Doubles

Dreams

Flowers!

Look what I'm making!

So tempted to make it into a dress

Advertising

This is sadly accurate

I want candy

What is it about blue raspberry? It's not even real.

Jan Svankmajer

Just the best

Everybody wants to go to Japan

Happy New Year!

Can't believe it's 2012...

Every New Years day, my family makes it's annual trip down to Gardena, California. It's the one time of year when I get to see all of my cousins, and aunties and uncles. It's an event that has evolved for me slowly over time, and as I get older I come to appreciate it more and more. One constant has remained through my childhood and into the present, and that is that everyone comes together around the food.The food.

The day begins with ozoni or mochi. Lunch follows with platters of sashimi and shrimp sushi, vegetable rolls, chicken teriyaki, gobo root and kuromame, sushi rice, sandwiches (for the kids), Chinese chicken salad, and a magically endless supply of fresh fried wontons– then comes dessert!

We also take a trip to Marukai to stock up our supplies of ramen and all other things Japanese. This year on a whim I picked up a set of cilp-on bangs. I can't decide if they are ridiculous or not.

I really want to go to Japan.

Painting

So, I'm posting here for the first time in a long time to share the painting I've been working on with whomever might still be looking at this thing.

xx

Anticipation

I'm currently running around like a madwoman trying to get my things together. In 3 days I'm leaving for Cannes, France for four months and I am sooo bad at packing. I'm also incredibly excited, happy, grateful, and nervous about this experience. I've done a 6 week language program in Norway before, but this is completely different. I'm familiar with Norway, I was born there and lived for 5 years in the cold and rain before moving to sunny California. My family couldn't afford to visit often, but we still managed to make a trip every 4 years or so.

However– I've never even been to France! Sure I've fantasized about baguettes and brie, the Eifel Tower, Chanel, and Frenchmen with glorious mustaches... but I'm afraid that all the Amelie's and Paris Vogues in the world can't really prepare me for what the reality of it all will be.

Still, it doesn't quite feel real, yet. I have a feeling that the scope of what I'm embarking on won't hit me until I'm scrambling through LAX struggling with a 50 lb suitcase rushing not to miss my flight.

Ghost Stories

At the cemetery I saw this grave. It's always sad to see the graves of infants, but what really intrigued me was what was tied to the cross.

Curiosity wouldn't let me leave it. So I unfolded the pieces of paper carefully as they had stuck together. Written on them I found these words.

I love things like this, slightly disturbing and inspiring. I wish I could see the woman who wrote these letters to infants that have been dead for over a hundred years. Is she related to them? Is there some story behind this? How long has she been writing to them? How old is she? Are there others who feel this "angelic presence"? The grave is marked Van Buren infants, how many children were buried there? All these questions I'll never be able to answer.

When I was done reading the letters, I made sure to fold them up the way they were before, and re-affixed them to the cross.

Do you have any ghost stories?