elimination dance

So here's a little 60-second review of my week, which was half-great and half really bad. Or nominally bad. The f*d up part is I was in my first bike accident ever Wednesday night. Biking along the dark Springwater Corridor around 10PM, full of dollar sushi and enjoying my first whirl in a week or so, breathing in the imminent autumn winds, the breezing bridges, helmeted and happy. Then another biker, a much bigger, taller male biker, who was riding without lights and in the wrong bike lane, ran into me head-on, knocking me onto the grassy knoll beneath, where I writhed and wriggled, trying to utter "asshole." What's really weird is, my left contact fell out upon impact, so I thought my eyeball had fallen out, or was seriously damaged. I made Greg (who was riding alongside me, thankfully) take his bike light and look into my eyes to make sure everything was still properly socketed. He said I let out this intense animal shriek, the most primal squawk he's ever heard, when the guy plowed into me.

Anyway, I'm OK. Just whiplashed, bruised, scraped, a little crumpled, but I didn't break any bones, and if I had a concussion, I don't remember. So that's that. Boom.

Really good things about the week (which, from my tally, seems to be an impressive week of firsts):

*The first installation of the Portland Preservation Society and Occasional Culture Club, which, for the sake of convenience, I wedded with James' screening of Inland Empire (my second incomplete viewing within the span of a week), which involved many French presses of Stumptown coffee, two cherry pies, and several Mason jars full of home-made kim chee, sent off to disparate homes to achieve maximum stinkability. I tried mine yesterday, and the brine made it a bit too salty for my taste. Orland agreed. I'm going to the Asian market soon and will buy real Korean red pepper, since I used the kind of crushed red pepper that you sprinkle on pizza, and it wasn't the same. Next on the roster: quality time with the kombucha mother!

*Made French onion soup from scratch for the first time. Topped it with thick slices of whole wheat baguette (thus breaking my ongoing, half-assed gluten-free "diet") and good Swiss Gruyere, broiled and bubbly. It was amazing. Onions are magical after you cook them for an hour, when they tangle together to create a beautiful brown caramelized mass.

*Experienced Ikea. Managed to spend under $100 and walked out with a sexy "pure wool" (I think that means it was plucked (sheared?) from a real sheep) shag rug, a mohair throw blanket for ultimate coze, two small stone mortars, four small spice jars, four medium spice jars, two big glass jars for storing bulk items, three lovely ceramic vases for stolen flowers, 100 tea-lights, a colander, and a wood shelf for my kitchen. And a massive re-usable Ikea bag that could double as a parachute. Excited about all the storables. Something about seeing all of my food in beautiful glass containers instead of plastic or aluminum or cardboard packaging calms me.

*Learned a lot about designer toilets, sinks, stoves, tiles, woods, floors, lights, shelves, wood stoves, cabinets, and other home fixtures from Mr. G. Loren Hennes. This rare fellow has immaculate taste and knows what he likes. There are amazing toilets out there that cost $2,500+, and they don't even look like toilets!

*Worked with photographer Anthony Georgis on a shoot for his portfolio. Mostly shots of me eating a red apple for a key Lolita vibe.

+

Other-nests. Lunar eclipse tonight. Council Crest, 1:30AM. Going to try to shake myself awake for it.

Helping my friend Nick Jaina with the cover art/text for his new album. Preliminary ideas include designing it to look like a tattered old diary. Point of contention: whether to write on college-ruled or blank paper?

Other blue-prints underway. I will keep you abreast.

Lv,
~Ashley