Dude. No.

Both heartbreaking and fascinating, this came to me by way of Fraction and MeFi:

Gabby Gingras has a disease so rare she's the only person her parents and doctors can find in the U.S. suffering from it. Like any other three-year-old, Gabby takes her share of slips and falls. Her reaction to each is predictable — at least for her family.

For no matter how hard Gabby hits the ground, she will not shed a single tear. Hard as it is to fathom Gabby Gingras feels no pain. There is no cure, nor will she outgrow it.

More in link.

Let me say first and unequivically that I love this image:

But, are you noticing a trend here?

Don't get me wrong -- I'm not accusing anyone of anything, I'm not implying anything -- I'm not even being critical! I love this stuff.

I'm just wondering ... there's very definitely a common aesthetic. Is anyone talking about this?

Look at these artists' sites and tell me if see what I mean:

Caroline Hwang
Keren Richter
Susie Ghahremani
Heidi Kenney
Souther Salazar

(...If you weren’t there and aren’t scanning for your name, this will likely bore you.)

It was too cold to wear the white canvas trench coat, alas. It went in the closet pretty much as soon as I got to Peter and Grace’s and it stayed there until I packed to leave. This would be the first disappointment.

NOTHING disappointing about the overwhelming hospitality of Peter and Grace Rose-Siegel-Cruz. I owe them. Big time. It’s horrible enough to have a healthy houseguest for FIVE days, let alone a nauseous one.

Had a ball shopping with Grace on Thursday. At one point, in Buffalo Exchange, I overheard a conversation during which one hippy explained to the other hippy how the CIA was actually behind the attacks of 9-11. Now, don’t get me wrong: I’m sure the CIA is up to all kinds of NO GOOD, however, I’m gonna go out on a limb and draw a line somewhere before the murder of a couple of thousand innocent people. I know, I know. I’m a sucker for The Man. Anyway, I have fantasies of going back, NOT getting ill, and shopping for a few days. There are no hippies in my dream. Not so much because of the CIA thing – we’ll call that “local color” – more because they were smelly and loud and completely oblivious to my existence and they kept pushing the clothes around the rack without any awareness that every time they did so, they moved the garment I was trying to see. Bad politics is totally trumped by bad manners.

Peter confused me with my husband and sweetly insisted I needed to go to Amoeba Music. Um. I listen to, like, Schubert and NPR. And books on tape. Musically, I am the un-hippest girl alive and under forty. Seriously. Grace and I smiled and nodded and returned to clothes shopping.

They treated me to Secret Sushi for dinner. YUM.

Meeting Friday with Viz went swimmingly. Met with Eric, Kit, Annette and Ian and ate Thai food off beautiful, beautiful green dishes with bright, bright yellow chopsticks. It was less stressful like a business meeting and more fun like a date. A date during which you gossip and eat Thai food. And those are some of the best dates, non?

Laurenn’s opening was So! Much! Fun! (Which is saying quite a lot as by the end the spiney monster had situated himself in my guts and I was starting to hallucinate and shiver.) The paintings were lovely, the company, charming, and I made quite an impression on the kids when The Creepy Homeless Man Who Spat Diamonds got too close and set off the STEP AWAY FROM THE KELLY SUE alarm. The Creepy Homeless Man Who Spat Diamonds stepped away from the Kelly Sue ... and so did everyone else.

(Jeremy Love, if you do buy a case of African Woman dolls from the Dollar Store, you must promise me you’ll ask to be buried with them.)

Laurenn’s friend Mike is a deft and delightful conversationalist. Chatting up strangers at parties is a dying art, says me. Cheers, Mike, for keeping the skillset polished and sharp.

I wish I lived close enough to Megan Thomas Bradner to ask her out to lunch. I only ever see her in gangs. I’d like to get to know her one-on-one, I think.

Not like that, you pervs.

Also saw Charlie, Janet and Dan and got to meet Charity for the first time.

I'm sick.

Regular readers of this blog know that I usually delight in sharing the intimate horrors of my bowels, but this time Dear Reader, this time, my condition is too too awful to put you through, even vicariously. I can't figure a way to be light-hearted about it. Suffice it to say it didn't hit until Friday evening and for that I am eternally grateful. It would have been nice if I had been able to, oh, say, enjoy APE (which I traveled half the country for) or, I dunno, been well enough to go to the Japanese Baths. Alas. But at least this morning I don't feel like a spiney monster is trying to eat its way through guts. That's progress.

I think I'll wait and give you the APE highlights once I get home and I can think properly.

Ugh. I'm hungry, but I'm scared to eat. I'm staying near Cole Valley and I really want to stroll down to one of the cute cafes in the neighborhood and have coffee and a pastry or something, but I think it's probably best I stay in where I can grimace in peace.

Laurenn is supposed to come pick me up around noon time. We'll see. Maybe I'll take a bath while I wait...? I did manage to make it to LUSH on Saturday, at least.

I hope this catches on.

Keren Richter (on whom I have a mad art girl crush) has illustrated a video for The Joggers.

And susie (on whom I have a mad art girl crush) has revamped her site.

I don't have access to my ftp so no pictures for now.

On my way to San Francisco.

In the meantime, check this out: http://www.casshern.com/

Those of you headed to San Diego for SDCC this year:

If you haven't booked your flights yet, you might want to check out the Southwest Airlines site today.

San Diego is their "featured destination", which means cheap rates through tomorrow. (Fraction and I got $94 each way.)

They're not advertised as such, but these are Mary Green panties. 100% Silk mesh and on sale at UrbanOutfitters.com. The pink and purple pair is also Mary Green -- and even cheaper for some reason.

Matching camisole available here, but not such a bargain, alas.

[Edited to add: even better option.]

(Jane, if you're going to order them, let me know? We can split shipping.)

I remembered the other thing I wanted to tell you:

I'm off to San Francisco on Thursday for APE. If you see me there, please say hi. I'm very nice. I promise.

Artbomb.net was supposed to have a table, but we didn't decide until the last minute and now we're wait-listed. So Peter and I will likely just be wandering about making with the schmoozing.

I have a client meeting on Friday, and APE on the weekend, but I also plan to hit the LUSH store with Susan, Janet et al., and these Japanese baths with this gorgeous woman. Can't! Wait!

I had hoped to have PERFECT BOUND finished for APE, but alas, I haven't been able to get the final draft ready for Dave Iseri. Plan B: I hope to have it to him in time to have a finished book for SDCC.

I desperately need to dust. And do about a thousand other things around the house. But dusting would be a good start. I did vacuum this morning, which, you know, stirred up all the dust.

Fraction is home--YAY! He's sick as a dog--BOO! At least it didn't really hit him until Sunday, so we were able to have a lovely reunion and Valentine's hullabaloo. I made herb-crusted rack of lamb, and it was heavenly. The recipe comes from Martha Stewart, who I'm not ashamed to say I adore. I subscribe to two of her magazines and have been known to tape her show. Also, in my crazybrain, I think we're the best of friends. We hang out and make stuff and plan parties and discuss curtains. Oh, my friend Martha and me -- how we laugh and laugh!

I scored loot from Japan -- dainty underthings for facilitating the Hot Married Sex (tm), leg warmers, long striped socks, a stack of JAPANESE FASHION MAGAZINES (!!), a picture book of my Japanese boyfriend (Tadanobu Asano), Electric Dragon 80,000V DVD (er ... staring Tadanobu Asano), the first volume of the Taiyo Matsumoto manga PING PONG (if you haven't seen the film, find yourself access to a region-free DVD player and GET ON IT -- I love, love, love it. And I never like anything. Okay, I do. But see it anyway) and a couple of pair of tights. Woo hoo! Presents make the pain go away.

(For my part, I made Fraction an accordion book and filled it horrible amateur watercolors of Things He Likes -- like Sydney Bristow [She totally looks cross-eyed. I can't draw.], godzilla and coffee. He also got a gift certificate for a private led ashtanga session for two, a membership to the Kansas City Clay Guild and the Taschen Erotica box set.)

Speaking of manga -- I was, up there, PING PONG, remember? -- I am going to be doing the English adaptations of THREE new titles, none of which I can tell you about yet. One of them, I'm absolutely bouncing off the walls for. More on that as soon as I'm able.

Hey anybody know where I would start looking for a translation of PING PONG? A fansite, maybe...?

Speaking of Projects, Nikol and I have started our LISTMAKERS collaboration in earnest. We're printing and hand-binding them ourselves, so we're hoping to have them done and for sale by the end of summer. So far, so good. If you want to be added to a LISTMAKERS mailing list, email me at lists@kellysue.com with "LISTS LIST" in the subject line, or just watch this site for updates.

In unrelated news, I am knitting a bag for spring of my own design. If it works out, I'll post a pattern. I also have in mind to design a felted yoga mat tote.

I had something else I wanted to tell you, but I can't think of what it was at the moment. So, in closing, is this a joke?

I confess I hate the name, but I love the message.

Apparently, these are the folks behind the March on Juarez last Saturday.

I just crashed and lost twenty pages of work. I seriously think I'm going cry.

WHY ISN'T THERE A RECOVERED DOCUMENT??

Study Finds Hostile People May Be 'Born to Smoke'

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - People with hostile or aggressive personality traits may have genetic tendencies that make them "born to smoke," U.S. researchers reported on Thursday.

Brain imaging studies suggest that the same genetic variations that give people hostile personality traits may also make them more likely to become addicted to nicotine, the team at the University of California Irvine reported.

"We call this brain response a 'born to smoke' pattern," Dr. Steven Potkin, a professor of psychiatry and a brain imaging specialist who led the study, said in a statement.

More in link.

Lest there be any confusion, I'm not expressing an opinion as to the science (or even the journalism) there, I'm just sharing a laugh.

I'm sure most of you who would care check Journalista every day, but just in case: go.

Neat.

Smoking leads to impotence-British Medical Assoc.
By Ceri Radford

LONDON (Reuters) - Smoking damages almost all aspects of sexual, reproductive and child health, a hard-hitting report by the British Medical Association said on Wednesday.

The report estimated around 120,000 men aged 30-50 were impotent because of smoking.

More in link.

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Thanks, Warren.

My beautiful and brilliant friend Patience, sent me this link with a note that read "Things I am sick of: SUVs, Republicans, and the Atkins diet."

Patience, who works out regularly and eats moderately and sensibly, noted that she had a croissant and hot chocolate for breakfast -- and that they were very, very good.

I love Patience.

Report: Diet Doctor Atkins Was Obese
The Associated Press

NEW YORK Feb. 10 — Dr. Robert Atkins, whose popular diet stresses protein-rich meat and cheese over carbohydrates, weighed 258 pounds at his death and had a history of heart disease, a newspaper reported Tuesday. Atkins died last April at age 72 after being injured in a fall on an icy street. Before his death, he had suffered a heart attack, congestive heart failure and hypertension, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a report by the city medical examiner. At 258 pounds, the 6-foot-tall Atkins would have qualified as obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's body-mass index calculator.

More in link.

MARC JACOBS - Argh. I really wanted to dislike this collection since he's been EVERYWHERE for a couple of years now and because of the Sofia Coppola thing. But. I like it. Retro and somehow still modern and fresh. It's almost a spring collection, it's so jaunty. I am compelled to adore it. I covet ALL of the coats, but particularly this one, and this one.

CAROLINA HERRERA - I'm having computer problems today and couldn't see the enlargements of a number of these looks, but from what I can tell, they're pretty much the same look and construction I always associate with Herrera. The review says "Herrera’s designs have taken a turn for the lighter—always refined and feminine, but with a new sense of color and craft," but I don't see it. Looks about the same to me. Nice, but nothing I'm freaking out over.

DKNY - Love the palette and this sweater makes me swoon. The greens are particularly amazing. At first look, I didn't adore this collection, but it's kind of like a new album by a long-favored band. A couple of repeat viewings and I'm ready to declare it a favorite. I don't see as many new ideas as I saw in the Jacobs show, but I almost prefer for some reason. Maybe because -- even with the 80's colors and 20's silouettes -- it isn't so overtly retro...?

OSCAR DE LA RENTA - Love this. Hate this. The tweedy fabrics are appealing, so are the neck bows (which I also liked at Marc Jacobs). I dunno. Eh.

BADGLEY MISCHKA - Loved the furs. Makes me wish I had bought that white Kenneth Cole belted chubby when it was on sale. Pretty, but I can't formulate anything else to say about it, really.

AS FOUR - Cirque du Soleil meets industrial 80's something...? It's really hard to make out the looks because of the the photography. Lots of black clothes against black backgrounds, can't really tell what I'm seeing. I think there are some interesting pieces in here, but I can't really tell. Maybe it's the production values, but it almost seems more like a haute couture show than ready-to-wear. Or is that just me? Anyway, this collective of designers was photographed with Bjork in the most recent issue of Vogue and that sort of sums it up for me. Interesting.

Holy crap.

I've been mulling over doing a series of creepy little stories about collectors. Here's fodder.

Sometimes, I post really dumb things. This is one of those times.

You are Shetland Wool.
You are a traditional sort who can sometimes be a
little on the harsh side. Though you look
delicate you are tough as nails and prone to
intricacies. Despite your acerbic ways you are
widely respected and even revered.


...Revered, you say? Well.

What kind of yarn are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Fraction's futurephone pics of 'Gothic Lolita' ensembles from Tokyo.

I like the Kimono with the domme-y belt, but I suspect the fabric is is cheesey close up. And anyway we don't go to enough 1980's art openings to justify it. I also love the sleeves on the one that looks like Victorian black cotton. And the tiny hat. I would absolutely love to wear a tiny hat, but I don't think I could pull it off. I would look like an organ monkey. Or a bellhop.

I am so excited about the upcoming shows, you'd think the models were were walking down the runway just to deliver me presents.

The Alice Roi teaser looks good. I do hope that doesn't suck.

Fraction's blogging from Japan.

SMS is my new favorite techology [thank you, Warren] as it facilitates conversations between my husband and I while he meanders "the Champs Elysees of Tokyo" and I sit at my desk in the Midwest. I have been promised a selection of Japanese fashion magazines.

I am the luckiest girl in Missouri.

Sheila Kelley for The S Factors: Strip Workouts for Every Woman, $15.95 [It's only $6.38 on Amazon.com for some reason] Softcover, ISBN 0761130632, will give us The S Factors demonstration with audience participation, discuss this book, answer audience questions, and sign this book at a Complimentary Ticketed Rainy Day Books Series Event on Thursday, February 26, 2004, 7:00 PM, at Unity Temple on The Plaza, Sanctuary, 707 W 47th Street, Kansas City, Missouri.

Hipper than Taebo, sexier than Pilates, The S Factor—stripping—is the hottest new fitness trend. Created by actress Sheila Kelley (LA Law, Sisters, and a host of film and Broadway roles), The S Factor classes are wildly popular and generating an avalanche of attention from Extra, Entertainment Tonight, The Los Angeles Times, Allure, Us magazine, Fox News, and CBS’s 48 Hours, which proclaimed: “Women don’t even know they’re working out until two months later when they say, ‘I’ve never had a better body in my life. I’m strong, I’m limber, I feel great.’“ Sheila even convinced Barbara Walters to try a pole dance on The View. No wonder. Combining yoga, dance, and erotic movements, The S Factor is a program that tones muscle, firms the body, increases flexibility, promotes weight loss, and gives you a few new tricks for the bedroom. Illustrated in hundreds of photographs that show step by step how each move is done, the exercises are sensual yet demanding, requiring a balance of strength and finesse. There are slow, rounded warm-ups, the Spine Circles and Hip Circles. Strenuous motions, like the Rocking Cat-Cow. Peels and rolls, grinds, pounces, arches. And pole work, from the Firefly to Descending Angel. Something else happens, too: These exercises and routines boost self-esteem and give women a new way to think about their bodies. Stripping is a liberating act, out of which comes a new look, new body, new confidence, new you.

Rent girlie movies that you will probably just let sit on the table and not watch anyway -- CHECK!

The Hours
Merci Pour Le Chocolat
Better Luck Tomorrow (Okay, not particularly girlie, but they were out of Like Water for Chocolate)
Millennium Actress
Tuvalu

... the original plan was to rent Brideshead Revisited and watch the whole glorious series again, but alas, Blockbuster did not carry it and I didn't feel like driving to SRO.

The Big Book Of Filth: 6500 Sex Slang Words and Phrases

Occasionally, I wish I we had cable:

Directed by Robert Altman and written by Garry Trudeau, "Tanner '88" is an eleven-episode miniseries following a fictitious Democratic presidential candidate through the very real terrain of the 1988 presidential campaign - an election year to rival 2004 for strangeness and unpredictability. Then as now, there was huge slate of Democrats vying for their party's nomination; among them was current candidate Richard A. Gephardt, as well as Michael Dukakis, Al Gore, Jesse Jackson, Gary Hart, and others. Then as now, the Democrats were trying to retake the White House. Then as now, they were facing a White House occupant named George Bush (who was residing there as Ronald Reagan's Vice-President).

More in link.

In the course of doing some research for a little Pitch piece I'm writing today, I came across this excerpt from an old interview with author Mary Gordon:

In the novel I'm working on now I am exploring why it is that we who were political in the sixties don't have political imaginations anymore, and why our daughters don't. I think it's because everything has become so privatized, so terribly atomized -- we're in cars, we use e-mail, we rent videos instead of going to the movies. Increasingly, because people don't collect in public spaces -- in churches, say, or for political meetings -- they don't see themselves in collective units, and so there has been a tremendous loss of faith in all sorts of public ways of being. People no longer believe in getting together with other people to make anything better. And they haven't seen a political success story in a long time.

It speaks directly to a conversation I was having with Kelli last night. More on this as I collect my thoughts...

If you're a friend or client or a diplomat in a third world nation who wants to transfer $10 million into my bank account if I'll only be so kind as to provide the proper wiring information -- or if you want to offer me a low rate mortgage or increase my penis size, even -- and you e-mailed me between 12:30 and 4:00 PST, there's a very, very good chance I didn't get your e-mail and you shouid resend.

Don't get me wrong, I have mad, non-ironic love for Aerosmith and all things Steven Tyler. (What's that French phrase meaning "so ugly it's beautiful"?)

But did anyone find it peculiar that they chose to do the whole Superbowl space shuttle thing on the first anniversary of the big crash...?

Am the only one who found that to be in poor taste?

Image lifted from rokits.org.

Google date test 'nets US fugitive'

A suspected US fraudster on the run for a year has reportedly been caught after a woman checked his name on the Google website before meeting him for a date.

More in link. Thanks, corran.

Fraction's new site is live.

Nicely done, Matt & Merry.

Dude. You have been told.

Gwendiana Jones, I adore you.