Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in melicraw's LiveJournal:

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Thursday, January 7th, 2010
6:47 pm	to watch the woods fill up with snow to watch the woods fill up with snow, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Happy New Year! Christmas with two families, New Years' and Harrison's birthday... maybe next year everyone will come to us? A few weeks ago, snowbound just like everybody else, we were saved by a neighbor who used his four-wheeler + plow to dig out our impassible quarter mile long driveway. I am no longer allowed to fuss about his joyrides up and down the lane, even when they disturb my nap. Time is slipping away so fast now. I am weeks away from having a kid. We started baby class on Tuesday. I can feel his feet at the top of my belly. I watch him move around like a benign little alien under my skin. I can't wrap my head around it... so I've been keeping busy making clothes and toys out of old sweaters. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
3:30 pm	Aspens in Snowbowl, Flagstaff IMG_1947 245.jpg, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. This photo is of my favorite place on earth. Taking a break from my blog hiatus to post a photo from our great west adventure and list some of the events of the past 4 or 5 months. June- Harrison accepts a job at the Library of Congress as a sound archivist. (How amazing is he?) We find a tiny house on many acres in Madison County to rent- a 15 minute country road commute to H.'s work at LOC Packard Campus in Culpeper, VA. Beautiful. July- We find out that I am (surprise!) pregnant. I completely lose my sense of direction and most nights, my dinner. Harrison toughs out his last month of grad school. We go to Tennessee for a family reunion/memorial service in honor of H.'s Grandma Margie. August- Harrison graduates! I leave my job! Then, the move back to VA. I am conveniently disabled and can't help with the heavy stuff. It's hard to leave good friends and pirogues, but delicious to bid adieu to the 54C. It's a toss up as far as which of us is more happy to have grass, mountains, and peace and quiet back in the landscape- but I presume it to be Pablo dog. Last- we take the two weeks to go on a trip west, inspired by H. having to present a poster at a conference in Austin. We go from Texas to San Francisco by car, stopping to visit friends and family and whatever we like. (Photos are finally up on flickr). September- My bestest friend Nadia gets married in Denver, CO. I go and have a smashing good time without getting smashed, thanks so much adorable little fetus. I have no desire to get back on a plane anytime in the next decade. October- Harrison's doing great at work, we're settling into our tiny house, we try to have people over and do fires in the pit outside as often as possible. It rains almost every day. I can feel the baby move around. November- It's starting to look like I won't be able to find a job anytime soon. My big belly is not doing me any favors at the couple of interviews I've managed to get. Harrison shoulders the single-income burden admirably, and I pursue depression-era domestic arts in hopes that I can stretch our dollars. I'm talking about re-using tin foil, folks. Oh! Our baby is a boy. We painted the extra room Kermit green for his nursery. The whole thing feels unreal... some combination of thrilling and terrifying. To be honest, it's stupefying. I feel so damn lucky right now. Happy December 1. Hope to be back soon. (Comment on this)
Sunday, June 21st, 2009
12:15 pm	Pablo deer bone Pablo deer bone, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. We found a cute little house to rent on eight acres in Madison County, VA. The only one more looking forward to the move than me is pablodog. Minutes after getting there to sign the lease he had found himself a deer leg bone to chew on, laid down in some moss, and got to work. (Comment on this)
12:09 pm	scenic strip scenic strip, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. After a trip to Primanti's with Harrison, Scott, Robin, Michael and his girlfriend Corena. All stupefied by a glut of fried food sandwiches. (Comment on this)
Sunday, June 7th, 2009
11:08 am	Next move Library of Congress National Audio-Visual Conservation Center, Culpeper, VA Harrison got a job!  He's a star.  I'm so proud. We're moving, bag and baggage, after he graduates in August. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009
8:37 pm	front porch pickin' front porch pickin', originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Harrison learns musical stuff from maestro Justin. Grilling at Justin's house is the closest thing to camping we've done in Pittsburgh. He is roughing it. Then again, though he doesn't have a kitchen sink, fridge, stove, bathroom sink, or drywall, he does have cable. That's an accommodation I could really dig right now as I am flipping back and forth between "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here," which is impossible to watch for more than 3 minutes at a time, and a cooking show on PBS, which is painful because it looks delicious and we have little food. I'm going to the kitchen to see if I can at least work up some cookies. (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 31st, 2009
11:22 am	pgh brewing pgh brewing, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. This morning, walking the dog over the Polish Hill bridge. I've found a few more shots from November-May, below are two. (Comment on this)
11:20 am	dog park dog park, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. He knows not how to socialize with other dogs. (Comment on this)
11:17 am	kim and g.w.'s dirty bathtub kim and g.w.'s dirty bathtub, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. In March, we spent a weekend in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. I love that place. Crawfords and Behls together in one cabin, and only minimal friction on gun control issues. (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 24th, 2009
1:42 pm	scavenged flowers scavenged flowers, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. This morning walking the dog I found a garden of roses and peonies overcome by weeds and belonging to one of the hundreds of abandoned buildings in our neighborhood. It's some small consolation that in the dearth of natural beauty around our place, old gardens keep blooming. And you can pick their flowers without getting cursed at. Below I posted some of the few pictures I have from the past several months. I was, to put it like the victorians might, "sickly" from around November to early this spring. Sickliness zaps my creative and intellectual urges. Rather than read a book I'll lay on the couch for whole Sundays watching Wagon Train on the bunny ears. I really hate 50s TV. Anyhow, the weather is brighter in Pittsburgh, I'm feeling better, and every once in a while I may be picking up a camera again. (Comment on this)
1:09 pm	PGH Nov-May 12.jpg PGH Nov-May 12.jpg, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Old Crow Medicine Show at the Carnegie Library Music Hall in Homestead, anniversary. (Comment on this)
1:07 pm	PGH Nov-May 10.jpg PGH Nov-May 10.jpg, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Trying to make some vitamin d, late winter. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
1:05 pm	PGH Nov-May 1.jpg PGH Nov-May 1.jpg, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. View of the bridge over New River Gorge, mid-winter trip to Blacksburg. (Comment on this)
1:04 pm	PGH Nov-May 8.jpg PGH Nov-May 8.jpg, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Botanical gardens at Christmas. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, May 19th, 2009
4:59 pm	Me in a dress. wedding 13, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Harrison and I have been married for one whole year. I know it's still early, but I'm pretty sure getting married to him is the best thing that I'll ever do. I'm planning to post something about what happened between November 2008 and the present; for now suffice to say "Pittsburgh." I'll explain later, when I've gained the distance I need. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, October 21st, 2008
9:03 pm	chaz and mel overlook chaz and mel overlook, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. My brother is the proverbial golden boy. My mom has told me that he got all of my share of the "luck, confidence, and athletic talent." (But to tell you the truth it really takes the pressure off). I adore him so much, and it was great to see him back on the right coast after such a long summer. (Comment on this)
Monday, October 6th, 2008
8:54 pm	apple orchard apple orchard 2.jpg, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Last week I was really liking this city. I don't know if its notable here, but I have been a little slow to warm to Pittsburgh... Somehow last week I was loving that the evening bus driver rolls with an entourage, that street kids want to know if my dog bites, and that my social life is more poppin' than it ever was in the sleepy valley (though not poppin' at all by conventional standards). On Saturday Harrison and I and Sarah and fiance Chris found an apple orchard close to the city. We picked apples and I had too much fun taking pictures of Sarah and Chris. (Comment on this)
Monday, September 29th, 2008
8:55 pm	mom and dad mom and dad, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. The Crawford family (all but my wandering brother) came to visit this weekend. They took us out and we ate and drank like rich folks.. It was delicious and heartening. We did our best to keep them from inspecting our trash strewn hood too closely. (Comment on this)
Monday, September 22nd, 2008
10:42 pm	pablo lola tussle pablo lola tussle, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. One more! Pablo loves his dog friend (Scott and Robin's dog), Lola. (Comment on this)
10:40 pm	avett brothers- drive by truckers avett brothers, originally uploaded by crawfordmb. Despite the campaign of demoralization being waged against me at work I am as of now still pretty high from a great weekend. We drove back down to Staunton to stay with Scott and Robin and see The Avett Brothers and Drive-By Truckers in Charlottesville. Sweet Virginia air and Kathy's Diner and oh! the mountains and being with friends and family again. But seriously guys, we've only been gone a month and its almost too early for that kind of nostalgia. I forgot how awesome it is to see a show in Charlottesville, brah. Seriously dog I am wearing my tie to a rock show, and not in an ironic way, bro. The Truckers were great, are great. There is (at least for me) a big unfilled hole where Jason Isbell used to be. But holy shit did The Avett Brothers explode my heart. Over the past couple years I listened to their albums until I couldn't stand them anymore, took a couple months off, came back again, repeat. Appalachian musical heritage with really impressive screams and one of the best shows I've had the good fortune to see. (Comment on this)