Hey, anyone in Chicago interested in a set of orange velour chairs? They are very comfy and in very good condition. Not to mention they are orange velour chairs. Ahem. I have a low asking price on them...if you're interested, just let me know. I'm moving at the end of the month and I'm afraid they can't come with me. They matched my ibook so well, too. Sigh.

Last night I couldn't stand to stay in my apartment so I went to the [ever-so-fragrant] Loyola Beach. Needless to say, the view was nice so here are some [poorly-placed, I know] shots.

I indulged last night at Reckless Records. Now in my possession: The Hives, The Vines, and The Ramones. I am now a hipster, for sure.

I can't say much yet about these albums, as they have barely had a chance for a real review, but I can say that I enjoy the Hives' videos quite a lot. If you own the CD, pop it in the computer and watch their 3 videos. The "Main Offender" video is unlike anything I've ever seen. It even seems that the less quality you get with that particular video, the better it is (aka: make it full screen on your computer rather than the little Win Media Player). Very well done.

Perhaps I'm a bit behind the times or whatever, but I know now that we are seeing an entire new genre of music become mainstream-popular. Noisy, punky, crazy music from the Strokes, White Stripes, Hives...all you gotta do is put the Pixies and Detachment Kit in there and you've got a nice little theme going. I'm really interested to see where this little trend goes, because I love loud, crazy, messy-yet-tight songs.

Let me break this weekend down for you: 30 girls, one house, 1/2 electricity working (I've never seen such creative use of electrical outlets in my life), 2 hour delay in Durham, feeling like death upon reaching O'Hare, no suburban cabs left on the planet, just then a couple of angels of mercy show up and I am saved. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

But it wasn't bad at all--it was a very good trip, in fact. Just when you're tired, things are about 10000 times worse than they really are.

OH, I had a moment on the plane. We were looking out the window over...Indiana somewhere?...and there was this amazing lightning storm a hundred or so miles off in the distance. It was huge. Then, I realized I was listening to the Doves' Last Broadcast album. Know what's on the front of that album? A lightning storm happening off in the distance as seen from an airplane. Truly, truly bizarre. Yep, and by that time, the battery in my camera had died. Figures.

I think the reason I enjoy bike riding so much is the adventure factor. It seems dumb, but I enjoy riding SO much more on the sidewalk than on the street--in Evanston especially where the sidewalks are all jacked up by tree roots. I found myself wanting to make little "kapow!!" noises like a little kid as I was bumping along, dodging bad concrete and automated sprinklers, ducking under low tree limbs and whizzing along Northwestern's campus. Chicago, unlike Evanston, is "pray for your life" on the street, but E-town seems to be pretty bike friendly with its wide streets. However, I should add that it was in Evanston that I was hit by a car, not Chicago as one would imagine. Perhaps I have a death wish because Ridge Road is where I got hit, but it's my favorite sidewalk ride by far.

I find that even though it's a hike to get to work (about 30-45 minutes one way) my senses are thanking me. Rather than smelling the "L," I'm smelling pine trees, fishy water from the lake, breakfast cooking, freshly sprinklerfied wet grass, and just all the smells you miss when you're in a vehicle or some other device of transportation. It's really quite a nice (though sweaty) way to wake yourself up in the morning, riding your bike. It's also a nice way to get out the day's frustrations when you leave. Take it out on the road, that's what it's there for.

If I were in town tomorrow I would join in on the Critical Mass ride along with Marc, but alas I will be flying out to North Carolina on bidness tomorrow afternoon. Stop by O'Hare and say hi to me if you're there around midday. We'll buy coffee from the Man.

I'm about to go out right now (well...maybe not RIGHT now...) and buy The Hives and The Vines because everyone says they are sooooo great. I just can't get around all the hoo-ha to see if they really are good or not. I guess I'll just have to drop 25 bucks at Reckless to find out.

Oh, you can add Trail of the Dead to that grouping, too. I got some promo buttons in the mail for them as well--currently on my bag--and I have no idea what they sound like. Welcome to the wannabe hipster lifestyle. Insert sarcasm here.

And ever since this weekend I've been craving The Ramones. I'm almost more fascinated by music's effect on those surrounding me than I am on it's effect on myself and my own listening pleasure. I just want to blast "Judy is a punk" to the masses and see what happens (have you ever tried singing along to that song? "za za za bunk, Judy is a punk, za za za za zi zi...know I don't know why...za za zo know why..."). If there's anyone with a job left reading this site you can just peruse my wish list. Har har.

Field Museum, lunch, shopping with the lay-dees.

Delirious. Didn't get home until 4am. I actually went to a club [insert shock and amazement here]. Woke up in apartment that seemed to be a million degrees. Am now at work. Am now talking like Bridget Jones. It is Sunday.

Yesterday I also biked 20 miles and went to the wedding of Shokufeh and Sam. Here are some pictures.

I've been having dreams of my childhood a lot lately. Playing in the yard, climbing trees, daydreaming, etc. Opposing that, I've been thinking about at what an amazing pace technology is advancing. And then I wonder if technology is making significant differences in a youth's experiences and personal growth, or if they are just so accustomed to the technological age being around that they have the same issues that, say, someone growing up in the 80s would have had.

At Louhelen, I looked at the roster and there was someone in attendance who was born in 1988. 14 years old. I was 9 in 1988. I thought being Kiss for halloween was cool. I think a 9 year old today might think that being a computer-animated cartoon (like, say, the Powerpuff Girls)--something unknown to me back then--is normal. I remember being 9, and I remember how I felt and what I was thinking. I remember not feeling like I looked 9. I was just a short adult.

Do you think youth really understand that technologically we are evolving faster than we can see? Part of me want to assert that along with our increased tech-capacity, the capacity of a youth--intellectually, emotionally, socially--is increasing as well. I guess it's hard to say from here.

I am back, though feeling barely alive at this point. Friday was good, Saturday's shower went very well (see hastily curved pictures below), Sunday's 5K...went (37 minutes...and I beat my own time, too), barbecue Sunday afternoon, Sunday night I gave a talk and then yesterday I rented a car and drove 6 hours to Louhelen Baha'i School. I am now back in Chicago (600 some-odd miles overall...oy). I am rather tired. But here are some pictures until I am coherent again.

Oh yeah, I've been working in Illustrator again (God bless bezier curves). Here's something showing the three protagonists of the Five Year Plan; a series of recent letters from the Universal House of Justice to the Baha'is of the world.

So despite the lack of enthusiasm for the 5K, I'm doin' it anyways. Poo on you guys!

This weekend I'm not going to have time to breathe. Immediately on Monday morning I'm going up to Michigan for some work stuff. Later this month I'm going to North Carolina. Then next month I'm going to Canada. Fun stuff, but this leaves little room for inpromtu anything. Oh well, this is what being a grown-up is like.

In all honesty, I can't complain. How many people can say they love their jobs? How many people get to deal with youth, get to practice their faith freely and at work, get to publish and be published, get to design, talk to amazing people, work with amazing people, be friends with amazing people and live in this amazing city. Sometimes I feel like the bubble will pop, but that's irony talking. More than anything I feel like things are going to just get better.

And a few words: welcome back, Simon; Robbie's got comments; Dave's got a new hot look (other than this one); Mr. Oblivious has some great pieces; and I might do some work with Shadowtactics. Niiiiice.

Okay, here is my one last weak attempt at looking for anyone in Chicagoland who wants to run the Chris Zorich 5K with me on Sunday. I know a bunch of folks walking, but I've never run a 5k (in a large, seething mass of people anyways) and I want to see what it's like. C'mon...you know you wanna! It's for a great cause, and there will be free food at the end! Enh? Enticed yet?

Email me if you're interested. Please note: don't feel like this is a competition thing. I'm a pretty slow runner (12 minute mile, baby!).

The ascendancy achieved by Baha'u'llah was nowhere better demonstrated than in His ability to broaden the outlook and transform the character of the community to which He belonged. Though Himself nominally a Babi, though the provisions of the Bayan were still regarded as binding and inviolable, He was able to inculcate a standard which, while not incompatible with its tenets, was ethically superior to the loftiest principles which the Babi Dispensation had established. The salutary and fundamental truths advocated by the Bab, that had either been obscured, neglected or misrepresented, were moreover elucidated by Baha'u'llah, reaffirmed and instilled afresh into the corporate life of the community, and into the souls of the individuals who comprised it. The dissociation of the Babi Faith from every form of political activity and from all secret associations and factions; the emphasis placed on the principle of non-violence; the necessity of strict obedience to established authority; the ban imposed on all forms of sedition, on back-biting, retaliation, and dispute; the stress laid on godliness, kindliness, humility and piety, on honesty and truthfulness, chastity and fidelity, on justice, toleration, sociability, amity and concord, on the acquisition of arts and sciences, on self-sacrifice and detachment, on patience, steadfastness and resignation to the will of God - all these constitute the salient features of a code of ethical conduct to which the books, treatises and epistles, revealed during those years, by the indefatigable pen of Baha'u'llah, unmistakably bear witness.
(Shoghi Effendi: God Passes By, Pages: 132-133)

I'm in the middle of a creative explosion. Let's just say it involves a lot of drawing, a lot of writing, a lot of reading, and Illustrator. Let your imagination fill in the blanks.

Yesterday I woke up for dawn prayers (was a Holy Day, no work). I biked up to the Temple before the streets got crowded with commuters, before it got hot and the mist from the sprinklers still hung below the boughs of the tree-lined streets. I biked hard to see how fast I could get there. I loved the subtle sound of my bike working against the quiet streets. I loved the hiss of the sprinklers and the fresh morning-ish air. As painful as it is to wake up in the morning, morning is definitely worth waking up for.

I waited a bit for the sweat to abate before I entered the House of Worship. When I finally did enter the auditorium, the sun broke through the pillars on the east and cast a golden light on the chairs inside. It backlit the people reading prayers. It made the hair of those few early risers glow from behind. It made the prayers sound better, made me breathe deeper and offered a peaceful feeling which, though fleeting, is worth the few moments it exists.

To end this whole thing with "life is good" or something like that would be a disservice. But it really is good. Try and enjoy it, sometimes.

Okay, so I'm ditching everything to go to Wizard World for three days. [insert stifled giggle of glee here]

My 4th was memorable. How was yours?

Since I've been riding my bike so much in this darn heat, I feel like I'm hungry all the time (SO annoying when your stomach growls every hour). I just want to eat and not think about it until the next mealtime. Sounds reasonable right?

Well yesterday I came across the Clif Ice series, which is basically a Clif bar (one of the better, less chewy energy bars) with caffeine. Yes, that's right: caffeine. Two birds with one stone: hunger abated, caffeine quotient quenched. Voila.

So I tried both the orange and the chocolate java flavors (already) and they are pretty good. The chocolate is--of course--better, but the orange one which seemed like it would be wierd was not. The only problem is that they make you extremely thirsty, and when you're trying to eat and ride a bike in the heat, you don't want to juggle a water bottle in there. ANYways, just thought I'd let you all know that there are some caffeiney foods out there.

On Saturday, July 6, I will be attending WIZARD WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why am I so excited about a comic book convention you might ask? Well, the guest list looks impressive to start with, but actually, it's what's NOT on the list that's making me go insane right now. DAVID MACK AND ANDY LEE are going to be there (aaak! aaaaaaakk!). Oh yes. My weekend is made, and it's only Wednesday.

I met them both in Atlanta last year at a convention, and they were very, extremely cool (especially Mack, who must have signed 40 of my comics; no, especially Andy Lee, who drew a ginkgo which served as the centerpiece for my portfolio project). Also a highlight: Georges Jeanty, whom I also met last year at the con, will be there. He is making quite a splash, as a ton of people at that convention will have his comic as an admissions bonus.

So come hell or high water I will be at Rosemont on Saturday at this convention. Yes, I'm a nerd. I know. I don't care. I'm proud of my geekiness!

So yes, I am a bit obsessed with this whole "The Man" thing. I realize this. I've probably lost half my readers and you all just think I'm this crazy girl who lost her mind in Chicago because of city water and lack of air conditioning. But ya know--World Com, Andersen, Tyco, Enron, Martha...something's up here...

In my UV-induced delerium, I checked some stuff out. Just for curiosity. First, I thought of course, theman.com is taken. Of course. But then there's againsttheman.com, fighttheman.com, whoistheman.com, giveyourdollarstotheman.com, yourmomistheman.com....Yeah. Well, you get the idea.

I'm not going to buy any of those, just so you know. But I wouldn't be opposed to developing something for one of them if someone were, say, to buy it in my name. It will have to be devoted to conspiracy theory, of course. That's a project devoted to fluff if I've ever heard it! But, then again, what is this?

Her name is Dixie Lou, a fine, strong southern name. She is strong but light, and matches everything I own. She is called a hybrid. With suspension, of course. She was purchased from Johnny Sprockets on Saturday with the kind assistance of a couple of patient friends. She was quite expensive for me, but I am glad I spent the extra money. I don't have a tv, I don't have an air conditioner, I don't have a nice stereo or a new computer, but darnitt, I owe myself a nice bike.

Dix and I traveled all around the place this weekend. From Chicago to Evanston to the Baha'i Temple a few times...and while I am sore today (and uh, the heat index is at about 108) I still could not pass up the opportunity to take her to work this morning. I am very, very pleased. And if this keeps up, I will be very, very buff.

(pictures from the party @ the lake yesterday; Nancy and Kayla had many dazzling moments such as these)