Mary Phillips-Sandy » approved

Busy busy

Mary — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:20:23 +0000

Roaming and/or preparing to roam the East Coast (here and here and here and here and here).
Remembering to renew my Flickr pro account, and therefore taking more photos.
Occasional not-so-secret food tumblring.
Trying to master this once and for all.
Working working working, here and there and elsewhere.
Hotly anticipating the forthcoming Marie Stella album, which needs to be finished asap so I can stop listening to the lo-fi rehearsal recordings on repeat, and also so Morrissey will write Syd a fan letter about that one song where she sings “I don’t need to be twenty-five/because twenty-five is when I was dead,” which will cause her pass out and hit her head on a table, after which she will come to and write a concept album about Acadian migration patterns, which will end up becoming a Broadway rock musical with Kim Deal conducting the pit orchestra, and I would like this process to begin immediately.
Developing this year’s Halloween costume concept, which — I don’t want to give anything away yet — may even surpass the time I dressed as I-495.
Getting pre-winter outdoors time while I can.
Watching “The City” because, ugh, of course.
Coaxing some fires along. Gathering birchbark, if you will.
Being on the internet less than I have to be anyway, for work.

This one’s for you, Saskatchewan

Mary — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 14:30:43 +0000

When someone you miss is an ocean away, approximately 10,000 kilometres from home, and in the throes of a dissertation defense, and battling a Kafka-esque visa misunderstanding, and (just for good measure!) suffering from the swine flu, your first thought — upon noticing that Birthday Season has rolled around — will involve a credit card and an airplane.

But the credit card is on lockdown, and airplanes are expensive, and frankly, you don’t want to catch the swine flu. So you do the next best thing:

You obtain a candle and make some long-distance wishes on a maple frosted.

Here’s hoping they all come true, eh?

A brief tour of midcoast Maine

Mary — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:00:11 +0000

It’s hard to see at this size, but one of those signs says “grilled chicken.” I can’t muster the energy to get worked up about “illegals,” but I do think that people who order grilled chicken at a place like this should be deported, maybe from the planet.

Hark, a seagull. Or a rat in a seagull costume.

Fun fact: In olden times, banner ads were made out of bricks.

The city of Belfast has strong feelings re: literature, and is not afraid to say so via magnetic poetry on a sidewalk board.

The city of Belfast is also rich in history. Exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

Watch the Frederick Wiseman documentary, if you are interested in a more recent perspective.

Fun fact: Putting elephants atop cinemas is a festive Maine tradition. We switched from gazelles in the mid-1940s.

Here are some guys in makeshift kilts launching a rowboat. Another festive tradition.

Here is why I turn up my nose, literally and metaphorically, at roses from florists.

Maine is not really all that great. The black flies are terrible. The mosquitoes are worse. We got eight feet of snow last winter. I saw a pothole the size of my car just the other day. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s nice for a visit, but you don’t want to leave the city and move here.

Also the natives are shifty.

VERY exciting news from the world of the internet

Mary — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:53:05 +0000

Speaking of blogs and blogs about things, this evening I learned that my uncle — who is my role model in just about every respect — has been, for some time, contributing to an anonymous group blog. This is may be more interesting if you know that my uncle is an actor whose work you’ve seen, and that some of the other contributors are actors whose work you’ve seen, but none of them are, say, Brangelina-status (yet). Oh, and the point of this blog is (per the uncle) “to mock each other and to mock each other’s careers.” Which is done very cagily, you understand, with secret nicknames and veiled allusions and everything, but the closeups of the royalty checks are not to be missed.

Here you go.

I have already told him that they need to move this business to Tumblr and get a book deal, stat.

One more reason why I love America

Mary — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:01:34 +0000

Yesterday in the car headed north I flipped the radio to the news talk channel, where a Texan preacher was reciting Patrick Henry’s speech to the Virginia delegates, like really emoting it in a quintessentially Texan-preacher fashion, and when he was done the hennish host clucked “Wow, gosh, I am just SO inspired by that,” and then she cut to a commercial, which was for investing all your savings in gold, because gold is safe, because gold is guaranteed by the United States government, which the hennish host had said previously is overrun with Socialists.

Several things I love about America

Mary — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:27:37 +0000

…identify ‘em all and I’ll buy you a hot dog and a box of sparklers.

The only way I’m getting through this monsoon

Mary — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:13:36 +0000

…more?

How to make szarlotka

Mary — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:00:27 +0000

Step 1. Fly to New York City. After dropping your bags in Cobble Hill, take the train to Williamsburg and get off at Bedford Avenue. Meander north to Greenpoint, making your way past the lofty glass condos that replaced your old block, through the once-weedy park that is now home to cultivated trees and popular music events. Experience a small thrill upon seeing the first apteka sign; think back to your arrival in Krakow and the excitement of tasting new words, bar mleczny and przepraszam. Make your way to the Polish liquor store on the corner by the Greenpoint Ave. G stop. Purchase a bottle of Żubrówka, also known as ‘bison grass vodka.’ Wrap it carefully in a pair of jeans, place it in a duffel bag, and check it at the airport when you fly home.

Step 2. Fill two glasses with ice. Measure a generous shot of vodka into each glass. Your shot glass doesn’t have to have a picture of a loon on it, but why not? There is nothing wrong with New England pride.

Step 3. Open a bottle of apple juice. Organic, you shameless treehugging yuppie. (It must be noted, however, that this juice tastes a lot better than the stuff from concentrate.)

Step 4. Measure two generous shots of apple juice into each glass. Stir with an old red chopstick that you bought in Chinatown. Our drink is becoming multicultural!

Step 5. The finishing touch: a sprinkle of cinnamon. Rosemont Market, represent.

Step 6. Serve to a thirsty Southerner. Repeat as needed. (Thirsty Southerner optional, if you don’t have one handy or if you just don’t want to share.)

It’s not the Empire State Building

Mary — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:15:09 +0000

…it’s not my favorite skyscraper, it’s not the roof of the Met, it’s not the bridges, it’s not the statuary. Mostly it’s the bleary light on the tiles and the free papers in the gutter and the sharp smell of dyed carnations. It’s the traffic island at the mouth of Second Avenue and the sensation of giving yourself over to other people’s movement.

My point is, New York, I’ll see you tomorrow. It’s been a while and I want to get real mundane with you.

Extry, extry, read all about it!

Mary — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:00:34 +0000

Item! Carrie Tryharder is running a sweet summer contest, and you have until Friday, July 3 to enter.
Details are as follows:

The task: Turn this spam headline into something entertaining: Police end funereal striptease acts.
The format: Short story, comic, photo essay, pop tune, whatever, as long as it is bloggable
The prize: A box of awesome from tryharderland sent straight to your door!
The deadline: Friday, July 3

Want to enter? Of course you do. Go here.

Item! Tri-named virtuoso John Dermot Woods has a sweet offer for those who pre-order his forthcoming novel by July 15.
Details go a little something like this:

My novel (with drawings), The Complete Collection of people, places & things, is being published by BlazeVOX Books next month. To celebrate we’re offering the book for $12 with free shipping (that’s 25% off) to everyone who pre-orders by July 15. AND, the first 50 people who order will also receive:
- a signed and numbered silkscreen print, to commemorate the book’s release
- a personalized copy with a signed, limited edition book plate

Take advantage of John’s generosity right here.

Item! I once played a newsboy in a production of Irwin Shaw’s Bury the Dead. My only line was “Extry, extry, read all about it!”
Delivered with gusto, and a little tweed cap.