Touchdown in Maine

Michael and I are now in Maine for a little over a week. I don't have any riveting events to relay or fascinating pictures to show. Today Michael went to the YMCA and then we went to WalMart. Yay. But really, the relaxation is fantastic.

Michael, my Dad, and my brother Brady are all out at a sports bar watching the Patriots (currently losing in the 4th). Oh whoops! Nope! Now the Patriots are ahead. I imagine there is much joyous spilling of beer at this very moment. Woo hoo. I'm not really a sports fan.

We've palmed our girls off on very generous friends. Our neighbor Gavin is looking in on Bijou. He has reported she is eating whipped cream from a spoon and he will soon watch a movie with her on our nice flat screen TV. My friend Sabina and her family are watching JoJo at their house. I brought all of her luggage over and set up a 6'x6' pleasure palace for her in their computer room/basement. They have 2 little girls who are very exited about having a rabbit for a week, and I think JoJo will come back very happy and well cared for. It was hard to send her away for a week, though. I cried when I stuffed her in the pet carrier to take her away! Michael and I are softies ...

Video Evidence

Monica posted the video of our bhangra performance! I'm cut out of a lot of it, so you can just imagine that I'm doing it just as well as the two gals in blue and white. Heh. I start out on the far left of the stage.

Merry Christmas!

Orange Isn't My Color

But when I wear orange for bhangra, it's great! Actually, orange does match my hair. Saturday I performed in my first bhangra dance on stage in public. It was scary! Here my teacher Shub from Rhythms of India dance school gets Monica and I dressed for the dance, and below she fixes up pretty Mehra.

We were dancing at the Punjabi Virsa Mela 2007, which is a celebration for Punjabi youth in the area. We did the dance which I posted a YouTube clip of us practicing a couple of months ago. Another dancer caught our Saturday performance on digital video, but I haven't seen it yet and it isn't yet available for posting. I'll link to it as soon as I can. Assuming it's not a disaster, that is! Shub said we did it 98% perfect, so that a good sign.

I was all hopped up on bhangra when I came home, and I decided to find out when next year's Bhangra Bash is. It's on March 29th! The day after my birthday! So I definitely know what I want to do for my 40th birthday -- go watch the Bhangra Bash competition and then head over to the Showbox for the after party. Come with me!

Holiday Dinner

I gave my 3rd annual Former Femmes and Friends holiday dinner on Sunday. I always forget about pictures in my cleaning, cooking, and serving frenzy, but I managed one postprandial picture:
I made all the dishes from The Philosopher's Kitchen: Recipes from Ancient Greece and Rome for the Modern Cook. We had figs soaked in wine with nuts and honey, chickpea bread, acorn squash slathered in sherry and honey and nuts, leek and celery and lemon soup, chicken stuffed with couscous and grapes and slathered with nuts and wine, and hazelnut custards slathered in Amaretto. Those ancients really knew how to get their nuts and alcohol!

Thanks for coming over you guys, I had a great time!

Ho, Ho, Ho and Happiness

Petticoat Pastiche

Ever since Petula Darling got out her petticoat, I've been hankerin' for one. I finally got up to Petticoat Junction last week and snagged a nice black one. I figure if I like it enough I'll go back for a white one and a short red one. Because I need them. I love that store. It has wonderful dance clothes, shoes, rhinestones, and of course many different kinds of petticoats.

Today the latest incarnation of La Bande Pastiche had a gig for the opening of the Broadview Library. I got to wear my new petticoat *plus* my new sequined bustier, and that made me really excited! Several folks I know showed up to listen, and my friend Sabina took some pictures. You can see my lovely new poof, glitter, and my freshly polished rubboard. For some reason the copper breasts get finger prints all over them.

Today La Bande Pastiche consisted of Claudia on fiddle, Lucy on accordion and fiddle, Ted on guitar, and Sandy on bass.

A good time was had by all, except that little girl who cried when she saw us.

He Knows If You've Been Bad Or Good ...

Christmas is here! I have a hard time feeling Christmasy here in the PNW since we don't get cold and snow. This year has been particularly bad for me Scrooge-wise, but Wednesday and Thursday I got my decorations up, and now it feels like Christmas!Right now I'm listening to my all time favorite, Sleigh Ride from Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops. I've loved this song ever since I was a tiny tot.

Bijou is heading for some coal in her stocking, though. While I was putting up the decorations, I spooked her from her nap spot, and she ended up settling down next to JoJo's favorite bed. JoJo really wanted to stretch out and relax, but Bijou made her nervous. JoJo sat there by her bed, and then started licking it like she does when she's happy. I think she was happy Bijou was there. And then ... well Bijou was a bad girl:

Stormy Weather

Seattle and Maine have been having some heavy weather! My brother Aaron took some videos of the family playing in the first snow-day of the year in Camden. I'm not a snow person in general, but a snow day is always fun! I'm jealous.


In Seattle, we started off with heavy snow early on Saturday afternoon. I had a safe and easy but snowy drive home from work. At work the snow was still big and fluffy, but at home it wasn't. I was disappointed, because I was looking forward to going for a walk in the big fluffy snow. The snow changed to rain, and has finally stopped just now, Tuesday morning. The result was catastrophic flooding and mudslides, luckily none by us. We live on a gentle hill in Ballard, and are generally immune to flooding, mudslides, tsunamis, pyroclastic flows from Rainier, and falling trees in windstorms (all the trees were cut in Ballard at one point, so most are small). Just two miles from our house, however, was this magnificent mudslide (the car was unoccupied).
And here's an example of some chaos north of Seattle, about 15 miles from where I work.

There was more flooding much closer to my job, but this is a great photo. Both photos are from the Seattle Times.

Further south in Puget Sound the flooding was even worse, with hurricane force winds accompanying the rain. Welcome winter!