Fuel for Obsession

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Walk With Me

Music: Fleet Foxes - Mykonos off Sun Giant and Heard Them Stirring off Fleet Foxes.

It Has Been 10 Days or So

Funny how I had forgotten how fantastic Michael Jackson was. I was in junior High when Thriller came out. My girlfriends and I were obsessed. We got a friend this nearly life-size poster of MJ for her birthday that year.

Her dad didn't like it. He didn't like a poster of a black man on his daughter's wall. We didn't understand. I think that was my first encounter with racism.

For me, until Michael Jackson, popular music was just something playing on the airwaves and Friday Night Videos. I didn't know it could be an all encompassing sensory experience until he started dancing. It was like a new language. I remember watching Thriller in music class. Even our teacher was under his spell.

Then, in high school, I moved on and dived into New Wave. It was all about listening to a prescribed set of semi-obscure bands and Michael Jackson was waaay too popular for my new mindset. After that he ended up in the margins as he got weirder and wackier. It was easy to point and laugh at the pictures and stories. But now, as I re-listen to all the music and really give a thought to his tragic trajectory I just feel so sad. Between his abusive upbringing and his isolation in a level of stardom that left everyone else far behind, did he really ever have a chance?

Matt is wondering how long this re-awakened obsession with Michael Jackson will last. The music makes me happy. I hope is lasts a long time. I hope I never forget about his brand of magic again.

One more video (I am using grainy live clips because I LOVE to hear the crowd FREAKING out!)

What I am Listening to Now

Longing For Lullabies from Kleerup on Vimeo.

My Morning Walk

Theme song for this walk: An End Has A Start by Editors

My Morning Walk

I am getting caught up on my morning walk posts. Seems like some of you enjoy them. Thank you for your kind comment Kate!

If you are a participant in Christmas your tree might come from my neighborhood. There are tree farms all over the place up here.

There is a reason rabbits are easy pickins for cars, birds of prey and coyotes. This business of going tharn is quite a craptastic defense mechanism.

Theme song for this walk: Burn the Honeysuckle by The Gourds

My Morning Walk and Notes on Friendship

Because I am a packrat I didn't just leave this metal loopy thingy on the side of the road after I snapped that pic. I put it in my pocket and took it home. I am sure it will come in handy someday.

Theme song for this walk: the Soundtrack from Once

Once is a movie about finding a friend who is just the right fit - really it's more complicated than that but, boiled down, that is the gist. I am going to ramble on a bit but just sit tight with me here and I will try to wrap it up into some sort of point. I went to see the Sex and the City movie a few months ago. Spare me the rolled eyes. I understand that it is pure fantasy written by men who don't have any grasp on the real lives of women. That said, I left the movie (alone because I have no girlfriends here and Matt and Drew refused) feeling sad that I don't have any lifelong girlfriends who live nearby. A feebly nomadic lifestyle will do that to a person. We have lifelong friends but they are scattered: Marble and James in Utah (well James soon to be in China), Audrey in NYC, Ward in San Fran, Patrick in San Fran, Sean & Xochitl in Los Angeles, Jenny in the OC, Sarah in Memphis, etc.

I watched Once for the first time back in April when Matt was on one of his never ending business trips. Once is a melancholy little film but it hit a sweet spot in my soul. It made me feel sad, lonely and hopeful, threw into relief the difference between alone and lonely. I felt lonely.

Fast forward a month into May. Matt is gone again. This time to Utah. I take to hanging out in the local bar like a teetotaling floozy. I strike up a friendship with the bartender. I am such a cliche'. I have mentioned Drew in previous posts but I think he deserves his own paragraph. We watch American Idol and talk politics and religion. When I say "you know, I think Barack Obama is a secret xxxxxxx" Drew not only gets what I am saying, he finishes the sentence in unison. Matt returned from the Beehive State and now Matt and Drew geek out to their hearts content discussing obscure movies, rare DVD releases and beer. They throw me a bag of candy to keep me from zoning out in boredom. We go to movies together, watch bad TV together, laugh at offensive jokes together, love/hate the weirdness of small town life together and my lonely frown has now turned upside down. One more friend in our collected family - and this one lives nearby.

Now, Drew, no more grousing about Steph getting her pic posted on the blog before you. Here is a pic plus a thousand words, and lovey, mushy words at that.

My Morning Walk

The theme song for this walk: Lotion by Greens Keepers

My Morning Walk

I have posted these birds before but I couldn't resist another picture with the bright blue sky as background.

Theme song for this walk: The entire Mamma Mia! Sountrack. (The movie version, not the Broadway or pure ABBA versions - which I am sure are both fine - just not what I happened to be listening to.) Comment on the movie: It is an embarrassingly goofy exterior surrounding a candy and chocolate covered heart of gold. I unexpectedly enjoyed it.

Well, OK, since it is a special occasion. . .

I never thought I would share this semi-secret with the world outside of Winlock but, in celebration of Egg Days, here you go:

My Morning Walk - Other Stuff

Welcome to Evergreen Meadows. It looks like a subdivision is going in down the street. I don't know how many houses are planned. Here is a question: If they cut down all the evergreens to put in houses should they still call the area "Evergreen Meadows"? I say "Evergreen In Memoriam" would be a better name for the subdivision.See fig. 1 & fig. 2 below.

fig. 1 My first thought was that they cleared out a lovely little nook for a few houses.

fig. 2 But then I looked closer and realized that more clearing was going on beyond what initially looked like the tree line.

Tom and Kathy told us that many immigrants from Finland settled in this area. For that reason, if you are shopping for an existing house, you are likely to find one already tricked out with a sauna.

The long gone "Lewis & Clark: Muzzle Loaders, Black Powder Gun Range". Smell ya later.

I have been meaning to snap a pic of these birds for a few months now. They are sitting atop someone's driveway entrance. I LOVE them. Semi-related:
We saw a buzzard flying around our property 2 days in a row. I wonder what is dead? Please don't tell me it is our house building dreams. And also, I inadvertently saved a chipmonk the other day on the mail route. I turned left onto Awmiller and saw an animal of some sort on the right side of the road. As I got closer I could tell it was a hawk (I assume redtail although it was much more vibrant in color than other redtails I have seen). Anyway, it didn't move until finally I was only yards away. It lifted up off the roadside and hovered a bit. I looked at the road and there was a chipmonk (also pretty vibrant so maybe I licked a stamp w/ LSD on it) looking like it just won the lottery. It waved at me (OK, not really but it's fun to think so) and ran into the bushes.

I know I have posted pics of these guys before but I am not tired of them yet. And neither is my mom so here they are again. The other day I passed another Brahma bull on my route. It was a rainy day and the bull was sitting out in the middle of a field with a large plaid blanket covering every thing but his head and shoulders. His head and shoulders, by the way, were resting flat on the ground and he looked like the definition of miserable.

The theme song for this morning walk was: Valerie Loves Me by Material Issue

More Plants. Don't Fall Asleep

Living so long without seasons caused me to forget an important item. Spring makes winter worth the trouble. I am really digging all the shades of green in the world with punches of floral color. All flooding and freezing are forgiven, at least until next winter.

This yellow flower might be scotchbroom. I am not sure. Scotchbroom is a tough weedy bushy thing that we have been warned about.

Look closely and you will see a worker bee in this photo.

I was listening to my "Country Mice" playlist on this walk and the two theme songs for the walk are "Sandusky" by Uncle Tupelo and "Hasn't Hit Me Yet" by Blue Rodeo. This made for a more leisurely walk than I needed. Drew served us a bathtub size basket full of tater tots the night before and I probably should have found something with a few more beats per minute. Good soul searching music though. My brain thanks me but my arteries do not.

Look!! Bunnies!!

I took this a few days ago on my walk. The bunnies are totally tharn. They are hoping that I won't see them if they are very, very still. They ran away as soon as I took another step.

The theme song for this walk was Guns n' Roses' Welcome to the Jungle.

Alone (or 1 is the lonliest . . . )

I thought I wanted to be alone all day but I ended up just feeling lonely. My walk this morning was nice. Then I spent a few hours scrubbing the Sister House ceiling with bleach water - not so nice. I rewarded my Cinderella labor with dinner and a movie at the Olympic Club (Leatherheads - worth the $3 admission and not much more, and Mac & Cheese - not worth the calories). Now, as the day nears an end I feel that I am done being alone and am delighted that Matt returns home tomorrow. Not a minute too soon. My playlist is all played out. I added 2 songs to that playlist by the way, both by Delays: Nearer than Heaven & Hideaway.

The Post in Which I Make Matt's Ears Bleed and Heart Weep

Back in the day, young love was communicated through the medium of mixed tapes. Today the language is playlists.

When Matt broke up with me at age 19 I left him with a mix tap of my favorite Kate Bush songs to haunt him in my absence. It totally worked too because look! I am his wife now. While I was off in self imposed exile in Ohio I regularly received mix tapes from Matt. He swears he was not sending any messages via the songs on the tapes but I like to pretend otherwise. Besides, the making of a mix tape took time, much more time than making a playlist. So I knew that he was thinking of me for the duration of the tape to tape process.

Tomorrow morning I take Matt to the airport so he can fly away. Again. Not to Los Angeles this time. Nancy and Kate are heading off for a week in NYC and Matt is going to Utah to spend time with his dad. When he got home from his last trip away I was so deflated that it took me two full days to climb out of my doldrums and enjoy our time together. I want to avoid finding myself in that depressed state again so I have made myself a playlist of songs that make me feel all lovey and happy so I don't get lonely and depressed.

The trouble with my playlist of love songs for Matt is that he will absolutely cringe when he sees it. I guarantee that he will hate most of the music. That is OK. He likes Deerhoof after all and a million other bands that make my ears bleed. Were he to make a playlist of love songs for me I am sure I would respond thusly, "Gah, turn it off! TURN IT OFF. If you love me even a little, TURN IT OFF!!! That's funny right? We express our love with songs the other finds repugnant.

So Matt, I challenge you to show your love in the form of a playlist thereby causing me severe audio distress. It's only fair.

I will miss you while you are gone.

My "I Love You" Playlist

Cowboy Take Me Away - Dixie Chicks
Take My Heart - Soko
Take Me Home - Concrete Blonde
Love at First Sight - Kylie Minogue
Lullaby - Dixie Chicks
The Wings - Gustavo Santaolalla
Won't Let You Down - Keith Urban
Devil Slayer - Michael Brook
Oceans - Rob Dickinson

Update: You can buy this playlist at iTunes (except for Oceans because they don't sell it anymore). If you have iTunes click here to go to the playlist.

I am warming up to Portland part 2

On Thursday Apr 10th we headed back to Portland to see The Avett Brothers. Before the show we had dinner at Park Kitchen. We ordered the chef's tasting menu. The menu regularly changes and the food just kept coming and coming so I lost track of what we at. I know there was a nettle soup in there somewhere, chickpea fries with pumpkin ketchup, sunchokes with new potatoes, crackers with sheep's milk cheese and rhubarb compote, squash with greens rice and mole and a bunch of other stuff. I am telling you, we ROLLED out of there. Here's the thing though. The sublime mixing and blending of flavors and textures we had at Wildwood were too fresh on our minds. Something just didn't gel all the way at Park Kitchen. Maybe we just ate too much and our palates got muddled and confused. Dessert didn't help. That is the one area Park Kitchen did not excel. The desserts they sent out with the tasting menu were a mediocre chocolate cake with kumquats in a simple syrup and and also a lime custard with rhubarb sauce. See these desserts sound great and look good on paper but the execution just didn't work. Unlike the heavenly turnovers at Wildwood that sounded so-so but ended up rocking my world. I ordered the turnovers there on the waiters suggestion. I hadn't planned on selecting them. Yay for helpful waiters.

We had a short walk from Park Kitchen to the Crystal Ballroom for the show. Man alive were we uncomfortably full. Neither of us wanted to go to the concert anymore. We just wanted to get home and get our fat selves into bed. I am glad we didn't bail. The Avett Brothers are good stuff. I highly recommend that you pick up a CD or catch a show if you can. Here are a couple of videos to set you on your way to Avett fandom.

Cherish the Ladies

Shortly after we moved to Washington we got a mailer from the Washington Center for the Performing Arts. Cherish the Ladies, a traditional Irish music group comprised entirely of female musicians, was on the schedule. I am awfully fond of them and bought tickets on the spot. Well, as luck would have it, Matt ended up being in Los Angeles on the day of the concert so I asked Tom if he would like to go. It was so much fun! It felt wrong to be sitting in a seat and not dancing during the show. Although all the musicians were thrilling a few really stood out. Dierdre Connolly has a beautiful voice for Irish music. Donna Long played a piano solo that broke my heart.

Portland visit #3

Matt and I went to Portland for the Finntroll concert on Wednesday night. We headed down a little early to grab some dinner. Many people ask if I miss Los Angeles. The answer is that I miss it most when I want to go out to eat or go to a movie. If I never eat another grilled cheese sandwich made with Kraft Singles and Wonderbread and served with a side of tater tots it will be too soon. My point is that it was a treat to head toward the land of "real" restaurants. From the book eat.shop.portland we selected Ken's Artisan Pizza because it was a cold rainy night and the warmth and aroma of a wood fire oven sounded perfect. When we drove by though the place was overrun with customers. We are neither patient or well adjusted to standing in the rain so we just drove right on by. Since there seemed to be a bunch of other options in the neighborhood we parked and walked. In the next block we ran across Navarre - also listed in eat.shop.portland. It was the happiest of accidents. These people are food geniuses. Never have I smiled so broadly whilst eating turnips. They were served with brown sugar sauce and it was inspired. We also ordered braised greens, the pickle plate (mostly for Matt - but I did eat a pickled bean), home made bread with olive oil, prico (yeah!! fried cheese!!), and Matt had some steamed clams because he has decided that ocean filters don't count as animals. He may be have a point, I don't know. For desert I had THE BEST PIE EVER - peach/raspberry. There is no point trying to describe this perfect pairing. Matt had spice bread with goat cheese and honey. Just his style. I tried it but it didn't hold a candle to my BEST PIE EVER.

We were trying to time everything so we got to the venue after the opening band played. We were doing alright until the bridge we needed to cross was closed and the detour sign lead us into a no man's land of underpasses and signage voids. So we got to the concert a little after Finntroll started playing. They are such a happy metal band. A brief description of them is the marriage of "traditional Finnish hoedown music,"humppa", mixed with folksy black metal." We had a great time. I took a snippet of video. That lasted until I got busted by the bouncer. Here's my question: what difference does it make if I get a little footage to amuse myself and friends. It's not like the quality is bootleggable or anything. It is useless to pretty much everybody. Oh well. Here is the footage. It will stay here until I get reprimanded by someone who cares (?).

The hair swinging kills me. Is this a parody of a parody? See Dethklok. And Dethklok on MySpace.

And Dethklok with Finntroll music (!!! - check out the name on the store at the very beginning). The crowd went bonkers when this song played. Enjoy.