And I'm back...

I don't know what took me so long. And why I didn't feel like I had much to say post-election but here I am. Blogging.

I somehow broke the blog way back when but seriously, bookmark: theimaginarygirlgang.com and you'll be all set.

2013 has been an intense year so far. It's the middle of May and I'm sitting in my office in Cambridge, planning workshops and classes for the summer. Making sure to build in days off for myself. And days off for Mr. Noah. My birthday is coming up. Our house got a divorce and will be two condominiums by the end of June. My store is expanding (again). Friends have passed away. New friends have been made. Books have been read. There are more books to read. Movies were made. Television pilots were passed on. We sheltered in place. We mourned the loss of innocents we never knew. Tears shed. We've learned some lessons. Some of them difficult. Sometimes I've gone rogue. Most of the time I've followed the rules.

I've missed this space though. I've missed highlighting the awesome things I've discovered (even if a million of other people discovered it first). I've missed sharing with Heather the things I've read and the crafts I've made. I like the instant gratification of instagram but I miss words. Oh how I miss words. So I'm typing some out again. Maybe you'll read them. Because I'm back.

It's November 2012! (HI!!!!)

This is a really big week in the USA. And I have come out from under my small business rock to say this, as a founding member of the Imaginary Girl Gang, all qualified members better be planning to vote on Tuesday. And just so you know where I stand (not that it isn't super obvious) I hope you'll vote for equal civil rights for everyone. I hope you'll consider the importance of equal pay for equal work. That "legitimate rape" is the most insane load of poop to have been spoken in the modern world. And that our nation has always taken care of the poor and the weak and I hope to live in a country that continues to make this a priority.

Politics have very personal ramifications. My sister posted her story to Facebook this weekend because this election could result in legislation that would deny the legality of her marriage. Because for some reason people think that allowing gays to marry will result in everyone having to have a gay marriage. Or something.

So I leave you with this image of my sister and her wife both members of The Imaginary Girl Gang. And the eloquent words of my little sister who deserves all the happiness in the world. "...one more image to remind everyone that politics is personal. You may feel threatened by what you don't understand so please let me introduce you to my fabulous wife. She is kind, filled with laughter, works hard for our family and community, she knits socks, blankets and sweaters in her spare time. Her strength and empathy creates calm and cohesion when there is chaos or fear and above all, she loves me and I love her. What more do you need to know?"

No one is ded!

HI EVERYBODY!  How's tricks?  What's everyone been up to?  Everybody learning stuff?  Who's had good snacks lately?  Please explain and also pass some over here.

The Imaginary Girl Gang clubhouse has been...quiet, of late.  Girls've been busy, yo!  Virginia has opened a magical new wing of the clubhouse!  We should all meet there Saturday morning and make pretty ribbons!  Other Imaginary Girl Gangmembers have ALSO been busy...my mom, for example, was named Librarian of the Year for the State of Illinois!  The whole state!  Like, Abraham Lincoln, and also: my mom.

Ladies and gentlemen of Illinois...YOUR Librarian of the YEAR!I've been...also busy.  Sometimes just inside my own head.  Adrian and I are still in the cabin in the woods in New Mexico.  We go for long adventuresome drives!

Sometimes we have to ask cows to move.  Once, we recreated our favorite scenes from Millers Crossing!

We saw an alien autopsy in Roswell!

P.S. That cute boy from the WB show is NOT the mayor of Roswell, by the way.  I checked.  Anyway, sometimes we just look at pretty things!

Like this!  Other times, we make friends with animals.

Yep.  Oh, we went to a full-on German Oktoberfest on an Air Force base!

I even talked to some cute German boys (not pictured).  (Incidentally, I realized at Oktoberfest, with German and American military members walking around...seeing young men in uniform makes my head go, "oh, look, there's someone's grandfather, fifty years in the past!")

ALSO, we went to Carlsbad Caverns!  Have you guys been?  This place is INSANE!

Only SOME parts of it look like a Zelda boss.  Anyway, you should TOTALLY go.  Unless you have issues with, like, tunnels, or underground stuff.  Then, my GOD, stay FAR AWAY from there!

A lot of the time, though, I kind of just hang out, staring at the forest, waiting for the neighbors to wander by...

Anyway, I hope YOU'RE all busy, or not, and having fun, and not falling down!

Crafting writ large

Adrian and I are having an adventure!  Here's a thing I realized about adventures this week: sometimes while you're having them, they can kind of suck.  Like, if 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' was actually happening to you, you'd be pissed and possibly crying a lot of the time.  Editing and music really help an adventure A LOT.

Since we are currently a Household Unemployed, we're in New Mexico, fixing up Adrian's family cabin!  Hooray! It's...a big project.  And as apartment-dwellers (though technically kind of homeless, at the mo'), we're sort of jumping in, using feature film production as our template.  So far, it seems to be working out pretty well, and my ratio of projects-to-crying is about the same!  (Srsly, how do you people do it, homeowners?  I keep bolting awake in the middle of the night, suddenly seized with "my GOD, how are we going to get anyone to deliver a sofabed up that hill??"  And then my brain goes, "Oh, good, you're up!  Listen, I was thinking: the carpet you paid for today?  Are you sure?  Really?  Really really?  How much WILL it cost to turn six fluorescent lights into normal lights, like the kind NOT found in institutions for the criminally insane?  What if spiders crawl in your mouth while you're sleeping there?  What if they're crawling in your mouth right now?  Also, here's that one Miley Cyrus song!"  HOW DO YOU DO IT, PEOPLE??)

If you're anywhere near Albuquerque in the next couple of weeks, shoot me a msg, and I'll tell you where you can pick up these awesome peach-with-gold-flecks lamps on consignment!  I've decided to keep them five times.  I'm keeping the flock of chickens.Adrian keeps vetoing me.

Hey, here's a joke:  A grasshopper walks into a bar.  The bartender says, "Hey, wow, this is great!  We have a drink named after you!"  The grasshopper says, "You have a drink named Steve?"

Aaaand here's our cabin bat!  He lives in the storage space under the porch, and his name is Steve.  After the drink.

 

If anybody has any cabin-fixing-up tips or pointers, or stories of adventures to distract me (with or without music and editing), or tiny outfits for bats, I eagerly await all of it!  Finally, last week in Albuquerque, this happened:

 Has my 'badass' look ALWAYS actually been 'someone's vaguely irritated mom?' Huh.

Hooray!

Find YOUR Etsy Global Craft Party, yo!

Crazy busy times over on this coast. Gearing up for autumn. Thinking about the holidays. Booking business trips. Turning down movie work. Or in N's case, booking more movie work.

This week's craziness is all because we're hosting an Etsy Global Craft Party over at the shop. And we currently have 81 people attending. OMG. I'm pretty sure people are going to have to do their craft on the bench across the street because we cannot seat 81 people. But we can make 100 silk screen printed tea towels, hand-sewn by this girl. Designed by this girl. And silk screened by yes, this girl. Screens burned by this girl's friend and girl gang member, Megan. There is going to be so much embroidery going on it's going to be awesome.

So get out there and find your craft party. It's on Friday, August 24th all over the freakin' world. If you are in Massachusetts, come to my party. I'll probably be hiding under the coffee table 20 minutes into the party. So look me there.

Enjoy!