12.15.11

1. Yorkshire tea.
2. Being held accountable by Maren.
3. Bulk foods, spices, floor soap and Dr. Bronner's at the coop. I like refilling.
4. I also like that they recycle-REUSE egg cartons there.
5. Help from James sorting through some of the chaos in my house.
6. Roasted beets! If you roast purple and gold ones together, the gold ones look tie-dyed.
7. A pep talk mixed with a little tough love from Marcia.
8. Cafe con leche.
9. A warm week ahead...
10. Maybe a bike ride this weekend? In December!!!

12.01.11

1. Wow. Almost six months of not needing to post... well, I probably needed to start about two months ago, actually... when did Alex move out?
2. Finally being smart enough to realize I was no longer looking for the good things in each day but rather letting the hard things win out.
3. Yorkshire tea.
4. Pink raspberry ginger jam on a hot New French roll for breakfast.
5. Not being late for subbing at SPA even though I really pushed it.
6. Subbing at SPA!
7. Jessica at acupuncture loved the giant U-shaped magnet I gave her.
8. A big tasty Blue Ox latte.
9. A fantastic lecture by Jason Fulford at MIA (and getting in free with my way-expired MCAD ID).
10. Lacey and I are going to see Big Freedia, queen of NOLA Sissy Bounce, in an hour!!!

06.10.11

1. Kicking my own butt out of my depressed funk.
2. Getting three new, enthusiastic teen volunteers for Sunday's mural painting.
3. A day off from painting and feeding and watering painters.
4. The very nice guys at Valspar who gave me a free color book.
5. Maren.
6. Getting showered and dressed in under 30 minutes and being happy with my clothes for a change.
7. A nice dinner with Kelly at Salsa a la Salsa in the MGM. Crab and shrimp enchiladas!
8. John Waters!
9. Chatting with Andrew and Bridget and Susan and Robert in the line to get our books signed.
10. "When was this?" about the snapshot I had Waters sign. "Gee I had a lot of hair then."

05.25.11

1. I made a big pot of black beans with leftover andouille sausage for lunch.
2. Everyone loved it!
3. My neighbor is going to fix up her (squirrel-infested) garage.
4. I helped prime the mural, for once.
5. It didn't hurt my hand or wrist too badly.
6. Stuffed grape leaves and hummus for dinner.
7. I got out my "48 States" quilt for Marcia's guestroom.
8. Stuffing enough crap in my attic to make my house look almost normal again.
9. Finally getting that Valspar donation request letter done.
10. Early to bed.

05.17.11

1. Yorkshire tea.
2. Pumpkin-flax seed granola with a ripe banana. It's been a while.
3. Progress with volunteer and donation phone calls.
4. Lunch with Morgan and Rich.
5. Helping with pressure washing.
6. A great, faster speed than usual, bike ride on the Greenway. I'm going to need to extend my route to make the ride an hour!
7. A mourning dove by the side of the trail.
8. Lunch for dinner: yogurt with pink raspberry jam mixed in, a mojo bar and a pink lady apple.
9. Watching "Winter's Bone" on the sofa and snacking on wasabi peas.
10. Watching the end of the movie in bed on my laptop.

05.16.11

1. The City finally cleaned our alleys! So nice... now it's really spring!
2. A good session with Connie.
3. Groceries!
4. Carlos did a great job on my gutters and fascia.
5. Getting some free paint from the True Value on Lake Street.
6. Meeting Matt, whose wife Danielle Gernes, works at Fusebox Studio, there.
7. Great ideas from Witt about volunteer resources.
8. A nice chat over a tasty IPA with Rich after the work day, about my kitchen and movies and TV.
9. A nice dinner of broccoli and wild and brown rices with Alex.
10. Watching an hour of "Californication" on Netflix Instant when I had 3 AM insomnia.

05.15.11

1. A good, slow, pokey Sunday morning.
2. Realizing my "TO-DOs" could be postponed
3. So I could help Rich with the mural fro a few hours, since his intern never showed.
4. A lovely, though a tad windy, Greenway ride with James. Still loving my cruiser Trek transformation... gotta give the Nishiki a chance today!
5. Alex and I removed the cabinet in the kitchen pantry, salvaged the wood flooring on top of it, and hauled the dusty, nasty, rest of it away.
6. We moved the fridge, too, so I can envision how the pantry will change. Soon, soon!
7. A convenient dumpster at the apartment house on Bloomington... I figure I freed up some space by taking their oak trim, so they can have my old pine cabinet wood.
8. Half of a small Athena pizza from Luce. Thanks, Alex!
9. A hot bath with lavender and Aveda salts.
10. Feeling very relaxed and pleasantly tired at the end of a day of good, hard, physical labor. Guess I need more of them!

05.14.11

1. Yorkshire tea.
2. Frattalone's had the same pressure washer as our broken one from Welna.
3. Two donated ivy plants from Mother Earth Gardens.
4. Delicious items from the food swap: biscotti, pumpkin empanadas, and hard cider.
5. A productive meeting with Doug Bergert for kitchen advice
6. Over several nice beers from a mixed 6-pack at Haskell's.
7. Friday's leftovers for dinner. Wild rice mixed with brown = mmmm.
8. Reading on the sofa in the late afternoon light.
9. Falling asleep on the sofa at 8:30.
10. Waking up at 10 and resettling into my warm bed.

05.13.11

1. Finding the Lowes store and the Swan hose I wanted, easily.
2. Everett's deli.
3. Rich started work on the mural
4. With his lovely intern Jon.
5. I think I found a replacement for the broken pressure washer piece.
6. A nice call from Marcia. To be continued.
7. A delicious seafood (from the coop) and odds and ends (from my fridge, the cabin, etc.) stir fry dinner with Mike.
8. "The King's Speech."
9. Oddly, my favorite image in the film was a view from a car out into the Scottish wintry landscape, where you could see the reflection of the car's interior ever so slightly.
10. Falling asleep easily.

04.25.11

1. Yorkshire tea, my faithful morning companion.
2. Finally finishing my Soap Factory development internship application.
3. A pleasant afternoon spent wandering "The Avenue."
4. A delicious pasta salad at Soup's On.
5. Spring foliage: lilacs, wisteria, dogwoods, cherry blossoms... I guess I really like flowering trees.
6. A Sierra Nevada at Cafe Hon.
7. Salad and steamed shrimp from the Giant for dinner.
8. A nice phone chat with Marcia. I can't wait to hang out with her in Philly!
9. Finally sitting down and watching my Netflix DVD of Howl. A pretty decent film except for the annoying animations. James Franco was quite good.
10. Listening to "Healthy Sleep" on iTunes to lull me out of my insomnia.

04.24.11

1. A beautiful, warm Easter morning in Baltimore.
2. Wearing my favorite new summer dress.
3. The feeling of freshly shaved legs. I don't bother much with that in the long MN winter.
4. My nutty cousin Mike and his interesting family.
5. Tasty bubbly from New Mexico (!!!).
6. Marita's delicious Easter dinner, which included a superb asparagus leek soup, yummy goulash, German finger potatoes and
7. Mike's onion cabbage tart. I skipped the lamb.
8. As always, stimulating dinner conversation at the Metcalfs.
9. Interesting reactions to showing my graffiti embroideries and the "Taggin'" video.
10. A fantastic visit with Skizz and Jen. Two awesome people.

04.22.11

1. Sleeping in till 9:45--Eastern time.
2. Thrifting and going to the Targhetto with Katie.
3. Finding a rain jacket for $8.50 and an umbrella for $2.50.
4. Helping my Dad a little around the house.
5. A nice dinner at Suzy's Soba.
6. Hanging out at John and Tanya's very pretty house.
7. Doug's delicious homebrew.
8. Jessica's amusing piao playing (especially the Journey song).
9. Not freaking out over 90 minutes of insomnia at 4 AM
10. And reading Zadie Smith's review of Édouard Levé's Amérique and some other good bits in Harper's instead.

04.16.11

1. Yorkshire tea.
2. Pumpkin flax seed granola.
3. A delicious sesame seed bagel and decaf latte at Common Roots.
4. Pearson training with Rich went fine.
5. The nice people at the Alt.
6. The nice Genius at the Apple Store.
7. An interesting show by Robb Burnham at Gallery 360.
8. Nice chats there with Chris and Jackie, Clint, Jon, Veronica, Laurie, Christy, Katie...
9. A lovely, handmade "bad hair day" hat for $14.
10. "Putting a bird on it" with Paloma.

04.15.11

1. Another pleasant day of subbing at SPA.
2. Marty Nash was not angry about my schedule mix up, and I wasn't too brutally hard on myself either.
3.The kids enjoyed learning the magic wand and lasso tools.
4. A quick visit to Practical Goods, which is NOT closing.
5. A surprisingly interesting opening for Jane Thomson's paintings at Unity Church.
6. Great chats with Scott, Rick, and especially Ellen.
7. Radiance at MADAM. Danimal and company = fun.
8. Not caring that I was in my substitute teacher clothes instead of funky party garb.
9. Talking to Kristen, Heidi, Shania, Quito, Wing...
10. Dancing!

04.14.11

1. Yorkshire tea.
2. Beautiful cacti and succulents from Home Depot. A $15 splurge.
3. My new heat gun kicks ass!
4. Brussels sprouts and brown rice for my last "cleanse" meal, since I broke down and enjoyed
5. Two delicious pieces of string cheese and two Lindt truffles for an afternoon snack
6. And scrambled eggs and black beans for dinner. Only one day short of my goal. I needed some animal protein, I think.
7. Nice people and lovely art at the Location Book launch.
8. A good walking workout at the Y.
9. Veronica's invite got me to go to Take Acre.
10. Lovely people and music and conversation, and only a little awkwardness, there.

04.13.11

1. A block of calm, quiet time to work on Angel.
2. Feeling a little less harried.
3. Great bike advice and a pleasant visit from Jason P.
4. And Keenan and Evie, my favorite Mpls kids.
5. Even more excellent bike handlebar advice from Sunrise and the Alt.
6. More good ideas from Rik Horton.
7. A long hot bath and a good scrub.
8. A delicious mixed greens, pear and walnut salad for dinner with
9. Amusing company from Alex.
10. Another early-to-bed night.

04.12.11

1. A good vet visit for Max. One bad tooth is about all I need to worry about.
2. Morgan's company for a run to Ikea to look at kitchen stuff, sigh...
3. A good session with Connie.
4. A yellow Karmann Ghia (not Vance's) and a red Morris Mini.
5. Pretty houses around Deephaven, especially the Victorian mansion in a park and a well-preserved log cabin.
6. A beautiful walk around Lake of the Isles at dusk.
7. Swimming muskrats.
8. An early half moon.
9. I successfully cooked brown rice on the stove for tehe first time. Maybe I don't need a new rice cooker...
10. Finally finishing watching "Love in the Afternoon."

04.11.11

1. Another beautiful spring morning.
2. A helpful visit to the ENT doctor for my ear problems.
3. An excellent meeting with Rik Horton about the kitchen work!!!
4. A good acupuncture session for relief of anxiety and thumb pain.
5. A nice bike ride with
6. A stop on the way home by the Produce Exchange for fresh fruits and veggies fro my cleanse.
7. All the ice is finally gone on Lake Calhoun and Lake of the Isles!
8. Brown rice and steamed asparagus for dinner.
9. Feeling good and sleepy at 10 PM
10. And actually listening to my body and getting in bed!

04.10.11

1. Lots of scrambled eggs and fresh grafefruit.
2. The best bike ride yet of the year.
3. The microclimate of cold air blowing across the Greenway from almost-thawed lake Calhoun.
4. The vivid turquoise and black African dress and headdress worn by a lady leaving the church on 13th Ave.
5. Alex's delicious dinner of garlic gnocchi and spinach salad.
6. Seeing Manny, Kari, Brad, and yes, even Al, at First Ave.
7. Extra yummy cheese curds at the Depot.
8. Runnig
9. Wire!
10. Skoal Kodiak!

04.09.11

1. A good crack at the chiropractor and
2. A good poke at acupuncture.
3. The MN Made event was a lot of fun.
4. I think I've found some more knitters for the tree cozy.
5. A good bike ride and stair climb.
6. Thought provoking paintings at SooVAC.
7. Running into Rick Horton at the CO show.
8. Seeing LandLand's studio and chatting with Dan and Tim.
9. A really wonderful couple hours shooting the crap with Paul and Jolana.
10. No trouble falling asleep at all, after such a nice day and evening.

04.08.11

1. The McKnight is done!
2. This week's round of test scoring is done.
3. An excellent bike ride and stair climbing workout.
4. May errands were knocked off the to do list today.
5. Finally wearing my Pendleton wool jumper... last chance before spring!
6. Thinking of Marcia and enjoying the great alteration job she did.
7. A grilled cheese and fries and a funny chat with Henry at the Driftwood.
8. Amusing conversation with Scott and Ruben at They Won't Find Us Here.
9. A beer and more chatting at Lucia's. I love that place.
10. The moon was a lovely blurry crescent.

04.06.11

1. An nice early start to the work day.
2. Beautiful morning light in the studio--I'm more accustomed to the afternoon view of my western window.
3. Gleaned from test scoring: "Dulish's" popcorn and Fumblyna and birds with sad faces in weyrd places.
4. A raspberry-pear yogurt smoothie.
5. A nice Facebook chat with Rick Horton.
6. Getting daring enough to try the ruby red Jazzing hair color
7. And not caring that it didn't do much; it seems too orange!
8. A long, hot shower.
9. Laughing with Alex.
10. A cup of chamomile tea before bed.

04.05.11

1. An nice early start to the work day.
2. Beautiful morning light in the studio--I'm more accustomed to the afternoon view of my western window.
3. Gleaned from test scoring: "Dulish's" popcorn and Fumblyna and birds with sad faces in weyrd places.
4. A raspberry-pear yogurt smoothie.
5. A nice Facebook chat with Rick Horton.
6. Getting daring enough to try the ruby red Jazzing hair color
7. And not caring that it didn't do much; it seems too orange!
8. A long, hot shower.
9. Laughing with Alex.
10. A cup of chamomile tea before bed.

04.04.11

1. Grape-nuts with sliced bananas.
2. Yorkshire tea, plenty of it.
3. Working from home on Pearson scoring.
4. A full day of easy to score first graders' essays.
5. Th enew shrink seems good.
6. A pretty drive home on Minnetonka boulevard.
7. $2.99 daffodil bunches from Lunds, a nice addition to my desk for the work week.
8. A starry sky.
9. An amusing Gmail chat with Morgan
10. That gave me a great Constellation idea!

04.03.11

1. The most delicious red grapefruit I've had in ages.
2. Plus four scrambled eggs for a lovely brunch.
3. Getting a good start on "Angel."
4. Car Talk.
5. Real Time podcasts.
6. Max let me brush him for about twenty minutes.
7. I'm getting a new roof!
8. Great pictures of Eva and me from Eliot.
9. Laughing till I cried at stupid cat videos.
10. Not getting upset at having insomnia.

04.02.10

1. Yorkshire tea. I love that stuff!
2. My next embroidery is planned out, test stitching done successfully.
3. Warm, genuinely springlike weather.
4. It looks like I *might* get a new roof from State Farm. Fingers crossed.
5. Lively chatting and
6. Lovely eating with Lacey at Ngon.
7. Finally seeing Rich's "Covers" at the Phipps Center in Hudson.
8. Tracy's wooden nickel happy hour.
9. A hilarious, wide open conversation with Lacey over a tasty Furious there.
10. More "attachment" reading till I fell asleep.

04.01.11

1. Warm weather.
2. Melting snow.
3. The smiling and pleasant teller at the US Bank drive through.
4. A really good adjustment from Dr. Anderson.
5. Nice emails from, and fun plans for the weekend with Lacey.
6. Laughing and gabbing with Alex.
7. Enjoying (perhaps a bit too much) Cupcake red.
8. And a whole bag of Pirate Booty.
9. Reading my fascinating new library book before bed.
10. Gaining insight and understanding into challenges I still face in my life.

03.26.11

1. Getting up and about early, and on the road by 10, just as planned.
2. Discovering a quicker and easier way to get to I-35 South.
3. MPR's signal lasted long enough for me to hear Car Talk.
4. Getting an idea for an artist's book while driving.
5. Low hanging, Howard Finster-like clouds in the north Iowa sky.
6. A field of gigantic white windmills
7. Spinning in perfect time to Robyn Hitchock's "Airscape."
8. Eliot,
9. Kelly,
10. And Eva.

03.25.11

1. Blaze is finished and photographed.
2. Tying up loose ends feels good.
3. All packed up.
4. Meeting Pam G. for great conversation and
5. Delicious dinner at Blackbird.
6. Talking to Sean C. at the MCBA opening about showing his work for Constellation.
7. Meeting Nicole Drilling there and having a nice chat full of laughter.
8. Marcia! I love Marcia!
9. Lynette was amused, not judgmental (as I'd feared) about the avatar story.
10. Falling asleep happy and well-loved.

03.24.11

1. Yorkshire tea.
2. Hardboiled eggs, pink grapefruit, and a whole wheat bagel with plenty of butter for breakfast.
3. A productive morning in my studio.
4. Morgan's brilliant ideas. It is fun to work with someone who thinks outside your box!
5. Feeling competent, as my calls get returned and work proceeds as it should.
6. Gary Schiff responded quickly and affirmatively to our request for a letter of support for the mural.
7. A rambly, slightly one-sided telephone conversation with a slightly inebriated Swedish lady.
8. Sticky, nutty brown rice.
9. A tidy resolution to an annoying errand.
10. Cracking up over cats & invisibility and tiger squirrels with Alex.

03.23.11

1. Feeling amused, rather than upset, by the unexpectedly large amount of snowfall overnight, the quarter-inch of ice beneath it and having to remove it all from my car. I've come along way, baby.
2. Nor was I too bothered by a long delay at my quirky Hmong mechanic's.
3. I love it that they have a shrine to Buddha in their office,
4. and that they're next to May Day so I could just sit and work and piddle on the computer while I waited.
5. May Day's delicious quiche.
6. Chatting with George Farrah and Eric Altenberg. That cafe really is a nexus of this hood.
7. Muffler repair = $40. Fender repair might be $200, but a certain ex-boyfriend will chip in since he wrecked it.
8. Meeting Christy Binoniemi, master felter and lovely lady, for our art trade.
9. Walking and stretching and zoning out at the Y.
10. The moon is still huge and amazing, even though it's not full.

03.22.11

1. Sleeping in a bit, but not enough to mess up my internal clock.
2. A great telephone chat with Dan.
3. I did a bang up job editing and fleshing out his McKnight statement.
4. He loved it.
5. A really good walking workout at the Y.
6. Hanging with Alex for a glass of his birthday gift wine.
7. It was very good. I guess I should buy $10 reds now and then, rather than $5 ones.
8. Alex found my match.com stories hilarious.
9. The mysterious noises I heard at 2:30 were not from the kitchen ceiling caving in (I later discovered it was an open screen door).
10. Earplugs. That way I didn't hear the phantom noise and got back to sleep.

03.21.11

1. Marcia.
2. Alex.
3. Eliot.
4. Lynette.
5. James.
6. Lacey.
7. Morgan.
8. JoAnn.
9. Mike.
10. Dan.

03.20.11

1. A quiet Sunday morning.
2. Rain.
3. Funny stories from Alex.
4. Finding awesome clothes,
5. meeting a bunch of cool ladies
6. and hanging out with Lacey at two clothes swaps.
7. A nice chat with Marcia.
8. Another nice chat with Pam.
9. Cranking through some tasks I've put off for too long.
10. A sense of accomplishment.

03.19.11

1. Strange but interesting Ethiopian music at Franklin Artworks.
2. I found a beautiful pink granite paver in their parking lot.
3. Delicious, healthy food at the Birchwood.
4. Catching up with Lynette, who was in good form.
5. Running into Juana and Ben. Oh--and Corinne.
6. Cafe stop number 2: Blue Moon.
7. A charming Facebook message from Rick Horton.
8. The Y was nearly empty at 7:30 on a Saturday night.
9. A long, fragrant bath.
10. A calm, quiet night at home.

03.18.11

1. Rising and shining and getting to work early
2. and then running out of work and getting an unexpected day off.
3. Plenty of time to embroider
4. and finish my CSA application.
5. My work looked great at the SMARTS show.
6. Sean Connaughty's gorgeous XYZ show
7. and lovely music.
8. Talking with Drew Peterson about graffiti.
9. An amusing chat with a slightly drunk Bonnie Wivinus.
10. Feeling more positive and content. Pleasant human contact can do that, especially after a rather solitary week.

03.17.11

1. Embroidering this weekend.
2. Maybe visiting Eliot this week.
3. Visiting friends and family in Balto, Phila and NYC in a little over a month.
4. Going to Lacey's cabin in May or June.
5. Constellation events near me. http://constellationmpls.wordpress.com/
6. Planning and executing them.
7. Having my backyard view be prettier after that.
8. A week off to do GOOD THINGS.
9. Maybe two off...?
10. Warm weather = bicycling.

03.16.11

1. Up and at 'em on scoring good and early!
2. The snow is really and truly melting.
3. A positive and productive meeting with Ted at Acme: he wants to do the mural.
4. Morgan's help with the application.
5. Rich's great idea of using an old image of Powderhorn Park and its speedskating rink.
6. A delicious smoothie for lunch.
7. Delicious red pepper pesto and asparagus for dinner.
8. Wow! I scored over 600 essays today = almost $20 an hour!
9. I also got through most of my paperwork pile between 9:30 and 11:30
10. And into bed before midnight.

03.15.11

1. Old faithful: Yorkshire tea.
2. Chugging along nicely on my Pearson scoring work.
3. A strawberry-banana yogurt smoothie for lunch.
4. And a Mojo bar.
5. Funny emails from Lacey, including
6. An invitation to go to her cabin near Chisholm this summer!
7. Amusing in kids essays, like "Bob and Cookie" and "Bob and Snookie."
8. Going to the Y at 9 PM.
9. Running into Kirsten and chatting as I walked the treadmill.
10. Feeling healthy and happy as I tucked myself into bed.

03.14.11

1. Two from the weekend: a half moon encircled by haze.
2. Birch trees with peeling layers of bark.
3. Lots of Yorkshire tea.
4. Working from home.
5. Acupuncture.
6. Chiropractic.
7. Sparkling water.
8. Patience.
9. Pistachios.
10. Mad Men! I'm done watching the whole series for the second time. What will I watch in the evenings now to wind down?

03.13.11

1. A really excellent, long night's sleep.
2. A gorgeous, sunny day, perfect for
3. A couple more hours of cross country skiing.
4. Eveleth's picture-perfect main street. I think I may have to stay there the next time I do an up north skiing trip...
5. The Paul Wellstone Memorial off Highway 53.
6. DJing the ride home--well, part of it, till my companions requested less strange music.
7. Knitting.
8. McDonalds fries for dinner. A rare treat.
9. A long, hot bath with lavender oil and lavender-mint soap.
10. Getting in bed earlyish and knowing I could sleep late the next morning.

03.12.11

1. A lazy morning at the lodge.
2. A delicious ad hoc breakfast: hard-boiled eggs, black beans, sourdough pretzels and baby dill pickles.
3. In bed. By a fireplace!
4. A really beautiful ski trail.
5. Gliding.
6. A Farm Girl saison at the chalet pub.
7. Great people watching at the lounge.
8. Some hilarious ski racers.
9. Local lady Deb, who entertained us and gave us a real treat for later.
10. Being good and sleepy and a bit tipsy as I ended a lovely day with lovely people.

03.11.11

1. Getting out the door and on the bus on time
2. With my awesome grey and orange rubber laptop backpack.
3. Joining my coworkers for breakfast at the Target cafeteria: a mushroom--pepper-spinach-cheddar omelet for $3.50.
4. A fairly slow, quite day at work.
5. My very sweet colleague Stephanie.
6. Heading north with Heidi and Lynette in Heidi's comfy new RAV4.
7. Finishing my essay for the Shift show in the car.
8. Not freaking out when I realized that it was supposed to be 2500 characters, not words (duh!).
9. Hanging with my lady friends over a couple nice Odell IPAs.
10. What a good thing it is to not fear the minutes spent alone with myself before I fall asleep.

03.10.11

1. A productive morning.
2. Getting my bikes over to be looked at for their tuneups.
3. Realizing spending $150 to snazz up two 20+ year old bikes is not so bad.
4. Once again, a lovely day of subbing at SPA.
5. Some amazing finds at Practical Goods (but I really must stop all this shopping!)
6. Realizing I needed a new wardrobe for my new life...
7. Good or nerve-wracking: button shopping at JoAnn's?
8. A late dinner of brown rice and steamed broccoli with tahini sauce.
9. Packing without too much ado.
10. Turning off the lights at 12:15. A good thing because in years past I'd've likely been up several more hours "getting ready" to go away for the weekend.

03.08.11

1. Sleeping in till 8, even though
2. It gets light at 6:30.
3. Help from Jennifer at PRG with getting my mortgage loan modification application done and submitted.
4. Knowing I am stubborn enough, resilient enough and conscientious enough to stick out the six to nine months that process will take.
5. Securing $67 in food stamp money this month, since Target has had next to no work for me.
6. Finishing things, simplifying. Closure.
7. Hanging with Morgan at Common Roots.
8. Being productive in the evening for a change.
9. Alex. What a kind, decent person and lovely housemate.
10. More bedtime Mad Men. I'm almost done my second viewing of all four seasons. What will I do to relax at 10:30 PM then?

03.07.11

1. A productive early morning.
2. A helpful session with Maren.
3. A quick stop at the Hope Chest thrift store yields some excellent goodies: a vintage silver and jade brooch, a 1950s suit with a fab jacket (and way too skinny skirt), a hilarious printed cashmere sweater and an Echo silk scarf. $13.
4. Choosing lots of new frame samples and ordering frames for all the artwork I've acquired this winter, and for some pieces that I've had for years.
5. Keith at TC Moulding. What a nice guy.
6. Pleasant interactions with Vienna at the PPNA Arts and Culture committee meeting.
7. A good, long zoning-out walk at the Y.
8. A long hot shower: shaving and scrubbing away some of winter's dry deadness.
9. Mad Men. It is so painstakingly well done.
10. Getting through pain with more composure and perspective than a few days ago.

03.06.11

1. Waking up refreshed.
2. A full day to hang at home and work and putter.
3. Yorkshire tea.
4. From yesterday--more weird crow behavior: roosting on snow banks?!?
5. Halfway through Blaze!
6. Traction.
7. Pesto with fresh asparagus.
8. Working fairly industriously till midnight and
9. Almost finishing my loan modification application.
10. Not too much trouble falling asleep, despite an afternoon nap.

03.05.11

1. Delicious brunch at Citizen Cafe.
2. Some progress, I hope, in my quest for peace and resolution about Rich.
3. Not getting too upset over yet another lost glove.
4. Or about broken-at-the temple sunglasses. Seeing decent cheap ones I might get at Vision World helped.
5. Wearing my new (used) lime green French go go boots for my Saturday night out.
6. Delicious food and good company at Feast.
7. Ellen's lovely pictures at Gallery 360.
8. Nice chats with John, Laurie, and Jane.
9. Shooting the crap with Jameser over half a Furious at Tracy's.
10. Feeling good and sleepy.

03.03.11

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5.
6. An especially sweet cashier at the Wedge who was genuinely pleased when I told her how much I liked her perfect little cardigan sweater.
7. Two very dapper gay guys getting into a taxi at Chicago Lake who were cracking up about it being a RAINBOW Cab.
8. Hanging at home with Alex and Amy.
9. "You're awesome!" from Amy.
10. A good day, despite all odds!

03.02.11

1. The privilege of driving to work when I missed the 7:44 bus.
2. Knowing that I'll get reimbursed for the $9 parking fee out of my FAIM startup money.
3. A slow day at work=a rare chance to clean and organize our prep styling space.
4. Even Cathy, who likes to hoard useless junk, got into the clean up.
5. A fun chat after work with Earle.
6. Looking together at Andrea Dezso's awesome work on her website.
7. Help from Morgan with the first real steps toward doing the graffiti grant application.
8. Lively conversation from two of my favorite people over a delicious dinner.
9. A recipe for peanut sauce from JoAnn.
10. Looking forward to another lovely day off Thursday to make art, write grants and be otherwise productive.

03.01.11

1. A warm last day of February.
2. Figuring out what's wrong with my thumb and how to fix it.
3. I don't have arthritis!
4. A courteous, helpful and intelligent CS rep at AmEx, who might actually get the $25 I had to pay for my checked bag refunded.
5. Lots of great clothes, an orange Pyrex casserole and a dozen jam jars at the Penn Ave Arc for under $40.
6. And Eliot's birthday gift.
7. I think I'm done with my (thrift store) retail therapy/wardrobe infusion. Now I just have to get rid of some old clothes...
8. A hilarious lady from Texas in the button aisle at JoAnn's.
9. A nice dinner with Mike at Tracy's Saloon.
10. All in all, a pleasant, relaxing day off!

02.27.11

1. A delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs, black beans, a pink grapefruit and half a Rudi''s bagel.
2. The first draft of my Supernaturale article is done. Just editing and choosing piux left to do.
3. A good hour of stitching.
4. Some helpful email exchanges with Rich. Sad, though: why couldn't we discuss our frustrations when we were together?
5. A happy hour Sierra Nevada. Refreshing!
6. Help from Alex moving furniture in my living and dining rooms.
7. Liking the new arrangement. My living room feels so large and open!
8. Getting closer to clearing out and tidying away the last bit of clutter of old books and magazines from the big move downstairs.
9. A real dinner for a change, instead of a snack: pesto and Brussels sprouts.
10. Remembering how to fall asleep without books or movies.

02.26.11

1. Sleeping in till 8the reading a book and writing emails in bed for another hour.
2. Taking it easy on myself the rest of the day.
3. A good cry that didn't hijack me.
4. Crows alighting on treetops at dusk.
5. Clarity and compassion from, and for, Rich.
6. A New Glarus Spotted Cow and a bowl of pistachios at Christian's.
7. His continued generosity in storing my large prints.
8. Looking at his recently purchased Ed Ruscha books.
9. Not freaking out when I couldn't sleep and
10. Finally drifting off for a couple hours and getting up and going about my Sunday business (oops, maybe that should be on tomorrow's list).

02.25.11

1. Sleeping in a little since I was driving to work.
2. Getting to prep the model clothes all day.
3. A relaxing lunch for a change, with few errands to take care of.
4. I tried on an awesome little twill dress with a ruched back and hip pockets that I will go buy as soon as it's in the stores.
5. The way that dress made me excited for warm weather.
6. A fun time with Lynette and Marcia at Blackbird.
7. Walleye tacos, beet salad and roasted artichoke. All delicious!
8. Telepathy--I want to visit Marcia in Phila. and she needs my help unpacking and settling in.
9. A cider and a heart-to-heart at the Craftsman before I dropped Marcia at her sister's.
10. Knowing I have a dear, lifelong friend in Marcia.

02.24.11

1. A beautiful sunny day for our photo shoot.
2. Working with four easy going, capable, friendly people on a photo shoot.
3. Five, really, if you count Hakan's son Issac, age 4, a fantastic kid.
4. Awesome finds at the Minnetonka Goodwill on the way home.
5. Running into Kirsten at the Y.
6. Getting some essential errands done in the nick of time.
7. Looking forward to the good energy created by rearranging furniture, after moving it a bit so my housemate can do her weekly chore tomorrow.
8. My housemates do weekly chores, mostly without nagging!
9. A nice chat with Alex.
10. Relaxing with a Sierra Nevada and chevre and pears for a very late dinner.

02.23.11

1. Loving my new Tyte jeans from Savers.
2. So did everyone else. "Awesome trousers" from B. Marie, jealousy about being a shortie from Anna...
3. A delicious turkey sandwich for lunch. A good habit.
4. An easy work day.
5. Resisting the urge for more Marshalls therapy on the way home.
6. A ride to the Y
7. and a good chat with Kirsten on the treadmill.
8. Gaining perspective.
9. Feeling ready for my location shoot Thursday.
10. Generally feeling pretty calm and happy, despite it all (it being winter and heartbreak, mostly. Joint pain, too).

02.22.11

1. Tasty Yorkshire tea.
2. Realizing it was a stainless mug used for coffee that was spoiling my tea at work.
3. A huge salad from the Target cafeteria for lunch.
4. Getting a really good joke that made my coworkers crack up.
5. Grilled cheese and a Fulton IPA at BLB.
6. An amusing Salon Saloon show. Highlight: a singalong of Long Black Veil to close the evening.
7. An interesting chat with Gudrun and Alexa and Rich after the show.
8. Yes, I did OK talking to him.
9. A very nice, unexpected, nearly-midnight chat with Rachel when I stopped to grab borrowed prop enamelware she left on her porch.
10. Not early, but easy, to bed.

02.21.11

1. Jen
2. Andy
3. James
3. Stephanie
4. Sue
5. Ann
6. Laura
7. Kirsten
8. Jessica
9. Morgan
10. Alex

02.20.11

1. Amazon.com for a couple needed books.
2. Kind friends.
3. Getting the rest of Mad Men from Alex.
4. Not having to shovel because it's his chore. He does it willingly and without nagging.
5. A raincheck with Kirsten. The Y was closed!
6. Starting a new embroidery (finally!) as the snow flew all afternoon.
7. India Pale Ale. In general, my favorite beverage.
8. Black beans with goat cheese.
9. Falling asleep on the sofa. Early.
10. Waking up at 1 and falling back asleep easily, in my bed.

02.20.11

1. A really good night's sleep.
2. Grapenuts with sliced banana and two hardboiled eggs for a hearty breakfast.
3. Surviving Rich's final "I'm unhappy" with grace and without harm.
4. Lynette's friendship.
5. Folding laundry and polishing shoes while we caught up on things.
6. Lynette's intrepoid driving through Saturady traffic at Mall of America.
7. Looking at dozens of expensive shoes at Nordstrom Rack, trying on a couple, and resisting buying one super kick ass pair of Donald Pliner platform sandals.
8. My one splurge: a beautiful striped cashmere scarf for $20 from Nordstrom.
9. Pirated Mad Men episodes from Alex.
10. Valerian and 5HTP to help lull me to sleep.