kitten's playing (i love them)

the end is worth waiting for...

white trash meets tacos

sam made white trash tacos last night, which were out of this world.

gooey, messy, cheese whiz-ey (cheese whiz being the thing responsible for the title 'white trash')

i will crave them forevermore.

YUM!

(i should have taken a picture, but i was too busy scarffing the yumminess. i'll take a picture next time.)

aaron- freebird

aaron left the hospital last night and celebrated his freedom by going home, walking to the coffee shop, walking home, then watching half of 'oh brother, where art thou' with me before going to bed. he is very happy to be out, and i'm happy FOR him.

if you want to call him, let me know and i'll give you our home phone number if you don't already have it.

Life Revolution- am i ready to blog again?

so yeah, how was i to know that everything in my life would change 100% in 3 months time?

i really didn't even think that was possible.

yet here i am, rethinking everything i know about practically everything; exhausted and exhilarated by the last 3 months of my life.

that one line from fight club where ed norton and brad pitt's characters are talking about their relationship comes to mind repeatedly for me:
fuck what you know. you need to forget about what you know, that's your problem. forget about what you think you know about life, about friendship, and especially about you and me.

i feel a little bit like ed norton's character must have felt when he realized things weren't quite what he thought they were.

it took some time for all the pieces to come together and make sense, but once they did, he welcomed the truth, and i think i do to.

it's surreal.

but it's welcome.

'my eyes are open.'

i say to sam: you met me at a very strange time in my life.
__________________

my hopes:

aaron and i will remain close friends throughout our lives and share all our wonderful events at least in some close proximity.

i will continue to open my eyes to the truth about myself and keep them as open as possible.

i will have the courage to make decisions based on the truths i know and the truths i learn about myself and others near me.

i will allow myself the luxury of actually making mistakes (some big ones) so that i can learn to grow and love myself at the same time i experience life to the fullest.

i will welcome my decision to drift down the river of life and trust that the current has always supported me and always will.

i will always treat people with the love, respect and honor they deserve.

i will stop being so dramatic about all this shit.
__________________

i'm a little scared... i'm sure that's normal.

make sure to vote in my latest poll-------->

Special Agent Tom Rogers must get his daughter back.

i laughed pretty hard at this one (have you seen it?):

my blog silence- update

there is no shortage of things i'd like to blog about right now, but i just don't feel free to share all that is in my mind.

i hope that i can return to open and free blogging within the next few weeks.

please come back and check from time to time- i really don't want to lose you, fine reader, and when i finally return to blogging, i hope to make it worth your wait.

yep.

camera update- a new friend

many people have remarked that they don't think i can live without a camera.

i agree, so i got a new one. =)

it's gloriousness in metal and plastic form.

these are two pics of the camera (from the internet, not my actual new camera).

this camera is the bomb!!

happiness abounds...

boston broke my camera =(

i went out to boston for work this week and the city was really nice to me for awhile, but then it decided to break my camera- my dearest friend who is really just an extension of my self.

how did it break my camera? i'm not really sure... i was taking pictures in little italy, near mike's pastry (serious yumminess, btw). then when i went to review the pics later, the screen showed me a picture i didn't remember taking. =( then i realized the screen was broken and i died inside.

i'd like to show you what that screen looks like since it's got great color and composition, but i can't take a picture of it, unfortunately. =(

the sadness in me is nearly unbearable. i can't even look at the pics on the card, cause they only remind me that i can't take anymore pics for awhile.

boston, why did you break my baby?

(sigh)

besides ruining my life, boston was so nice to me. how can i reconcile a city that is nice and mean at the same time?

if you're reading this and you know how much i love my camera, please leave a comment- i need some lovin'...

how the cat wakes you up in the morning

thanks lindsey!! i laughed so hard i cried!!



can't wait to hang out with you tonight, lady!!

quiet

yep, i've been pretty quiet lately.

please don't give up on me. i'll be back to my old blogging self again soon.

xoxoxo!

free your mind

make sure you watch the whole thing... =)

i owe you, my faithful readers...

...about 10 different posts that are in my head.

i will try to get them out of my head and onto my internet soon.

i will also try to clean my house, water and revive my plants, change the litter box, and clean the bathroom soon.

thanks for your patience.

xoxo

paul- i like him... and his kids.

aaron and i joined paul and his kids (paige, sam and jake) for dinner and rough housing saturday night and it was a crazy good time.

first, we drank beer and helped paul make lasagna.

i tricked sam into letting me kiss him on the cheek. ;-)

we climbed on the pirate ship in the back yard.

we ate dinner and named all the states in alphabetical order.

we horsed around on the living room floor (i sustained a few bruises from being jumped on repeatedly)

sam tricked me into letting him kiss me on the cheek. =)

we put on safety equipment and rode the sled down the stairs into the bean bags.

we ate ice cream and strawberries.

kids went to bed. =)



paul- seriously, your kids are great!!! thanks for the great evening!!

but then why are they always so sad?

my logic class from college is coming back to me when i see this:
























how many different fallacial or misleading statements can you spot in here?

why do i suddenly feel like a terrorist or satan?

(thanks sam)

jen's going home tomorrow =(

my friend jj is going home tomorrow. =(

we had a lot of fun while she was here- shopping, taking pics, eating sushi, talking. i'll miss her.

btw, i asked her why she didn't hit my blog with a really good story of me to amuse all of you and she surprised me- she said she couldn't think of any stories that weren't really really embarrassing.

it's true, she has some really embarrassing stories about me, but i was surprised becuase i thought she would have delighted in the opportunity to really stick it to me. =)

especially after i mentioned that her first boyfriend, david, kissed me in his bedroom not too long after they broke up. (now there's a memory)

it's not too late, jj- you could still hack my blog again before you leave...

campfire chatter- video 2 of 2

alright, so this video is 10 minutes long, so if you weren't on our camping trip, it's probably not going to be the most exciting thing to watch...

it starts with a little lindsey feature and then heads straight into campfire chatter, which is more about the audio than anything.



we had so much fun. i hope you enjoy.

surf and turf- incredible!

aaron made the most incredible surf and turf ever for jj and me:


















grilled new york strip with mushrooms, grilled scallops with an amazing tomatillo cilantro white wine sauce, minnesota cous cous (wild rice, cous cous, corn, zucchini, red pepper)...

holy cow, that was amazing!!

jen asked me to mention- she ate two whole scallops, and she doesn't really even like them!! (she gave her last one to me me me!)

yep

fall colors- video 1 of 2

i'm planning to post two videos of our fall colors trip last weekend. here is the first- 'nature'.



look for a 'campfire talk' video, too...

coming soon.

beauty industry- under fire!!

yeah, i'm not going to get up on a soap box about it, but i like the change in attitude about the beauty industry, illustrated by the dove 'evolution' ad and their latest one, 'onslaught':



there is something that bothers me slightly about these ads, maybe that dove hasn't always held this perspective and probably helped contribute to the current situation. it's cool tho that they're leading this new attitude.

there's this channel on youtube created by girls who are 'flipping' ads because they are disrespectful, irrelevant, promote an unhealthy body image, and in their opinions, fail to effectively sell the product they represent to the target audience- girls. check out the channel here.

here's a good representative example:



yep, i also love that the girls get to state what they think on video- helps improve their own confidence, i'm sure. great approach.

In my defense...

About the "he's so greasy" comment- I've always wanted the VERY best for Susan, and also I'm a schmuck. Put the two together, open mouth, insert foot.


It took me a little bit to realize that although Aaron was not exactly what I expected, he was exactly what Sue needed- and needs. He is perfect for her, and I love him for being so good to her.

Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!

It's mine, all mine!

Sue and Aaron just left for work, and the blog- and the bee-u-tee-full house- are left to me.

I just called the locksmith to change the locks. It's all mine!

You shall hear more from me soon, but first I must actually think of something to say. So, for now, I am yours truely-

The Vestigial Stamen

jennie k!!

my best friend from high school is coming into town today!!! she's the one who sat next to me in world lit class when i fell in love with aaron... her response was 'him?? he's so greasy!'

she and her husband (which makes her jen r0ss!ng, now) were the only people at our wedding, unless you count the group of people that stopped on their morning walk to watch and sniffle.

anyway, she's going to be here, and i can't wait.

welcome to minneapolis, jj!!

two queens, one castle- fantastic show

my dear friend linda took me to see 'two queens, one castle' tonight to celebrate our shared birthday and the show was so amazing. the singing was incredible, it was so moving and inspirational.

i really love linda- she is so good to me. i am just so thankful she is in my life. everytime i see her and talk to her, a little bit of her wisdom and life's philosophy rub off on me and i'm a little better for it.

tonight was no different- thanks for the insight and perspective, linda!!

fall camping 2007

so our camping trip was fantastic!!

here is the short version:

- lindsey got lost and slept in her car
- jeff and i became bff's (best fart friends)
- julie camped for the first time and loved it
- lindsey shared her toothpaste with me
- zack drank too much and got sick
- saire and mark argued about how fast mark was driving
- jeff and lindsey got married

here is the longer, more detailed summary:

jeff, aaron and i drove up on friday. we got out of town a little late (okay, yes, maybe i was working a little bit...) and we stopped at fitgers in duluth for a little lunch and a few frosty beers. mmm.
























we found our campsite easily, and jeff and i put up our tents while aaron went to get firewood. while he was in town, aaron called lindsey to make sure she was clear on how to get to the site. he said that the connection was bad, but he thought he had given her all the directions...

after we put up our tents, we headed down to the lake. the moon was so beautiful!


















yummy bratwursts and beer for dinner. it got cold quick and we waited patiently for my dear friend lindsey. at about midnight, i gave up and went to bed, asking aaron to stay up a little later for her, which he did.

in the morning, still no lindsey, so jeff and i headed out to find her. we got to town and checked my messages- there was one with lindsey crying, which broke my heart clear in two. she had gotten lost and had slept in her car... =(

so we called her, found her, and hugged her for at least 5 minutes straight!!


















then we went back to camp, got some breakfast, and headed out to lutsen.

when we got there, we found out that they weren't running the alpine slides on account of weather, so we got drunk and played scrabble. =)



















soon saire and mark showed up and we hung out a little longer until we could see that the mountain tram was finally running.

we took a trip up the mountain and checked out all the fog on top. =)

the colors were amazing!



















then we drove down to temperance river state park to meet jules and zack and to hike around there. the waterfalls are so fun in the fall.=)















































headed back to camp and aaron made pork chops (and apple sauce), potatoes, and corn on the cob. fabulous!



















julie and lindsey brought birthday dessert, so we scarfed that, too.



















then, the campfire conversation kicked into gear and we hung until late into the night.

at one point, the boys decided to find campfire and even had a wood chopping competition or something silly like that with an old ax aaron and i bought in 1996 (yes, i remember when we bought the ax) which has never been sharpened.

beers were drank, laughs were had, good stuff.

in the morning, it was raining (and zack was puking outside his tent), so we piled into the cars, left zack behind to recover, and hit a restaurant in town for breakfast.

we came back to camp and most of the group headed out. julie and zack hung around until zack was well enough to travel, then the four of us went to split rock lighthouse, which is one of my favorite sites up there.










































we said goodbye to julie and zack and hung out at the beach for awhile longer.

we drove home.

all the pics:



i'll post some video soon...

aaron has something he would like to say...
____________________________

yay for susan's birthday!! it was awesome.

in honor of susan's project management skills, this list of 'things not to forget when you go up to the northwoods' was compiled around the campfire on saturday.

if anyone reads this and goes camping in northern minnesota, don't forget your:

ashtray, bratwurst, campfire, dildo, egg, fart-knocker, galazy, horseradish, icabod crane, jelly bellies, kayak, both your legs, your military, a nano second, octopus, pipe, quantum mechanics, recess, sub sandwich, transformers more than meets they eye, uzbekistan, victory, water, a xenophobe, yogurt, and when you're ready to sleep, some zzzz's.
____________________________

happy anniversary buddy!! (and bday news)

aaron and i got married four years ago today. he's my friend.

my sister kristen sent me a robe with ducks all over it, which i love!!!

she also sent me this e-card, which is hilarious:



i got a whole slew of bday cards yesterday. you guys are all so sweet!! giant love!

kat- magic hands and heart

for my birthday, my friend kat took me out to lunch (sushi!!) and then gave me a masterful massage.

holy relaxation... i think i had an out of body experience- while still in my body! =)

i think you should visit her site here to find out more, and then give her a call to set up an appointment- she really is amazing.

(just a note: the sushi lunch doesn't automatically come with the massage)

thanks for the lunch, the massage and for calling me on my shit, kat!!

cruel and unusual anticipation

aaron has wrapped my presents and left them on our chair in the living room with a huge sign pointing to them, which on one side says:

Hey
there are some
PRESENTS
over here
for Susan Quakkewhat

and on the other side says:

LOOK
presents!
birthday presents
for Susan
Susan Quakkewhat



















As my friends, are you guys going to let him do this to me??

free marketing advice- utilikilts

okay, so corey, the guy talking in the video below, replied to my recent post about utilikilts (or at least someone impersonating him did).



first, corey is a hottie.

second, here is some free marketing advice for you, corey-

one of my friends said that he didn't think he could handle all that freedom and that got me thinking...

corey, at some point you had to get over the idea of being so free. it must have been something of a challenge, putting on the utilikilt for the first time and walking around in it. i really like your marketing idea of 'girl's are into it' cause it's true and very very fun. but here's my advice:

think of ways to help guys get over the idea of 'too much freedom' so they can imagine the benefits. you can use the same kind of humor as you use in your current stuff to talk about that first experience with the utilikilt and how rising to the challenge (sorry) brought ever-lasting comfort, pleasure, women, and damnation, of course.

cause really, what guy doesn't like to think of chics chasing him down cause he's wearing a sexy item of clothing? but that same guy probably imagines endless freedom as a bit of a risk and certainly potentially dangerous, right?

how did you get over it? share that. guys who can visualize the path they might take from restriction to glorious abandon, might be more interested in what you have to offer.

free advice, of course, is always worth what you pay for it.

good luck, corey!! you rock!!

wnyc radio lab- october 27th

if you've heard me talk about WNYC radiolab, you know that i love love love the show.

well, jad and robert are coming to minneapolis, and for just $15 fine dollars, you can see the show!!!










aaron, julie and i are going for sure. we'd love to have you join us!!!
Saturday, October 27th
8pm
Fitzgerald Theater
Live sweetness!!

if you wanna hear what it's all about, you can find the podcast on itunes (free).

let me know if you're interested in joining us.

jules and zack- you know you wanna
kat and scott- i dare ya!
heidi and louisa- do you even read my blog?
sam and paul- bring it
carla and tom- we'll try not to be obnoxious, i promise
erika and jason- seriously
lindsey and nathan- what are you waiting for?
jeff and gene- oh no you di'int
lori and tesia- loves of my life, let's get it ON!

if i didn't mention you by name, you are doubly invited!!

thank you!!

the last few weeks have been really tough for me for a number of reasons.

to help me through, you have:
- endured long, complicated conversations
- encouraged me
- sent me cards
- rescued me in the middle of the night (big love to jules)
- shared your stories and insight
- validated me
- snuggled under the covers (big love to my kitty)
- sympathized, empathized
- let me cry
- reminded me of who i am, what i'm capable of
- just been there for me, spent time with me, called me to check in
























i'm in a much better place now and i'm proud of the work that i've done. it was hard but very worth it and i'm feeling the sunshine on my face again.

thank you for the part you played. you were all so good to me.

i hope, when you need me, i can be there for you in an equally important way.

thanks for your friendship!

matt arthur and the bratlanders

doug and i worked together at allen until recently, when he took a new job at carlton college.

besides working, though, doug plays in a band- matt arthur and the bratlanders (he's one of the bratlanders). last night, a few of us from allen went out to see him play in northfield minnesota and we had an outrageous night. the band was awesome- tons of energy and so much fun!!



















i took pics and made a little video, though these may not be all that exciting if you weren't there... =)

pics



video (it's pretty dark, sorry... not a whole lot of lighting out there)



doug, buddy, i miss workin' with ya...

vicente and julie (but not together)

vicente stopped by last night before i went to julie's party, so i invited him to go with me- which he did.

for those of you that know vicente, here is an update-
solidad is 6 months old and starting to rollover on her own, now. =) vicente's cousin ulices (you may remember him as the non-english speaking powerhouse from kickball a few season's back) had to go back to mexico, which is incredibly sad. ulices, we love you and we hope you are well!

julie had a birthday



big hugs to julie!!

advertising all time high (or low?)

you wanted to be the first, but you missed your opportunity...














someone is selling advertising on a picture of a crotch, with proceeds going to pay for the laser pubic hair removal of (supposedly) the person whose crotch is pictured.

i know you want to get in on that action... here's the link!

please, take off your pants

hilarious! thanks tracy!

fight for kisses

funny-


the 'men are jealous of the attention their wives give their children' concept is always a strange one to contemplate for me. i've never heard of a woman being jealous of her husband spending time with the kid...

mr. rogers- amazing

this video is about 6 minutes long, but it's amazing. mr. rogers is trying to get money to help children, and the senate is outright laughing at him, jeering at him. the audience is snickering, but he is calm, steady, authentic.



it's been suggested to me that i often believe in what's possible to a fault. my friends have heard the story of how i returned to a stylist who gave me a bad haircut more than three times, resulting in 3 bad haircuts, all because i believed that the next time, she would figure it out and we would be golden.

and although my good friend forgot to check in on my kitty for a whole week while we were gone on vacation one time, i absolutely called her the next time i needed a sitter. i had to believe that she wanted to, and was able to take care of my punky brewster.

my friends laugh at these stories about me. i believe that things can work out for the better in so many situations and i'm so surprised each time they don't. i ask myself, is it crazy to believe that this person can succeed, or that this relationship can be rewarding, or that this company can improve? Is it crazy to believe things can be better?

watching mr. rogers breathes new life into that part of me. such strength and hope and courage. so amazing.

yay fun camping weekend with friends

aaron and i are planning a weekend up in tofte (northern minnesota) for the fall colors, not this weekend, but next weekend. =)

(i sent out an email awhile ago to just about everyone i know to see who might like to join us, but if i missed you, and you'd like to go, let me know)

i just have to say, i'm so damn excited, i can hardly contain myself. i'm about to become uncontained, and that's not good!!! =)



















if you wanna see some of the stuff we're going to do, check out the google map i made here.

here are some pics from last year's trip:



here's the video from last year's trip.



outrageous exciting!!!

i'm drunk

and i'm feeling better than i have in weeks.

blissful escape.

if only i could be an alcoholic, i could be like this all the time!!

thanks paul, i love the music you gave me and i'm listening to it right now.

as i'm being drunk.

drunk.

=)

what have you got on under that thing?

he he heh... freedom.



















i remember, there was a guy on our kickball league who wore a utilikilt to every game and it's true, the ladies go nuts over them. ;-)

yep:


woohoo:


some other favorites are on the utilikilts site. go here and then scroll down to 'switch' and 'flowers'.

... only the pansies know for sure.

keepon

i love this little guy:

find your true film?

seattle international film fest has launched a microsite designed to help you find true film (not to be confused with giving good film).

the questions were hilarious and this was their final recommendation for me:

you seem uptight: the true film cupid recommends a rigorous course of laxatives and foreign action film.


















i'm going to move to seattle, i think.

evolution- do you care?

darwin's theory about why humans have a high propensity to be altruistic and to care about each other is this:

if you are in a group of people that you care about, you will fight harder, win more often, and survive better, thereby continuing to give birth to more humans that have a high capacity for caring.

wow, how romantic is that?

also, because humans are monogamous, they care more. if all the meanest males are the only ones getting to mate cause they win fights, they would pass on the mean gene and no one would care. however, if there is a mate for everyone, then the caring gene goes on to live another day.

yep, i guess that's all i have to say about that.

fun trampoline act

i love the status bar at the bottom



it's best if you open it full screen, i think.

thank you jesus!

i'd believe in a god like this:

i'd like some more things to think about, please!

i've written this post about 8 times now. i keep deleting what i wrote because it sounds whiny. what am i really trying to say? it's too much? make it stop?

yes... but not really.

so why do i feel compelled to say something? what is it that i want to say? i'm overwhelmed? (whiny) i'm scared and uncomfortable? (that's life) i want it to be easy? (really, susan? i doubt that) it's too much? (quit yer bitchin')

maybe just that i'm exhausted (still whiny, i know) and would like things to settle down in my head and in my life just a little. i feel out of control. i think i've felt every emotion that ever existed in the last week or two. it should be a garden hose, but it's going like a fire hose.

really, susan? then why do you keep taking it all on? don't you think if you wanted to have a slow relaxing life, that you could? you're the one that keeps taking on more and it's not because you have to. you choose to. get used to it, this is what you want for yourself, even if you are really really really stressed out.

you want a challenging job, don't you?
you want to enjoy friendships with everyone in the whole wide world, don't you?
you want to challenge yourself on every level, just to make sure you haven't forgotten to shine up some part of yourself that needs shining, don't you?
you want to push yourself to teach a class that's scary as hell, don't you?
you want to play cello and work out and volunteer and go camping and hang with friends and play on the weekends, don't you?

you think you're ready for a kid, susan renee?

oh jesus.

if only i could lead two lives at the same time, i think i could do everything i want to do.

happy birthday stephers!!

it's my sister's birthday today, so i have to say:

counting flowers on the wall, that don't bother me at all...

even murderers need someone to mispell to

got a little extra time on your hands and wanna write a letter? why not send that letter to an inmate?

you can even pick your favorite inmate from many options at the 'meet-an-inmate.com' website (male and female options available).

maybe you wanna chat with nicholas:
























"I have a few more years left in with good behavior. My day will eventually come. I still have my pride and integrity and resources, and my new plan when I reach the world. So for all the beautiful ladies who are looking for such a man free to do so, give me a Holla!

Will you be the one?"

hey, at least he's honest about what he's in for:

"Mistakes: incarcerated for corporate scandals, manslaughter, self defense."

demolition derby

can you believe it? a long time ago, someone decided it would be cool to put a bunch of cars in a dirt 'ring' together and have them smash into each other until only one of them was still running- that idea caught on fire (just like many of the cars do) and people now bring their children to see the spectacle!!

pictures:



video:


most fun ever!!!

the last time i went to a demolition derby, it was with my real father when i was a little girl.























it has all come full circle as i got to see other daddies enjoying this sport with THEIR little girls. how sweet!

you son of a biscuit eating bulldog!

what the french toast?

but can you live longer than me???

wow, after you guys all smoked me on the cadaver-meter, i wondered "what's the point in living??"... and then i realized, well i might as well live, my body isn't worth much if i die. =)

well this time i know i've got a practically unbeatable score on the real age calculator. apparently, my real age is 12.2, which, before you start giggling, has more to do with how hard my body has lived, not my emotional age (smartass). also, i'm going to live to be 93.8 years old, which means i will die some time in the summer of 2068.

can you beat that??























try it, i dare ya!!

(if you take the test, post your answer here, unless you're embarrassed cause i beat you this time)

feeling irregular?

my friend sam says he has seen this commercial aired on television, so it's legitimate, and very very disturbing.



enjoy!

boulder basher- those damn giants

aaron showed me this game. it's appropriately addictive, so be warned...

the giants are throwing boulders at the town and you have to draw lines to bounce the boulders away (and hopefully back at them). this game is a lot easier and more fun than the wizard rock drawing game i previously posted...

















thanks buddy!

disc golfing- first time EVER!

we had a great time, as evidenced by the video and the pictures...



favorite parts:
sam and adam, smokin' us like we were infants
aaron and zack, going after jules disc in the swamp
zack yelling 'banshee' every time he threw his disc (the name of said disc)
hanging out with buds
taco john's



i wasn't as bad as i thought i'd be after all...

november 9

on november 9th, my friend linda and i are going to see yo-yo ma. =)



















this makes me very happy. =)

catcam

my friend julie sent me this site today, which really cheered me up.

it's a site of someone who has hung a camera around his kitty's collar to take pictures throughout the day while he roams around. it's really very fun, since i always imagine what it would be like to be a kitty.

i would do this, but my kitty doesn't get to go outside (poor girl).

check it out!

thanks julie!! i needed to smile... =)

vote in my new poll-------->

susan is a teacher?

i'm co-teaching a class this fall at MCAD called Project Tracking. tonight was my first class and it was pretty cool. i'm really excited to see how the class goes. i feel like i have a lot to teach people about this subject.

been feeling really down lately. part of it is physiological i think, part of it is insecurity. i do much better when everything stays exactly the same and i know what to expect. when there is change in my life, even though i am the one creating it and it is desirable, it really does a job on my level of security within the universe. i usually go with my instincts, which are really very reliable, and then i spend the rest of my time second guessing myself and feeling down in general.

anyone else ever feel this way? can i get a what what?

if you're reading this, do me a favor and leave a comment just to let me know you're there and you feel me... =)

phoenix house

here are pics from our weekend up at our friend's cabin.



linda and rob are always gracious hosts and we love them eternally.

they call it the phoenix house because the original cabin was flattened by a tornado, and this cabin rose from its ashes. =)

eternal sunset

we grew up in western michigan where every sunset was gorgeous over lake michigan. it seemed like every day we drove down by the lake at least once. i think i just assumed that everyone does something like that everyday, until i moved here, and didn't have anywhere to drive to at sunset, anymore.

then i found this site.
























the internet is just like real life, don't you think!?!

dad survived!!

despite 1) taking a plunge face first into the beach at temperance river, and 2) tripping over the canoe face first into the drink (officially qualifying himself as asswet), dad made it through the boundary waters trip unharmed. he was somewhat sore, but not unlike the rest of us. =)



so i'll start by saying a bad day in the bwcaw is better than a good day just about anywhere else.

with that said...

1. we had a helluva tough paddle across homer lake, the first lake we dipped into
2. we didn't find an open campsite on the lake we were hoping for, which meant we had to paddle two more lakes and portage another 65 rods
3. our campsite was in an burn down area, which means no live trees to hang bear packs in. we spent a lot of time trying to hang a pack in a tree by the water, which didn't work as well as we hoped
4. since we spent all that time hanging a bear pack, we missed a canoe opportunity in the middle of the lake, watching the sunset =(
5. it was a gorgeous sunset
6. fires were banned so we got cold and went to bed early
7. after breakfast, we spent a lot more time trying to hang the bear pack again. after at least an hour of mishaps, we were finally on our way to a hung pack, when 'snap!' the line broke and the pack dropped emphatically on the ground. rude!
8. yay- we caught a bunch of fishies!!
9. dad fell into the lake and nearly took aaron and i with him
10. the dessert i brought along (instant lemon pudding) was a disaster! anyone who tells you that you can substitute evaporated milk for real milk in pudding is outa their mind.
11. beautiful moon
12. again, cold. no fire sucks!
13. on the morning we were leaving, the wind picked up again, AND it shifted. which means our trek home was, just like our trip in, straight into the wind. we did get to see brule lake for the first time. that lake is huge!! (and gorgeous)
14. success!! aaron's dad did pretty well. he carried the canoe on his shoulders like a real trooper, cast his fishing pole with all his weight from the center of the canoe, and just ask us to tell you about his pack sometime.

wilderness blah blah blah

i'm even tired of hearing myself talk about it, but i thought you should know we're going out tomorrow and returning on monday. yay!

kids do the craziest things

like build a rollercoaster ramp for a train? how is this even possible?



i wonder how they did this without getting hurt!?!

Congratulations Julie and Zack!!

my dear friend julie got engaged to zack last week and i'm so excited for them.


















congratulations to the most adorable couple!!

cat-with-bow-golf game

yep, it's a cat shooting a bow and springy arrow at a target. yep it's silly. yep it's hard.

yep, it's somewhat addicting.


















(i got an eagle on the first one, but went steadily downhill after that)

dead, i'm worth $153,825 to aaron

yes, it's macabre, but if i die tomorrow, i'd be worth more than just the $150,000 life insurance policy aaron took out on me, i'd be worth another $3,825 if aaron sells my body to science!!!

$3825.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.

can you beat me? is your cadaver worth more?

bwcaw 2005

i have a bag of about 50 rolls of undeveloped film in the basement which i am going to try to get developed slowly over the next few months, a few at a time.

here is the first installment, from the trip aaron and i took into the bwcaw, our first trip alone.



the fishies weren't biting, the wind was crazy, and we weren't allowed to have a fire, but we saw the magical moon during this trip, which we still speak about.

certainly one of the most memorable moments of our lives. =)

lori baker makes stuff by hand

she now has her own page on etsy.com- a cool site where you can sell things you made by hand.
























over the years, lori has made us so many things that we just love love love, including:

- napkins for our dinner table- cowboys yeehaw

- window treatments for our office- monkeys everywhere

- potholders for our kitchen- hilarious retro cartoons

- an apron with kevin costner's face on it- need i say more?

three is one too many of us

this is one serious oldie but goodie...



my friend sam pointed out two hilarious things about this video:

- you never actually hear the voice of the chic (but you gotta love her moves), not even when she is very expressive during his 'woo, woo' part.

- you never hear a piano. you do hear a keyboard, but when he stands up, you still hear it.

the lyrics are the best.
i don't want to own her but i can't let her have it both ways
no one gets to get it for free
three is one too many of us

enjoy!

(thanks chris!)

google map- collapsed bridge

i admit: it's wrong that this is funny, but i've told too many people about it not to post it here...



















(click on it to see it full size)

i apologize for any callousness this may demonstrate.

i didn't create it, i just found it on the INTERNET.

amazing pictures of the bridge collapse

jeff willer

minneapolis- sad day

first- aaron and i are safe.

as far as i know, no one we know was on the 35W bridge when it collapsed into the mississippi river.

pics from kare 11:
























read all about it at startribune.com

amazing security video here.

if you visit the mndot site and click on the cameras in that area, you see an eerie site which i'm calling 'the cliff' and then two cameras are black. very surreal. the first camera has been circling around and showing different views as i've been watching.






































i'm sorry minneapolis. this is going to be so sad and painful for you, my favorite city.

tim and melanie boerger

my friend's tim and melanie got married this weekend on a riverboat on the st.croix. the reception was tons of fun cause they reserved a bowling hall all night for free bowling and beer.

here are some pics:



congratulations tim and melanie!

doctors are irresponsible! (ocular rosacea)

so according to ophthalmologist jeff stephens, i have ocular rosacea, NOT pink eye.

since i had already been to two doctors, paid for by me thanks to my high deductible health insurance, i was a little weary about hearing a new diagnosis and getting a new $70 prescription and setting up another follow up appointment.

so i asked him if he was sure.

he was pretty condescending, but also pretty sure. he mentioned the degree he has in ophthalmology and the fancy equipment he used to look at my eyeballs, things the other doctors didn't have.

i told him i meant no disrespect.

really, it's the other doctors i disrespect for 'diagnosing' without really knowing for sure and wasting my money. unfortunately, i now have to pay for two wrong diagnosis's and one right one.

michael moore is right.

so yeah, another week with my glasses (jeez) and more eyedrops (jeez) and some stupid warm washcloth treatment (jeez).

thanks heredity!!!

the internet has crashed!

the video says it all!



best part- 'tipton then pulled the computer powercord from the wall and replugged it in (shaking of head)'

harry potter- done

i'm not sure anyone will be interested in this news, but i feel like i need to tell someone. the internet is someone, right?

i finished harry potter last night. i liked it.

i look forward to reading the whole series to my kids some day.

aaron stopped reading at book four, i think. last night he made me tell him everything. it seemed wrong, but i did it. what do you think- vote in my poll------->

church signs- so much fun to violate

if you're like me, you're an atheist and you get annoyed every time you have to drive by a church and read some silly twist of truth on a sign that is designed to get people to go to church and tithe more often (wow, that whopping dose of cynicism even stings me a little).

okay, i'll concede that some of the churches really think they are offering up insightful tidbits of perspective on their signs, though in the world of religion, that's something of an oxymoron.

anyway, because i have this moderately cynical view of the whole church sign thing, i had fun at this site. i went there, and i made my own church sign... =)
















i love the internet.

find a bathroom?

i have some friends who get to travel a lot and this post is for them.

there are many reasons why a person may want to conduct bathroom location/quality research ahead of time, none of which really need to be mentioned specifically.

when i searched in kuwait just out of curiosity, i found myself hoping that not ALL the bathrooms in kuwait were listed. so if any of you readers are from kuwait and know of any other bathrooms than the three listed for the entire country, please add a bathroom to the list. =)

mom: hi

so i was working at my desk yesterday and all of a sudden i got an instant message from "mom". it said, simply, hi.

i just kind of snickered at first. what a great spam ploy... who's attention wouldn't that catch?

as i went to close the window, i scanned the email address just out of curiosity and realized, wait- that is my mom!

my mom totally instant messaged me. she was even throwing down all sorts of shortcuts and abbreviations as we chatted. the inner geek in me was proud, somehow.

i very much organize my life in my head, sorta like a california closet... this thing goes over there and that thing goes over here.

my mom just popped a hole out from her shelf and climbed into a whole bunch of other shelves. it was a good thing, but until she did that, i didn't really realize that i rely on shelves to keep everything organized.

i'm not even sure that makes any sense.

abstractor tv

"turn your tv into art":



seems like it might be a fun idea for a party, eh?

it'd be cool to cut other small windows into the matte board too, so it's not just one long window...

the man is freefalling from outer space

seriously, i watched this after reading the description:
The images in the video are a collage of footage from 1960 about Joseph Kittinger, a man who in that year took a giant helium balloon up to 102,800 feet and then jumped, setting records for highest ascent, highest jump, longest freefall and fastest fall.

and i thought to myself, okay, big deal. he goes way up and then jumps. but holy crap, he didn't just go way up, he went way way way up... then jumped.



sheesh

infectious disease- quarantine

yep, i got pink eye somehow.

since i documented aaron's latest injury so well, it would seem inconsistent if i didn't document my own illness, so here is a picture.



















i really don't think this is all that gross. at least i cleaned out all the goop before i took the picture.

i think it looks cool with all the little squiggly blood veins. for example, what if you just look at this part:






















see? pretty cool, eh?

why am i fascinated by this stuff so much?

taylor falls minnesota

this was our first trip up to taylor falls minnesota.



it was fun to see the area. hard to share it with so many people. the crowd sort of took away from it a little. guess we're just accustomed to the boundary waters where we don't have to share with hardly anyone. =)

stone arch bridge- pics

aaron and i hung out at the bridge for the sunset on saturday.



it was nice.

(cool pictobrowser- thanks lori!)

kitty- sparkle

along time ago, i discovered that little sparkle balls insult my kitty, especially if they are hanging out in plastic bags.

i'm not sure what they say to her, but i think it's something about how she isn't really in charge of the household like she thinks she is, and that she could work a little harder at keeping herself clean, and that real kitties don't need humans to give them their food.

anyway, it really ticks her off, and so this is how she reacts when they insult her:



no matter how often she teaches them a lesson, sparkles always insult her anyway.

consumer breaks up with advertiser

snicker...

The Break Up
Uploaded by geertdesager

having worked in advertising, i always found it interesting the perceptions (and mis perceptions) people have about what goes on day to day inside the industry. this ad plays on that advertising reputation and i think it's pretty funny.

people seem to think that there are a bunch of people sitting in a room somewhere scheming for a way to get all their money!!! tricks and manipulations and downright lies!!! really, advertisers are thinking more about winning awards, i think, than they are about manipulating people.

the saddest part for me was seeing that clients are always looking to sell more of their product and ad agencies are always eager to help. sell more? we can do that.

nevermind the big question- should we sell more?

crazy question, i know. we should always sell more, right?. at any cost, right? make more money for ourselves, right? nevermind the consequences to making more stuff and selling more stuff and polluting the world in the process and using up all our finite resources. we have to sell more stuff!!!

for example, those little plastic crap toys in cereal boxes- who needs that crap? kids don't. land fills don't. let's sell some more cereal by advertising cheap plastic crap. it's working, let's do more of that. how creative can we be at inventing crafty cheap plastic crap, packaged liberally, so we can sell more stuff?

to me, whether advertisers are listening to consumers is an interesting question, but even more interesting is the scary relationship between brands with money and their hired help, who are infinitely capable of thinking up how to sell, but seem unable to ask themselves the bigger questions- is selling at any cost worth it? is the money we're spending on advertising really doing a disservice to our world? if we sell 5 billion more of these widgets, how does that impact the world we live in?

it's like advertisers skip over that thought completely. we could do ads for x company- wouldn't that be sweet?

this is probably why i could never be successful at running an ad agency, but i also think that's a good thing.

oops, when i decided to blog this video, i wasn't expecting all this to pour out. =)

castle draw

i know aaron will enjoy this new game...


you have to draw rocks with your magic wand and drop them on the stick people trying to kill you.

very funny