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When I grow up, everything I own will be bespoke. Bespoke shoes, bespoke clothes, bespoke luggage, bespoke dogs. Everything will be custom made to my exact likes and specifications. Rien de naff pour moi! Along with my fabulous bespoke couches and curtains and linens and chairs I will also have bespoke life experiences of the travel variety. And when I do, I will, in turn, hire Truffle Pig and Black Tomato (that's to-mah-to, dahling) to design them.
Truffle and Tomato are both quite fabulous travel designers. They take your every whim, interest, and desire and mix it with their unequalled travel and luxury experts to create the holiday of your very expensive dreams. After backpacking on a budget for the last six and a half months, I have to tell you, this sounds like the way travel should be done.
One day I am going to get to Antartica (hopefully before it melts), and when I do, I'm going on Black Tomato's Into the Abyss journey. This particular journey to the bottom of the Earth will have to wait until I have an extra $60,000, but I think it will be worth every penny.
Probably before having tea with the penguins, I am going to hire Truffle Pig to go absolutely anywhere. The guys (and possibly girls) at Truffle are smart, witty, experienced, and know how to plan a fantabulous journey. Even their website is quirky, creative, and fun. I imagine their trips to be even more so.
Yes, when I grow up, I'll breed bespoke horses, drive bespoke automobiles, and clone bespoke men to style my bespoke hair. But first, I'm going on a couple of truly luxurious and individualized journeys, just to know how it feels to travel without a backpack.
kat
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
OC Notes for Christmas
Hello all!
I hope you had a great Chrismukkah! I had a great Christmas and over the holiday I discovered that my brother who I only see once every few years has turned into quite the busy musician. He's been making all kinds of albums and stuff, which is only different from the past fifteen years or so because people are actually starting to pay attention. To that end, he's got crazy folks making videos to his music on the YouTube (this is one of his own and definitely the best):
Here is his YouTube page so you can see the other stuff he has on there. I just went on there and he clearly rarely updates it: Youtube.com/ocnotes
He even has an album on iTunes!
Lots of his stuff is free though, and it's all available on THEESatisfaction's website. You should all go to iTunes and buy his album and support my niece!! Then go to theesatisfaction.blogspot.com and download his free stuff as it comes along. I'm trying to convince him to start his own blog so it's easier for folks to keep up so if and when he does I'll add links to it here. Yaay for my brother! Buy his album!
Happy holidays!
kat
I hope you had a great Chrismukkah! I had a great Christmas and over the holiday I discovered that my brother who I only see once every few years has turned into quite the busy musician. He's been making all kinds of albums and stuff, which is only different from the past fifteen years or so because people are actually starting to pay attention. To that end, he's got crazy folks making videos to his music on the YouTube (this is one of his own and definitely the best):
Here is his YouTube page so you can see the other stuff he has on there. I just went on there and he clearly rarely updates it: Youtube.com/ocnotes
He even has an album on iTunes!
Lots of his stuff is free though, and it's all available on THEESatisfaction's website. You should all go to iTunes and buy his album and support my niece!! Then go to theesatisfaction.blogspot.com and download his free stuff as it comes along. I'm trying to convince him to start his own blog so it's easier for folks to keep up so if and when he does I'll add links to it here. Yaay for my brother! Buy his album!
Happy holidays!
kat
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Pictures, Yaay!
Finally! Now that I am in the land of the internets, I was finally able to upload a slide show. I briefly considered uploading every single one of the hundreds of photos taking up precious gigabytes on my hard drive, but I finally settled on a "best of" of sorts, a few of my favourite pics from Cambodia and Africa. Enjoy!
k
k
Friday, December 11, 2009
A Good Year for Black Women
I just saw The Princess and the Frog!!! I am so excited, I have been waiting for this movie since I was 5 and it was everything that I have always wanted it to be. I loooove that it was set in NOLA (and it looked and sounded just like the Louisiana I used to live in, right down to the occasional Voodoo influences), love that she was absolutely beautiful and played by the inestimable Anika Noni Rose, who did a phenomenal job, love that they finally went back to gorgeous hand drawn animation, and love love love the Randy Newman jazz-Zydeco-Disney interpretations!!
I loved every minute of the film, but what I loved most of all was that in this long, long awaited film, Disney finally dispensed of some of the ridiculous pre-feminist fairy tale dogma that has gotten little girls in trouble since the Grimm Brothers first imagined Cinderella. And I think it's more than a little ironic that it took a Black princess to do it. In this film Disney finally tossed out the "When you wish upon a star" bullshit. Excuse my language. Yes, Tiana (I still like Maddy better) looked to a star for
2009 has been a remarkable year for all of us, but especially for Black women. We got a Black President, a Black First Lady, and a Black Princess, all at once.
hope and inspiration, but she counted on her own hard work and ingenuity to finally achieve her dreams. And yes, the frogs went to the Voodoo Queen for magic help, but it was up to them to find the answers. And then, just when it looks like the pretty white princess is going to save the day, Disney pulls the magic carpet out from under your feet and says, "Naw chere, you're going to have to do this one on your own. Those stereotypes are not valid any more" and Tiana and the super cute Prince Naveen have to find their own way. I love Tiana. She has big dreams and knows how to get what she wants. She works hard, she saves money (what an excellent example for little girls!), she's true to her friends and loyal to her own intuition, and in the end she is rewarded with everything she wants, and, more importantly, everything she needs. Disney finally told little girls what they need to hear: Work hard, dream hard, and don't count on anyone to hand you the answers.
2009 has been a remarkable year for all of us, but especially for Black women. We got a Black President, a Black First Lady, and a Black Princess, all at once.
Parole
I'm un-privating my blog. For several reasons really, mostly because it was becoming a pain in the arse. Also because I'm now back in the USofA so the security breach is no longer an issue. But don't worry, the list is saved so if I have to switch back you won't have to sign in and out again!
Ciaosers,
kat
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Ciaosers,
kat
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Friday, December 4, 2009
Coming to America
Never has a black person left Africa for America so gleefully. I’m finally going home! After being unceremoniously dumped at the airport by my roommate of the last three months, I was in seventh heaven. Every person I have seen in the airport has said, “You’re going to America?” And I can hardly contain my joyful smile. This journey will be far shorter than the one that brought me here. Flying into the nation’s capital will be the crowning moment of my journey. Looking back, I am incredibly lucky. I lived and traveled in two pretty dangerous countries and didn’t even have a book stolen. No crime, no danger, no sketchy cops. As always I came out unharmed. I owe this as much to luck and my grandfather/guardian angel as to the fact that by now I’ve learned how to be a safe traveler. There really is nothing to be worried about in most places if you’re smart and self-aware. Of course, I wouldn’t recommend traveling to Somalia by yourself or anything, but for most places, a girl on her own will be just fine if she keeps her head on straight.
I am also quite proud of how little I have acquired in the last six months. I only packed one suitcase and one carry on when I started and I am leaving with the big suitcase I brought, a very small, very cute teal carry-on size suitcase, a backpack, and the same messenger bag that I came with. I bought a lot less than I had planned, I thought I would be leaving here with a much bigger second suitcase.
The few clothes that I brought (that I’m burning as soon as I get home, I hope to never see those 10 t-shirts again), most of which are so frayed as to be almost unrecognizable, did me well and survived the traveling, touring, and working environments with dignity. Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Ralph Lauren and J.Crew should be proud. As should two pairs of Old Navy ballet flats that have lived to tell a tale worthy of their many cracks, holes, worn down soles and dingy exteriors. The shoes will have to be retired and bronzed as soon as I get to Seattle. My Longchamp le Pliage remains the most durable, reliable, and classy bag there ever was and is currently folded pleasantly in my suitcase, prepared to enjoy a holiday after serving as my only handbag these long months. My MacBook is dirty and cracked and in need of some Genius Bar TLC but is still clicking away, ready for one more semester of law school and whatever else I can throw at it until I can afford a new one. And my little $50 iPod shuffle, bought especially for the journey, is charged up and ready for a long jam session on the many flights to come.
In fact, everything that I brought with me is coming home relatively undamaged, if a little worse for the wear. My Matt & Nat clutch lost its leather wrist strap somewhere in Siem Reap, but it still holds things just fine. My favourite silver bracelet was misplaced somewhere between my many moves in Phnom Penh, but it is easily replaceable and is already in my Tiffany shopping cart ready to be re-purchased as soon as I get a job. My beautiful leather messenger bag has a battle scar in the form of a ripped seam but it just makes it look more hardcore and experienced. It’s still the best bag I have ever seen. And my prescription sunglasses have been sporting the Harry Potter look (except the tape is on the side rather than the bridge of the nose) but the lenses still work and they suit me just fine for driving. Oh yeah, and my swimsuit has seen better days, but it’s not like I’ll be swimming in Michigan anytime soon anyways. Other than that, everything is pretty okay. Not bad for six months of roughing it I say.
Well that’s all for now. The weather has been rainy and awful for two days. I think Africa is trying to mitigate the shock of my return by giving me weather that’s as close to home as possible. How kind.
That’s all for now. The next time I write I’ll be home!!!
P.S. I wrote this many, many hours ago. AFter my already long layover in Johannesburg my flight is now over an hour late. I may never get out of here!!
Ciaosers,
kat
I am also quite proud of how little I have acquired in the last six months. I only packed one suitcase and one carry on when I started and I am leaving with the big suitcase I brought, a very small, very cute teal carry-on size suitcase, a backpack, and the same messenger bag that I came with. I bought a lot less than I had planned, I thought I would be leaving here with a much bigger second suitcase.
The few clothes that I brought (that I’m burning as soon as I get home, I hope to never see those 10 t-shirts again), most of which are so frayed as to be almost unrecognizable, did me well and survived the traveling, touring, and working environments with dignity. Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Ralph Lauren and J.Crew should be proud. As should two pairs of Old Navy ballet flats that have lived to tell a tale worthy of their many cracks, holes, worn down soles and dingy exteriors. The shoes will have to be retired and bronzed as soon as I get to Seattle. My Longchamp le Pliage remains the most durable, reliable, and classy bag there ever was and is currently folded pleasantly in my suitcase, prepared to enjoy a holiday after serving as my only handbag these long months. My MacBook is dirty and cracked and in need of some Genius Bar TLC but is still clicking away, ready for one more semester of law school and whatever else I can throw at it until I can afford a new one. And my little $50 iPod shuffle, bought especially for the journey, is charged up and ready for a long jam session on the many flights to come.
In fact, everything that I brought with me is coming home relatively undamaged, if a little worse for the wear. My Matt & Nat clutch lost its leather wrist strap somewhere in Siem Reap, but it still holds things just fine. My favourite silver bracelet was misplaced somewhere between my many moves in Phnom Penh, but it is easily replaceable and is already in my Tiffany shopping cart ready to be re-purchased as soon as I get a job. My beautiful leather messenger bag has a battle scar in the form of a ripped seam but it just makes it look more hardcore and experienced. It’s still the best bag I have ever seen. And my prescription sunglasses have been sporting the Harry Potter look (except the tape is on the side rather than the bridge of the nose) but the lenses still work and they suit me just fine for driving. Oh yeah, and my swimsuit has seen better days, but it’s not like I’ll be swimming in Michigan anytime soon anyways. Other than that, everything is pretty okay. Not bad for six months of roughing it I say.
Well that’s all for now. The weather has been rainy and awful for two days. I think Africa is trying to mitigate the shock of my return by giving me weather that’s as close to home as possible. How kind.
That’s all for now. The next time I write I’ll be home!!!
P.S. I wrote this many, many hours ago. AFter my already long layover in Johannesburg my flight is now over an hour late. I may never get out of here!!
Ciaosers,
kat
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Last Night in Africa
Hello All!
I know it's been forever since I've written but luckily for me, this is my last day of dead slow internet. I'm going home tomorrow!!! I know, I was supposed to stay in Africa until January, but due to an unexpected fiscal situation (I'm broke), my fam helped me change my ticket so I am actually leaving tomorrow. Honestly, I am so happy to be going home. The last six and a half months have been fantastic. I've learned, seen, and done a lot of things that I never expected and I will never forget the experience. However, I have without a doubt learned that, while I love to travel and still want to see the world, my heart and ambition lie in America, and I feel guilty every minute that I am working to change things abroad rather than at home. This is an excellent revelation for me to have, and at the appropriate time. Before I left I was torn between my dual goals, the same Teach For America vs. Peace Corps debate that I had in college. I didn't want to stay home and not see the world but I knew that while I was out seeing the world I would feel guilty about not working to better things here. This trip was designed to challenge that and help me decide once and for all what I wanted. And it worked. I love experiencing new things but I am not the Jane Goodall I thought I was. I'm an American girl and my future lies in my own country. Now I can go back and very happily find a job and a life at home.
Not that I'm giving up and making it too easy. I mean, I am moving to Detroit. And all by myself with no friends or connections or any idea of where my life is headed. My family will still be far away and I'll still have plenty of challenging work ahead of me. Besides, being domesticated will be a new adventure. I haven't lived in one place for a whole year since high school. In fact, I've had so many addresses in the last nine years that my Amazon.com account has over two pages just for shipping addresses alone! Moving to Detroit means I'll actually get an apartment and sign a lease! This is a novelty for me. The last time I signed a lease for a year a hurricane broke it for me. This will be the first time I have to get a new driver's license since I got a 45-year Arizona one when I was in college (I'm pretty sad about that actually. I love my license that expires in 2048). It will be the first time I actually buy a couch (my last apartment was strictly BYOS- Bring Your Own Seat). Plus it will be the first place I've ever lived without an expiration date (Ft. X until we get transferred, Seattle through high school, Massachusetts until graduation, Louisiana through the Corps years, Michigan until the bar exam...). My whole life has been about moving on. Pretty soon it will be about settling in. Sigh. There's something sad about a girl going from Wide Open Spaces to A Home. But I guess it happens to everyone. And besides, it's not over yet. The Dixie Chicks have yet to sing Bitter End for me!
Tomorrow I fly back to Seattle, to see the 'rents, meet my niece Bella, and get a job to make up for all of the money I've spent this year. I also have two very big papers to write that I haven't even thought about starting yet. And I'll be applying for a lot of jobs. Happy Christmas to me. I hope to get to AZ to see ma grand-mère but we'll see if that works out. Then, back to Ann Arbor (yaay!) for my very last semester of law school ever. Thank goodness. I don't know what classes I'm taking and I don't care. I'm just going to barrel my way through to the end. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I just hope it's not a train coming towards me.
So that's my life in a nutshell. Thrilling, I know. :-/ When I get back I'll add slide shows of the millions of pictures that I took and couldn't load while I was here. I'll also try to put up that post about Robben Island. I wish I had some profound closing thoughts about South Africa but really I'm just very, very worried about where they're going. And so are they, but not enough to change anything. If I have learned anything from Cambodia and SA it's that the world is not as stable as it should be on the verge of 2010. Nations that look precarious are and nations that look stable and modern are often anything but. Everything teeters on the edge of disaster. And it's always the same people who pay.
Happy thoughts to end the post.
Ciao,
k
I know it's been forever since I've written but luckily for me, this is my last day of dead slow internet. I'm going home tomorrow!!! I know, I was supposed to stay in Africa until January, but due to an unexpected fiscal situation (I'm broke), my fam helped me change my ticket so I am actually leaving tomorrow. Honestly, I am so happy to be going home. The last six and a half months have been fantastic. I've learned, seen, and done a lot of things that I never expected and I will never forget the experience. However, I have without a doubt learned that, while I love to travel and still want to see the world, my heart and ambition lie in America, and I feel guilty every minute that I am working to change things abroad rather than at home. This is an excellent revelation for me to have, and at the appropriate time. Before I left I was torn between my dual goals, the same Teach For America vs. Peace Corps debate that I had in college. I didn't want to stay home and not see the world but I knew that while I was out seeing the world I would feel guilty about not working to better things here. This trip was designed to challenge that and help me decide once and for all what I wanted. And it worked. I love experiencing new things but I am not the Jane Goodall I thought I was. I'm an American girl and my future lies in my own country. Now I can go back and very happily find a job and a life at home.
Not that I'm giving up and making it too easy. I mean, I am moving to Detroit. And all by myself with no friends or connections or any idea of where my life is headed. My family will still be far away and I'll still have plenty of challenging work ahead of me. Besides, being domesticated will be a new adventure. I haven't lived in one place for a whole year since high school. In fact, I've had so many addresses in the last nine years that my Amazon.com account has over two pages just for shipping addresses alone! Moving to Detroit means I'll actually get an apartment and sign a lease! This is a novelty for me. The last time I signed a lease for a year a hurricane broke it for me. This will be the first time I have to get a new driver's license since I got a 45-year Arizona one when I was in college (I'm pretty sad about that actually. I love my license that expires in 2048). It will be the first time I actually buy a couch (my last apartment was strictly BYOS- Bring Your Own Seat). Plus it will be the first place I've ever lived without an expiration date (Ft. X until we get transferred, Seattle through high school, Massachusetts until graduation, Louisiana through the Corps years, Michigan until the bar exam...). My whole life has been about moving on. Pretty soon it will be about settling in. Sigh. There's something sad about a girl going from Wide Open Spaces to A Home. But I guess it happens to everyone. And besides, it's not over yet. The Dixie Chicks have yet to sing Bitter End for me!
Tomorrow I fly back to Seattle, to see the 'rents, meet my niece Bella, and get a job to make up for all of the money I've spent this year. I also have two very big papers to write that I haven't even thought about starting yet. And I'll be applying for a lot of jobs. Happy Christmas to me. I hope to get to AZ to see ma grand-mère but we'll see if that works out. Then, back to Ann Arbor (yaay!) for my very last semester of law school ever. Thank goodness. I don't know what classes I'm taking and I don't care. I'm just going to barrel my way through to the end. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I just hope it's not a train coming towards me.
So that's my life in a nutshell. Thrilling, I know. :-/ When I get back I'll add slide shows of the millions of pictures that I took and couldn't load while I was here. I'll also try to put up that post about Robben Island. I wish I had some profound closing thoughts about South Africa but really I'm just very, very worried about where they're going. And so are they, but not enough to change anything. If I have learned anything from Cambodia and SA it's that the world is not as stable as it should be on the verge of 2010. Nations that look precarious are and nations that look stable and modern are often anything but. Everything teeters on the edge of disaster. And it's always the same people who pay.
Happy thoughts to end the post.
Ciao,
k
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