First, a shot of the old front yard - check out the "grass" - it was all weeds! and we hated our shrubs, but loved the alberta spruces.  sad that the Henry Lauder tree was so dead, but it had to go.  We saved a ton of the curly-que branches tho, for future arrangements and decoration.

and ... there it went - one of the landscape guys cutting it down:

another landscape guy ripping out the old "lawn":

The new sod was finally laid and the alberta spruce trees were replanted in the backyard.  So here's our front yard as of tonight - with only a couple potted porch plants for our landscaping so far:

We did already buy half of what we're going to plant (shasta daisies, coreopsis, anabell hydrangea, two spiral alberta spruce topiaries) but have to get the rest later.  for now, my mom planted these pretties for us (i found the pots at Garden Ridge for only $15 each!):

Here is a shot of where we will be planting a spiral topiary and then one gold barberry bush and one burgundy barberry bush and then either some sort of weeping ornamental tree or a small japanese maple with the hydrangea bush on the side of the porch:

And here is the bay window side where we will plant the other spiral topiary and the shasta daisies, coreopsis and gaillardia blanket flowers and boxwoods:

The before shot of the tall & nasty weeds in the backyard (where the spruce trees are now):

And all the weeds in the rosebush area:

Here is a halfway thru shot of weeding that same area - to left I had more to go, to the right I had just finished:



My back yard as of tonight (all filled in, except the rose bushes which will need time since we cut them back so much last fall).  To the right of the spruce is: black-eyed susan (not yet bloomed), a rare type of rosebush, two butterfly bushes and then the five other rosebushes:

The daylilies at the garage (though these ones I plan to pull out in the Fall and replace w/the Stella d'Oro variety, these are just too big - I'm going to replant them behind the privacy fence, on the alley side to pretty up the alley for Harry's Army Surplus and not have to weed back there):

A close-up of the rose bush that I didn't realize was a rose bush:



Close ups of the rose bushes at various times as they've been blooming:

Picture of my dining room with the Buddha Lotus painting finally hung up over the bar.  The table is does not usually have a leaf in and table cloth on, we just had people over for dinner last night:

So!  That's the scoop ... that's what has been keeping me busy all summer thus far.  Well, part of what has kept me busy.  :)

Happy (almost) Fourth of July everybody!!!  xo

recently mark and i took a little trip down south to see our pals in the beautiful town of nashville, tennessee.  we realized a while ago that it had been too long since we'd been down there and after having Jason, Amy & the gang at our housewarming we really wanted to spend some more time with all of them.  we also decided that driving this time around wasn't an option - we wanted to maximize our time there - so we flew down.  one hour and five minutes later, we landed in the Music City.

Friday:  after we picked up our rental car, we drove around town to some of the favorite locations ... memory lane, if you will.  later, we met up with Jason & Amy, Adam & Nancy, Bobby and Rice.  we had a nice dinner and got caught up before getting drunk together.  :)  we moved the party to a local bar down the road where i introduced everyone to the yummy drink of Three Olives Grape Vodka & 7-Up with a splash of Cranberry.  i couldn't believe none of them had never had it before, but they loved it and named it the Sally Special.  haha.  Candice met up with us too and we all sat around, drank a lot and played some pool.  from there, we headed over to Adam & Nancy's gorgeous home and the drinks kept coming:  absinthe, margaritas, red wine and beer.  word of advice: don't drink them all at the same time - a mistake i found out about firsthand.  we all crashed there and woke up to some serious headaches and spins the next morning.

Saturday:  after getting our shit together slowly, we made our way out to Loveless Cafe for some fine Southern Cooking and a kind and welcoming atmosphere.  once our faces were stuffed, we all retreated back to our places of rest and took much-needed naps. once we woke, we had to immediately finish getting ready for the big party J & A were throwing that night in their amazingly awesome country home.  there was food to finish preparing and drinks to make ... soon the gang arrived as well as other friends I had yet to meet.  everyone was so nice and fun and very addicted to Rock Band, which was the main staple of the evening - besides the alcohol, the cupcakes and the Jah.  :)  yes, think Friday night aaaaaaaand repeat.  but this time add a little dash of drunken Jason dancing and you have Part Deux, bonus edition. 

Sunday:   this time we woke up to the sound of little feet running back and forth and a little voice that i was dying to run out and meet.  Jack was home!  Jason & Amy's 1 1/2 yr old son had been at grandma's house the previous two nights so that mommy & daddy could party - but he was back so we could spend some quality time with him.  Mark had met him one quick time before, but this was my first time and i instantly fell in love with him.  he's just the cutest, sweetest little boy ... and the spitting image of Jason.  funny, much UNlike me i forgot about my camera most of the weekend.  that is, until we were around Jack.

After the park, we all met up with Adam & Nancy at the Green Hills Grill for a tasty lunch before Mark and I had to high-tail it to the airport. 

It's always sad to leave your vacation, but it's great to know we've got such wonderful friends we can always visit in such a beautiful and fun city.  Here are some more pictures from the handful I took:

Mark & Jack:

Me & Jack:

The Goodwin Home:

Amy & Jack:

 

Here's a little video of Jack playing with us:

spring fever has hit me.  the weather here has pretty much consistently been lovely -- some rainy days, but i do love spring rain -- and generally in the upper 60's and low 70's.  perfect.  not cold, not hot ... just the right amount of a gentle breeze.  and some great music to sit back and relax with.  music of the Jason-Mraz-damn-he-got-so-much-hotter variety.  of course, the single that's all over the radio, "I'm Yours" is my favorite song at the moment (i seriously listen to it on repeat over and over while driving and at work).  i needlessly worried that the rest of the album, "We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things" due out on may 13th, would not live up to this single but i was able to download the two EP's ("We Sing" and "We Dance") from amazon.com and hear a major chunk and i can tell you that this is incredible stuff. 

what's even more incredible is his biography i just read on his site. i want to sit with him on my couch or in a park and just ... talk. 
i also want to try on all of his funky hats. 

sigh.  seriously, yo.  "I'm Yours" really makes me want to get all of my yardwork done right away so that i can set up my swing, make a mojito and swing my heart out with his music playing.  like the song says:

"So, i won't hesitate no more,
no more, it cannot wait i'm sure
there's no need to complicate ... our time is short
this is our fate, i'm yours"

If you have an mp3 player, go here and download these tunes.  And then go here and do the same.  even if you're not sure if you want to download them, go there and take a listen - they offer previews.  i betcha you'll dig it.  and they're way cheap.

i'm bummed because he's headlining 93.9 The River's Riverfest on May 24th and I'll be in Tennessee.  so, i guess i'm not that bummed - the Riverfest only had three dudes playing this year, jason being one of them. TN will be way fun.  and maybe since he's doing a special radio gig this time it will be more likely that he'll come back later for another show? oh, boy ... crossing my fingers now.  i've never seen him live but i hear that his is one show you definitely have to check out.

jason mraz is my new john mayer (not that i don't love john still). i'm really turned on by the introspective, reflective, soul-diggin' male singer-songwriters who happen to be adorable.

and if you haven't heard "I'm Yours" yet, check out this youtube video and pretend you're on an island somewhere with a romantic so-and-so singing this to you:

then, from the very cool ecorazzi site, i copied this next info from green cuties the Dave Matthews Band:

For last year's 2007 Summer Tour, the Dave Matthews Band partnered up with green org Reverb to lighten their impact on the planet and get others involved. ... For 2008, the group will be continuing with last year's initiatives (eco-village outside the concert, biodiesel for tour buses, offsets, recycling, organic, local food, etc.) and adding a few new twists. For instance, coming soon online, DMB will launch a carpooling service for fans going to and from concerts. Not only will this save fuel, but it will also reduce emissions and traffic. Additionally, there will be an eco-footprint reduction contest enabling fans to easily track and minimize their own environmental impact. Said Reverb Co-founder and Director Lauren Sullivan. "Now that we know just how environmentally committed the fans are, we're really looking forward to setting the bar even higher for 2008."

another eye-catching article at ecorazzi i noticed was:

First Eco Browser That Benefits The Planet Now Available

click it and read all about it!  in addition to the awesome ecorazzi, here is a small (in comparison to the gazillions of sites that are out there) list of some super fly sites to guide you in all your ultra-hip green needs:
Eco-Chick
Green Options
Treehugger
Sustainable Is Good
No Impact Man
Ideal Bite
The Daily Green
Reusable Bags
The Green Guide
Gorgeously Green
Planet Green
Urban Homesteaders

and finally, a sad-but-true little comic strip i came across:

enjoy the rest of today - but remember: tomorrow is just as much earth day as today.  plant something, walk somewhere, recycle things, reuse stuff, reduce junk, consume less, move more, dance, sing, laugh, read, learn, love and be kind to all living creatures!

much love and peace ....

this is a little after-the-fact, but i kept forgetting to post a blog here about the fabulous time (of course) that was had at the last Orbitsuns @ the New Place show.  Candice came into town for some local business and lo & behold, our boys were playing up at our favorite Dearborn dive!  i grabbed a few other hotties and we all made a night of it. 

the orbitsuns really know how to make me have a great time ... and everyone that i introduce them to (since Candice introduce ME to them) has loved them just as much! they never put on anything less than a stellar show and no matter what mood i walk thru the door in, i always end up dancing my ass off and leaving with a big ol' grin.  take a looksie:

i haven't blogged in so long, i'm missing a huge chunk of life from the last blog until this blog, but today i just felt the need to post about what a fun time we had last night and how happy i am that, though some things do change, a lot of things can stay the same ... in a good way.

back years ago - in my early 20s (ahem) - i spent a considerable amount of time (which means every friday and saturday night, without fail, for a couple years straight) at a dirty, pukey, stinky dark joint in downtown Detroit called City Club.  i had gone there once just out of high school with my old high school best friend.  i didn't fall in love with it at that point.  later, once i met trent, we had discussed going there and tried to make it happen a few times but it had never panned out.  trent then started going on his own a little later on while i was engulfed in my then-boyfriend and all things him.  finally, after needing my own outlet and slowly becoming single, i started going with trent on a regular basis which then turned into a weekly basis ... for years.  this dirty stinky place (think 20 years of never washing the floor, think cloves mixed with patchouli mixed with armpit mixed with cigarettes mixed with booze & sweat ... yeah) became home to us.  though i was never a "goth chick" or very "industrial" styled, the people and the life there really felt welcoming and homey to me.  WE became the regulars and felt like we ran the place, along with a handful of other friends that we partied with at the time.  we knew all the bartenders and bouncers by name, we knew the DJ's and every song that they would play.  i even was able to get a leechy guy thrown out at one point just by telling Ron (the bouncer that really liked me, and all the girls) that he was creeping me out.  you get the point, it was OUR house. at least, for a little while.

many of my other friends, including my boyfriend at the time, didn't get it.  they had either been there and hated it or had been there now and again and were over it or had just never been at all.  i didn't care.  this was my place and a place that trent and i really grew to love - for more than just a "club."   the people were intimidating to look at and even ridiculous to look at and the culture to the "normal" world was (and still is) odd and grotesque and bizarre ... but the kids at city club are really no different than the people at any bar or club in any town.  they just dress differently. :) some people there are trying really hard to be something different or "cool" … and others are just living their life their way.  no different than anywhere else you go, really.  however, like all good things, our time at City Club came to an end and we moved on to new people and places and things to do.

throughout the years since our days at City Club, we've tried to go back and recreate our fun times there and it's never worked.  we felt awkward and didn't know the music or the people and always ended up leaving about half an hour after showing up.  for several reasons, we decided to try it again this time and had every idea that the same thing would happen.  except ... it didn't. 

we walked in, just as the big yellow light was swirling to signal last call, got our word of the night written on our hand (which was "fag") and got in line for drinks. the word of the night is written for anyone 21+ during drinking hours, if you're under 21 you get an "X" and if you come in after 2am you just get a "O."   back in the day the drink of choice was black russians ... so that's what we ordered.  unfortunately he heard us wrong and gave us white russians.  we downed those right quick and got back in line before the light stopped swirling (at which point, the big bouncers come thru the club with flashlights and take any drinks still in your hand or laying around) and ordered black russians for real this time.  i'm sure it tasted like puke, but to me it was heaven. 

then we walked into the dance room and my eyes lit up and my heart soared.  i know this is sounding a bit too dramatic, but it's the truth.  i could just FEEL it.  it was city club.  the city club WE knew.  the place was packed and the music was what we'd grown to know and love.  and the people were even a good mix of old and new.  after a couple songs i even said, "you know what would be perfect to hear next?  Wolfsheim." and then BOOM.  a Wolfsheim song came on.  i screamed and ran to the middle of the dance floor.  I couldn't believe it.  i didn't leave the dance floor for the next three hours (except to go pee in the ever-broken and always disgusting bathroom).

now, everyone knows i love to dance.  but i never dance as much - or using as much of my entire body - as i do when i'm dancing to industrial music at city club.  i know now why i stayed so thin back then even though i drank like a fish.  the music all night last night was excellent.  a perfect blend of old music (Siouxsie, KMFDM, Wolfsheim, Depeche Mode, Garbage, NIN, Rammstein, etc.) and new, unfamiliar stuff.  we made sure to stop at the DJ booth to write down as many requests as we could think of ... Kidney Theives, Lords of Acid, Chemical Brothers, Apop, Rob Zombie, Ministry are some that would've been great to hear as well.   

Mike G made the long trek from Ypsi to meet us there and Reggie showed up as well, which was awesome.  Mike had never been there before and Reg hadn't been in a while.  Mark loves that City Club is so much a part of my history before my days with him and always wants to see us there having a great time again, which is why it's usually his idea to go and try it out.  he's always dug the place and never knew what we meant about how different it felt, so he was excited to see me & trent so happy there last night.

we also saw familiar faces ... Big Black Shawn, Eva, handshake guy, shirtless hot guy,  bartender dread lady (some people we never knew their real names and just gave them nicknames) and Jeremy -- good reminders that maybe it wasn't so much the club that had changed, but us! once i realized that, i was free to shake it like we used to. :)  i didn't even feel as old as i thought i would and though the gross guys who tried hitting on me and didn't give a rat's ass that i was with four other guys were sleazy, it was nice to feel like "i still got it" after being basically married for the last six years.  haha.  but perhaps those aren't the best men to measure that against.  meh.

on the way home, we stopped at mcdonald's (bad, i know) for some fries and they were only serving breakfast! it was 5am, after all.  we ordered a few breakfast meals and headed back to our place.  because cameras aren't allowed in the club, we have no photos of us in there (and i sort of like it that way), but here we are (sans Reggie) post-clubbing at home (pic from trent's blog today):

we all agreed that it was a great vibe, great music and a place we certainly should not have given up on.  we will be going back for more, that's for sure ... and this time, i won't assume that it will let us down.

Here is an article written back in 2003 by a Metro Times writer that really sums the place up best for how I feel about it.

PS – if you ever come across the website (and i'm not providing it because it's that bad) do not let it fool you.  City Club is not the way they make it seem on the site.  if the site was a person, i would call it a douchebag.  apparently, City Club has had some recent upheavals in management and DJs and perhaps one of those new people thought it would be cooler to make this new site.  it's not.  it doesn't reflect the essence of City Club at all.  and that's my PSA.  ;)

i realized this last sunday, october 14th when i stood there jaw agape, watching brandi carlile perform at st. andrews hall with a tingle that ran down my spine and into my pants.  throughout the whole show, i started looking at her less as some chick who really rocks and more as a very sensual being.  having never met or spoken to her, i can only assume it's her music and her performance that turn me on in this way.  the same way i feel when i see john mayer perform or even tori amos (but that's less a sexual feeling and more of a matriarchal heroine feeling).  something about a bluesy, raw and yet still angelic voice ... it hit me.  then again, patty griffin, whom i love and adore with all my being and whose voice is raw and bluesy and blisteringly good, does not make me tingle in my pants.  so ... what is it?  well, i don't know - but i do know i really wanted to make out with her that night.  here are some great shots that i got from a brandi fan on the again today forum:

 

not only did she rock her own songs out with so much energy and emotion, she also jammed some great covers too! she did elton john's "madman across the water" with fierce intensity! she played the first bit of "bohemian rhapsody" on the piano to, in her words, get her warmed up.  and she played "folsom prison blues" as her first encore song ... along with counting crows' "raining in baltimore" and ... hold onto your seat, now:  leonard cohen's, "hallelujah"  - omg.  this fucking blew me away.  i've always loved jeff buckley's version and i know there are so so so many other great artists who have covered it, but i couldn't believe how great she sounded on it too.  i guess she had been performing it, but on guitar at previous shows.  this night, she explained that she had been trying it out on piano during sound checks and she figured "fuck it" she'd play it for us tonight on piano.  she warned us of errors and wrong chords, but i heard nothing of the sort.  it was spectacular.  thanks to the uber-fan, Fran, here is the video of that delightful performance:

here is the complete set list from the st. andrews show:

Intro & My Song
Wasted
Late Morning Lullaby
Fall Apart Again 
Follow 
Have You Ever
Until I Die 
Happy
Cannonball
How These Days Grow Long
What Can I Say
Turpentine
Madman Across The Water
Bohemian Rhapsody
Love Songs
The Story
----------------
Folsom Prisom Blues
Pride & Joy
Raining In Baltimore
That Year
Hallelujah

on "how these days grow long," the band became completely unplugged.  acoustic guitars, not on a mic ... and brandi's voice, not on a mic! the whole place amazingly quieted down and she sang her heart out and i was floored ... again.

i left there, having not been to st. andrews for a show in so long, rejuvenated and feeling alive and happy and really wanting to hang out with ms. carlile.  mark bought me one of her hoodies (sans the hood, so i call it a "zippie") that she had for sale.  an adorable boy-scout style logo with her name under it and mark, mike g. and i proceeded to go and eat weird food at Niki's and discuss the show and brandi.  since then, i've been completely obsessed.  i'm telling you, it's that tingle. and mark doesn't feel bad about it - he was also turned on by brandi. 

get the tingle ... find it in some sort of music or somebody.  it's liberating.

last sunday was mark's 37th birthday, so we decided to party all weekend, allowing any friends or family to have their choice of days ... or both! 

night 1 - a night at our local dive bar
well, one of them anyways ... we decided to go to the new place lounge to see a favorite local band:  the orbitsuns.  it wasn't the same without candice there trying to take vinnie's pants off, but it was fun nonetheless.  we started off having people meet up at our house ... which also means some of our pals got to see the new digs before the housewarming!  i love giving "the tour" - it's so exciting!  megan, scott & brandon were the firsts to arrive.  next up was jess & connie and then ben and then joe neely & amy.  the more people that arrived, the more drinks were poured ... and the night began!  once we were good and warmed up at home, we headed on down to the bar.  thankfully, ben was a dear and drove mark and i, enabling us both to get good and plastered.  thanks, ben. 

mark opening his gift from connie & jess:
 
 

mark, trying on the kickass shirt they got him, but withOUT a tshirt underneat, which we promptly began to make fun of ... amont other looks:
 

then it was time to head off to the bar and in the back seat of ben's car i found his funky engineering glasses:




once we were in the bar, i found vinnie (lead singer) and reminded him that we were friends of candice's and then explained that it was mark's birthday.  being the awesome guy that he is, he mentioned mark's birthday several times throughout the night.  
 



so i bought the band shots:


then the dancing ensued.  well, for some people ... the dirty dancing.
 

   
um.  yeah .... 

and, of course, we took pictures of ourselves.  :)














most of the pals took off before the night ended ... and we were left to watch neely and his lovely lady grope each other, which drove us to do more shots.  (har har har).  and the night ended with bad mcdonald's in our bellies and a blur in our brains. 

night 2 - 5th avenue, royal oak
this was quite a tough morning for me ... not only did i have a massive hangover, i also seemed to be fighting some other auto-immune type things ... and was still sporting a stiff neck and shoulder cramp that i had woken up with the morning before.  i was none too thrilled about having to get all dolled up again and hit the town.  but, it was for mark and so i'd do anything.  i even went so far as to go to the pre-season Wings vs. Leafs game at the Joe first, before heading to the bar.  okay, okay ... so it's not such a terrible night - but if you felt like i felt, you would understand.  at some point in the game, i started to feel better - which i quickly realized was just my body teasing me.  it would allow me to feel okay for short bursts of time, only to push me back down to miserableville. 




in true kora form, we left the game early (even early than usual, since we had folks to meet) and headed to royal oak.  we walked in just as reggie was adding our names to the guest list.  we said are hellos and gave our hugs and quickly found a seat near the stage and were able to secure a couple tables and many chairs.  we also got a little pre-show treat ... a man, all by himself, rocking out with his cock out (well, almost).  he was a crazy gyrating man who like to air drum.  after about 45 minutes of that, he up and left ... BEFORE reg & the boys took the stage.  odd.  soon, friends arrived and then family:


















there was dancing and, at one point, reggie standing on a chair:






and then midnight rolled around and it was time to wish the birthday boy an official "happy birthday" -- reggie led the bar serenade (to be fair, there were several people in the bar that night celebrating birthday's ... like, their 21st and shit ... yeah, whatever - we pretended it was only for mark):

once the band played their last song, it was time for me to go home.  we said our goodbyes and drove home.

day 3 - autumn birthday jaunts
on mark's actual birthday, he decided he wanted to first go to the cemetary where both my dad and his maternal grandfather are buried and pay a little visit:






mark didn't want a picture of his granda's grave, so i took some pictures of the pretty colored surroundings.  this is the children's resting place, just across from mark's granda:


after the cemetary, we headed off to the Franklin Cider Mill in bloomfield hills.  after some tricky navigation through the stressful parking lot full of screaming children and barking dogs (egads!), we made our way to the cider & donuts. 




once we got our cider on, we sat down on a little bench near the creek and watched the ducks race for food:


we picked up one more birthday item for mark: a carmel apple with nuts! and then headed off to dinner.  i love having dessert before dinner ... and then again after dinner.  :)

mark picked our favorite sushi restaurant, Little Tree in royal oak.  we tried to think with our brains and not our tummy's, but i still think we ordered a little too much:


i ordered 1 mad chef roll (california roll, dipped in temura) and two cucumber avacado rolls.  mark ordered another mad chef (for us to split), a spicy tuna, a philly roll and a spicy salmon.  we polished off all but four of the cuke/avacados! 

despite the hangover and the cramped neck, it was one helluva weekend.  i topped it off with giving mark his gift:  two tickets for him and i to see Neil Young at the Fox Theatre!  we will be joined that night with the always-delightful megan & scott (it was actually megan who informed me of the show - thanks megs!)

i think this turned out to be a good birthday for my buddy.  :)