Long Wknd 2009 (SO FAR)

I got off work early yesterday and stopped by an ATM so I could exchange $$$s for "Riverbucks".  

I attended Riverfest last night so I could support Eclipse Glasses & see the B-52s!

E.G. played in the "Arkansas Music Tent", which staged local acts only.  I really enjoyed watching them here, it was set up in a way that encouraged intimacy.  Too, they allowed me to wander in about every nook and cranny to take photos and just loiter without giving me a hard time.  Many thanks to the guys for letting me take advantage of the free drinks & snacks!  I didn't have to spend one Riverbuck last night.

Collin's dad said last night Eclipse Glasses are getting better and tighter with every passing show & I could only agree.   And we're not just being a "band dad" or a "band girlfriend", just factual.

Here are the fellas w/ a DJ from Power 92 Jams:

B-52's:

Kate & Cindy's voices sounded so so good.  I was blown away at how well they sound live.

Dancing!


Fred Schneider did not fail to be his over-the-top self.  There used to be a show that Jon Stewart hosted called You Wrote It, You Watch It and there was a skit where a viewer had a dream that Fred Schneider followed him everywhere.  It was awesome!  It was about the funniest thing ever and ever since I saw that, I've had a bizarre fascination with Fred.  I don't know a thing about him, but I don't think I would mind if he followed me everywhere.  Eh, anyway, he is great onstage.  And I didn't mind that he took a dig at Bill O'Reilly either.  Heh.

A good show, but you could see them hating life on stage when they played "Roam" and "Love Shack".  It was sloppy & lacklustre.  I guess no hard feelings, ladies & gents.  I did have a fantasy, though, where Iggy Pop dropped in from nowhere and performed "Candy" with Kate.

We walked home from the festivities, completely exhausted.  Somehow, I managed to eke out some dinner.  Zach came over w General Chang.  We ate, watched some Kids In The Hall and crashed, sleepover style.  

This morning, SOLO continued her front that she "hates" Chang, but we all know it's a lie.

Me & ATM got so much done today, including going back to Riverfest to get a corn dog, smoked turkey leg & funnel cake.  And we still have a lot to do.  I need to bake cupcakes for tomorrow's cookout at Victory St.  I need to semi-straighten up around here because Mayumi will be staying with us Monday night.  We're going to stop by Donna & Micah's house here shortly to enjoy a beverage and company and then we're supposed to go to see the American Prince's play their 120 minutes of 90s music at Rev Room (ugh).  Collin called me a moment ago to tell me that Jonathan is in town.  That's a whole lot of hangin' out!

Cavelady!  I know, I know, you don't see no lady! (Photo by ATM):

Photo by ATM:

That's OUR funnel cake!

I miss KMHD, who is enjoying herself in NYC.

TO BE CONTINUED

The herb garden @ 209 Vic. St. Lots of wild basil on the right there!


We had a hangout session @ the space yesterday evening. It was fun! One of my favorite parts, after the billions of laughs, was when we ordered Chinese delivery. That probably won't be the last time, for sure.

We had to use my projector screen for that intense evening sun (Photo by ATM):

Photos by Collin:


Tyler & Kyle:

KMHD & AMD:


I think we're having a "thing" at the space on Sunday for Memorial Day weekend. I don't know the details. All I know is that I'm making fried pickles. Maybe there'll be a performance of some kind?

We rushed to the space after work on Friday because there was sun -- we quickly put the protective waterproofing coat on the picnic table.  Because rain was expected on Saturday & the protective coat needed time to dry, we figured it'd be Sunday before we could assemble it.

Yesterday, Collin called and said, "Hey, your picnic table is cute!".  Apparently, Lorenza went ahead and assembled it for us; a very lovely surprise!  Of course, we immediately went to the space to 'try' her on.  We done did good, ya'll.  The blue is very weathered/beachy.  And somehow we managed to match the address.  We all agree that we should probably get a couple of more tables.

My apron is about 90% complete, I still have to sew on the ends of the straps.  As you can see, I made some changes.  New strap colors, new pink pockets.  I'm very pleased with my first apron.

A lousy shot, but as you can see, the straps cross in the back:

Almost done:

This evening, we are having a little 'thing' @ the Vic. St. space.  With the new picnic table in place, it'll make loitering a lot more comfortable.  I built a cake for the occasion.  Amazingly, I managed to make a decent looking cake, but it's gonna be crunchy, I went nuts with the nonpareils.  See?

Next weekend, the American Princes are playing a 90s set -- they will be playing 120 minutes of 90s covers. [Wouldn't it be AWESOME if Dave Kendall emceed?]  I plan on dressing the part just a little.  A flannel shirt over my little dress, high top converse, and a lunchbox for a purse.  This is a for-serious AiLien outfit from '92.  Maybe I should seek out some Manic Panic and go all the way!  

I'm a little sad that Monday is nigh upon us.  But, there are things to look forward to:  Getting to see the B-52s & Eclipse Glasses @ Riverfest, the A.P. 90s show, three-day weekend, the Buffalo River float trip (in June) and Gonerfest in Memphis (in September).  The Clean are headlining!  

I'm so pleased because me, Keiko & Heather held our very first craft night last night. We didn't just talk about it for a year, we made it happen! Our first project? Aprons! I won't say that my apron is badass, but...it's pretty badass. First of all, we didn't have a pattern; we totally drew and cut it out freehand style. Secondly, me & Heather have never touched a sewing machine; Keiko has used one before, but not much. (This automatically made her the "pro" of the lot.) Considering all of that plus the fact that we don't really sew, well, see for yourself:

I still need to add the neck strap, ties & pocket. Cute though, right? When we're done done, I'll see if they will let me post them here to show off. Next project is pillows! I'm going to search high/low for pillow patterns that look like sushi. Or a bowl of pho, heh.


Another project completed:


Collin is playing somewhere in the Argenta Art Walk this eve. I've got too much to do and all I want to do is work on the picnic table while the rain is away. It's supposed to return tomorrow, so I'm anxious to get it halfway completed. Too, I'd like to finish my apron.

Enjoy yourself.

Collin performing at Satellite Cafe on 9 May 2009:

I nearly cried early this morning when I was awakened by the thunder and rain. It just will not go away! I'm frustrated because we can't work on Vic. St. space until it stops.

Yesterday, even though it was gray, the rain did hold off long enough for us to go to Flatside & marvel.

Not even halfway up:

At the moss line:

At the top!  We were in a cloud, so visibility was limited.  I regret not taking more photos of the valley.:

Nice face, AMD.



We needed a jump:

Feelin' restless.

What a long week!  I tend to get a little slow poke & lazy on the weekends, but NOT TODAY.  I went to both Farmer's Markets and me & ATM made things happen by going to get the picnic table for the Victory St. Clubhouse For Fully-Grown Women & Men.  We stained it an awesome "Deep Ocean" blue and it is currently drying and waiting for the damn weather to clear, which, according to the forecast is NEVER, so we are unable to give it a coat of protectant.  I'm working on being patient, but I just love envisioning sitting outside with pals sipping on cold beverages and havin' a laugh; anyone would want this rain gone, too.

We're taking mum out for pho tomorrow.  Perfect.  Perfect.  This serves doubly as "I love you, Mom!" and "I love you, pho!"  Of course, I love my mum more.  I'm thinking about putting together a bundle of produce made up of the carrots, radishes & garlic that I scored from the farmer's market.  I'm certain she'll like it, it's right up her alley.  Speaking of radishes, we've been eating them with a frequency around here.  What an underrated veg!  I've flirted with the idea of sticking a couple in the juicer next time.  I don't think anyone would notice!

I know I mentioned Starving Artist Cafe in my very last post, but it is worth mentioning again.  I had dinner there Thursday night w Keiko & Heather and it was freaking fantastic.  I had the fish special which was black pepper encrusted Ahi tuna steaks.  I wanted to holler, it was so good.  Too, Keiko let me try her pasta special which was linguine served w a cream sauce w crab & shrimp & spinach & tons of other stuff.  YUMG.  I am pushing this place because business has been dismal for them at dinner time, I'd hate to see them go.  It's a good local restaurant with divine food, an excellent locale and great service.  It's a touch on the pricey side, but worth it. 

J. Thompson is in town.  At some point we are meeting up, like at 9-10 p.m.  That gives me HOURS to do a whole lot of nothing.  Well.  Heh.  Anyway, we are tossing around the idea of going to see Collin perform music @ Satellite Cafe, which is "oh, ugh" for me because that means we have to go to the Heights.  To Satellite Cafe.  I think I'm just going to have to buck up for Collin.

These are very large and probably nuclear green onions:

My current spring time drink crush, the greyhound.  It's pretty in pink.

I'm almost afraid to go check on my newly grounded plants at the space for fear that they've either been washed away or drowned from all of this rain. This rain is craziness. Anyway, the herb garden already had tons of basil sprouts all over. I just added the basics: cilantro, rosemary, sage, lavender, jalapenos & tomatoes. I'm thinking of adding another pepper & tomato plant to round it out. We still have a couple of wooden ammo boxes to put things in, too. Flowers? More herbs? Decisions, decisions.

Mother's Day is on nigh. I guess this is a reminder, but I'm thinking out loud, too. I think me & KMHD are going to take mum out for a bowl of pho. Not sure what we're gonna do for Mayumi; it's hard since she lives in Ft. Smith. KMHD hilariously suggested that we seek out a card that plays Danzig's "Mother". I WISH. I need to email her and see if she can visit soon, it's been awhile.

Not that I don't love our current get up in the living room, but I've wanted a large size Sonic Youth poster (from Daydream Nation, featuring Kim Gordon's legs) on this wall since I've moved in nearly eight years ago. Well, I finally made it happen and it's gonna go where the current photo exhibit is. One problem that has arisen from this move is where are we going to put the photo exhibit now? Thinking caps are on.  Here is SOLO layin' on it:

We went to Starving Artist Cafe for lunch today. It was good! It's now located on Main Street Argenta, so it's close to home. The building is airy, spacious, and they have a killer patio area. Ha, when we first heard of S.A.C. (when it was located on 7th St./LR), we thought it was an affordable place to eat, as the name implies. No. We (and our pocketbook) learned the hard way that the name is misleading. But, the food is good. Sometimes they will have an artist doing his/her thing LIVE! Last time we stopped by, our neighbor Jerry Colburn (of Bloodless Cooties fame) was doing some collages.

I've gone and planted this seed in my mind and I will definitely need to speak with the fellas about it, but should we plan a little event at Vic. St. space for Memorial Day weekend? Nothing huge, just a friends-only soiree? Yeah? Call it "Spring Roll"? Eclipse Glasses to play? Maybe a DJ? Speaking of Eclipse Glasses, they are playing Riverfest this year. I've already consulted the line-up schedule and I'm glad that I don't have to choose between watching E.C. v. The B-52's. I'm stoked to see Heart and Buddy Guy, too. Last year, we tried to see ZZ Top perform -- didn't work out, although it was nice to sit at the river's edge to watch drunk ladies grind each other on flat-bottom boats while broheems shined flashlights on them. Too, it was amusing to see a lady jump out of a boat and swim to land for no apparent reason. I'm pretty sure she smelled gross for a month. Too, it was the best view of the fireworks show. Also, it was just bitchin' to sit there and hear ZZ perform "Tush". I just don't want to do that ever again. With E.C. playing, I'm pretty sure I can score backstage area passes. That's right! I can eat my smoked turkey leg in peace!

More photos from the last campin' trip. The guys played a trick on me & put the campfire in my seat!

Here is Zach, lightin' up:

How does your garden grow?

There's a lot of work to be done, but we are happily mending and making our own the space on Vic. St. I love it! I love working on it! I can't wait to go back there!

It is structurally sound, but there are some things that need working on. The roof in the entrance room leaks, but with all of the combined skills that we've got running rampant, it should not be a problem. Much to my relief, I've been told that it's a priority fix. Until that room is fixed, I can't do much inside. I DID clean the toilet room, though.


Zach took out the ceiling tiles and the ickle wood paneling:

Looks much better!

They took down some paneling in the main practice room, too. There's Kyle!:

The makeshift food/drink table:

I need to take better photos for posterity. I'll work on that this evening.

For this evening, my plan is to continue work on the herb garden and to set up the ammo box gardens from home. I'd like to plant more cilantro, in addition to rosemary, sage, garlic, tomatoes, jalapenos, and strawberries. Just the basics, that's probably all the room we will have anyway. I'm going to try to take advantage of this dreary weather we've been having. At least it's cool and the weeds are coming out of the soil w/ complete ease. I'm afraid that once it clears up, it's gonna be hot and muggy! Need to get this garden set in now! After the garden is set up, I will turn my focus to an outdoor seating area.