***abbytryagain***

James and his band are on a little "tour" in California this week. It is amazing how productive I can be when he is gone. Not that I am complaining about him being around-I love him and miss him-but wow I've got a lot done!
    Today is a beautiful day, wish I didn't have to work. But work's been great-I am working on more shirt designs and possibly something bigger. Don't want to jinx it, but the possibilities are exciting.
    I am drawing a lot-getting inspiration from these places:
-playtime

-caramel baby and child

-Shinzi Katoh

-Ribbon Hakka Kids

what I am looking forward to this summer...

       Looking outside the window this morning, all I see are grey skies and misty showers. Hard to believe it is almost summer. That's okay, I think I am getting used to the whole "June Gloom" thing and in some ways I kinda like it. It makes the pretty days that much more special.
       SO, in trying to keep in good spirits about this-here are things I am looking forward to in no particular order:
-my sister Maci is having a baby boy in July!

-visiting this shop

-reading Astrid's new blog

-sending out mail-I want to order this and this card especially!

-wearing dresses from this shop

-grilling any and everything

-reading library books a lot

-going home

-planning a small art show at my house

   What are you looking forward to?

***update:

The other night I watched this great collection of short films by Matt McCormick called "From Tugboats to Polar Bears". It was amazing-I just have to say that-I just found his website and you should watch this video that features my favorite Portland bridge. Wow, I am such a loser-can't believe I haven't seen his stuff before-or maybe I did and just wasn't paying attention.

things to do on a cold monday morning

     Weeks ago, I found a pack of expired kodak fill at the goodwill. Seven rolls for just a couple bucks, this seemed like a deal. Above is a photo from the first roll I've had developed. I am pretty happy with the photos. It is nice to be shooting on film. I have little knowledge of light meters and the technical side of using my camera so it is always a bit of a surprise when the photos are decent. See more here.
    This morning James and I took the bus downtown. We were stopped for a long time at the Broadway bridge. It was a lot of fun. For those of you unfamilar with Portland, the city is cut in half by a river. There are a series of bridges that connect the two sides and most them are drawbridges. Each June, navy ships visit Portland for a week. Today they were leaving-in the middle of rush hour-and all of the bridges were up. I had some cameras with me, so James and I hoped off the bus and walked as far up on the bridges as we could. It was kinda fun-everyone being stuck there together-cars standing still and people admiring the boats. It felt like the end of the world in some ways-everyone standing still together. It was strange. I will show you some photos when I get them developed.
   I tried to sew a chemise without following the pattern and it ended up too small. Maybe I will try again. For right now I have this on my mind:

I love having Mondays off

today:
-drank coffee and poked around flickr
-hopped on a bus downtown
-went to the cobbler and picked up my mary janes-they're all better now!
-ate an insanely cheap breakfast outside at Fuller's
-saw tons of Sailors (it's fleet week and the Rose Festival right now)
-picked up my library books and realized I placed this book on hold at the wrong library
-went grocery shopping
-tidied up and did some dishes
-hope to go and hang out outside and read some
   Why is it that I love little errands and simple tasks so much more than "partying" or doing more exciting things? I must be an old soul....
   Hope you r day is well!
   I am going to try and sew a shirt from this book I just got at the library.