vicariously wednesday: the nessie edition

ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS IN THE WORLD has certainly earned the title, "One of my best friends in the world." She's been all over this great planet just living life as she pleases. Several years ago she studied in Spain, then Prague, and everywhere between. Now graduated, she's living life not on the road or at her parents' (however, there's nothing wrong with either), but in NEW ZEALAND.

Her name? Vanessa Watson, a.k.a. "Nessie" a.k.a. "Wanderlust Nessie." She is basically my travel idol (right up there with Rick Steves.) Nessie is FEARLESS. She graduated college this past December, lived with her parents for a while and worked — three to five jobs — along the way, managing to save enough money to —RANDOMLY — buy a plane ticket to New Zealand.

To my knowledge, Nessie didn't know a soul in New Zealand. My guess is that she went there on the premise of a) FINE WEATHER 2) tan men and III) her ability to get a job. Nessie did her homework (as she is not only beautiful but also smarter than your average former Victoria's Secret saleswoman) and learned that it is REALLY EASY to get a worker's permit in New Zealand. You basically apply for one, wait a few weeks for the good folk of Down Under to ensure you have a pulse, and WHAM! You are as good as qualified to serve the good island folk of the South Pacific! Now she's living and working the good life!

Due to my strong avoidance of Facebook, I've been playing a pretty game of "Where in the World Is Nessie?" these past few months to keep up with her. Luckily I learned she has a blog, which, after two stagnant months, she finally posted the other day to let everyone know that she is HAVING THE TIME OF HER LIFE. (YES, I'M SHOUTING.)

As I was banging my head against a computer screen yesterday, I decided to check up on Nessie's blog to see what she was up to. This is what I found:

"You may have noticed it has been months since my last blog post. Some would say my lack of TLC for Wanderlust Nessie is pure laziness and neglect. I would like to set the record straight that I have just been having too damn good of a time hiking, camping, bungy jumping, dancing, sitting on the beach, star gazing and enjoying New Zealand to sit indoors on a computer. Fret not, I am rededicating myself to the cause starting soon. 
Peace & Love, 
Nessie

I love Nessie from the deepest corners of my heart. I can't wait until I can see her again. But I really, really can't wait until this is me, following my dreams like Nessie!

Please read her blog and you will find someone so full of passion, who is living the life of her dreams, a truly inspiring soul. What a woman. What. A. Woman.

So today I'm imagining that I'm not sitting in front of a computer screen in a stuffy computer lab (where there is a nerd to my right, gaming and licking the chocolate residue from a Reeses peanut butter cup wrapper), but basking in a faraway place…like Nessie.

xo

jc

Sigh. 

Sigh.

Sigh.

momma bear comes to fargotown

SINCE I DIDN'T MAKE IT BACK TO MINOT for Easter, my wonderful mother made a trip to visit my sister and I this weekend. It was very brief, but plenty fun!

We spent a nice morning at the fabric store, an afternoon downtown eating at a noodle place for lunch and checking out a flower shop, followed by ice cream. It's always a breath of fresh air when Mom comes!

Little Easter

Here's the visual story of my Easter eve…a quiet, enjoyable gathering in Moorhead with my sister and her boyfriend, Paul. More to come in the near future…

"Hoppy" Easter (as my client would say)!

j

ring out a better nation

From artist Jez Burrows

I feel so defeated by life right now…just…lost.

Every day is another chance and they're just slipping through my fingers.

SFAM Wednesday

via Garance Doré, another awesome fashion blog!

This week's Sister From Another Mister is Odine, a classy lady I found through Garance Doré's blog (girlfriend of The Sartorialist) This woman is amazing for many reasons aside from her curls (which is a given): She's rocking about seven colors (one of them being a PASTEL pant…I mean, that takes grace if you're under 65) and still looks so darn pulled together. She's effortlessly walks the fine line between looking like she walked out of the '80s, and being supa-stylish. I have a pair of glasses like hers — they were my mom's in the '80s, I think. I look like a fool in them. She looks elusive and brilliant.

I think I love this woman so much because she has the long curly hair that I always wanted, but could never grow (my hair only grows in width, not in length) and her palette says "It's cool, I'm loud and classy," instead of "Your older sister had a Caboodle that matches my outfit." Well-played, SFAM.

b-e-a-utiful news

Yesterday I got together with my good friend Paul, one of several roadtrip partners-in-crime (you know who you are!) to discuss a trip we're planning for this summer.

The discussion boiled down to one happy conclusion: We are going to California! Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!

Plans are pretty loose right now, but we're hoping for late July. We'll take a straight shot down to San Francisco — 26 hours, about 1800 miles. I had so much fun driving to the Bay with Adam last summer (and taking the LONG, scenic route!) that this excursion is definitely something I can look forward to and work toward. 

Once I finish school in a few weeks…all my worries can temporarily melt away and I can start dreaming of the wonderful company, ocean, steep hills, and good times that await in the West. Until then, I'll be doing the school thing…

xx

j

b + f + a

Announcing my upcoming BFA project: 2D+3D. It's going to be…wild.

More details to follow in the next…year.

projects. lists. holidays. reminisces. ramblings.

I've been plugging away at quite a few projects lately…C has been passing me work left and right for anything from wine shops to cleaning businesses in California. The work is time-consuming, but I'm loving it and getting in a few new projects for my portfolio. It's win-win.

I just put together a list of everything I have to finish before the end of the semester…holy…crap. It's not pretty. I just want to put life on pause, jump in my car and drive to, like…Alaska. Sit there for a few days and turn back around.

Aside from school, I've put in 2x my usual hours at work this past week. I thought I'd be able to make it back to my parents' for the holiday, but false alarm! I've got to stick around F/M with my client, so I'll be with her for Easter. I asked what she'd like to do on Sunday, and the first thing she said was, "NOT go to CHURCH!" Well…looks like we'll be dying eggs and sleeping all afternoon…which doesn't feel like Easter.

This will be my second Easter away from my family. The first time I missed spending it with family was in 2009, I won't forget, I was in Ireland. I woke up on Easter morning in Belfast — there had been partying in the streets below my hostel all night. I jumped in a small, black cab with several other women, a few from Australia and South Africa, for a tour of the city. We saw what ruins the streets were in, and how badly Northern Irelands' world had been torn by conflict between the Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods. When we returned to our bus to continue on to Dublin, the two Australian women had secretly placed a chocolate egg on each of our seats.

Later that evening in Dublin, I celebrated my arrival with the freshest Guinness beer and live music. The streets with throbbing with people! I had never spent a holiday as such, with so many strangers in such a foreign setting. I could not compare it to anything, and I couldn't believe my fortune.

For more Ireland photos and writings, go here, my old European blog stomping grounds.

Sorry more Euro-rambling, but I dream of faraway places every day…

xx

j

when life gives you hands…

I am in love with this tote from Not Made In China! Handmade lettering and a good mission: 

"Not Made In China fervently boycotts outsourcing and foreign manufacturers. Well, kinda. It's more of a return to the handmade and DIY (design it yourself). And if you’re strapped for cash, looking for a unique gift or on a mission to make a smaller carbon footprint (because those tiny coal shoes didn’t work), then this is for you."

Best of all, it's only $12! Gotta get me one. Check out their shop!

sun sun sun

Trying really hard to get motivated again, and starting to pick up speed today! Here's a little song that really perked me up…

5 Years Time by Noah and the Whale

unadulterated street fashion

>Check out< this blog of "unadulterated street fashion since 2007" — not quite the Sartorialist, but it's still got a few gems. For example, this guy (I think suspenders are completely underrated).

barn. animals. barnyard animals.

Tonight I got to take one of my clients to her therapeutic horseback riding session on a farm 15 miles outside of Moorhead. It was really neat!

This is Kelly, the farm dog I met in the stable while my client was riding. The best thing about Kelly was when he sat down and wagged his tail, he'd sweep away all the dirt around him!

That's all for tonight. I need to have a SUPER successful day tomorrow to get back on track. Big big time.

tuesday grooves

Tuesday evening's tasty groove to help me wind down, courtesy of Lhasa de Sela:

busting it out (again)

I TOOK ANOTHER STEP TODAY: I broke out my SLR and started photographing again. It's been sitting on a shelf in my closet since August. I'd see it every day and think about taking it out, but it seemed too much of a hassle for some reason. I finally charged the battery and cleared a memory card, then took it with me for coffee this afternoon.

 

 I just…love photography, so, so much. I can't believe I let this go. I should never let this go.

four photos + four short stories

Street, outside the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, England. Just a few days into the trip, I'd began to dig into the cobblestone, bespoken charm of my new surroundings. Everything felt so old, so surreal, so different and concurrently, so beautiful. A friend took this photograph as the sun was setting on a popular street — one I'd walk down many times, in and out of bookstores and coffee shops, the same street which I'd buy my first map of London. I loved England.

Film garage, San Francisco. After a month in the city, I hadn't made too many connections. One night after work, a co-worker invited me out to a film. The show was put on in an old garage filled with film reels stacked floor to ceiling, wall to wall. A small space cleared away held several rows of chairs and the film was projected on a wall. We all sank into the hodgepodge of theatre seats, our convenience store snacks cradled in our laps. We looked at one another and laughed during the funny scenes, though no scene was really all too funny; it was just a funny experience, and we were all in enjoyment.

After the film we spoke a few words before making our way to eat the most glorious burritos at a small taqueria nearby. The ceiling was draped with hundreds of flags in green, white, yellow, red and blue and we sat at a wooden table absorbing each bite. It was the first time I'd found such company, and the onset of the rest of my summer.

Dad, Rice Lake. It is a rare occasion to see Dad sitting on the couch at the lake. Any time I visit he's building something, or fixing something, grilling something, trimming, clipping, or mowing something. When we first moved in the lake place, my siblings and I sometimes wondered how we were to entertain ourselves without a watercraft (or at least one with a motor). Dad's answer to this was always, "You can sit on the dock, or dig dandelions." It's been the ongoing joke for years, even though Dad's since bought a jet-ski or two. 

This is an image of how I always want to remember my Dad: Relaxing. Wearing his silly hat. Belly out. Probably in the midst of saying something slightly witty. At his cabin. (It's just too bad you can't see the sandals and socks…)

Bedroom, Minot, N.D. I'd just returned from Europe and was immensely sad about the end of my journey. At the time I was faced with finding a job, paying off the debt brought on by my trip, searching for a new place to live, and getting back into the groove of life while living with my parents. This particular Sunday I'd just returned from church with my family, and wanted to crawl back in bed to avoid the looming responsibilities. I'd realize by the end of the summer that the first few weeks of my return were actually the easiest, and that the days would only grow longer.

I landed a full-time job as a cashier in the hospital cafeteria, where I went about each day rising at 4 a.m., putting on my checkered blouse, apron and hairnet, and serving food to the patients, staff, and visitors that strolled through for a meal. Aside from the workers, many of the people I helped had no desire to be at the hospital; they were there because a loved one was unwell. Some days felt I had to walk on eggshells to keep the day in line. I'll never forget eating the same lunch every afternoon on the skywalk over Burdick, and looking down at the cars driving under me. After work I'd run for miles in the park, and think about the days ahead of and behind me. It was a strangely poignant summer, but the years after would prove that everything happened for a reason…