Saturday, December 24, 2011
Black Bart / White Apartment
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Vacuum vs. Choirgirl
Friday, December 2, 2011
My own office!
One of the perks of my new job is that I get an office to myself. The staff at MOHAI has expanded over the years and there are a lot of people crammed into places intended for just one or two. In fact, I think that other than me the only people who have their own offices are the director, the deputy director, the head of advancement, and the head librarian (and her walls are glass so it barely counts). Anyone else at my level in another department can only dream of space to themselves.
Clearly though, part of the reason I have my own office is that no one else is eager to steal the space. It is a little cinder-block corner with poor lighting and a shared wall with the freight elevator. There are a bunch of pipes running along the ceiling and once my predecessor got rained on when one of them burst.
As fate would have it, I was exiled from this private paradise for the first two months on the job. On my first day my boss tried to get me set up on the computer in there and when she went to check the internet connection, the cable thingy just fell apart in her hand. What followed was a tech support comedy of errors and I basically just ended up working on a different computer in a different area. It happened to be the same desk and computer that I had worked at two years ago, so it felt like I had just returned to my old life. I actually didn’t mind it too much, but the two heads of my department lobbied hard to get me back in my office. It was very kind of them, but I sometimes wonder if my innate chattyness was making them weary of sharing a space with me.
Whatever the motive, I did finally get a new computer, and last Wednesday I moved into the office. Grim as that space is, I am pretty excited to have it. I’ve brought in my books and notebooks from grad school, and done my best to arrange the army of lamps that my predecessor left behind. The internet still doesn’t really work in there, but at least I can start putting up my pictures of John Doyle Bishop.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
What I work with
I am really enjoying my new job. It does strike me though, how odd some of the things are that I work with. In grad school we learned about the best of the best—so one might imagine that getting a real job would mean being buried in Chanel and 16th century embroidery. But working in a regional history museum the story is a little different. For someone who doesn’t care about the history of Seattle, a lot of the stuff we have is just weird old junk—not monetarily valuable in the way an art museum’s collection usually is. Here are some of the Seattle treasures I’ve been working with recently.
-Socks made out of burlap
-Puppets from a local children’s TV show
-Giant shoes used by someone in from the Seattle Sonics
-A 1991 CD single of “Smells Like Teen Spirit”
-The first down jacket made by Eddie Bauer
-Cardboard signs from the 1999 WTO protest
-A pair of 1890s button boots made by Nordstrom
-Hiking pants from REI
-A plaid Eddie Bauer shirt with sleeves cut off, worn by a gay activist in the 1970s
-A turquoise sequin gown (with matching sequin shoes) worn by Miss Seafair 1997
-A briefcase phone from the 1980s (which weighs about 25 pounds)
-And my favorite “only in Seattle” artifact: A toy hydroplane decorated with Mariner Ichiro Suzuki’s number and name, as well as a logo for sponsor Oh Boy! Oberto, local makers of beef jerky. Where else in this country would those things together even begin to make sense?
Oh wait, I found an ad for it:
Keep it weird Seattle. Keep it weird.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
What do you know about Febreze?
Sunday, October 23, 2011
The greatest artifact
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Things that have happened to me
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Return Trip
My last few hours in New York were spent stressing out and sweating. It was massively humid and I was struggling to get everything either packed or packaged up in a box (I made a trip to the post office with six boxes that day). When the hour came, I had a friend from FIT help me schlep my three suitcases and three carry-on bags from the taxi to Penn Station.
One of the best things about the decision to take the train was the fact that once I boarded I could totally relax. Packing was stressful and I was emotionally fragile from saying so many goodbyes. But getting on the train was a wonderful relief. My first order of business was to take a shower, because the humidity had left me feeling pretty disgusting. I had forgotten what a harrowing experience it is to shower on the train. The Lakeshore Limited really pitches and rocks, which is particularly disconcerting when you are naked and soapy. I got through it though and felt much better.
The first leg of the journey was fine, but I was really excited about transferring in Chicago to the Empire Builder. When they told us to board I was practically skipping down the platform. Once we were moving and the attendant came with chilled Champagne I practically squealed with delight. I feel like I should have stories to tell from the trip but it wasn’t very eventful. It was just four days of relaxation, over-eating, and beautiful views of the changing landscape.
In my last few weeks in New York, a part of me wondered if I had over-romanticized Seattle and if I would regret leaving the opportunities and friends I had in New York. I think in the coming months I will miss a lot about New York, but it was comforting to enter Washington State and really feel like I was home. The sun came up as we were going through the Cascades, and there were patches of mist hanging in the air as we approached Seattle. The final stretch took us right along Puget Sound, and it was a thrill to see King Street Station in the distance (which, by the way, has 200% more old-timey charm than Penn Station).
The Pacific Northwest is just so beautiful. Unfortunately, this is the current view I have from my bed in my parent’s house:
Monday, September 26, 2011
This Week By the Numbers
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Thesis Approved!
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
This is no time for naval gazing
Monday, September 5, 2011
I survived!
The storm turned out to be not so bad (at least in Manhattan), and the most intense thing that happened at Menno House was that we took shifts in the night to empty out the buckets that were catching water. But no new leaks appeared and the basement only flooded about an inch—a seeming miracle given Menno House’s dubious condition. Hopefully madam New York doesn’t have any more nasty tricks up her sleeve.
I now have less than a month left in the big city. As you might imagine, I am dividing my time between a to-do list of things to do and see, and preparations for the move. I’ve already shipped several boxes and designated certain items to be left behind (sorry, cheap IKEA comforter). My thesis is in a more uncertain state than I hoped, but it is mostly due to how busy my advisor is and how slowly the mechanisms turn at FIT. I’m done with it as far as I’m concerned, but chances are I will not be an official M.A. before I leave. My dream of putting my graduation regalia back on and taking some “this is for real” pictures will have to wait.
Yesterday my college friend (and Friend*) Becca visited from Philly and we went to see the off-Broadway revival of Rent. We got tickets via the pre-performance lottery- where you put your name in and they do a drawing for the winners. Normal seats cost $65 and up, but the lottery winners pay $25. The catch is the seats are usually less desirable. In our case we sat in the center of the front row, which despite a bit of neck craning, was sort of awesome. At intermission Becca asked how I was enjoying the show, and I responded that it was a pretty accurate portrayal of my life in New York.
*Quaker joke
Yep. Like looking in a mirror.
Obviously, I was kidding. While yes, I live near the East Village with a bunch of young people, that is basically where the comparison ends. One thing I find overwhelming about New York is how many very different New York experiences are happening at any given time. For every bohemian doing drugs in their modified industrial loft, there is an Upper East Side matron twirling her pearls and pampering her fluffy dog. They type of people who believe New York is the center of the Universe also usually believe that their New York is the real New York. This is a big reason I have never felt I can claim New York as my own – it is just too big and too complex for me to feel confident that I understand it all. Seattle is certainly not homogenous by any means, but I'm a lot closer to understanding it.
For example, I understand that everyone but me loves camping.
Disgusting.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Before you can return to Seattle...
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Soaking it in
Since committing to move back to Seattle, my life seems to have acquired an additional rosy sheen. Any time something goes wrong, I can just shrug and think, “well, I’m leaving soon.” And any time something goes right, I soak it in and feel blessed to have had the opportunity to live in New York.
As far as things going wrong, Menno House has become a bit of a disaster zone. Last Sunday we had downpours of rain all day long (it was the most rainfall in a single day ever recorded in NYC) and some of it started gushing through the walls. When part of the wall was removed to survey the damage, it was discovered that there are areas of the brick exterior that are just stacked bricks- no cement or mortar between them. I’m hoping to move out before the place collapses entirely.
On the happy side, I had a wonderful New York morning on Saturday. On my walk to the grocery store I saw actor Vincent D’Onofrio. He has been in lots of movies, but for several years has been the star of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. When I first graduated from college I spent the summer jobless, slightly depressed, and addicted to television. One of my new favorites was LO:CI and I became slightly obsessed. When my life improved I realized it was sort of cheesy and over-the-top, but I still have a fondness for it. I saw him just around the corner from Menno House and we waited for the light together. I looked right at him to confirm he was who I thought he was. He looked back and I smiled a smug “I know who you are but I am not going to bother you” smile.
I’m on kitchen duty this week so I had to go to Union Squre to drop off the house compost. When I got there, I was confronted with the bizarre sight of hundreds of runners and bikers going up and down Park Avenue. At first I thought it was a race, but no one was wearing numbers or matching colors or anything. I found out that this is a thing that New York does in the summer: closes a street to traffic and lets pedestrians and bikers enjoy it for a few hours. So I changed into my running things and took advantage. It was surreal and delightful to run down Park Avenue, passing famous buildings and looping through Grand Central Station. Just as I was thinking the experience couldn’t get any better, I looked to my right and saw Bill Cunningham with his camera at the ready. You may not know who he is, but if you watch the documentary about him, you will fall in love and be so jealous I saw him. He didn’t snap a photo of me, but it was a thrill just to see him.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Big News
Monday, August 8, 2011
Enjoy this picture of John Doyle Bishop
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Developing The Eye
Saturday, July 9, 2011
The Ghost of John Doyle Bishop
A few nights ago I had a dream about John Doyle Bishop. In the dream, I was aware of the fact that he was dead, so I guess he must have been a ghost, but he was introduced to me as if everything was normal. I told him how excited I was to meet him but he seemed bored with me.
Sometimes I wonder about my obsession with John Doyle Bishop. On the one hand, I think I’m doing a great thing by researching him and reviving his name. If I could meet him, he might gush with grateful thanks for all the work I am doing. But then again, how can I think I really know a person from reading newspaper articles and interviews? Can you really understand someone through anecdotes? Last weekend I ran his name through some ancestor researcher sites and was able to discover a listing for his family in the 1930 census, as well as his social security number. That’s right, I am such a creeper that I know his social security number.
But I can’t help it. JDB is just so awesome. Sometimes I think I should start a twitter account under his name and just post all the hilarious quotes I have from him. I found out that he owned four full-length fur coats that he would wear around town, often to Sonics basketball games. When a second store at Southcenter failed he had all the labels cut out of the dresses and had them made up into a dinner jacket for him to wear. He pre-planned his estate auction, so that guests received invites on his stationary and were asked to wear black tie to the event, or at least “Doyle” green. Along with household things and giant photos of himself, the auction even included his white angora cat Shamrock.
A White Angora Cat!! When I was seven that was all I wanted in this world.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Explore-a-city
I keep vowing to go out and do things in New York, but since graduation I haven’t gone on a wild see-the-city binge. In fact, my tendency has been to savor being at home where I can take naps and work on my thesis. But this past week my cousin Laura came to visit, so I had reason to go tromping all around the island. Here is the highlight reel:
- Saw The Lion King on Broadway. Incredible. I have enjoyed following the train wreck that has been Julie Taymor’s latest foray into musicals- the critically maligned and critically injured stuntman extravaganza Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark- but seeing her costumes in The Lion King reminded me that when Taymor’s energy is channeled in the right direction, the results are staggeringly fantastic.
*Side note about the modern Broadway experience- The Lion King is now the second show I have seen where the audience behavior has been much more like that of a movie theater than a live theater performance. Based on the ticket price alone, it should be like going to the opera or a symphony concert. But at The Lion King there was a lot of audible chatting, infants sobbing, and the sound of people consuming the concessions they had bought in the lobby. Yes, that is right, concessions. When I saw Wicked you could hear the rattling of ice in soda drinks. Insert rant about society these days.
- When I started my Met internship this summer, I found out that my intern ID gets me in during off hours. So last Monday we visited the Met— when it was closed to the public. CRAZY. We were just wandering through empty galleries and going through roped-off areas. I was sure that we were going to get stopped and told that we were in an off-limits space but it never happened. Really I am amazed at the trust they put in their interns. I mean, I could have licked a painting or something.
- On Tuesday we took the Staten Island Ferry and decided to actually get off and see if there was anything to see. The main attraction seemed to be the Staten Island Museum, which boasted exhibits of science, art, and history. I can see why some Manhattanites feel like leaving the island is like falling off the end of the world. The museum was basically a few arrowheads, insects mounted on pins, and a booth where you could see rocks glow in the dark. There was one interesting area of oddities that featured a hairball retrieved from a cow’s stomach, but come on. I have been to many weird local museums in my time, and the ones out west usually have the decency to have a two-headed sheep or something.
- Tuesday night we went to see Anything Goes which was a very different but equally wonderful Broadway experience. It is just a straight-up old-school musical with fun costumes, ridiculous plot twists, and tons of tap dancing. TONS. You should stop what you are doing right now and watch this clip from the Tony awards. (This post is basically over, so you need something else to keep you busy anyway).
Friday, June 24, 2011
Post Graduation- The One Month Report
- Today on my way home from grocery shopping I walked past Rachel Dratch. She was carrying a baby and looked like your average slightly-schlumpy mom. Execpt that after I saw her, all I could think of was this.
- It occurred to me that since moving to Manhattan I have had more celebrity sightings. Not a lot, and not big names, but a few that were recognizable from movies I’ve seen. I saw Ron Livingston hailing a cab on 7th avenue, and once saw Jennifer Coolidge at a coffee stand with her dog.
- Through some combination of subscribing to Vogue and working at FIT, I have gotten on the mailing list of every major fashion magazine. They keep offering me as “professional” or “industry” discount, and also explain that I could even make the purchase tax deductible if I can prove it is vital to my profession. And you know what? Fashion magazines are RIDICULOUSLY cheap. I think they make all their money on printed ads, so it is really only about circulation numbers rather than money from subscribers. I recently caved in and got Harper’s Bazaar for $7.97 a year, but somehow resisted getting Elle for 2 years for $9.
- Have you ever read the blog This is Why You’re Fat? Well, I am pretty sure the restaurant I went to this morning has been featured on that blog at least once. It is a tiny hole-in-the-wall place called Shopsin’s, and it has a menu that is completely crazy- both in terms of offerings and overall seizure-inducing layout. (click here to see it). I was very tempted by the “So Good,” which is a grilled cheese sandwich made out of French toast with a side of poached eggs; as well as breakfast combo tray B1, which includes a fried tomato BLT, a fried egg quesidilla, garlic potato skins, and a nutella crepe. However, I couldn’t resist the pancake union of two of my favorite things: red velvet and poppyseeds. Totally awesome.
- My biggest recent news is that I have been approved to live in Menno House for a second year! Woo hoo! More communal soup eating and loft sleeping ahead!
- Speaking of Menno House, the latest house obsession is the war on our rodent problem. For some time we have had frequent mouse sightings, and poison and snap traps didn’t seem to have much effect. About a week ago the manager invested in $50 electrocution traps, which are reportedly more humane than snap traps or poison. They are also remarkably effective. In one day, five were caught in the kitchen-- once hearing the telltale buzz just moments after the trap had been emptied. We have started a tally on the communal white board.