Habitat for Catmanity

Yesterday, we did the habitat photo shoot with Kat. It was a lot of work, but a total treat. The real life "props" that I picked to represent myself: a bowl of pho & Vietnamese coffee [my love of food and a nod to my Vietnamese heritage], some camping gear [love of being out of doors], cooking gear, books by Louise Erdrich [spirituality, complicated family relationships], Charles Portis & Kyril Bonfiglioli [humor], Victor Whitney Wiley [my best friend], SOLO & music. We really wanted the shoot to take place in the dining room because of the new light fixture, the object we wished to represent our new home, where we are throwing down some roots. The WAR IS OVER (if you want it) posters offers duel representation: my liberal political views & my father, who introduced me to music, including Yoko & John. There are lots of little things to represent my family & interests. I really wanted to work the blog into the photo, but I honestly didn't know how to do that without lugging in the laptop. At one point, Kat said we needed more stuff, so we threw in a lot of things w/o much regard, but I think it'll be fine & will work. There's a lot going on & I trust she did a bitchin' job. She did give me a preview photo that isn't a habitat photo, but it's neat looking anyway.

Last night, we went to Heather/Zach's for a mini-impromptu Christmas party to decorate a gingerbread house, drink boozy hot chocolate & play Wii. I had a good time and I want a Wii more than ever. How about it, *Santa?

ATM & the precious Ruby:

Zach/Keiko/Heather:

We did the best we could:

Wii wii wii all the way home:

Spectators:



Unrelated -- sometimes the cold trumps hard feelings, right SOLO, baby?



"Making of" our habitat photo:

*I never stopped believing! But, seriously, I feel grown ups need Santa just as much as children, yeah? I am soooooo leaving cookies out this year.

Ba Ngoai

I just got a pretty big scare -- I got a text & email from my cousin in Seattle that said my gran was in the hospital for a heart attack. She has since been released & is now at home, sleeping soundly.

Rougher than rough, tougher than tough.

Phew!

In progress

I am prepping the dining room for the photo shoot. This project is important to me, so I'm putting some thought into it in hopes that it will be helpful to Kat, but without stepping on her toes & her vision. I plan to put subtle homages to my sister, both grandmothers, Ma, Pa & Mayumi. Naturally, ATM & I will splay our things in hopes that we represent ourselves accurately. This is harder than I thought it'd be! Electric excitement!

I must boast; our reward for taking care of things in a timely manner is not having to do a mad dash during the holidays. All but one gift has arrived & Christmas plans have been solidified. I must thank ATM for his excellent partnership -- I would go insane & nothing would be done if it weren't for our teamwork. I'm serious, you get us on the same page, THINGS GET DONE. I just wanted to express gratitude because sometimes, taking care of business can be stressful.

So, I am working on a toast for new year's eve. There are arcane things from the past -- letter writing, calligraphy, formal invitations, please & thank yous, and Perry Como, to name a few -- that I adore & would love to see a comeback. I feel that a heartfelt toast can be a lovely thing to do for your friends & family, If you're not careful, you can look like a smug jerkface, I suppose. But, our new tradition of going to the Thompson cabin in Ferndale is one of my happiest times in my life. A toast is appropriate. Here's to year three! Cheers!

"I can't think of a better way to ring in the new year than with a group of people who have been such an important part of my past and, if the heavens are smiling on me, will be an equally important part of my future. Here's hoping the new year will bring each of us good health and happiness."

I am almost finished with a mix that I wanted to give before Thxgiving, but it didn't feel finished, so I put it off. I've since added some songs, all I need to do is arrange it. I'll admit, the mix is pretty pedestrian. Living with a serious musician that knows his stuff has made me really shy, but I think I'LL LIVE. Heh. Let me know if you want one!

Habitat

I didn't want to jump the gun & be disappointed if it didn't come through, but I talked with Kat this very evening & she will be taking photos of our household for her habitat photo series on Saturday!

The honor & pleasure is all ours. ATM & I will be spending the next few days going through our valued treasures & picking out things that is quintessential us. I cannot wait!

Please check out her work!

NWA

We haven't been away for many weekends, so we went to Fayetteville to enjoy winter splendor & to eat, shop, relax & enjoy the company of Alannah & Co.

On the way to her house, Alannah stopped the car so I could take a photo of this beaut. This is her neighbor's holiday display. Pour yourself a nice cup of General Food International (Jean Luc!) & take it all in.

Thank you, McGinnis family!

For the rest of the afternoon & early evening, ATM & I manned the kitchen stools & sipped coffee while we watched Alannah make cream puffs (And I haylped!) for a party we were going to later.

A party we went to later:

There was a good lighting scheme. Me, Kelly, Alannah & D:

I got to meet Alannah's friends who own Little Bread Company. I didn't get to try their treats from the bakery, but they did make appetizers for the party. Delicious! AND, one of them said that my cinnamon rolls looked good, which totally made me elated. Thumbs up approval from a real life baker? Yes, please, with sweet cream cheese drizzle on top. I just hope they tasted half as good as they looked.

So, last Thursday, the night I had KMHD, Heather, Keiko & Leigh over, I may've overdone it with the sparkly. Honestly, I had no intention of throwing back as much as I did, but when you mix intense conversation about nothing & the sweet sweet stuff, well, you will get drunk. I went to work the next day and all was well, but as soon as I got home, my hangover manifested. It held off all day! What. Anyway, I had the worst tummyache EVER. And it followed me to Fayetteville. I was a literal bellyacher, and it made having the best time of my life damn near impossible. Maybe I should send mass apology cards to everyone I encountered because I was a total whiner. Even though the company was really pleasant, all I could think about was laying down in a fetal position on the floor, preferably surrounded by a mix of kittens & cats that love me. Too, I love going to parties where I don't really know anyone, so, that's another layer of BUMMER. Alannah pretty much saved me by taking me to her house and making me a baking soda cocktail that fixed my problem. If you ever have a sour stomach, dissolve a teaspoon of baking soda in about 6 oz. of water and drink up! It's magical! All better! This is a full-on endorsement. Funnily, Alannah had to make this elixir for her BF, too. She definitely had a couple of big babies on her hands.

I had the pleasure of stopping by Good Things Boutique for some little gifts for the household. The world's finest incense comes from Kyoto:

I understand that not everyone is into incense, but I always liked the idea of smoke being a cleansing agent. You can thank Louise Erdrich for putting that idea in my head. I love having washed my hair a couple of times after a camping trip and still smelling the campfire. What a comfort! Incense, in moderation, gives me the same feeling.

New mug! Not too big, not too small:

I can't wait to go back! Next on my shopping list? Super soft organic underwear. My tush is totally worth it.

We took the Pig Trail to get back to NLR. It was very 'over the river & through the woods'. We drove through clouds a couple of times. Arkansas truly is a gorgeous, breathtaking state. I love it!



I've been enjoying the holidays this year. It's helpful that, for once, we are on top of our game & we've made decisions and we know we are doing. I'm pretty much just waiting for the holiday party invites to roll in. Speaking of which, here is one for you...

ATM & Seth to DJ.

So, I've been running KMHD & I's idea of opening a boutique hotel in Hot Springs past pretty much anyone who will listen. Yesterday, I asked a local HS resident her thoughts. Not only did she get totally stoked, but she had our vision in mind, so it wasn't difficult to explain it to her. Also, she asked that as we got nearer to making it happen, to give her a call. This is very encouraging. Also, I'm glad I had the nerve to say it in front of my boss. I really value his opinion. He didn't get excited, it's not his style, but he didn't disapprove, which is pretty much all I need. Will there be someone who will call us crazy & tell us what a bad idea it is? I guess we'll leave that up to the 'rents.

Can I come, too?

I wish you could better see how neatly she packed herself in ATM's bag.

Beautiful girls.

Last night, I had my friends over for supper. Beautiful girls.

There is a light (fixture) that never goes out.

As long as we have known our new home, the dining room has never had a light fixture...until now!

It's not a chandelier; we wanted something different.:



I'm in love with it, it's my favorite part of the house! Big thanks to Zach & ATM for installing it!



Cats! Kitties! Felines!

Grateful

Yesterday evening, as I was driving to the grocery store, I got this jolt of excitement & gratitude because people look at my blog! Like, regularly!

I do this for posterity, mostly, but it is such a pleasure to know that I've got an audience. Thank you so much!

This weekend? Two thumbs way up!

More hall-decking. Kitty! Cat! Feline! under the tree:


Do we even have enough mistletoe? NO!


A failing:



SOLO has not been able to enjoy the great outdoors because I'm an overprotective mom. But, I feel justified; we have two psycho dogs that live on one side of us and two yappy, annoying pups on the other. If she encountered any of this, she'd bolt. I wouldn't be able to catch her! The thought of never seeing her again makes me so ill. So, we tried to harness the darness, but it did not work. And now she doesn't trust me. Awesome. I don't want to deprive her of going outside, but it's going to have to be a strict supervised visitation type thing. I don't know what I'm doing. Sometimes, I feel I'm still winging it. Should I keep trying with the harness?

On Saturday eve, we went to the AC/AC Holiday Art Sale. It was pretty 'meh', but I can see it getting better from here on out. I think next year, I may submit something myself. Sugar skulls, maybe? It's never too early (or late?) to get your Dias de los Muertos on, right? I did buy a moss wreath from Pearl:

I've already incorporated it:

ATM got me this lovely tote. I wonder if it comes in "North"?


I spent my Saturday night happily test-baking. I love cinnamon rolls, but I've been cured of my desire for a good minute. If there was anything wrong with them, it was that they were too delicious. It made for happy holiday times in our little household:



We've been a one-car household. Until yesterday afternoon, that is! This guy fixed the Volvo! Cute.

It's been a terribly long week. I can't believe it's Friday, actually.

The holiday decorations are up! Our tree is elegant as usual. I will always think we have the best tree in the world.:

I've instructed both SOLO & Hot Dog to not even look at it, but they've been tempted a few times by the giant cat toy that I've erected for them . They mostly enjoy the skirt of the tree, laying on it or crumpling it up.

We've got a little greenery out front, too. It almost looks...classy! What.

I think all we lack is some mistletoe. But, we've got egg nog for days!

Here's another project completed at the Olive St. Manor. Modified light and plug switchplates:

I will have to redo this one, but it's still pretty!


For those who just won't settle for plain 'ol plates!

Busy busy busy weekend. As are all of my weekends in December. We might see a slow down in say...February?

That was a Thanksgiving for the record books! We had a total of six guests; some were last minute, some were last last minute, but we managed to accommodate everyone. It was interesting times!

The menu included the usual stuff and some new dishes: Roast turkey, *honey baked ham, dressing, smashed potatoes, smashed butternut squash, braised & creamed Brussels sprouts, sweet peas with pearl onions, cranberry sauce w/ orange zest, yeast rolls & bourbon sweet potato pie with homemade whipped topping.

*a gift from ATM's father & stepmother

This is the adult table; KMHD & Zach had to sit at the kid's table. Hee.


So you can Christmas now, o.k.? I'm joining the fight against Christmas Creep. Let us Thanksgiving first! In fact, let us load the dishwasher before we get started! Mayumi & SOLO helped me put up the tree.:


I can't recall the rest of Thanksgiving day; it's all a blur now. We did do our traditional late night run to Waffle House. We have to do this because there is no way I'm cooking again and no one wants leftovers just yet, amirite?

The next day, desperate to be out of the house but wanting to avoid Black Friday madness, KMHD & I drove Mayumi to Hot Springs to treat her to birthday goodness. We window shopped (Hello, Minnetonka moccasins!) & had a late lunch @ Rolando's. Then we went to Garvan Woodland Gardens. I'm a fan! We are so getting a Japanese maple for our house one day:




KMHD/Mayumi:

My total high school shoe self-portrait:

What's this?

Oh!



A new holiday tradition! It felt good to be outside, walking around, loving Arkansas. Maybe we can try a state park next time.

I was completely spent Friday night. I went to bed at 9 p.m.

On Saturday, we spent the entire day 1. reclaiming the house and 2. making egg roll for the Peek baby shower. Totally time consuming. And the egg rolls weren't as great as the first batch, which made me fear that I was bringing the dish of shame.

Speaking of the shower, it was the best baby shower I've been to. It was like a normal party, save the pile of presents in the corner. There were no embarrassing games and we didn't have to sit through gift opening! I got to see all kinds of folk, including those who live a half-world away. It was pretty much awesome. My favorite part was when some of us snuck off to Zach's shed to listen to his 8 track player. Party within a party. Heather did a lovely job as hostess with the mostess. And since we are neighbors, we got to walk home! We need more people to move up to Park Hill. So we can walk home from your party.

I took a ton of photos and this is the best I could do? I guess I didn't have my camera eye on. Watching the game:



Before stumbling off to bed, ATM had the idea of going back to Garvan Gardens the next day, so he can get his cover shot for the magazine. I couldn't say no. Too, we were going while the holiday lights were on. Even with the rain, it was lovely.

Those beautiful maples again:


Koi:

This is actually a little creepy:


Before heading to the garden, we stopped by the flea market & the Arlington for a drink in the lobby.




It was a good way to wrap up the holiday weekend, but you could still feel the Sunday weighing us down. I'm looking forward to the next few weeks of normalcy until we get to Round II.

I don't want discuss what this did to the self-improvement plan. Back in the saddle, back in the saddle.


Someone please edit this post.