Sprizee :: A simple girl replete with complications

Hope is not a strategy.

In America you vote with your dollars.  I know it sucks a little, but that's how it goes.  I just took the next step towards owning a piece of the political process by making a donation to Barack Obama's presidential campaign.  Okay, it was only $10 but I wanted to put something more substantial than my hope behind someone that I think can change the attitude and direction of America. 

Barack Obama is not taking any contributions from Washington lobbyists or political action committees. So c'mon, won't you join me?

Etsy lured me with her crafty wares.

Introducing my latest acquisision.  Etsy?  Why must you be so damn cute?  The brown version is no longer available, however it's still available in red.  Or how about the paint by number cutie?

Damn you InternetS.  Like I needed another skirt. 

Brain Food

On Saturday, I finally finished The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Polland.  Later in the day I stumbled across an interview between Bill Maher and Michael Polland about the book.  So if you don't have time to read the book or that NY Times follow up article, there's always the video.

Oh Henry!

The other night I visited The Henry.  The Henry regularly rotates their art collection and, if you live in Seattle, the current exhibits are definitely worth checking out.  My personal favorite was Bruce Nauman's collective of neon signs. 

Some of Nauman's pieces are interactive and the one that really fascinated me was titled Parallel Room.  Parallel Room has two doorways in which you enter through an ever narrowing hallway.  So from the start it feels awkward and uncomfortable. Then once inside the actual room, you are bombarded by super bright neon lights. 

The first time I stepped into the room I had this overwhelming sense that the air was heavy, like smoke was being pumped in for effect.  But later, when I stepped in again with The Dude, I realized the heaviness of the air was just an optical illusion.  What I slowly began to notice with The Dude beside me was that his face was starting to turn green before my very eyes.  And the more I stood there and stared at his face, the greener it got.  Trippy.

Turns out the neon lights in the room aren't just normal white colored lights, but lime green and so bright that they, for all intensive purposes, eliminate the rest of the color spectrum.  So if you're wondering what you'd look like as the Incredible Hulk, but don't want to bother with the pesky face paint, go here.

Other pieces in Nauman's work were whimsical, violent, and funny.  The neon sign that switched between the words Violins, Violence, Silence made me giggle, reminding me of that Gilda Radner SNL sketch.  And after all that museum touring I did in Spain, I really enjoyed the chance to see something new and different.   

One more exhibit I have to mention is Carsten Höller's Neon Circle.  A circle built out of a repeating series of long straight neon lights that flicker at various intervals, it completely fascinated me.  With room to step inside it presented me with a challenge I won't soon forget;  to remain standing while staring dead head at it.  Oh Henry, I can't wait to see what you bring to town next. 

Can I claim my house as a dependent on my taxes?

My weekend was full of shopping and eating.  Saturday, on the way to Rejuvenation to pick out a glass shade for a new fixture we're putting in the entry way, we stopped at Cucina De Santis.  Then onto Home Depot where we proceeded to blow $300 a new shiny drill and a 16 pound sledge hammer (for all that concrete we need to get rid of in the backyard) except it wasn't really like blowing money since we used a few gift cards. 

Then onto Restoration Hardware in UVillage to pick out a curtain rod.  $250 later we had two skinny boxes and no clue what kind of curtain to buy.  But again, it wasn't really like blowing $250 since we used a gift card.  Then onto Whole Foods to pick up $50 worth of Larabars because yummy and also, better than fast food.  And also, $50?  Yes, I bought A LOT of them.  Because THEY ARE SO GOOD!  On the way home, we spied the Iraq War Memorial at Greenlake.  That night, we drove out to Vietnam Restaurant for some tasty pho and creme puffs.

The next morning was prep work for painting the entry way before putting up the new fixture.  One of us donned booties made from trashbags while the other mowed the grass with the environmentally friendly reel push mower even though she's very allergic to the stuff.  During a break, both of us hopped in the car and drove around Ballard aimlessly looking for a place to eat until we decided upon Smokin' Pete's. 

Afterwards, The Dude returned to the house and I drove up to Kmart in a desperate attempt to find some affordable curtains to go on that very un-affordable curtain rod we had purchased the day before.  I wasn't looking for anything fancy and I'll be damned if I'm going to pay $100 a panel for some fabric.  Cotton, basic, taupe...that's all I'm asking for.  I've already tried Target and Sears and they both totally let me down.  Where can a girl get some decent curtains?  I might have to check out Bed, Bath and Beyond or Linens and Things but if you have other suggestions, please yodel in my direction.

Then back to the house where I sat under the lovely lilac tree in our backyard and continued reading The Omnivore's Dilemma while The Dude wrapped up painting the ceiling. I thought I was going to get more done this weekend, but after listing everything out perhaps I got more accomplished than I thought.

I am currently in love with...

The 70 something degree weather we're having in Seattle IN MAY APRIL! You'll never guess what I'm wearing.

Finally finding the perfect fixture for the house entry over at School House Electric.  Northwest represent!

That walk I took, on a whim yesterday,  around Greenlake instead of just driving around it like I normally do every other day on my way from the metro park and ride.

Etsy goods!

Sewing classes!

Camping!

Going to The Copper Gate with friends for drinks after work!

Carmina Burana on Saturday! Season tickets rule.

You people can not be serious.

Oh, hell no.  Wow, I hate to say it but I thought the first one was bad.  And then I saw this gem. Run. Away.

Speaking of running, the book I'm currently reading has this really interesting chapter on the Marathon des Sables, a 6 day / 151 mile endurance race across the Sahara Desert in Morocco.  But because that wouldn't make the race difficult enough, the participants also have to pack all their supplies with them ON THEIR BACK. So, as you can see Sables means The Crazies in French.

Those who do not understand history are doomed to repeat it.

Months ago, after The Dude and I had settled into our house and finally stopped living out of boxes, a friend stopped by with a house warming gift.  Actually he didn't have the gift in hand because what he bought us was a year long subscription to The New Yorker magazine.

At the time I hadn't picked up a New Yorker since the age of 8, in the dentist's office, when I had already bored myself to death with a 2 year old copy of Highlights.  Thinking a girl could only enjoy for so many hidden pictures, games, and giggles, I had gone searching for something else to entertain me.  I was hoping to keep myself preoccupied until the hygienist called my name and then it would be nonstop fun with x-rays while she stood 3 rooms away and zapped me with her machine of uncomfortable facial expressions.

So it was down to Highlights and New Yorker.  At the ripe old age of eight, I had decided Highlights was for babies. Plus, I had already thumbed through all the copies of Highlights and I was desperate.  So I tried my hand at the New Yorker.  All I remember was 1) too much text, 2) too black and white, 3) wait, it has cartoons!, 4) but I don't get them, and 5) boring, I think I'll stare at the pictures on the wall now.

So when our friend gifted us a subscription to New Yorker magazine I was simultaneously curious and concerned.  Wow, I couldn't have been more right and wrong.  For the past few months I've absolutely loved thumbing through it on the bus, to and from work, catching up on current events and never having to worry that some asshat with a pretty face was going to interrupt with breaking news that some boring celebrity had just checked herself into rehab. 

The latest article, which took me over a week (on and off) to read, from the March 26th edition, Betrayed: The Iraqis who trusted America the most. by George Packer sums up for me the best and the worst that America has to offer.  The story is utterly heartbreaking.  But miraculously, still leaves the door open for hope.

Go read it and gain some insight into where we went wrong in Iraq. And if you happen to see a cartoon or two along the way you don’t fully comprehend, don’t feel bad.  You’re in good company.