Friday, August 31, 2007

Thursday, August 30, 2007

OPB invites feedback in the blogosphere on how they handled the Ira Glass/New Hope debacle

...but while doing so, manages to insult bloggers everywhere by saying we here at Lelonopo are "spreading the usual blogosphere load of rumors, misinformation and hype." Oh dear. Okay, so traditional media is using their blog media to now insult the blogosphere. Let alone dismiss the difference between a venue that is open and welcoming to all, and one whose congregation is actively pursuing discrimination against a portion of the population.

Their response makes me more sad than mad, really, because my intent here was never to flame OPB, but to help generate a response so that they would listen and examine what they were doing. Last week they dismissed communication from my friend, Roey Thorpe, when she e-mailed and engaged in dialogue with their staff about the venue. They dismissed the inquiries and concerns from The Portland Mercury. I used my venue here on the blogosphere, not to flame and bash OPB, but to encourage a call to action for others to contact them, and to contact Ira Glass to apply pressure on OPB. If OPB isn't going to listen to their own community, I would think they would listen to Ira Glass.

So while I am so glad to know that pressure and feedback applied to OPB caused them to change the venue, I'm disheartened in how they are now bashing blogs (while using their own blog to do so) and really kind of putting it up for a vote in their forum. I don't blog about what I do for a living here on my blog, but I'll out myself that as a seasoned PR professional, I'd have to say this is a prime example of how not to handle a situation like this. I've put in a call to Becky at OPB to speak face to face so that this perceived bashing OPB and bashing blogs doesn't continue and hopefully to see eye to eye and there's good intent on all sides: I sincerely hope Roey and I get the opportunity to do so. In the meantime, do check out their forum, see what they have to say and perhaps share your thoughts. Also, it sounds like Friday's Oregonian will have a story as well. Now, I think I'm going to go back to doing a post about my dog Wink, cooking, or the campout for our niece we're doing this weekend in our backyard--the regular stuff here at lelonopo....

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Oh the PR messy mess: OPB says one thing, Ira Glass' agent says another

UPDATES ONGOING: AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST and in the comments.
Oh, it's not over, is it? It came so quickly and so sweet: a lot of posts out to the blogosphere and voila! The message came from Ira Glass' agent that the venue would be changed for his upcoming Portland speaking gig. But tonight OregonLive reports from OPB that they're sticking by the venue. Even though it's not up on the OPB website anymore as being at the anti-LGBT church. Nice job there, OPB. You're not doin' the best job with this one today, despite having spent hours and over 37 page viewings on this website (according to my handy statcounter) by your IP address here on lelonopo. So Tom Doggett, vice president for OPB television programming is saying they're sticking by their venue choice?

Nice. I just sent Steven Barclay, Ira Glass' booking agent an e mail for clarification. Let's hope Tom just didn't get the memo that "things are in transition." If you'd like to ask Steven for clarification on this too, you can e mail him at: (e mail removed: they've changed the venue!)

UPDATE:
7:50 AM: Yes, it's a PR mess for OPB, because despite this being reported in today's Oregonian, I just heard from Steven Barclay who says:
As of the close of the day yesterday, we were told by OPB that they would find a new venue, following Ira’s wishes. And he copied our friends at OPB.

11:50 AM update: From John Bell at OPB: " The information the Oregonian reported is incorrect. We are currently working on securing another venue and plan to have that wrapped up today. Mr. Doggit was called at home last night and was unaware of the details of the event." It will be interesting to see what OPB ends up saying about this: I hope we can all agree that our reaction to this odd booking choice comes from a strong audience base of LGBTQ people who truly love This American Life, and OPB, and just couldn't see stepping foot into an institution like New Hope who has worked so hard to discriminate against us. And congratulations to the 95 bloggers who sent e mails to Ira's agent and the calls from The Portland Mercury (see the comments to this post): you are awesome.

3:00 PM update: Sounds like Ira will be at the Convention Center. So much more easily accessible via public transit, too. For info on OPB's response, read the comments.

Update about Ira Glass event: his agent responds**UPDATED**

"Ira Glass has asked OPB to find an alternate space for his lecture event and they are working on this today. Thank you for your email."
--Steven Barclay, Steven Barclay Agency

Well look at that. Congratulations to all of you in the blogosphere who e mailed and called. I eagerly await hearing from OPB.

Updated: well look what it says under "location" on OPB's website now...
The back story is here.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

I love Ira Glass but I won’t be setting foot into a right wing conservative Christian church to see him

—especially when it’s a fundraiser for OPB.

If you listen to OPB you’ve heard the recent promos for the upcoming visit from Ira Glass, my beloved host of This American Life to Portland, Oregon. But the really weird thing is WHERE he’s reading. New Hope Community Church? Say what?

I know who New Hope Community Church is. I listened to their pastor speak out in favor of Measure 36, eventually succeeding in making my marriage void as he and his church believed—and worked hard so that others would too—marriage was only between one man and one woman. And it’s New Hope Community Church who is one of many churches right now actively seeking signatures against Oregon’s newly passed laws of civil unions and protections against discrimination.

So what’s wrong with this picture? I love Oregon Public Broadcasting, and I love Ira Glass, but there’s no way I’m walking into a church that doesn’t accept me for who I am, and who works against me, to hear him. I just can’t do that. And Oregon Public Broadcasting? They evidently can do that no problem, and are paying a pretty penny for the use of the venue. Yep, they’re paying New Hope, a place that is actively and monetarily working to encourage discrimination, for the use of their venue for the wonderfully inclusive and pro-LGBT Ira Glass to speak.

Come on. This is Portland, Oregon, home to a plethora of colleges, theaters, and even welcoming congregations, and you’re telling me there’s nothing else available? Yes, that’s exactly what they’re saying. According to John Bell, OPB’s Associate Director of Membership, New Hope was the only space available. I really don’t buy that one bit. Word is there are plenty of other places available that night. SSsshhh, no one will mind. Well, I do mind, and I won’t support it. And do you think Ira Glass would really support that if he knew?

I say we find out. Perhaps we should all give his booking agent a call and let him know what you think about Ira Glass speaking at an active anti-LGBT church in Portland, Oregon. That’s (e-mail removed: they've changed the venue!). Or perhaps This American Life’s home at Chicago Public Broadcasting: (phone number removed: they've changed the venue!)

While OPB seems to think this is no big deal, I hope their speaker, the wonderfully inclusive and affirming Ira Glass, may just well disagree with them.
About New Hope -New Hope Church gave $5,000 to get Measure 36 on the ballot (thanks to public records via the Secretary of State’s office), and Pastor Cotton preached from the pulpit in support of this measure that wrote discrimination into our state constitution;
-New Hope is currently actively recruiting signatures to petitions to get on the ballot referendums to oppose our recently passed anti-discrimination and civil union initiatives. This is a church organizing against the basic human rights of Oregon’s LGBTQ community: places to live and work, and protections regardless of sexual orientation.

About This American Life and Ira Glass
-This American Life started in 1995 in Chicago. It went national in early 1996 and in the years since, it's won a lot of awards—the Peabody, the duPont-Columbia, the Murrow, and the Overseas Press Club, to name a few. Ira Glass, the host of the show, was named best radio host in the country by Time Magazine. And the American Journalism Review declared that the show is at "the vanguard of a journalistic revolution."
The program is on more than 500 public radio stations across the country. They say 1.7 million people listen to us on the radio each week, which sometimes is hard to imagine. It's probably airing this weekend on a station near you.
The show has featured many GLBTQ voices, including two of my favorite writers, David Sedaris and Dan Savage.
- Ira Glass started working in public radio in 1978, when he was 19, as an intern at National Public Radio's Washington headquarters. Over the course of the next 17 years, he worked on nearly every NPR news show and did nearly every production job they had: he was a tape-cutter, desk assistant, newscast writer, editor, producer, reporter, and substitute host. He spent a year in a high school for NPR, and a year in an elementary school, filing every week or two for All Things Considered. He moved to Chicago in 1989 and put This American Life on the air in November of 1995.
About the Event -As a supporting and contribution event, OPB is proudly presenting Ira Glass, Sunday, October 7, 2007, 7pm. $28. Ira will talk about the new season of his Showtime series, his public radio show and the release of his new book, The New Kings of Non-Fiction.

Welcome to all of the visitors from LiveJournal today!
Welcome to all of the visitors from BlueOregon today!
Welcome to all of the visitors from Onward Oregon today!
Welcome to all of the visitors from Portland Metblogs today!
Welcome to all of the visitors from Just Out's blog today!
Welcome to all of the visitors from KGW's blog today! (and nice job on putting my photo next to Iras! love that!)
Welcome to all of the visitors from Furious Nads today!
Welcome to all of the visitors from filepile.org today, whoever/whatever you are.
Welcome to all of the visitors from Commissioner Cogen's blog today!
For more in-depth info and juicy e-mails about the topic, visit the awesome work Amy has done over at The Portland Mercury.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Soundtrack of Summer

I make seasonal playlists in iTunes. From the reflective "Goodbye to 2006" to "February 2007" which I'm sure is depressing, they vary by mood, and reflect my outlook and thoughts of the season. My "Summer of Freedom: 07" playlist is below. It includes Styx, Ozomatli, The Fifth Dimension and Pussycat Dolls. Oh, and don't forget Dolly Parton. Feel free to analyze what this playlist reflects. I just know I'm enjoying it.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Bare light bulbs come to St. Johns

LeGong Gelato in St. Johns
It's exciting when new businesses and neighbors pop up in your neighborhood. I'd seen two new shops opening in the past week or so, so tonight AdRi and I ventured out and thought we'd experience them. The good news first.

Bare light bulbs have come to St. Johns. The cool factor of bare bulbs illuminating a space really does say we've arrived, doesn't it? I may sound sarcastic, and maybe I am being, but Legong Gelato in downtown St. Johns is a very cool little place run by a very sweet owner, Jeffrey. Sandwiched between a coffee shop and the St. Johns Theater, it's perfectly situated in the heart of St. Johns and offers Staccato Gelato (I had the honey lavender: highly recommend it) along with what looked like promising cold pressed coffee with cardamom and ginger (note to self: go back and try that this weekend). Table tops were made by Jeffrey and are super shiny shellaced and varnished cores of wood, there's art on the walls, and the handpainted sandwich board sign outside is probably my favorite in the neighborhood. Jeffrey lives just down the street: I love that local folks are opening local places. It's a great place and I hope they do well. Oh, and they're open until 10pm. Awesome.

And then there's Leisure Public House, opened further down N. Lombard but still in St. Johns. Oh how I've had high hopes for this place. With a bocce court and ping pong table in the back and a lovely patio, seating outside was a little weird, so we wandered back inside and sat for a long time until someone noticed us. Alas, the owner seems more interested in giving shout outs to his friends when they come to visit than potential new friends, and my glass of wine served in a shot glass sized glass could have been refilled. Food is a let down, with panini style sandwiches being the mainstay. I don't know about you but panini is no friend to the inside of my mouth: ouch. So we had our drinks and had hoped to stay for dinner, but with no attention really being payed to us and not an appetizing menu, we opted to leave. Bummer.

We'll definitely revisit Legong Gelato, but the real question is, when is this place going to open? So exciting to see new places opening up in North Portland.

P.S. Just when you think things can't get any better in North Portland, the gay paper moves in too. Congratulations to Just Out and their move this week to NoPo!

If you put a wig on your dog, what style would it be?

Bouffant? Reggae? Farrah? So many options when you choose Wiggles wigs for dogs. While I may throw an occasional dress or even a costume on my dog, don't worry, I would never wig her. Now it's time to yodel.


Tuesday, August 21, 2007

It's been too long since I've posted one of these

Summer self portrait
Summer self portrait

Macro Photography and some introspection

fancy geranium
I've been experimenting and learning some with my macro lens. Can I just say that thing weighs a ton? But look at the beauty it produces. To see the whole set go here.

When I left my fancy lady busy busy corporate lady job last December, I said I wanted to do more gardening, photography and to have a life. Looking back on the posts from this summer, I feel like I'm totally accomplishing that. And I've gone into business for myself. I have a nice little handful of clients, all whom I love, who keep me busy enough and I actively engaged with them in a way that feels healthy and productive. And I'm able to travel, walk my dog, and learn new things like how to take macro photos. On the macro photo part, I have a whole lot more to learn, I know that. Things like selective focus and better control of lighting--I've only been able to do studio set ups with the macro, no on-site shots since it requires I'm using a tripod, and outside wind makes it super hard. But you know what's really cool? I've already worked macro photography into my job and did some for a client. Love it when that happens.

Sometimes it's so easy to fly through life and not feel you're accomplishing anything. Since I've vowed to be more present in my life, I see I'm accomplishing what I put out there to the world. And lists always help.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Quail Botanical Gardens

We visited a lovely botanical garden when we were in SoCal. And lucky you, I took some pictures. From a green roof to freaky porn flowers to an Under The Sea garden area, it's a fantastic place. 35 acres socked away but surrounded by development, the site reminded me of the SoCal I know from my childhood. Enjoy the pics.

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Elvis was hot


Okay, so I keep watching this performance and I just keep thinking, damn! He was so hot! Those moves, the attitude, the sexiness, wow! I think I have a newfound appreciation for Elvis Presley. I know, random post, deal with it. At least I don't have my panties in a bunch.
P.S. Watch that right now!

Why does buying 17 items require 8 plastic bags?

I should have asked for paper. I should have brought my own bags. But I did neither. And I walked out of Fred Meyer in North Portland with 17 items in 8 plastic bags. Do the eggs require their own bag? Why can't the three cans mix with the bag of rice? And why do the three lemons I put in a produce bag require going in yet another plastic bag but with nothing else? I even asked about their new reusable bags, but they were sold out. So she gave me 8 useless plastic bags. Some bags within bags. Some with only one thing in them?!

I love going to New Seasons means they put everything in one bag, but why do all of the mainstream stores seem to equate more plastic bags as a good thing? I totally don't get it. Why don't grocery stores train their staff to use as few bags as possible? The reusable bags going mainstream is great--hopefully baggers will no longer scowl at my brought-from-home canvas bags. But if you're not going to train your staff to reduce their use of the plastic bags, then what's the point?

Going green mainstream is great, but you need to make it more than selling a new product: you have to train your staff, come up with inventive and new ways to tread lightly on the earth, and reward staff for coming up with ideas themselves. If you're not doing that, it's just a bunch of greenwashing. Come on Fred Meyer, step up to the plate.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Why I don't hate California and vacation recap

Where's LeLo?
I grew up thinking California was the epicenter of the universe. And then I couldn't wait to get the hell out. I first fled Southern California at 18, heading to Northern California for college. Southern and Northern California might as well be different states, they are so incredibly different. Less materialism, more introspection, and less stress, Northern California was my home for 7 years, luring me to stay even after college. I scoffed at the car culture of Southern California, the fake veneer over everything, the traffic...and vowed never to return. I even continued further north, landing here in Portland. So very different from the valley days of my childhood, Portland has become my home and if you read this blog even somewhat infrequently, I'm sure you've come across my many posts waxing poetically of my adoration of Portland and Oregon (okay, maybe not so much in February, but at least during Spring and Summer).

But then I return to Southern California for vacations and visits with family, like this past week, and I remember what I love about where I grew up....even as a baby I was at the beach (in my playpen!) and my love of the water and sand and sun is deeply entrenched in my very being. AdRi and I put a beach chair backpack on our backs and walked the few blocks to the beach, climbing the stairs down to the coastline and walking the soft path of sand to a good spot to plant ourselves for the day. Pelicans flew by overhead, along with sporadic helicopters watching the long strip of coast in San Diego county. Kids on boogie boards, surfers, and families hanging out for the day. Me and my book (I started and finished The Kite Runner on this trip: highly recommend it), AdRi and her iPod, periodic dips into the cool ocean, life was sweet. The layed back beach culture of SoCal is what I had forgotten. This is what I miss. And love.

We visited a botanical garden, hiking through 30 acres and smelling the forgotten scent of butterscotch and pepper trees and eucalyptus, all scents of my childhood. The produce in SoCal is always gorgeous: perfect strawberries and flawless lettuce, celery and cilantro. We made mango margaritas, pesto, salads and creamed corn with shrimp for AdRi's sister and husband, the first time parents of the cutest baby in the world. And speaking of baby...that little hot pocket loves to be held, and I held him and fed him and cooed over him with wild abandon. Who knew that a 6-week-old could make you love him so very much?

A vacation of babies and beaches and margaritas and fresh food and family and nightime swims in the pool: I'll file this post under sweet, sweet life. And this is summer.

Don't let this summer pass you by without doing a few things that you love the most: we still have a few things on Ye Olde Summer List to get to, but so far, it's turning out to be the best summer ever.

Friday, August 10, 2007

Food porn

Continuing on the porn theme, I give you this. Food porn.
mysterious dinner
What do you think that is? Salmon? Tuna? Tomato perhaps? Follow the photo journey backwards and you'll see....
steakssteaks in prepsteaks in preparationslicing sandiasandia
What can I say? We're going on vacation, and I was challenged to make a dinner with what we had in the house. And sitting in that fridge? A big, beautiful sandia. And after happening upon this recipe, I said what the hell. Not only did it make the steak you see above, but the sandia made a delicious liquado.
sandia liquado
Oh, and with the bounty of cherry tomatoes fresh from the garden, along with garden basil, ventured upon this combo of roasted tomatoes topped with a light crust of goat cheese, basil, garlic and bread crumbs.
cherry tomatos from our garden
prepping for roasted cherry tomatoes
  • Yes, watermelon steak. It was weird. We ate it. Soaked in cream sherry (super props to my friend Purple Twinkie for helping me figure out the difference between cream and dry sherry). The texture? Silky and smooth. The flavor? Not much, perhaps more of the cream sherry? Would I make it again? Probably not, unless it was to freak someone out. But I'm glad it didn't go to waste, and the vodka+mint+watermelon juice drinks are certainly tasty.
  • So after a few days in Central Oregon and two short days back in Portland, we're off again. Have I said yet that I love summer? I love summer.

Thursday, August 09, 2007

"Lelo, how far left are you?"



I watched the forum on Logo Thursday night (gasp! presidential candidates speaking to and among the gays! gasp!), and can I just say, everytime I hear Kucinich speak, I love him even more? You go, Dennis Kucinich. You go! I just get the feeling, every time I hear him speak, he's not lying through his teeth. And his nerdy excitement? Makes me love him even more. Don't tell me he'll never win, I don't care. I like what he says, I like how he says it, and I like what he stands for. And that is how far left I am.

I've been issued a sort of challenge.

So Recovering Straight Girl suggests photos of my bush? Here you go.
My rose bush
That there is the delightful Jude the Obscure. Fragrant and sexy and pretty much disease free, as any good bush should be.
But wait, there's more.
Here's a photo of her dog's bush. That's right, people. Doggie porn. Ginger, in a whole new light.
ginger's bush
(Oh, I'm so interested in what google searches will now be bringing people to my blog.)

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Salsa verde y fiesta

Sorry for the delay: have been on a little vacaciones in Central Oregon. Sun, swimming and hot tubbing under a kajillion stars. But before we left, I found myself with a bag of fresh tomatillos, onions, and a whole bunch of chiles. I'll get to the family birthday bbq in a minute, but AdRi's mom brought and left a bunch of stuff, and I saw we had the perfect set up for some tasty tomatillo salsa. We've made lots of the salsas in recipes by Rick Bayless, and once you figure it out, it's pretty easy. Lots of roasting, lots of pureeing in the food processor, and you're good.

Here are the tomatillos: you remove the outer paper shell and wash them. They naturally have a sticky residue, but it comes off when you wash them. Tomatillos are also called ground cherries, and they have a terrific tanginess to them. We've grown them in the garden before, and they do well in Portland, especially if we're having a hot summer.
tomatillos

Then come the chiles. I found in the grab bag left at the house a selection of anaheim and jalapeno chiles. Anaheims are usually pretty mellow, so I figured the jalapenos would provide the kick.
chiles before roasting

Roast them in the oven, broiling them about 4 inches from the broiler, until they start to char and the skin bubbbles. Turn them over and do that to the other side as well.
roasted chiles

With the tomatillos, roast them in a pan that can capture their juices when they soften, and they'll turn from a bright green to more of an olive color.
roasted tomatillos
Do the same with a pan full of onion cut into rings and about 5 garlic cloves.
Then puree everything up, add about a cup of water to help with the consistency, and season with a moderate amount of salt and sugar. It's the tomatillos that require the addition of sugar, but if you like their tangy taste, you don't have to. Stir in a bunch of chopped cilantro and voila:
mmmmm....salsa

Freezed half of it, cooked with some of it, and brought it along for chips and salsa on our trip. Super local, super fresh, and super tasty. Yet another reason to love summer.

And for the questions about the homemade tortillas, no, it's not me who makes them. It's this amazing woman: AdRi's mom. Tortilla maker extraordinare.
La Senorita

The BBQ and family party was fun. Some fresh salads,
caprese salad with homegrown cherry tomatoes
cous cous salad

some carne asada brought from a small carineceria in Hillsboro (carne asada is a very thin strip steak seasoned with a dry rub of mexican spices) and grilled on the BBQ,
carne asada

and a whole lot of visiting. Good times, good times.

Saturday, August 04, 2007

The secret to making pie

SSsshhhh. There's a secret to great pie making. And I learned it thanks to this awesome woman. I've been lurking around over on her blog for awhile, and yesterday tried out the pie recipe. Peeps, this is the one. Cube the butter and freeze it. Ingenious! It was beautiful, and tasty. And with summer peaches in their prime, wow. Super props to Shuna Fish Lydon for sharing her talents in the kitchen and in her blog: it's a beautiful place to lurk around.

Here's how it all went down...
Cube and freeze that unsalted butter...
butter
Drop it in the mixer with the dry ingredients, one piece at a time until it forms pea sized bits. Then add tiny bits of icy water until it starts to come together
making pie crust
Revel in the beauty of local fresh peaches...
peach pies in the making
Get a little artisic. Perhaps a flower?
peach pie with flair
And the other pie? Mark it with an A. For AdRi of course!
peach pie marked with an A
Do I have finished pie photos? Of course not. In the flurry of the family BBQ and party, the pie was cut and gone before I could get a camera on them. But you get the picture, right? And you'll just have to wait for photos of the carne asada and homemade tortillas with pico de gallo. Because those are comin' next.

Props to Shuna for her pie technique and secrets.

Friday, August 03, 2007

Feliz Cumpleanos

at the Beavers game
Feliz cumpleanos AdRi! Nothing like a day at the beach and a night at the ballpark to say happy birthday.
Toes, summer, beach
And today I'm baking pies (peach, if you must know) and a family BBQ is in store this afternoon. I'd say we can place some bets on having some homemade tortillas here a little later and some good nortena music on the stereo. Birthdays should always be celebrated for more than one day, so today we're onto Day 2.
Wink kickin' it on the beach blanket

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Direct line to God

Now that Jesus is no longer blogging, I'm relieved to know I can at least IM with his dad.