2010-02-28

Providence, My Love...





Providence, Rhode Island.
A very romantical city according to nobody but me, for the most part.
I really, really love Providence.
The fact that I am not afraid to drive in it. The fact that the vintage store on Thayer Street has an annual "Disco Sale". I can buy new nose rings at the Indian store (dot, not feather...) and get free bangles or instant curry every time.

Providence has yet to let me down.
Even today on a random February Sunday while finishing up a cigarette break with Gwen in front of Urban Outfitters, an electrified parade of student-types waving Canadian and US flags in some sort of Olympic glory show streamed by us...even inviting us to party the night away with them...if only we didn't have jobs.

Providence...small but glorious in your own respect...you are my kind of city. And I love you.




2010-02-25

Loss of Snowboarding Virginity, Take 2:









One thing that is spectacular about working for a family-owned business: They understand that sometimes a girl needs a day off to go snowboarding. They will do what they can to make that happen, before she loses her mind out of boredom and lack of excitement in the cruel world that is February in New England.
So, to my boss at Cornerstone, I love you. For multiple reasons, but also including the fact that I was able to take this Thursday off on rather short notice to go snowboarding with my good old friend from high school, Melissa.

It had been at least ten years since the last time I went. I wasn't an avid boarder by any means, but during the short time in high school where I was able to go a few times, I loved every second of it...from the very first time falling the whole way down the mountain...it took about two hours to get to the bottom and I'm surprised to this day that I didn't pee myself or die of acute frostbite on the way. To this day falling down that mountain with my friend Jess is one of my most dear high school memories.
It was very fitting that today, after a decade-long break, I ended up at the same place I lost my snowboarding virginity: Mt. Sunapee, New Hampshire.

I was a bit worried, praying to the gods that boarding would be sort of like riding a bike...awkward for a little bit if you haven't done it in a while but the kind of thing that comes back in a flash.
Aside from a rather embarrassing incident in which I took great care lacing up my boots all tight and nice, only to realize I hadn't put my snow pants on first, everything went wonderfully. I didn't fall getting on the lift, fell only once getting off it. Was able to get down the mountain in good time, with my feet strapped to a board at relatively high speeds. So, in conclusion, despite a ten year hiatus,
SNOWBOARDING SUCCESS!

The one important thing I suck at is riding toeside, which leaves me heading down the mountain face-on when I need to slow down...which really, REALLY hurts your quads, as it turns out. Weirdly enough, it's more comfortable for me to suddenly switch to goofy than kick into toeside function...this needs to be worked on. My poor flabby quads were screaming bloody murder after a few runs down. Luckily on a weekday there weren't too many people around to see me sitting in a snowbank screaming "EEERUUUUUGHH!!!@$*%!" and such...

Either way, it was lovely. On the way home we were desperate for snacks and followed a Citgo sign off the highway, only to end up deceived and lost in a random NH industrial park. We followed it through, and BEHOLD, A WALMART!!!
I was beginning to dream of fried chicken when we pulled to the front and my hopes were dashed...we had arrived at "ICENTER"...which is not the one you want when you're hungry and have already been dealing with snow, ice and rain all day. Thankfully, in the opposite direction we found a Tedeschi's with the snacks we needed. Only I dropped my entire cigarette tin in the parking lot...in the pouring rain.
But we are intelligent people with innovative ideas. Why buy a pack when you can dry yours out in the heating vent of a car? Crisis averted. And then I realized I probably could have bought a pack for less than half of what one costs in Massachusetts at that same Tedeschi's.
In the end, the memory of those nasty wet cigarettes pinched in the heating vent is worth more than the money I would have saved on out of state cigarettes.

2010-02-22

Flea Market Lottery






Going to the Wareham flea market is quickly becoming my #1 favorite weekend activity.
The place is an absolute mess, covered in layers of dirt, dust and god-knows-what, but it is like a giant treasure chest the size of a warehouse filled from top to bottom with piles of all the old-timey neat stuff a girl could ever hope for.
Lately, that would be vintage camera stuff.
FOUND:
Yashica Minimatic-C 35mm camera. Bought it in a fit of excitement, thinking it was Russian. Turns out it's Japanese, but no loss there. The thing is sturdy as hell, in mint condition AND DOESN'T NEED BATTERIES. The neat little glass-bubble looking thing on the lens is a solar cell. Pretty space-age for something from the 1960's. SCORE.
I managed to find some film to try it out, and it was no easy task since the entire world has gone digital. Also, it is a fact that somewhere along the line I pretty much forgot how to load/unload film entirely...forgot to pay attention towards the end of the roll, ended up snapping the film right off the spool.
Crisis was 50% averted with makeshift bathroom darkroom, where I managed to stuff half of the film back into the canister...the other half became a toy for Albany.

Find no.2: Flawless Vivitar 28-90mm and not-so-flawless but nice none the less, Kinon 80-200.

Also, giant Soligor 75-260mm telephoto lens for $5. This thing weighs a ton, and I plan to use it very sparingly, to avoid having it rip my camera in half. It is quite seriously as big as my cat, as shown in picture above.

Time for some extreme sleep.

2010-02-19

Beetles that can't catch a break.



So while cleaning my room this week as explained in the last post, I realized that there was not only one, but two bugs trapped underneath the glass of one of my photo frames.
Yes, I knew there was one there before...and didn't do anything about it. It kind of blended, so what?
Once it occurred to me that there were actually two bugs of seemingly two separate types stuck in this frame, I kind of couldn't help but wonder why, how, and what were they hoping for by going through the trouble of climbing into this frame in the first place? It is rather pretty...four shots I took on a fall foliage viewing trip to a temple at night in Kyoto. Eikan-do, maybe. I went out with the rest of the kids living in my dorm at the time, brought my Lomo and the colors were some kind of magic.
I can see why you'd want to crawl into a picture like this. After work today, I would also like to crawl into this picture. With some frozen yogurt, a big blanket, and some icy hot. Yes please.

Maybe that was what the bug was after. Things aren't so pretty in Carver. He was probably sick of his job.
And maybe bug #2 went in to save him from his illusions of escape, only to get caught in the first frame. "Hold on! Just stay awake, I'm going to get you out of here!!! STAY WITH ME!!!"
Kind of like Rose and Jack in Titanic...only not...for multiple reasons, one being that they both died and neither went on to have babies or get their pilot's license. Which is a shame. It's a good thing I survived to tell their story.

And there you have it, a fabricated tragic love story of two beetles to kick off your weekend, from the broken and tired mind of Jackie, in need of vacation.


2010-02-17

It couldn't wait till spring...









I could not close my drawers.
Piles upon piles of scarves scattered about.
Old receipts, dying flowers and a giant bowl filled with slimy water and ever growing sea life...
and as much as I liked that heart curtain at first, it was starting to annoy the fuck out of me.
It was time.
4.5 hours later, mission room overhaul accomplished.
And look out Salvation Army, you've got 4.5 giant trash bags full of goodies coming your way.

God I love me a clean room. Everything feels lighter, brighter, shinier...
I even gave Octopus and Manta Ray fresh water.
Feeling extra responsible and productive today.
WOOT.


2010-02-16

Because I like driving in your car.


Lost is on in 6 minutes. But here is my last minute tribute to a slew of not-so-good photos whose parts create a sum that I rather like.

I will love you forevah....











Ahhh Valentine's Day. This year was a mighty good one.
Despite a nasty sinus infection that I'm still sort of getting over (I'm at about 90% now...), I managed to throw together a crafty present...a small-scale love story photo book.
As it turns out, my current toy kick did not end with the expanding sea creatures (which are at least 200% now, by the way...)
It all kind of started with the shark shark helmet, and knowing that Policecop would probably want one too. As a matter of fact, he was questioning me about the origins of said helmet as he was unwrapping his very own dinosaur version. It was some kind of perfect.
I'm assuming that the majority of you have seen these shark/dinosaur love pictures by now, so I'll skip the lengthy explanation. It was the cutest idea I've had in ages, and that's about it. I'm feeling rather proud of it still, and ordered my own prints last night.

The weekend was spent driving about to various flea markets, finding a sweet vintage Kino Kiron lens for $15(!), good Italian food eaten side-by-side, a night at our new favorite getaway (smoking rooms...enough said), Sunday breakfast and so on.

So, happy belated love day everyone!

2010-02-09

Feeling Blue? Got $10?







Tonight I ventured down to Michael's in search of clay, for a very specific and practical project: a hand-made ashtray.
After some in-depth product research I discovered that it was entirely impossible to create a functional ashtray out of any type of clay not requiring a 2000+ degree Fahrenheit kiln, which is pretty much the one arts/crafts tool that I do not have stuffed in a box under my bed.
Bummer.
If only I still had full-on access to Mrs. Wadsworth's crafts room at Marshfield High...I didn't know how good I had it back then...pottery wheels and a giant kiln all at my fingertips...sigh.

But then, somewhere between exiting the Sculpey aisle and arriving at the register, I somehow escaped the confines of practicality and maturity...
Next thing I remember, I was checking out with the following items:

1 Felt shark helmet.
2 boxes of mini easter chickadees. Pink and yellow respectively.
2 Magic GROW sea creatures. Octopus and manta ray. (Grows to 600%!!!)
2 Viles of "GRAB-A-BUBBLE".
("BLOW BUBBLES YOU CAN HOLD IN YOUR HAND!!!")

It didn't quite hit me until the girl at the register said, "This is like, the cutest purchase ever..."
It was at that point I realized exactly what I was buying. I had a brief moment of inner conflict, but for $10, what else would I buy? A shirt? Not nearly as fun.
It's important to mix shit up sometimes when you spend a significant amount of your time, 5 days a week, doing the same exact crap...i.e, work.
And so I did.

I will be posting updates on the alleged 600% growth of my sea creatures. For the sake of keeping things simple, we will call the octopus Steven. The manta ray will be called Jackson. I'm slightly concerned about the 600% promise, I'm not sure if I have a container big enough to accommodate that volume.

I'm only a bit worried that I may be losing my mind. But I have a feeling that I'm not the only one. Boredom is the new dementia, HEY!



2010-02-07

I want guacamole and beer too.





Elderflower marmalade and Italian sweet cream coffee-mate, it does a Sunday good.
Now we're off to Target to buy boring necessities, and later meeting up with Policecop after he finishes his weekend guard business.
Apologies for the weak-ass post, but I just wanted to put something down since the last one was rather depressing. Dying to get out of the house, and kind of wishing I liked football so I could remotely enjoy the Superbowl today. I feel as if I'm missing out on something big. Mostly the guacamole and beer.