pal, Vinnie, drinking cappuccinos. Today is bright & sunny – I’m soaking in sun, sipping iced coffee, writing post-cards & watching the neighborhood go by the café patio. I’m off until Jan. 3. Work is shut. Still can’t walk w-o crutches, so I’m a bit stir crazy. This sun is helping, tho. Spectacular day!

Oh! You’ve got the wrong zip code for me!

**for a couple years now i've received letters from my sister even though she's using the wrong zip-code.**

**this to my friend and college-era housemate, s. in santa rosa.

Hey! It’s the last Tuesday of the year… After the days & nights of crazy rain & cloudy days we’ve got some brilliant, sunny, warm weather. The days are still short: The sun is down by 5pm, but while it’s up, I’m gonna be sitting here. :) ¶ This is the kind of day that has a person resolve to Do Something. To Get Things Done and Be a Good Person. You see Potential. I’m fortunate that I have enough experience w-this feeling tht I’m not writing down any of the ideas for action nthat are popping into my head: the enjoyable part is just considering them all. The good stuff will surface again on a not-sun-soaked afternoon. When I am willing to act on it. :) I think the coffee has plenty to do with it. And the groovy tunes. Man, the advent of the walkman in the 80s changed my young life. And here I am w-an mp3 player & headphones in 2010. But, of course!

**this one to my pal, mel: my college-drop-out-era housemate, and old friend.**

3:15p – from a still sunny spot on the patio of Kaldi Coffee – Atwater Village.

The sun is bright & warm today, but it is still winter so it’s low in the sky. Although it’s still early in the afternoon the shadows are getting long. This time of year, at this time of day I am unsettled, trying to remember which café patio has direct sunlight the longest. [I think it’s Silver Lake Coffee – will likely head there soon] I’m looking for the highest ground on the north side of the street. :) ¶ 30 min ago I was feeling all the potential & momentum that a dry sunny day brings after rain. But then I went into the café to order a cappuccino. Had to wait for a while. Then had to put additional coins in the parking meter. By the time I sat down the spell was broken. The breeze is stirring, cool. But then! I took a sip of this coffee: brilliant! AND the song, “Lake Swimming” by Laura Veirs came up on the mp3 player. Gorgeous! ¶ I brought knitting, a novel & postcards out today. Ended up just writing postcards. Something I noticed: when I’m writing letters or p-cards, I spend time looking around @ traffic, people, birds, the sky. When I’m knitting, I’m always looking @ what I’m working on. This is a good enough reason to write at least one p-card every time I plant myself @ a café. Make the most of being in a public place. :) Think I’ll pull out a quilt top in progress from the depths of the closet tonight. Haven’t sewn in months & it’s starting to wear on me. Boxed up this proj. over a year ago. Alright then: IT’S ON! (there’s that potential I was talking about!)

**I notice that while I am writing the last card I am trying to recapture the glow I felt in the third. So much so that I dare to write down a Big Idea when I said I wouldn’t.**

transcription stuff of note:

snax: avocado, cucumber tomato sandwich. xmas cookies from u. in sf!

tunes: richard swift: the atlantic ocean; duke's birth announcement mix

cuffs

saw this lying on the ground near the dumpster at my apt. bldg.
not sure if my neighbors are fugitives or fetishists.

Cheez-Its, Etc

**special props to BeeKay of Fancy Italian Words for today's title**


just about two months ago i made a whirlwind trip to Chicago. left los angeles at 4:30am on saturday and was back sunday at 10pm.

i don't know that i have much time to write about that short trip, but these things happened:

--4:30 am run to Ontario airport with easily fooled quoting "30 Rock" and dishing season 1 of "Mad Man" the entire way
--right off the blue line in Humboldt Park popped into the Boiler Room for a restorative before heading to hotel s & s for some of this:
--and this:
--at 3am cabbed to chez superschein to find a bed all set up for me.
--woke at 9:30am to the sound of the toddle upstairs running wind sprints on the wood floor.
--then breakfast with allison @ over easy: my. favorite. breakfast. spot. in. chicago. *swoon*
(i agree that the humpty dumpty painting back there is creepy.)

what's really brewing under this clumsy string of pix is what the week of my birthday was like. i'm not implying besotted shenanigans, but a small thing, the arrivial of a piece of correspondence in my mailbox, that changed things. for the better. but still, felt like i'd gotten walloped with a big fish. i'm not trying to be coy by being vague, i just don't have time to get into it.

also: the rest of the week was pretty terrific.. :)

10am and things are HAPPENING!

Barry and Ben, the floor installers are here and making changes in the kitchen!
the fridge and stove are in the vestibule. the old lino is coming up!
here are some articles that Ben found when he moved the fridge:

Before they leave they are also going to move my piano away from the wall so i can paint back there! i've been wanting to paint that wall, but couldn't bring myself to ask my friends to move the piano. it's a player, and just too heavy. but i will be more comfortable asking them to move it only once, back against the wall.

more to come!

the gents pulled the piano away from the wall and discovered a lost set of house keys. today is full of found stuff already.
here are some progress shots:
the piano away from the wall. i've started taping off the mouldings.





me behind the piano! haven't been back here for almost 7 years.



floor progress shot: the wood flooring laid down, awaiting the application of cement.

and now i'm running out of energy. and masking tape. as long as i get a chunk out of this task this morning i'll be confident i can get it all finished, and piano back in place by sunday afternoon. oof. now i have to move a cabinet of cds to get to part of the piano wall. need food...
DONE!
I'll take a clearer pic of the tile after i've eaten. i thought they'd be done about an hour ago, so i hadn't planned to be w/o lunch. it's lovely! they did a terrific job!
oh man...hungry...more when i come back.