miz lia

accomplishing things

2011-04-25T18:05:00.002-04:00

This blog's been sitting here unused and paid for, so I might as well use it.

After a series of eye-opening events over the past few months, I have realized that 1. I am not doing a whole lot, and 2. I am not doing a whole lot for myself. Fortunately, I want to do things, and I want to do things for myself, so these problems are easily remedied. In theory. Just getting around to doing things has always been a problem of mine. I've decided to use this blog to keep track of things I accomplish, no matter how trivial, in hopes that people will read it, thereby embarrassing me into accomplishing more.

Today, I think the most exciting thing I accomplished was... well, if there's some technical term for it I don't know what it is, but I stuck a bunch of seeds in some little pod thingies, courtesy of my mother. I picked them up at our local Ace Hardware because I liked the picture on the front. The seeds will turn into striped "jolly jester" marigolds, presumably through some kind of witchcraft and magic.

I'll let you know how that goes. They should start sprouting in 4-10 days, upon which time I'm meant to put them somewhere sunny, set the lid at a jaunty angle to allow air in, and then ask my mother what to do next because she knows more about plants than I do.

I've also composed a short mental list of things I want to accomplish, probably over this summer:
-learn some violin, using my oldest brother's student violin that doesn't tune very well
-learn how to knit so I can knit a Doctor Who scarf (my mother once tried to teach me how to knit and I unknitted what she'd started for me)
-practice the piano more
-take more pictures, because I have a nice camera sitting around that I don't use often enough (maybe I'll get an Eye-Fi card so those pictures actually make it onto the computer)

I think that's it for today. Oh, except for my 'virtual accomplishment', as I've affectionately labeled them. I unlocked all of the levels in Formula Racer. I mention this because I'm trying to spend less time accomplishing nothing, which is essentially what playing online games is. I try to justify it by saying it's good brain exercise. Usually it isn't. It could be worse, at least - it could be Farmville.

downtown (and 100 posts!)

2010-04-20T00:38:00.003-04:00

It's my 100th post! Have I really done 99 posts? I need to stop neglecting this blog. I went downtown recently to take pictures for the Discover Gloucester travel guide (yeah, that site's a bit bare) and here are some highlights.

Down near the docks at the Maritime Heritage Center. I have no idea what it is but it looks rather out-of-use.

This is Fitz Henry Lane's old house/studio. It was built around 1850, which I think is remarkable. And it's Fitz Henry Lane, not Fitz Hugh Lane, which is how a lot of people erroneously refer to him.

Back near the docks at the Maritime Heritage Center (which is actually but a few steps from where I took the above picture). There's a lot of old stuff down there. Anchors and buoys and metal things whose purposes I have yet to discover, besides looking artsy and sad and illustrating the decline of the fishing industry here. I might go sneak back and take pictures when the lighting is better (or, even better, bring my own lighting - how fancy).

This is terrifying, isn't it? His name escapes me, but I believe he's a vintage... thing that blows up balloons. If there's a better name for that, I'm not aware of it.

He's less terrifying from a distance. You can find this guy at Mark Adrian Shoes in Gloucester, which doesn't seem to have a website, so there's their page on Yelp.

Saw this on a door downtown, near Bananas (one of my favorite places in this town, a vintage clothing store). Isn't that the Illuminati symbol? Lady Gaga is an Illuminati pawn, you know. I know it's true because I read it on the internet.

A beautiful painted window down at Local Colors, which is a great store downtown that showcases and sells art by local artists. I'm afraid I didn't make a note of who made this.

They have all sorts of things down at Local Colors - paintings, photographs, stained glass things to put in windows, jewelry - if you're looking for a gift for someone, don't go up the line, just swing by Main Street and stop here. You'll find some beautiful, funky thing, and you'll be supporting local artists!

Some of my favorite stuff at Local Colors is done by Tin Can Sally, whose website doesn't appear to completely reflect her work, as she does a lot more than just plates for light switches and outlets. You can find anything from bracelets to earrings to clocks made of vintage tin containers.

(I too contain chocolate right now.)

How cool is that? Come on, how can you not love that stuff. Much better gift than some cheap plastic jewelry from Claire's, right?

As always, you can see more of my photos here at my Flickr photostream. You can see the rest of the photos from this trip downtown in the set here.

things we found at my great-uncle's house

2010-04-05T18:50:00.003-04:00

There were a bunch of company-specific cook books (an orange juice company, Arm & Hammer baking soda, Crisco) and a few regular cook books, all from the 20s, 30s, and 40s.

No idea what those parking tokens are for. I didn't notice the science emblem until I'd taken the first picture.

clearing off the memory card

2009-12-05T22:18:00.002-05:00

Four copies of my book sold at the Cormorant Shop downtown. I nearly cried (happy tears!) when I heard.

At work

2009-07-25T18:35:00.001-04:00

“You sell bathing suits, right?”

“No, sorry.”

“(looks upset, points to an oil painting of a beach on the wall) But this is the beach."

- a customer and I.

On that note, the customer is not always right.

cloud watching

2009-07-20T22:58:00.002-04:00

Finally, finally, finally, my book 'cloud watching' is available for sale. You can purchase it here. It should be up on Amazon.com within the week.

because I need to update this more often

2009-04-17T19:12:00.002-04:00

This is from a game at the bowling alley.

Swinging on the rope swing over the winter.

Pleasant Street Tea Company.

I have a habit of getting a croissant and dark hot chocolate there (no matter the season).

Free: PC + monitor, television, printer, flatbed scanner, CD player w/ 5-disc changer (for pickup)

2009-04-17T17:03:00.007-04:00

Just head on down to Dogtown Common. First come, first serve.

Jell-O

2009-03-07T15:03:00.003-05:00

To whomever placed the Jell-O in my mailbox:

Thank you for making my day.

I love you.

<3

Important questions

2009-01-27T13:51:00.002-05:00

(from Wiki.Answers.com)

"Where can you cheat on algebra 2 Chicago math?"

"What is different about nepal?"

"Should women play hard to get?"

"Can you give me three sentences with abstract noun?"

"Who is the current batman?"

"That is so unfair my sis has the iphone so unfair lol?"

Finally: Part Two

2009-01-25T21:15:00.002-05:00

Here's a few photos from my January 11th trip to New York.

As soon as I sat down on my hospital bed, I heard talking. No, yelling. No...chanting. I went to the window and was quite surprised to see there was a protest going on. It explained the many groups of police my friend and I passed on the way to the hotel.

The building across from the hotel (with my reflection in the window, which was unfortunately unavoidable).

Sam and I went to the giant Toys'R'Us, where there were Lego sculptures and superheroes hanging from the ceiling and a giant Ferris wheel.

Oh, and GIANT animatronic dinosaurs.

Sam and I went to Juniors before the show (Spamalot) and I tried cheesecake from the first time. I know...I know. It was good, but way too rich for me to finish (and we only had one piece for the two of us).

One of the last photos I took outside Spamalot. My friend and I attended the closing show, where we saw (among others) Clay Aiken, Eric Idle, and David Hyde Pierce. I shook hands with David Hyde Pierce! It was awesome.

On another note, I've been in a funk about posting to my blog and I promise I'll post more, starting tomorrow! I've got plenty of photos to post.

Finally!

2009-01-19T13:13:00.005-05:00

My apologies for the massively long absence - I've been so busy traveling and loving 2009 that I haven't had time to update. On January 7th, myself and a Broadway-enthusiast friend of mine went to see one of the last performances of Gypsy on Broadway starring Patty LuPone. I took plenty of pictures.

Leaving Gloucester at 5:00 AM. The show was at 2:00 PM and we were getting tickets at the box office, so we had to get there early.

Astonishingly, a lot of people take the 5:00 AM train to Boston on a Wednesday. I did not know this.

Here's a sneaky shot from our seats. Didn't want the ushers to take my camera away.

After the show (since we had a few hours 'til our bus back to Boston), my friend and I went to Juniors, a restaurant steps away from Gypsy that apparently has the best cheesecake in New York, or possibly the world. I would not know, having - wait for it - never tried cheesecake in my life. As seen above, instead of bread for an appetizer, we got...I'm not even sure what it is, and I didn't feel like finding out.

We split a grilled cheese (since it was $9!) and a side of fries. It was a very filling and delicious grilled cheese. As you can see, the bread was very thick.

I hesitate to post the rest of the pictures (I really did take a lot) because most of them include my friend and I should probably get permission before I put her face on the internets for everyone to see.

Oh, one last picture from the day (er, night):

My friend slept over when we got back and the power went out (and came on) maybe three or four times. I kept lighting and blowing out candles. I got this little lantern at IKEA and was dying to use it.

Coming soon: my other trip to New York and...various assorted other things!

Trojan again

2009-01-09T16:40:00.001-05:00

My apologies...again...about the lack of updating. That trojan we had and thought we got rid of, well, turns out it just went into hiding and now it's back. Dad's working to get rid of it and in the meantime, I'm stuck with a laptop without a card reader.

Expect photos of my Wednesday trip to New York, once the PC starts working.

New Year's Eve and the sunrise

2009-01-02T09:20:00.005-05:00

For New Year's Eve:

My mother re-decorated the tree for the new year.

We ate Chinese food.

I played with the cat and got some horrifying action shots.

Yeah, you get that thing, Mistoffelees!

My oldest brother suggested I try to take a neat photo of the fire. After about 500 tries and him messing with the controls (I really should read the manual) I managed to snap this:

Much thanks to my Gorillapod for holding the camera still and all that.

In other news, it's 2009.

What? Huh? It didn't even occur to me on New Year's Eve. I was too busy thinking about celebrating New Year's Eve that I didn't even think "oh, right, we're counting down to 2009, not just because counting down is fun".

The second sunrise of 2009.

I could've gone up to the roof deck to get a better angle but it's probably ten degrees out so I'm thinking maybe not.

Answering questions

2009-01-01T20:26:00.002-05:00

Since I have found myself with time to spare over the holidays, I needed to find something to occupy myself with, and I appear to have found it in Wiki.Answers.com.

On this site, you can submit questions to be answered or answers questions that have been submitted. I have chosen to answer questions. I update the main page and find a question that I can answer...and then answer it.

Not only does it keep my occupied, but it provides me with hours of hilarity. Some of the questions that people ask are unbelievable. Here is a sampling:

"Who made cows?"

"What do people make horse poop out of?"

"I am in love with a girl I am level headed and thirty yo but this girl is so cute its killing me problem a she works on my floor b she has a boyfriend that works in the building who she rents with?"

"Does Jon understand Garfield?"

"Why are you geeks?"

Like I said, endless hours of fun.

Eagle II

2008-12-31T19:33:00.004-05:00

I posted a similar photo a while back but it was a photo from my camera. Here's one from the same time that my dad took with an actual camera.

Isn't that amazing? You can see it bigger on Flickr by clicking on the photo, clicking on "All sizes" above the photo, and then selecting "Original" above the photo. This is true of all of my photos.

Also, I am now updating from a brand new monitor from Dell. It's huge, widescreen, and has a television-worthy resolution.

Speaking of resolutions (though an entirely different kind), except a post in the near future about resolutions (not mine) for the new year.

Feedburner, Twitter and snow

2008-12-31T16:46:00.004-05:00

You can now subscribe by email to my blog by using that little "subscribe to miz lia by email" link down on your right in the sidebar. I have also added a Twitter gadget in the sidebar to show my latest tweets, and I totally plan on updating Twitter more often. In fact, I'm putting it in my favorites right now so I'll do it every day. I swear.

By the way, have you noticed it's snowing?

The snow makes really interesting patterns on the windows.

I really should bring my scooter in. Oops.

My mom put this together instead of purchasing a wreath this year. It looks nice with snow on it.

As always, more over at my Flickr photostream.

New header

2008-12-30T03:35:00.002-05:00

I am testing out a new header. You can vote on whether or not you like it to your right in the sidebar.

I'm also messing with the layout of my blog. I accidentally deleted all my formatting and had to do it all over again, which was super fun, and I'm sure most of you have no idea what I'm talking about. I just wanted to remove that gaping space at the top, which apparently I can't do unless I remove the space to the left and right of the blog as well.

So don't forget to vote for the header on your right.

The sky and Walgreens

2008-12-29T18:10:00.003-05:00

Also, I found this gum at Walgreens:

and

Bizarre. At least it's not similarly flavored.

Rain

2008-12-27T16:14:00.000-05:00

Rain on the window. At least most of the snow is gone now.

Snowman update

2008-12-27T15:27:00.001-05:00

As of yesterday:

:(

Christmas II

2008-12-26T16:12:00.003-05:00

My Christmas in photos. All of these pictures were taken with my new Canon Digital Rebel XS. Ahhhhh, I love it so.

The tree! A Fraser Fir.

Dad got Guitar Hero. We all failed at it until my older brother calibrated the game so the music and graphics were properly aligned.

We traditionally ate my mom's baked french toast as well as bacon and eggs for breakfast.

My oldest brother (cutting up fruit to eat in this photo) bought the family some "Miracle Fruit" tablets and a bunch of fruit to try. You may have heard of this stuff - the proteins from this "miracle fruit" bind to your sour taste buds and make sour things taste sweet. I, being daring, was the first to try one.

I sucked on a lemon, drank orange juice, ATE VINEGAR...and it was all different. The lemon like sweet lemonade, the orange juice tasted disgusting and not at all like oranges, and the vinegar...wait for it...was delicious. Seriously. It was really good. A day later I appear to be suffering no side effects so I would say this stuff is harmless and extremely fun.

Our cat Mistoffelees loooved curling up on the tree.

Though he also liked stretching out on the couch.

My grandmother and I took a picture of each other taking a picture.

Finally, I discovered that unfocusing my camera as much as possible and taking photos of the lights on the tree looked pretty cool. This effect has a name that I can't remember, but I think it's a Japanese word that begins with a b.

I also got a stocking, opened my presents, and ate food between all this but you all know what that's like so I didn't really take photos of it.

More over at my Flickr photostream.

Cat

2008-12-25T20:03:00.000-05:00

A photo taken of my cat with my brand-spanking-new camera. I'll update more tonight (or maybe tomorrow) with more photos from today.

Christmas

2008-12-25T13:28:00.000-05:00

Ahhhhh!

I got a big girl camera for Christmas. The Canon Digital Rebel XS.

Expect a LOT of photos from now on, because I just can't stop taking pictures with this thing. I love it.

SANTAAAA!

2008-12-24T14:13:00.001-05:00

Snowman

2008-12-23T23:41:00.000-05:00

Here's the snowman I made on the 21st:

Here it is today:

:( Poor guy. His mouth fell off. At least he's frozen, now, so he probably shouldn't fall over.

Reversibale at the Comorant Shop

2008-12-21T22:08:00.002-05:00

Since we know the owner (and occasionally man the store), my mother and I often start or end (or both) our Main Street adventures at The Cormorant Shop.

I actually really like this jacket (though it is a bit old for me), but I just can't get past the tag. I think it's hilarious.

No, these aren't goldfish for sale - it's soap! I think that's such a neat idea.

Did I mention that Janice is having a 50% sale of almost everything in the story? FIFTY PERCENT. That's a lot! I highly suggest you go and take advantage of it now, since the store is closing for January and February.

Finally, I know this will amuse you all...here I am modeling the Snuggie, or is it the Snuggle?

I KNOW it looks silly, but it's actually quite comfortable. It's like curling up with a blanket that follows you around.

Village Silversmith

2008-12-21T22:02:00.003-05:00

Up next is Village Silversmith. Unfortunately they sell no underwear, but they do sell some very neat jewelry.

I know, this isn't jewelry, but isn't it so cool? I love touching these and going "ahhhh I'm touching something 365 million years old!"

For those of you who didn't like the little stone angels I posted from Rocky Neck Art Colony, Village Silversmith offers an alternative:

Teeny little Buddhas!

Loooove this necklace. I'm don't really like topaz/amber-colored things (which is lame since it's my birthstone) but this looks so...antique.

They arrange all the jewelry by color which tickles me for some reason. Here's some blue (my favorite color!) pendants. I particularly like the sparkly one on the center-left.

If you don't like Buddhas or angels and prefer to be completely non-denominational, here are some lapis worry stones (I think that's what they're called) that fit nicely under your thumb.

The Menage Gallery

2008-12-21T21:56:00.004-05:00

I LOVE these beautiful hand-painted glasses. They are all different shapes and sizes. I unfortunately didn't get any prices (for anything) here because I wasn't sure where to look and I didn't want to touch anything because I was afraid I'd break it.

I almost forgot what this is but then I remembered: a fountain! The water comes down from the top and runs over the glass. Very pretty.

I loooove these glasses. They remind me of stained glass (which I love). I thought it was funny that there was a sign next to them that said "you really can drink from these!"

A cute cat mid-stretch out on the sidewalk in front of the store.

Oh, and I almost forgot:

For those of you who can't get enough of Joe's "What Up Homie?" installments, you can just purchase this seagull and attach a speech bubble that says "What up homie?" to its mouth.

Seasons on Main (Street)

2008-12-21T21:51:00.008-05:00

Seasons on Main ALSO sells underwear (along with jewelry, clothing, and other things).

I believe not-a-Captain Joe did a blog entry about these Spanx, many moons ago. I don't know why men don't understand "power panties". I guess they just don't mind their beer guts hanging out.

More undapants. Seriously, those of you who need to go up the line to buy underwear REALLY aren't looking hard enough.

Look at that. A whole wall of underwear.

Seasons on Main really does sell a lot of other stuff but I was just so focused on underwear at that point.

More underwear

2008-12-21T21:51:00.006-05:00

I dropped into Palazola's to snap a quick photo of the underwear they also offer.

The Bookstore

2008-12-21T21:47:00.001-05:00

This bookstore downtown is literally called "The Bookstore".

I had to snap a picture of their cool doorknob. I realized immediately after taking it that I probably shouldn't be crouched with my eye three inches from a doorknob.

Isn't this a neat grandfather clock? It's a legitimate pendulum-driven clock, as opposed to clocks that happen to have pendulums. You can tell the difference by watching the second hand and the pendulum and listening for the ticks. In pendulum-driven clocks, the second hand is moved by the pendulum. I've seen a few "clocks that happen to have pendulums" where the pendulum wasn't even in time with the second hand.

This is above the clockface - I imagine it turns throughout the day and eventually becomes a night scene.

Stone Leaf

2008-12-21T21:43:00.003-05:00

Next up: The Stone Leaf on Main Street.

I think this is hilarious - for $16, your plastic tree (and your whole home) can smell like a Christmas tree! There's also regular and votive candles, which are cheaper.

More underwear. SEE? Boxers, but still underwear all the same.

This is a fascinating...pear-shaped candle? I have the question mark because I think it's a pear. I don't know if I've ever seen red pears before, but I don't study fruit that much.

My mom really likes these teacups. They come with a teacup, a matching saucer, and a stirrer.

She especially likes that water lily one on the lower left.

Life is Good

2008-12-21T20:32:00.003-05:00

Next we went to the Life is Good store. The night before we had gone to Palazola's and I noticed they were selling underwear. I thought, people always say how they can't by underwear in Gloucester and they have to go up the line. Well, I found several places that sell underwear, so there.

Like at the Life is Good store downtown. Here's some thermal underwear.

Sargent house

2008-12-21T20:16:00.003-05:00

Has anyone spotted these before?

If you peek under the fence at the Sargent house on Main Street (on the left side, past the stairs) you can see these wicked cute stone bunnies.

Pisces

2008-12-21T20:06:00.003-05:00

The next stop (on Friday - the stupid trojan prevented me posting these until now) was Pisces on Main Street.

I tried the sugar lotion. It smelled very good. I lost the prices I wrote down but the lotion and the hand creme are between $20-$25.

These pomegranate lotion didn't have a "try me" sticker on it but I was dying to try it.

This should appeal to the adults...it's a line of different edibles kept in alcohol - onions, pickles, cherries, olives...for that party that needs a little extra punch.

I love these sea-inspired ornaments - I believe they're $12.

Thisssss is something I would love. It's got lavender and some other stuff in it and it smells wonderful. You can stick it in the microwave for fifteen seconds and heat it up and enjoy the smells or snuggle with it.

Sugar Magnolias

2008-12-21T19:45:00.002-05:00

Mom and I started our day here (on Friday) at Sugar Magnolias. This was my breakfast. Delicious.

Dogtown snow cam

2008-12-21T13:15:00.003-05:00

Video clips at Ustream

While I'm waiting for my dad to get rid of the trojan, here's a live stream of the snow in Dogtown, Gloucester. You can't really tell from the video but it is currently snowing...again.

ETA: If you tune in between now and maybe 3-4 PM, you can watch me (as best you can with the angle of the cam) build the most epic snowman in the history of Gloucester. The snow that's falling now sticks together really, really well and it only took fifteen minutes or so to roll a bottom part of the snowman that's at least three feet tall. I plan to make it as tall as I possibly can.

Trojan (virus)

2008-12-21T12:46:00.001-05:00

I apologize for the lack of updates. I have some more photos of downtown businesses and their wares to post, but the family PC has a mean, stubborn trojan virus (and a card reader, which my laptop lacks). It should hopefully be clean within the day, so I'll post those photos ASAP.

Disposable cameras

2008-12-17T04:17:00.002-05:00

Does anyone still use them?

Though I much prefer the convenience of digital cameras, I can't help but miss the simplicity of a disposable camera. On my 2000 trip to Europe, I just used disposable after disposable camera.

I couldn't check to make sure the picture I took was good. Looking through the viewfinder made all of my pictures off-center. Winding the camera was slow. I had to wait for the flash to charge. Sometimes I would leave the cameras somewhere and forget to get the film developed for months.

Despite all of that, I love disposable cameras. I love the permanence of film. Nowadays I could take 36 pictures of the same thing with a digital camera. When I used disposable cameras I had to make each picture count. Each photo was something special, no matter if it was blurry or off-center. Everything I photographed was captured forever. I couldn't go in and delete the ones I didn't like or didn't have room for.

Of course, if I love film so much, I could get a camera that uses film, couldn't I? Well, I prefer digital. As much as I love film, it costs more and it takes longer to actually see the photos. Much more labor-intensive (like driving to Walgreens and handing them a film canister is labor). That's why I love disposable cameras - they weren't something you used all the time. They were special, for vacations or holidays or birthdays. Then you just bring the camera somewhere and a few days later you have photos. There's no camera lying around that you never use but think you should, no film you have to keep track of (is this a blank roll?). It's so...simple.

I bring this up because while looking for something in my room I found an old "American Girl" disposable camera. I was way into American Girls when I was younger. I have no idea what pictures are hidden inside it - I'm going to bring it to Walgreens and getting the prints back will be like opening a present and going on a trip down memory lane.

Once I found this camera, I thought, I must have more of these. I did. I found another one with a few pictures left on it, so I snapped a couple before taking the film out (even though the AG one and this one explicitly state, for the sake of children, not to take the film out and to deliver the camera to a photo place as is).

After digging even deeper, I found an old plastic camera that my parents gave me. There's film in it but apparently I never used it because there was only one or two pictures taken. Naturally I'm snapping photos with it. I put a battery in so the flash would work but the camera must be slightly broken because the flash is kaput. It still takes pictures, however, and that's what counts.

I can't wait to have prints made from this old film and see what weird pictures there are. Expect a post with some of the better (or hilarious) ones soon.

Lighting the Lobster Pot Tree (Santa!)

2008-12-14T15:20:00.002-05:00

My favorite part of this video is me going "SANTA! SANTA!"

My dad's camera died not seconds after the lights went on and I'm very glad I was able to get the shot.

Quote from Cormorant Shop

2008-12-14T01:06:00.001-05:00

And finally, rounding out my Saturday (though it technically started it), a grandmother came into the Cormorant Shop and was telling us about her adorable granddaughter who loves to talk. Here's a quote from the wise girl, Maddie:

"Did you know I have a shoulder?"

Rocky Neck Art Colony II

2008-12-14T00:59:00.003-05:00

A week ago or so I went to the open house at the Rocky Neck Art Colony. It was a bit hard to get a look at the art because there were so many people there. My mom and I went back to look around and we were the only people there, so it was much easier to get the pictures I wanted.

I became enamored with these little angels they're selling in a bowl on the counter. They're maybe an inch and a half tall and made of some kind of clay (or something similar).

I'm not a big pray-er, but if you're so inclined, these little guys fit very nicely between your thumb and forefinger, like so:

I thought it would be nice for, you know...praying, or...introspection. Or maybe for when you're having thoughts about people wearing wavy dresses with their saggy arms in the air, if you're not into angels. (The tape on the back of the saggy-armed dress wearer is holding the price tag on: $3!)

The Rocky Neck Art Colony also has plenty of very nice art for sale as well:

Even some tree ornaments made by various Rocky Neck artists! All the ornaments on the tree are for sale.

Some very nice necklaces under the counter.

The sunset through a stained glass piece hanging in a window in the back. Have I mentioned I love stained glass?

Local Colors

2008-12-14T00:58:00.002-05:00

Just one picture from Local Colors - I loooved the way a stained glass piece hanging in the window looked when the sun was setting.

I love stained glass so much.

Joke Shop

2008-12-14T00:53:00.001-05:00

Joke Shop next! I hadn't been in there yet so I suggested my mom and I go. It's where the Joy of Socks used to be on Main Street, next to Lone Gull.

It's owned by the same guy who owns Vamp Fangs which, believe it or not, is run out of a warehouse in the Gloucester Post Office. I kid you not. There happen to be some of those vampire fangs for sale at the Joke Shop, as well as magic tricks, plenty of gross/smelly/funny/ugly joke things, some shirts, and even a bit of theatrical makeup - oh, and some hair dye too! Manic Panic and other bright dyes. I might get some there when I get tired of my blue hair.

This scared the pants off of a maybe nine-year-old boy who was looking at stuff. The fake cockroach is attached by string to the fake bagel and the plate, so when you lift it up not only do you see a cockroach, but it moves (with the bagel). The kid almost fell over he was so surprised. Hilarious.

Sawyer Free Library

2008-12-14T00:46:00.002-05:00

Next was Sawyer Free Library, where there was a "wearing arts show and fundraiser" for seARTS. I didn't get many pictures of the jewelry/other various wearable arts because I didn't feel well and decided I would just sit instead.

I did get these pictures of some neat handmade jewelry, though:

Love the necklace. Both pieces were made by Annabel Wildrick.

I also found this cute little guy sitting on a windowsill.

City hall

2008-12-14T00:17:00.001-05:00

Next was city hall to check out the gingerbread contest entries. My mom mentioned seeing the Art Haven's entry and I was sure it was going to win. It got second. Should've won.

My mom asked me to snap a picture of this lobster. These guys are old (well, not really old) - people painted all these lobsters and they were showcased all over the city. The art class at GHS still has the one they did in one of the school hallways.

Here's the gingerbread city hall, entered by the Art Haven - the first thing I said when I saw it was, "Look, it even leans like the real one!"

My mom and I had a good laugh until we realized that it was leaning a bit more every time we looked at it, so we notified some people and they ran around telling other people. They came to the conclusion that the lights inside were melting the icing and it was falling apart. Of course, it also could've been...gravity.

This was one of the other entries, I think? I'm not entirely sure what it is (which is why I took a picture).

Present on Pleasant

2008-12-14T00:13:00.002-05:00

My mom and I also stopped by Present on Pleasant which was, of course, covered more than adequately on Good Morning Gloucester, but I couldn't help but snap a few pictures.

I fell in love with these ADORABLE knitted kittens. They're just the cutest things (and under $10, if memory serves).

So fuzzy and cute. It's killing me.

Beth William's studio

2008-12-13T23:27:00.002-05:00

Beth William's studio is a nice little place tucked inbetween what is now Present on Pleasant (Street) and what was Anne-Margaret Ferrante's headquarters. She does beautiful handmade glass beads and jewelry. In fact, I'm wearing some of her work right now.

Among other things in Beth's studio, there are these beads that you can mix and match to put on gold or silver hoops. I'm wearing blue ones with gold spots right now. $15 for two - a quick and beautiful Christmas present.

Here is...er, one of Beth's coworkers (I didn't want to interrupt her for her name and have her burn her hand off) working on some beads. It was fascinating to watch.

These are loads and loads of glass rods, used for making beads. Fascinating and beautiful stuff.

Art Haven

2008-12-13T23:19:00.004-05:00

The second stop of the day was the Art Haven, where they were working hard (and maybe hardly working) on an ice castle made of ice donated by Cape Pond Ice. I say "hardly working" because the kids, while they were having a great time, seemed to be more destructive than constructive. But they're kids and they were having fun, so good for them.

Here's David Brooks (we graduated high school together!) working hard on the top of the castle. Without a coat. David. He also founded (co-founded?) the Art Haven, which I think is just a great thing.

It seemed that the kids' jobs were just to take one of those pointy things and a wooden mallet and make holes in the ice. I suppose to help the ice blocks stick together better.

This was pretty early in the day - I can only imagine how many kids came to help out as the day went on.

Ahhhhh! The sun's coming! D:

Here's some of the buoys the kids inside were painting. They were later hung on the lobster pot tree (across the street) like ornaments - they looked really neat.

Oh, and for you giving souls, here's the Art Haven's wish list:

Cormorant Shop

2008-12-13T23:17:00.002-05:00

Around 11 AM on Saturday, mom and I stopped in first to the Cormorant Shop on Main Street. Most of the pictures I took were lame.

Here's some smiley face socks Janice is selling, available in women and men sizes. I have a penchant for smiley faces, I think they're cute.

A woman brought a dog into the store while she talked to Janice. His name is Hobo and this is the only good picture of him I could get, because he either had his back to me or had his nose all up on the camera.

Wind, migraines, and growing up

2008-12-11T07:50:00.002-05:00

Wind.

I hate you.

I hate you always getting up in my business and blowing papers around and making my hair go in my face and messing up my photos. >:O

I went out to take pictures a few nights ago and it was so windy that I couldn't get a good picture of anything. I tried to take a picture of the Christmas tree on the cut and 9/10 shots were squiggly and blurry. I tried taking a picture of the moon and the moon stood still but the wind buffeted my camera around.

I also couldn't be bothered to get outside my car for most of the pictures I wanted to take because it was fourteen degrees out at the time. So here is the Christmas tree down on the cut, from my car:

It was soooooooooooooo windy! (How windy was it?) No, I jest. The five-year-old in me always wants to wave the camera around during long exposures and make squiggly lines with the lights.

It was quite windy out, though, and the tree just wouldn't stand still for a decent picture. I was hoping to take one a few seconds long to actually capture the tree and not just the lights, but the wind was having none of that. I managed to snap one of the tree standing still.

And this coming up next is the first of many failed attempts to photograph the moon from a stone bench next to the Fisherman at the Wheel statue. This one, though terrible, is infinitely better than the others. I'm posting it here as a reminder to go out and take a decent photo of the moon sometime when it's not windy out.

Also, I got my first jury duty notice. My mom informed me and we had a good giggle over it. It wasn't so much a "haha funny" giggle as it was a "you're five years old and you're getting jury duty notices" giggle.

(I'm actually not five years old.)

Jury duty! Yaaaaay!

Oh, and migraines, I forgot I put that in the title. I had a killer migraine yesterday morning and managed to sleep it off before my brain exploded. I bring this up because I want to mention the "home remedy" that has been passed from my, um...great...aunt? Her name is Libby, anyway, and she suffers from migraines, as do I (though not so much lately, thank goodness). Libby recommended Pepsi One and Advil. That's it. I remember trying it years ago and I can't remember if it worked.

When I mentioned yesterday morning to my mother that I had a migraine, she said, "Oh, I should go get you some Pepsi One." I had no idea what she was talking about until she reminded me about Libby's sworn-by home remedy. I had completely forgotten but I was willing to try anything to keep my head from exploding. Unfortunately I didn't get to try it before I napped, so I'll have to test its validity another day.

Mentioning Libby and migraines brings up a fond memory from a few years ago. Libby found out I was having migraines and, bless her, sent me an eye mask to wear to block the light out when I was in pain. It was around Valentine's Day and the eye mask was pink with red and purple hearts all over it and a purple lining. She cut away some of its original packaging before giving it to me, removing its name and description. This confused me briefly before I realized that a heart-covered, pink eye mask purchased around Valentine's Day was probably, um, not intended for migraine sufferers.

It's the thought that counts.

Good news!

2008-12-10T22:20:00.000-05:00

As of this moment, you can now access this blog by simply typing miz-lia.com into your address bar. Try it.

Rocky Neck Art Colony

2008-12-07T18:54:00.004-05:00

Last night, my mother and I went to the Winter Exhibit for the Rocky Neck Art Colony. The art was good and there was a good amount of people.

One lady wandered outside to smoke while I was taking this picture. "What are you taking a picture of?" "...Um...the sign." Also, I used my Gorillapod for this picture. Wrapped it around a meter. I love it.

There was lots of soda and not a lot of wine. Or, everyone was drinking the plentiful wine and no one touched the soda (except me).

I had many of those peanut butter cookies. I love those kind.

I wrapped my Gorillapod around a different meter to take this picture. I love how every light becomes a six-pointed star.

Oh! And we got our Christmas tree yesterday - a gorgeous 9' Fraser Fir, picked out by yours truly. I originally only pointed it out because I liked the color (the underneath of the needles was a pretty light blue) but then we decided to get it because it was better than the other trees we had looked at. Many thanks to Wolf Hill for their selection of Christmas trees.

I'll post some pictures of it when there's lights/ornaments/tinsel, because it's quite a thing to behold.

More (much more) over at my Flickr photostream.

Dream excerpt

2008-12-04T18:21:00.001-05:00

In the middle of my dream last night, I had a sudden moment of clarity.

"This isn't real," I said, "and you don't know it's not real...because you're not real."

Hugh Laurie just stared back at me. There was nothing he could say.

Prop 8 - The Musical

2008-12-03T18:32:00.003-05:00

Cast (in order of appearance):

California Gays and The People That Love Them
Jordan Ballard, Margaret Cho, Barrett Foa, J.B. Ghuman, John Hill, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, Rashad Naylor, Nicole Parker

Proposition 8'ers and The People That Follow Them
Prop 8 Leader: John C. Reilly
Prop 8 Leader's #1 Wife: Allison Janney
Prop 8 Leader's #2 Wife: Kathy Najimy
Riffing Prop 8'er: Jenifer Lewis
A Preacher: Craig Robinson
Scary Catholic School Girls From Hell: Rashida Jones, Lake Bell, Sarah Chalke
The Frightened Villagers: Katharine "Kooks" Leonard, Seth Morris, Denise "Esi!" Piane, Lucian Piane, Richard Read, Seth Redford, Quinton Strack, Tate Taylor

Jesus Christ: Jack Black
A Very Smart Fellow: Neil Patrick Harris
Piano Player: Marc "Marc" Shaiman

Many of these people are Broadway folks, which makes it even better in my opinion.

Six word story

2008-12-02T22:05:00.001-05:00

My attempt at a six-word story:

"Mmmmm," said Aslan. Children were delicious.

A December birthday treasure hunt

2008-12-02T19:24:00.003-05:00

I went to Walgreens to get some candy and while I was there, a group (maybe ten of them) of 50-ish ladies came in, laughing and giggling and...with giant helium balloons? They stopped by the cashier first and I wasn't sure what was going on until I heard, "Here's your next clue!"

This group of wonderful people had set up a treasure hunt around Gloucester (I presume) to celebrate the fiftieth birthday of their friend. It was adorable. I assume the cashier gave her the next clue: a medium-sized box wrapped like a present. It was a short verse that I struggled to remember, with something about "posing for pictures" and "garden tours". The other clue was tied to the bottom of the balloons (not sure where those came from): a start that had "3" on one side and "R" on the other.

The poor woman struggled to figure out the clues while we onlookers watched excitedly. The ladies thought this (us watching) was hysterical. They also snapped pictures of the birthday girl, which I bet they did at every place.

The woman couldn't figure out the clue, so they started to leave for "the limobus", they said. Apparently she figured it out right before they left, because I heard one woman yell back to us, "She figured it out! It's _______!"

I heard "Debbie's", which makes absolutely no sense to me, but that's why the treasure hunt was not for me.

Massage pillow

2008-12-01T21:55:00.003-05:00

My mother and I went to BJ's (and various other places) today and I was reunited with my love, the massage chair. There was a guy sitting in it when I got there, and I waited and waited but he didn't get up, so I wandered away. Thirty seconds later, he was gone, so I ran back and sat down. As soon as I sat down, he was back with other people, presumably to show them the chair. TOO LATE. I didn't give it up for a good ten minutes. When I finally did, the guy jumped right back into it.

Then I came home and found that my HoMedics shiatsu pillow came from Target. It's wonderful. Feels good on my back, shoulders, neck...even my feet. Ahhhhhhh so good.

In other, non-massage related news, my hair is blue. Here is a 360-degree view of it (also known as a "video"):

Yeah, I'm a weirdo. But I think it's pretty. You can't deny it's a pretty color.

I will end with a quote I heard at the Dollar Tree in Danvers:

"Alright, I'm gonna beat the people who work here!"

Spoken by an upset lady going through stuff in the store. We found out later at the checkout that she worked there when she walked over with an armful of stuff and said to the cashier, "This was all in a box! Look at this! When I find out who did this, I'm gonna kill them!"

The violent rage doesn't come across as well in text. You'll have to imagine it.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T02:03:00.003-05:00

I could explain the context (THANK YOU DAD because I honestly could not remember that word) of these quotes but I think it's funnier if I don't.

Aunt: We just went there on a field trip.
Grandmother: Hooters?

Mom: What about you? Cake and ice cream? [Thanksgiving is also when my relatives do my birthday.]
Great Uncle: Yes.
Mom: Chocolate or vanilla? Ice cream.
Great Uncle: Yes.
Mom: Okay then.

YEAH WOOOO I'M 19.

But I'm special EVERY day.

I just think this spoon is really pretty.

For the record, this is sparkling juice.

I got a Gorillapod from my grandmother and I used it to take this 60-second exposure (I also figured out how to make my mom's camera do 15/30/60-second exposures) of Gloucester, facing north. Not that exciting. Also crooked.

Now THIS is exciting. At least I think so. This is a pictorial representation of being electrocuted. No, this is in my car, driving, for sixty seconds. All of those wiggly lights are streetlamps and the big glow is my headlights reflecting on the road. Isn't that cool? I think it's cool.

More over at my Flickr photostream. See, I could have posted pictures of the turkey, but you all know what a turkey looks like.

Poetry

2008-11-26T16:41:00.004-05:00

For those of you who don't know (probably most of you), I write poetry. I'm working on self-publishing a book of poetry and photographs that will probably be out next spring.

I found this while cleaning my room. It's from my Writing for Publication class in high school and it was written on May 7th, 2007. There is no title on the paper.

When spring arrived I
sat beneath the willow tree,
watching her
though she did not watch me.

When summer came I
followed to the silver stream,
standing in the flowers
so I could watch her dream.

When fall arrived I brought a blanket,
wrapped it ‘round her shoulders,
whispered, don’t let winter take you
in her flower-covered ear.

When winter came I sat beside her,
helping build the fire
when her back was turned.

When spring arrived I saw my baby
growing up to be a lady
so I went back to the garden
with a flower in my hair.

Reading that was a strange step back in time for me. I didn't even remember I'd written it until I read it. It took me a while to remember what it was about. I know the gist of it, but the meaning of one of the verses (the fire) is still lost to me.

For the record, I got an "A" and an "Outstanding" written above it.

Also, while cleaning my room I found my old book of photos from my 2000 (I believe) trip to Europe with my family. I might post some of the pictures that aren't terrible. Most of them were taken with a disposable camera, which isn't so bad for quality, it's just that because the viewfinder isn't above the lens all of the pictures are off-center. There's a picture of Big Ben a few pages in that would have been great...if it was in the middle of the picture and not way off to the side, half cut-off.

Cleaning my room

2008-11-26T02:03:00.002-05:00

My room goes through phases of very dirty and very clean. Right now I'm somewhere inbetween.

Streaming live video by Ustream

Tune in for updates.

Things I Have Learned From Experience

2008-11-23T03:37:00.001-05:00

For a long time I've wanted to work on a book that I have tentatively titled in my head "Things I Have Learned From Experience". The content should be obvious from the title. I only wish I'd consistently written down the things that I have learned, but I suppose now isn't a bad time to start.

10 Things...

2008-11-22T23:10:00.000-05:00

...that begin with the letter W.

Cafepress store

2008-11-22T19:57:00.002-05:00

I remember when I was maybe ten or something and I started a CafePress store. I was totally expecting to make big bucks off of my drawing on a dragon. Oh yeah.

Anyway, now I've created a CafePress store for this blog, featuring (eventually) quotes and photos and so on. Right now there's only one quote, but eventually I'll get around to doing more.

http://www.cafepress.com/mizlia/6222546.

Be a creeper...

2008-11-22T03:05:00.002-05:00

and watch my webcam. Note: it will be of a lot of random things.

Streaming live video by Ustream

I'm doing this because I want to do a live stream of something cool, like a show of some kind, but that would require actual thinking.

You can be a total creeper and tune in if you'd like, until I actually decide to do a regularly scheduled show.

Massage chair

2008-11-22T00:24:00.001-05:00

My mom and I went to BJs earlier and I noticed in one of the aisles that they had a "shiatsu massage pillow". It was on a shelf so you could only see how it felt on your hands, which wasn't very exciting. At the end of the aisle, though, they had a massage chair that you could try. Of course I tried it. Ahhhhhhh I love massage chairs.

A man pushed his cart by and stopped immediately upon seeing me, looking amused.

Man: The expression on your face is that of pure joy.
Me: It's...it's wonderful.

Paintings and the sunset

2008-11-21T17:05:00.003-05:00

I did this painting during my senior year in Honors/AP Art. Not bad, I think. It was of various different metal objects (cans, a whisk, a helmet, a pan, et cetera).

This one was done in the same class and is not so good. It's of different glass things sitting in front of a window. Eh.

And the sunset again. Especially nice with the clouds.

Sunset on my birthday

2008-11-19T23:38:00.002-05:00

On this, the day of my birth

2008-11-19T14:21:00.000-05:00

Sorry, mom.

SO COLD.

Gloucester 2009 Calender

2008-11-17T23:22:00.001-05:00

Click here to buy my 2009 calender with pictures taken in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Bruised thumb

2008-11-16T03:51:00.001-05:00

I've spent the past...almost week making something for my friend's birthday. It involves a lot of large and little tools. This evening I worked with the smaller tools and my thumbs are KILLING ME. They're bruised. I've never had bruised thumbs before.

The Cormorant Shop

2008-11-16T00:35:00.002-05:00

I was manning the Cormorant Shop downtown today. It was raining and foggy for most of the workday. At one point a lady came in and commented on the weather while she was looking around. I forget what she said, but it was something about how bad the weather was. I agreed that it was bad. And then she said:

"This is one of those days where you have to make your own sunshine."

I need to store these kind of inspiring quotes in my brain so I can whip them out and make it seem like I just came up with them.

A Public Birthday

2008-11-14T23:39:00.001-05:00

If you want to celebrate my 19th birthday, come to Pleasant Street Tea Company downtown between 6-7 PM on November 19th (2008) and have a hot drink or a croissant with me.

This is not a party. This is a public gathering. I will just be sitting at a table, probably drinking a hot chocolate. Sit in the free chair and help me with my crossword, or we can talk. Or you can talk with someone else. Like I said, this is just a public gathering.

I'm not expecting presents but if you feel so inclined, something artistic would hit the spot. A homemade card, a quote written on a napkin, a drawing...things like that.

Remember to be respectful if you come - I'm not reserving tables or using the back room or anything like that, so there might be other people there, just enjoying their tea, like we will do.

Also: anyone can come to this if they want. I don't even need to know you. I just like the idea of people getting together to hang out at one of my favorite places in Gloucester.

Students' Work Theatre Project

2008-11-13T00:06:00.003-05:00

So a while back I wrote this 10-minute play, "Seven and One". It's going to be performed at Salem State this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

The 6th Annual Students' Work Theatre Project features 8 10-minute one-act plays written and directed by students.

Thursday November 13 @ 7:30PM
Friday November 14 @ 7:30PM
Saturday November 15 @ 7:30PM

Admission is FREE, donations accepted.

A portion of the proceeds from this event will go to benefit Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD).

The plays will take place in the Callan Studio Theatre. Directions can be found here. Click "Bird's eye" and view it from the East to see the entrance. Click on the "1" tag for more specific directions.

Eagle

2008-11-12T22:47:00.000-05:00

This was taken sometime during the summer, out on the boat. It was much more awesome in person and my phonecam didn't do it justice.

Guerilla Art Project Night

2008-11-12T22:45:00.001-05:00

Joey Ciamitaro.

Delicious, fresh-popped popcorn.

Herbal popcorn.

Cupcakes

2008-11-09T18:40:00.000-05:00

Spice cake cupcakes with maple frosting (maple syrup and confectioners sugar). Deeeelicious.

Also, check out those gams.

Life with my dad

2008-11-09T00:31:00.002-05:00

I was about to bake spice cake when I smelled this horrible smell. SOMEONE (ONE OF MY BROTHERS I'M NOT POINTING FINGERS) let something drip onto the bottom of the oven and...left it there. Not cool. I just spent ten minutes scraping it up and collecting it all in a paper towel.

Me: If we were two crazy college kids, I would dare you to eat this.
Dad: Well, I probably would.

Pleasant Street Tea Company

2008-11-08T18:45:00.000-05:00

Unamused plate is unamused.

Downtown

2008-11-08T18:24:00.002-05:00

Did anyone else know there was a park right next to the Gloucester House? It's tiny and frankly it's not really a park, but there it is.

How many times have I walked down Main Street and not seen this door?

Going out this late? I have a video of the ridiculously vast amount of birds that followed this boat.

GIVE ME YOUR TRASH, PUNY HUMANS.

Many more over at my Flickr photostream.

Live puppy cam

2008-11-08T17:44:00.003-05:00

24/7 (I'm presuming) live feed of these adorable puppies. What a great way to waste time.

Gloucester at night

2008-11-07T19:02:00.002-05:00

Pleasant Street Tea Company. I stopped by for some mulled cider.

This was actually taken at night.

They finally unveiled the work they've been doing. It looks good.

Ah, if it were that simple.

Channel 5 news

2008-11-06T23:06:00.001-05:00

They're talking on the news right now about how bad the economy is doing and no one's buying anything and gas prices are low and there are sales everywhere et cetera et cetera.

I dream of a future where money simply does not exist.

Like in Star Trek: First Contact.

"The economics of the future are somewhat different. You see, money doesn't exist in the 24th century. The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives; we work to better ourselves and the rest of humanity."

- Jean-Luc Picard, Star Trek: First Contact

Gloucester in Photos

2008-11-06T20:37:00.002-05:00

I have published a book of photos.
I used lulu.com, a site that makes it extremely easy to publish all sorts of different media. I plan to use Lulu when I publish my first full-fledged book of poetry and photos.

But for now I give you:

Gloucester in Photos

A collection of some of my favorite photos that I have taken in an around Gloucester. The title implies that there is some part of Gloucester (tangible or intangible) in each of the pictures, but I suppose you could take it as "this is Gloucester in photo summary".

It is available for purchase at lulu.com at the link posted above, for $35.

Salem, MA

2008-11-02T14:13:00.003-05:00

So I've finally got pictures to post from Salem. Some were taken on Halloween, some were taken a little bit before it.

Does everyone on the North Shore have one of these red lines?

The Friendship, my next-door neighbor. I'm itching to get at her with a really good camera.

Mr. Collier could have found the cure for cancer but I will always think of him as "Louis Collier, junk dealer".

This house nearby has beautiful vines and leaves crawling up it.

Now, for some Halloween photos!

Very clever.

Because I am a massive dork, I followed these girls all the way down Essex Street until I could get their attention for a photo.

I think this man was supposed to be Mr. Freeze. Okay, now that I know he's not Mr. Freeze from the movie, he looks a lot more like him.

Now is the time...

2008-11-02T14:11:00.001-05:00

This is a fortune my mother got a couple of years ago. We kept it because…I’m not sure why we kept it. Maybe someday we’ll understand it.

Ordering prints of my Flickr photos

2008-10-27T18:38:00.003-04:00

If you would like to order a print (or prints) of my photos, please first refer to my Flickr Photostream and then use the URL (http://...) of the photo you would like a print of to fill out this form:

Ordering Form for My Photos

That form is only for ordering; payment is done later and securely through Paypal (note: you must have a Paypal account to order prints).

Free Hugs

2008-10-11T22:05:00.001-04:00

These girls were giving out free hugs for a while at the Block Party downtown.

New Apartment

2008-10-10T15:59:00.002-04:00

Apologies for the complete lack of updating for a while. I just moved into a new apartment in Salem, MA and since I don't own an actual camera (well, an actual good camera) I can't post any pictures. But trust me, when I get a camera, there will be pictures aplenty. I live close by to the Friendship, so expect plenty of pictures of that.

I would like to take a moment to link over to another blog: Good Morning Gloucester (My View of Life on the Dock), which is run by not-really-a-captain Joe Ciamitaro from Gloucester, MA (also known as my hometown).

When I published this blog, I received a few comments about my toes in the header. Yes, those are my toes. Yes...they need to be painted. I'll have you know they HAVE been painted since then. But Joe caught me at the Farmers' Market yesterday with my fingers in need of a-painting, and happily posted a picture of them to his blog:

(The picture links to the entry on his blog.)

Yes, I am lazy about painting my fingernails. Joe's picture inspired me to paint my nails when I got back to my apartment, but now they look even worse than before. I need some nail polish remover and I won't be able to get my hands on some until I get home tonight after rehearsal.

Speaking of rehearsal, I'm going to take a moment to plug Salem State's newest production: Proof. Here are the dates: Oct 16-18 and 23-25 at 8pm, and Oct 26 at 2pm. Proof will be performed in the Callan Studio Theatre, Salem State's smaller blackbox theatre. Admission is $15 general, $10 for students & seniors, and free with SSC student ID. "Directed by Professor Thomas Luddy, the Pulitzer Prize winning play, Proof, explores the relationship between two daughters of their recently deceased father, a famous mathematician who battled mental illness."

I'm the Costume Run Crew Chief for Proof, which means that whenever someone leaves the stage and comes back 30 seconds later wearing completely different clothes (which happens often in the play), I was the one ripping their clothes off and throwing the new ones on. Or I was supervising the three girls in my run crew as they ripped the clothes off. Yay leadership positions!

Farmers' Market

2008-09-26T15:49:00.002-04:00

Also, I took this picture at SSC, waiting for my World History class:

...?

Much more over at my Flickr photostream.

Macrophotography

2008-09-23T20:42:00.002-04:00

A flower in Pleasant Street Tea Company.

Pleasant Street Tea Company again.

Flowers off of the Pleasant Street parking lot.

Much more over at my Flickr photostream.

The Cut

2008-09-22T19:14:00.003-04:00

I remember climbing up onto the Man at the Wheel when I was a kid and standing in front of him, helping him guide his ship.

I'm going to include a disclaimer for this photo, though I shouldn't have to: I merely took this photo. I do not endorse or deny the statement.

More at my Flickr photostream.

Interview

2008-09-21T14:41:00.009-04:00

Interview with Linn Parisi (my mom)

Q: Hi.

A: Hi. Did you just get up?

Q: No. What's your job?

A: My job is Initiator and Director of Seaport Gloucester Destination Marketing Organization, aka Discover Gloucester.

Q: Do you like your job?

A: I do. It's very interesting, I'm meeting great people, I feel like I'm fulfilling a need, and I'm learning a lot. And it's something I really enjoy doing.

Q: If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?

A: Hmmm. (long pause) ...I'm thinking. I know a lot of trees, you know.

Q: I didn't think you'd take the question so seriously.

A: Well, do I have to give a reason or can I just say any kind of tree?

Q: You can say any kind of tree.

A: I guess I'd be a birch.

Q: That's a good tree. What's your favorite place to go in Gloucester?

A: These are hard questions. There are too many places I like to go to. I would say either Half-Moon Beach or the top of...what's the name of that street? Ledgemont? Let me look up the name of the street. The one off Mount Vernon Street. Yeah, I guess it's Ledgemont.

Q: Is that with the views?

A: It's like the view from that painting [over our piano].

("Gloucester from Portuguese Hill",
Ivan Kamalic.)

Q: Yeah, yeah.

A: I really like the view from Governor Hill on Commonwealth Avenue.

Q: So what are you gona do when I'm done interviewing you?

A: What am I gonna do? Keep working on this.

Q: What are you working on?

A: The DMO marketing plan.

Q: That's exciting.

A: Yeah, it is. It's a lot of work.

Q: Thank you for the interview. Can I get a scooter for Christmas?

A: Um...no. We'll talk.

Q: What's for supper?

A: I dunno. Maybe pancakes.

Q: That sounds good.

Bowling and a story

2008-09-21T13:54:00.003-04:00

I went to my cousin's birthday party yesterday at Cape Ann Lanes and learned that it's hard to take pictures when it's dark (no way), but blacklight looks really neat on camera.

More at my My Flickr photostream.

Now, storytime with Miz Lia. A friend and I have been restlessly searching for the Paint Manufactory on land for weeks but have never been able to find it. Last night, as I took the scenic route bringing her home, we decided it was a perfect time to find it. For those of you who don't know, the Paint Factory is at the end of a dead-end road in East Gloucester. My friend and I must've spent a half-hour driving up and down Rocky Neck Lane trying to find that road. At one point, I was actually on that dead-end road, but I foolishly assumed that the road ended at those signs, and did not continue on quite a ways to the Paint Factory. So we turned around, got back to Rocky Neck Lane, and drove around some more.

Finally, I saw a man walking his dog and cheated by asking for directions.

Me: Excuse me! Do you know how to get to the Paint Factory? We've been driving all around trying to find it!
Man: (smiles) Yes.
(Long, awkward pause.)
Me: Could you...give us directions?
Man: Well, you keep on going down this road, bear right, and then turn left when you get to the Rudder.
Me: Alright, thank you so much.
Man: You can't go in, you know, it's private property.
Me: I know, we just want to see it. Thank you!

Of course that brought us back to the dead end road. Of course. I almost didn't go down it, but my friend convinced me to, and...voila. The Paint Factory. We stared at it for a while before turning around (coming very close to driving into the water) and going on our way.

The end.

Seven and One: an original play

2008-09-19T16:58:00.005-04:00

In my effort to bring you many and varied pieces of art, I am posted an original ten-minute play. Read it over at Google Documents:

Seven Ways the World Didn't End

Farmers' Market

2008-09-18T19:33:00.001-04:00

Some photos from today; at and around the Farmers' Market.

Flickr

2008-09-18T19:20:00.001-04:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.