us from space!



source

 in case you're not aware, the astronauts currently aboard the International Space Station are awesome. due to magical internet connections, they are tweeting, Facebooking, conducting reddit AMA's, making music with Earth... all from the ISS. i follow Col. Chris Hadfield on Facebook, and he posts the most beautiful pictures of Earth along with interesting tidbits about life in space (you swallow your toothpaste after brushing, clothes are worn until too dirty and then thrown away, you don't want to know how they get their water, etc).

anyway, another astronaut on board finally posted a picture of the Twin Cities as they floated overhead a couple days ago (seen above). aren't we lovely from a distance? if you're having trouble making sense of the photo, Bob Collins labeled some of the major landmarks on a Newscut post. 

Midwest horns

the top half of a SXSW poster, original can be seen here

Blankets

i don't know why it took me so long to read this one. i have a lot of friends who read graphic novels and have seen this one laying around their houses/apartments for years. historically, comics/graphic novels have not been my thing, so i guess i just needed a nudge to try one out. our roommate last summer is a big fan of both, and while she was living with us i was able to peek at her library choices. which means, yes, this has been on my list to read since last summer and am only now getting to it. sigh.

i really didn't know anything about Blankets, so i was surprised to discover that it's a fairly autobiographical coming of age story set in 1990's evangelical Christian culture in rural Wisconsin. there was so much that was familiar- church camp-y type trips, suspicion of the arts, long winters with never ending blankets of snow, grunge fashion, Kurt Cobain posters on the wall, etc etc. the story is a really intimate, vulnerable portrayal of Thompson's adolescence and crisis of faith, with back story of his relationship with his younger brother Phil. he tries to reconcile his faith with his love of drawing and his new found infatuation with Raina, a girl he meets at church camp. it sounds pretty standard, but it's such a delicate, beautiful story, with the theme of blankets woven throughout all the scenes and stages of Thompson's life. i was surprised by the depth and layers of the story, and his illustrations are so smart and beautiful too. no wonder everyone loves this book. it's 600 pages but i read it in 2 sittings, and i am certain i will read it again.

doughnuts to the rescue

Scene: driving down Nicollet Avenue, 12:45am, post-gig.

Matt: the sucky thing about these late night gigs, is that you're just so hungry afterwards...
me: I know, i was thinking the same exact thing. actually, I was thinking "what am i going to eat when i get home...?"
Matt: hey, there's that new doughnut place...
me: oh yeah, Glam Doll. they're supposed to be really good- WAITAMINUTE. I think they are open.
Matt: really?
me: yesiremembernowtheyarealatenightdoughnutplaceturnthecararoundturnthecararound

one u-turn later and about $7.00 later, we were the proud owners of a huge apple bourbon fritter (with bacon on top), a peanut butter sriracha* doughnut, and an old fashioned cake doughnut with chocolate icing. probably not the best idea to load up on sugary sugar sugarness right before bed, but last night they really hit the spot. 



*Blogger spell-check doesn't know what sriracha is.... poor Blogger.