City Grrrl

Jewish lady incarnate

2011-11-17T17:33:00.000-08:00

Jazz loves a good plastic bag

Kitties? Well, there's one sitting right next to me, though she's not a kitty. She’s a cat. A big cat. A big, very vocal cat. As a matter of fact, I think she sounds like a Jewish lady. And old Jewish lady... like the older women Jon Stewart imitates when he talks about his female relatives.

My cat is like that, only littler, but just as vocal. Guttural sounds, chirping, a bunch of clipped meows in a row that go up and down the scale, yowling, purring, motorboat purring: purr purr purr purr in short bursts. If this cat could talk, she would have a lot to say to me. I don't know if I would like it or not.

Fall

2011-09-26T16:52:00.000-07:00

Dad's Compass

2010-10-26T16:26:00.001-07:00

Word cloud of my blog

2010-09-26T07:29:00.001-07:00

It's obvious I need to be more aware of putting a space between the period at the end of one sentence and the beginning of the next.

Beach Love

2010-09-06T12:06:00.001-07:00

August

2010-08-26T17:48:00.000-07:00

Beautiful produce from my community garden plot.

APB!

2010-07-24T09:19:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, July 24th at 12:18PM for the first time in my life my 93 year old mother said she loved me.

There are ice sickles in hell right now, I just know it.

The Summer Day

2010-07-04T12:22:00.000-07:00

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

Mary Oliver

To Nip

2010-05-04T13:38:00.000-07:00

I shall see beauty
but none to match your living grace
I shall hear music
but none as sweet as the droning song
with which you loved me.
I shall fill my days,
but I cannot, shall not forget.
Sleep soft, dear friend...

What I did today

2010-04-30T19:46:00.000-07:00

Planted stuff in my community garden plot with my kid & then we hung out in a coffee shop, which was the best day. Then I talked to my dying cat, made dinner and did a few more book covers. I have to do a different type treatment for the first or second one. I got tired. Can you guess which one is my favorite?

Where I went today

2010-04-25T20:03:00.001-07:00

Started out here looking at Google maps of my Dad's home town. I wasn't sure how to spell Guardiagrele, and ended up looking at the photos people had posted. Very beautiful.

and eventually ended here:

My first attempt at a book cover for my friend Charlette. So interesting because it's about family issues. I began my day there and ended it there in a way.

Oh, and Nip is still alive, but he's slowing up for sure.

Nip

2010-04-20T08:12:00.000-07:00

My sweet cat. Aka: Eraser Nose, Mr. Nip, Nipster, NipNip, and now his new name: Mr. Bones. We went on the roof and looked at the plants coming up, and he tried to eat a few out of habit, but couldn't.

I brought him back down and he let me hold him for longer than normal. Not a lap cat this one, but I got to feel his fur on my cheek and his deep purr before his signal to be put back on the floor.

Each day I wake up, look all around the floor of my bedroom till I spot him. Made it through another night? Excellent.

The bittersweet waiting.

Scattered

2010-03-22T12:32:00.000-07:00

OK, so the first thing I need to address is that no, I am not dead. Nor am I trapped beneath something heavy. It's just that the only structure I have to my day is:

1. Make coffee
2. Look for a job

Looking for a job can be a 5 minute affair or a whole day, depending on the type of form I have to fill out, and if there are any appropriate jobs to respond to at all.

After that comes

3. Is there enough food in the house to feed 2 people and 2 cats

When all of these earth shattering decisions and observations take place, I am free to get lost in any number of projects I have started. Should I work on my digital artwork? Or do I take the next step in bottling my salad dressing? Do I continue to interview Mom for a book project or should I pick up where I left off with my gouche and gold leaf art? Now that I have taken over the other half of my community garden plot, there are seed catalogs piled high. Victory garden here I come!

I am also working on "Saints R Us" with Armond. Don't ask. It might have something to do with Last Supper place mats. We'll let you know when we figure it out. Speaking of religious stuff, I have started a small collection of small blue Mary medals. I just love them and have no idea what to do with them. Any ideas are welcomed.

I also took a course in how to do a small vertical wall planting. I loved it. Here is my handiwork:

And my first digital painting. I am working on the second one in between all my other stuff... Thanks to my kid for spurring me on!

The week in review

2009-10-11T22:42:00.000-07:00

I was thinking this week was kinda boring till I looked at the pictures in my camera. If nothing else living in this neighborhood is entertaining, to say the least. All it takes is stepping out my front door (sometimes not even that) and there is always something going on to distract me from the crappy economy, waiting for second call backs on on interviews, and finding out next seasons premiere episode of "Weeds" is not till 2010! First are the:

Homeless pigeons

Look at them up there looking like notes on a sheet of music. There used to be decorative metal trim right under the sign Fleishman Fabrics that was home to all those pigeons. It had rusted out years ago, and the pigeons made their nests in there for the past, oh, 60 years I'm guessing. For some reason the owners of the building decided to rip it down (why repair a historic architectural detail you have let fall into a state of disrepair when you can rip it off the building?)

Now the pigeons just hang around on the telephone lines unable to re-wire their brains to find another nesting place. It's kinda sad, which leads me to the next city wildlife picture of the week.

Red tailed hawk eats dinner outside my window

Yikes! It was a little disconcerting to be putting my dinner on the table, only to look out my second story window and see this hawk eating hers... or his. Those homeless pigeons just moping around at the end of the block would seem to be prime targets. Plus they're probably all depressed and stuff.

But unless you think this post is all about depression and the food chain, alas my friends, it is not. It is also about....

Santa and Mrs. Claus
Yes, there were a gaggle of Santa's and the Misses on 4th street. I have to say, you have to be a really secure man to walk around in that outfit.

They were going to get lunch at Famous Deli, which is kinda hysterical since it's an old Jewish deli. I would have loved to see all those guys faces when the Santa's walked in the door. As I was trying to get a good candid shot, one of the Santa's decided that just wouldn't do. He would get a picture of me with the Santa delegation.

So there I am squished between two jolly jelly bellies. It almost looks like they are getting ready to go drink lots of beer at a Phillies game.

It's apple pickin' time!

Yes, it was time to visit my beloved Linvilla Orchards to pick some apples, and tomatoes too…

…also eat massive quantities of apple cider doughnuts, buy pies and cider all on the most perfect apple picking day.

And I am still doing more small art. Don't know what I am going to do with these little jewels yet, but I'm feeling good about it.

Design, Advocate, Fun

2009-08-23T18:04:00.000-07:00

I have decided that my unemployment life has gone through three (now working on four) transitions.

Transition 1. Design
First was getting my portfolio website up and running. Soon after that was completed, Mom needed to have emergency surgery and I was onto

Transition 2. Advocate
Honestly, I don't know how I would have been able to do everything I did for her if I were working full time. As people have said, "things happen for a reason"

Now that mom is back on her feet, and all I have to be concerned with is a few doctors appointments here and there, I realize I was onto:

Transition 3. Fun
That consisted of going to as many dance & music weekends as I could jam in (3 in a row, Virginia, Maryland & Baltimore) followed by a few days at the beach after two of those weekends. After all, it is summer and there are no jobs to be found. Might as well have some fun, especially after being so emotionally drained dealing with mom.

I also got caught up on Mad Men, True Blood, and I think I would like to start on Weeds. Nothing like sitting in air conditioning with a big ole bag of popcorn, on some horrid, humid arm pit of a Philly day, and watching some good TV.

The other fun thing I am doing is heading out to San Francisco to see Gianna. This was the trip I was supposed to make earlier in the summer, but then mom got sick and I had to cancel. I will be out there the last day she is at Pixar, so I get to go on a little tour and meet her mentors and friends. I got a good omen from the universe today about this trip when I found this in the street I was crossing:

Which brings me to

Transition 4. Art
I now have time to do some artwork, so I pulled out my supplies, and I actually completed an abstract in the last couple of days. It's watercolor, gold leaf and some collage and I actually like it. Check it out.

I also just recycled some very old art and put it to new use. Each of these pieces are very small, only 3.5" x 5". I combined them to make a little triptych. It's gold leaf, watercolor and an old etching.

All through this I have been answering ads for appropriate jobs, and I have one quasi-serious nibble, but along with the artwork, I am hatching some creative ways to get my stuff looked at. Sending resumes online is like putting your stuff into a giant black hole.

I'll keep you posted.

Jobs

2009-07-22T07:06:00.000-07:00

Dear Graphic Design Industry,

Ok, are you on crack cocaine? I know times are tough out there and everyone is doing more than their share. People are being laid off willy nilly, and those that are left are wearing multiple hats, but really!

I'd cut you some slack, but you used it all up with all the other job listings I've seen like this.

Who's the nimrod that posted this gem? Do you really think you'll be getting a great candidate that knows all this with 3 years experience? And be "expert level" in 3 years? THREE YEARS? (Read: we are not going to pay you much and we will make you work reeeeeeally long hours too!)

Is this a joke? What the hell is this?

Check it out:

Visual artists/graphic designer - Print and online media/editorial
About the Job

-Expert level knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, XML, XHTML, SQL, Flash, Actionscript, Dreamweaver, Contribute, Photoshop, Illustrator and content management systems on Macintosh and PC platforms
-Experience with email marketing messages and e-newsletter design
-Knowledge of UNIX and dynamic web application framework preferably in a Linux environment.
-Ability to work collaboratively
-Excellent verbal and written communication skills, analytical and problem solving.
-Demonstrated organizational skills. Ability to juggle projects simultaneously in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment

PRINT:
-At least three years of experience as visual artists/graphic designer for print
-Strong design sense and affinity for color, composition and typography
-Expert level knowledge of Adobe CS3 in a Macintosh environment
-Expert ability to prepare design files for print
-Acute accuracy and attention to detail
-Ability to work collaboratively
-Excellent verbal and written communication skills, analytical and problem solving.
-Demonstrated organizational skills. Ability to juggle projects simultaneously in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment

EDITORIAL SUPPORT AND PROOFREADING
-At least three years of experience as a writer/editor
-Familiarity with AP editorial style
-Expert knowledge of MS word in a Macintosh environment
-Acute accuracy and attention to detail

Don't your eyes glaze over and roll to the back of your head reading it?

I love the "acute accuracy" bit. Acute accuracy my ass. They may want to split this one job up into three: programmer, designer, editor. Then they might get some "acute accuracy"

Ok, so I'm cranky. My bank card got hacked for $1,200.00. I broke a crown. I have more money going out than coming in and normal job postings are few and far between.

But, mom is on the mend, the weather has mostly been crazy good, and I made some amazing mint tea from the mint in my community garden plot. Sometimes it's the little things that keep one from going crazy.

OMG

2009-06-08T11:22:00.000-07:00

lisatorrieri.com

Thank-you Francesco.

Unemployment. Week... whatever I can't keep track

2009-05-23T10:25:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but there has been way too much going on, even in my unemployed life. I went to G's graduation, then rode the roller coaster of job interviews with her, which was finally resolved this week with her acceptance to a summer internship at Pixar. Go G!!!!

Now in the midst of cleaning for her graduation party, turning the winter clothes over to summer, I have still managed to have half an ear to politics.

What I want to ask is this. What is up with Dick "torture is ok in my book" Cheney? The man would hardly appear in public during his tenure, say even less, and now, every time I turn on the radio, there he is spewing (and I do mean spew) his warped agenda.

Which makes me post the link to Margaret & Helen's blog because she, as always, hits the nail on the head. Read "Life's a bitch... and so is Dick Cheney"

http://margaretandhelen.wordpress.com/

Now, where is the dusting cloth?

Unemployment. Week 7.

2009-04-27T13:42:00.000-07:00

Dear Mother Nature,

Stop. Ok? Just stop with this near 100 degree weather.

Thank-you

Creation

2009-04-09T20:51:00.000-07:00

There are a a pair of red-tailed hawks nesting on a ledge at the Franklin Institute here in Philadelphia. My friend John told me that the the folks at the Institute built a nest box after the nest the birds built blew off the ledge after one of the wind storms we had here. They also installed a camera behind the window, that has 24 hour streaming video, so you can watch the pair take shifts on the 3 eggs that were laid.

As I sit at my computer doing all the production work for my website, I keep the live stream of these amazing creatures on the top left of my desktop, mesmerized by them, even when there isn't much going on. I love when they stretch their wings, shift position, poke at the eggs to move them around a bit, and then settle into a new position, rocking gently till everything is settled.

And then they wait... for their partner to take the next shift, for the eventual hatching of the eggs. Patience and waiting.

I am finding all of this amazingly comforting as I go through folder by folder of my work, sifting through everything, distilling down the files, throwing out duplicates, chipping away at this task I have taken on. When I get discouraged, or bored, or feeling like I am alone in this task, I look at the lone hawk sitting on that nest... I have to say I feel a kinship with them. If they can do it, so can I.

I think this is the female

I think this is the male

The eggs. It's a little nerve wracking when one leaves before the other one comes back, and the eggs are all vulnerable.

All of this made me remember a quote I love at the beginning of a short article:

Nothing worthwhile in life is sudden. We wait for birth. We wait for love. We wait for life to reveal its meaning, year by year, experience by experience. Waiting is the law of life, the measure of love. ~Padovano

Oh. And here's the website if you want to take a peek: http://www2.fi.edu/hawknest.php

Unemployment. Week 3

2009-04-06T12:46:00.000-07:00

I have no pretty pictures to post today. If I did have a picture, it would be of me tearing my hair out. I am working on consolidating all my graphic work into ONE folder on my desktop. I can't tell you how many duplicates I have of work squirreled away in various formats. Original files in Photoshop! Illustrator! Quark! Layered files with missing art or fonts! JPGS or PDF files, hi res or low! Take your pick.

What made matters worse is the tech that upgraded my operating system last year duplicated the folder that held all of my graphic work. He did it as a precaution as he noodled with my computer, but as a result it's one more folder to go through.

But I am slogging through it, and I am almost done. I'd say another 2 days of solid work. Then I have to turn everything into a jpg and size to fit in the space I am designing on my website.

Actually, I do have a picture to post today. This is a photo Xiomara took of me for a project she is working on. I think it turned out really beautiful.

Unemployment. Week 2

2009-03-27T13:37:00.000-07:00

It's been an interesting week. To start off I get a call from my former employer needing me to do some freelance work. (!?) I am gone from there one week and they need me to help out. It just confirms everything I thought about them, which is they don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. Be that as it may, it was designing book covers, which is like crack for me. I love it. So here are the three comps I did for them, the artwork was supplied.

They chose this third one, though I prefer the other two.

I made lots of doctors appointments for this week before my cheap health insurance runs out, and I redesigned the home page of my website. It looks more like the original idea I had in mind, using my photography. I am hoping it's won't be too hard to change out the photo to keep it looking fresh. See what you think.

Unemployment. Week 1

2009-03-19T07:40:00.000-07:00

Still adjusting to not having to go to work everyday. Because of the instant lack of structure in my life, my house is a mess. I'll have plenty of time to tackle that pile of crap over there! Plus all my wonderful friends have been taking me out for drinks and dinner, which adds to the general feeling of being on vacation.

I have been busy networking, getting the word out I am unemployed and working on my portfolio website. I have the home page pretty much nailed down, now I have to work on the drill down page.

Website in progress

The resume is unearthed and re-written and is being looked over by a friend who is a writer. So my ducks are getting in a row.

I still feel euphoric about not having to go into a job that felt oppressive. I'll see how long it lasts!

Unemployment. Day 1

2009-03-13T16:37:00.000-07:00

Still in shock but overwhelmingly relieved that I am no longer working at (enter nameless large non-profit company of doctors here). Who am I to fight against mediocrity in a failing in-house graphics department? Trying to fit my round peg into a square hole. Trying to maintain the lowest common denominator of my brain power when everything in me tells me to push past it. To make the insecure and ignorant management comfortable by dimming my wattage.

It reminds me of when I used to run with a friend of mine. She ran way slower than my normal pace and I constantly had to hold myself back in order to remain next to her. It was exhausting. I found myself wanting to break free and just run.

As with this job. I never knew how exhausting it was, what a psychic toll it was taking till I was shown the door.

So this will be the accounts of citygrrrl trying to find a new job in this apocalyptic economy, with it's glut of designers crawling out of every nook and cranny, applying for jobs willy-nilly, with overwhelmed employers digging through endless resumes.

Whoo-hoo!

Today I got up and answered a million emails and phone calls, made a dentist appointment, hung out at the tea shop and did neighborhood gossip with a cup of tea, had drinks (fresh guava caipirinha... to die for) and small plates and a nice walk through the hood with a good friend. Thank-you Mark.

So far, not bad. To be continued.

Feeling family II

2009-02-28T07:16:00.000-08:00

This is Aunt Millie & Uncle Sal. They both had beautiful voices and my dad always said Aunt Millie could have easily been an opera singer. At family gatherings, Uncle Sal played a guitar and sang racy Italian songs that had everyone laughing and all of us cousins who were not allowed to learn Italian had no idea what was being said.

They had an arranged marriage that lasted their lifetimes.

Feeling family

2009-02-22T15:28:00.000-08:00

Garlic, olive oil and bread

2009-01-30T15:32:00.000-08:00

2 PM on any given Sunday. Wrinkled black olives, Italian bread, home made red wine strong enough to put hair on my chest, red sauce with meat, provolone. Uncle Sal and his guitar, Aunt Millie with her fabulous voice, (an arranged marriage that lasted their lifetimes) tables laden with food stretch 15 feet long in a finished basement in the Bronx. Saying "salute" as a kid with my little juice glass filled with half red wine, half Seven-Up.

Italian spoken all around me, none that my cousins and I could decipher that well, as we were to "assimilate." Fat chance of that happening, not with what we grew up with. One foot in the old country, one foot in America.

Locatelli or Parmesan. Depends on what region you were from. Only people from Italy know. Cocktails and antipasto, laughter, and then dinner that went on for hours. Sitting, talking. Laughing as friends (Americano) piled their plates high with pasta. We would tell them "There's more! Don't do that". Only Italians know you take a little bit because there is always more.

Talking. Pealing oranges, slicing pears and apples with a knife after dinner and sharing the sections when the fruit and cheese came out. That happened after the women were in the kitchen cleaning up and talking as only women can, about the secrets and who wasn't talking to whom and why. The men were smoking cigars in the living room. Watching the Yanks or the Mets. To this day the smell of cigar smoke brings me back to that time, that era, that feeling of place.

Then back to the table for dessert, nuts, espresso, anisette, more laughter fueled by a short snooze, or a walk around the block. And if the evening stretched long enough, out came the leftovers for sandwiches. Or as dad said "sangwiches"

It was a long day. Church in the morning, Roman Catholic... was there anything else? Back then, a Latin mass. Setting the table after reading the Sunday papers, The New York Times, The Daily News, the excitement as the first relatives rang the door bell. Putting all the coats in the back room, piled higher and higher as everyone arrived. Bags filled with dessert, some homemade, some from the best Italian bakeries in the world.

If we went to my aunts and had to climb the stairs to her apartment, because the elevators were always going out, every door we passed we could smell the sauce cooking, each smell different from the next... depending on the region these women were from. By the time I got to my aunt's door I was salivating, dying for the first bite of antipasto.

Running around in Woodlawn cemetery in the Bronx on a hot Sunday afternoon with my cousins... scaring each other and hanging out by Duke Ellington's memorial there, buried not far from my family.

I will be back there this weekend.

I sip the last of the red wine, eat the last bit of toasted Italian bread smeared with garlic and olive oil, and salute to you, Aunt Gloria, for all the wonderful memories that made up my childhood.

Rest in peace. I love you.

Monday's random picture

2008-12-08T20:07:00.000-08:00

Love this.

Update

2008-12-07T20:28:00.000-08:00

As I was walking home from one of my never ending errands today, I saw man who hates birds (check post below) putting Christmas greenery around his windows. He looks up and says pleasantly, "hello" I'm thinking to myself, ok, this guy really is certifiable. This is the same man 2 days ago called me the "c" word and gave me the finger!

I said, "why are you so mean to me?" which led into a discourse about pigeons, trash on the block, some Chinese lady who feeds the pigeons by the fabric stores, and on and on.

Since we tended to agree on most of what we were discussing, I said, "ok, have we reached an understanding?" He said yes.

I'm sure he is perfectly capable of going off the deep end over goodness knows what, but I'll take this truce for the time being.

I told Dominic

2008-12-05T19:37:00.000-08:00

This morning I went out to feed my birds. If you have followed my blathering for the past year or two, you know I feed the standard issue birds outside my door, which are sparrows and on occasion, pigeons. I try not to feed the pigeons cause they push all the tiny sparrows out of the way. And I feed them only in the winter when there is not a lot of stuff for them to eat. It's a simple thing that for some reason gives me much happiness.

Today I had a day off from work, and when I came home at about 3PM from all my errands, there was a huge community of sparrows in my tree happily yattering away with each other. :-) I don't get to see or hear that because I'm usually at work at that hour. There was even a little kid across the street that was watching all the birds conversing and making a racket. Since we don't see much wild life, I think that's a cool thing for a city kid to stop and notice. Something serendipitous.

Speaking of wild life, I have seen some amazing appearances of peregrine falcons going after pigeons. One poor pigeon met it's demise on my roof deck. All I found was picked clean bones and piles of feathers.

The mighty peregrine falcon

This is all well and good, but I digress. I went out this morning to feed the sparrows, and this guy is getting in his car across the street and yells over, "Don't do that" I look up and say, "Excuse me?" He says, "Don't do that. Don't feed the birds"

I said, "I'll feed the birds if I want."

Then anti-bird man says "It brings disease, and besides that, it's against the law"

Ever feisty Citygrrrl said, "I live here and I own my house, I can feed the birds here if I want"

The bird hater said, "I'll report you."

I said, "Knock yourself out".

Then he called me the "c" word! The "c" word!!! Because I am feeding the sparrows in from of my own damn house, he calls me a c*^t!!!!

I dropped the f-bomb, which I though was well deserved, and he gives me the finger as he gets in his car. Not to be outdone, I give him the finger back. He drives away. This is all before 8 am.

Welcome to my world.

So I talked to Dominic, the cop on the beat, and told him what happened. He wants the guys address (anti-bird man lives on my block) and he told me next time I go out to feed the birds, put the bird seed on the guys door step and tell him I told you to do it.

I like Dominic.

A little late

2008-11-28T14:17:00.001-08:00

But this is a picture I took at the Phillies parade.

Final covers

2008-11-23T18:50:00.001-08:00

Just so you all can get an idea of how I progress through the process, here are the finals of the covers with the design fine tuned and the different type treatments. These are the three that will be shown to the authors. I'll let you know which one gets picked.

More covers!

2008-11-20T15:54:00.000-08:00

Here are four new designs I have been working on for a book called "In the Clinic" It's a compilation of articles from a journal of the same name. The logo on the journal is kind of a burgundy red, hence all the red covers. I got sick of the red, and did the one blue one, which is my favorite. The type treatments have to be worked on, but the concepts are finished except for some fine tuning.

The guy I work with in the book department likes the last two. Discuss.

Finally!

2008-11-16T13:02:00.000-08:00

The karma surrounding the painting the front of my house has been weird indeed. After it was primed, my original painter, who will remain nameless, (Dan Vitale) bailed on me. That's the short version. I will not bore you will yet another contractor gone bad story. We all have them.

The Chris Walker, painter extrodinaire, came to the rescue. I picked colors, he started one day last week, but I couldn't see the results till the next morning cause it's pitch dark by the time I get home from work. I go out the next a.m. to be confronted by my choices, which I did not like. At all. I was trying to talk myself into the color, and so was Chris. All it took was confirmation from the G force that the colors looked like ass, so I stopped Chris in his tracks and picked out colors that were more neutral and not so green/yellow. Check it out:

Gack! That red was NOT working with the green. It was looking very tropical. Not at all what I wanted. So off Chris went to buy the new colors. Here's the pics of the house half with the old green on the bottom, and half with the new:

The old green was much too warm next to the warm color of the brick. Though Chris did report back to me that word on the street was that people liked the old green better. What do they know. This is much better:

Here's a before shot, except for the red door. That's new. But the house sat in it's primer coat for a year!

After

I decided to leave the yellow/green on the ceiling of the archway. I think it looks cool. Wish I could have done the whole house in a series of colors. Maybe I'll add to it in the spring.

Static electricity in my hair

2008-11-10T18:53:00.000-08:00

I know it's fall when that starts to happen. It means there is no humidity in the air, which is a wonderful thing when you live in the armpit of the east coast. The nicer term for it is the Delaware valley or the Mid-Atlantic states.

It took everything I had not to post anything political. But now that I feel I have my life back and I can breathe again, I started to do normal things. Like not read every poll, every NY Times op ed piece, every link everyone sent me and then I passed on to others hoping against hope the historic would happen. I'm still pinching myself.

So this past weekend I got out of the house and did normal things, like go to the Farmers Market and over to my community garden plot. I planted salad greens for my fall crop, which were loving this weather. I harvested a huge bag of salad. During all my walking there was a riot of color on the ground from all the leaves that had fallen. It reminded me of when I was a kid, and I used to collect a few of the most colorful leaves I could find, put them in between two pieces of wax paper and iron it till the wax melted. It preserved the leaf, and I loved the smell of the wax paper under the iron.

So this is kind of a digital version of leaves pressed and preserved.

These are fallen fig leaves from the tree at the community garden

Let's win this thing

2008-11-04T15:03:00.001-08:00

No title necessary

2008-11-03T15:55:00.000-08:00

This is entirely awesome:

More Books Redux

2008-10-28T18:50:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest book designs courtesy of yours truly. It’s a how-to book for docs working with non-compliant patients... like a dog whisperer for docs.

Which is totally off the subject, but I want to marry Cesar Millan, aka the Dog Whisperer, and I am totally obsessed with his show that I found channel surfing one night. Who needs expensive therapists? Just watch the show and find out how to be a more balanced human being.

Anyway, here are the designs. Early polls suggest the blue one as the winner.

What a day I had....

2008-10-25T16:29:00.000-07:00

I have been having a weird time lately. Obsessing about the election, wanting to get things done, like a web site, some art work, but I come home and I’m generally distracted and have no energy cause I stay up late and watch Jon Stewart, and then have to get up early go to work the next day.

I always consult my friend Claire when stuff happens that seems to be somewhat out of my control. She does astrology and Tarot cards and she usually has some answers for me. She did this time too. Seems I have two conflicting forces at work, Uranus which symbolizes my instinct for freedom and attunement with my intuition. I also have Saturn in exact opposition, and Saturn represents structure and responsibility; when it's prominent, it's time to get back to basics and cut down on distractions and excesses.

So it means I am being squeezed between playing it safe, or heading towards new frontiers. I think what is happening to me is I am trying to do both, and not successfully at all.

Not that this has anything to do with it, (or maybe it does? oh the conflict!) but part of this morning I spent in the back seat of a cop car. (new frontiers maybe?) I was being very responsible, got up early to get my errands done, so I’m off to get my car. Hummm the car. I parked it right here. Maybe I didn’t. Ok, think. When did I have it last? Yep, left it at Passyunk and Fitzwater. Seems they are doing some construction there. Could they have moved my car? Or am I having a senior moment and I really have no idea where I left my car last, or maybe it’s stolen. I just paid the thing off and it’s stolen! Oh God, am I senile or is my car stolen? Does anyone else go through this?

So I call the third district and ask if they have moved cars. You know what the answer was? If cars were moved, they would be in a 5 block radius. A FIVE BLOCK RADIUS!!! And to try around 5th and Washington, but they didn’t know if cars were moved. There is no record of any of this! Whaaa? So off I go through the projects (lovely) to get to 5th & Washington wander around there getting rained on. No car.

I walk around the neighborhood looking, till I bump into Dominic the cop. It helps to have friends in high places. He called it in for me and said they do this all the time and no one knows where they put the cars! So he had a cop car come and pick me up to drive me around the hood till I found my car.

Did you know there are no cushions on the back seats of cop cars? It looks like you could kinda hose the whole back seat area down if need be, which was kinda creepy when I thought about it. But the cop lady was really nice and we chatted about how it was weird day because it was warm/cold. If you opened the window, you got cold, but if you closed it you got hot. And how there needs to be a system in place if they move people’s cars cause it turns out the cops have to do this a lot. Kinda like being a shuttle for a demented valet service.

We eventually found my car, which I left in it’s new parking spot. It was too late to move it, I’d never be able to park it anywhere near my house after I got done with my errands since all the touristas were flooding the neighborhood. It will have to wait for tomorrow. So I thanked Ms. Cop and I went food shopping and visited at The House of Tea and hung out with daughter #2, and generally had another distracted day where things got done, kinda, but not really.

I will be happy when this aspect is over.

Random city picture to go with my random day.

Angel Moon

2008-10-12T19:12:00.000-07:00

Sleeping on the roof

Waking to the softest moon

My lunar guardian

I went to a concert

2008-10-06T20:36:00.000-07:00

With 50 thousand people

And I saw Bruce...

It was awesome.

Community garden flowers

2008-09-28T19:40:00.001-07:00

I picked the last of the sunflowers and whatever those dark pink ones are. I planted some arrugla and other salad greens cause they like the cooler weather, though it feels like summer with all this humidity and rain and temps near 80. Blah.

And speaking of community, here's the latest on the mural in the Sodom & Gomorrah parking lot.....

All the gray areas will be mosaic tile. The best thing about this project is that the mural arts folks are keeping the parking lot locked because of that cherry picker type heavy machinery. It's been blissfully quiet on the weekends.

The best quote EVER

2008-09-01T06:46:00.000-07:00

Reading the NY Times this a.m. about hurricane Gustav:

"A woman on her cellphone could be heard explaining, as she waited to enter, why she and her family had left the city. She sounded a little impatient. “Ain’t nobody got time for all that drowning.”

We taught the word to eat

2008-08-24T13:34:00.000-07:00

As Uncle Junior yelled on "the Soprano's"

You could say I’m in an Italian state of mind. There’s a small pot of sauce simmering on the stove, made from fresh tomatoes I got from the Reading Market. There’s a big batch of basil leaves waiting to be made into pesto, from the basil bush I have growing in my plot at the community garden. Yesterday I went to the Italian market to pick up a few things, and this morning my girlfriend and I had a discussion about what we check when filling out a form that asks you if you are White, Hispanic, Black, Native American or “other”

Honestly, I don’t know what to check, cause I sure don’t feel “white” I don’t even look “white.” Coming from a childhood where the immigrants out numbered the American born, didn’t exactly set me up to feel white. As a matter of fact, I lived one way in my home, and a different way at school. Only other people from families of immigrants know what I am talking about.

While I was at the Italian market yesterday, I decided I wanted a really good bottle of balsamic, as I am eating all these tomatoes with a little bit of olive oil, and a splash of balsamic. What would put it over the top would some expensive balsamic and just make these end-of-summer tomatoes even better.

Well, the guys at Di Bruno’s let me sample a couple of balsamics, and I walked away with a bottle that cost almost 40 bucks (!) something I don’t do very often... actually, something I have never done. I also bought some expensive pasta from the region where my dad was born, since I don’t eat a lot of pasta these days I decided to splurge on that as well. A loaf of crusty, seedy Italian bread and some sopressata rounded out the bill.

On my way out of the market, I stopped at Anthony’s Chocolate House and bought a small cup of chocolate gelato. To die for.

When I got home I cut up some fresh tomatoes to put my very expensive balsamic on. I opened the box that housed that wonderful elixir, and out came the most beautiful bottle worthy of any high-end perfume. I had to take a picture. While I was setting up the little still life, I decided to put one of the two pictures I have of my father as a little boy in Italy. He is standing there with his older brother and his beautiful mother, who I never met. She died in the old country. That is a story for another time.

The sauce has cooked down, and is now cooling, and I’m off to make the next batch of pesto that I will freeze. I guess all in all, I’m pretty happy I don’t know what to check on those forms. It’s a small price to pay for the legacy I have.

What I did today

2008-08-22T12:50:00.001-07:00

I finalized the last designs for the MKSAP slip case. I knew they would never go for the wire frame type, and the type on an angle for this project. Way too many academics that take themselves way too seriously for that wacky-ness!

So I came up with two other versions today. Check it out.

I'm really liking this version:

Transition

2008-08-16T07:13:00.000-07:00

i will remember this white paper bag

that had g's sandwich in it from the fitzwater cafe

when i put the recycling out in 2 weeks, i will see it there

and the memory of it will pull me back
to this cool/warm august day
the day off from work
her music drifting down the stairs

because of this white paper bag

for gigi

Medical knowledge skills assessment program

2008-08-13T18:07:00.000-07:00

Or, more book covers! Actually, this is for a slip case that will house a series of books on different aspects of knowledge for internists. Learn something new everyday! Two of these designs are going to be submitted, the third one I am still working on. I'll post updates to the new design as I flesh it out more.

This is the one I'm still working on, but I'm really liking it so far...

More books!

2008-08-07T20:20:00.000-07:00

To keep you all entertained whilst I go off to a dance weekend, I thought I'd post more book designs I've done. These are for a book titled "Women's Health" I don't have the back cover copy yet, so I can't show you the complete design. But here are all the comps. They chose the pink one, but a few others are my favorites.

And the winner is....

Monday's random picture

2008-07-28T20:03:00.001-07:00

These random lines are behind the Second Bank of the United States. I have been seeing them in other places as well.

Why we came to the beach

2008-07-18T10:53:00.001-07:00

Is this perfect or what?

Sodom & Gomorrah revisited

2008-07-05T08:01:00.000-07:00

Update! When last we heard about Sodom & Gomorrah (a.k.a. The Meredith School parking lot) it was still it's trashy old self. Now, the mural arts folks have given us a new artist and a new mural that will have paint, tiles and mosaics.

Here's the sketch the artist supplied at our first meeting

Pretty wacky! I have not seen a color sketch yet, but at least this reflects the energy of the neighborhood. We are not sure yet if the artist will be able to do those extensions off the tip of the roof. There is supposed to be an offical start-up party July 11th, but the outlines are already being painted.

Stay tuned for updates!

More books!

2008-07-01T18:21:00.000-07:00

This book was a re-design of a really boring cover. I decided to try a totally different approach, and it was accepted. I liked my original much better than the final, but the powers that be made the decision.

My first design

The final design

I'm still here

2008-06-25T20:13:00.000-07:00

I guess cause it's summer and I've been in the community garden and going to dance weekends and plotting my next vacation week at the Jersey shore (Right near Asbury Park. Here I come, Bruce!) that I have been a negligent blogger.

So I decided to post some of the work I do during the day when I can't play at home. The best thing about my job is I get to design book covers. I love it. I can spend hours, days, doing just that. I love the size and the finite space I have to design. It's not like a brochure where each page has to be crafted and the type ordered so it all makes sense. It's exhausting!

With books I have a front cover and a back cover and a spine, and I get to do some really cool concept work, which makes even the most mundane topic interesting. I mean, what do you think of when I say "electronic health records" Yes, I can see your collective eyes glassing over. But check it out, these are a couple of different designs I did. The one that was published is the completed design with the front and back cover. I'll be posting more of the books I have done in the next few days.

I fell in love

2008-06-02T05:33:00.000-07:00

I don't know if it was the quality of the light, the insanely blue skies, the lack of humidity so my hair looked good every day, the margaritas and amazing Mexican food everywhere, or the fact that when we were in the mountains or on a mesa the air smelled like pinon and juniper. Or mesquite or pine.

Looking at the surrounding environment was like landing on another planet. From the cliff dwellings of the Ancestral Pueblo people at Bandelier National Monument

To the adobe homes in Santa Fe

We also got to hang out on the Rio Grande. This fast moving river in the middle of all that dry earth was pretty amazing to see

But the best was walking on land and climbing into cliff dwellings that the ancient pueblos did 10,000 years ago.

Ga-ga

2008-05-20T05:01:00.000-07:00

So I really do love this man because of his mind, and his politics and I have my Obama Mamma t-shirt. And I know he's handsome and all. But damn if he doesn't look like a rock star in this picture!!!!

Monday's random picture

2008-05-19T18:28:00.000-07:00

I love Jon Stewart 2

2008-05-19T04:17:00.000-07:00

In Larry King's interview with Jon Stewart, Larry brought up the subject of the primaries and asked him if America was ready for a woman or a black president.

Jon looked at him quizzically and said, "This is such a non-question. Did anyone ask us in 2000 if Americans were ready for a moron?"

Feh.

2008-04-14T19:18:00.000-07:00

I finally got my mother's taxes done today. April 14th. This after going to the lovely social security office at 20th and Market (20th floor) twice. Once to get the proper form to fill out and have her sign, and again to turn in said proper form so I could get a copy of her social security statement.

Why did I need her social security statement you ask? Because the woman throws out every piece of important paper work I need to do her taxes, that's why! She keeps calendars from 2005, newsletters from two years ago, and every friggin AARP mailing wanting money because of the latest assult the Bush administration has aimed at seniors... or something.

I also had to contact the state of New Jersey for her 1099, send them a copy of my power of attorney, and her financial planners for their end of year statement.

Ok, so she's old and she forgets, and I am her guardian, but sweet Jesus Mary and Joseph it never ends with this woman!

So I sit here surrounded by piles of paperwork, her taxes, my taxes, the cool ones papers, my broken printer, my cat hair encrusted couch... I look longingly over at my little art space, with my little art supplies calling to me. One of these days.

I did get away at the beginning of March to my favorite Jersey shore town for an overnight. It was beautiful but cold. So here are a few pictures I was looking at tonight that made me feel good.

I am a lush

2008-03-25T16:48:00.000-07:00

And this test proved it. I thought I'd throw something lighthearted out there for you all. I want scores, people!

77%LUSH

Waiting on the world to change

2008-03-18T19:16:00.001-07:00

I stood in the cold today to catch a glimpse of the future. Made some new friends...

The guy next to me was waving his rolling stone magazine when Barack came out of the Constitution Center. With one arm I was trying to get his magazine out of my face and with the other, I got a few blurry shots, but then I got one of the man in his car.

History in the making. How cool is that?

Suddenly Spring

2008-03-15T18:55:00.000-07:00

It seems as if spring has been trying to be sprung all winter, since it's never gotten exceptionally cold for an exceptionally long time here in the mid-atlantic states.

Guys are in their t-shirts and shorts now that it's a balmy 60-65˚

And the cherry blossoms are OUT.

This was a roof planter I brought in the house to re-pot the last bits of the aloe plant my cat insists on eating for some reason. A petunia seed decided to bloom right along with everything else this week.

So while spring is being very busy (and does it seem early this year or is it me?) so have I. I don't know why my life is so damned busy, but it is. I did manage to do a few sketches, and I would like to turn this theme into some actual work that's bigger than a file card.

A few of the friends of the incredibly cool one are off in Europe studying for their junior year. The photos that are coming back from there are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen. The kids all look so young and beautiful and happy, that it reminds me of paintings of saints. Not the martyred ones, though St. Sebastian doesn't look all that concerned that he's a human pin cusion in this...

the beatific ones.

I always loved how their halos would bump into each other in these paintings. So here is one of a few sketches I have started called "Modern Day Saints"

I want to water color them in and put gold leaf halos all bumping into each other, because they do have a beautiful light about them. And I guess this is all appropriate since tomorrow is Palm Sunday and Easter is next week, and I just can't get away from my Roman Catholic roots no matter what I do.

I still love Jon Stewart

2008-02-25T04:55:00.000-08:00

Best quote on Oscar night about Barack and Hillary:
"The only time you get to see a woman or a black man as president is in the movies and an asteroid is about to hit the earth"

Welcome to the future. Finally!

Random Picture Day

2008-02-17T13:16:00.000-08:00

Again I am feeling overwhelmed. I am juggling 3 loans, two for the incredibly cool one, and one home equity loan, mom’s stuff which seems eternally screwed up for some reason, 6 bank accounts and keeping an eye on a 7th.

I just got a ticket on my car because it’s past due inspection, which I totally forgot about, so I have to get it to my mechanic early tomorrow morning. I still haven’t gotten the side view mirror fixed from when someone hit it. It’s amazing how well duct tape works! Through rain, snow, sleet and bird poop, it just keeps that whole mechanism together.

I am still eating home renovation dust, but at least I’m getting enough fiber.

Since I don’t have any cool stories with pictures, I thought I’d post this as the random picture of the day. It’s not often you see young men in their pj’s brushing their teeth at a working vanity on the street across from Independence Hall.

#*^%##!!!!

2008-01-28T18:31:00.000-08:00

Dear Conestoga Bank,

All I have to say is other than securing my home equity loan with you, which was a breeze, everything else, and I mean EVERYTHING, has been a royal pain in the ass.

The best was trying to get my bank card to work. Months to figure that one out. Oh! and the minor detail that I can only do a $2,000.00 transaction on it. And even that wasn't consistent. Talk about embarrassing. Uh, Mz Citygrrrl? Your card has been rejected.

Now, to access online banking it has asked me what my favorite color is. It's blue. It has always and forever been, and ever and ever after that, the color blue. I always answer BLUE.

So it is now telling me that isn't it and I am wrong and it's on my third attempt. Like this frigging website knows what my favorite color is. Or did it decide it didn't like blue and changed it on a whim?

I'll try eggplant next and see what it says. It's like dealing with the Magic 8 Ball. I bet it will tell me to try again later.

In summation, go pound sand Conestoga website.

There is almost nothing better

2008-01-27T05:40:00.001-08:00

Than a cup of coffee and a good article in the Sunday New York Times.

Update

2008-01-21T18:15:00.000-08:00

I've been taking photos of the bathroom renovation as it's been crawling along. This is the point where my patience is starting to wear thin. I'm tired of strange men standing in my bath tub and having to use the House of Tea bathroom. Yes, I only have one bathroom. Shut up.

I'm tired of dust... tile dust, wood dust, spackle dust, and the generic dust dust that old houses seem to vomit over everything. My bedroom is a repository of most of what was in the bathroom, all the towels, beach and other wise. All the bed linens from my room and the kids room. All the cleaning supplies, toiletries, hamper, every numbered SPF sun block there is.

Every morning I have to clean out toiletries that I use daily, plus the floor rugs, shower curtain, and the holder for poo and soap that lives in the shower. Every evening, I put it all back and vacuum up the dust and whatnot. Every morning, I have to dig around to find the most basic thing... where did I hide those q-tips? It's amazing I make it out the door at all!

So I'm getting cranky.

To make myself feel better I have put together a montage of a before picture and a during picture, since it's not close to being an after picture yet.

Before (click on picture to view larger)

The only thing that is different in these pictures is the toilet used to face away from the wall it is next to. Note all the wasted space next to and behind the toilet. No more!

During

Whoa! First off, note the quality of light. Note that there is light. I now have three recessed lights, with more to come once I get my act together and pick out some lights for the new vanity when that gets installed. In the recent past I had one lonely light to the right of the old vanity since I moved in here which was 1979. One bulb in the bathroom in 29 years. It's amazing what one can get used to.

The new washer and dryer stack and have their own living quarters with some cool storage above. The toilet now has it's own little niche, the little temporary vanity is there till I get the one I ordered installed. I put in a photo of how I was taking a shower for a while. Grant ripped down the wall covering that was there and put plastic up.

But the last photo is with the new tile and the custom niches Grant built in for me. It's finally starting to look like something, which is gratifying after all this time and expense.

Now, where did my hairbrush go....

It's snowing!!!!

2008-01-17T16:51:00.000-08:00

It's nice to know it can still somewhat snow. The poor weather is acting like a pre-menopausal woman. Sometimes it's ok, sometimes there are these warm flashes. It's been in the 50's and 60's here. Somethings wrong. We're screwing it up. So here's a photo in case we don't see this for the rest of the "winter"

Check out the orb on the left hand side of the picture. Don't know what energy was visiting me, but hi!

Oh, and only a few days to vote on the bathroom paint color >>>>

Somebody stop me

2008-01-13T17:20:00.000-08:00

Here we go again. Another fun poll for my peeps out there. As you know I am renovating my bathroom to utilize the space better, and to actually do something about the general decay the bathroom has fallen into.

I artfully hid that mess under a rug.

Ever since I have lived here, there has been one light in the bathroom, so it was very dim. I am getting new lighting, which means I can paint it any crazy color I want, and it won't feel like one is walking into a cave because the color is sucking all the light out of the room like a black hole.

So I propped up the tile that is going to be the backsplash for the vanity, (ooo. pretty mosaic!) and here I go again, wanting to be safe with this color, which is a green version of the blue I had in there. Very pretty, very safe.

And then the dormant crazy grrrl comes out and wants this! Boo-ya! In your face, bathroom! I kinda like it, but maybe a little more toned down, like the top color in the swatch I stuck there.

Here's the floor tile that will eventually happen.

Oooo. Pretty.

Hollah!

2008-01-10T16:52:00.000-08:00

With The Roots in the background doin' the dj thing with ?uestlove... I give to my tiny blogger world the new mayor of Philadelphia, Michael Nutter.

Thinking about opposites

2008-01-06T19:11:00.000-08:00

I am trying my hand at using liquid frisket. I have to think in opposites for this, and how it seems to be something I need to learn on other levels as well.

What we saw today

2008-01-01T15:41:00.000-08:00

A big man and his, uh, mask hat thing.

A stray Mummer

A dog and his doggie friend driving a car

Mummers in a coffee shop

Oh. and the movie Juno. And my kid. Both excellent.

Ephemeral

2007-12-25T17:05:00.000-08:00

I love this Christmas ornament. Her pipe cleaner arms, her sassy red angel outfit, her innocent little porcelain expression and platinum blond hair. She has survived many moves from her origins in New York, to North Jersey and finally to Philadelphia. She comes with a wealth of memories from my childhood and now she sits on my tree every year.

I was looking at her the other day and it struck me that the memories that wind around her wings seemed so solid. The memories that indelibly shaped me are no more real than a puff of smoke. Here one minute, gone the next.

So here’s to the immediate minute we do have, and to little red netted wings that will forever hold the energy of my Christmas past.

The drab days are upon us

2007-12-09T06:21:00.001-08:00

Punctuated by Christmas decorations, which reminds me, I better take down the fall decoration I have on my front door and put up my bedraggled Christmas wreath. I haven’t felt much like writing, as I’ve been consumed by details of daily life, which includes a bathroom renovation... that is if my wonderful contractor would stop having such a big heart and say no to other “little” jobs that keep popping up.

Then there is Christmas and all that entails, the incredibly cool one’s arrival this week, the installation of a gas fire stove in the ice cave, I mean living room, a big solstice party on the 22nd, and now some bozo knocked off the side view mirror on the drivers side of my car while it was parked because god forbid they learn how to drive their f*^#ing SUV’s down a small city street. Asshole.

So, as I was contemplating my next chore I was just struck by a photo I saw in the NY Times. I want to live where this is a normal house color.

Somewhat synchronicity

2007-11-25T18:38:00.000-08:00

I did manage to get out of Philadelphia this weekend, and I caught a few images that were tied together visually by the frame of a window, and the fact that the subject was an animal.

I needed to look out onto something other than a parking lot.

Oh. Hello there

A peacock walketh by

Fall in Philadelphia

2007-11-18T12:19:00.000-08:00

I keep getting the lyrics to that Hall & Oats song in my head. When I first moved to Philly, this is the song they played a lot on a day like today. Rainy, chilly, leaves falling.

There's a thunder storm 'a brewin'
And the day is turning gray
There ain't much to say about the weather
The shower stall is leakin'
And the ceiling's fallin' in
And I'm getting twenty bills to every letter

I've got to move myself out to the country
I'm lookin' out for any place at all
I'm gonna spend another Fall In Philadelphia

A roving band of youths beat up on Johnny
Everybody's gettin' richer sellin' that dope
Say, the stolen bikes are gathering by the thousands
Along with seven million people without a hope

I guess I have to face the fact as real
I think I feel my back up against the wall
I'm gonna spend another Fall In Philadelphia

What does one say?

2007-11-05T16:52:00.000-08:00

When one is asked to market ones self, and one has to do it in the third person? Well, here's my response:

Highly creative designer/art director currently knocking the socks off her clients at ACP with fresh design.

Excels at working in teams with copy writers, creative directors, other designers and loves to do original concept work for journal ads, book covers and new campaigns.

She hangs in to do necessary grunt work with very little complaining, and responds well to treats.

Ooooh. Scary!

2007-10-30T21:19:00.000-07:00

I don't know about all of you out there, but right now my life has some scary twists and turns, complete with witches, warlocks and their ilk throwing the eye of iguana into a bubbling caldron. Perfect for this time of year!

In the spirit, I would like to wish everyone a Happy Hallows Eve, or All Saints Day or Dia De Los Muertos.

I carved the one in the middle. My hands are still sore!

Redundant Redux

2007-10-28T14:00:00.000-07:00

Well I think I have a winner! The uncontrollably cool one sent me three more color versions, one of which we really like. I'll post all three. Ok kids, see which one you like best.

Mansion 1A

Mansion 2A

Mansion 3A

Discuss!

Redundant

2007-10-27T15:03:00.000-07:00

Sorry to be beating this dead horse with a stick, so to speak, but I have too many color choices! Daniel, my painter stopped by today, so finally I could discuss my color dilemma with a professional.

I went by this recent renovation at 5th and Catherine and I really liked how they handled the color. How the red is the accent that's used throughout on the window trim, and those greens look so good against the brick. Check it out.

I think if I were to do almost the same thing, it would look a lot funkier just because I have way more going on as far as detail on the front of my house.

Discuss.

House colors redux

2007-10-22T17:28:00.000-07:00

Well, folks, it's time for another handy-dandy house color poll. I sat with my tin of Prismacolor pencils and came up with these four combinations. It was like my house as a coloring book. I know which ones I like the best, but I am open to suggestions.

House 1

Ignore the dark green at the bottom. I decided I didn't like it.

House 2

These were the colors I had originally envisioned. Hummmmm.

House 3

Very cheery!

House 4

What the.... ok, so the green looks a little weird, but it's like a warm lime green. Not as acid as it shows up here. Use your imaginations already and vote in the poll to the right! I don't have much time!

Louisiana

2007-10-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back from Louisiana a day later than expected. We got stuck in a holding pattern over Memphis because "president" Bush and Air Force One had shut down the airport. We had 30 minutes to get to our connecting flight, and by the time we landed, that window of time had shrunk to 10 minutes. Of course, our gate was on the complete opposite side of the airport.

We were late by 5 minutes, and would you believe not only was our flight on time, they didn't even delay taking off so folks could catch the plane. We spent the night in the airport.

On a much happier note, the trip was a total success, much dancing

and music

and ohmigawd, pork chop sandwiches

and drive thru daiquiri shacks.

I'll post more later, but I'll leave you with the best souvenir I brought back from my trip. That would be "Slap Ya Mama" Cajun seasoning.

Sketches

2007-10-09T18:16:00.000-07:00

The incredibly cool one suggested that I post the two little sketches that I did in Roatan in place of my lost pictures. (Insert sound of heart breaking here) I think it's a good idea, especially because my little illustrated journal was the first thing I looked for when I got my stolen bag back. That truly would have crushed me if I lost it.

The room that I shared with Stella was on the second floor, which was wonderful. We were encased in greenery and humming birds and still had a view of the mountain in the near distance, where I saw the white bird.

Then the little sketch of the coral I saw snorkeling, and some parrot feathers I found after I held the baby spider monkey. Not much, but there isn't a lot of time for art when there is dancing on the beach and rum drinks to consume, and tourista to catch.

So I am eating bland and trying to go to bed early to rest up because next on the agenda is massive amounts of zydeco dancing in Louisiana and visiting with the amazing Eliz as well. Whoo fucking hoo!!

Sigh

2007-10-07T11:01:00.000-07:00

I am back from Roatan, Honduras and I don't have anything to show for it picture wise. My camera got stolen when the cruise ship hoards came onshore, there by giving the local poor folks reason to come out and join the fun.

What I do have is a fabulous intestinal virus that was going around the island. About four of my friends have it as well. Other than that, it was a fun trip, and I asked everyone to send me their pictures, so I will have some to share at some point... especially the ones of me holding a baby spider monkey called "Buddy".

And I did a zip line tour which I loved, and of course, much snorkeling and rum drinks.

I am glad I went, but I don't ever see me going back there. They are building luxury condos in gated communities everywhere on the island. And the amount of cruise ships that will vomit their passengers onto those pristine beaches will increase as they are building more and more docks to accomodate them. I can tell the reef closest to where I stayed was not healthy. I'm glad I saw it when I did.

And the winner might be....

2007-09-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

It’s coming down to the wire. My painter is nailing down a date sometime towards the end of October to paint the front of my house. So I have to get serious about this. It’s a real commitment to color, cause it’s gonna be stuck on my house for a loooong time.

Here are the first color combinations I am considering. Since I have a month to waver, waver I will, but I thought I’d put these first attempts out there.

Paint chip 1.

Love the Seafoam Dream and Mountain Outlook. The Hillsboro Tan can take a hike and be replaced by Lonetree or Canton Court. Seafoam Dream and Mountain Outlook are so my colors, and I have painted the front of my house some combination of blues the past 2 times. Which is why I kinda want to break out and do...

Paint chip 2.

Woah! check out Veronica’s crown! And how about that Queen’s Coat! Funky Midnight Iris.... it’s wacky. I kinda like it! I can see those columns in front of my house painted that yellow, with the doors red.

Then there is option 3 that the incredibly cool one sent.

I particularly like the stick figure. This is what all my money to art college is getting me.

This won’t be a final choice, but I would love feedback, so let me know what you think by using my handy dandy paint poll on the top right of this page.

Flotsam and jetsam

2007-09-04T18:41:00.000-07:00

So it’s almost a daily chore here in filthadelphia, picking up trash. And I have more than my fair share being this close to South Street and all. To top it off living across from a middle school and a parking lot, well, my trash picking runneth over.

And I’m not faint of heart when it comes to the job. I pick up all manner of flotsam and jetsam with my bare hands, as long as it’s not an unidentified wet or oozing something or other. I then come inside and scrub my hands like they do on Gray’s Anatomy before surgery. With antibacterial soap, thank-you very much.

But I tell ya, I totally drew the line at this.

Creepy guy

2007-08-27T15:27:00.000-07:00

Dear creepy guy on the corner,

Ok, so it’s been like, what? 5 years you’ve had the high powered job of moving bolts of fabric around for the Jewish guy at the fabric shop on the corner? And in that 5 years you have managed to creep me out every single day. Your ability to be where I am when I go down the street is totally un-nerving. It’s almost worse when you are stuck inside the floor to ceiling plate glass windows of the shop, because you stop mid bolt-lifting to stare.

I took to going up Leithgow Street to avoid you, but then you somehow managed to be on 5th street when I got there. That’s when I decided, hell, I live here, you live in creepville, I have a right to walk down my own friggin street from my house, on which I pay taxes, and plant trees, and pick up garbage every day just about, while you do nothing of the sort.

Which is why I ignore your ass every day when I walk by and you say hello through the cigarette you have dangling out of your mouth. But does this dampen your enthusiasm for saying hello to me every single day? Or uttering, be careful walking there, those pigeons will get you.

Ok, ew.

Sometimes when I look out my front window in the morning to check and see if my car is in one piece, I see you wandering around the parking lot or on the street looking all along the ground, head swinging to and fro. What the hell are you looking for? Change? That’s just too pathetic.

The other reason you skeeve me out is the way you dress. There is a “white guy from Philadelphia” look, and you have it. Skinny acid washed high waisted jeans, white sneakers, shirt tucked in and hair that looks like ken doll hair. I can see you in your smelly, stale, smoke filled living room with the heavy orange curtains pulled closed as you sit on the fake crushed velvet burgundy barco-lounger watching porn on a Sunday afternoon.

So, creepy guy on the corner. The reason the chick down the street makes sure her i-pod is firmly plugged into her ears and has her sunglasses on whether it’s sunny or not, and is rummaging around in her backpack when she walks by is probably because SHE DOESN’T WANT TO SAY HELLO TO YOU.

The Passing of Time

2007-08-23T20:16:00.001-07:00

I guess if I’ve got to be stuck in an airport, Tampa is a good place to be stuck. Everything is modern and clean, people are nice. Way better than being stuck at the other end of this trip, Philly International. Gads what an odious airport.

Florida clouds look like they are cut out and pasted on an impossibly blue sky with impossibly green trees and shrubs anchoring the whole vista.

If I had known this flight was going to be delayed I would have hung out with the kid for a few more hours, really don’t need to to rush home to the ol’empty nest, or to my highly annoying job.

As usual, I didn’t take enough pictures, as if taking more pictures I could hold onto her a little longer. Capture her and slip her into my red backpack, and release her back to her room once more.

The weekend consisted of high levels of physical activity: unloading from storage, loading into car, unloading from car, loading into dorm. All in blazing sun, heat and humidity. This followed by extreme inability to move.

I wonder in my lifetime if I will be the first person off an airplane?

All of this coming and going. I know I am not the first person to wonder if we are better because of it or not. Are we trading a tapestry of a life lived close for experiences? Or is this innate in us as humans? Being first generation I am from somewhere else anyway.

I am feeling the passing of time.

Little man

2007-08-07T04:44:00.001-07:00

Found him on a city paper box. He's all fancy!

Another little slice of city life

I would not want to walk to my car and see that!

It's gone!

2007-08-01T05:05:00.001-07:00

The bike is gone! Damn. I wanted to be there when they put it up, and it would have been fun to see them get it down.

And here are a few little city pictures for your viewing enjoyment.

Some Jersey driver lost their license plate, and someone was nice enough to display it properly.

I saw this and liked the graphic. I had to look up what was going on in Oaxaca, and it all started with a teachers strike for higher wages last spring. People were killed by government forces, who also took over the town hall. The unrest continues. Amazing what you can learn from public graffiti.

And I love this little guy

He's on the middle of South Street. Can anyone out there tell me how they do this? It looks like vinyl or something. It has a thickness to it. Not that I would do anything like that.... cough cough.

Weirdness!

2007-07-17T20:25:00.001-07:00

So today I was walking to work and came upon this.

Ok, someone really wanted this bike up there. It's got twist ties holding it in place. I would have liked to have been there when this was being rigged up!

Adds a little something to the street scape.

Then, I was heading over to the Reading Market for a fabulous bowl of wonton soup from Sang Kee and parked outside the back entrance of the market was this gem.

What the????

I got nothing for this one.

The grand old lady gets facial

2007-07-15T09:46:00.000-07:00

So, she’s about 100 years old, and she managed to keep her galvanized exterior in decent shape.

Lots of ladies her age have given in and had some plastic surgery done. This photo is a prime example of what people do so they don't have to upkeep the metal bay windows, or the metal has become so damaged, they just cover it up.

Sometimes it had to do with the hard times they fell on, so what’s an old dame to do? Upkeep is expensive.

So my old dear has been through changes in the years I have had the privilege to own her, most notably was a major fire on the block. These Victorian town houses are all semi attached in the front, about fifteen feet in. Then they jut in about two feet, leaving about four feet of space in between each house in the back. Thank goodness for that space, or I think my house would have been very damaged in the fire.

In this row of houses, we can all get out on our roofs, which is a wonderful thing. But not so wonderful, when some nimrod who lived on the third floor of the very last house on the row, left a hibachi with live coals right on the roof. Unattended. Here was the result. This picture is of the roofs of the buildings next to mine.

This is a picture of the damage to my house.

The fire story is a long one which I won’t go into now. I got away with some damage to my roof, and lots of smoke in my house, but nothing that couldn’t be repaired. As you can see from the pictures, the first 3 houses closest to the start of the fire had the worse damage. Luckily, the structures and the facades were fine, as were all the residents and pets, but the interiors had to be totally re-done.

Anyway, my grand old lady was beginning to show signs of needing a little tlc. There were soot stains from the fire,

and the metal was starting to rust as you can see on the right hand side of this picture...

...and there was a birds nest in one of the holes in the tin, as these little creatures are wont to do. Totally inappropriate for a lady of her stature.

This is a photo of my house when I first bought her. Peeling turquoise blue paint, and a partial shell on the inside.

It was a little hard getting in my front door (where the blue tarp is) when they first started on her beauty treatment.

But then, it was time for her facial. First step was a little acid peel and dermabrasion.

Then a layer of permanent foundation

The finished product so far.

We need to let this settle in whist her owner figures out a new palette for her extreme make over. I was thinking these colors in this fabric, but I’m not sure yet.

What I do know is I want those columns a rust red, with red doors. I think. Actually, I'm not sure about any of it. Thank goodness my painter is occupied for a while.

I’ll keep you posted.

It's summer, baby!

2007-07-07T14:26:00.000-07:00

You know it’s summer when you cut into a watermelon and it looks like this...

There is so much more funness that goes along with that watermelon when you live in the city. Here’s a little tour around the ‘hood that makes all the crap about living here worthwhile.

Like I said, it’s summer, so it brings lots of stuff out into the street for everyone's amusement. The protesters are out protesting.

I kinda wanted the guy on the left to switch bags with the woman on the right with the stripped stockings talking on the cell phone.

There are so many conflicting stories about this one, but the main fact that isn't in dispute is a police officer is dead, 5 bullets, one right between his eyes. Uh, someone did it, and it was probably one of the 2 guys at the scene. With the gun. But who am I to say?

Right down the block from where the protesters had been exercising their rights is this bit of whimsy. The gold man.

When I asked him why he was all gold he said he was celebrating because he paid his rent. It seemed to me that it was a lot of work to get all gold once a month, but I see him there on a quasi-regular basis, so I guess he has a lot of rent to pay.

Then there is the annual invasion of the duck boats.

These boats start out on land in the historic district, then plunge into the Delaware River...

...and come out again and end the tour right near the Constitution Center where it started. One purpose of these boat/bus contraptions is to entertain people who have had enough of history, I guess. The other would be to drive those of us who live and work anywhere in the path of one of these things insane.

The worst is the damn quack whistle they pass out to everyone.

Way before you see them, you hear tourists quacking their way into the neighborhood. They blare music from these boats as well, though that’s seemed to stop recently. I guess they got enough complaints from folks who lived along the route. When they came down South Street, guess which song they play? “Meet me on South Street” That took a lot of thought.

Nothing puts my teeth on edge more than the sound of quack whistles and the song “Meet me on South Street” Who knew those two things would be inter-related in my brain forever. Gads.

Not to lose hope though. Right nearby is the ever fabulous “Italian Market” I put little quotes around that one because it started out as Italian, but now it’s a hybrid of every influx of immigrants that has washed to our shores and landed on the dirty streets of Philadelphia. And what a thing of beauty that is.

The latest wave is the Mexican invasion, which in my mind is just the best. My favorite food after Italian is Mexican... or Chinese. Hummm. That’s a tough one. But that problem is moot since I can get my fill of either within walking distance of my house. Jealous yet?

So lucky, lucky me when the Italian market had it’s yearly spring/summer festival. Two of my favorite ethnic foods all on one street.... just look at all this wonderfulness!

Locals. A whole bunch of 'em smoking cigars.

Even the cops were chillin!

One of my favs are these mangos, or as I like to call it “bliss on a stick.” They jam a mango on a stick, peel it, and then carve it into a flower. You can squeeze fresh lime on it or sprinkle cayenne pepper. Here is the production line. Well worth picking all those mango threads out of your teeth for the next half hour.

A thing of beauty

Then there was this dude making fresh pork tacos. He would shave the meat onto a fresh taco and at the very end, flick a piece of pineapple off the top of the spit and catch it right on top. Got this pic with pineapple chunk in mid air!

Check out the final result. Ohhh baby!

More mexican food...

This guy did not want me to take his picture. He sells live animals to be butchered. The last remaining places in the Italian market to do so.

I love the juxtaposition of Italian...

...and Mexican

If that’s not enough foreign culture for you, there’s always....

Yes, folks, we also have Egypt! Pyramids and everything!

Though the hieroglyphics on this are highly suspect.

Then there was the day I walked out and saw part of Bainbridge Street shut down so local skateboarders could do their thing.

They were catapulting themselves over this car.

Or just watching, which is what I decided to do

Another day I walked out of my house and stumbled upon some really good live music on the street...

Even our local homeless lady was groovin' to the music. Didn't want to get too close because she was having some olfactory issues. Or I was having olfactory issues with her...

But the city does have it’s quieter side as well. Bainbridge green is doing it’s thing and being green.

The baby Crabapple trees that I helped plant last year...

...seem to be thriving.

And then there’s that lovely time at dusk that’s perfect to walk your ferret in Washington Square park.

And lastly, I’ll leave you with this image of a sweet pocket garden off Locust Street. But stay tuned. There is ever more fun and games that comes from living near the carnival that is South Street. Quack quack.

Update

2007-06-08T04:55:00.001-07:00

I am not posting too much these days. Not cause I don’t love you all, but there is so much to do after work, and I feel like I’m just treading water.

I am trying to secure a HUD loan to get a bunch of stuff done to the house, trying to build a website to showcase my graphic design work, I joined a community garden and my tomatoes have decided to flex their spindly arms and pop tomatoes out like crazy.

Also working on the first floor apartment and finishing up the last bits down there and hopefully I’ll get it on the market in July.

So hang tight, I have lots of entertaining pictures that the city provides me with on a daily basis. In the mean time, think about this dull interlude as the time when the teacher has to step out of the room and you are all allowed to talk quietly amoungst yourselves.

Bad day at the salt mines

2007-05-24T19:38:00.001-07:00

So it was a totally annoying day today. Especially when I had such high hopes that I could sit with my i-pod nano, get in the zone and design my little graphic artist heart out. But noooooo. My mellow was definitely harshed.

So on my way home as I was cutting through the backyard of liberty... how ironic that felt. The founding fathers were not faint of heart, and they totally thought out of the box. And they were pro-active, and I bet they wouldn’t mind if you asked a question in any meeting they had... I bet they would even welcome a discussion! I think I would have liked them.

Astounding how far we have regressed in so many aspects.

As I was saying, as I was walking through the backyard of Independence Hall, I came upon this magnificent little butterfly, hanging out on the ground sunning her little wings. Just there. And she sat nicely while I took her picture.

What this all means I don’t know, but it made me feel better. So I just want the universe to know I was paying attention.

Me, my shadow and my friend.

This too will pass

2007-04-28T13:53:00.000-07:00

Went to see Jon Stewart last night at the Tower Theater. I loved his comment about the war on terror. “How can we have a war on terror? It’s an emotion. You mean we gotta do this till we all aren’t scared anymore?”

After a standing ovation at the end of the show, and the applause died down, he said, “This too will pass... all the stuff that makes us angry or sad will pass."

So, I'm waiting for this all to pass. Let's see. That would be about noon on January 20th, 2009, east coast time. Not soon enough. But in the meantime, there's Jon Stewart.

Our House

2007-04-16T05:02:00.000-07:00

Is a very very very fine house. With 2 cats in the yard... I do have 2 cats but no yard. Here's a pic of my very very very fine house.

I have often said I would love to move off this block, but take my beloved house with me. The uncontrolably cool one sent me a drawing she did of what that would look like.

So today is a day I would like to do that. Not only is it Monday, there is a nor'easter blowing out there, and it's SNOWING. April 16th and it's snowing with howling winds. Lovely. Lets move the house to San Diego. I bet it's not snowing there.

Every picture tells a story

2007-04-08T18:08:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, I worked for a non-profit in Philly called Prints in Progress. It was an after school community based art program with workshops in some rough and no so rough neighborhoods. We taught silkscreen printing on fabric and paper, along with painting, drawing and linoleum prints, and sold the kids work in our center city gallery. The proceeds went back to the student.

The workshops reflected the personality of neighborhood they were in. I opened a new workshop in the Kensington section, which had a Irish/Polish/Puerto Rican mix in one of the tougher neighborhoods in the city. It was an area that was defined by 2 story row homes that were built around factories that were no longer in operation. I could write volumes about my time there and the kids that were so funny, street smart and full of life and talent in such a burned out environment. Here I am back in the day with a couple of my students.

Here is a linoleum print done by Jose Ortiz. I still remember him and this print. He had just come back from Puerto Rico visiting relatives. We never knew if these kids would come back, but Jose came walking in, grabbed a small piece of linoleum and just started carving into it without even sketching his idea first. After a fury of carving, he was ready to print, and this was the result called "Jose's House"

It was a great program and I was lucky enough to work there at the height of it’s success. A few of us artists managed to stay in touch over the years, and I got together with two of these fabulous women yesterday.

Barbara and Diane ran the Germantown workshop for years. And here they are in front of a gorgeous painting by Diane.

This is Diane's worktable

And some pieces that are, uh, in progress....

a sculpture and a beautiful photo

Then it was on to tea and dessert at Barbara's place, an artists co-op. Now, tea and dessert might put pictures in your head of victorian, lacy, crumpets and the color pink, tea pots with little flowers painted all over and pinkies in the air.

HA! Here's Barbara's kitchen for starters

That's the fridge behind the chair that has the African sculpture attached to the top of it.

The mistress of the household

Now I am going to sit back and let you all take a gander at some of Barbara's art and the beautiful home she has created. Click on any of these images to view them larger.

I loved these bundles. When I asked Barbara what was in them, she said stuff she was storing for the time being...

In this still life, there is a tiny Diane painting. That little horizontal piece on the left hand side of the photo.

Talk about fabulous women. I am in awe of these two and am honored to have them as friends.

Proud momma

2007-03-25T15:06:00.000-07:00

Here is a sketch my uncontrollably cool daughter made for me for my birthday. It’s her mom looking out the window at the birds with Nip right there too. I am having either my morning cup of coffee, or afternoon exotic tea break.

I just love it, but then again, I’m the proud momma.

And now for something completely different

2007-03-17T05:29:00.000-07:00

Well, now that there is 4 inches of sleet covering everything, after it being 75 degrees earlier in the week, I am on my trusty i-mac bombing around the internet and found this on you tube. Coming from a huggy background, I loved this video. Turn up the sound and enjoy.

Ps. Speaking of hugs...

Since we're on the subject

2007-03-15T17:41:00.000-07:00

This is one of my all time favorite pictures I took of a parking lot sign a few blocks from my house. It is so perfect in it's lime green glow.