Oh Look! A new post!

I'd like to say my dearth of posting is a direct result of my general sloth and malaise, but in truth, I've just been to busy having fun. And working. Mostly working, but let's not talk about that, o.k.? I'd like to celebrate, because this is my 300th post here. Three hundred posts. Yeah! Party hats and noisemakers for everyone.

Wednesday I had a meeting at one of my favorite locations - Scott doesn't like it because it's harder for him to set up and play there, but I love the club. Rich with details, great bar, lots of "inclusives" (meaning: You get tables and linens, china, flatware and staff) and lovely gardens that are close by several churches and parks, it's one of my favorite venues. Add to that a great catering and event staff, a grand piano and a continual program of upgrades and you've got a very happy planner. Any rate, I was invited to stay on after a meeting and enjoy a port class. Port may be my new favorite drink - it pairs well with all of my favorite things: Chocolates, cheese (especially blue) nuts and fruit. Stored right, it also ages and values extraordinarily well - how many twelve to twenty year old bottles of wine can you find for $20-40? And any "class" that involves sitting by a fire and sampling eighty-year old spirits? Yes, please.

Thursday was the kick-off of the Santa Barbara Film Festival, which we were pretty excited about for this year. Since we have a personal connection, we were thrilled to hear that the big kick-off film was Factory Girl. I was busy with work all day, but through the kindness of one of my many awesome vendors, we got some of the coveted passes to the big after-party. That, my friends, is the sort of thing that never happens to me.

I ran over to get in line to buy tickets (officially the most money I've ever paid for a film: $35!)
and struck up a conversation with a nice bunch of people as we were shuffled back, forth, back again, and around in the opening night, paparazzi-filled, red-carpeted frenzy. For some reason, I had a running loop of this little chant in my head: "I see London, I see France, I see lots of cheek implants." (My alternate version: "I see blood, I see gore, it's not cold enough for that fur you wore.")

Any rate, we peons got seated and watched a drum team/dance troupe (maybe the reason for the price hike?) perform. The president of the film festival came out and gave a little speech, than invited the director (George Hickenlooper) up to say a few words. I was surprised, since the film had also premiered in L.A., so we weren't expecting it when he invited Sienna Miller (sadly, yes, she was wearing one of Susan Somers' dresses from Three's Company) and Guy Pearce up onstage. We were even more thrilled when our friend Mike came up (go Mike, go!). Sienna said a few words and they took a bow and the film started. I won't bore you with my rookie review of the picture - suffice it to say that we were impressed with all the performances, if it did seem a bit scattered and dark. I've read a couple of the Edie biographies, and a movie about her life could absolutely never be rainbows and butterflies. Despite (or perhaps because of?) her undeniable beauty, charisma and wealth, she seemed drawn towards anything and anyone who paid the least bit of attention to her.

We ran home and changed (Scott: new shirt, good to go. Me: four different outfits, mumbled expletives against all the blue cheese and chocolate from Wednesday) and headed to the party. Not just any party, either - The opening night party to be at, held in Paseo Nuevo. Note for The Fam: Here is the bit where you should go and do Something Else. For those of you who haven't been to Santa Barbara, Paseo is our downtown mall - the entire thing is outdoors

and has multiple openings to different streets. They'd blocked off all but one of them and were ushering everyone in and handing out the wristbands. A special tip for everyone: If you ever go to a party and the security admonishes you, 'have fun! get faded!" on your way in, I hereby challenge you to try and not follow their directive. In my experience, the best way to do this would be just to turn right back around and head for home. Ahem. A few brilliant minds had apparently decided it would be a good idea to strategically place about ten different drink stations (vs. four appetizer stations....for your reference, this is not a good ratio) around the perimeters and the band in the middle.

One of the great things about any good-sized event here (for me) is that I can almost always count on running into someone I knew in school, know from work, or know via a friend. This time, I ran into a friend I hadn't seen since high school, shooting high society and hoi polloi alike. Remembering that his brother and girlfriend used to live two houses over from me, I asked how they were - naturally, said brother is now married with a sprog, annnnnd I suddenly remembered how thirsty I'd become before The Question came up. Drinks and conversation with friends (Mike and his new wife among them) and everything was great - until I realized it was after one. We headed home, only to end up with an impromptu jam session that lasted till three thanks to Scott....so much for early to bed, right? Good thing I didn't have anything pressing to do until later the following afternoon! We don't go out very often, and I am never a guest at a party of any sort, so this was extra-special for me....The rare night where we both get a chance to just enjoy whatever happens, talk to people, not scan the crowd or a schedule for the next thing to tick off the list. I enjoyed every minute of it.

Slice of Heaven

I generally prefer to think of myself as a realist - my outlook is "The glass is fifty per cent full and fifty percent empty, and why are we debating about the contents of the glass when a good drink is getting cold?" Today, though, was a full-glass day, no doubt about it. Chiada and her hub-E came down from Santa Maria today and we spent a glorious afternoon and evening together.

First, we cruised Paseo Nuevo, shared a delectable chocolate/cream cheese Farm Cake and
watched the beautiful people and their dogs go by. A silky haired doxie, a beagle, and a pair Clumber Spaniel puppies, mutts of all kinds, some cradled in their owners' arms, others toting their own accoutrements.

Next it was off to pick through the earrings and accessories over at Forever 21/Reference....let me tell you, Chiada and I had a good laugh there - we decided our styles are more classy and classic than 99 percent of the stuff in that store. Naturally, this did not stop us from purchasing two pairs of earrings and a scarf/headband/belt (me) and a couple of very cute fabric headbands (Chiada). We browsed around at a couple of other stores, checked Borders to browse the new Santa Barbara Magazine. By the way, if you're interested, it has a pretty detailed account of the real life Edie story - fascinating by any count, I think.

We took a little stroll down East Beach, marveling at the light, the beach and the little seabirds. A couple of hours slid away while we collectively shot a photo essay that I personally cannot wait to see (cough, Chiada, cough). The day ended with the three of us eating dinner, par excellence, at Opal....here, feast your eyes on this:

Shredded Phyllo Wrapped Tiger Prawns, Flash Fried
Served with a Coconut Curry Dipping Sauce
On Napa Cabbage Salad with Mandarin Oranges, Toasted Almonds,
Julienne Vegetables and our Sesame Asian Vinaigrette

Homemade Three Cheese Pizza- Cooked in our wood-burning pizza oven With Pesto, Tomatoes, Shaved Red Onions, Smoked Mozzarella, Goat Cheese and Gorgonzola Cheese

Vegetable Napoleon with a Gorgonzola Potato Cake and Wild Mushrooms
With Grilled Eggplant, Sauteed Garlic Spinach, Grilled Polenta and a Roasted Tomato Sauce

Yeah....it was just that good - but the best bit of the whole day wasn't the great weather, the bargains we found ($3.80 vintage-looking earrings? yes, please!), or even the excellent food. It was seeing friends that I've missed for what feels like forever in the flesh. There just isn't any substitute for it.

Chock full of nonsense...

First of all, this:

(Just in case you thought I was totally full of it before)

Make sure you scroll down to the bottom and read Mike's part of the interview. We had tea with him last week and sat and talked about life, Edie, the 60's and 70's (he was there, despite the fact he remembers vast stretches of that time).

Second: Grey's Anatomy, whilst being one of my top three favorite shows (Lost, 24, possibly either Invasion or the train wreck that is Alias) has an excessive amount of uber-attractive people. This sounds great in theory; however the reality of it (for me) is this: I don't want to feel like a manatee every Sunday night while I watch alcoholic (?) self-absorbed, sex-obsessed interns battle for the Who Can Be the Most Adolescent This Week? prize. You know, I'd like to watch my McDreamy and ... eat pizza too? The chappie who played the Other Man this week was so, so, incredibly hott! HOTT! Toe-curling, lip-lickingly hot, "hot" with two T's, that I could barely stand to direct my full attention to the television screen. And am totally forced to make "mrrrowrrrrrr!" and "Do Behave, baby!" noises in full earshot of S., who says this entire show is ludicrous. Also, I love George. He is sweet.

Third: I got to hold an Oscar today. That little sumb*tch is heavy! You know how those little lollypop-headed gals with a thirty-thousand dollar dress, mink eyelashes and three pounds of makeup have to hoist it up there over their heads? As if they are doing their best impression of an Olympic weight lifter? There is a reason for that. It was this Oscar:

Applaaaause!

Farciot Edouart (special effects) I Wanted Wings - I looked him up and he won Acadamy awards every year, from 1938 to 1944, twice in 1940 and 1941, for his talents. Some of his inventions (or derivatives thereof) are still in use today.

"Farciot Edouart was a pioneer in the field of movie special effects. The son of a portrait photographer, Edouart was an assistant cameraman at the Realart Studios before reaching his twentieth birthday. He wanted to join the Signal Corps during World War I, but through a bureaucratic glitch he was sent to the Corps Columbia University cinematographers course, where he remained as an instructor. At Paramount in the 1920s, Edouart became adept at lining up "glass shots" (scenes in which small-scale models were seamlessly blended with life-size sets), then worked on the development of the blue-backing process, which allowed actors to be "matted" in front of an artificial background.

He also mastered the "process screen," a rear-projection technique creating the illusion of stationary actors driving, running, flying, etc... in front of a moving background. While others turned out plenty of bad or unconvincing process work in movies, Edouart was a master of the technique, and few of his films look blatantly "faked". To improve the technique, Edouart developed a triple-head process projector, which improved and sharpened the background image. Remaining as head of Paramount's "Transparency Department" until his retirement in 1968, Farciot Edouart won Academy Awards for I Wanted Wings (41) and Reap the Wild Wind (42), the latter film lensed in Technicolor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide "

Enough of my pontificating - I'd like to direct y'all over to

Fussy's place

- Mrs. Kennedy and her Spiderman-underwear clad bulldog. Really, there just isn't enough of that sort of thing on the Internet to suit me.

So..what have YOU been doing?

Ok, let's try that thing where MY INTERNET SERVICE VIA COX BLOODY CABLE does not "mysteriously" "go out" because I am in "Sector Fifteen" for SIX FLIPPIN' DAYS, shall we? Yes, I think that would be lovely. Deeeep cleansing breath, deeee....oh fuggetaboutit, let recap the last week or so, shall I?

1) Return from trip, happy happy delirously happy that I do not have to put on a sweater, gloves, a hat, a scarf, boots (ugggg! BOOTS...boots without heels or any discernable 'style" at all, unless "not tripping and breaking your leg...probably" is a 'style' and someone's forgotten to tell me) a COAT and other such items just to walk OUTSIDE and not DIE via freezing solid. Proceed to go round with windows open at all times, thus arrive at all destinations looking like a very frightened sheep dog. Charmed, I'm sure.

2) Check approximately 75,453 emails. 75,427 are either offers to re-finance my house (thanks, no) sell me Viagra (again, thanks, no) or give me the Secret to Thick, Fast Growing hair (not so much the issue here in the Meepers household). Or, you know, visit someone named Karleee on her webcam. Well that I might... no, just kidding. Return six client emails, write thank-yous to family.

3) Photo-edit 300 + pictures, of which about 100 are of animals, most of which are NOT EVEN MY FAMILY'S pets. Approximately 75 of them are of Kitty (see last entry) How could I resist?

4) Make only the feeblest of attempts to clean/unpack house, which was more or less a tip when I left. Somehow, the situation has not improved. Marvel at new-found Law of Thermo-Dynamics which is "Anything in the H household left unattended with go forth and multiply at levels that would make rabbits jealous. And it will Make a Mess." Actually, this might not be Thermo-Dynamics so much as the Black Hole Theory.

5)

This happened

No, it was no one we knew personally, but our mail has not been the same since, and our Lovely mail-lady and lovely Post-Man (see entry: Five Degrees of Seperation) both knew all or almost all of those who were murdered. In this one instance, I have to say, I'm actually relieved that the shooter shot herself. Not that justice could ever be done, but... it does help to know she's not OUT THERE somewhere, lurking.

6) Become neighborhood hag who yells at cars who pass by our once-quiet corner going at least 45 miles per hour, due to horrid "Detour" that makes my front door the new 101 freeway. Consider purchasing orange vest and gloves, sign and directing traffic as new hobby.

7) Make, edit, re-edit, sync with music, and write witty (well, maybe) "credits" for DVD for family. Hope they get "witty" remarks and faux-reviews on the cover. Mail to them with picture CD. Also use Makita (read: Electric saw. A POWER TOOL) on ugly, nasty "arch" in yard. Spend a couple of sweaty, grimy afternoons pruning trees/rosebushes, demolishing, digging out 80 pound concrete post-holders, raking, etc. Go to hardware store and purchase Poison for enemy weeds, protective gear so that my hoo-haa has a possibility of working in future (not for actual hoo-haa) paint and sandpaper (two grits) for bathroom, rip out nasty shower door, scrub all. Congratulate self.

7b) In Self-Congratulatory mood, as much has been Accomplished this week. Have celebratory margaritas with friends. Rinse, repeat. Doritos. Than come home and find much-beloved tenant about to leave after a blissful year. V. V. sad, but invited to go and say goodbye (read: drink wine) for One last (first) time, so can hardly Say No. Do not Say No, but instead grab husband, glasses, bottle, boom box and have impromtu Celebration 2.5 of the evening. (Husband has been out with own friends, possibly sake, can't be sure)

7c) Totally lose the will to Live for about ten hours. Recover, clean bathroom in preparation for sanding/painting. Do not actually sand or paint, but intend to.

8) Discover (last Wednesday) that Internet/Link to Outside World and all news (did not hear about sinking of that barge in the Gulf, etc) is totally down. Call Cox (good name!) Cable. Sit on hold for 27 hours. Get automated "tech" Attempt to familiarize self with "Co-Axial cable" (whaaa?) etc, to no avail. Husband calls, repeat, repeat, repeat. Days later, I finally got through to a person and "Duwayne" said that the "earliest they can get a tech out would be Thursday." Splutter and spit with rage, before
gently admonishing Duwayne through clenched teeth* that I NEED this to happen, because we both WORK here at home (contrary to this weeks' tale) and I have clients who will cause me to have to introduce him to co-axial cable in ways that he never intended... Suddenly my service call got upgraded to Monday. And the little children sang and danced with glee.

*One of which (clenched teeth) had to have an emergency pulp-ectomy earlier in the week. ($300 bucks down the tube.) I'm told that if they do all the work that NEEDS doing, it will be $3500 USD for a root canal, build-up and two crowns. ANOTHER 3500, since I (we) spent that much on another tooth and a half last year. Last year as in, just ended a couple of months ago, not last January. Folks, I'm going to Mexico. Se habla a good dentist down there? Muchas drugas para mucho el pain? Por favor? Gracias!

9) (Sunday) Awesome neighbors have a BBQ/Fiesta/Superbowl party for themselves and 35 closest family members, invite me over for plate of delicious food, perusal of tiny baby Chihuahua puppies. Amazingly do not die of heartburn or extreme cuteness. Do not watch Superbowl, except when husband pries eyeballs from book (We Were the Mulvaneys, v. good/sad) to make me peruse commercials. Like the one with the streaking sheep and baby Clydesdale, hate Budweiser for using all the cute animals excepting the Geico gecko, who was probably booked, in one ad.

10) (Today) Meeting with wonderful client, who actually let me borrow her shoes because mine broke (stupid shoe). Notice funny, smokey, amber light in the air, unable to locate actual fire in the area. Ignore, watch TV and cuddle neglected (ha!) cat until I realize that there is a person Peeking In My Window, and I am sitting in a rather undignified position, in a skirt. Have now possibly exposed pants to complete stranger, and must fly off the couch to discover what she wants. Prepare to make donation to charity, when she asks, "Is this the apartment for rent?" Ummmm....no. That's why the sign is on the BACK of the house, where you saw it. Attempt to recover dignity, show studio for rent, only to hear that "Its' tooo smalllll for me and two kiiiiiids." No, it is not to small, actually it is quite spacious and both its bathroom and (walk-in) closet are far larger than mine. You have too many children to attempt to live in a space that is clearly marked, "STUDIO APARTMENT."

11) Randomly discover internet works. Do Rain-dance of Joy with husband. Retreat to office and write most Boring re-cap of one's own week ever. Have lost all readership due to Never Updating, ever, and increasingly banal entries.

Help. Me. Please.

Five Degrees ...

Of course I've always heard about the six degrees of separation between everyone and Kevin Bacon, right? Freakishly enough... its true in S. and my case. Check this out:

#1. Us:
#2. Our friend and post office buddy, Mike
#3. Mike's late, semi-great and famous wife, Edie Sedgwick (who died three months after they married)
#4. Edie's cousin, Keira Sedgwick is.... wait for it...
#5. MARRIED to Kevin Bacon. (Who everyone used to say my dad looked like, except with a better nose)

We figured this out today during our walk down to the mail - its been so nice here that it'd really be wrong not to go outside and enjoy it just a little bit, so we're two out of two days in a row in taking this little trip. Considering that most of the country is freeeezing, and all, we'd better be enjoying it, right? Right. A tiny "Sorry!" to anyone out there who's sitting in a Cosby sweater-turtleneck combo with the heat on, damning me and my stupid warm weather. Notice I said tiny... because I am mean-spirited and hateful, but especially at this time of year, because:
-My birthday is the end of November
-Hearing "Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanta Claus is comin' to towwwwwn... Saaaaaaaaanta Claus is comin' to town" in the grocery store, as sung by a man who surely MUST have have some kind of rodent attached to his crotchal region.. how else could he make that sound?
-The days haven't started getting longer yet
-Halloween candy on sale is now stale but still on sale and thereby calling to me.
-Christmas candy from last year, see above, also red and green M & Ms are boring.

So because we are all Euro-style like that - and because gas costs $18 million a gallon (and that is how I know I'm NOT really Euro, or gas would be $35 million a gallon) we had a walk with a Mission. Mission accomplished, we started chatting with Mike the Mailman - his REAL NAME is Michael Post. Post! I've heard of people named for their jobs, but this is just hilarious. Yesterday when we were there, he'd mentioned something about "either Sienna Miller or an Olsen twin playing his ex-wife in this new movie", but there were to many restless folks waiting to mail fruitcake back to their old friends and relations to ask further. Today we got the "whole story" ...

"So Mike, who was your ex-wife?" S. asked, as he handed Mike our package.

"Her name was Edie Sedgwick" Mike replied laconically.

"The ANDY WARHOL Edie Sedgwick?" (S, in stunned tones of wonder)

"Yup. She died three months after we were married." Mike replied, "Do you want insurance with that?"

(Insert small awkward pause and appropriate condolences - if they are appropriate, thirty years later)

Turns out, she was many people's Edie -
Bob Dylan's - The following songs are said to be inspired by her or her and other women:
-Like a Rolling Stone - I'm told it was voted Best Rock n' Roll song of all time by Rolling Stone magazine
-Leopard-Skin Pillbox Hat" (mean lyrics!)
-Just Like a Woman, from the Blonde on Blonde album - she was also on the sleeve art of the album.
and "Lay Lady Lay" which I have always absolutely HATED!
According to the almighty Google, she was also the inspiration for:
"Edie" by the Cult
-Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians wrote a song about her called Little Miss S.
-The Velvet Underground song Femme Fatale (on the album The Velvet Underground and Nico) is reported to have been written about Edie at Andy Warhol's request.
- Dramarama used a photograph of Edie on their album Cinéma Vérité. - You know - Dramarama of "Anything, Anything"? I love that song!

Oh, and she apparently was born and raised in Santa Barbara - in the hospital about oh, a block from where I sit now.

======================================================

Also on our walk of Euro-imitating goodness: Saw not one, but two women asleep in their cars, one right after the other - they were complete with pillows and everything, although one of them DID have a case of wine glasses on the seat next to her... I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. DeVille.