New Artwork From Jer

Jeremy's off to a great start this semester, loving all his classes and happy with his new part-time job at the gallery on campus at Pratt. He also updated his website with images of some of the work he produced this past semester. Check it out!

Inauguration Day!

Any one who has followed this blog knows how much the "change in administration" (i.e. TOTAL VICTORY BY OBAMA) has meant to me. City College, where I work in Harlem, really celebrated the moment by setting up a big screen in the beautiful Great Hall (in the building where I work.) Students, staff, and faculty were invited to come and watch the swearing in. Here is a view of the students watching behind me and of our new President Obama walking in to the ceremony. There was tremendous energy in the hall, including many standing ovations, cheering, praying, crying and generally acting like we were all there in person. GOBAMA!

Angie, Adam, and Erik Visit!

We enjoyed quick visits from several wonderful Twin Cities friends in mid-January. Erik Brandt came into town to play a show (of course!) that reunited members of the Urban Hillbilly Quartet, four of whom live in NYC now! It was a fun night that I regretfully have no photos of (I blame the Hungarian Palinka). Here's a nice wistful shot of Jeremy after the band practiced in a secret attic in a warehouse on the East River.

We also hosted Angie and Adam for two nights and the fun did not stop. We loved walking with them over the Brooklyn Bridge (in the snow!) for the first time, and meeting their friend Jeremiah who is a documentary filmmaker whose newest film, In A Dream, was short-listed for the Best Documentary Oscar this year. Check it out if you can. Jeremiah also treated us to dinner at an amazing new restaurant in DUMBO run by his friends - Vinegar Hill House.

I should also mention that I started my new job in January, and it has been a bit of a rough beginning. Now that I'm three weeks into it, I'm better tolerating the long commute (an hour each way, on the train) and getting used to having regular hours in the office. Every morning I stand at our train station waiting for the train, and I just have to share the billboard vandalism I spotted recently. So New York. Sigh.

Luke Visits!

We learned how to truly rock this town with a five day visit from our dear Minneapolis friend Luke. There are too many Luke-adventures to mention here, but some highlights included...

* Visiting Rockefeller Center for the first time, and seeing the big tree (see photo on right).

* Experiencing Luke's first tattoo (a beautiful image created by his bandmate Ben in Romantica).

* Watching Luke dance and sing his way through the streets and subways.

* Listening to Luke and Jeremy play music together late into the evenings.

* Spending an evening with my friend Susan, who taught us all about geo-caching.

* Taking Luke to McSorley's Ale House for continuing discussion of "the precipice" in life.

* Celebrating the New Year watching Luke's friends Ben and Courtney (from the band KaiserCartel) play music at our favorite Williamsburg bar, Pete's Candy Shop. Scroll down for lots of photos.

Christmas Adventures

We spent Christmas with my parents in Green Valley, Arizona, south of Tucson. It was wonderful to see my folks and spend some time in the warmer climate. Highlights included going to an airplane museum (mostly a highlight for Jer, I'll admit, featured in this photo), making our traditional pizza party for my parents and their friends, enchilada dinner on Christmas eve, and many thoughtful gifts. My sister Flora and her finace Lane were supposed to be with us for most of the trip, but got stuck in Portland during the big snow storm :-( We only got to see them for one day, which we tried to make the most of.

Jeremy became my ultimate hero when we finally got home from the airport only to discover that our catsitting friend had locked a handle on our door that we don't have the key to. We were so tired and had just hauled ourselves and our luggage across country and up to the third floor, only to be left locked out and needing the bathroom. I freaked out and figured we'd be out a few hundred dollars for a Christmas Day locksmith, but Jer figured he could take the hinges off the door with the proper tools! We walked over to his studio at Pratt, got tools, and it all worked out.

Back to the Blogrooms

Finally! After a month+ away from the blog, it is time to provide some updates. I have no excuse except that the holidays and new job made for a busy time, but hope you will enjoy six quickly crafted posts.

It was fun to be in NYC for the holidays. One especially Santa-filled moment came when we went to do some shopping at the South Street Seaport and were suddenly surrounded by hundreds of Santas. After a few minutes, we realized nearly all the Santas were drunk, but that didn't diminish the fun in watching them. We saw dancing Santas, cartwheeling Santas, singing Santas, and one trashed Santa crying on the shoulder of another. After witnessing the Santa Spectacle, we moved on to take the free water taxi to Ikea.