It hurts to laugh

On Britney & Kevin's Chaotic:

Federline: Something like this is too good to be true
Max: I'm drivin' a Ferrari y'all

Close Encounters updated

I have uploaded a new projects page about the MFA show project, Close Encounters. I also uploaded a lot of pics from various people's cameras who documented the show. Enjoy the magic!

Oh holy Duggar!

I TiVO'd a show called '14 Children and Pregnant Again!' honestly because the title didn't sound real. I imagined it was about something else, and the title was a hook - just to pull in viewers. The Discovery Channel blurb reads:

The Duggars are letting God dictate how many children they have and, with nine boys, five girls, and one on the way, Jim Bob and Michelle feel blessed many times over! Find out how the Duggars coordinate a household that would challenge any manager.

It was unreal. This woman was so calm, collected and happy, I must insist that she is taking anti-depressants or some other related drug. The mother homeschools all the children, and is therefore with them all day long. This family is a well oiled machine. There is a large spreadsheet on the kitchen wall of all the jurisdictions (chores) each child must fulfill each day. The children are like robots: happy, well behaved and looking after one another. There is no TV, internet or walkmans allowed in their house, and this leaves all free time to be spent hanging out with the family. They have their own website, in case you're interested in seeing more of them. They eliminated all debt years ago, and do not buy what they can't afford.

The Duggars make me feel like a bad person. I complain and want and wish too much. I have too much anxiety about what it would be like for us to have one baby, never mind fifteen!

While I don't feel any connection to overly religious people, I wonder if there's something to be said for such a faithful and loving family. That being said, it was just a TV show, and things could be very different when the camera isn't on.

A must see, if you have the chance to watch it in the future. It seems to be airing again June 15, 16 and 18.

You Must See This!

We just got home from seeing Madagascar. It was FANTASTIC! Spend the money. Go see this movie. I haven't laughed like that in ages. I haven't laughed like that in a movie since Napoleon Dynamite. I haven't felt that good about a movie all year. Have I convinced you yet? Have I said enough good stuff about this awesome movie? Ok good. Oh yeah - there's also the best animated penguins I've ever seen, and an unreal character with Ali-G's (Sacha Baron Cohen) voice.

I give it a 9.5 on the Lori scale.

I have been warned

Thanks for the Diet Coke warnings. I will listen and try not to drink it. I have tried in the past, like a pathetic smoker, and failed. I reached what could have been my low-point this past Fall. I was working on a sound piece in the big computer lab at school. I was really thirsty. I had all this equipment out, and I knew it wouldn't be safe to leave everything and go get a drink. I knew Ginny was working at the Media Center at school, and I sent her a desperate email. I explained how thirsty I was for a DC, and that I couldn't leave the lab. She appeared just minutes later with a soda for me, and I drank it like an addict. It shames me even now to remember that day...

My name is Lori, and I'm a Colaholic.

It's time to give props

Things I'm into right now

Diet Coke
Popcorn with Brewers Yeast
Avocados
LOST
Sleeping in
researching video cameras
TiVO reruns of Felicity
Max's new green polo shirt (can you say sexy?!)
my new host provider Liquidweb
my new earrings from Tiffanys
shopping at the Container Store

Back in the day

Rachel just emailed some old photographs she had developed. They were taken right at the beginning of grad school, when we all went up to the Headlands for an overnighter. We drank a lot and danced a lot, and I still remember it as one of my favorite social moments in grad school. I remember Rachel walking around and taking these in a very dark room with her camera, while we were all dancing. I like the quality of these photos -- there is a strange thing happening with the light.

I think it's rather fitting to see these just one week after graduating.

I am including the shot of Ginny as well, because I think it may one of the truest pictures of her I've ever seen.

The Sith that Sucks

Last night I stood in line with Max, Shaun and Ruth to see the new Star Wars. We purposely ate dinner early enough to afford an hour standing in line for the movie. You can imagine my shock and surprise when we arrived that early to find a huge crowd already sitting and waiting. People were reading magazines, eating food and having conversations on their cell phone. Shaun was kind enough to point out, 'These are all people who don't have intercourse.'

After finally making it into the theatre, we were shocked to see that the screen was this humungous IMAX screen, at least 80 feet high it seemed. And that large crowd we shuffled in with, seemed rather small in comparison to the huge megatron theatre.

At this point I was pumped. We'd just eaten a yummy sushi dinner, and were now sipping on sodas and eating candy. Unhealthy, I know - but come on people ITS THE MOVIES!!

I started to feel weary when all the trailers sucked (except for Batman), they didn't include the new Harry Potter and instead I got to watch a preview for the Wedding Crashers. (yeah - that looks like quality...)

So here is a summary of the film in 10 thoughtful points:

1. Amazing costumes
2. awesome set design
3. excellent technical wizardry
4. really cool new creatures from other places
5. really scary bad guys
6. terrible acting from Portman and Christensen
7. horrible dialog in general
8. thumbs up to Ewan McGregor and Yoda for stealing the show
9. not as much 'heart' as the original 3
10. overall, i give it a 6 out of 10

Britney and Kevin: Chaotic

FLABBERGASTED. JUST. TOTALLY. FLABBERGASTED.

Lots of celebration

The last week has been really amazing. My family, Max's family and one of my best friend's Jose were all in town to celebrate with us. The MFA show opening was a huge success. I managed to hug 226 people, and received lots of great feedback. I even had a visit from Alan Bamberger, who was nice enough to include me in his picks. The graduation ceremony was also a unique experience, one I will not forget anytime soon. I never attended my undergraduate ceremony, so this was a first for me. Wow! I felt really special and very grown up. The costume made me look somewhat like a penguin, but I didn't care - I was beaming!!

Almost There

The MFA show is just 48 hours away. The space is coming together nicely, and none of it could have been done without the generous help of my friends who worked tirelessly to paint walls, build bench seating, hang photographs and lay carpet. I am blessed to have such supportive and giving people in my life.

I am starting to feel that sadness about school being over and my student life at CCA coming to an end. I really love school, and would easily be a student for the rest of my life if it were feasible.

Before I head off to take a nap, I wanted to share the signage I recently painted for a show at the UC Davis Nelson Gallery. They were even nice enough to thank me for the work I did!

Book Makers are unappreciated

I have been making a book that I am giving away at the MFA show next week. There are 220 hand-made copies in total, and I have a newfound respect for self-published writers and book makers. The amount of time and money that goes into a project like this is unreal. There are many components that are tedious and laborious -- these are the factors I actually love. But there are so many things to consider and take care of, that people who read the book will probably never appreciate or notice.

So, if you do get your hands on one of these little green books, please notice the stitch binding, the beautiful cover stock and magazine paper for the color images, the nice square format, and green linen thread.