I've been playing around, learning how to use my sewing machine, and I think this turned out pretty well. The tote bag pattern is from Lotta Jansdotter's book, Simply Sewing.

I haven't sewn anything in years and years, but there are various projects I've been thinking about lately: tote bags, wallets, simple skirts, and (ultimately) curtains. Last week, I bought a sewing machine, and once I got the hang of how the machine basically works, I hit Goodwill for some fabric and picked up a beginner's book.

For my first project, I picked something absurdly simple: napkins. I know, not very exciting, but it was good practice measuring fabric, hemming, and then replicating it. (Not to mention threading the machine and figuring out what the bobbin does.) Next, I'll have to focus on sewing straight lines.

Here's another great meal prepared with recipes from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. Pictured: Ricotta Dumplings with Quinoa and Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Hazelnuts.

These two recipes together were absolutely perfect. This is my new favorite way to eat brussels sprouts!

Andrew is a big fan of food acclaimed foodie Mark Bittman and recently picked up his book How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. It's fantastic. There are pages and pages of great recipes that are either IC-friendly, or could be with just a little tweak of ingredients.

It's been a really long time since I've been to Hawaii, too long. In 2004, I spent a month on Oahu helping recruit organizers for the fledgling ACORN office in Honolulu, and during that stint I had the great pleasure of escaping to eat Thanksgiving dinner with friends on the Big Island. But that trip was work. This trip was the first proper vacation I've taken to Hawaii since I lived there seven years ago.

I'll write more on this later. For now, check out my twitter feed, and follow me there for more timely updates. Eventually, I'll install a module to publish my feed here, but it'll have to wait!

One of the things I love about the work I do is constantly learning new things. Usually, I'm learning tweaks and tricks, but today I got to play with audio files--something I've never done before.

ForestEthics Sierra Campaigner Josh Buswell-Charkow was interviewed on Against the Grain, a show on KPFA yesterday, and he did an amazing job. Since our web content guru is on vacation, it fell to me to figure out the best way to get Josh's interview on the ForestEthics website.

The audio clip could have been added without any editing, but I really only wanted to post the 34 minutes that Josh was on the show. After a quick search for the best audio editing software, I installed Audacity and the LAME plugin (so the file could be exported as an MP3).

Once I edited down the clip and put it on the server, I wanted to actually embed the audio file on the page. In the past, our audio clips have just been links to the file, which pulls up a new browser tab with the audio player. That works just fine, it's just not very elegant. Instead, I grabbed the ODEO code.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out:

In the seven years I've lived here, Portland has shut down numerous times due to snow. But this winter marks the first time I've literally been caught in a snow storm. That's right--Andrew and I drove straight into Arctic Blast 2008.

We were attempting to drive from Portland to Salt Lake, which we do most years, to visit friends and family over the winter holidays. With snow covering the route most of the way, we obviously didn't make it to our destination, but ended up having a great impromptu vacation anyhow: playing in the snow, watching silly movies, listening to This American Life episodes, and generally relaxing. And Charlie, who normally has to share his people with three cats and two other dogs, was happy to have us all to himself.

Here's the slide show from our drive. Pay close attention to the meal Andrew prepared on Day 3: Roasted red pepper sandwiches with pesto, asiago, and artichoke hearts on french bread with carrots on the side. On the way home, I dubbed this trip Best Botched Road Trip Ever. With better luck, we'll see our Utah family and friends in the Spring.

Barack Obama is our president-elect. After so many electoral losses, it's amazing to win--and to win so big. We still, of course, have much work to do, but starting on those plans isn't nearly as daunting a task as in years past.

The world is changing, and I'm humbled to be a part of it.

At this point, I just really wish the McCain campaign would make up their mind about the role community organizers play in shaping social policy. Our first introduction to their ideas was Sarah Palin insisting the mayor of Wasilla, Alaska has more responsibility than community organizers. From the sound of the response at the Republican convention, many of her supporters agreed.

Creating that widget of my own blog entries was kind of cool. But creating a widget that embeds the super awesome Do Not Mail petition is even cooler.

Oh, internet! What can't you do?