all that's past is prologue...

Lumiére opened last night (more on that later), and today was a two-show day for my tired performer and even more tired rigger, so I had a day to myself. It stared by being given some phlox and some astilbe, which I planted over at Ashland. The back bed is almost done! The jasmine is in bloom over there and I love it so much. I then went over to an open house at the home that had been owned by Sally French, where she had held so many wonderful events. It had been years since I had been there and I had never seen the whole thing, so it was really fun to go explore it. Her spirit is in every inch of the house and it is gorgeous! If you are in the Twin Cities and looking for an incredibly distinctive home that knows how to throw an arts event (albeit one that needs some work), you should seriously consider this one. I'm connected to the realtors, so let me know! (photo credits mainly Dolly Langer, with the first one being mine). I then headed over to my client 825 Arts , where one of...

Last night, I attended a concert by Songs of Hope at a senior center in Bloomington. My friends Jeanne and Tom founded SOH 34 years ago, and kids from all over the world come here for six weeks in the summer to live together, sing together, and perform all over the state.  Not only is it life-changing for them to live together and learn about each others' countries and cultures, but it's equally important that they travel the state and meet people who may never have met ANYONE from, say, Turkey, much less seen a group of them perform a traditional dance. As I left, the Hopers had spread out all over the community room and were talking to the residents, who had loved (and sung along with) the performance. But here's the other thing. I've been on the board for several years, and supported SOH since just about the time it started. This year was an incredibly small group. Often there are 80 kids or more, from all over — a typical year includes China, Vietnam, Jamaica, Ital...

After a successful FilmNorth opening and a weekend of other activities, I was pretty much toast. So yesterday I caught up on my most pressing client tasks, and then completed a lot of household things: some laundry, some clean-up, some returns, and spent a lot of time helping Coya get around  — her age is showing and she keeps on falling over with her legs splayed like Bambi and can't get up. But last night I was also able to make some kale chips, and some pita chips, and get some plants in the ground (more on that later, I'm not quite done yet), and it felt a little like getting back to normal, just as Patrick and Beatrix were ramping up on the first tech/dress and things were getting crazy for them. So then I met my old friend Dan for a drink at Bar + Cart, which was the absolutely perfect way to end the day. A little late night conversation and Necromancer was exactly what I needed.

Cocktail #8 comes courtesy of the FilmNorth opening yesterday. We had about 1,000 people stop by over the course of the four-hour open house. It was a success beyond my wildest dreams. This project has been a fascinating labor of love since Colin from D/O Architects reached out to say the building was available off-market and did we want to collaborate on it, almost exactly four years ago.  From due diligence to initial designs to arranging for the historic tax credits (the first time I have taken them past the application phase and into development), to the funding (including also the NMTCs, the bonding, TOD, and private gifts), to the logistics, it's been a wild ride. I've been integrally involved with every moment of it, from raising funds to planting the patio. And my team, from the FilmNorth staff to consultants we've worked with (special props at Jennifer Halcrow) to our bankers to the board to everyone in between have been amazing. Incredibly big props to Andrew Pete...

This one was a long time in the making. About half of Tufts spends their junior year abroad, and pretty much as soon as I got there I had Robi Polgar telling me "You need to go to London, and you need to go to BESGL." And I eventually did. BESGL was a multi-school program, so there were some of us there from Tufts, and Hamilton, and Kenyon, and Brandeis, and Catholic University, and Trinity, and Oberlin, and Vassar, and many other schools. My roommates, Kristin and Karen Elizabeth, were from Mount Holyoke and Sarah Lawrence, respectively. Karen Elizabeth was (and probably still remains) one of the most brilliant people I have ever known. With a quirky sense of humor and some of the deepest (and sometimes most scathing) thinking I had ever encountered, I felt forever lucky to have her in my corner. BESGL was a transformational year for me — it was the year I learned I was smart — and my roommates and friends were a huge part of that. Living in London was not too shabby either,...

SPA's theory of encouraging kids to read was to make it a reward. If you finished your regular work in class — fractions or diagramming sentences or what have you —you could have free reading time (this was especially valuable as you could NOT stay inside and read during recess). Beatrix founds my grades last summer and yes, pretty much all of them commented that I rushed through my work so I could get to read. I mean, it stood me in good stead. So, I kind of thought my career would be like that. Strike early, fast, and hot. CHECK. I was almost always one of the younger people in the room. Build diverse experience. CHECK. They don't call me a "swiss-army knife of nonprofit skills" for nothing. So here I am, at what is likely the peak of my career (unless the peak is still coming, THAT would be exciting!), and I kind of thought I would get to more of the free reading. You know, big juicy strategic planning and analysis and all. Making big change happen. But no, I seem ...