CxMen

i may be a sucker. but mostly i'm just continually proud of the cxTeam. they rolled out their new website this past week. despite being a completely computer-unsavvy person, i also know what i dislike about websites. and this one passed my first test: no need to scroll down on the home page! still in the tweaking process apparently, but shoestrings and duct-tape aside, it looks and feels pretty snazzy having just enough interactiveness to be fun yet not so much to be intimidating. it's simple to look at and a good example of their collective talent. as far as chattanooga web development and graphic design goes, these cxBoysandGirls are hot to trot.

one of my favorite parts of the website is the portfolio page. i've had debates with some about the drawers that slide down featuring thumbnails and links for their already developed sites. my only critique: maybe hotlink the actual images in addition to the url text(?). but the drawers are pretty sweet, giving the user a taste of the goods without having to commit to being taken to the actual websites. (i sort of hate pressing the back button every three seconds.)

with the return of beardtopia, it should be perfect. (and man, that ben weaver... what a hottie.)

my secret love of electronic music is out. seventeen years by ratatat (thanks, sarah hughes).

lost in the garden state (or, never take the new jersey turnpike for fear of going bankrupt)

i drove to see my brother and sister-in-law last week in virginia. the most direct route, albeit the most expensive due to excessive toll roads, is the i-95, aka "new jersey turnpike," straight through new jersey. so i weigh my options: $50 in tolls versus a longer yet more beautiful, peaceful and cheaper drive through pennsylvania... i'm a scrooge, pennsylvania wins. and i'm off down the road, feeling pretty smart in my dirty little bob the saab.

there's one little life lesson i seem to keep on learning over and over again, namely that when i try to avoid anything that thing usually is thrown straight into my path. this is also the reason why i am a terrible liar. and true to form, in trying to avoid new jersey, i somehow ended up lost in new jersey. have you ever been lost in new jersey? i keep asking people that to which most reply, "how do you get lost in new jersey? all it is is one big turnpike." one big expensive turnpike, that is. i sort of think this is how they fund the entire state's economy. so i then decide to try and get out of new jersey as soon as possible. and my next "shortcut" turns into another one of bethany's brainy schemes into confusion.

rainy, foggy, way too much traffic. i think the northeast hates me, or atleast is having fun testing my determination. probably both. my eight hour jaunt turned into a nine, ten, eleven, twelve-thousand year long excursion, through hill an dale, valley and forge. i think i saw the netherlands at one point.

i'm still not really sure where i was or how i got there, only that eventually some kind person in a toll booth told me how to get to virginia. that was after he told me he thought all people from pennsylvania were idiots. i asked him what he thought about people from tennessee. "are you from tennessee, sweetie?" "yes sir..." "i love people from tennessee!" i laughed and drove on.

just shy of lisa loeb, yet with an almost velvet undergroundish flair... mirah's sweepstake prize

libations

i am a big fan of the "dinner party." there is something quite unique in my mind about sharing conversation over food and wine. at least two of those (three according to science daily) are an essential part of life. everyone needs to eat and everyone needs to relate to others, i.e. have relationships conducted over the wavelength of communication, direct conversation being the most common form of this. put those elements together and you have the perfect evening.

from start to finish:

1. form a plan
PLAN: invite friends over to eat and drink (it's really as simple as that, though asking said friends to come bearing gifts is also recommended)
2. buy food
3. cook food
4. eat food with friends
5. drink wine with friends
6. talk
7. look at huge mess that must be cleaned up
8. avoid mess (but breathe a sigh of relief when kiko offers to clean)
9. talk some more
10. drink some more
THE END

that all being said, i participated in my first dinner party on shelter island. it was all those things listed above minus one. i reminisced about my chattanooga crew and all the awesome dinners we shared. but it was a great time getting to know people a little better here.

an mp3 from mudhut, a funky mix called dark lady.

goooooaaaaaallllllllllll!

woops. england lost 0-2 against croatia in the euro 2008 qualifier. it's funny, i thought stuff like this only happened in u-8's. one funny headline: "you don't know what you're doing, gaffer" and the article found here ("i didn't expect all this own goal abuse") makes me love the british press.

signs and more

i seem to have discovered an interest in signs. i just can't seem to get enough of them. so here's one more i saw today. i actually ate my lunch here as well. the sign peaked my interest making wonder the various ways they might serve soda for a midday meal. disappointed, i discovered it actually was a normal restaurant. nobody who worked there seemed to know why the restaurant had that name. but i did have some pretty delicious fish and chips...

in more new, has anyone else come across the ONE campaign? i was introduced to it by my now former roommate, cara cote, before i left chattanooga and have since gotten regular e-mails from them. it's fairly interesting, an "end poverty/hiv/aids" endeavor which has a very recognizable face at its head: bono. anyway, i got this e-mail from them today about having "house parties" this month in support of the ONE campaign. i was a little confused by it, imagining peeps packed in a house, drinking too much and dancing on tables. so i got on the ONE website to actually learn something about their organization. it seems to be more of a celebrity commercial than anything else. the "notable signatories" part of the website is filled with pictures of brad pitt, george clooney, fergie, penelope cruz... you get the picture, and very sleek black-&-white pictures of all of them there are. is this another place to post actor headshots or is it a useful organization? i don't have the answer.

mostly i read about the campaign trying to convince the american government to contribute ONE% of their budget (i think i read it correctly) in order to put an end to poverty/hiv/aids in our lifetime. i am sort of back and forth on this issue. why is it that we are asked to go to other countries to provide relief work because it's the "american duty, being a decadently wealthy nation and all," yet when there's a known genocidal maniac ruling a country, how dare we "tell other countries how to run themselves," by removing said maniac from power? i'm not underscoring our responsibility in the poverty issue. it's one that is near and dear to my heart. i think it's that feeling of bored celebrities deciding which issues are "cool" to tackle, and then throwing stones at the american government that kind of bothers me.

it's another one of those frequent jerry maguire moments.
- american government: "this is me out here for you!... help me help you,... HELP... ME... HELP... YOU!"

(really i'm just jealous of those sweet b&w headshots. how can i get me one of those?)

i like pretty things

if you want to see some really pretty, funky cool decorative things go to stray dog designs website. it's all handmade stuff with a lot of colour, character and uniqueness to each piece. i love it all. it's awesome to see companies like this coming out of chattanooga that are getting national recognition as well. they apparently went to the international gift fair in new york and got the city hyped on their goods. anyway, their website rocks, and is done by none other than my good friends at coptix. i love these guys. they are way too talented for their own good.

van damme left his imprint in nyc

i went to the city this week and this is the only photo i walked away with. i'm not sure why... it's the korean war memorial statue in battery park. if you can't see the title of it, it's called "the universal soldier."

psalms and over the rhine

i was searching for an mp3 link yesterday (by the way, if you find one for mirah's nobody has to stay, let me know. i found a link on funtimeok.com but they left threatening messages about "hotlinking" their mp3's. apparently "that's not cool" in computer land??), and came across over the rhine's flown free. they were requested last year to write a song about psalms 124 and 129 based on the new translation of the book of psalms by eugene petersen (found in the message) and this was the result. very simple, yet very new city fellowship.

psalm 124:8
our help is in the name of the LORD who made heaven and earth...

the russians

my russians are gone. back to moscow! nastia on the left, ilya on the right. now that they're gone it's way too easy to communicate with my staff. i asked ilya what he's going to do when he gets home...
"buy a mercedes benz," was the reply.

we had a quite hilarious conversation the other night, the three of us. it mostly consisted of teaching each other randomn words in our respective languages. don't ask.

so i will miss my russians.

here's devotchka's how it ends for your listening pleasure.

i saw the sign

today, i found this street sign:


in any other part of the world, one might wonder why this street was given this name, you know ponder what church might have existed on the very same spot long ago...



there is no guessing game on long island. you've got a church lane? you've got a church.



i also happen to live on school street which is the very same street on which the only school on shelter island can be found. it's pretty common around here to find only one item of anything in any given town. so it also follows why each street has been named according to that thing located on it. i think it's rather convenient. to find the ferries, you first find ferry road. to find the hospital? yep, hospital road. it hopefully gives you a pretty good idea of how small the towns are out here. kind of funny considering new york city is so close and like a million of everything can be found there...

...i saw a very aptly named fishing boat today when i was on the ferry heading into greenport. the poor fishes. but doesn't the sky look amazing? it truly is beautiful out here...

sitting ducks

today was a day off. like yesterday. so i went to the beach! it started off nice, and then chilled off pretty quickly. it was only me and one other person out there enjoying the ocean. tourist season is pretty much over on shelter island (s.i.). this is nice in many ways since it provides an opportunity to take pictures. i wish i had a better camera!

these are the beach chairs that typically are a hot item and hard to come by on any given holiday. today i had my pick.

fashion sense

i was just skimming through the internet and happened upon the fashion section of the japan times. these are pictures from a recent fashion show. any thoughts?

"Eri Utsugi debuted her mercibeaucoup brand at Japan Fashion Week this March with a catwalk show involving animal-shaped afro wigs and a shower of confetti swept along the runway by models. YOSHIAKI MIURA PHOTOS"

garden of eden

one of the perks of living on long island is the plethura of local fruits, vegetables, eggs, bread, CHEESE, WINE, that can be found when driving down any road. my road of choice right now is highway 25. this takes me down the north fork. on highway 25 you can find farm stand after farm stand to pick and choose from when shopping for local goodies. today i chose this special stand. it's also open the latest, a whopping 7pm, every evening.

did i mention wine? yes, long island is also home to many vineyards. apparently the climate here is conducive to certain types of grapes, especially the gewurztraminer, riesling and pinot noir varietals. i have already found a favorite as well. it happens to be the first wine i savored in my new dwelling place, the lenz vineyard gewurztraminer, ben's choice. that boy has immaculate taste...

addendum

i had a request from one mrs. howard to post a picture of my "porch." it is not a porch, as you can see, but a sort of small courtyard. i love it.

home sweet home...

i'm officially living by myself for the first time ever. i have mixed feelings about this. first, since most of y'all know how annoying it is to move, i've made record time in getting unpacked and things placed where i want them to go. some might call this "setting up house." ben being here really helped with this, of course. he moved all my heavy stuff, helped me clean, helped me put shelves up, helped me stay on task, etc. he's awesome and i love him more than i can possibly desribe on this blog. but still, when you live with others it takes FOREVER to get things situated because everybody has an opinion about where things should go, how they should function, who gets what shelf in the bathroom, in addition to who gets what bedroom and has to take out the trash first.

however, i've had approximately a total of 30 different roommates over the past 8 years. while this may seem like a lot, it's pretty much on par with everyone else i know. and come to think of it, i've pretty much been roommates or housemates with everyone i know. weird... anyway, this has conditioned me to actually enjoy sharing space with others. there are of course all the usual little annoyances i've never gotten over. "they never clean..." "their junk is all over the living room..." "i'm the only one who buys toilet paper..." "if they can just wipe down the counters after they cook..." "who took my sweater?..." or better yet, "hey, isn't that my sweater you're wearing?..." and the list goes on until eternity. but these things are so small in comparison to sharing space and life with others. i love sharing life. and front porches ("kiko, you are stoops..."). and food. and wine. so living alone really isn't something i'm looking for in this world. i know that we are meant to be in communion with others. people weren't meant to be alone. we're told that from the very beginning of the world.

that all being said, here is a picture of the living room in my new house, my fortress of solitude. if i was to live anywhere by myself, this definitely is the place to do it. (unfortunately, although his image is captured in the background of this picture, ben does not come with the house.)

'x' marks the spot

this is shelter island. it is located between the north and south forks of long island. well that's what the locals say. i say it's in the crotch of long island.

shelter island got its name from some group of indians (native americans) a long time ago. "the indians called shelter island "manhansack-aha-quashawomock", which means "an island sheltered by islands". and that is exactly what makes this island so special." (i stole that from osprey's online guide). it was originally settled by the manhassett indians in 1652. if you look on the map at the tip of the south fork, you'll see montauk. (if any of you value the movie eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, you'll be excited by this little factoid... "meet me in montauk...")

anyway, shelter island can only be reached by boat. there are ferries that run between it and long island that bring all the cars over. the two islands are really not that far from each other, so of course my first question was why don't they just build a couple of bridges? the answer: exclusivity. these people love their secret, hard to reach hideaway. and i have to admit, it is pretty cool. it also means zero crime rate. all the people out here leave their cars and houses unlocked. it's kind of in the same category as lookout mtn., only even more ridiculously separated from the world.

sarcastic remarks aside, it is a beautiful place. it's very relaxed, and even the "fabulously wealthy" wear wrinkled shirts. i was sitting out front of vsc the other night and a couple came riding up on their bicycles. yes, they were there to eat dinner. i've even seen a couple of people bring their dogs with them to the restaurant (i know that just thrills you, mom). we do ask that they sit outside. sorry pooches.

my father's glory, my mother's castle

so, i thought i would take some "artsy" photos of my current and very temporary residence. but then i realized: how do you candy coat a hell-hole? and yes i do mean "h-e-double-hockey-stick" hole. my front porch being the entrance to this castle, well, it speaks for itself. so to explain: picture #1 = front porch; picture #2 = my boudoir (notice the two fans in the upper left hand corner of the picture... when turned on to full blast they provide a sound barrier between me and the party kids coming in at 4am); picture #3 is the lovely kitchen (the girl being melanie, my rockin' cool roommate... i'm not being sarcastic either: she IS rockin' cool and makes fantastic desserts at vine street cafe, hereafter being referred to as vsc).

this is my residence, my abode, my kingdom. (and i thought andy's house was bad... jk, d)

now for new york...

i'm in new york now. i flew into jfk international airport at 4:00 yesterday. chris and sydney picked me up in a beat up red subaru and we were off! flying out of the airport, taxi drivers honking everywhere, all of us on edge. oh new york city! you are a special place! we drove out of the city towards the eastern edge of long island, the dirtiness eventually fading into a very tybee island like coast. after about an hour and a half, we were on a ferry crossing over to shelter island, then on to vine street cafe, the place that i am working at, to have dinner. chris immediately started introducing me to guests as his "new assistant manager." oh yes, that's me! dirty, tired, haven't brushed my teeth since before i left north carolina earlier that day. "hi, nice to meet you. don't worry, i do clean up well. your hundreds of dollars spent on food will be safe in my hands. you can trust the dirty southern girl..."

that all being said, i did get some sleep last night, realizing before i hopped into my temporary sleeping arrangements (i swore i would never lay my head down in a bunk bed again, but oh well) that i had left my toothbrush in the hotel in north carolina. after buying a new one today and having lunch with my new boss and his girlfriend, i had time to do my devotions and reflect over the past few weeks.

so, they have been quite busy. i finished up my summer at day camp and said goodbye to all the great kids i've had the pleasure of working with this summer. i've been to three weddings, my brother's taking the cake although they have ALL been beautiful. i put in my notice at work, got a new job up here and moved out of my house. there have been people coming out of the woodwork left and right to encourage me along and people that i've been blessed to encourage as well. i've been able to spend time with all the people that i love in chattanooga, having dinner together, going out to lunch together, making cider together, hanging out on front and back porches together, having coffee together, drinking wine together, laughing together, praying together... and most importantly our most gracious Lord has also given me the opportunity to heal two very crucial relationships. i've been looking through my photos taken yet again realizing that i have been so blessed with knowing and learning from so many amazing people. it's pretty cool, really.

this post is devoted to pictures of my last few weeks. i love you all, my friends and family!

brother and (new!) sister

my brother is getting married soon. and by soon, i mean in 2 weeks. and i'm so excited. i finally get to have a sister! and also so exciting is that i am going to be the best woman in his wedding. quite untraditional, but apparently we westcoasters "like to do things differently" (or so said a customer that i had last night at the restaurant).

michael and i have a very close, special sibling relationship. yes we fought like cat and dog when we were young. but what siblings don't? i mean really... we are only 21 months apart in age. we were raised doing and learning basically all the same things at the same time. this is probably why we fought so much and so hard. but even when we were young, he and i exhibited the type of relationship that has brought us so close at this point in our lives. michael was always the passionate dreamer and protector and i always knew what needed to be done. (so much so, i was nicknamed "bossy" at way too young of an age. please act surprised.)

it has been such a pleasure and blessing to see him moving on to this stage of life. his soon to be wife, emily, is such an answer to prayer for me as well. i wanted him to be with someone i could be friends with too. and he's found that.

congratulations michael and emily!