Eyeowa

While in Iowa over the weekend I partook in some harmless civil disobedience and goofy vandalism.

I have tried many times to do this in Chicago, but it's difficult to be ANYWHERE without being within someone's eye line. Thank goodness for Iowa.

Concept from www.eyebombing.com

Reading List

 The book fairy was kind to me over the past month! For you, a list of what's new on my bookshelf. I heartily endorse each of these titles.

• Make Your Place: Affordable, Sustainable Nesting Skills by Raleigh Briggs. The "type" and illustrations are all done by hand for a 'zine edge with a radical feel. This is an excellent resource for wild-crafting and making your own tinctures, as well as natural home and health care.

• The Handmade Marketplace by Kari Chapin. Valuable to anyone who wants to build a presence in today's crafting market. 

• Made From Scratch by Jenna Woginrich. I haven't read this yet, but I am anxious to get started!  Part memoir and part how-to manual, Made from Scratch recounts Woginrich’s growing independence and the successes and missteps she experiences as she learns to more fully live off the land. By turns upbeat, dramatic, and sometimes sorrowful, her story embodies the experience of the new homesteader  one who is committed to reducing dependence on commercially produced goods while still working a day job to pay the rent. Woven into the narrative, readers will find easy-to-follow instructions for making clothing, playing a musical instrument, preserving fruit, brewing the best pot of coffee imaginable, and much more.  (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.com)

• Moby Duck by Donovan Hohn. I haven't cracked this one yet either, but the concept is incredibly compelling! Selected by The New York Times Book Review as a Notable Book of the Year. When the writer Donovan Hohn heard of the mysterious loss of thousands of bath toys at sea, he figured he would interview a few oceanographers, talk to a few beachcombers, and read up on Arctic science and geography. But questions can be like ocean currents: wade in too far, and they carry you away. Hohn's accidental odyssey pulls him into the secretive world of shipping conglomerates, the daring work of Arctic researchers, the lunatic risks of maverick sailors, and the shadowy world of Chinese toy factories. (Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.com)
  
  
• Making It by Kelly Coyne & Erik Knutzen. Written by the couple behind Root Simple and Urban Homestead (which I gifted to Jessica and have heard high reviews). Full of DIYs for the home that go beyond mixing baking soda and lemon juice and venture into castile soap making (with lye!), building your own chicken coops, slaughtering said chickens in a humane way if you so choose, kombucha brewing, and plenty of other truly radical projects. 

• Bust DIY Guide to Life from Bust Magazine. Clever sewing projects, easy vegan recipes, DIY intimacy ideas for yourself and/or your partner, wedding planning, and even your rights in caring for loved ones when they pass. It's Bust magazine, how could this not be wonderful? And it is.

• The Cook & The Butcher by Brigit Binns. A meat-oriented cook book from Williams Sonoma, with contributions from Mark Martin. Mark is a family friend, fellow Iowan, and owner of Nelson's Meat Market, a dying breed of classic butcheries. He's an incredibly kind and knowledgeable man, I'm so glad to see him find this success! Below you can see his personal inscription in my book, written after he was told Jake and I eat mostly vegetarian these days.

• Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. This is the bible of vegetarian cooking. Organized by ingredient, Madison gives detailed information including storage, health benefits, choosing the best fruits and vegetables, and cooking methods, followed by tried-and-true recipes for the ingredient.  This is more of a reference book than recipe book. Have a surplus of tomatoes? Head to the tomato chapter and learn how to make marinara. Want to try lentils for the first time? There's four pages to guide you through the process and make something you'll love. I can't recommend this tome enough.

 To Brooke & Jake

In a weak moment think "BEEF"!

Happy grilling

Mark Martin

Christmas 2011

The Best Gift of 2011

When I was young I spent most of my free time with my dad. He likes to keep busy, work with his hands, and keep a long list of hobbies. On weekends, we'd build model rockets from scratch and launch them, hunt for agates in the quarries or trilobites on the side of Iowa roads, garden, skip stones on the river, or meticulously record perfect mix tapes from vinyl records.

Sometime between the ages of 4 and 6, he made me a very important tape, "Dog Fight Giggle." Having begun climbing drawers onto cabinets before I could walk, my parents dubbed me "Monkey."  The whole Monkey thing was the main theme behind Dog Fight Giggle, including every song Dad could think of with the word "monkey" in it, mixed in with other animal related songs. 

I wore the tape out. And then eventually, after doing the constant college apartment shuffle, I lost it. Every time I'd visit my childhood home, I would dig a little more in hopes of finding it. The All 4 One and MC Hammer tapes survived, having been left safely in their cases in my closet after I'd outgrown their music. Losing Dog Fight Giggle was one of my greatest laments. I remember sitting with my dad while he produced it. I remember my childhood obsession with it. I remember a few of the songs, but not well enough to recreate it.

Completely from memory over 20 years later, my dad managed to recreate Dog Fight Giggle, this time on his new vinyl to CD gadget. Of course I have no idea if it's in the same order as the original, and it is definitely missing one song ("Been Caught Stealin'" by Jane's Addiction...you know, the one with the dogs barking?), but it is absolutely perfect. My dad has always had a taste for peculiar music--reflected well on this mix--and it has absolutely shaped my taste. Without having a clue that "Ape Man" was on this mix so many years ago, I heard it again for the first time as an adult and quickly adopted it as my favorite song by one of my favorite bands.

Little Feat- Down on the Farm

Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes- When You Dance

Trio- Boom Boom

Jethro Tull- Bungle in the Jungle

Joe Nash- All Night Laundromat Blues  *so excellent, you guys!

Pink Floyd- Seamus

Todd Rundgren- Medley/Dog Fight Giggle

Rolling Stones- Monkey Man

Kinks- Ape Man

Beatles- Except Me and My Monkey, Oh-Bla-Di, Oh-Bla-Da

Los Lobos- No Anchovies Please

JoJo Gunne- How Will the Wolf Survive

Sweet- White Mice

Fleetwood Mac- I'm a Roadrunner, Hypnotized

James Gang- Funk #48

Heart- Dog & the Butterfly

The Obscure Classics was a bonus CD gift mostly of the same artists' even less commercially popular songs. 

I love my dad.

Iowa Nice.

Until now, I have claimed myself as "Midwestern Nice." I'm re-branding as "Iowa Nice" from now on. 

In case you've wondered why I ramble about my home state, here's just a little taste. There some spicy language, so here is your NSFW warning.

PS- Remember this?

Happy 2012!

Did you get a chance to celebrate the new year just as you wanted? Whether or not you're a resolution type, January 1st makes for a wonderful opportunity to say good-bye to rough times and push the reset button. Or, in more optimistic cases, note the chance to maintain or improve upon a good year.

I had the fortune of spending my year transition in Iowa, with some of the most important people in my life. Sure, NYE in a big city is luxurious and exciting, but it is also expensive and a little lonely. My celebration in Iowa was my favorite New Year's Eve experience yet, full of loved ones, dancing, sequins, and a all-participated pajama party.

Resolutions aren't something I participate in, but I make a habit of creating motivating goals for myself at the onset of every cold season. This time around I hope to focus on building my creativity and MAKING MAKING MAKING, letting go of my homesickness and lapping up a social life while I'm here in Chicago, and hanging up my clean clothes.

Birthday Party!

 My handsome roommate/perma-boo, Jake, turned 30 last week. It makes for good "you're old!" fodder, because he's more than three years my senior, but honestly he looks younger now than he did five years ago.

Here in Chicago, I pampered him with a hot lather shave at a barber shop. In his words it was, "neat but terrifying and a little painful." Afterward, I surprised him with a sushi dinner under the "stars" at home. We drank champagne from my Long Island trip out of my Great Aunt Dot and Uncle Bill's wedding flutes from 1956.

Over the weekend, we made the pilgrimage back to Iowa to visit my family and our family of friends. We were fortunate enough to go play at our old coffee stomping grounds. Jake made me a delicious macchiato, and I reminded myself how much I love making drinks. I made the latte above--I still got it!

For dinner, we joined about thirty of our closest friends at the Tic Toc for our favorite fried foods, stiff drinks, and Katie's homemade cupcakes topped with mini Jakes. We finished the night by cashing in a free keg party at our regular bar. Seen above, we all celebrated our love for him by wearing our best Jake ensembles--mostly western or plaid shirts tucked into jeans, with a big belt buckles. Cory, on the left, made an homage to the hospital employed Jake of yore.

Friends, I am in love with you! And the birthday boy seemed to have a perfect time.

Backpack Enhancements

 Ooooh, check out that snazzy lookin' backpack up there!

Now that I do about two hours of train and foot travel every day, I need an easy way to cart my projects back and forth between my home and office. I tried something over the shoulder and more fashionable, but the aches weren't worth the approval of sleepy strangers on their morning commute. Thank goodness for my dorky high school backpack, a trusty Eastpack in my long-time favorite color.

See where I removed the Eastpack patch near the top? And the grime I've collected over 10 years? NICE.

I decided the plain bag needed to be updated and maybe say a little about myself. Less, "Look at that grown woman carrying a backpack! Where is she from that that kind of behavior is acceptable? Canada!?" and more, "Look at that crafty girl with her crafty backpack! I bet it's full of crafts and craft supplies. Iowans are neat. I want to be her friend."

I'm making my best embroidery effort with green, orange, and pink floss with both traditional embroidery craft designs and haute tribal-inspired motifs. It'll be a work in progress for a while, a nice thing to slowly add to as I have the time. It's something I can easily do on the train or while the boss naps. Currently I'm adding more thread stitches up the sides (seen below), and a few solid stripes on the face of the bag.

The felt Iowa pin was bought at the Renegade Handmade store when good buddy Liz was in town for a day. I'm thankful for artist Abbey Christine for helping me express pride for my beloved Iowa.

Iowa v. Chicago