Kitty Genius

I Woke Up This Morning and Found a Paperclip in my Hair.

And I don't even use those kind of paper clips. : (

Today we went to the Saturday Market and then to Cup and Saucer. (Soooo good)  It's really hot so some of the various apartment fix ups we had planned are on hold for a few days. The apartment is getting painted this week. I've been waiting to post apartment pics when I have before and afters.

It still feels like we're moving in. Every day there is more to get rid of and reorganizing. I think we are going to get this couch after the place is painted.

It's deep and comfy (with the Resmo mattress), pretty affordable, and turns into a queen bed. You can also purchase arm rests (which we will). And you can buy other cover colors. This is the couch I really want but it's GIANT and pricey, since I KNOW the cat will destroy the sides and throw up on it. Which brings us back to the Beddinge. If anyone has any experience with this couch please let me know what you think : )

Happpppppppy weekend!

Tinymeat, Urban Outfitters, and Me

Eep! Today I woke up to discover that Tinymeat's wallets are up on the Urban Outfitters web site! Viva la Tinymeat!! And I'm so delighted that one of them is ours. You can view all the wallets right here.

Aaaand, it just so happens that we are having dinner with Mikey and Mona of Tinymeat tonight. How perfect? They are also recent-ish transplants to Portland but not nearly as recent as us.

After two years Drew finally got a new sweatshirt (hoodie). His typical boy answer is, "But I already have one," but it was too big and weird and yes, I blame myself because I picked it up for him. BUT ladies, if you're looking to shove your boy in a cute sweatshirt I highly recommend this one. I've been trying to get him this one for months and months but now we live close to an AA. Although, trust me: American Apparel and I have our issues (American Apparel just doesn't know it).

Anywho, it's a shipping day. So that's what I'm off to do!

Dear Mom

I wish was having brunch with you.
I love you and miss you.

Even More Squirrel Goodness

So we made it to Powell's and I had to use a great deal of self control, since we just got rid of so many books before the move. BUT I could not resist this:
Really? REALLY!?! Perfection. True to its name, it is A Really Super Book About Squirrels.

Tomorrow we're heading up to Seattle for Emerald City Comicon. It will be Drew Heaven.

I haven't mentioned this yet, but Drew is one of the contributors to Comic Book Tattoo, an upcoming anthology from Image Comics based on the songs of Tori Amos. Drew wrote the piece and Kevin Mellon did the art. I'm really proud of him and I'm sure I will write more about this when the anthology is released (I believe in July).

Off to work!!

Happy Friday!

Yup, I'm Gonna Like It Here

We visited Laurelhurst Park after delicious coffee at Stumptown. It really was as good as everyone said it would be. I opted for a three-shot americano with a tiny bit of steamed milk and sugar. Perfect.

There was also soy cheese pizza, and an early morning bike ride for me (I'm just trying to get familiar with my bike and the neighborhood while there's not much traffic).

On tomorrow's agenda: building a shelf for my closet. :)

Happy Wednesday!

Making Art Again!

First, a big thank you for all the Portland/moving support! Dave, you're awesome! Thanks for all the recommendations!

I'm excited to actually have work to share. These four prints are all for an upcoming and innovative show at Gallery Revisited. You can read all about it right here. For info on purchasing a print, you can shoot an e-mail right here.

"It's All Right", edition of 10.

"Whispered", edition of 10.

"Give and Take", edition of 10.

"Whispered (Pink)", edition of 10.

Busy day of settling things in the STL and setting things up here in Portland. We have an electrician coming tomorrow to add a circuit and outlets. We also had two painters come by to give estimates and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it works out with one. And today was the first day back to the daily grind. It actually felt good to have part of our regular routine, even if it is among a sea of boxes. I even got to draaaaaaaaaw. It made me so happy : )

So, Right Now This Is My Life

Goodbye old apartment

Goodbye friends and family who helped us on moving day. We had a little pizza party outside (OK, it was just lunch and the least we could do, but still fun) on moving day.

Hello giant 26-foot Penske, our home for three days (we thought it would be four).

Drive, drive, drive…

Arrive and unpack. My sister Autumn made the trek with us. After moving our stuff we went to put her stuff in storage in Vancouver, WA.

What about the police, you ask? Well, a 26-foot truck with a car dolly attached is HUGE, and our new apartment is on a fairly major intersection. We thought during morning rush hour we could parallel park the truck in the only spot available. Do you see where this is going? Surprise! That didn't happen, but what did happen is the car dolly jack knifed into the street and we could not move without hitting this one car that was parked illegally.

I tried desperately to find the owner of the car. There is tons of construction going on, and I knew it was a construction worker's car but going to several sites and apartment buildings, I could not locate the owner to pull his car back a bit.

So we could continue to block traffic, or we could hit this car, so I called the police. At that point I thought we were endangering people with the dolly, and I didn't want to cause anyone to get into an accident. The police were so nice and helpful even though it was totally mortifying. There was a squad car and a motorcycle. Jesus. A minor panic attack is a fantastic way to meet your new neighbors.

When they left, the police were laughing and laughing. Yeah, embarrassing. But no one was hurt. There was a teeny tiny mark on the car that the construction worker was totally cool with. He showed up about three minutes after the police left, and I have seen him everyday since.

And finally…

Hello new apartment.

We've gotten coffee, gone out to eat, gone to New Seasons, and a few other places. Today, IKEA. But really we've just been unpacking and unpacking and setting things up. After all, getting our business running is top priority. So, I am much more relaxed now that the computers are set up. We still have a loooong way to go, but I'm really enjoying it here so far. Truly. And I hope it's growing on Drew : )

The real star of the whole move? Isadora. She was so awesome in a cat carrier for three days. We followed the internet's and our vet's advice and kept her in her carrier with a pillow case over the top so she felt more secure. We fed her at night and left the cat box out from the moment we arrived at the motel until the moment we left, and she was accident free and not traumatized at all. I am so so so thankful we didn't have to drug her.

She kept packing herself : )

So, that's it for now. I hope to have more excitement to share soon now that THE MOVE is out of the way. I think the hardest part is the downsizing. This apartment is great (I think) but it's less than half the size of our old place. This is where we'll see just how creative we are.

I Miss You

It feels like it's been forever. Just an ultra quick post to let you know that we are here, safe, sound—and the police were involved (more on that later). It's funny now but not at all about 24 hours ago.

Soon I will have the Internet and an actual square foot in our new place that is box-free where I can sit down and write a proper post. But for now "HELLO May" is delayed, and I'm off to unpack, clean, and SEE more of the city soon (hopefully).

I hope you all are well :)

Peeking In

Today our internet is being turned off. Really, that will just mean more of an excuse to take breaks to go to the coffee shop and use theirs.

I just crossed a bunch of things off the do to list:

• finish setting up new bank accounts
• have Isadora's microchip updated
• call the electric company
• have our cable box picked up
• go to the doctor
• swing by the dentist
• lots of laundry
• research Portland stuff
• go out with a family friend
• write a few vendors with our new address.
• TONS of excitement.

But last week I found a bike!! I'm waiting for it to come in at the bike shop up the street, otherwise I'll just buy it in Portland.

YAY for a bike I like!!

Some Stuff

Clearing out old sketchbooks and found this. It seemed apropos.

Aaaahh… I apologize for the lack of exciting posts. No surprise here that we've been packing, working, and spending time with friends and family for the last time (well, not the last time ever, but you know).

A sort of tragic/hilarious thing is that I've called around for quotes to paint our new apartment WHITE. I've always wanted a nice, bright white space. Long story short, I thought our new apartment was purple (purple like a grape) but it turns out it is purple in addition to brown, aqua, and taupe. And it's all glossy. Sigh. I knew we were moving in with the colors from the last tenant but I didn't know if I would be up for sanding, priming, and painting an apartment immediately after a cross-country move. So, I called for quotes which were a great deal higher than what I can afford right now and the very nice painter who went to look at it basically refused the job but offered me emotional support for when I undertake it. Oh… this is going to be interesting.

With all that said, if anyone knows a cheap painter…

Back to packing and staying caffeinated. I hope everyone has a great weekend!!!