Nie Nie Day

I'm sure many of you have heard about Stephanie and Christian Nielson, who were in a pretty horrific small plane crash last week.  To help contribute to their recovery, DesignMom and others are having a great big day o' auctions, with all the proceeds going to Stephanie & Christian's recovery fund.  Several of the items up for auction are pretty spectacular, and all are stylish and interesting.  Go take a look!  And help the Nielsons on their way to Recovery.

There are over 165 auctions, all of  which are listed here.

Matt Clayton Photography

I'm home! After nearly a month away, it was nice to walk in to our little Hoboken apartment (although it smelled faintly of dust and old lady). I'll write a better update of our lives and travels in a few days, after I've unpacked, but in the meantime I simply must share this:

Photos by Matt Clayton

While in Utah, we arranged to have our infinitely talented friend Matt Clayton take some photos of our little family in preparation for the adoption blog & profile. From what we've seen so far, it was a wise decision: the pics are super fun, as was the shoot. Thanks, Matt!

~L

RRRED The Commercial

R.R.R.EALLY?!!!

So we have some news! Lots of you may know that I wrote a play a little while back with my friends, Adam and Katie. We did it for 6 weeks in NYC and 2 weeks in LA and it was wildly fun and amazing to see something you wrote be up and running. (incidentally, I am also in the play, I was telling them at work that I wrote a play and then later I told them I was in it and they were all surprised and I thought, "Why would I write a play and not make myself the lead?" Normals?! What can you do with 'em?)

Well, Adam had always felt that it needed a longer run in LA, as it was huge there. And so he started to put the thing together for a 6 week run. Well, I had grown up by then (January.) and told him that I had to stay put because I have an amazing job and I was moving up and we are planning to start a family next year (more about that in a later post.) and I couldn't drop everything and chase dreams.

Adam and Katie did their best to persuade, but in the end Katie left for LA and I stayed here. I thought it was fine but my way of dealing with this play and me not getting to do it was to COMPLETELY CUT THEM OFF. They would call about writing things and I would delete the message, we played long games of phone tag and finally they stopped calling, after all they had a play to do.

So there I was working and being grown up, which Lindsay allows me to not ever have to be really grown up (Peter Pan and Wendy anyone?) but there was this part that was heart broken. I was very proud of this play. We had written and preformed it and people (those few who saw it in NYC and the sold out crowds in LA) really liked it. I kept drifting off and thinking about the 'what if' and the fact that starting a family next year means that there is a little time now and much less time later. But I still loved my job and was happy.

Then one night, after the LA calls stopped coming, I had a thought, 'Perhaps responsible isn't always right.' Maybe I just thought, 'you don't run off and do fun things cause...you're not suppose to.' Then it occurred to me, that had never been our motto. We are all about running off and doing fun things and it's gotten us this far, granted most of our 'running off' is in support of Lindsay and her school so it's mingled in responsibility but I will tell you a secret: We were terrified to move to New York, not just a little but real real scared and we were right to be! There were homeless nights on strangers couches that we thought we would never make it but now those strangers are dear friends and we love where we live and often talk about those first months (yes months) when we thought we had made the worst move ever. But, now! Well, you know better than anyone how much we gush about New York, I think mostly because we made it.

Hold on....where was I? Oh Right...So I had my thought and I went to Lindsay with it. Lindsay had always said she would support what ever I wanted to do and she meant it, but there was part of her that was glad that I had not quit my job and flew off to Cali. AS IT SHOULD HAVE. But that night when I came to her the talk was different that it had been before and we talked the whole thing out, 'What would happen if you did this or that where would that put this thing or that part.' It all sounded feasible and Lindsay was the one who said, 'We are the kind of people who go for it. We've never played it safe why were we so instantly safe this time.' There was a lot more said that night, amazing things wifes say to husbands when they are terrified at the support lent to their husbands but more terrified not to give it. And I will always remember the feeling we had that night of a true partnership, in the practical life and in the unpractical one. I love you, sweetie.

So we started in small steps and called Adam to see if they would still have me, cause it was a real possibility that I would call and there would be nothing but ashes at the bottom of a deep deep gorge. But the thing about Adam and Katie is their bridges have been fully burned, they are black and soot filled but they are still strong and for some reason they still support my weight as I continually cross back and forth. I guess old bridges are the strongest. So they took me back, and it turns out that a theater company had just signed the play and we're very interested in 'co-producing' and 'commercially investing' and all these other fancy phrases that meant they wanted to see our play succeed and go on and they were behind us!

Then I went to work, and this is the part I left out of the talk Lindsay and I had that night, I talked to my Regional Manager and told her much of what is written here and that I would like to transfer to the LA store for the 4 week run of the show...Her reaction? She was elated for me and e-mailed LA and with in 24 hours I had a position at a store 5,000 miles away with a team that I had never met doing something that will allow me to keep my benefits, further my own development, and let me be in this play I wrote then come back and slip back in to the same position that I love here in New York! I can't begin to tell you how blessed we've felt to work with a company who values the lives of it's associates to this degree. I was blown away!

SOOO, (Man, I thought this would be quick) I am heading to LA for the month of September and I want you to join me! The Play is called R.R.R.E.D and it's based on a statistic that states: Due to the globalization and continued intermixing of the worlds population the recessive Gene that causes Red Hair will be bread out and become extinct by the year 2100! Katie and I play hosts to a secret meeting held for all redheads (who are you, the audience, but we ask that you keep your non-red wigs on as not to draw too much attention) in a secret plight to perpetuate the Redheaded Species. It's brilliant!

Here's the commercial for the First Run:




So it runs August 28th~ September 28th Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night at 8:00. You can get more information at rrredthemusical.com and adampictures.com and katiethompson.com

You can also watch clips on youtube just type in RRRED and watch what pops up, although, as the gist of the show is focused on Procreation it does get a bit graphic, so you've been warned.

One more thing: There are small rotating parts of "Redheaded Testimonials" that can be one show or a week of shows that should be played by the myriad of talented friends we have, so if you want to give a short monologue and sing one of Katie's incredible songs let us know...yes really I am talking to you, Joanie, Stacy, Sharon, Melinda, Jenny, Rachel, Michelle, Lisa, Hailey, Brett, Amelia, Matt, Jake, Curt, Chris and all others who sneak on here to see what I'm schlepping next, come be in the next big thing! Just let us know and Katie will whip out the most amazing song you've ever sung, put it in your key and watch you go...After all, you've never been the kind of person who plays it safe.

Just give in and comment.

Don't you guys think that Sean Hayes has some "intern" scouring the internet looking for random Sean Hayes stuff. If I was Sean Hayes I would. So... that probably means said sidekick has come across the following post and asked Mr. Hayes if it really went down like that. SO... If you are either Sean Hayes or his Lackey, Please indulge us all with a comment confirming the facts of the nights festivities and we shall call it good.

~P

So we never told you...

It wasn't our plan to just put up pictures of Lindsay and have you critique. But you did and now you should know why you did.

Lindsay and I are friends with these people:

Nathan & Suzie

(I like this picture 'cause you don't see that Lindsay is using her red eye mind power to make them look this well and put together. You can see that when you look at the whole picture.)

(Here.)

He is currently Starring in this play on Broadway:



(and by starring we mean starring in the ensemble, (and we really did just watch him the whole time he was on stage... and he was on stage a LOT!) and by Broadway we mean NY City Center, which for all you who don't know...well then... you couldn't tell the difference.)

The Play Bill... (pictured here.)
Says that the stars were Sean Hayes, (Jack, from Will & Grace)

(pictured here with Lindsay)

and Jane Krakowski (Jenna, from 30 Rock)

(Pictured here with all of us but Suzie... but we did get Jane's real nice parents in the shot...which is fine 'cause some times Suzie can look like this:)

It really was such an amazing night and we felt very busy and important the whole event. The highlight for me was re-meeting Sean Hayes. I say 're-meet' because Sean and I have hung out a lot...well, once really...and he didn't ever see me.

Long ago, Lindsay and I were with our friend Adam (who can look like this: )

(But usually looks like this:)

The three of us were at the Grove, an outdoor shopping complex which is the great grandfather of the Riverwoods, and we saw Sean walking to get an ice cream with his buddy. Well, Adam is very cool around stars and I am very Not. I broke into a full sprint as Lindsay and Adam cheered me on calling, "No! No! No! Patrick Don't!" As I got closer to Mr. Hayes I realized I didn't really have a plan, so this is what I did. I got in line for ice cream right behind him and then started very slowly to inch as close to him as I could--surely if I got close enough we would become fast friends and we would laugh about the time Sean found me curled up like a Mongoose on his back. I have to say that I got VERY close. And then I did the only thing one could do from such an insanely close position... I smelled. I took a good whiff and walked away.

I had all but forgotten this (except for every day of my life) when I was in line to re-meet the formerly smelled.

"Do you think I should tell him that I smelled him?" I asked Lindsay, Nathan, and Suzie.

"No!" Said Lindsay.

"Do Not." Said Nathan.

"Wait...You smelled him?" said Suzie.

I knew that I had the thought that I wanted to think about wondering if I was going to tell him, but it was Nathan's show and I had once gone on a date with the girl from Major Dad and had prepped by reading her Bio on line and then told her facts about herself throughout the night. She never took my call again. So I would hate for Nathan to have to see Sean in the showers of the locker room and have to apologize for his psycho stalker friend. (I don't know if there're locker rooms in the back of a theater, but I couldn't risk it.) So I absolutely made up my mind not to say anything...until.

Sean: I like your suit.

Me: Yeah, Target. I got it from Target.

Sean: Really? Are you kidding?

Me: NOPE (kinda shouting) Target! 80 bucks! Who knew.

This was all fine as I did get the suit from Target and it was 80 bucks. But then he said, "Do I know you from somewhere? You seem kinda familiar. "

I closed my mouth as tight as I could but the words were falling all over each other scrambling up and out of my throat.

"Well, I may have snuck up behind you at the Grove in LA and smelled the back of your neck."

Sean: What?

Me: Yeah...smells the same.

At this point I was thinking, 'This is real cool. It's kinda funny and he doesn't seem to be armed.' but then I look at my wife and friends who's faces all were blank and round with dismay dripping off their chins and staining their carefully picked outfits.

Sean: So you just walked up behind me and went...(he wafted his hand toward his face as a chef who's just finished baking a cake.)

Me: Well, I was real close. I doubt I used my hands.


I think in the end he thought I was kidding him. He was so nice to us and (really) every person that wanted to talk to him. He would never think to run up and smell someone's neck and so we must be kidding him. He went on tell me I should be a writer and Nathan told him I was. (what?! I'm writing this, aren't I?) But then he was swept up by other neck sniffing fans and I was brushed aside.

I've yet to hear from him. Nathan still goes to work, so I doubt Sean Hayes is dead, but I've yet to hear from him.

While Sean didn't invite us all to come over and hang out at his two floor apartment in SoHo, I did get to go home with my beautiful wife (who wore the Orange dress and was literally turning heads every where we went that night cause she looked like this:)

(That's Suzie's eye in the upper right.)

And I went home with our Great Friends, who let us join them on this wonderful night that Lindsay and I (and Sean) will remember forever.


And Nathan and Suzie will be remembered as looking like this:

And a little of this:

Whad Ya Think?

Someone for Summer.

I fear our blog has become boring and, worse, stagnant. But we have the wonderful privilege of living in a place that our people want to come to, and so, when summer comes and there is time to leave, people do.

My youngest brother and his wife came to take in New York this week and were a host's dream. We came home early, slept in late, wandered if we wanted to, saw what was presented to us, but never felt pressed to seek much out.

Also, there was much shopping.

Shopping was the lead but it was supported by a slew of supporting roles, i.e., the Zoo, Chocolate, Rain, BBQs, BBQs in the Rain, Doughnuts, Home Made Thai Food, Ozzie, Walking, Caribbean Food, Tiger Spat, Testimony Meeting, Unused Umbrellas, Shoes, No Fire Works, Waitress, Posing Monkeys, The PATH, Shoes, Baby Clothes, Friends, and Family. It was Perfect.

Mallory is expecting her first child and she trounced around the city with the greatest of ease. My first endeavor to this city was tucked sweetly in my own mothers womb, and I feel it's when my love for the world's cities began...well, probably not really, but I did come here in my mom's belly and I did spend most of my adolescence scheming my return. So who are you to tell me it didn't happen while my family walked around commenting on how dangerous and filthy the city is?

I like to imagine that picture: My Grandparents and Parents walking in a heard, clad in 70's fashions, all gripping each other and the two older boys, no one looking up as one eye is on the kids and the other on the wallet, while all round them people pass and bump and swear. All the while my ears pressed firmly to the edge of my abode, watching red-orange shapes silhouetted as my vessel turns into the sun. It was there I formed my life's aspirations. Certainly, I became contented to live in tight quarters, and sing like a crazy person, and relax to the rhythm of the subway. Yes, yes, I'm sure it was then and not the TV and Movies and Books that put the City as the only suitable backdrop for life's adventures. No, mine was mingled with the preexistence, a destiny to be fulfilled, a life to be conquered!

It would also explain the undying need to be next to my Mother. (sigh)


~P

Shots from Our Garden on Garden Street...

Every Winter we decide to move. Our place is too small and there is sure to be some tempting 3 bedroom with a pool and a gym tucked closer to the PATH for less money.

But each Spring...

Green creeps up and over on to our deck. And flowers we've optimistically planted ...














Surprise us with endurance.

And the stairs into the Garden invite and remind, 'This is where you are, and this is where you belong.'












These are a few shots I collected today from, what will continue to remain, our own back yard.

Roadtrip.

After my aunts left New York, my little brother Seth came out, and we drove upstate, returning to Niagara Falls and Palmyra. It was a terrific trip, made better by excellent company. We rented a car, which we were all a little worried about--I mean, we all enjoy each other's company, but it's been a long time since we embarked upon a roadtrip together. We got a GPS system for the car and decided to just wander, stopping wherever struck our fancy. Luckily for us, fancy struck a lot of interesting places, including Woodstock, NY.

So, funny story about Woodstock. It's not actually where the famed concert took place. Apparently, the concert was supposed to happen there, but they didn't have a space big enough. So, some crazy kid convinced his father (who lived in a town 60 miles away) to let them hold the concert in his field. So, that's what they did, but they liked the name Woodstock so well, they decided to keep it. Interestingly enough, the fact that the concert didn't happen there hasn't prevented loads of people (read: hippies) from visiting there, including this lady:
Now, if you look closely, you will realize that she is sporting a very respectable goatee. Only in Woodstock, folks!




In between Woodstock and Niagara, there was much sleeping, especially by Scout. He was plum tuckered out by the long drive, as you can see. I got a fair amount of sleeping in as well, I'm not gonna deny it.




Along the way, we also stopped at several antique stores (most of which were closed) and somehow happened upon a Revolutionary War site. The site was fine, but what was really exciting was the creepy woods that surrounded us. They were definitely Watcher in the Woods-type woods, made exponentially creepier by the presence of giant spiderweb nests of death on many of the trees.

Luckily, we didn't encounter any of what was inside said nests, but we did get a little lost in the woods. It was scary and exciting.



Finally, we made it to Niagara and promptly went to bed. The next day, we headed out to see the falls, and it was a stunning show indeed, as evidenced by our many wonderous looks:










A terrific time was had by all, except for Scout. He had to stay in the car.









After we visited the Falls, we set about finding more antique stores (for some reason, this was a most sought after activity in this group). Upon arriving in Rochester, we typed "Antique Stores" into the GPS and Edna, our very unpleasant navigator, kept sending us to people's houses. I am fairly certain that theses people were not all named "Antique," and that Edna was acting out some kind of internal technological aggression. Finally, we found a bizarre antiques "mall," which was a cross between The Quilted Bear and an old lady's yard sale, only bigger. Much, much bigger. There were all sorts of treasures to be found there, but most valuable of all was the art we created ourselves in a partially decorated booth:

The next day, we headed out to Palmyra to take in the church sites. This time we did it right, though, skipping through the long pre-recorded exhibits (the Dead Sea Scrolls) and going straight for the good stuff.
















We spent quite a while in the Grove, at the shop where the Book of Mormon was printed, and at the two Smith farms, the first of which Seth was almost too tall for:











All in all, it was a delightful, peaceful trip that reminded me just how lucky I am to have a family that I not only love, but that I enjoy spending time with (even time in a car).

~L