Monday, February 8th, 2010
To sum up the work week, let’s just say it was relaxing and productive. Yup.
I did a lot of drawing, coloring, watching Lost, eating oatmeal, making dinner, and saving money for the weekend! Below is a picture of a blackberry white chocolate truffle that I picked up from Van Duyn Chocolate Shop last weekend. Under that is my new favorite version of homemade grilled cheese. White bread (screw that wheat stuff, grilled cheese is meant to be made with fluffy white bread and lots o’ butter), pepper jack cheese, and a slathering of cream cheese that makes the experience extra creamy. O yea, and I eat in front of my computer. I think I’m starting to abuse the old thing, or else it’s just my closest friend out here in Portland. How hermit-esque does that sound?
Thursday was a nice happy hour for me. I got an iced Spanish coffee with all of the appropriate delicious liquors and split some chunky sweet potato fries in red pepper aioli dip at a place called Imbibe. Apparently it’s “yuppie”…psh, who cares? I don’t know why people avoid going to restaurants based on the supposed type of people who eat there. That sort of behavior annoys me. hmph.
Anyway Friday I had another coffee (sans the alcohol this time) at Coffee Time. The Mexican mocha, glamorously sprinkled with cinnamon and swirled to perfection, was both pretty and yummy! After hanging out there and listening to music, my new friend and I went for some sushi at the San Sai Japanese Grill. I ordered the Tempura Spicy Tuna (fried - I had to try it, sounds too good, right?). It was too good, almost too good to order again. I enjoyed it, but the mixture of breaded friedness with what would normally be a cleansing sort of meal just left me feeling weird. The check came and surprise! my sushi was half off. Now I had money to subdue that oh so familiar spot on my tongue that immediately craves sweetness after dinner. To St. Cupcake! Only a few blocks away. I ordered 2 bite size baby cakies. One was the flavor I had before of chocolate and mint buttercream and the other was chocolate chip with vanilla cream cheese icing. Both cute and delectable and pleasing to my incessant-sweet-craving taste bud - it plays such a huge role in my life that I should probably name it. Has anyone ever named a taste bud before?
Saturday morning I walked through the Pearl District up to some North part of the city…I think? Either way, the streets were cute and decorated. I met someone for coffee at one of the BEST places for espresso, Barista. I of course had to order my usual, iced vanilla latte. I swear it tasted like a milkshake from the dairy gods. I think there was a hint of espresso flavor, I can’t really remember because I enjoyed drinking it so much.
For about 3 hours after that I walked and walked and walked. To the forest! We hiked through Forest Park which was earthly green, muddy, breathtaking, gigantic, full of waterfalls, hills, rocks and delivered nothing but the freshness of fallen rain and rooted plants. I loved it and I can’t wait to go walking again in the forest on my own. I want to go meditate there…just take it in. The vastness. mmm. On a less significant note -on our way to and from the park I passed a lot of neat houses that I could only wish to live in.
I wanted to fall over after so much walking - my poor digital designer body just isn’t cut out for moving muscles longer than an hour at a time. Finally I had some homemade Pasta Carbonara for lunch and then went back out again to pick up dessert at the famous Ken’s Bakery. It was then off to the movie theater where we split the pecan tart (sorry for no picture, the theater was dark, grr). We saw “A Single Man” with Colin Firth and it was delightful, although delightful is sort of relative. It was an intense, serious story - but the play of color and the flawless hero played by Firth was just mesmerizing. Perfect end to the day of hiking if you ask me.
I managed to get home before the rain started and I relaxed with my petite cookie-sized macaron (a primarily French confection that is meringue-based: made from a mixture of egg whites, almond flour, granulated sugar and confectionery sugar) not to be confused with the coconut version. I don’t know the difference exactly, the whole definition of macaroon is rather confusing, but alas, this was a macaroon/macaron and a caramel coffee flavored one at that. I’ve never had one, and now I know what I’ve been missing. The outside wasn’t cookie-like at all. It was airy, crisp and soft all at the same time and released a nice flavor while the filling, which was the creamiest creamy cream I have ever consumed was rich with a buttery savor that left my taste bud (whatever its name might be) in a state of caramel coffee cream crisp bliss. ahhh. thank you macaron.
This Sunday, oh glorious Super Bowl Sunday (which I can’t watch without a TV and am not sure I would anyway unless I had people and spicy buffalo dip to watch it with) was spent relaxing, drawing, watching Lost, doing laundry, and writing this. While at the laundromat, I decided to try the spiced banana milkshake from Pambiche as an all dairy version of lunch. I took a few sips and found that it was milky, unspiced, and lacking in any sort of worthwhile flavor. I threw it away and marched down the street, determined to find something better. I found this place called bakery bar and it told me to eat cake. I bought a slice of espresso chocolate cake and waited until I got home to eat half. It was dense and yum and I’m saving the other half for tomorrow!
So, for my closing sentence or two, week 5 was pretty perfect. I got to hang out with some new friends, exercise, see lots of nature, eat some good stuff, draw a lot…and next week is only going to get better because Rachel is coming to visit!!!! YEY!!! I’ll have a date for Valentine’s Day :)
Monday, February 1st, 2010
translation // red elk - I saw Princess Mononoke // lions - I saw two stuffed lions at the toy store // horses - I’m going to ride them all summer long….
or so I hope!
I am applying to North Fork Ranch for a summer spent wrangling in the Colorado mountains. I AM SO EXCITED. They only take 20 applicants, so it’s a slim chance that I’ll get in, but, if the horse gods want me to have a happy summer, they will bless me with this glorious opportunity to live as a cowgirl instead of sitting in front of a wretched computer all summer :D Just this one summer is all I ask, pretty please? I even drew a picture so that I might stand out better…see, I like horses a lot, I can draw them really well, please please, please let me be a wrangler!!!
Anyway, as for week 4 of Portland, work is swell. I’m finished with the animation I was working on. Nothing exciting happened during the week except meeting for my writing group at Pied Cow. I got some good feedback on my work, made a new girl friend, and can’t wait to go again tomorrow night!
Friday was…well I’m having trouble remembering, so I guess it wasn’t eventful. I think I went in New Seasons Market - an expensive Whole Foodsy type place - where for fun, I pretended to grocery shop without actually buying anything. Aren’t I just full of good, entertaining ideas? It was neat seeing the variety of food though and I’m sure I’ll make it back to buy sauce for making Indian food…mmy.
Saturday was my big day. I planned to head up to this supposedly fantastic breakfast place. I had to take 3 buses and after an hour, I arrived on Alberta St. This is pretty far north of where I live and really it’s only a ten minute drive, but the buses here are just extremely and inconveniently indirect. Sigh. Anyway, the place was crowded and I ordered the Havarti and pear egg pie served with a crumpet, fruit, and cream fraiche. I was disappointed. I’ve never had a crumpet, so I don’t know how they should taste, but no matter how much honey and jam I slathered on, it just didn’t satisfy. The pie/torte thingy tasted good, but ended up just being a chunk of pear with some kind of gooey dough on top…eh…I should have tried the scotch egg (a hard boiled egg wrapped in bratwurst, lightly breaded and fried golden brown), but o well. Maybe next time!
With plate unclean, I left my sad breakfast and headed to Random Order Coffee house. The iced vanilla latte immediately cheered me up as did finding a nice seat near an outlet. I plugged in and set to work on my application for the ranch and then worked on some stuff for Kiki Magazine. Around 2 I decided I should have pie for lunch because the cafe is known for it’s famous pies. This time I was not disappointed in the least. Dark chocolate pecan pie with a flaky buttered-up crust that crunched and melted in your mouth simultaneously. The combination of deep flavor, rough velvet cream, and rich loveliness made me infinitely happy and able to continuing working for another 3 hours!
Around 5:30, I took the bus home and began to feel incredibly sick. Most likely because I had barely eaten anything but a piece of pie and fruit all day. This resulted in a quick kids size meal at Qdoba as I changed buses downtown. It was cheap and it delivered a taste of home to my dear old taste buds - hallelujah!
Around 8 I met up with my co-worker and went to see Princess Mononoke at the Laurelhurst theater for 3 bucks. The animation was awesome and the character rode a red elk - I want to ride one! After that we headed to happy hour at Pambiche, a small Mexican place nearby. I swear Portland has an endless supply of cute little places with yummy food galore. It blows my mind. Anyway, we split some fried plantains and a dessert. Oh the dessert…here is how it appeared on the menu :: Alemán ~ Coconut chocolate cake laced with saoco syrup and sandwiched with a caramel peanut filling. Glazed with Oaxacan chocolate ganache and topped off with typical Cuban peanut candy. Served with crema chantilly ~ bah, let’s just say it lived up to its description and I didn’t feel the least bit guilty having two desserts in one day - well technically it was midnight by then so…yea, and I had someone to share it with.
Sunday morning I met a friend to go to Broder. A Scandinavian place with GOOD breakfast food. I ordered Aebleskiver, or Danish pancakes, or cute, mini sized balls of sweet, soft dough that I picked up with my fingers and dipped in lemon, igonberry jam, or maple syrup. Those little buddies filled my tummy withuttery, battered joy and the company was nice too! :)
After that I caught the bus, and then another bus, and rode for an hour to Clackamas Mall where I intended to avoid work. If I went home, that meant I had to work on stuff. But if I aimlessly walked around the mall that meant I was doing something even though in reality it was doing nothing except walking off the calories from the wee lil’ breakfast pancakes. I did exchange my bluetooth, yet again, and hopefully for the last time. This one I tried on in the store and shook my head to make sure it was snug and secure. I also walked across the street to Target to buy my one bottle of make-up (which I am running out of) but the fact that it cost 9 dollars made me leave quickly. NINE dollars for foundation? What the hell Covergirl. Anyway I passed a cute Hello Kitty dressed as lion, that made me smile. I resisted bringing her home - some of that Sanrio stuff is just too over priced. boo.
Toys R Us was next. For fun. I come up with such good ideas don’t I? Browsing grocery stores and toy aisles for pure enjoyment. Haha, I really did enjoy myself though. Just meandering through some junk and treasures. I saw Jurassic Park dinosaurs which made me want to go home and dig mine up and be a child again playing on the wall of my driveway with plastic Velociraptors. Anyway, I’ve been wanting a stuffed animal and, and, and…so I bought one because he was begging me to take him home and he was soft and big and fluffy and huggable and I need hugs out here all alone in Portland.
I carried my lion back to the mall with the intent of riding the bus home and facing freelance work, but, fortunately, I met a new friend and we went to Ram Restaurant & Brewery for dinner. Yes, much better decision. Sundays are meant for relaxation and time away from the computer. Cranberry vodka please (only because it was happy hour!) and a burger with blue cheese, Gorgonzola, Frank’s hot sauce, lettuce and fried onion straws - oh thank you. It felt good to have a real meal and conversation. I felt bad for my burger bun though, he ended up torn and strewn across my plate, undigested so that I could eat the good part of the sandwich.
I had a lot of fun and since we both didn’t feel like ending the night, we went to Pix Patisserie to split a small, though somewhat pricey dessert. The place was really neat and you could tell all of the desserts were legit creations from the heart of France…or something like that. The one we ordered was called Shazam - defined on the menu as - rich and creamy caramel mousse, salted almonds, dense chocolate almond cake, and more caramel…Shazam! And it was Shazamalizzle with opposing light and bittersweet flavor. It was surprisingly satisfying while being the perfect size to share.
Also, at the patisserie, there was girl working there with a lot of tattoos, which I always admire. Lo and behold, she turns around and there staring me in the face is The Last Unicorn. Yes, best movie of my childhood - she’s so pretty! I think maybe this movie is the reason I get obsessed when drawing hair. I like to make it curly and flowy and long - blame the last unicorn - it’s all her fault for having crazy animated flyaways!
All in all, I think I had enough chocolate this weekend to last me a lifetime, or at least the rest of the week. I think I should probably post a picture of myself - I’m really quite a normal size still, I swear on it. Though I do want to start exercising, not to loose weight, but to prepare for this summer because I WILL be working rough hours on the ranch - positive thinking.
If I think it, it will be. That is all. :D
Sunday, January 24th, 2010
I’ve made it through week three and now only seven weeks to go. I’m in a rhythm now though, and I’m really enjoying myself here! Under my baby umbrella in the elusive rain, I secretly love this gloominess and the independence. Portland has a lot more to offer than tummy aches from too much good food - everything is lovely, friendly, abundant and the opportunities seem never ending.
Work this week was pretty laid back. I’ve been working on the same project which includes a lot of drawing, so I haven’t been too productive on my own illustrations because I fear wrist injury from overuse of the Wacom Tablet. Also, every day I walk past this gorgeous, overly spacious house/mansion in which I envision myself reading a book at a large mahogany breakfast table having biscuits and tea before going upstairs to my windowful studio to paint illustrations for a children’s book with my cute cavalier king charles spaniel named Lumos.
On Monday, as I briefly mentioned last week, I met a group of people for a writer’s workshop type thingy at Tao of Tea. The place is awesome, they serve you a full teapot with cute little cups. The bar area is made out of bamboo, and they serve ice cream for people like me who aren’t so fond of tea…yet. I ordered vanilla smoked tea ice cream which arrived in a nice little bowl with some fiery - not “hot” but smokey - syrup and cranberries on top. The group was great. I met four new people, one of which was a girl who graduated from OSU in multimedia design…who would have thought? Anyway, we had a great conversation, we read some people’s writing, we talked, and then I went home feeling rather happy.
Despite my resolve to not eat out at work during the week, my co-worker asked me if I wanted to join them for a trip downtown to an infamous food cart from which a heavenly Thai dish is sold. I couldn’t say no and so I ditched my free peanut butter and jelly sandwich and dished out 6 bucks for some very satisfactory, melt in your mouth, tender boiled chicken over rice with a zesty soy bean sauce made from garlic, ginger and chilies. I ate half for lunch and half for dinner. Mmm, gotta love 3 dollar meals :)
Thursday, I again failed at not spending money during the week. I met a friend at Bonfire Lounge for happy hour. The place was awesome, as was the menu, but someone decided that it was necessary to only use one dimly lit candle per table as the sole source of lighting in the place. I could barely see in front of me, but that’s okay because margaritas were only $3.50, and they were strong! I figured I better eat something if I was going to put alcohol in my tummy, so I ordered a gyro for $3.50 packed full with chicken, lettuce, tomato, feta and cool, creamy tzatziki sauce. I devoured it and my stomach thanked me for the solidity. After some good conversation, I walked home and clonked out almost immediately thanks to those salt rimmed glasses of goodness.
Friday was a night that I decided I wanted to stay in. I picked up some ingredients for chili making and a bottle of wine. Pinot Gris from an Oregon brand called A to Z. So while stirring and simmering my chili, recipe courtesy of Mrs. Roedig, I chomped down some salad and had a small glass of wine, which was quite tasty and just the perfect meal for a light Friday night spent watching Lost episodes. Around 10 pm the chili was finally finished simmering in it’s cinnamony, allspice juices so I froze half and packed the other half into the fridge with a promise to eat it instead of restaurant food.
Saturday was my big day of window shopping. I hopped on the bus and went downtown to Pioneer Square - a sort of crazy circular mall that’s divided into different sections. First I went into ATT to exchange my bluetooth, next I went to Bose where I was going to buy a headphone extension cord but ended up getting it for free since the guy said it wasn’t in their inventory (awesome right?), then I daydreamed in the Betsey Johnson store and then…I spotted the necklace of my heart’s desire at a store called Twist that showcases local artists’ crafts and beautiful jewelry. Thanks to Jeanine Payer, artist of my necklace (which I did not buy), I want to spend more money than I’ll ever be able to on this earthly, heavy pendant on which is engraved the Apache blessing.
May the sun bring you new energy by day,
May the moon softly restore you by night,
May the rain wash away your worries,
May the breeze blow new strength into your being,
May you walk gently through the world
and know its beauty all the days of your life.
It’s one of those pieces that you see and you just know you need it. Yea, I need it. Maybe only females understand this, but when something material strikes our fancy, it stays with us and carves this hole into our bodies and nestles there forever, a hibernating fox, that sometimes wakes up and claws us if we haven’t wasted our money yet. But it wouldn’t be a waste…because it’s beautiful, meaningful…ahh I’ll shut up now.
I walked around more, browsed Borders and Sanrio (soooo much Hello Kitty stuff, but not as good as the store in NY).
I was feeling the pains of fruitless window shopping, so I went to Moonstruck Cafe. A local chocolatier that I had been meaning to pay a visit to. I ordered some truffles (to eat later) and a shake of chocolate, caramel, and caramelized hazelnuts whipped and stirred into a thick, cold drink of blissful cacao. Plus they put a neat little medallion of dark chocolate on top with their logo carved into it, a man on the moon.
(truffles from left to right - Vienna Cafe from Godiva (which I ate today and found to be very tasty), Salted Caramel from Moonstruck, and Mayan Cinnamon Truffle from Moonstruck - I’ll let you know how good they are after I eat them :p )
After my dose of sweet I visited lots of other typical mall stores within the crazy circular building. When I was finished looking around it was only 12:30 and I thought I should explore more of downtown while I was there. Knowing the rumors of the famous Powell’s City of Books, I hiked my way over there and ended up being sucked into its labyrinth of brilliance for about three hours during which I carried around 10 different books trying to decide which ones to buy. This place is amazing and they claim to be the largest used and new bookstore in the world!! There are 9 different rooms on 4 floors and they are all categorized, there are rows and rows of books, everything you could ever hope to read, tags with recommendations, little sheets to educate you on Pulitzer winners, people bustling around, reading, people browsing, drinking coffee, kids running and begging for a new book to read…it was a paper heaven. I could have spent all day there but I was hungry and wanted to get home to eat chili and avoid spending more money on food. I bought 3 books (one of which was only a dollar) and went home happy as could be. I’m not gonna lie, I’ll probably be back there before the end of March, waltzing in the aroma of literature with my credit card burning in my purse, longing to be used to purchase lots of alluringly bound stories.
Later Saturday night, after loving the homey taste of Mrs. Roedig’s chili over noodles with cheese, I went out with a co-worker to see the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus featuring a total of 4 hotties. We got there early so we walked around the area and came across a cafe in which we split a raspberry cream filled crepe.
It was pretty good, not the best, and so after that we headed back down the street to the theater, chai tea in hand, to go see the movie at Cinema 21 for only 7 dollars. The theater was nice and the movie itself was crazy! Good crazy. I want to see it again because the wildness of the plot and scenery in the film were fascinating. Overall Saturday was a successful day and not to mention, it was a lot of fun hanging out with someone from work!
Sunday, today, was my day to go to Belly Timber and order the thing on the menu that I have been eyeing for a couple weeks. After walking past some wet nature in the rain, rain, rain, and somehow avoiding having soaked socks, I sat down at the restaurant and opened up Angela’s Ashes, which is captivating. I haven’t been swallowed up by a book this good in a long time.
I started reading and my very nice waiter (I say this because it’s such a huge change from NY, everyone is nice here!) came over and I ordered the bacon and banana stuffed french toast with mascarpone and house made nutella sprinkled with nuts.
Bahaha. Yea, it was yummy. I’ll let the picture tell you how yummy it was. I included two because it was so yummy. I wondered why the place was called Belly Timber, I heard that it’s the name of a tree, but in my opinion, the food makes your belly fall down into a coma.
I’m writing this kind of early on a Sunday, but the rest of the day will probably just be spent nursing my stomach from it’s life changing breakfast experience, watching Lost, drawing, and maybe working on some stuff for Kiki Magazine. Love it :)
Tuesday, January 19th, 2010
Obsession 1 // LOST // No, I have not gotten Lost or anything of the sort…well maybe. Instead I’ve made the discovery, greater than any discovery of online television, of Hulu’s generous consideration of providing me, and all other Lost lovers, the chance to reconnect with that show, which 5 years ago captured my high school heart and kept me wondering for weeks on end…wtf is this island? So yea, I’m re-watching all 5 seasons of Lost before the final one airs on February 2nd.
Obsession 2 // Sugar // Yea, this one isn’t new. Later I will tell you how this past weekend I fed myself nothing but sweets for a whole 24 hours.
Obsession 3// Growing social life? // Could it be? Making friends? I think so :)
Obsession 4 // Walking until my shoes crease. // The buses here are useless.
Obsession 5 // Lots of drawing // I’ve drawn more this past week than I have the entire 3 months of fall quarter…hallelujah!!! The finished images will be posted eventually.
Okay, so week two has been dandy. To start off, work was slow, so I came home with enough energy to spend time on personal drawings - a great leap into building a portfolio for what I ultimately want to do with my life. DRAW and color. Most of my drawings are feminine and feature girls…but I’m seriously okay with that. Quit telling me to get out of my comfort zone, I’m perfecting my style :)
Here’s one of the completed illustrations (sorry it’s kinda small) - the other one’s are ongoing.
So the week flew by pretty fast on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. On Wednesday I wanted to go to Foxfire Teas to try their Minty Chai Latte - as recommended by a book from the library. Well I trudged a mile in rain only to find that they sell tea, not serve it. So I went across the street to Genie’s, the breakfast place I went to with my roommate on weekend 1, and ordered up one pancake and some bacon…plus a chai since that is what I originally set out to consume. I’m kind of glad that tea place was a bust because my white chocolate chip hazelnut pancakes lightly dusted with frosty sugar and heavy, homemade maple syrup was the perfect remedy for making me forget my wet jeans. Also, the bacon was 1/4 an inch thick, crispy, salty and perfectly served in a row of 4 (I could only manage 1 and a half of them though). No doubt I felt sick after this and got a cramp on the way back to work - but who cares?
Thursday I needed a break during work, so I went to take a walk and this bakery window magnetized me to it and I bought a lemon biscuit. Amazing how a little snack and enjoyment will carry you through the day.
Friday evening was sort of depressing, well in some people’s mind. In mine, it was amusing. I waltzed myself down Belmont to a dessert/hookah bar called Pied Cow. It was gothic inside, so my intent of reading all night went out the window. Instead I ordered sangria and the dish they call “Order if you dare…” Well, I dared to alright. I didn’t dare finish it ALL the way, but I did eat over most of it :) - ebony chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream icing, vanilla ice cream, and a shot of espresso to pour over the whole concoction making it one rich pile of “ah”. Also, my idea of meeting someone at this place proved wrong when couple after couple walked in together and split their desserts in cute little corner chairs, leaning near each other, whispering. They may have thought, “Oh poor girl, all alone with a big piece of cake drinking alcohol, she must be eating her feelings,” - but in reality I was secretly enjoying people watching and eavesdropping more than a normal person should. Add all of that to having a super nice waitress and a fun phone call to Maria and my Friday was complete. Oh yea, I went home and danced in my room :)
(Sorry for the icky picture - like I said, it was dark in there.)
Saturday I was supposed to go to a LOTR event (Tolkien’s Birthday Celebration at the Kennedy theater) but the bus ride was one hour and I just didn’t want to go alone. Instead I walked my butt up to a new street with the intent of seeing a movie for 3$, but the internet had lied to me and none of the movies started until the evening. So I went with my back up plan - feed myself more sugar. Well, that wasn’t the plan exactly, but when you see cupcakes like these (pictured below) inside of a case, you can not deny them the honor of being eaten slowly, in pure icing exultation, while writing like a cool coffee shop goer on your macbook. So I did just that. Mmm, carrot cake with orange cream cheese icing piled so high that for the second time in one week, my tummy ached from overload.
After this, I went home and asked Jody if she wanted to see a movie. So we headed to view “Youth in Revolt” featuring Michael Cera as his same old character with a slight hilarious twist. It was good, but I’m a million percent sure that the book was better even though I haven’t read it. After that I came back, made some dinner, and watched lots of episodes of Lost.
Sunday morning I met someone!! Yea? Can you believe it? A new friend. We ate breakfast at Jam on Hawthorne after waiting a while to be seated. Egg, Brie, apple chicken sausage scramble + a big pile of hash-browns + marmalade and honey on an english muffin. Wanting to avoid another tummy ache and fatness, I saved my leftovers and actually made 3 meals out of the whole thing - how about that for getting the most out of your money?? Anyway, the food was good and having company was even better :)
I was sad to leave brunch and have to face the dreaded day of laundry. THE BUSES HERE SUCK. I could not find anywhere to do laundry that was in reasonable distance or able to be traveled to on a bus. So I asked Jody for a ride and went to a place near by. After throwing it all in one of those giant sized washers, I walked around the area and looked inside a Alma Chocolate (where I sampled salted peanut chocolate) and Staccato Gelato (where I sampled tiramisu gelato). I had restraint and refused to buy anything and satisfied myself by being a lousy costumer.
After laundry I bunked down for more Lost episodes (oh…Sawyer). Then after my roommate came back from church, she asked me to go meet some friends at a bar with her. We went to East Burnside, a really neat place with a heated outdoor patio that had swings and fire-pits in the tables. Cranberry vodka please. I had good conversation, met some new people, told my story (girl from midwest), and then went home to a good night of sleepy.
I’m writing this now after coming back from meeting people for a writing group, but I’ll tell you about that next week because it’s Monday and so that should be in week #3, not week#2. Gotta stay organized!
P.S. I hate drawing beards.
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010
I watched Grease last night and it made me feel like a giggling 7th grader again. I LOVE that movie, to its core. Sadly, I needed to express this, so I turned on the soundtrack around 11:30 p.m. and did this 30 minute mess of a sketch. Danny looks kinda funny…girly maybe? hahaha. Anyway the characters aren’t supposed to look like the actors or anything, I was just having some fun. It’s obviously unfinished…they barely have shoes!
Monday, January 11th, 2010
I drew some doggies. Well really just one doggie in two different forms - sketchy vs. cartoon. Not sure which one I prefer, I guess it depends!
Monday, January 11th, 2010
DISCLAIMER : With great willpower, I have managed to not eat past I’m full and to save leftovers for a second meal - this also makes me think that I’m being frugal. Point is, I’m going to fill this post with a lot of food pictures, but I have not been gluttonous :D
Also, I found this coincidental quote that I would like to dedicate to my parents. I read it in a book called “Tea with Jane Austen” (a surprisingly educational read) - The chapter was titled “Cents & Sensibility”
“I am sorry to tell you that I am getting very extravagant & spending all my Money; & what is worse for you, I have been spending yours too.” -Letter from Jane Austen to her sister, Cassandra, 18 April 1811
So, Mom and Dad, I promise not to buy as much food/coffee as I did this past week - I blame my over zealousness on a tid bit of loneliness and my need to explore the new city but now that week one is over - I am newly decided on frugality!
BEGIN : Alright, now I can get to the actual purpose of my blog instead of rattling and self-justifying. I’ve read two books this week, watched about 8 movies, worked for Kiki Magazine, Bent, and surprisingly I’ve spit out an illustration that is halfway done! I’m moving at a good pace :)
The only problem at work is that there is no lunch/lounge room. There’s a kitchen (with salty temptous jars of Adam’s peanut butter) but sadly there is no where for people to sit and chat or for me to read during my break. Day one Nando took me out to lunch, which was super nice! Day two I ventured out on my own to find a spot to read. I came across Cafe Pallino, and I was going to just sit and read, but then I felt guilty using their space, and then I saw gelato, and then I tasted it…so yes, I bought a small cup of brownie coldness and enjoyed a few pages.
Day three at work I went out again, terrible me. There are about 3 coffee shops in a row, but I decided on one. I bravely ordered salmon on foccacia with red peppers, avocado, tomato, leaves and ate half of it. It was damn good but it was a for sure tummy acher. I’m not used to so much rich fish in one sitting. It was so decadent and tasty, but my poor stomach was yelling “WHERE the hell is the peanut butter and carbs?!” I satisfied it’s request with a cinnamon orange scone.
Day four at work I got smart and ate pb&j, cut my lunch hour to 15 mins, and left at 5 so I could go downtown to this event called “First Thursday”. Once a month these galleries, all within a couple blocks of each other, open their doors, serve free wine and goodies, and provide some live music. Downtown Portland by myself at night was a little daunting, but once I found the galleries, I was grateful I had braved the bus ride to experience it. The first gallery I walked into featured these gorgeous oils of Andalusians, Fresians, Lippizaners…horses that seemed to move off the wall in a flurry of bold color and wispy strokes. I fell in love and couldn’t stop staring at them. I introduced myself to the artist and we chatted about her painting method and horses and she said she would help me find a place to ride here! Here name is Janey Belozer, and she inspired me to want to PAINT, not with a Photoshop brush, but with real, messy, wet colors on textured canvas. Sigh, maybe one day I can sell paintings of horses? Pretty please?
(Below is a picture of the Lightrail - I haven’t been on it yet, but it’s almost like an above ground subway. Under that picture is one of the paintings by Janey Belozer.)
Well after getting woozy off a glass of wine and an empty stomach, I rode the bus home and ended up checking out a small bar with my roommate. We chatted, I ordered a grilled cheese (which was melty and gourmet with 3 cheeses - way more than I expected for a few bucks at a hole in the wall bar) and a mudslide. I’d say the night ended rather spectacularly.
Friday night was a bust…I watched a movie (I can’t even remember which one), ate leftover grilled cheese heated in the oven (no microwave here) but then I got to video chat with my favorite boy! Video chatting when your 2,000 miles away is a blessing. That night I froze again and woke up multiple times.
TARGET to the rescue!! But first I spent Saturday morning walking and walking until I came to Fresh Pot, a coffee shop inside of a gargantuan, used, new, sprawling bookstore in which it pained me to pass. I browsed but resisted - I’ve got the library right?
(Below is a picture of a BRIGHT turquoise house that I passed while walking, a pretty aquamarine plant, and my shoes - what I see for at least 50 minutes every single day.)
Anyway, I sat down with my computer at Fresh Pot to do some work and had a vanilla latte which disappeared quickly.
After, I walked around - the area had a lot of neat little shops - toy stores, vintage stores (there are lots of those around here, I swear no body buys anything new in Portland), restaurants, theaters, etc… Eventually my latte digested and my stomach rumbled. I tried going to Pine State Biscuits - this famous eatery, but the line was long and out onto the street. I guess biscuits here are what cupcakes are in NY? I passed and walked to the Laughing Planet, another popular food destination. Cheap Mexican accompanied with leftovers and a crazy environment where there were dinosaurs on the tables and kids running around like hooligan monkeys. I left very quickly and decided that Qdoba is, by far, way yummier.
Okay so after that I thought I was done with food…but dammit, a beautiful pink window sign that said “cupcake” magnetized me inside where I purchased a bite size chocolate cupcake with mint butter cream icing at 75 cents. Um. Do I even need to explain how good it was? Let’s just say the cake to icing ratio was ideal - swift satin mint and a kiss of spongy chocolate.
Next it was time to pay the stupid bus fee of 2$ so that I could go to Target and buy a 17$ comforter. How marvelous is it that they had a gold queen size comforter with zebra stripes on sale? Yea, I’d say 100% marvelous. Plus I bought a blue tooth headset so that I don’t have to walk with my hand on my ear coming home from work everyday…mommy makes me call her :p
After that, Jody (roommate), said she was headed to the Clackamas Mall to pick up a necklace. I tagged along, for fun - another chance to see more of Portland! Their mall was fancy looking and I saw a See’s Candy store - so I took a pic for my Nana, she loves their toffee and Kenwood only has it during Christmas! I also spotted a puppy who wanted me to take him home - why is it that I always want a build-a-bear? He’s so cute!!!!! GARH. I resisted buying a stuffed animal though, don’t worry, even though its fluffed dots and glistening eyes pleaded with me.
Saturday night ended with me being tired and sleeping under my warm blingin’ comforter.
Sunday I ventured out again to Pine State Biscuits. There was still a line at 9am, but not as long. I ordered a bacon, egg, cheese biscuit sandwich with a small side of gravy. It was so crowded that I had to sit a table for 4 with 3 men who were eating together. They asked me why I was taking a picture of my food. I laughed and then I bit into my sandwich. Oh my lordy, how incredibly crumbly, milky, fresh, gooey, crunchy, salty….the heart attack seeped into my tongue and poisoned my buds with an addiction. I WILL go back before I leave :D
After that I sat at the Opposable Thumbs Cafe and worked on a design for Kiki (I LOVE doing stuff for them - always makes me happy and I get to draw!). After my heavy heavenly biscuit settled into my stomach, I ordered an iced vanilla latte and ahhh, yet another experience for my mouth - rich and cold, the perfect mix of creaminess and wickedly dark espresso. Best iced coffee to date - screw you Starbucks.
So finally, I’m done talking about food (and don’t expect as much yumminess next week, I NEED to save money!!)
I came back home after the cafe and met Jody’s friend (yey I know one more person in Portland, I can see my social network growing at a tedious rate…) We went to this vintage shop in which I thought things were over priced, but like I said, everyone buys old things here, so maybe that’s why. There were some neat things in there among which I found Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books - both of which my Mom read when she was younger - so here Mom, this picture is for you!
To wrap up, I had a fantastic first week in Portland! Despite all of this food+fun, nothing is going to cork the waterworks stored in my chest that sometimes erupt out my eyes at random points in the day - miss you all!!
Tuesday, January 5th, 2010
I LOVE OREGON. I even love the rainy weather and overcast skies, the wetness on the window in the morning, the faded sun, the shining pavement and slick leaves…I feel like I have fallen into a place where nature, culture, antiques, and nice people coincide in happiness. I did cry my first day here, but that’s because I’m a baby and I missed my family and friends already. But now that I’ve lived and breathed a bit of what Portland is, I can’t wait to get out and explore (even if I am alone).
Let’s do this chronologically, like I did in NY, and sadly, that means starting out with my crazy ass plane ride. I flew out of Cinci, connected in O’Hara (awesome airport where I had a super fresh jalapeno bagel), and landed in Portland -BUT- you know that 5 hour flight from Chicago to Oregon…well it was packed full of douche-bag. Sorry, I don’t mean to judge, or be mean, but when you are reading a book and someone interrupts you to tell you he is carrying 2 ounces of weed…well that’s just stupid!! At first I thought this guy might be nice (yey a friend?!) but alas, I was wrong. He preached about communism and guns and showed me his awesome artwork which was, infact, not awesome at all. Okay, I have to try not to complain. Anyway, after I got rid of this guy, I caught a cab and arrived at Yamhill street!
This house is divided into 3 apartments and me and my new roomie Jodi live on the upper right side of it (I get in through the back porch door). The neighborhood is beautiful and full of gorgeous large-porched, colorfully painted houses surrounded by tall trees, pots of soil, rocks, bushes, berries, bamboo…etc,etc. Jodi is really nice and welcoming and my room is gigantic, which is dumb because my two suitcases full of clothes and a pillow don’t quite fill the room. But that’s okay, my queen size bed is in a closet, so I’m cozied in.
After unpacking, I was feeling sad, so I took a walk, stared at some drippingly delightful nature, bought groceries (food=number 1 priority), and spotted some places I might like to visit.
After watching a movie and feeling tired around 6pm (I had only gotten two hours of sleep Friday night - 6am flight - and the 3 hour time change was wearing on me) I went to bed. Sunday morning the air was dry, the ground puddley, and my stomach hungry. I walked back to a breakfast cafe I spotted called Jam on Hawthorne and ordered myself a Mimosa (yep…alcohol in the morning to cure a bit of shaky loneliness and malnutrition from the long yesterday) and some lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberry compote - I’m not even sure what compote is.
Yea…they were good, light fluffy creamy, with only a tint of lemon, and the sweet tang of blueberries and maple (not to mention I had sparkling wine and orange juice to help wash them down). I took the leftovers home and then ventured out with Jodi. The library was closed, so she wanted breakfast. I tagged along and ordered my first cup of Portland coffee, and it was damn good. Stumptown vanilla latte from a popular place called Genie’s. mmm. mmm.
As we drove back to the library, I couldn’t help swooning over all of the pretty houses. O, and I saw more than 2 old VW vans…sweet.
I got LOTS of books from the library. My new thing is to read, read, read this quarter. Well and write and draw of course.
We also drove to Walmart - haha - where I bought detergent and a towel. O. so. exciting.
When I got back, I did some work for Kiki Magazine then cuddled into my closet to watch Up in the Air. I fell asleep nervously thinking about work at Bent Image Lab…eeeks! What if I didn’t fit in or what if they hated me?!
Well they didn’t, and I definitely DEFINITELY felt welcome…everyone was sooo nice. I love it there and why? Um, well for one, I get to work with Nando Costa …yeaaa…that’s really cool. He’s a brilliant artist from Brazil (click here to see his work) with a wife who is also a successful illustrator and I get to work by his side for 3 months!! I wanted to improve my illustration skills and look where I landed myself - a city thriving with lush greens and nature, wet weather to keep me inside with a sketchbook, and an artist that I’ve looked up to ever since I stumbled across his work a couple years ago…PERFECT :)
The studio was overwhelmingly impressive. There were miniatures, paints, fabric, cameras, green screens, lights, HUGE monitors, lots of computers, lots of cool knick knacks sculpted and collected from old shoots, coffee, and a lot of nice people.
I had a perfect first day…and I really hope to learn a lot from this co-op. It has the potential to be the best experience of my life so far :)
P.S. Sorry if my writing is a little jittery and broken this time around…I think I’m just excited or something - or maybe I’m on a sugar high after eating my leftover pancakes.
Wednesday, October 28th, 2009
So I’m not much in the mood for writing this morning (I’ve been writing novel chapters instead!!). I’ll just say that I need a smile and a great big gourmet cupcake with tons of fluffy icing would definitely bring that to me. Anyone wanna fly to NY and grab me some Crumbs cupcakes? Thanks a bunch :D
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009
So sometimes you get good candy, like 3 musketeers and butterfingers and other times you get bad candy like old licorice and tiny lollipops. Yea, I’m 21, so I won’t be trick or treating, but I do wish I was!! Anyway, I figured this is what we college kids look like walking around Clifton heights from party to party. Halloween is an excuse to dress sexy, whether it’s flattering or not, and I think we should all go for it!
This drawing is mainly a result of my NEED, absolute need, to get back into drawing. This took about 1.5 hours and I think I could devote that kind of time to a quick sketch or two just to keep me in practice. A Disney animator came to speak at DAAP today, and I just about died when he was explaining his job and the work of his colleagues. They draw everyday and even devote certain days to drawing at the zoo!! All I can say is my dream job exists within the untouchable godliness of Disney Visual Development and all I can think about is how I need to get my ass moving if I even want to hope to imagine having a job there. So here’s my quick release. I wanted to go for a more character heavy style, not my typical skinny/pretty girl (although it’s kinda close to it). Anyway, it was done in the spirit of Halloween because fall is abound and I love love love this season and the mystery and childhood nostalgia I associate with candy corn, pumpkin spice, falling leaves, and the crisp breeze :)