early celebration

Tonight Michael is taking me to Les Faux Bourgeois tonight to celebrate early because he'll likely work late on my birthday. Yum. I'm starving. And Les Faux is so good you have to have a reservation.

the crane

When I was maybe 6 or 7, and my sister was 9 or 10, we were penpals with 2 sisters who lived in Japan. Sadako and Sadiko Imura (I can't believe I remember that), I think were their names. I don't remember where they lived or how the penpal thing was even set up. Sisters being penpals with sisters. I remember getting letters on that special kind of Japanese stationary that had little cute cartoons and they wrote their english letters in a funny uniform way.

Once they sent a picture of them standing under a blooming cherry blossom tree, 2 sisters with straight dark hair with bangs. With knee high socks and skirts and matching sweaters, 2 sisters that wrote us letters about their life in Japan. One day, my sister got a paper origami crane. I remember the day when I was snooping in my sisters room and I found it on a shelf and unfolded it. I knew I would be in trouble and in a quiet panic, figured out how to fold it back into it's crane-ness.

I never forgot how to fold a crane after that.

After the terrible earthquake and tsunami, I find myself thinking about Sadako and Sakiko. Are they still in Japan and what became of them. I'll be 40 next week. They'd be all grown up too.. although some part of me thinks of them as children that existed only in letters on playful stationary and faded photographs. I went looking on Facebook and left a message when I found a Sadako Imura living in Hong Kong. I wonder if I'll find them and if I could send a letter back, with a tiny yellow paper crane.

Tony and two coffees

Tony and two coffees, originally uploaded by jilly71.

thinking about Japan

a tiny universe of music, originally uploaded by jilly71.

I am a cartoon

cotton belt

cotton belt, originally uploaded by jilly71.

Port Arthur, Texas

spontaneous

Last night I got an envelope in the mail informing me of an interesting seminar, the 2011 National Conference on Hair Pulling and Skin Picking Disorders. Sound fascinating doesn't it? Probably not to too many. But being someone who has survived the isolation, anguish and adolescent horror of baldness as a result of a hair pulling disorder- it's exciting.

Even more so that it's happening in San Francisco and especially since I'm going to reward myself for living with Trichotillomania for 29 of my 40 years.I paid my registration, booked myself 3 nights in the super fabulous Good Hotel nearby (seriously check out that hotel link.. it's the coolest place: a free photo booth in the lobby, the entire hotel is furnished with recycled materials..). I have my plane ticket and even my BART pass for round trip travel to the airport.

For having spent nearly the last 29 years in almost closeted isolation of why I don't have any hair and not really knowing anyone else like me, I'm pretty excited to spend 3 days in seminars with people who acre about this topic as much as I do.

I'll be attending a mix of personal growth and research seminars:

SHHHH it’s a Secret Merrill Black, L.C.S.W./ Reiki Master
Secrecy can give power. Revealing the secret can be even more powerful. In this experiential workshop we will begin to peel away the layers of shame and the power of keeping the trich/skin picking a secret. Sharing the secret can help reduce the shame associated with it as well as help build your self-confidence and comfort level around having trich/skin picking.

Neurobiology of Trichotillomania and Related Disorders:
Implications for treatment
Sam Chamberlain MD, Jon Grant MD
With focus on ‘brain-based’ approaches towards understanding BFRBs, Dr. Chamberlain will highlight brain circuits thought to be involved in these conditions and how these have been explored using cognitive tests, brain scanning, drug studies, and animal models. Dr. Grant will describe how these findings have led to improved models of these conditions and new treatment directions, focusing on impulse control, mood, and addiction pathways.

Energy Psychology for Trichotillomania and other Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors: Part 1 of 2  Joan Kaylor, MSEd, LPC, NCC
Learn how to use emotional freedom technique (EFT) and Tapas Acupressure Technique (TAT)® for BFRBs. Session One will explain what these methods are. Participants will be invited to learn EFT specific to their pulling triggers. Please, no parents. This workshop is ONLY for adults struggling with trich or picking.

Energy Psychology for Trichotillomania and other Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors: Part 2 of 2 Joan Kaylor, MSEd, LPC< NCC
In session two, participants will be invited to learn and experience Tapas Acupressure Technique ® as a strategy for healing from BFRBs. Please, no parents. This workshop is ONLY for adults struggling with trich or picking.

Animal Models Joseph Garner, PhD
This session provides an overview of current animal models, emphasizing how human and animal work is integrated and complementary. Recent findings based on this work in the areas of diet and neurotransmitters as well as other developments and progress will be discussed.

Attending to the whole person: A Comprehensive Approach
Part 1 of 2 Renae Reinardy, Psy.D., LP This workshop provides a comprehensive approach to learning how to identify and balance mind, body and spirit in a way that facilitates personal growth and gains better control over BFRBs. Participants will work on developing their own “users guide” by learning strategies to develop their own self-balancing plan.
 
Attending to the whole person: A comprehensive approach
Part 2 of 2 Renae Reinardy, Psy.D., LP
The second part of this workshop delves deeper into the balance of mind, body and spirit and the effect this balance may play in recovery from BFRBs. Participants will work further on developing their own “users guide” by learning strategies to develop their own self-balancing plan.

 TLC’s 20th Anniversary Dinner

Join us for a delicious meal and celebration of TLC’s history – and future.
Help us blow out the candles on a birthday cake by the hotel’s award-winning pastry chef!

Translating Research into Improved Treatment: Q and A
Chaired by Jon Grant, MD, JD, MPH
Panel members: Sam Chamberlain, MD, Nancy Keuthen, PhD, Joseph Garner, PhD
Gain an understanding of how research has led to new treatment options, ask questions about the importance of research and recent discoveries, and gain insight into where the future of BFRB research may lead. 

Faces of Success: Closing Session
Moderated by Christina Pearson
Success and recovery are our goal.. .But what does that mean? Hear inspiring stories of real success and learn how to recognize success and recovery in your own struggle with these behaviors. This is the final event of the weekend, wrapping each of your own experiences into one package. Return home feeling motivated and prepared to continue working on recovery.

Fun huh? and if that's not enough.. Christina Pearson will be hosting and leading some of the seminars.. by far one of the most inspiring individuals I have ever met. She started this whole kit and kaboodle and has recovered from life long trich.

I'm pretty excited. It's going to be an amazing weekend and it all cost less than a 7 hr tattoo.

The town that died in 1964

downtown Port Arthur, Texas, originally uploaded by jilly71.

There's a little town way down near the Gulf of Mexico, in Texas. It's Port Arthur. A town famous for not much else than being the birthplace of Janis Joplin and it's because of that that I have been there twice in my life. Otherwise, I can't imagine what would take a person to travel 4000km to a small, worn out, dried up and nearly abandoned oil town on the crest of the Gulf.

So, that pretty much sums up this town. But, it's got a seed of mystery to it. It was once a thriving hub in the  center of the largest oil refinery network in the world. It boomed from nearby black gold. It thrived with parades, cafes, restaurants, music halls and bars. The American dreamt small town ideal. Apple pie and baseball, baby.

Did the nearby Beaumont pick up the boom? Did one too many hurricanes slam into main street and knock down too many buildings or did the smell of rotten eggs from the nearby oil refineries just get to be too much? Today main street Port Arthur is as dismal as it can get. It's entirely shuttered and boarded up- save for a weird karaoke bar and a museum of the Gulf Coast. (The same stuffed alligator is on display that was there 10 years ago).

The town's tallest building, the beautiful Sabine Hotel, with all it's windows open to breathe in the hurricane winds, stands obsolete and majestic on the corner of "The Past" and "No hope for the Future". Across the street, a brownstone with overhanging canopy is boarded up as well. Walking west down main street, we found the haunting reminders of what was once a business.. the carefully laid tiles of a cafe's entrance now exposed to the elements- the building long gone.I can't find a stitch of info on The Three Sisters. I'm dying to know what happened.

It was a cold day in Port Arthur, when I went back because I was in nearby Houston. The sun shone brightly and lit up the golden tones of the sandstone bricks. I was alone, walked the streets and imagined the hub of activity that happened so long ago. I found the boarded up Furniture store, The Hampton's. .Ironic, a name so synonymous with wealth, so haggard and absurd.. "Ham..", it's 50's font sign hanging by a thread. I found the old Greyhound Station; once taking teenagers with their carefully pressed clothes tucked into hard backed suitcases that didn't roll on wheels to adventures maybe in nearby New Orleans?

The station lay in ruins, the blue and white sign with the running Greyhound logo faded from the bright Texas sun and too much rain; moss growing inside.. I turned around when I heard the jazz horn and found the only other living person in Port Arthur.. he said he didn't live there.. he just came to play his horn. He looked at me like it was weird to see anyone else in Port Arthur, and it was. It was a sad town. The music stopped along time ago, but you could still hear the whistling from the memories blow across the barren, wall less rooms.

You can see the rest of my photos here..

absent is another word for Facebook

I'm driving to work today and I'm thinking.. I never post on my blog anymore...I used to really like to post on my blog..why don't I anymore, what's changed?

I'll tell you what's changed. I post everyday on Facebook and then I'm social media'd out. I'll try and change that and come round here more often.

Sorry all you non- Facebook addicts.

28. knit a pair of socks and wear them.


I can cross that off my list of things to do.. my sock knitting class (thanks Mom! it was a great gift) is over and I have successfully learned to knit a pair of socks.


Onwards to more pairs..

x

In January:

I went to see the polar bear swim in English Bay. I was sick, so I took photos. I was in a 100 day challenge to rid my body of wheat, dairy and sugar and blogged frequently about food. While in Seattle, I went to the Tacoma Museum of Art and bought a drinking glass molded from a baby doll head. I saw Patti Smith read from Just Kids and she stayed in the same hotel as me. I saw her in the lobby sitting 5 feet from me.

In February:

The Olympics came to town and I avoided it like the plague. I wrote more about food and how I was trying to avoid certain ones. Alexander McQueen dies, making himself a legend and a genius in one fall swoop. He probably was one.. but people have that tendency to say grandiose things when you die. I learned that a lack of calcium can really do a number on your nervous system. I stopped smoking pot once and for all.

In March:

I made videos with my new Ipod. I went to Toronto and payed my sister a visit in Montreal. We went to Swartz's Deli and had smoked meat sandwiches. I finally saw Habitat 67. I had a cheese fondue for lunch.

In April:

I realized I'd been off and on sick since New Year's eve. My uncle Ken came to town. I had my 1st public exhibit of my photos. They were up for a month. It was exciting. The tulips came up in Skagit County and I went to go see them. I discovered a better toothbrush.

In May:

I went to Scottsdale.  The cherry blossoms were out and I finally went to Vancouver's 9 o'clock gun. Then planned a trip.

In June:

Off to Mordon, Manitoba to see an old friend and go to a music festival. Then to Toronto,  where I saw a baby falcon be rescued, saw a friend of mine, and rode the streetcars. My sister came to visit for the weekend and we got caught in the rain. Then I went to Alberta for a family reunion and finally I was headed to New Orleans. There was a oil spill happening in the gulf of Mexico. It was also my mother's birthday. June was a great month.

In July:

I bought a Vespa. I was too busy riding it to say anything else.

In August:

Michael and I drove south..we end up in Olympia and went around the Washington peninsula. I said 'hey.. take this turn off' and we went across the Tacoma Narrows bridge, otherwise known as the Galloping Gurtie.

In Sept:
I cam back from an excellent Alberta rode trip with my mother. I tandem skydived out of a plane and went to a psychic who told me to write a book.

In Oct:

I bought 75 tiny birds I found in a small town on the Alberta road trip path. I ordered 2 dresses from China, and began to try and write again. I realized that I'd stopped doing alot of things and started to take a class here and there. I took a pajama making class and learned to knit again.

In November:

I started knitting. I had retail therapy and I cut ties and learned lessons. I bought a cat.

In Dec:

An old friend died. I learned another lesson. I made all my Christmas gifts (mostly) and I went to the UK with my boyfriend. I got sick.

in 2010:

I travelled. I visited friends and family. I went to old places I'd been before and new places I'd never been. I learned some lessons, lost some weight, gained it back. Spent money. Stopped writing, started knitting and took a bunch of photos.

the present that went to famous places..

This is me and my fella. He's holding my mother's Christmas present that didn't get mailed on time. Instead, it took an unexpected journey to the UK where it was documented as we visited various places.. Stay tuned for "Where did the present go" updates.

Here we are at the unexplained, much celebrated Neolithic stone circle known famously as Stonehenge. By far, one of the most amazing things I have ever been in the presence of. (Graffiti from 92AD in Pompeii is up there).

resolves

Healthy
1. eat more fruits and vegetables
2. spend a month without eating out
3. ride my bike more
4. fit into last year's jeans
5. drink more water everyday
6. Bikram's Yoga

Crafty
1. make my valentines
2. knit instead of pull
3. knit everyday
4. embroider pillow case and a matching duvet
5. sew a dress
6. learn to knit socks

Mindful
1. identify my skills
2. night classes
3. do my taxes
4. trip to..
5. volunteer

towels for tea

I've decided I like tea towels. I think it started at the Red Deer Farmer's Market when I bought a gorgeous hand woven linen one that has just gotten better and better each time I washed it. Pretty towels for the kitchen. I don't know why but I have taken to them and more so with the "souvenier" aspect of tea towels.

Have oyu ever noticed that? No matter what- the gift shop has a commemorative tea towel. Most likely.

So.. I was in this shop in Brighton and saw these really lovely towels and because we had 2 instances where Michael had shouted.. "Look! There's a fox" I bought this one. Isn't it lovely?

I bought the 2 Lady's in the Tea Cup and the Birdsongs as well for choices for Michael's sister Trish (she nabbed the Tea Cup but traded for a Cupcake towel she had).

Here's the company who makes them, ironically Lush Designs.

journey's end

A long 9 hr flight into daylight and I'm home and completely sacked. The worst thing in the world is to arrive at an airport and to have no one to meet you. There should be a service where friendly strangers greet you with flowers, carry your bags, and get you safely into a cab with a cup of tea.

Wouldn't that be lovely?

So.. a quick recap..

We arrived in Heathrow and took a buzz around London in our rental car.. off to Hamstead to get a tea and make a call.

We headed for Bristol and I tried to stay awake but fell asleep in the car.. Michael almost did too so he rolled down all the windows so it was brutally cold and woke me up.

We stopped off at "the services" which is like a highway turnoff/ rest stop/ food/ gas place all rolled into one. We bought hot chocky and weird disposable scrubby toothbrush thingies from the bathroom vending machines (not the hot chocky mind you).

We rolled into Bristol and Michael tried to back up the one way hill to his sister's house not realizing the steep hill was covered in ice. He got out to look at the situation and the emergency brake wasn't one and we started to slide towards a parked car as he started to step out of the car with me yelling. Parked at a dangerous angle, Michael went to announce our arrival and situation. I found a shovel in a yard and the road side "grit" barrel and started shovelling sand on the road behind and in front of the tires. All worked out in the end with nary a dent.

We stayed with Michael's sister Victoria, Martin her husband and 2 kids: Katherine 7 and Beatrice, 3.

Bristol highlights
Vic and the kids..
SS Great Britain
Clifton Suspension Bridge
Bacon Sarnies on the docks with brown sauce
Ciders with Hannah and her sister Biddy at the Tobacco Factory.

From Bristol we headed to London and stopped at Stonehenge.. that's in another post.. it was super and I was so happy to see it. I would have also liked to see the Marc Bolan (of T Rex) tree shine but we didn't get there.

In London, we stayed with Michael's nephew Robert and girlfriend Zamira in north London. I got sick. Really sick with the flu but managed to get on with things albeit a bit achy, sniffy and sore.

Highlights of London

Seeing the places Michael grew up
The old pubs
Hampstead High Street
Harrods
Fortnum & Mason
Abbey Road
driving around, taking the tube, getting on a double decker
Oxford St, Islington, Camden, Kentish Town, Kensington
The V&A
The British Museum
The Tower of London
Walking near the London Eye- no we didn't go on it
The houses of parliament
London Cemetery and the graves of Karl Marx and Malcom McLaren
Cheese shops
missed bits: old friends Heidi and Esther

After London, we went to Forest Row- a lovely hamlet on ley lines to stay with Michael's other sister Trish and her husband Peter. Best bits were:

Walking on the nearby paths and visiting the farm with the giant pigs and cattle
Their cosy cottage and Kitsy the black cat
The great meals they cooked, comfortable beds and English countryside

We went to nearby Lewes and the on to Brighton and saw the Royal Pavilion and took Trish's daughter Lucy out for dinner.

We went back the next day and I finally met Michael's mother who made sure to tell me that when she dies, I should go to Vienna and see the opera.. which was odd.. She was very sweet though. We ate at Infinity Foods and I bought a tea towel of English Foxes and explored the Lanes.

And now it's 2:40 in the morning in the UK.. although it's 6:38 in Vancouver. I should eat and go to bed. x

A new year

I've been in London with my fella, Michael. We went up to Bristol to visit his sister and her little kids, Beatrice and Katherine. Little B was sickly and unsurprisingly, now so am I. By the time we got to Stonehenge, I had a sore throat. So, if jet lag wasn't nipping on my heels, the flu was.

Michael and I spent 2 days manoevoring the scourge of humanity on the London streets. How many people are I this city anyway? To go 5 blocks is a mighty effort of sensory overload, never mind 5 tube stops. In those 2 days, we drove or walked over London.

Harrods, Fortnum & Mason, and Liberty and on the days after Boxing Day! Oxford st, Regent's street, Soho, The Britsih museum, the London Eye, Tower of London, Hampstead, Carnaby, Portobello, Bond St, the V&A museum and Kensington. Did I mention I have the flu??? God.

We drove down to Michael's other sister in Forest Row and by the time we had a lovely beef curry...I was happy to take the invitation to lay down for a nap at 3. I didn't wake up until 9 the next day and then we were back to heathrow to drop off the car.

I still hope to see some friends that live here. It's been an avoided mission due to a foul mood, sicky cough and so worn out i have nary a thread of conversation in me.. It 3:30 in the morning and just now am i feeling a bit of talk in my head.

Sigh.. Onwards.. And in search of a fishtail parka...

The day trip

Once...I was in the town of Bath, UK. I happened to trip on some cobblestones and hurt my knee hard enough to not be able to carry my backpack for about 5 days. I looked at the sign on the front hostel desk that read "trips to Stonehenge, $15 return" daily and for some reason never went. I don't remember why not. It's not like I had something better to do. I always regretted it.

Well..I was able to rectify that one regret...And went to Stonehenge today.(right..uploading with iPad is a bit finicky.. Will sort sizes later..)

Merry Christmas!!

 

Thanks Santa for the Ipad. It's loaded with games, news sites, knitting apps, music, a movie and the new Keith Richard's new book. It'll come in handy for the long flight to London today. 

We're off to visit the fella's family in England..we have a car! Oh.. this will be fun!! The year that ends in adventure starts the next one off right. 

xxoo

flooding in the emerald city

I decided to Pike Market it up for Christmas prezzies.. so I rented a car on Friday night with the intention of driving down to Seattle super early Saturday morning. It didn't go exactly to plan when I slept in until 10 am. But I figured the weekend rental car deserved a journey and I took off for the border and sights south. There's no journey into Washington that could be complete without the obligatory stop in Bow-Edison.

This time I drove past a farm with a wee house front and was selling cheese made on the spot.. Samish Bay Cheese. Amazing! Bought a chipotle Gouda and a herb version and had an amazing chat with the owner Suzanne about how we stay linked to physical locations and how special the Skagit Valley is. As usual, my visit in Edison was lovely and magical. I have made friends with David, the owner of the Apothecary and always stop into Tweets, the cafe that has the very best breakfast I have ever had.

Onwards to Seattle.. which put me in town at 4pm! Um.. I beginning to wonder if I'm going to drive back the same day. But figured I'd Pike Market it up with my 1/2 loading zone only parking spot and fast! I picked up a few of my favorite things to give as gifts and ran for The Crumpet Shop (another spot that never goes unvisited) and found it closed! Not a good thing.. and not looking good for leaving Seattle.

Later in my search for Abita Beer, (that you can't get in Canada- but I really enjoy) that went unfound and I was driving around and saw a neon Abita sign.. it was literally a sign as there was also a free parking spot. It tuned out to be a New Orleans themed restaurant, Marcela's. I don't think Chicken Cordon Bleu is native to New Orleans or creole- but it was delicious. What the hell are Potato Ya- Ya's? I treated myself to bread pudding with whiskey sauce dessert and the drive home was getting farther and farther unlikely.

So, I phoned the only other number I brought with me.. A B&B I stayed in with my mom & sister- Seattle Hill House and the owner graciously agreed to match the cost of a likely less comfortable hotel that would mean I would have to pay for overnight parking in downtown Seattle. Full on chicken, beer and bread pudding I checked into my queen size bed with 4 large feather pillows and private bath. Tucked in with the latest Rolling Stone article on a unpublished John Lennon interview done days before he was killed and listened to the rain hitting the windows. This morning I met a couple from Florida who work for the Home Shopping Network, a couple from Olympia, a woman from Denmark and another from Paris. A B&B trumps a hotel any day.

The rain.. did I mention the torrential rains? It's not alot of fun to carry around you camera in. It makes everything slippery and hard to drive in. I drove though a small shallow lake already. News reports that some road are out due to water coverage. I think it's all south though.I'll make due. I brought my rain coat. I have a few more stops to make..

Watson Kennedy is by far my favorite Seattle shop. I found free parking right across the street. The car will stay there and I'll walk up to Pike, the crumpet shop and the local Lush. I'll bring all my packages back and head north.. back to feuding kitties, knitting projects, familiar blankets and my fella. But not before I visit Fancy, Shmancy and Nancy.. 3 shops doors down from one another and another favorite Seattle thing.

.

life at 17

2008-04-24-0838-05_edited, originally uploaded by jilly71.

Ii was (and still am) crazy about Janis Joplin and had hung all the album covers on my wall.

I was fascinated with the 60's and hippies and had tie died my pants, indian bed spread, peacock feathers, bean bag chair and beads.

That's Raven, my 1st cat and the apartment I had off of high school property.. because I lived by myself.

I also smoked.