Marcie-Vargas

Back to our regularly scheduled programming

So, last we knew, our heroine (me) went to Las Vegas for BlogWorld and was basically never heard from again...
Here's what has happened since: I contracted a really nasty sinus infection that wiped me out for about 3 weeks. Had to have a friend take me to urgent care, and I was just miserable for a long time. Then, I moved, which is no small thing either.
I moved in with John about a week and a half ago. Said goodbye to Ann Arbor and moved up to Northern Michigan (and if moving to Northern Michigan in November isn't a testament to love, I don't know what is).
I left my hospice job, much to my great relief. It's not a job to take lightly, and when one has been burned out on it for a span of a couple years, it's damn near impossible.
So, what do I get to do now? Help John with his business and concentrate on writing and photography, basically do the things I like to do.
I feel lucky.

More Las Vegas

Had some adventures in Las Vegas, one of which was going to Red Square, a Russian restaurant at the Mandalay Bay resort. The restaurant features an ice bar, a room chilled to five degrees where they keep their vast vodka collection. One of our dinner companions, Lee LeFever, graciously treated us to the experience, so we all donned giant Russian coats and hats and went on in.

Here is Chris Carfi, me, and the vodka hostess in the ice bar. I was freezing, but it really wasn't colder than any winter Michigan day.

Vargas in Vegas

Here is my brain on Las Vegas...Had a good time at BlogWorld 2008, had some excellent adventures with some excellent people, rode more escalators then I knew even existed, and didn't even spend a solitary dime at the casinos.

everyone knew

I know who you are,
she says
stubbing a cigarette out
with worn yellow fingers
you lived on Lincoln Avenue
with that boy
didn’t you?
we could hear your screams
from 3 blocks away

Vegas, baby

Yay! Going to Las Vegas for the first time this week for BlogWorld Expo 2008. My boyfriend, John T. Unger, owner of TypePad Hacks, is participating in a panel that will be discussing how blogging works for small business. Drop me a line if you are going and want to meet up!

between a rock and a...

Short photo shoot for the stories site this morning while we had a respite from the downpours. This is one of my favorites from today:

robots from the future

These guys were hanging out on my deck yesterday, a pair of praying mantises (manti?) I love how they look like futuristic robo-bugs...

Ta da!

Here's what I have been working on so diligently for the past two months. It's a new photoblog, custom built for me by John T. Unger. It's a combination of blog, web comic, photography and poetry, sounds ambitious, no? Hope you all enjoy it!
Here's a panel from my new site, How Many Stories Before I Fall:

"Project X"

My mind is all filled up with this new project I'm working on...so many details to sort out, decisions to be made, material to be written. It's exciting, and by far will be the biggest creative project I have ever tackled by myself. I don't want to say any details about anything yet, I want to be able to be fluid in my thinking for the time being. I'll keep y'all posted when it's ready to go live.

Meanwhile, have an elephant. Her name is Daisy:

Road Signs

Some pics of road signs from my photo expedition this morning  (all edited with Picnik, of course). I think they look rather apocalyptic. Click through for the bigger pics, they look much better:

DO NOT PASS. I REALLY MEAN IT. Oh, well, maybe just this once.