Sunday, May 29, 2011

Outside

Today I got to eat outside...

...lounge on my new chair...

...walk with my buddy...

...and it felt good.

Monday, May 23, 2011

On Miranda July


There's a lot of love for Miranda July these days, and I'm bursting with my share. Her second movie, The Future, will be released this summer (though I suspect I will have to wait a little longer since I doubt it will come to Victoria movie theaters).
Did you see her first movie, Me and you and everyone we know? A few times? Maybe you read Nobody Belongs Here More Than You, her collection of short stories? Or maybe you have a copy of Learning to Love You More in your bathroom (I gave my copy to my parents, but I have tentative plans)? Did you post her short film, Are you the favorite person of anybody? on your blog? Or -- last one -- do you revisit her treatise on why you should vote before every election? Did you share it on your work's social networking site? And were you thrilled when a few people you've never met "liked" it?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you're probably a fan of Miranda July too. Or maybe you answered no to all of the questions because you've never heard of Miranda July before, but now you're intrigued. If that's the case, you can take this diagnostic test to see if you should watch her latest movie. And while you're at that website, you should probably sign up to get your future divined every week.
P.S. I would like a copy of this poster.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Music

I bought the new Fleet Foxes album, as planned, and I love it, as expected. And when I want to listen to something a little different, I've been listening to Ellie Goulding, who I recently heard on Saturday Night Live:



I hear some influence from the Cranberries, no?

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Rhododendron

It doesn't feel like spring, but it sure looks like spring, part 2:


I used to dislike rhododendrons. They look so spindly when they aren't blooming, you know? But they're very popular in these parts, and I was sold when I saw the giant rhodos at Government House. When they bloom, the park looks like a circus. I have tentative plans to take some photos of them this week so I can frame some colourful prints.

The rhodo pictured here is outside our house, and it's really happy right now (unlike last year). So that's one good thing I can say about all this rain.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Again with City Museum

Remember when I wrote about City Museum way back when? I described the museum as a crazy dream world fantasy. I still want to go, especially after I read this description on Design*Sponge:

Part museum, part playground, part funhouse where repurposed architectural and industrial objects mix with cranes, planes, buses, a vintage photobooth, an aquarium, underground tunnels, a 10-story spiral slide, a working Ferris wheel on top of the building and so much more. Housed in a former shoe company, City Museum was named one of the “World’s 10 Best Public Spaces” by the New York-based Project for Public Spaces.

Now I need to find a reason to go to St. Louis.

I also need to find a way to work for the Project for Public Spaces.

Saturday, May 07, 2011

Pain in the back

Throwing your back out is embarrassing.

I was riding my bike home on Tuesday. When I stood on my pedals to hustle through an intersection, my lower back seized up. I managed to pedal to the other side of the street in slow motion while a car crawled behind me, waiting to turn.

You guys, I was holding up traffic.

Once I made it to the side of the road, I sat on my bike for a couple of minutes, one foot on the curb, confused as to what to do next. Cyclists passed me and looked over their shoulders at my stunned expression. I probably should have asked for help, but my instincts told me that hiding my shame was a better plan.

Somehow I managed to lift my right leg over my bike frame and hobble to some steps. That's where I sat until my family came to get me 10 minutes later. While I was waiting, I refused to make eye contact with the pedestrians who looked my way. I don't think I managed to hide my pain though. I was hugging the stair railing and sitting at an awkward angle, grimacing. Not as low profile as I would have liked.

I couldn't stand or walk, so Michael and his brother Matthew carried me to my parents' van. With one arm around each of their shoulders, they kept me in the sitting position and put me on the floor of the Westfalia.

Nothing to see here, folks.

Once home, I sat in the driveway for a good 30 minutes -- surrounded by my mom, my dad and Michael -- before we concluded that I wasn't leaving the van. We drove to the hospital instead, and an ambulance attendant helped me into a wheel chair. A few hours and an x-ray later, I left with pain killers and instructions to lay low for the next few days.

Back at home, I was still embarrassed about the whole situation. There were so many witnesses! Sure, they were witnesses that gave me hugs and birthday cards, but they were witnesses all the same. When Matthew left for the airport (he's moving back to Saskatchewan), I had to say goodbye from my bed. Same for my parents. They left for Seattle on Wednesday, and my last hours with them were spent in the bedroom. For shame.

Now Michael and I are on our own until our roomies return from their holiday on Monday. My back is much better, and I'm moving around on my own, for the most part. I've left the house to see my doctor and a physiotherapist, and I even went to my ukulele class this morning. I decided to forgo a cab and walk home, which was the wrong thing to do. The embarrassment crept back as old women clipped past me on the sidewalk and drivers glared at me as they waited for me to amble across the street.

If my doctors are right, I'm a couple of weeks away from being back to normal and leaving those ladies in the dust.

Spare yourselves the embarrassment, friends. Be nice to your backs!