The 1st ATL post:

9/28/06

Installed. But here’s what I still need:
• Closet system (the old CF designer in me insists upon it, and IKEA will be happy to provide it)
• Dressers
• Shelves
• Credenza (have you sensed a storage theme yet?)
• A lighting design plan (and the lights to go with it)
• That Balenciaga bag (yes, I still think about it)
• A paycheck to cover it all (that won’t arrive until the end of the month, sadly)

I’m decidedly in nesting mode. Dad drove down in the Uhaul with me on Sun-Mon. The only real excitement during the trip was the gas pump that didn’t shut off automatically and doused the side of the truck and most of the ground with unleaded. That was a nervous moment turning on the ignition. That could’ve been a Hollywood style fireball. What kind of gas pump doesn’t have the automatic shut-off nowadays? This is goddamn modern times.

The only real excitement during the move was when I was in my leasing office signing paperwork and realized that I had absolutely packed my checkbook. I had to go rushing all over town to get a cash advance and a money order. Handing over $1000 in cash in an Atlanta gas station to get a money order is something I hope never to do again.

And lately it has just been getting settled. Last night I went out with Maritime’s Roger for dinner. I love getting to co-opt M’s dates. We went to an adorable little place by my place that Roger very aptly described as ‘vegetarian comfort food.’ The downside: this cute place is being driven out of business due to the rising rents of gentrification, a process of which I now have to face up to that I’m a part.

But today, I’m in my Coffee Shop, which features a comfy, relaxed, modernist Room & Board vibe that I’m loving. What it apparently doesn’t feature is WiFi. Where’s the gentrification now? (Do I realize that I’m a terrible yuppie elitist? Yes. And I’m not proud. But I am very comfortable. And it seems that I’ll trade pride for comfort, which makes me even more despicable. I’ll just have to sooth my conscience with charitable donations and numb myself with wine. Ack, the further I go with this the more yuppie become. I’m stopping.) So I’ll have to post this at a time and place TBA.

...Or Lose Me Forever

The one peice of furniture that I will spend the most time on is proving to be the most difficult to buy. Where is my perfect bed? Is it at Select Comfort? Waiting for me with no interest and no payments for a year? Or is it at the Original Mattress Factory? With the better-than-Stearns-&-Foster construction at wholesale prices? I've been doing quite a bit of research but maybe not enough lying down. Time to put down the packing tape and do some productive resting.

The Weekend

Friday night: drinking
Saturday night: drinking
Tonight: drinking considerably less

Not at all sure that my liver will hold up under the final ten days in MSP. Not sure my heart will hold out either, leaving the loved ones behind. Last night I soothed myself with a fantastic triple creme that 'Kovsky brought to #2's place. Then we sat out under the lightning at Barbette and shared the fab Banana Nutella Crepe (without bananas, for my sake. 'Kovsky excused our order to the heartthrob waiter, saying that I didn't like potassium) and didn't get a drop of rain until our walk back. We had two conference calls with Maritime while there and it was v. close to the commraderie we've always enjoyed at our favorite little sidewalk cafe. But no costieres de nimes; it seems to go the way of white after labor day, perhaps the truest sign of autumn.

Tonight the tenor changes slightly for a viewing of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas with Blissa, Gabby, and the Redhead. I'm making pizza. Maybe even making Blissa's favorite if the squash in the market looks good. In my great debate about whether to devote my final northern days to the things I've missed or the things I've loved, the old favorites are winning in a landslide.

Two years ago around this time I had a stunning bowl of moules mariniere at A Rebours with Preston and Dan. Each one was tender, covered by a sheen of the butter-rich sauce. I savored the last one more than the first and we all sopped up the last drops, fragrant with white wine and shallots, with crusts of baguette. I knew, obviously, that they'd bring the next course, and I told myself that it would be delicious, but I didn't even want them to take the empty bowl away.

Mukluks for only $2

I'm deep in garage sale at the moment. Trying to offload as much of my crap as I can so that I can buy new crap in ATL. The TV/VCR and the wicker went right away this morning and I have high hopes for the desk and the rocking chair tomorrow. Happily, the Bubba Gump Shrip Co. cookbook went before the Susan Powter cookbook. Unhappily, I possessed both.

Here's where I'm going to live:


More specific images will appear once I have them. It was the first place I saw, and wouldn't you know it, I didn't take any interior photos. But I'm planning to take possession (which never fails to sound satanic or kinky) on the 27th, which means I'll probably do some ridiculous before and after shots of the move. Although the afters will more than likely have to wait a few pay periods so that they actually feature furniture.

PS- I have a horrible cold. I just told 'Kovsky that I sound like Eartha Kitt and he concurred.

Thank you, USTA,

for both the US Open and the new address labels you sent me. The labels will be useless in about two weeks, but I'll keep the memory of the Federer/Roddick match forever. That was some tennis. Roger Federer (do you think his friends call him R-Fed? If so, do you think he gets it? And if so, do you think it drives him crazy?) is not all that attractive. But attractive doesn't win you points in tennis. If it did, James Blake would be best player in the world.

Last night I got drunk on the phone with Maritime. It was just like old times. I see phone bills in our future. Of course I had a rager of a hangover which made me less than totally effective today. But I did send Maritime's care package, shopped for a mattress, and went through all my storage boxes at the hangar. So it could've been worse.

Let me just say that Midwest Airlines is an absolute pleasure to fly. My four flights this weekend were hands down the best commercial airline experience I've ever had. Every single seat in all their aircraft is one of those large, leather, first class jobbies! And leg room! And warm chocolate chip cookies! The only downside is that you have to connect through Milwaukee for basically every flight. The background on that is that it started out as Kimberly-Clark's corporate travel department (the headquarters being in Milwaukee) and evolved into a full service airline. But don't let the 'waukee get in the way of enjoying Midwest next time you take to the skies. It'll be worth it, I swear.

I'm just going to admit from the get-go that this is going to be pure stream of consciousness because I'm too buzy/lazy to edit and craft. If you haven't seen the new Vogue, you should, because the Annie Leibovitz photographed Kirsten Dunst in versailles, and it's pretty amazing. I'm leaving for ATL tomorrow to find an apt. It's going to be a marathon day sat. of nothing but driving and talking to rental agents. Woo hoo. No, I'm excited to find a place and go into nesting mode. I still have to work out some sort of schedule for the next three weeks or I know I'm going to end up missing spending time with the people I want to spend time with. And I'm torn between wanting to visit all my favorite MSP haunts and wanting to check things off my list of places I've always planned on going but somehow never managed to actually go. I think that the 'where should M live' contest has ground to a halt. I jumped the gun posting those places and now I've found like 8 better (I think) ones but just don't have the time or inclination to post them. Sorry folks, I'll post pictures of the place I eventually get. Oh, shit, I have to get a new passport sometime soon. Because I can't find the thing to save my soul and I want to do it pre-ATL while I still know where the County Service Center is. I did get a few things checked off my pre-move checklist this week but I still have to take the Audi in for a mechanical spruce-up. Its got this weird thing with its temperature gauge where it thinks its -50 degrees below zero and so it shuts the AC off to protect me. It's thoughtful, but not cool. And the overhead light doesn't work anymore. And there's a strange, expensive-sounding groaning coming out of the front end. And the check engine light is permanently on. I know that all of this sounds incredibly ominous, but trust me, it's not on its last legs by a long shot. I'm losing the fashion fantasy league. It's not pretty. I'm trailing the leader by nearly 600 points. Yikes. I think I may be the FFL version of those rare racehorses who come on strong in the last straightaway. For me, that straightaway is called the Oscars. Had dinner and drinks last night with Blissa and Gabby on the rooftop of Brits. Their Welsh Rarebit is not so good, fyi. Get the samosas. I also dropped into the Sam's Wine Shop tasting beforehand and am now the proud owner of a nice Viognier that I'm going to drink with friends as a goodbye to MSP. Just don't know when that'll be exactly. Okay, I have to be productive for real now. I just remembered that I was supposed to drop a helicopter adaptor cable by UPS yesterday and totally failed to do it.

Things I Saw in Toronto

- A B-25
- The inside of a little Russian plane called the Sukhoi
- An airshow featuring the above planes and then some
- Hotels that I would have preferred to be staying at
- A cargo ship being loaded while I waited to board a dinner cruise
- Food served on boats is always bad, always
- You can't leave a dinner cruise early
- The totality of the TO transportation aparatus
- The most gorgeous Balenciaga bag!
- The wisdom of not spending nearly a month's salary on said bag
- The Campbell House, one of the oldest buildings in Toronto
- Two homeless guys greco-roman wrestling

It was quite a trip.

(BTW, Mara vetoed numbers two and four in the rental contest on the basis of location. I'll keep searching and repost with better choices later.)

Rock the Vote

In honor of internet contests everywhere, I'm holding a vote for where I should live for the next year.* I could potentially move into the following:

1. This place, http://atlanta.craigslist.org/apa/201608040.html (no, I can't hyperlink, I understand that it's annoying.)
2. This other place, http://atlanta.craigslist.org/apa/201506282.html
3. Here, http://atlanta.craigslist.org/apa/200495947.html
4. There, http://atlanta.craigslist.org/apa/202362563.html

Cast your ballots in the comments section.

*No guarantees that I will actually move into the apartment that gets the highest number of votes. (Lawyers, I'll let you put that into fancy-schmance legalese.)