Happy Groundhog Day!

A song for Mother's Day...

I know... it's a little dark. My mother did introduce me to the Muppets at a very early age.

Plans.

We did Thanksgiving at my place this year! It was so much fun, I had to share our "planning" chart...

Yes, we are a bit crazy.

(sorry words are sparse... Nutcracker and Winter shows have eaten my brains... so BUSY!)

Happy Thanksgiving...

I believe in creative lattice work. Sure, I could follow the Joy of Cooking recipie, I could make a perfect Martha Stewart lattice top for my pie, but it has no soul. My pie is different every time. I add at least one new secret ingredient to the pie each time... these have no less than three secret ingredients and a few not so secret (a 1/4 cup of Laphroiag whiskey... yum!)

Some families have the exact same Thanksgiving year after year and they are happy with the perfectly honed orchestra of food. I salute them, but I prefer variety. I prefer exploration.

Either way, pie is amazing!

P.s. Family and friends trying to call me; I forgot to charge my phone... it will be on soonish. Love You!

It's the Year of the Tiger

Do I love a parade?

The militarism, the crowd, the screaming children, the vendors selling "COT-N Candy! and Glow Sticks!", all of the people in ugly uniforms marching... enough Chinese poppers to make the place sound like a firing range from morning until after sundown... what's not to love?

Some mysterious sense of obligation coaxed me to go see the Chinese New Year parade this year. I've been living in the San Francisco area for nine years and have never been. It's supposed to be a big deal. After waiting around for a good 40 minutes next to delightful children who spent the whole time screaming, playing with firecrackers and spewing silly string on everyone around them we finally saw signs of life...
Just look at these Dragon dancers... not dancing. Ooh exciting.
There was a guy dressed in a green unitard who was really into it. He was there dancing and making everybody cheer and making me feel like even more of a sour-puss in comparison.
The Dragon was cool, although a bit fast to take photos of. The guys holding the dragon were hot, so that was nice...

At this point in the parade a chubby 9 year old in designer jeans next to me was crying that she hadn't had enough cotton candy and that she wanted the Blue silly string "not the Red!"... oh yea we're having fun now...

Ok, yea the dragons were really neat. If only there were a way to see them in a non-parade format.
I watched the parade for about 30 minutes before heading back towards BART and found the tail of the parade by the time the sun had set.

Year of the Tiger here;
Glowing Dragon;
MCDonalds loves you... buy our Happy Meals... Visa loves you too but the photo didn't show up very well... it was totally covered in glitzy money and credit cards. Corporate sponsors pandering for ethnic customers? Wow parades are awesome.
Look another glowing tiger (one of possibly ten)

Well now I can say I've been. Gay pride is more fun.

Yom Kippur

Lately I've found myself at odds with a prevalent attitude of superiority I see so much of. There are the "greener than thou"s, also the "more politically correct", "more informed", and "better educated" sorts who are like nails on a chalkboard. So many times I find myself just thinking "stop talking about how great you are and just be!" All of the bumper stickers, protests, posters and political and religious soap boxes just make me want to scream sometimes.
There is a parable of Jesus that has been perpetually knocking about in my head about all of it.

Luke 18:9-14
9 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’
14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Tonight through tomorrow evening is the Jewish day of atonement. It is a day of solemn fasting and repentance. In this modern world where many people lack the religions of the past it seems that reflection and repentance can easily be discounted. A day to look into only personal faults and sins (religious, moral, ethical or what you will) rather than on that of others could be a day well spent.

I would welcome a more mainstream Yom Kippur here in the States. It might take a little of the hedonism out of the whole Halloween/Thanksgiving/Christmas season of gluttony.

As the Yom Kippur greeting goes; "May you be sealed for a good year in the Book of Life"

Da big Apple

Some sporadic photos from my weekend trip here... I'm afraid I was too busy having a great time and getting lost on the subway to even think about taking many photos...
Times Square was as overwhealming as ever. They've cut off traffic and installed lawn furniture, it looks like they intend to make this permanent and with all of the foot traffic it seems like a good idea...
I took this one because the friend I was there with lives on a kibbutz in Israel... the juxtaposition was funny to me...
We went to the Museum of Natural Science (I may do a quick additional post about the museums I went to)...

Central Park; Wow it was humid and sticky... but pretty.
"Emergency brake; Pray"


Great weekend... I love New York and I love New Yorkers. It was hot and humid and the weather really takes it all out of me pretty quickly but somehow the pace and the attitude of the place make up for it.

On Sunday it rained and it was delightful warm rain that helped pull a lot of the humidity down. People on the street were selling umbrellas but I just chose to get wet. At a certain point the wetness of rain sure beats the wetness of sweat. I don't know that I'll be posting a lot more from this trip but I thought I'd share the nutshell version... probably posts about the Met and the Natural Science museum to follow. Until then... caio!

Easter in the Castro

Lately posts have been few... I've been in tech, I've been swimming in a blue mess of my brain... I've been curling up in my own shell. It's not something I reccomend. 

Today was Easter and San Francisco is not to be outdone for any holiday, especially holidays that allow for dress up.

 I though it would be a good idea to see the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence up close and perhaps check out the"Easter bonnet" and "hunky Jesus" competitions.

This is Dolores Park in San Francisco's Castro district;

(Poem store; made me laugh because my best friend and I have a running joke about how people are always trying to sell you bad poetry in SF... I was tempted to buy him a poem today but I'm poor and there was a line)



I found that although I wore an outfit that my Grandmother would have been horrified of (tall black boots with my summer skirt and a black top and cardigan) I grossly underdressed. I would have been much better to have worn bright yellow with blue hair... alas, perhaps next year.
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are a tongue in cheek community service group... really think of them as the rotary club, but in neon habits and white face drag make-up. (Really, I just learned about them, their website is lots of fun if you're interested)



I left long before the "hunky Jesus" competition started... which in all honesty sounds like it's in good fun, but perhaps is still a little too disrespectful for my taste, so I'm not sure I would have actually enjoyed it as much as those around me.


I made a few rounds about the park, talked with a sister about how she made her habit (ah yes shop talk), watched a good drag/lip sync act, a girl rock band and then the polka group started...   The slight searing on my un-sunscreened shoulders and my lingering anti-social mood finally got the best of me when confronted with  "oom-pah oom-pah-pah" ... such is the power of polka.  However a day in a sunny park with drag queens and easter bunnies is a good way to cheer up.

Happy St. Pats

In honor of St.Patrick's Here are a few of my favorite Irish tunes (although not the best videos of them). The best thing about Irish music and Irish food is that it's not elitist. There is some that is better than others, but at the same time it's out there for everyone to interact with and to enjoy.   So I thought I'd post some less refined videos rather than posting all Dubliners and Pogues...

Yes, I'm a Huge U2 fan, but this is also a really good version of the Wild Irish Rover (bootlegged);


A shout out to my Protestant Irish ancestors 

(yes, my ancestors were the kill-joys of old Erin; it still counts);


Now this guy is singing one of the best pub songs ever. If you close your eyes and don't watch him it's good. If you watch him... well...  it reminds me of Bono from the I will follow video, in that he clearly will grow into his style but in the mean time it's awkwardly charming;

--May your troubles be less And your blessing be more And nothing but happiness Come through your door--

Adieu 2008

The final day of 2008, sighs outside my door. A grey fog that whispers "stay inside today" "do your work over the internet". I consent although New Years Eve in San Francisco calls later in the day.

...Good bye to things we should let go. Hello good fortune, hello new complications, hello new jobs and new people, hello new attitudes and new opportunities...
...and most likely hello more winter fog!

I must say as grey and dismal as it seems, I am still grateful that it is not snow and that the temperature remains above freezing. I love living by the bay.

The Shortest Day

And so the Shortest Day came and the year died
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive.
And when the new year's sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, revelling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us - listen!
All the long echoes, sing the same delight,
This Shortest Day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And now so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
--Susan Cooper
Happy Solstice Everybody!  

Shaking Packages

One of my favorite pastimes from Christmas drives my mother crazy.  I love shaking packages.  I love trying to figure out what is inside the box.  The actual gift is only half as great as the what-ifs beforehand.  

   There are certain techniques that have been developed through the years.  You do have to take into consideration what was on your wish list, things you need (or that others think you need), and things that the gift giver probably secretly wants for themselves.  With that in mind you then consider the weight of the package and its dimensions.  Sometimes a very large package with little weight is either a small gift in disguise or possibly a bulky gift that has little weight, like a down comforter.  You also have to beware of weighted packages that try to throw you off the trail... I think I begin to give away too many tricks here... 

Now small packages are usually jewelry or gift cards, they're pretty easy.  I suppose in a different income bracket small packages could contain car keys, but really that's just not going to happen for most of us. 

Books are generally easy as well, they're a rectangular or square package with three sides that dip in and one that is solid... generally books look like books... the fun with books is guessing witch one is inside.

The medium size packages are the most challenging.  Sometimes you can feel out the shape of the object, which is great "um... scissors?  an umbrella?  an oddly shaped game?".  Soft packages are usually socks, frequently given by someone who really wanted socks but didn't ask for them... heavy medium size packages are difficult, there is a whole cadre of procedure that goes on with those involving sound, smell, weight, and wish analysis... yet again trade secrets.  

Now that I don't have the opportunity to spend much time with my family in advance of Christmas I'm afraid package shaking needs to be crammed into one or two days of possibility, which is a bit disappointing.  Right now I'm nearing completion with gift creation...so here I am sending my family an electronic package shake...so family if you don't want any clues you should stop right now...

Kelly; (I know this is super easy)

Dad; 

Mom;

Shaggy;

Adam:

John:(no it's not a girl in ripped jeans)

ooh pretty

This sparkely display caught my eye on the way home tonight. I loaded these pictures in full resolution so that you can enlarge them and see what the store sells...

If you need a hint, the store name is GDill

The picture doesn't give justice as to how pretty the display actually is. Makes me want some for Christmas decor... if only it wasn't quite so awkward.