wearable art

white, recycled dress


dinosaur princess


jellyfish (on hands and knees)

today was the finale/award show at the world of wearable art (WOW)... it was rainy, miserable and sold out, but i headed over 2 hours early any way in hope of scoring an "emergency seat" as they call them here.

luckily, i got a hand written ticket in a newly invented row, four from the front. the view was fabulous... the show breathtaking... i can't describe the last time i witnessed such a spectacle.

trapeze artists, singers, hip hop dancers, runway models showing off "art clothing" all coreographed with black light, pyrotechnics and so many amazing amazing costumes.

if i were to return to the states tomorrow, the trip would have been worth it.

more to come--but internet access is sketchy the next week... then PHOTOS!!!!!

i like it here

today i walked through an amazing botanical garden bigger than como park. NZ has been a separate land mass so long, it has its own flora and fauna... strange fern trees... birds with a pair of vocal chords (so they can sing duets).... gnarled forest pines...

then i spent a late night reading professional screenplays (annie hall, the truman show) at the library... navigating a stream of people home (you actually see people walking in welly!), somewhere past the cake shop i sighed and said, "i like it here..."

and i like cake...

bedroom dosier :: hostel nights

one of the joys[?] of hostel life is sharing your bedroom.

across from me is the violently resting irishman. he flips over at full speed right into the wall once or twice a slumber. SLAM! i often imagine him wearing full chain mail to #1# slow him down and #2# protect him from the metal guard rail [thank god it's there... or just think of the noise a 200 pound potatoe grower flying full speed into the ground could make]

the krinkler enters every morn at 7am with a paper bag. he tears it open like a kid on christmas and after eating whatever it is he eats bite by bite, he crumbles the bag in a ball, drops it by his bed and then quietly giggles under the covers -- a faint glow from his computer illuminating his flakey, croissant covered fingers.

my favorite is the english ninja who comes and goes without a sound. he has somehow even hypnotized the lock under the charm of his hugh grant impersonating accent.

homelessness :: terminated

t-minus 6 days to new home [exact address not shown :: security risk 43x]

5 blocks up the hill = stunning view = manly calfs
risk board in the livingroom = my kind of peeps
walkable to grocery = carfree lifestyle
balcony = inspiration for screenplay writing
2 lawyers = couldn't be worse than the 1 i left

new address = countdown to pictures can commense immediately.

finance report :: cost of living

things that are more expensive in wellington:
* chocolate bars ($1.25 starting price)
* grapes ($2.5/pound)
* banking (30c per debit card transaction, after a few free ones)
* gas ($4.70/gallon)
* sudafed for my cold ($15/4 day supply)
* crappy flip flops so i don't get foot fungus in the shower ($15)

things that are the same price:
* being homeless

things that are cheaper in wellington:
* travel to other NZ cities.

more lists of what i've done

got homesick and needed personal space, so i ate at BK (flame broiled goodness) and spent the afternoon hiding in the library with "artemis fowl".... 150 pages left to go.

toured a run down expensive flat at the far reaches of the world. then toured a flat i really liked that was cheaper and in the area of town i love... plus, the flatmates like "risk"! renting flats here is a dog-and-pony popularity contest.

have had a sore throat for two days which i'm now sure is related to all the sleeping pills i've been popping. tonight i'll be drug free.

my german friend and i went to an earthquake exhibit at "te papa" (the potatoe).

have been missing everyone (except for you) like crazy.

"pleasingly spiced beef"

"pleasingly spiced beef"... how a local food critic described a taco.

ate dinner with five "long termers", who found it easier to stay at the hostel indefinitely than to find their own place.

fished a torn up love letter out of the rubbish bin by the sea, but have yet to put it back together.

went to a "pub quiz"... they played 60 songs and we wrote down the title/artist... the "2001 theme year" was the only section i was any help with. although i'm not proud that my contribution was "enya" and "travis trit"

i have arrived

364 more possible nz days.
over 40 hours since i was in a real bed.
my feet are ripe (over 40 hours of continual shoe wearing)
the weather my first day was delightful, so i walked around town.
i want a home. no, seriously. i need to unpack my suitcase or i'll lose it.

amerika :: update

amerika :: our time together is short.

anyone have some truly amerikan suggestions for my last weekend on the sweet soil of freedom?

***** UPDATE *****
for day amerika, i...

• drove around wasting gas
  
• while listening to country music
  
• ate a hamburger
  
• stayed un-informed
  
• had unlimited pop refills
  
• gained weight
  
• went to suburban malls
  
• dove into a bargain bin [$1 DVDs at walmart]
  
• bought stuff i didn't need
  
• was loud in public
  

overheard in sacramento

overhead near trash-laden street: "i guess the garbage men didn't do a very thorough job today..."

my meat: in or out

***** WARNING *****
test revolution on the loose

in and out burger [up and coming] of california offers affordable, fast burgers made with fresh, real ingredients. example: french fries are actually fried potato[e]s cut before your eyes. hat optional.
***** /WARNING *****

the great compromise

older florida residents prefer driving at 15 miles per hour.
younger, newer-to-florida residents like 20 miles per hour.

thus, a new state law made 17.5 miles per hour the official state speed minimum and maximum for all roads of asphalt and concrete.

cheesenkake

because cheesecake doesn't have enough calories, my dad dipped it in batter, fried it in peanut oil, drizzled it with a pecan amaretto caramel and then served it with ice-cream. (the white specs are salt from the just-consumed corn of the cob--what a slob i've become)

this has been an airport update.

science museum

pictured above disturbing a tornado, i touched lightning, registered on a seismograph, felt category 1 winds, hid in the basement from an f5 tornado, but learned nothing about the human body because there was nothing to play with at their exhibit....

chair or condo?

here i am touching $80,000.00 worth of frank lloyd wright chairs.

when you lean back, they dig into your shoulders.
when you lean forward, the chair is unstable and tips.

frank designed them for study and didn't want stoodents guffing around. what a control freak.

how to hear/see me

SEE: my camera is in the shop (bad timing). it has something on the inside of the lens, which canon is fixing for free under warranty.

HEAR: in new zealand, i will be using a bananular phone or skype

finale

my last view of minneapolis. i was so tired on sat morning that it took every spec of mustard to keep me awake long enough to snap this. i don't remember making it to cruising altitude or a beverage cart... but it was a discount carrier...