Perry The Platypus' 50th Birthday (a little late)

My dad's name is Perry.

Sometimes we call him Perry the Platypus or Agent P. 

So of course, what 50 year old doesn't need a "Perry the Platypus" themed fiftieth birthday party, right?

A few decorations were in order:

I couldn't resist...

There were matching tags for everyone to wear for this one...

Of course, Toodles was precious. I still laugh every time Alana dresses the child in something white and she destroys it in two seconds. The kid is just like me in so many ways.

A lot of people rant and rave about how much us girls look like our mother. Well, I think Alana favors my Aunt Kathy more than anyone. Not just in looks, but in grace, kindness and love. They are the two greatest women I know.

My Uncle Gary ALWAYS loses his glasses and ALWAYS steals my Aunt Kathy's old pair. He is too dang cute. 

Sweet Per Bear. You are truly 50 years young. It was a great birthday party. Thanks for being such a great sport with my theme, associated decorations, and endless jokes all night long. 

What is that pose?

What's next year's theme?

India Status Update

So here is the 411:

1. I still do not have a Visa.
2. After cussing 20ish people, the consulate and BLS International (third party company who handles visa transactions) are very well aware of the problem.
3. IF I do not get a Visa, I am taking one long, well deserved vacation in Paris. I know, you all are crying for me on the inside.
4. This means that my secret plans to go to Paris for Christmas will now be changed to my secret plans to go to South America for Christmas.

Everyone cross your fingers, seriously.

Hidden Locals

Well, you are fully aware of my obsession with art. No need to hash that one out again. Here are some pictures from stumbling across an art studio hidden in downtown Opelika by artists who probably will never get any other publicity than this. Here's to the Hidden Locals....

The studio space

Wall art I would die for

One of my favorite pieces

I actually had to move several boxes from in front of this one

These are charcoal prints. Truly magnificent work for such a hard medium.

I swear I did not stage this picture.

A little installation art for your enjoyment

This next series of pictures is from an artist who dabbles in spray paint and "great stuff" as a medium. I was truly amazed.

He starts with templates:

Then spray paint and "great stuff"(for those who do not know what "great stuff" is, google it.)

And viola!

Of course I couldn't leave Andy out... Did you know he loved dachshunds too?

Now that I live in the Bay Area, I am thinking about collecting pictures of graffiti. I literally see great pieces passing by in the train everyday. I promise not to get in to street art, join a gang, and wear red or blue the rest of my life. Just admire and photograph from afar.

That's all folks.

The Final Countdown....

Well, India is 15 days out. Are we ready? Nope.

So here is what is going on in my life...

After one heck of a year full of huge life moments, taking some time to evaluate those moments, and a lot of growing up......

I graduated from grad school. Yes, everyone, I finally finished college. For now at least...

I moved to California. San Francisco that is. I took a job with Clark Construction (no relation) and I am loving it so far. I am handling the medical equipment procurement for a 10 story hospital addition. I am very in over my head. All my co workers are great and my bosses, even better. Yes, I get asked on a daily basis how I got the name "KK". I may start telling people my parents had so many kids they stopped giving us names and just letters.

I decided to live in a small town 20 miles northeast of the Bay Area called Walnut Creek. I move in Friday. Now all I need is furniture, Duff and my wall art. (Reminder for dad to ship my art, thanks).

Basically, I finally decided to be an adult.... well, kind of (I choose to always be a kid at heart). Dad is probably most excited about this after many years of pondering if KK will actually ever graduate.

Okay, enough about me.

India is a mere 15 days away. Plane tickets bought. Hotel in Paris for a night booked. Hotel in New Delhi booked. Malaria pills ready. Alana and I still don't have Visas. Everyone pray we get them. The Indian Consulate is truly testing my patience in a whole new way. No train reservations to the Taj Mahal or Jaipur yet. I am not worried about that.

Dad still thinks he is going to ride an elephant. That's also testing my patience but in a funny way.

I am still on the fence about a new camera lens but may pull the trigger. I mean, how often do you go to India?

Alana has no clue what she is getting herself in to. It will be like that time we told her J Lo was in the Publix at the beach and when she told all her friends, we acted like we had no clue what she was talking about. We got months of laughter. India may provide years of laughter.

You all should seriously stay tuned for the blog posts for this trip. I will try to catch all the ridiculous moments it has to offer. You are all welcome in advance.

Until next time, K's.

The Last Roll....

There really are no words for Toomer's Corner's last roll. You only understand if you are an Auburn fan. So I will just let the pictures do the talking.

Valentine's Day with Frida and Diego

Yes, this post is many months late. I do not apologize because it is a miracle that I am remembering to write it.

Most of you know that I am not some mushy, gushy romantic. I do not search around every corner for true love or endlessly dream about prince charming. It just isn't who I am. However, when it comes to art and music, you can just scratch those three sentences you just read. So this year's Valentine's Day, I spent it with my favorite lovers, Frida and Diego, at Atlanta's High Museum.

I am not sure if you are familiar with Frida and Diego; for simplicity's sake, great artists colliding together in a tumultuous love fueled by passion, politics, and art. Frida's quote about life explains their relationship best:

"There have been two great accidents in my life. One was the trolley, and the other was Diego. Diego was by far the worst."

Although we could not take pictures in the Frida and Diego exhibit, that didn't stop me from capturing a few great moments and great works of art.

Frank Lloyd Wright's desk. Inspiration for making my next desk. 

Jeremy in front of a great piece of installation art that allowed one viewer to hear what another viewer was saying from across the room. 

A better picture to understand.

I couldn't resist.

And here are some of my favorite works from the museum (well at least the ones I could take pictures of...)

Stay tuned.....