OutdoorType

Here’s a note from Heather about Friday’s opening and how you can still see the show through next Sunday!

Huge, huge thanks to the 700+ of you that came out on Friday to Fight Club for our opening reception. We know you waited in a long line, we know you plowed through 10 kegs in 3 hours, we know some of you got drenched late in the evening, and we LOVE you for suffering through and making it a party for the record books.

Fixation is up at Fight Club through next Sunday, Nov 23, and open everyday from noon to 7 p.m. (and free). You’ll need to come in the front door at 1250 9th Street. Wednesdays are skate nights, so the gallery will be open late and you can watch the boys do their thing in the bowl.

We’ve got pics from Friday up on the Ten Miles Square facebook group (feel free to add your own), and remember you can contact me  if you’re interested in purchasing anything from these fine photographers.

Yesterday I was asked to both participate in and once more photograph the O’Neill Studios Annual Post-Holiday Party and Show.

I’m psyched because Maggie definitely knows how to throw a party and last year’s show was tons of fun, even for a work night. I hope you all can make it down to Adams Morgan and join in the fun. I’ll try and post more info about the other participating artists when I get it. In the meantime, check out the details below…

Saturday, February 2, 2008
6:30PM – Midnight

LEFTBANK
2424 18th St. NW
Washington, DC 2009
www.leftbankdc.com

Live Art, DJ, Dancing, Drinks, Heavy Hors D’Oeuvres, Silent Auction, Work From 9 Artists
And All Artwork Is For Sale.

100% Of All Silent Auction Sales And A Portion Of All Other Artwork Sales Will Benefit Autism Speaks

Also, I have it on pretty good authority that there will be a live New Orleans Jazz band playing the event as well.

Your Washington Capitals played the Ottawa Senators tonight in a game that looked to go into overtime but instead finished 4 – 2 in favour of the Caps.

Ottawa (29-12-4) came into the game leading the Eastern Conference by seven points over the New Jersey Devils and also boasted the best road record in the East. But, much to the dismay of our hostess for the evening, Washington had Ottawa’s number. Tonight they concluded a season series perfect 4-0 record against the Senators. Oops.

Our neighbor to the north’s national past time game was just the prelude to the night’s fun. It helped set the mood for what came next, a battle royale of the sexes… BroomBall, Girls vs. Guys!

Now, a word about broomball. First off, “broom” is a misnomer. You say broom and think a stick with bristles such as might facilitate in cleaning a floor. But we did not use a broom with bristles. No, what we used was a broom for the modern era… A sleek and shiny broom made of aluminum and high speed, injection molded plastics. In our respective “locker rooms” we strapped on knee pads and helmets and selected our brooms. Strategies were devised, trash was talked, and superstitious rights of game day passage were performed. (also some of us advised our teammates to flip their helmets around so they weren’t worn backwards).

We proceeded into the arena like modern day gladiators and stepped tentatively onto the ice.

The game began and life became a blur of action. Bodies attempted to maintain their tenuous upright perch upon the ice (but so often failed). Cardiac thresholds were reached and surpassed. The black game balls became objects of desire, sliding in and out of tunneled vision. Goals were scored over and over again. As the seconds clicked down to zero a final score for the men secured victory and boasting rights.

Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in all the land. Let us drink from the keg of glory! I hope to play Broom Ball again.

A smattering of photos on Flickr.

And only a day or so late…

 

JOE
You believe that?

ANN
I do if you do.

Pause.

 

JOE
But it’s absurd.

 

ANN
So is our electoral process. But we still vote.

Friday… Every Friday is pay day for my company and I’ve come to appreciate the clockworkness of things. Come Friday, you login to your bank and waiting for you is the same amount you got last week, and the week before, and the week before that. Last Friday I logged into my bank, clicked on my account, scanned down to the direct deposit entry, and freaked out a little bit. It was about $100 less than I’d expected. I quickly realised though that this being the first pay check of the year, our new benefits must have kicked in and so this was going to be the new amount. Thanks a lot rising health care costs!

I pulled up the spreadsheet that is my budget and changed some cells to reflect the new lesser amount. Then I started marking things that would have to be cut back in the year 2008. Spending was going to be be seriously curtailed in order for me to get some free samples at the doctor’s office. Damn it! Well, I figured things out and then decided to go out with a bang… dinner at my favourite tex-mex restaurant! How fiscally responsible of me, right?*

Anyways, I called up Jessica and we had a nice meal and then came back to my place for cookie baking and movie watching. I introduced her to the fine art that is my chocolate chip cookie baking technique and Jess watched helped a bit and provided running commentary comparing my exacting and measured style to Erica’s, um, less than exacting and measured style. Then while cookies baked we watched one of my most favourite movies. Not everyone likes this particular movie, but I had a feeling that being such a big Sorkin nerd Jessica might like it.

Saturday…

I woke early (8ish) from a dream (nightmare?) about the winner of the Republican Iowa Caucus (Mike Huckabee) so I could go help a friend move and also test my plumbing skills (such as they are). The move went well enough and I got to practise city driving and parking and was more or less successful as long as you don’t count that one time I ignored Prudence (more on her in a later post) and turned down a one way street. Turned down the Wrong Way. Oops. The guys in the car where either too stunned at the move or not at all paying attention because they were pretty quiet on the whole affair. Of course, I’d just met them all for the first time not more than a couple hours earlier so maybe they were just being polite. They kept getting into the car with me so who knows…

Anyways, I got one of two toilets installed and it seems to be leak proof at this point so that’s a good thing. The hot water heater is another story, but that was a last minute troubleshoot anyways.

So then the other little thing happening Saturday was the closing reception of my art show. Again, I’ll have to blog about that in greater detail tomorrow… I will say though that it was another successful event and it was great seeing everyone who came out, especially those who came for round two! Thanks again!

Sunday…

I slept in and it was great. I had turned off all alarms but one (Julia), and as if set by the nuclear clock, she was knocking on the door at 11am sharp just like I’d told her to do. She was in town for the show and to play tourist for the day and boy did we ever play tourist. We crammed in the following activities:

- National Building Museum (two exhibits)
- JMW Turner at the National Gallery
- The US Botanic Garden
- Skipping along The Mall
- Late lunch on 7th St.
- Kogod Courtyard

Photographic proof of this fun day downtown is on Flickr.

*so about that $100/week for increased health care costs… Um, yeah… I’m an idiot who should not be trusted with counting and/or analysis of numbers of any kind. The reason I got $100 less in my last pay check? As good of a story as it was, it wasn’t because of rising health care costs. The last week of the year I was out of vacation and so on Christmas Eve Day I had to work several hours without pay. That’s where the money went. So woohoo! Look out unbridled spending, here I come!

Happy new year!, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

Everyone is Invited!

I’d love to have you all out to the closing of Assassination Vacation at the Huckleberry Inn, my second solo photography show. We can continue to ring in the new year with wine and beer and quite possibly a chili and corn bread cook-off, just the thing for a cold winter’s night!

The Huckleberry Inn is located in historic downtown Herndon, Va.
630 Oak Street
Herndon, VA 20170

(And while there is no parking allowed on Oak Street, there is Plenty of FREE parking at the Municipal Lot. Just a three minute walk to the Inn).

Read the artist’s statement, view & purchase photos, and much, much more, all at Brian Knight Photography.

Friday Night Fun @ Sine, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

Friday Night Fun @ Sine… Original plan was to skate and then head to the bar but the rain forced an early retreat inside (ok, so we never even tried to skate this time). The lighting wasn’t so great and we took only a few photos, but you can check out the short set on Flickr.

I began a much longer, way more detailed account of the weekend complete with jokes and nerdy allusions to Star Wars, but it is nearly 3am, and a school night, and so I present instead the following supershortweekendrecap…

• My Car Sucks
• My Car Is All Better
• My Debt Ratio Sucks
• My Car Kind Of Sucks Again
  (debt ratio also still sucking)
• Woohoo! The District, Art, An Art Liking Friend From The District, Christmas Market, Beer, Food, Ice Hockey, eh?
• Still More Friends and Alcohol
• A Really Late Night
• Sleep
• Woohoo! The District, Friends, Family, (more) People With Accents, Pancakes (iheartpancakes)
• Napping
• A Really Late Night
• Sleep
• Woohoo! Herndon, Friends, Art, Blowing Fuses (literally)
• Crap. Now My Car Really Sucks Again
• Woohoo! The District, Beer, Friends, Lots Of Cameras, LOTS Of Cameras, LOTS of CAMERAS, Yes We Are Some Kind Of Camera Enthusiast Group, Quote Of The Day, Cookies, Exchanging Tales Of Traffic Woes, Succesful 1/2 Circumnavigation of General George Henry Thomas’ Circle
• Phone Calls
• Book Deals
• A Few Distractions
• Emails
• Primal Quest Proofreading
• Blogging
• Sleep Photo Editing
• Sleep

On display, originally uploaded by HeatherMG.

Thanks to everyone who came to the opening Saturday night, you all made it a great success!

I’m still recovering a bit, and hope to write more about the show a little later, but in the meantime should you feel like procrastinating on a Monday morning you can check out a few photos taken by Heather.

A showing of limited edition, fine art prints created from digital photographs.

From the “shot heard round the world” at the Old North Bridge to the “miracle bullet” of Dealey Plaza please join us in viewing twenty-two new photographs that explore several historical landmarks from a unique perspective that sets aside events of the past in an attempt to find a certain quietude in the details that remain.

Opening Reception:
Saturday, December 8
7pm – 11pm

RSVP with the Official Evite!

Closing Reception:
Sunday, January 5
Afternoon

Other times available by appointment only. Contact to arrange a viewing.

The Huckleberry Inn is located in historic downtown Herndon, Va.

630 Oak Street
Herndon, VA 20170

(Plenty of FREE parking at the Municipal Lot. Just a three minute walk to the Inn)

View Official Website with Artist Statement.