red bull gives you wings...and go-go dancers!

i had a pretty long and eventful day today. i worked from 9-4 and then i headed down to the detroit science center to do makeup w/ my coworker, carolyn, for the red bull air race kickoff party. it was pretty cool to go through doors at the science center that are usually off limits to the general public. we did the makeup in this room w/ nature murals painted on all four walls. there were small panels that opened up like doors in various spots on the wall. at first i saw one and thought it hid an electrical outlet, except when i opened it i jumped back because hiding in the space was a little ball of fur. i realized there were doors all over the wall and each one housed something different: an acorn, a painting of bats, etc. it was strange. there were also fish tanks w/ no fish in them and a fake tree in the corner of the room. i felt funny being in such a kid-friendly room since we were doing makeup on some dancers who were completely unaware of the meaning of modesty. all i saw were boobs and asses.

aummm...

peace.

don't play with your toys!

this cup was given to a man named john webber back in 1945 by his grandfather to use as a toy. little johnny even used it as target practice...well guess what..recently he decided to have it appraised and it turns out it's an ancient persian golden relic that was made hundreds of years before the birth of christ!

arabicism

my mom sometimes messes up english words or phrases which is really hilarious and precious. she laughs at herself, too, so i'm not being mean. she's actually very fluent in english and barely has an accent, but sometimes she stumbles over words and it's cute. (when she says "pet peeves" she has to stop to think and she says it very slowly.)

surprisingly, tonight my dad said something wrong. he's pretty well versed in the english language so i couldn't stop laughing when he called someone a "cheapskunk" meaning to say "cheapskate."

tasty toast

old advertisements never cease to make me laugh or just plain amaze me. they're usually pretty cool, pretty cheesy or pretty eyebrow raising. this 40's ad for a toaster is funny because it would NEVER fly in 2008. 

it's a little hard to make out what's going on, but there's a couple peacefully eating toast at the table while the couple above them are in the midst of chaos because the toast is burnt. the last line of the first paragraph reads, "don't tempt masculine tempers with burnt toast!" 

are you kidding me???

.

i want to live in the clouds.

"i'd rather go to paris than to heaven."

mcsorley's bar

john sloan. 1912.

sorry, guys. haven't really been feeling like myself lately. i've neglected my fans. (ha.) how was everyone's long weekend?

i went to see the ashcan painters exhibit at the dia on sunday. it was the last day they were showing it...too bad because it was lovely and i'd urge you all to go. the ashcan artists were a group of artists in the late 1800's to early 1900's who painted life in new york city and paris the way they saw it. so there were lots of bar scenes, circus tents, skating in parks, sporting events, etc. their style was pretty different for that time period and they often painted things that were a little risque (it wouldn't be right now, of course.) there's a book of all these paintings and info about them available at the dia store, but seeing them in person is 250 times better than printed on a page. the title of my blog is a quote from one of the artists, william merritt chase. 

i'm running out of photos of the day

there's an elephant (or two) in the room.

chicago's field museum.

2007.

photo of the day

behind the redford theater.

detroit, mi.

2006.

photo of the day

@ reta & sam's wedding.

(wisam (reta's brother), anita (friend), dina, jenny (friend) and me.

october 2006.

how is dale gone and not lisa??

i'm sure you all know about my obsession w/ toys. i added a new one to my collection. a plushy ninja. my ninja is the "anti-ninja" because he's orange. there was a little booklet w/ a picture of each of the ninjas in the "ninja town" series of plushy toys and each one had a little story to go along w/ it. business ninja and ninja consultants are a couple of my favorites. (p.s. you can visit the new location of lift in royal oak on fourth street between main and washington. lift used to be a shoe store that sold a few toys but now they don't sell any shoes and they only sell toys.)

here's something i'm playing around with. this image may seem familiar because i used it in another photo transfer piece. this piece represents my love/hate relationship w/ cigarettes. (lately i hate them.)

i am a consumer and i don't mind.

one day last week i was having a pretty crappy day. i decided to do a little shopping after work because that always seems to lift my spirits. i went to loehmann's where i found two items i adore and for a fraction of what they normally retail for. 

i found this trench by mackage which retails for $495. i only paid $60!!! it fits like a glove.

this is my ultimate find. i actually did a double take when i saw this..it may not seem like much, but i think it's super cute and..it's vivienne westwood! i don't know if that means anything to you, but she's one of my favorite (wacky) designers. she is the pioneer of punk fashion and is still going on strong in her late sixties. her stuff is pretty hard to find. okay so...this bag would retail for almost $400. again, $60!!! 

happy birthday, reta!!!

happy 28th birthday, reta!

don't fret..we're still young..compared to the earth.

for honorary cousin candice p.j.

the characters of my blog:

michelle-my sister

chris/chrissy-my brother

renee-my cousin

adam-renee's husband

cousin farah-renee's cousin (who is quite hilarious)

cliff-renee's brother

janan-cliff's fiance (and my coworker..we work at the same salon. she does hair and i do eyebrows/makeup.)

foof/farrah-my brother's girlfriend and a longtime friend..the cutest thing ever.

reta-my best friend of almost twenty years (oh my god!)..we are referred to as butt buddies. 

dina-reta's sister and also my friend of almost twenty years. (me, michelle and chris first met reta and dina when they came over w/ their parents and we had a bbq. we instantly became friends. we were all little dorks, but reta and dina were extra dorky cuz they were wearing the same nerdy outfit cuz their mom liked to dress them as twins. hahahahahaa.)

alex-my love interest of the last five years.

i hope i'm not forgetting anyone. if i did..i'm sorry, i really do love you but i'm forgetful.

does that clear things up, cuz? :)

photo of the day

a funny picture i came across of me and chris

@ renee & adam's engagement party.

june 2006.

scarf, anyone?

my undoubtedly cool friend, jill, pointed me in the direction of a great blog called vegan yum yum. these absolutely adorable cupcakes were featured on the blog. lauren/lolo, the blogger, was featured on the martha stewart show during cupcake week where she showed martha and her audience how to make these yarn balls out of marzipan. (here's the link if you're curious: http://veganyumyum.com/2007/06/knit-night-cupcakes/)

i will definitely be making these in the near future!

hey hey monkeyface

this is joe. he lives at the twycross zoo in the uk.

he's eating a slice of cake because it's his 45th birthday.

i heart joe!

words.

use this word in a sentence:

bibulous

photo of the day

renee & a gigantic glass of pop @ honey tree

farmington hills, mi. 2005.

i know you hate this pic, renee, but i love it!

sunday's photo of the day

my butt buddy, reta and me.

thanks for hanging out and eating hot fudge sundaes

and playing rummykub and watching knocked up!

love you.

photo of the day

chris, me and foof playing around w/ photobooth.

not too long ago.

foof, it depends on my mood and whatever pictures i can find!

photo of the day

museum of contemporary art detroit (MOCAD)

detroit, mi.

2006.

cuteness

is it weird that i think she's perfect?

photo of the day

one of my favorite pieces i've done.

an oil painting from a photo i took in l.a.

2005.

qu'est-ce que c'est?

(photo taken in paris by my friend, katie brown.)

last night was my first french class! yayyy! i'm FINALLY learning what i've been wanting to learn for years. after buying cds and trying to learn that way, i figured the best way was to take an actual class. i'm taking it at schoolcraft in livonia. i laughed to myself as i got in my car before leaving for class. i realized i didn't have a notebook or any writing utensils. it's like i forgot how to go to school. 

the teacher, madame rickel, is wonderful. she's super nice and genuinely excited to teach others to speak her native language. yesterday we learned how to count to 60, how to say what things are and what they aren't (example: "non, ce n'est pas un livre. c'est un stylo." "no, it is not a book. it is a pen.") we learned how to ask where someone is from and what their nationality is and how to answer those questions. 

i'm really excited to think that i may actually know how to get around if i EVER go to france. oh and madame rickel asked me if i've ever had french before because i was catching on so quick and my pronunciation was really good! 

photo of the day

aynee.

(translation: my eye)

last night.

aliens are my brother

i just read an article that said father gabriel funes, the pope's chief astronomer, said intellegent beings created by god could very well exist in outer space.

no offense father, but, DUH! i have never been naive enough to think that we're the only ones living in the universe. of course nobody really knows, but why would we think we're so superior that we're the only ones running around ruining things? (jk.)

the part that made me laugh, though, is that father funes says that some aliens could be free from original sin. i just don't understand where that idea came from and why it's even relevant. 

it's a little surprising to learn that the vatican is organizing a conference next year to mark the 200th anniversary of charles darwin's birth. 

interesting, huh?

photo of the day

steven frey taken by christopher pierre.

not sure when...last year?

photo of the day

hey, pretty bird!

@ the pet shop.

a few months ago.

everything is wrong

i have become more than a little worried about the state of things. everything is poisonous, everything is wrong. several months back, i purchased a bunch of polycarbonate water bottles thinking that i was doing myself good. then matt lauer reveals to everyone that there are chemicals in that damn plastic that we ingest with the water that is supposed to nourish our bodies. i was a little pissed off. i know that you would have to drink gallons of the chemical per day for it to be harmful, but i don't care..i don't want a trace of it near me! i went to www.mysigg.com and read their frequently asked questions and then immediately ordered a couple bottles. the company has been around for a century and is still going strong. the materials they use to make the water bottles are non-toxic, they're lightweight and you can get them in a variety of designs. i bought myself a camouflage print one, but i would've bought this one if i saw it earlier. oh, fyi, i ordered them from the website and waited quite some time for them (i'm pretty sure they were being made by elves in switzerland) but you can find them at whole foods. 

hellmouth...grrrrr

hellmouth is scary. actually, they're all pretty not scary.

hellmouth is alex's new band. they played their first show last night at grimy but loveable small's in hamtramck. they were eons better than the three other bands that played and it was obvious these four guys have been playing in bands for a large chunk of their lives. their energy was infectious and it made me want to be in a band. it also made me want to do karate kicks in a circle. 

come out and see them tomorrow night at the magic stick. doors are at 8 p.m. 

be there or be square!

photo of the day

shoes & shadows.

@ small's in hamtramck, mi.

last night.

saturday's photo of the day

an installation @ the museum of contemporary art.

chicago. summer 2007.

photo of the day

chris, michelle & adam. (renee & me, not pictured)

@ a bar/restaurant in downtown cave creek, arizona.

may 2007.

photo of the day

going up a really dingy, narrow stairway.

lafayette coney island. detroit, mi.

march 2007.

photo of the day

old and lovely.

oddfellows antiques. berkley, mi.

2007.

birthdays all around

happy 50th, mom!

happy 28th, alex!

photo of the day

haha!

michelle, me and chrissy on aunt gloria's wedding day.

notice how disheveled chris is.

i think this was 1987.

breathe in AIR

one of the best shows i've ever been to was at clutch cargo's some years back to see one of my favorite bands, AIR. i love love love them. it was such an atmospheric experience..but, can you imagine seeing them, let alone ANY band, at the sydney opera house? it looks amazing. 

i want to go to japan.

street performers in tokyo.

photo of the day

lovely stranger.

my dad is in the background.

back in the day when you could live a normal life in baghdad.

photo of the day

a lonely heart.

my grandmother @ her home in florida.

2006.

photo of the day

going down to egypt.

field museum. chicago.

august 2007.

london calling ;)

another reason to travel overseas.

photo of the day

plump clouds.

royal oak, mi.

july 2007.

photo of the day

(today you get two because i liked both!)

a pack of these super men were only 50¢. i couldn't resist.

2008.