Image: source.

Image: source.

From commandc, Gay a Day: whimsical, beautiful, adorable, powerful: "Even if you feel alone, you aren't. Just look around, we are everywhere."

Beautiful carved dictionary.

Image: source.

"There is goodness in blue skies and flowers, but another force – a wild pain and decay – also accompanies everything." - David Lynch

Court to Weigh Legal Aid for Contempt: "The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to decide whether poor people who face incarceration for civil contempt are entitled to court-appointed lawyer." What we need is Civil Gideon!

Carl Kleiner's online "diary" of beautiful photographs.

NYTimes: For Elite Runners, Baby Steps Can Take Precedence: I will certainly never be an elite athlete, but I do hope to be both a marathoner and a mother someday.

“It was November—the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep, sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind-songs in the pines.” - L.M. Montgomery

Image: source.

The Tallest Man on Earth "Love Is All"

via Pitchfork

Last night, as I was sleeping,

I dreamt - marvelous error! -

that I had a beehive

here inside my heart.

And the golden bees

were making white combs

and sweet honey

from my old failures.

- Antonio Machado

Image: source.

Image: source.

"congratulations, you’ve made it.

you’ve made it another second, another minute, another day, another month. go ahead & take a deep breath. breathe in the season. breathe in the colour of the trees. breathe in the sweet smell of the season. breathe in the air. breathe in life. you’re life. it’s your life. you’re living it & it’s wonderful because we need you. you exist because we need you. who is this “we”. we, your friends, your enemies, your family, your new loves & your old ones too. the animals in their burrows, the animals in the trees. everything that is animate & tangible. you exist because they need you to exist. there is a fine balance in everything. the good, the bad. we need the bad so we appreciate the good. you cannot have one without the other. without the awful feelings we wouldn’t know the good feelings. & oh my god those bad feelings can make you want to dig yourself into the ground & not come out till there is promise of summer, something lighter. those bad feelings, we wish we didn’t need them but we do. we need those bad feelings & we need you. we all need to allow ourselves to feel the things we feel. & we need to really feel them. we need to be present in our feelings to be able to identify them. once we can identify them we can start to figure out how to get rid of them. congratulations, you’ve made it.
each second is an accomplishment
& we believe in you."

Image: source.

Image: source.

The name says it all: were you wondering What The F**k Has Obama Done So Far?

Lots of great, inspiring shots of artists studios (and other loveliness) over at the beautiful I Art You. (Also: these photos)

Image: source.

Can't really explain why but I so want this key knife on my key chain (uh, and also a keychain that isn't huge and totally embarrassing).

From Curated mag, liked this Love is a Bird, Love is a Burden Sculpture.

Unbelievable. From Solitary Watch: Prisoner Sent to Solitary for Reporting Rape Takes Her Case to the Supreme Court.

The horror of "Secure Communities" - putting everyone at danger by decreasing trust in cops and victims' ability to report crimes. "The Washington Post profiles Maria Bolanos, an undocumented immigrant affected by the Obama administration's new policy of linking local law enforcement to federal immigration status. In other words, once you get involved in the criminal justice system in any way, whether as a victim or a perpetrator, your status is on the table."

So brave. "A transgender female-to-male basketball player at George Washington University is about to put the NCAA to the test. Kye Allums has been on the school's women's basketball team since 2008, but when the season starts later this month, the 20-year-old is premiering as a man. It will be the first time an openly transgender player has played Division 1 basketball."

Image: from a blog I'm loving, I Art You.

Definitely want to check it out: Mountains that Take Wing: Angela Davis & Yuri Kochiyama: A Conversation on Life, Struggles and Liberation:" The film captures conversations between the two activists and icons spanning a decade as they talk social change and political struggle, theory and activism and art. The film is a unique opportunity to eavesdrop on two women who’ve been at the center of civil rights, prison abolition and global liberation struggles as they reflect on their lives and the work ahead. A rare and exciting snapshot of living history."

Image: found this lying on the ground during my cool-down walk after my run today. Thought it was amazing how the ribbon just barely lined up with the leaf.

This morning was a 5 mile run and every mile felt rough. Side cramps, despite warming up, and sore knees. Brutal. One of those mornings where I think, haven't I been working out every day? Shouldn't this be easier by now? Still a good start to the day though - complete with a crowing rooster, 8 deer sighted, and the smell of freshly baked bread as I jogged by a bakery.

Listening to: Ghostface "You Know I'm No Good" (Remix/Feat. Amy Winehouse); Frightened Rabbit "Swim Until You Can't See Land"; Ryan Adams "Helpless" (Neil Young Cover); Florence + The Machine "Oh Darling" (The Beatles Cover Live Session Version); Florence & The Machine Ft. Kid Harpoon "I'm Goin' Down"; Wilco "True Love Will Find You In The End" (Daniel Johnston Cover).

Image: source.

Ironman 70.3 Lake Stevens

It's been a lifelong dream of mine to do a triathlon (especially an Ironman). What better time than now?

Lake Stevens Ironman 70.3

August 14th, 2011

Lake Stevens, WA

"Ironman 70.3 Lake Stevens is a long-distance triathlon consisting of: 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run."

Let's do this.

Love these ladies. Halloween bootcamp 2010 (hence the Richard Simmons and nun - both rockin' the one-armed headstands!)

NYTimes: Finished Probation in ’80s, but Now Facing Deportation: "Eligio Valerio left his home in Washington Heights before dawn on Oct. 20, as he does every morning, to begin his shift driving a livery cab. Around 6 a.m., his wife called. Men with badges were at the house — the police or immigration, she was not sure. But they wanted to speak with him. Mr. Valerio, 52, could not imagine why they would be looking for him, or why he should be afraid. He had been a legal permanent resident of the United States for nearly 30 years. But within hours, he was in the custody of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and in the midst of deportation proceedings."

Image: "'The Woods' is a series of screen printed posters depicting cut sections of trees, using ink made from the burnt ashes of the trees themselves."

Court to Weigh Legal Aid for Contempt: "The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to decide whether poor people who face incarceration for civil contempt are entitled to court-appointed lawyer." What we need is Civil Gideon!

Carl Kleiner's online "diary" of beautiful photographs.

NYTimes: For Elite Runners, Baby Steps Can Take Precedence: I will certainly never be an elite athlete, but I do hope to be both a marathoner and a mother someday.

This weekend I ran a 5K, the Halloween "Monster Dash" in Ashland. I was hoping that since I've run so much since the last 5K I did, this one would feel like a breeze. Uh, no. The first 2 miles were pretty steep uphill, and the final 1.5 were straight downhill, so it was far from leisurely. My time ended up being exactly the same as my first 5K (29 min) which I'm trying to convince myself is actually an improvement, since the route was so hard.....Next race is a 9 miler in two weeks, my longest distance so far. I'm actually looking forward to it; I think I'm better suited to the mid-distance runs (slow and steady) than the 5K sprint.

Image: source.

I'm thinking of doing a 2 or 3 week Spanish immersion course somewhere this winter. Friends have recommended various programs, and it's really intimidating to try to decide where to go when there are so many options out there, and I don't want to use my money or time unwisely. All suggestions welcome.

Recent hit: I'm loving the new "Sherlock" on PBS. It's interesting - Guy Richie/Robert Downey Jr's Sherlock Holmes movie last year was faithful to the originals in terms of setting etc, and yet somehow rang so much less true to me than PBS' "Sherlock" which is set in modern day London. Proof that adaptations are less about accuracy of details and more to accuracy of tone and character, it seems.

Image: source.