prom pictures

i stumbled across a couple of prom pictures while cleaning out my grandma's house. i'd scan them in and let the laughter begin, but i'm too mortified. the cheesy stars shooting out of the blue background are bad enough.

i'm not sure why on earth i might have gone. it seems to me to be a time for all girls with curly hair to straighten it and all girls with straight hair (uh, me) to make it curly. slap some stupid royal blue fancy dress on and maybe some flowers and you're good to go. ack.

Tuesday, November 30, 2004 @ 03:36 PM | comments > 1114

estate sale

the sound was the most pronounced thing: like the hum of five thousand locusts coming in for the fresh kill. the toothless wonders of the world gathered 'round and paid me paltry sums of money for memories. more than once i wanted to say. "yeah, no, you can't have that one..." but i bit my tongue and kept my mouth closed. i simply kept my eyes on the money and petting the tiny dog in my lap, only to keep myself distracted from the truth in front of me.

it hurts too bad to cry and not enough to really laugh.

limbo. in the most dante-ian sense of the word.

Monday, November 29, 2004 @ 12:07 AM | comments > 1809

no posts for a few days

family storms out west. too much to do and i haven't a clue. if yer the prayin' type, please say a wee little one for me....

Thursday, November 25, 2004 @ 12:14 AM | comments > 1

not a pg-13 post...

so i shot the bob schneider show tonight at bend studio. great show. really. several things:

1. as a musician, i'd love to play a gig like that. strip the music back down to where it came from: a man and his guitar. no bass. no drums. just a melody and voice. nothing to hide behind. and the audience is captive. it's rude to move, let alone smoke or bang beer bottles together and talk.

2. as a listener, nothing escapes. every last word is clear and perfect and true. you suddenly realize the person performing is doing exactly what he is supposed to be doing. otherwise, he wouldn't be up there, opening himself up to cheesy analysis like this.

3. as a photographer. what a wonderful experience. i could move around and position myself at weird angles and it be ok. except for the part where the dmn photographer almost knocked over my mamiya-on-a-tripod and made a huge show about how her penis is bigger than my penis with her numerous lenses and flashes and fancy schmany camera, all the while plopping down right in front of me. i commend her competitive nerve. i simply put my camera down, except to take a few high-powered flash shots of her. {tee-hee.}

4. on the contemplative nature of film. yeah, it's true, i think i might want a big beautiful digital camera someday. but only if i remember one thing. and that is to not look at every single shot as i take it. to view the image immediately is to miss 10 others that were even better than that one. film doesn't allow you to stop. you just keep going. isn't that one thing digital is supposedly allowing the photographer to do? to keep shooting without stopping. without the fear of running out of film? i mean, you either know how to use the equipment or not. to check and re-check is a waste of time..

5. bob's music is really funny. and insightful. he cusses like a sailor and has scandalous lyrics.... all of which make the music extremely appealing to me.

Wednesday, November 24, 2004 @ 12:16 AM | comments > 121

tonight. bend studio.

bob schneider. doors at seven.
i'll be there photographing.
if you can't make it tonight, come to one of the future shows in the intimate concert series.
rock on.

Tuesday, November 23, 2004 @ 04:49 PM | comments > 5

well hello thaylor!

daniel and ryan came over for dinner last night. we like to have people over and we like to feed people. so it all works out. it was cute to watch eva and jiri's two favorite grown men (besides paul) compete for their attention. my kids have their own games they play with each of them. With ryan they "walk on the ceiling". ryan's incredibly tall and it's no biggie for him to lift them up. with daniel, they play "monkey in the cage". he puts them under the dining room table and they escape and then he puts them back. it's really cute and they're out of our hair while we finish cooking dinner.

dinner last night was awesome too. back when paul was a personal chef, he'd experiment a bit more but last night was a recent concoction of thai tomato sauce to be served on pasta and topped with parmesean cheese. then he made some spring rolls with almond sauce (because i'm weird about peanuts) and salty bread and salad. i'm such a lucky girl.

except for the part where i could hardly eat any of it because of the weird scalded tongue thing. after our guests left i did some more research and it turns out there's all these support groups for it. it's likely i will need one someday because i may go mentally ill if this lasts much longer. it's pushing one week since it started. ack.

Monday, November 22, 2004 @ 10:07 AM | comments > 151

glossodynia

i love the internet. i now know it has a name.

in other news, the reception friday night was amazing. over the course of two hours, about 75 people dropped by. john sold some work and the show itself got beautiful reviews. and after the reception, rachel and i went out dancing.

ok, i'm really distracted by my tongue and can't seem to form one single thought. ack.

Sunday, November 21, 2004 @ 02:58 PM | comments > 77

IR Gallery: John Kim

Tonight. IR Gallery.

john kim.JPG

New Sculpture by John Kim.
7-9 PM.
John is about the nicest guy ever. And his work is just beautiful.

Friday, November 19, 2004 @ 09:23 AM gallery events | comments > 236

happy birthday to me

little me.jpg

well, as of 7:12 am. the cast is especially cute, no?

Thursday, November 18, 2004 @ 10:29 AM | comments > 147

john kim prep

wow. just spent the day up at the gallery helping nan get her work to her car and painting so that we're ready for the show friday evening. this past sunday, paul and daniel rigged me up a dutch door to accomodate the space better and create a bar out of something that just wasn't working before. nyddia helped me paint the new bar and a super cool screen that's out on loan to me. daniel ran the errand to pick up some cafe brazil. john's painting the pedestals and later, i'll head back up to lay out the space with him. it's a rainy, icky day and yet i'm so happy.

i adore it when everything clicks into place.

Wednesday, November 17, 2004 @ 04:28 PM | comments > 2

it's really cool when....

something irritating happens but in the grand scheme of the universe, you realize it just doesn't matter..... and then you proceed to make lemonade -or whatever the cliche is- and it all works out in the form of pretty fantastic monetary compensation. sweet.

this is a good week so far in sarah-jane-land.

Tuesday, November 16, 2004 @ 12:28 PM | comments > 4

crossed off the list

almost every single one of the things on the list i made in january has been crossed off.....
lesson? i've got to make better lists.

Monday, November 15, 2004 @ 10:25 AM | comments > 43

mashed thoughts

it's been a long but rewarding few days. there's about 5 burners on a 6 burner stove going right now and find myself working longer hours than i ever have before. it's funny, turning all this do into my 'job' is so laughable. what i do... i would do regardless. it getting to be my 'job' is merely a bonus.

the latest and greatest struggle is translating all this into 'who i am' or what 'i am going for'. and i don't quite know. generosity is involved. and love is involved. the gears are in motion right now for something really huge. my only little insignificant complaint is that i'm moving too fast to go to yoga class. and i miss it. it's seriously been a month since i last went.

the other thing that's brewing is this dinner coop. there must be a way to motivate and organize large groups of people into doing something comprable. we've saved so much time and money and have eaten really, really well the last couple weeks. we spend time and effort and use all-natural-and-from-scratch ingredients and then we don't have to for a few days. other families are doing the same for us and our already diversified diet is getting better and better. leftovers are simply lunch the next day. it just makes sense.

last thing: fray day is tonight. the happy bullets are playing an acoustic set. it's going to be a very cool night.

Saturday, November 13, 2004 @ 11:19 AM | comments > 97

Fray Day

Fray Day 8 Dallas is booked for November 13th at the IR Gallery.

Hal Samples, Daniel Miller, and Sarah Jane Semrad (uh-oh, that's me) will be featured storytellers, followed by the always-amazing open mic.

Things will kick off around 8pm and continue as long as required, followed by mass migration to one or more of the many neighborhood watering holes. This event will be SRO, so wear comfy shoes.

The Happy Bullets are confirmed as Fray Day 8 Dallas' musical guest! waahoo!

oh yeah,
BYOB!

Thursday, November 11, 2004 @ 05:29 PM gallery events | comments > 2

McDermott Lecture series

katie and i went to the maya lin lecture at the univeristy of dallas and it was....
inspiring,
uplifting,
humbling,
encouraging,
fascinating,
riveting,
and great for people watching.

i didn't know much about her except for the controversial vietnam memorial that she designed when she was 21. to hear her speak about her own work and how it has matured over the years was simply delightful and truly generous of her. i'm so glad i went.

Wednesday, November 10, 2004 @ 12:55 AM | comments > 550

samples of dallas

this is what daniel had to say about the saturday 'samples of dallas' event. i haven't truly processed everything yet, but one thing paul and i talked about was how we were totally partying with dfw homeless folk. we ate and drank and looked at art and listed to music.... just like people with homes. they became humanized, if for one night.

i talked a long time with a fellow named 'chance' who told me about his 18 year old daughter. he hasn't seen her in 3 years and the latest picture he has of her is about 2 years old, when she was 16. the pictures are the little-tiny-yearbook-size and you can barely see her face. but he has them protected with the heaviest possible laminate and safely in his wallet. it. broke. my. heart. as a mother. clearly the daughter lives with other relatives (mom?) elsewhere. in oklahoma i think.

i'm curious what she knows about her father.... what she's been told. is it: "you are not to see him, he's crazy!" or is it: "we don't know where he is, but we pray for him every night." i hope it's the latter.

as much as dallas drives me crazy, i'm proud to be living in here right now and proud to know hal. good things are happening.

Monday, November 08, 2004 @ 09:56 AM | comments > 286

weekend recovery

the program entails a long lith printing session complete with hot tea.

Sunday, November 07, 2004 @ 09:26 PM | comments > 216

Continental Lofts reception Tonight

Pigeon-Stone Project at the Continental Gallery invites you to a
CLOSING RECEPTION
for Dallas-based artists John L. Miller, Sarah Jane Semrad,
Ross Odom and Edward Ruiz.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 7-10PM.
Wine and hors'dervs will be served,
along with live jazz.
Works are on display now thru Sunday, November 7th.

The Pigeon-Stone Project at the Continental Gallery is located on the first floor of the Continental Lofts building in Deep Ellum. It is the intention of
Pigeon-Stone Project to spotlight local talent and to help build a stronger
foundation in Dallas' art scene.

Pigeon-Stone Project at the Continental Gallery
3311 Elm St. | Dallas, TX 75226
Open Saturdays, Noon - 5pm & by appointment.
Please call 214-497-4640 for more information.

Friday, November 05, 2004 @ 09:44 AM gallery events | comments > 236

samples of dallas

samples flyer.jpg

Hal Samples unveils his newest photography project, Samples of Dallas,
in honor of D. W. “Bill” Banks
and the victims of the Day Resource Center Tragedy.
Saturday, November 6, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.,
at the Janette Kennedy Gallery (1409 South Lamar).

Artist Reception and Birthday Party at the Casket Factory
(adjacent to South Side on Arnold St.) 9 p.m. to midnight.

Entertainment to be provided by Montrose, Daniel Miller,
the Jason Davis Band
with Special Guest: Zin, Moot, Philly and the Deep Ellum Poet.

Please call 214.485.4444 for more information.

All proceeds to benefit Central Dallas Ministries,
one of the few effective human rights benefactors in the area.

Thursday, November 04, 2004 @ 05:18 PM gallery events | comments > 738

upcoming shows and beautiful days

it's a great morning because i'm a cheapskate. i simply can't turn on the heater yet because i like being cold in the winter. it makes me feel alive. it makes me more hungry and more awake. and have an appreciation for hot beverages in a way the summer just can't. and besides, i think it's supposed to be like 68 today, or something ridiculous. can't i just pull out all my cool scarves already?

in more exciting news: i have a solo show this spring in a humongo space and i have to fill it. what an exciting prospect! i have a few ideas brewing that involve installation pieces and mixed media including photography. i'm open to a collaboration effort if anyone wants to.

{no comment here on election results. that would seriously be a bummer if someone didn't hire me because i voted for kerry. or bush.}