Hear our hearts in the distance, like canon fire.

sitting in the car, i hold my knees to my chest, feet on the fabric of the seat, staring down at my brown summer feet offset by pinkish toenails. it is the middle of the night and we are driving through the jungles of central georgia, my eyes tired, but still focused on the sights of a quiet small town. you laugh and coo quiet stories about the places now asleep, your drawl becoming more pronounced the further into it we get. i's turn to ahhhhs. i clutch my knees tighter, to drawn in my expanding heart as well as to sheepishly hide my contented smile. here i am negotiating territory not totally unfamiliar, but completely new. check marks acrue in my head as i study your face in the passing street lamps.

Sweet Home Alabama

lord, i'm coming home to you.

this past weekend was something out of a movie. through a series of rather fortunate events, i somehow found myself in the green oceanside marshes of southern south carolina with a huge mess of small town georgia folks, dressed up in finest kakhis and polos, ready to party. they spoke foreign tongues of childhood stories involving bb guns and streets i've not yet visited and quietly my attention stole away to the teeny crabs scampering across the sand and flocks of white cranes making their way through the water. it was the most humidity i've been in in a while, but i made it work, wore the lightest dress i could find, and smiled my biggest smile, using the sweat glow to my advantage. little wooden fans and large bushels of hydrangeas were involved as well and exaggerated the already wholly southern feel of the event. sitting under the spanish moss, romance was at its peak. i was in my element, having always been a small town and family girl at heart, and danced well into the night after meeting the coach, and mom and dad, and so and so's uncle's sister's cousin. the night ended in a flash of lightening storms as far as the horizon, illuminating that which had already become quite obvious.

in honor of the road trip, prior to knowing that this would turn out to be one of the best weekends of my life, the following mix was created.

Westfall-Okkervil River

Radar Love-Golden Earring

Big Adventure-Blitzen Trapper

Commotion-Creedence Clearwater Revival

Box Full of Letters-Wilco

Street Fighting Man-Rolling Stones

I'm On Fire-AA Bondy

A Girl in Port-Okkervil River

Hesitating Beauty-Billy Bragg and Wilco

Prodigal Son-Rolling Stones

Caifornia Stars-Billy Bragg and Wilco

You Are My Flower-The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

Up On Cripple Creek-The Band

I Shall Be Released-Bob Dylan

Fighter Girl-Mason Jennings

Dancing in the Moonlight-Thin Lizzy

Rapture (Sweet Rapture)-AA Bondy

The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down-The Band

Gloria-Van Morrison

Honey Don't-Carl Perkins

Girl From the North Country-Bob Dylan

Mrs. Cudi

Young folks.

as many of you well know, I am planning to immerse myself shortly in the young elite of this area by relocating myself to west asheville. when i lived in brooklyn, the thought of the high density of young uber hip progressive children in williamsburg was somewhat threatening--too many kids manufacturing their version of the perfect urban utopia. however, after spending a year and a half in a high retirement and more rural area, i have realized that i am greatly understimulated. and the lack of sidewalks drives me nuts. that being said, it's not really fair to compare wavl to williamsburg, because even though outwardly they contain a lot of the same type of people, the vibe is very different--this is still the south after all.
i had decided on wavl not only for its proximity to my still rural place of work, or high percentage of people under the age of 40, but also for its high percentage and diversity of shops, restaurants, and places to hang out. most of this is centered along a main stretch called haywood road, with offshoots of smaller streets heavy with early to mid 20th century bungalows. a long time ago, it was its own village, eventually annexed into asheville, much like brooklyn and the big city. it became a lower income section of town, which is why it began to attract a lot of young but not well off artists and musicians. now it is quickly becoming gentrified, but still seems to have a spirit of its own, the new mixing with the old.

this is just one example why i like the place and the people: on thursday night, i went to an impeccable home and clothing store aptly named Custom (i'll save going on and on about how i love this placed for another time), which was having a clothing swap for charity. for a $7 donation to the local women's shelter, audrey and i got in to the space and sorted through the neatly hung and sorted items, including some samples from the store that still had tags. everyone was allowed to take about 5-7 items and the rest was brought to the shelter. they ended up raising over $600 and a whole bunch of clothes, and i made out with some of the best swap stuff i've ever seen.

this is what i found:

london connection dress in coral.
mossimo leather bomber jacket, just in time for fall.
pocket detail
shoulder detail

dress by laundry, tags still attached.

detail
vintage blouse, with front tie and ties on sleeves
mossimo green jersey top with v-neck beaded embellishment
brand new white belt with striped stitching

i just got an email that they're having a summer sale. guess you might be seeing more soon...