LA River Ride

Jenny and I took our first bicycle ride along the LA River, stretching from Fletcher Blvd. to somewhere around the Griffith Park Zoo. This bike trail is surreal to say the least. On one side is the 5 freeway, the other a lost but not forgotten river that plays host not just to trash and abandoned shopping carts but also to herring's, fish, and ducks. We encountered not only other bikers, but photographers taking pictures of the wildlife and even hispanic families spending the day fishing and playing by the water. I forgot to bring my camera but I surely feel a photo essay coming on. One thing that bummed me out about the path is how close it comes to the Autry museum without there being any possible way of getting off the path and accessing the museum or Griffith park in general. If anyone has information on accessing the park from the path, please let me know.

More on the LA river rides in the future i'm sure.

Test

Sean of the Dead

Jay Burger was one of my favorite joints to sober up at in my earlier LA drinking days. the place was perfect. But sadly the landlord booted Jay out, built a shitty business structure in its parking lot, but for some reason kept Jay's hut sitting in the midst of it all.

Its been brought to my attention that the hut will be reopened under the name Sean's Burgers. Unless Sean is some long lost brother of Jay...I don't have high hopes.

NELA?

Our hood makes the NY Times

Jettisoned

I failed to remember to bring my camera when i walked down to the Hill Country event with my friends...So when Jenny and the others had to leave, I charged my camera and drove back down to the event. About a half a block away from the intersection i saw smoke rising from the street and a few people running in panic and stopping traffic. When i reached the corner i witnessed what seemed to be an awesome car crash just seconds after its occurrence.

Unfortunately, such events aren't uncommon...but there were a few bizarre things about this crash. A. there was one car...and its front end was obliterated. B. the engine of the car had been literally Jettisoned from the car about 20 yards away.

In addition, a traffic light lay on the sidewalk in pieces. The woman didn't seem to be injured but the site was of substantial devastation. None of us at the scene could really make sense of it...we had no idea how the whole event could have happened. It seemed like the woman must have been going terribly fast...and how the hell did she manage to hit the traffic light...and how the hell did that engine fly out of her car like that. All a bit nuts.

The Hills Are Alive

This last Saturday I dropped by the aforementioned SW Hill Country store to check out the event as well as the store itself. It was all I had hoped it to be.

The store is mixed with a good mix of cool and functional western supplies. Hip "Reverend Horton Heat" style shirts and suits made by such brands as Scully, big Elvis and Hank Williams belt buckles, tooled belts and the like. I briefly talked to one of the owners who was pleasant and helpful. She explained that the "for sale" sign on the outside of the building was the residuals of a moment of panic by her husband, but assured me that they are staying put for the moment.

The event drew a small but pleasant crowd. The bands were good, ranging from roots rock to more orthodox country. The crowd, a mix of locals dressed either in their best rockabilly, western, and even hillbilly garb. But you needn't be rooted in this culture to have a good time...its just a nice way to spend a Saturday afternoon. There was a small grill off to the side, but I've been told that you are welcome to bring a cooler of whatever gets you through the day.

Its been assured to me that next months line-up will be great. The plan is to have this be a monthly event and i believe they'll also be showing movies there at some point.

Please check this place out...I think it teeters on success.

Hill Country

SW Hill Country has all the makings of a diamond in the rough from a totally naive perspective. I say naive, because I have yet to step foot into this Western Wear shop. Since I've moved within spitting distance to it, the facade has intrigued me. What I do know about it is this: It's located on the outskirts of Eagle Rock on the corner of Colorado and Eagle Vista blvd. a quarter of a mile from Figueroa. The only other commercial space in the vicinity is Cindy's diner and the upcoming Larkin’s restaurant. The outside of the store looks as though this shop has been there for 30years but evidently it opened in 2004. Minimal online research has determined that this shop is devoted to the modern day Los Angeles equine enthusiast. It's an odd location for such a place. I haven't noticed much "western" culture in the Eagle Rock area and regardless the place is disjointed from any common shopping district. To be sustainable SW Hill must either have a devoted group of enthusiasts who come back, or something that sets them apart and attracts people to this out of the way pup-tent of western wear.

Although I've been on a horse maybe twice in my life, my yet largely untapped fascination with the classic days of Hollywood’s star cow-boys (i.e. Tom Mix, and even Clint Eastwood) make this place very promising for me. But here is what really suggests that this place could be something great. Through a relatively obscure mail list I’m on I was informed that SW Hill Country is putting on a Jamboree of sorts.

The details are as follows:

Saturday, March 24,
MUSICX SW HILLCOUNTRY PARTY – Eagle Rock
Parking Lot Party at SW Hill Country Western Wear Store
1412 Colorado Blvd., Eagle Rock 90041 (Plenty of free street pkg)

1:00 – 5:00 pm
Free Music, BBQ and Suds!, Bring your lounge chairs or sit on our hay
bales. Bands are: Triple Chicken Foot (Bustin’ down Old Time Banjo and
Fiddle Music), The Running Kind (Classic Country Rock), El Ten Eleven
(An experimental instrumental musical journey; the next big thing!),
and Rockwood (Cosmic Country!)
Visit http://www.myspace.com/swhillcountry to hear the music. Store specials throughout the day!
For more information, call 323-256-2500 or http://www.swhillcountry.com

Sounds like a good time to me!

You aint Sh*t

Sadly, once more a cherished piece of kitsch in LA bights the dust. My lovely "Burgers 'n Shit has closed its doors and painted over the 'n Shit part of the sign. Yeah, Main street downtown is slowly gentrifying and the crackheads and whores who used B'nS as their goto spot for....shit have been slowly swept from its streets. Art galleries, clothing shops, and one solid vietnamese restaurant (Blossom) have replaced the stench of homelessness. Personally, I would have kept the joint named the same, but just upgraded the shit. But it doesn't seem as though downtown business owners share my sense of irony.

Burrito Brothers

Take a few minutes to check out this short film that combines a few of my favorite things, Mexican food, urban guarilla cyclists, and charity. It's an inspiration.

Found out about it here. Check out the comments and find one of many reasons I'm beginning to hate Curbed LA. But more about that later.

A moment

It's been ages eh?

Sorry, lots to deal with. Moving, wedding, and a variety of other things.

Some ask, Doug since you've moved from Skunk Central will this blog persist? Well, my current answer is, as long as the waft of skunkage (i think we have a friend living under our house) remains and so do things that symbolically "stink good" I think i'm fine with keepin it stinky. With that said, I'm also thinking about starting a new blog soon, so be on the look out.

So, allow me to pick up the ball again...

What Is It?

Ok, so the regulars should know of my historic fascination with the man Crispin Helion Glover. His acting debut as Mr. McFly in Back To The Future paved the road for some of the most bizarre character acting I've seen in commercial filmmaking. In addition to his oddball feature appearances, Crispin fashions himself an artist. Having published 5 different art books, a cd, and now a feature film of his own.

Yes, the premiere of Crispin’s directorial debut "What Is It?" has been making the rounds slowly from city to city. Crispin, devoted to the integrity of the film has dismissed any normal distribution channels for the film and instead, carries it under his arm from town to town for a 3day viewing of the film as part of a performance and Q/A experience.

My friend Jamie gave me the heads up of its appearance in Portland and quickly I heard of its arrival in LA. I've heard whispers of this movie for some years now...and never knew if it was actually released. The only thing I knew about it, was that it starred almost exclusively actors with Downs Syndrome. Enough said, Crispin must have outdone himself on this one I thought.

So tickets were purchased, I coaxing Huey and then Tiffany to accompany me to the night of weirdness. That night, we drove to Hollywood, paid too much for parking, and ate shitty pizza in a rush to get decent seats for the event. We arrived to the Egyptian theater and were greeted by a long line that we had to sit in even though we had purchased tickets online. We got in, and sat through some annoying commercials that you should expect to have to endure at a "non-profit" art house joint.

The lights dimmed and from an elevated stage/podium thing Crispin revealed himself wearing a black suit. He proceeded to recite/perform segments from 11 books he had written/created. Sometimes reading at break-neck speed only to arrive at a single word that deserved extreme emphasis. At times, the performance seemed to drag, but then picked up steam again. All in all, I enjoyed it having owned 3 of the books he read from.

He then presented the film with little description but assured us there would be a Q/A after the viewing.

Ok, so the film. Well, I've been rather wordy already.... and I'm not sure if I could really explain all that went into this thing. Yes, there are people with Downs Syndrome. They act, but you can barely understand half of what they say. There are Snails, and they get the raw end of the deal. Snails are crushed, salted on, sliced, and murdered in a variety of manners. There's Shirley Temple. There's a man in Black Face who pierces his cheek with a syringe. There are nude monkey women. There's a physically disabled man on a giant clamshell. How it all fits together is a stretch. In general, it sort of seems to be an upscale homage to the history of Avant-Garde cinema. Bunuel, Kenneth Anger, David Lynch...On the other hand, its kind of random and a bit offensive. I've always known that Crispin likes to be odd (and thats the thing, i don't think he is Odd, and I don't think he's posing to be Odd, he just likes to be Odd). But I never really thought he liked to be offensive really. And that is what was surprising about this thing...his intent to offend. He admitted that this film is pretty much just a F You to the studios though, but unfortunately it kinda feels like an F-You to the Downs kids as well.

Well, after the movie he rambled about some aspects of its history and intent. All interesting, but also kind of expected and derivative. Don't get me wrong, It was all I had hoped for and more. But I find that Crispen likes to lump himself into a collective of "shock-artists" instead of truly setting himself aside as a singular voice. He has assured us that this is the first in a trilogy of movies he's producing. He states that he's proud of this one, but the next is his passion and what he would like to be known for. I had several questions for Crispin, but unfortunately the Q/A just dragged too long and I wasn't called on so I left. Missed the book signing and all.

So, that seems to fill my weirdness quota for the next six months I think.

Keep the Hope Alive

So its the season for giving right? Well, If you really want to give something special, please take a minute to read about young Callum Robbins. Son to J. and Janet Robbins. J has led the bands Jawbox and Burning Airlines and also played for the now under-rated GI back in the day. He's a fixture of the DC culture and an Indie Rock icon.

But enough about him, his son is very sick and needs every chance to fight it. A donation site via Paypal has been constructed. Drop a few dollars ( or several) in the pail and make a real difference in the hope for a family of truely decent people.

Sorry about the lack of entries in the last few months. Moving to Eagle Rawk has really been a full-time endeavor. I promise to write about the change in life as well as my Crispin Glover experience as soon as possible.

Peas, and Happy Holidays people.

Froggers

FROGTOWN ART WALK
Date: Friday November 17th, 2006, 7-10 PM

At some point during the 1960’s, residents of the small community of
Elysian Valley stepped outside to a veritable flood of frogs blanketing
the streets and yards of the neighborhood. Legend has it that the
polluted water of the neighboring Los Angeles River caused a decline
in the natural predators of the native red-legged frog: the herons and
the crayfish. The resulting reptile explosion caused the frogs to
overrun the banks of the river and to stray into the neighborhood. This
event gave the area its enduring nickname, Frogtown. The construction
of the 5 freeway effectively cut the area off from the surrounding
communities of Echo Park and Silverlake. The re-zoning of the lots
between Blake Avenue and the river created an isolated pocket of
industrial land that co-existed for years with the single-family
residences across the street. Many of the warehouses and factories are
now being occupied by a range of designers, artists and artisans who
find that the lively streets and nearby river make for a provocative
work environment. We are pleased to announce the first Frogtown Art
Walk, a celebration of the creativity and the diverse talents of the
residents and businesses occupying the industrial buildings of
Elysian Valley (Frogtown). The Frogtown Art Walk is a self-guided tour
of the various studios and business venues located along Blake Avenue
in Elysian Valley. The tour will include the Li’l Frogtown Gallery of
Frank and Sharon Romero, a recently re-purposed plaster factory
now occupied by a series of artists, a stop at Lovecraft Biofuels for a
demonstration of their bio-diesel conversion process, visits to several
architects’ offices, as well as several photography and sculpture
studios. The boundaries of Elysian Valley (Frogtown) are the 2 freeway
to the north, the 110 freeway to the south, the Los Angeles River to
the east, and the 5 freeway to the west. The event hours are 7-10 PM.
The tour is free and open to the public. Free street parking is
plentiful in the area. For further details, images, and a map of the
tour sites, visit the Frogtown Art Walk website at
http://www.frogtownarts.com or call the office of Tracy A. Stone
Architect at (323) 664-0202.

Participants in the Downtown Art Walk are as follows:

1. Romero Studio & Lil’ Frogtown Gallery, 1625 Blake Avenue
contact: Frank & Sharon Romero, tel. 323 226 0356
www.romerostudio.net
The studio of artists Sharon and Frank Romero share space with the Li'l
Frogtown Gallery, a venue for emerging
artists. Frank Romero is featured in Cheech Marin's travelling
exhibtion Chicano Visions and is well known for his
murals and paintings depicting Los Angeles.

2. Paul Redmond Photography, 1839 Blake Avenue Loft #6
contact: Paul Redmond, tel. 323 823 5001
http://www.paulredmondphotography.com
Paul Redmond is a Commercial, Editorial and Fine Arts Photographer
shooting out of OPENshade Studio, a
daylight space in the back north corner of 1839 Blake Ave. Modus
Operandi: For work-People. For art-Not
People. Pressed to describe his work "Arbitrary Landscapes" seemed apt;
tending to take himself off his beaten
path, searching for places where humans have "affected their space with
not much thought (which can be really
cool), too much thought (which assaults your sensibilities) or just
plain bad thinking (my visual cafeteria)". Subject
matter can include architecture, landscaping, roads, detritus or civil
engineering. In 2006 people began crossing
the line into his artwork and he's "giving them the tour, figuring out
what to do with these new visitors." They may
be asked to stay.
For the Artwalk, parts of two current portrait series: "Kissing Booth"
and "spawn: father, child"
are displayed. Several photographs from "light leaks" a 2003 gallery
exhibit produced with a plastic $18.95 Holga
Camera will also be up.

3. Eddy Sykes, 1839 Blake Avenue Loft # 4
Contact: Eddy Sykes, tel. 323 369 2979
http://www.chersonprom.org
ChersonProm is a sculpture and architectural design studio, focused on
ambitious material applications in art and
architecture. They specialize in architectural-scale kinetic systems,
create projects from a combination of old-school
technical know how, and modern CAD/CAM applications. They manage all
aspects of their projects from design, to
fabrication, to installation.
During the artwalk, ChersonProm will be exhibiting fulll-scale motion
architecture prototypes/ astm testing
equipment, documentation of architectural projects, a custom-restored
1972 Alfa Romeo GTV , and new sculpture
project in progress.

4. Shawn Freeman Studio, 1839 Blake Avenue Loft # 14
Contact: Shawn Freeman, tel. 323 702 3428
http://www.starchariot.com
Shawn moved to LA in '97 to work as a graphic designer while he
finished his BA at Long Beach State. He
participated in his first group show at Art Share in April of '99. In
May of 2005 he moved into Frogtown at 1839
Blake Avenue. He now works as a Creative Director while continuing to
create digital illustrations, video and
sculpture. Recent work includes custom video projections for local band
Blackup.
Shawn's art vibrates with the balancing of good vs. evil. His digital
illustrations and installations voyage to current
cultural disasters, possible futures as well as realms beyond the
physical plane. Shawn draws inspiration from the
natural beauty within the compositions of Alphonse Mucha and Japanese
woodblock printers such as Hiroshige and
Hasui. During the art walk his studio will feature a range of videos,
illustrations from his latest series of images as
well as a sculpture installation.

5. Lovecraft Biofuels, 2029 Blake Avenue
Contact: Brian Friedman, tel. 213 291 8587
http://www.lovecraftbiofuels.com
Lovecraft Biofuels is a cooperative of people with a common goal of
promoting alternative fuels. Currently, we are
actively converting diesel-powered vehicles to run on new and waste
vegetable oil. To keep these vehicles on the
road, we are setting up a network of private and community fueling
stations across the country.
Interest in vegetable oil as a fuel may be for environmental,
political, and/or financial reasons. We're working with
people from all walks of life. Our customers include truckers,
activists, liberals, conservatives, and anyone
interested in clean burning, free fuel from renewable resources
produced in the US.
We will open our main headquarters in Frogtown, (where we do
conversions), for the Art Walk.

6. Tracy A. Stone Architect, 2041 Blake Avenue
Contact: Tracy Stone, Sameena Sitabkhan, Donatella Cusma, tel. 323 664 0202
http://www.tracystonearchitect.com
Tracy A. Stone Architect is a small office offering a full range of
architectural services with an emphasis on
sustainable design. Recent projects have incorporated such features as
retention basins, green roofs, thermal
chimneys, building integrated photo-voltaics, permeable paving, etc.
The North Central Animal Services Center (on
target for a LEED gold certification) for the City of Los Angeles, was
featured in a recent LA Times article (dated
October 9th, 2006) entitled “Fawning over the Fauna at the Shelter”.
The office currently occupies an old industrial textile factory as part
of a small live-work complex along the LA River.
A portion of the office functions as a part-time art gallery. During
the art walk, we will feature work by noted artist,
Andrew West.
http://www.cadmiumgreen.com
Andrew West has spent the last twenty years in an effort to push the
boundaries of painting. He has hung paintings
on trees, let them crawl around the floor, created site-specific works
outside of gallery spaces, collaborated with
other painters, and embarked on an infinite series of paintings. He
works with subjects most overlook; the
neglected, the microscopic, the unpopular.
His style has become increasingly improvisational over time, allowing
the process of painting to strip the objects he
works with of identity and function, and transform them into something
more. The task of naming these paintings
places them into an art historical context, establishing a new,
narrative potential.
Recently West has turned his attention to the topic of robots, an old
interest of his. Though his connection to the
subject comes from mid-Twentieth Century writers such as Asimov and
Simak, and science fiction films like
Alphaville and Bladerunner, his imagery is not drawn from the fantasy
worlds of western comics and Japanese
manga. Instead, he is focusing on the often unassuming and
non-anthropomorphic robots found in actual industrial
and scientific environments. Using such objects to build paintings
around, he looks to express the avant-garde
sentiments of these other media in order to investigate what shape a
compelling, relevant painting practice might
take in the future.
West received his Master of Fine Arts at UCSD, and lives and works in
Los Angeles. Besides there and San Diego,
he has shown in northern Mexico, Chicago, Amsterdam, and Tokyo.

7. California Modern, 2057 Blake Avenue
Contact: John Conneely, tel. 310 701 9349
calmod2@gmail.com
California Modern is a general contracting firm started with the goal
of building meaningful modern architecture. The
company builds on the premise that modern is an attitude and a way of
life, not a style. We work closely with
talented designers and architects to ensure that the client receives
full value and the work meets the highest
standards.
The founder and principal of California Modern, John Conneely, comes to
modernism with an extensive background
in traditional woodworking and building. With a B.S. in engineering and
advanced education in accounting, John
spent 20 years building monumental circular staircases and finish
carpentry to the highest level both in residential
estates and corporate executive suites. California Modern was built on
a commitment to quality and an overall
dedication to craft. With its own shop and an extensive network of
quality vendors, a high level of quality can be
achieved while working within reasonable budgets.

8. Paragon Cabinets West, 2900 Denby Avenue
Contact: Caleb Powell, tel. 323 270 8971
Paragon Cabinets West is currently completing the full reconstruction
of the original built-in cabinetry for John
Lautner’s Harpel House.

9. Steel and Things, 2900 Denby Avenue
Contact: Steve Graziani, tel. 310 864 9461
http://www.steelandthings.com
I work in direct welded steel, combined with hardwoods and glass,
achieving contemporary, earthy pieces. My
sculptures range from decorative to functional.
On the night of the art walk, I will have my gallery open with about
30+ pieces on display along with some food and
drink.

10. RAC Design Build, 3006 N. Coolidge Ave
Contact: Susan Fanfa, tel. 323-663-9898
http://www.racdb.com
RAC Design Build is an integrated design build firm that provides
comprehensive design and construction services
for residential projects. The company is guided by a desire to create
built work that resonates with permanence,
craft and clarity, and brings these same principles to the work process.
Please join us for a bite, a drink, and a visit during the Frogtown Art
Walk where we will have on view in our
workshop drawings, models, mock-ups, and photographs exemplifying a
variety of mediums, all of which are part of
our design and construction process.

11. Brand Name Label (Gabriel Renz), 3010 N. Coolidge Avenue
Contact: Gabriel Renz, tel. 213 434 0369
http://www.brandnamelabel.com
Brand Name Label and Jeremy Watson Fine Woodworking share a studio
space in Frogtown. Together they meet
the diverse needs of their clients by being a highly adaptable and
multi-disciplined fabrication shop. Capabilities
range from large-scale Kinetic Architectural pieces to fine furniture
and art fabrication. Please join us during the Art
Crawl for Drinks and Live music throughout the evening and into the night.

A Quick Update

Hey kids,

So I've been swamped with things lately. As most of you know, Jenny and I finally found a place and there has been tons of organizing and scheduling of workers and whatnot. In addition, I've had a freelance job that's been consuming my "free time". All of that combined with my day job being busier then ever and the usual suspects something had to give. So I let the freelance go. I need the money, but I think I need the sanity even more. So hopefully I'll have an hour or two to devote to the blog again.

Los Apartmentes!

I was unaware that there was a Los Angeles edition of Apartment Therapy. The site is occasionally a good source for interior design ideas.

Surrealism in September

Southern California is hosting two art shows including 3 of my favorite painters.

Opening this friday at the Santa Monica Museum of Art is Enigma Variations: Philip Guston and Giorgio de Chirico. I had never realized how similar these two artists were but evidently De Chirico was a great influence to Philip Guston. Both have been a big influence on me. I'll be trying to make the opening being held this friday between 7 and 9.

Santa Monica Museum of Art
Bergamot Station G1
2525 Michigan Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90404

If you'd like to take a trip out of town down to San Diego and visit the SD Museum of Art and check out the show, Transmission: The Art of Matta and Gordon Matta-Clark. Matta is a rather under-rated surrealist who I only know a limited amount about. 10 years of living in LA and having still not made it down to San Diego, I think this show might be enough incentive.

San Diego Museum of Art
1450 El Prado
Balboa Park
San Diego, California

Snow In Silver Lake Pt.2

A reply to my previous post yeilded these great images of Snow in Silver Lake in 1949. Pretty amazing. Check out a few more historic photos of the lake here. Thanks Angie.

Luscious Dough's Film Reviews

Little Miss Sunshine: Believe the hype. A joyous clusterfuck. Good times.

Factotum: Wacktotume. There are some shining moments in this movie, but why don't you just read the books. They're usually a quick read anyway. Marisa Tomei steals the show in my opinion. I give her props for sleazing down for this role.

My Creative Friends: Scott at Ten10

So I've been meaning to do an entry on my friend Scott Nadeau and his shop Ten10 for quite some time now. But I wanted to do it justice, get some nice picts and think it through a bit. But this morning Mr. Scott greeted me from the front page of the LA Times Home section and screamed "Good God Man, what are you waiting for?!"

Scott is one of the first business owners I met in Silver Lake when I moved here, and he's been a gracious man ever since. I've bought several pieces from him, so maybe he's just a good business man...or maybe its just that he tolerates me so he can spend quality time with my dog Lu. Regardless, he's a good guy and has exceptional taste in furniture, pottery, and sculpture.

Recently he has helped revive the careers of a handful of California area mid-century designers and artists. Stan Bitters, a sculptor and ceramics artist has gotten a helpful boost from Scott's enthusiasm for his work. So has the late David Wilkens. Who had an eponymous gallery show of his work curated by Scott. Each have had small articles in the LA Times recently.

Scott himself is a bit of a designer having developed a series of sofa's, chairs, and lamps that he sells exclusively in his store.I happen to have one of his couches in my living room (now covered in Lu hair unfortunately). As well, he and his father collaborated on a portable Fire Pit that I bought for my dad to use on his fishing trips.

Scott has a passion for clean lines and natural materials. Much of Ten10's products are dedicated to either things like Architectural pottery that bring structure to the natural environment or sculpture that brings an organic sense to ones living room.

I'll snap some pictures this weekend and elaborate on this posting, but I wanted to get something up because I had actually noticed quite a few people landing on my page after doing a search for Scott's name. The picture above is the top of one of Stan Bitters' "totem" sculptures that have been available at Ten10.

Ghost Ride The Whip

The title refers to a ridiculous phenomenon that’s been sweeping the burbs. Kids get out of their rides while its still moving and proceed to dance around like idiots and sit on the top of the car while it careens into a tree, lamppost or another car. Brilliant (to paraphrase the English)!

But this entry really isn't about fools smashin up their parent’s rides. It's about realestate. My experience with it so far.
It really is like riding a car with no driver...or it at least feels like it. Allow me to explain.

My fiancé Jenny and I decided to get a place of our own. A place that we could start fresh in and grow into together instead of moving into one of our current places where one of us might feel out of place. Jenny currently owned a condo. So the first goal was to sell her place then roll the money over into our new place. So first things first, Jenny and I had to find an agent to sell her place. We decided to interview 3 different agents. All had slightly different pitches...but it was difficult to gauge who they truly were. I mean, it’s like trying to hire your own car salesman or lawyer....people we love to loath and hate to deal with. Hiring the devil essentially. So we decided on an agent and off we go, Jenny and I dance around the car while the invisible ghost we've just hired steers the car (or so we hope). The car (which is actually Jenny's home mind you) veered close to crashing then veered back on track. Finally, the ghost closed the deal and we were back in control of our path.

During this whole process, we found a house that we became enchanted with. So, you could think of it as two cars running side by side....Jenny and I trying to keep both from colliding, dancing around like witch doctors trying to cure the bizarre real-estate spells (i.e. forms and contingencies and the like).

Jenny and I still haven't completely regained control of our path, but we've gotten a good hold on the door and the car seems to be running straight. So lets hope it all ends well. I'll keep you updated.

Placeholder

Hey kids, sorry about the lack of postings...super busy, stressed, lithargic. I have managed to aquire a proper Flickr account and will be trying to post more photos there. Point your browser here and check back often. I'll try to organize it a bit better as well.