Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Jury duty
so I had jury duty, and almost made it onto the case. me and one other guy were the last ones left standing. one of the lawyers had a print out from a Wiki site, "How to Question a Jury" or something. whatever works.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
How I met Dave Eggers
It all started about a month ago, when Britt and I were walking at Crissy Field near the Golden Gate Bridge. These girls come up and ask us if we're a couple. "Yes," we said. They say they're interns at McSweeney's and want to take our pictures for this photo spread they're doing on couples. We obliged. We corresponded with them later by email and verified the paragraph they wrote about us.
A month later we go to a Dave Eggers book signing for his new book. Britt gets him to sign her book, spelling her name out "Brittany O."
"Like Karen O?" Dave asks.
"Yes," she says.
"Cool," he responds.
Then he sees me, and asks, "Don't I know you from somewhere?"
We're in the McSweeney's couples photo thing, we say. He flips out and says, wait for me, I'll be done in 10 minutes, and gives us the address of his office. He was midway through signing Britt's book, but we move out of the way and walk over to his nearby office, which happens to be in the back of a stationary store.
There, we sit around while everyone types away on their Macbooks. I checked out some stuff they had displayed, presumably from the superhero store in Brooklyn, like Time Travel products and different superhuman powers in physical form, like chemical elements. After about 20 minutes, Dave rushes in and whisks us past everyone and into his office in the back. Sweet!
He showed us the photo spread layout. It's a game where they show your pictures individually with a bunch of others on one page, and people are supposed to match you with your mate. The answers are on another page. He said they took the idea from Boston Magazine, but they don't usually do unoriginal things like that. Dave reassures Britt that they chose a good pic of her, and once I tell him I went to Northwestern, he tells me how Northwestern kids used to make fun of him and the other Illinois state school kids when they came to basketball games on our campus. I almost felt bad for him.
Next came the payoff. "Do you guys want anything? Take some books!" he says. We were surrounded by volumes on bookshelves, so I asked him to pick some. He chose "Bowl of Cherries" by 90-year-old author Millard Kaufman, and "The Convalescent" by Jessica Anthony, about a four and a half foot tall Hungarian butcher man, or something, both hardcovers. He also hooked Britt up with the McSweeney's editor, who gave her an assignment. Sweetness!
Finally, we ask, can you sign our books now? He obliges, writing, "with love and strength and thanks," in Britt's copy of "What is the What." After reading her friend's inscription, that the book taught him "it could always be worse," Dave says, "Valentino knows that better than anyone." In our new copy of "Zeitoun" he writes, "So good to know you two. Be Human."
So, Dave was pretty cool. Britt was surprised how young he looked, and I noticed how soft-spoken and humble he seemed. I was so star struck I forgot to ask him to get margaritas with us.
A month later we go to a Dave Eggers book signing for his new book. Britt gets him to sign her book, spelling her name out "Brittany O."
"Like Karen O?" Dave asks.
"Yes," she says.
"Cool," he responds.
Then he sees me, and asks, "Don't I know you from somewhere?"
We're in the McSweeney's couples photo thing, we say. He flips out and says, wait for me, I'll be done in 10 minutes, and gives us the address of his office. He was midway through signing Britt's book, but we move out of the way and walk over to his nearby office, which happens to be in the back of a stationary store.
There, we sit around while everyone types away on their Macbooks. I checked out some stuff they had displayed, presumably from the superhero store in Brooklyn, like Time Travel products and different superhuman powers in physical form, like chemical elements. After about 20 minutes, Dave rushes in and whisks us past everyone and into his office in the back. Sweet!
He showed us the photo spread layout. It's a game where they show your pictures individually with a bunch of others on one page, and people are supposed to match you with your mate. The answers are on another page. He said they took the idea from Boston Magazine, but they don't usually do unoriginal things like that. Dave reassures Britt that they chose a good pic of her, and once I tell him I went to Northwestern, he tells me how Northwestern kids used to make fun of him and the other Illinois state school kids when they came to basketball games on our campus. I almost felt bad for him.
Next came the payoff. "Do you guys want anything? Take some books!" he says. We were surrounded by volumes on bookshelves, so I asked him to pick some. He chose "Bowl of Cherries" by 90-year-old author Millard Kaufman, and "The Convalescent" by Jessica Anthony, about a four and a half foot tall Hungarian butcher man, or something, both hardcovers. He also hooked Britt up with the McSweeney's editor, who gave her an assignment. Sweetness!
Finally, we ask, can you sign our books now? He obliges, writing, "with love and strength and thanks," in Britt's copy of "What is the What." After reading her friend's inscription, that the book taught him "it could always be worse," Dave says, "Valentino knows that better than anyone." In our new copy of "Zeitoun" he writes, "So good to know you two. Be Human."
So, Dave was pretty cool. Britt was surprised how young he looked, and I noticed how soft-spoken and humble he seemed. I was so star struck I forgot to ask him to get margaritas with us.
Monday, July 13, 2009
goings on
Life Digest has some catching up to do.
Pete and Britt spent a lovely July 4th weekend underneath, and above, the Golden Gate Bridge at Cavallo Point. This brownfield site was Fort Baker, but is now a fancy hotel/lodge/spa. The weather is surprisingly pleasant for its location on the edge of the Western hemisphere. My father paid, mother invited us. We dined at the restaurant on the grounds. Pete had foraged porcini salad and Point Reyes grass-fed beef, while Britt ate young greens salad with strawberries and wild boat salmon. Yum x 1000 = Murray Circle. Other members of Pete and Britt's casually dressed party of eight pissed off the waiter by trying to pronounce the name of a certain wine, and tried to keep their utensils even though they weren't supposed to, evidently.
This past weekend P+B went to Truckee and stayed with James and Tina. Britt read from the Twilight series while Pete and James hiked. Then everyone watched 16 and Pregnant all night, every night.
Planned is a trip to San Diego, hitting all the sites in between, including the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Hearst Castle, the Mystery Spot, and the Salton Sea.
Sail on!
Pete and Britt spent a lovely July 4th weekend underneath, and above, the Golden Gate Bridge at Cavallo Point. This brownfield site was Fort Baker, but is now a fancy hotel/lodge/spa. The weather is surprisingly pleasant for its location on the edge of the Western hemisphere. My father paid, mother invited us. We dined at the restaurant on the grounds. Pete had foraged porcini salad and Point Reyes grass-fed beef, while Britt ate young greens salad with strawberries and wild boat salmon. Yum x 1000 = Murray Circle. Other members of Pete and Britt's casually dressed party of eight pissed off the waiter by trying to pronounce the name of a certain wine, and tried to keep their utensils even though they weren't supposed to, evidently.
This past weekend P+B went to Truckee and stayed with James and Tina. Britt read from the Twilight series while Pete and James hiked. Then everyone watched 16 and Pregnant all night, every night.
Planned is a trip to San Diego, hitting all the sites in between, including the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Hearst Castle, the Mystery Spot, and the Salton Sea.
Sail on!
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