What a day. First off, have I mentioned how gorgeous it is in this city this month? Holy Batman, it's amazing out. But besides having a lovely day outside, I ended this evening at a burlesque show with Margaret to celebrate her birthday.Lili's Burlesque (our favorite troupe in town) was hosting an event to raise money for the animals affected by the oil spill in the gulf. They had brought in performers from Chicago and Austin, TX. But you know what was different about this show? From all the others?Wait for it.Men.Yes. There were men, taking their clothes off as well as the lovely ladies. I was really tempted to put one of those photos up today, but my father reads this blog. So this one's for you, dad.But hey! All you ladies out there! (Hi Mom!) Don't worry. Sunday afternoon, while the football is on, I'll edit the rest of the take, and I'll post some of the men. Come back and check in. You won't regret it. UPDATE: The photos of the whole performance are up! You can check them out over here.
Tonight was the last bonfire of the season over at Castle Greyskull. Lots of beer, great food and fun company all around. This here is Ms. Meredith... I wish I could remember the point she was so emphatically making here. Something about sticks? Or building a fire? Or wood? Hmmm... can't remember ;). Anyway, lots of good conversations. Maybe one of my favorite exchanges was this:"Is Charlton Hesston gay?""No. I think he's dead.""Ahhhh.... right...."
These are my work buddies. Well, I guess two of them are. The other two USED to be my work buddies, as of today. Nancy, in the center top, left the paper last spring and Nan, who is in the middle at the bottom, worked her last day today. But unlike Nancy, Nan is leaving Minnesota and heading south to homestead some land and quit working in corporate America. So are you all as jealous as I am? Yeah. Sigh. I know.Nan is a free spirit who I have admired for many more reasons than this recent move. For example, a while back she quit her job at the LA Times and hopped on her sail boat with her man and they sailed all over the world for several YEARS. Yes. Years. And then she moved back to Minnesota, got a new job at the paper, bought a house that needed a crap-ton of work, and got busy. The whole time she's been here (maybe five years?) she and her man, Mason, have been redoing the whole house (and doing an AMAZING job) and saving money from their work getting ready to leave it all behind again. Sigh. Yeah. Still jealous.And today is the day. Today they close on the sale of their house and literally take the money and run. So let's wish her well in her latest adventure. As part of her going away gift, I set up a blog for her so we can follow the journey from our respective cubicles. You can read all about it 
Is this the Sprite of rock'n'roll photos or what? These colors make me think of lemon/lime. Anyway, say hello to Surfer Blood. They are one of the very few things from Florida that I will tolerate... and even sing along to. I was a trooper tonight and still made it out to the show even though they didn't start until 11:20 pm. C'mon, now... I know it's rock'n'roll, but 11:20 pm on a WEDNESDAY? Insanity.The show was good, but way too short. I think they played 10 songs and for about 40 minutes (maybe 45). Normally I would complain loudly about this... but 11:20 start time? Yeah. Let's go home. More photos are up 
Blech. Today was just under twelve hours of work in the cubicle. That is never fun. Ever.Anyway, after about hour seven, Margaret and I decided it was time to take a walk around the block. It was about 70 degrees again today, and it's so hard to sit at your desk all day with that kind of fabulousness going on outside. Something about the fall light works so well in portraits, so I made Margaret pose for a few shots. Plus, who doesn't love a new facebook avatar?
Hey lookie there... my man had a birthday today. We celebrated with a big, homemade dinner, chocolate birthday cake, a new iPad and MadMen. Pretty great evening, if I do say so myself.