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Mon 30 Jan 2012

Rocket GLAM 43rd Birthday Party

deep | [4] Comments 

GLAAAAAAM IIIIN SPAAAAAAAAACE!

Glamsters! Thank you all SO MUCH for making my GLAM Party such a huge success. So many of you! So many rocket-packs! So many aliens! SO. MUCH. GLAM.

A few quick thoughts:

  • I LOVED SO MANY OF THE COSTUMES. SO GREAT! I think Liz won on overall Rocket Glammiest and Best Rocket Pack! (& bringing the hotness!)
    DSC_0123
  • I get an honorable mention, coz I LOVED my costume, and it did not turn out looking like a GLAM SPACE CHICKEN as I feared. If I wear it everyday going forward, someone please intervene. My best Glam Costume to date!!!
    DSC_0102>
  • I also was SUUUUPER happy with the playlist (see below) I hope you were too!
  • So I’ll post a few random shots here, but for gods sake, at least check out the BEST 50 Photo Booth Shots here on Facebook
  • Here is the full set of photo booth shots on Flickr – honestly there are closer to 85-90 GREAT shots in there!
  • Sorry the photo booth was a bit balky (& the first chunk of shots were out of focus) – we just got it & it will be in better shape for the NEXT GLAM Birthday :-) Big thanks to Adrian & Kimberly & all the volunteers who took pix!

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Big thanks to Kimberly for all the hard work in making this happen (and putting up with the fact that we made it happen “my” way :-) ) You rock babe! (And damn you’re hot!)  And you make the best ridiculous facial expressions in the photo booth shots.

ROCKET GLAM!

‘Deep

.ps For those of you who still don’t understand, here is why (as I said after my 40th Birthday GLAM of the Dead party):

Q: Why GLAM? A: GLAM – because I love bright shiny things. When i turned 31 I decided to reclaim my love of all things shiny, sparkly & bright. Guys (at least straight ones) aren’t supposed to love that stuff as much as I do. Yeah. Whatever. It’s been all GLAM ever since

You can find pix from all my GLAM parties here.

.pps

And here is the playlist. Like I said, twas one of my best!

Click HERE for more…

 

Tue 3 Jan 2012

The Proposal

deep | [16] Comments 

[Ed. note: Numerous people have asked for "the story" of me proposing to K, so I thought I'd write it down. It feels a little odd to write a blog post about such a moment, but we here at deeptrouble.com are all about giving the people what they want. :-) Also, this post allows me to explain why we have unexpected pictures of the proposal itself.]

I’ve been thinking about asking Kimberly to marry me for a while now & I told myself that if I felt like asking her 5 times or so, I should just do it. In the end, it ended up happening half by intent and half by serendipity, like many of the best things in our relationship.

IMG 1978Unexpected Proposal-Cam! (courtesy of Hannah Tries)

Click HERE for more…

 

Tue 27 Dec 2011

The Story of Trixie!

deep | 1 Comment 

TrixFinal

Trixie in her natural habitat, the ‘Deepistan National Parklet (& in front of our temporary construction mural by Adrian Cotter.)

 

When I started my front-of-home renovation project, my architect Jane Martin surprised me by asking if I was interested in doing a parklet. The irony was that though I spend plenty of time involved in issues related to urban spaces & livability (and thus I run in parklet-y circles), the thought never occurred to me! Luckily, it did to Jane & I immediately loved the idea.

Months later, as the parklet project was really making progress, Jane proposed doing a “succulent sculpture” for it. And since she was so dead-on about the parklet, I immediately said sure! I thought “Ummm – a what?” Jane excitedly explained that our parklet needed an artistic focus & that it should be plant based. At that point, seeing her vision completely, I said “sure!” I said “Ummm – hmm” & started trying to figure out how to say “no” to something she was so enthused about.

Click HERE for more…

 

Fri 14 Oct 2011

Goodbye, Maximum Leader

deep | [17] Comments 

[Ed. Note.: Yeesh.  I haven't blogged in about a year!  I have so many things to tell you about (Parklet! Rickshaws! China!) & will be getting to it ASAP. But this broke the log jam & I plan to be writing more soon. Sorry  for the delay dear readers (assuming you are still out there!)]

[PLEASE NOTE: The opinions below are entirely my own & do not represent those of anyone else, much less Apple, Inc.]

Steve Jobs
Over the past 9 and a half years, I’ve often fantasized about sitting down at lunch with Steve Jobs. I frequently walked past him eating with Jony Ive at the Apple cafeteria and considered it.1

The last time I saw them having lunch together was a few months back, but that time I didn’t experience the wild flash of “what if I just sat down and started talking!?”.  That time, I could tell something was very wrong: just seeing the sadness in their eyes and the silence between them made me hurt. I convinced myself that it was just that Steve wouldn’t be coming back to Apple. I think I was very wrong.

Since Steve died last week, I’ve been surprised at how much it has affected me, and in the aftermath I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about why.  What was he to me? I’ve been having a hard time finding the right word.

The first word that comes to mind is “hero”, but Steve was no hero of mine.  He could be too mean too often for that.  I’m sure a lot of people will start calling him one, that seems inevitable, but I dislike the process of whitewashing his story.  It’s so disingenuous and ultimately devaluing.

So what then? “Pioneer” – too impersonal. “Eminence” – meh. “Mahatma” means “a person regarded with reverence or loving respect” but even besides the fact that Gandhi has that covered, it captures none of the “why” since it is just an honorific.  ”Visionary” is pretty good but fails to capture the real world drive he imparted to my life.

So what is the word for someone for inspires your best, focuses your creativity, and creates the standards by which you judge yourself and the world around you?

Click HERE for more…

 

Wed 17 Nov 2010

Halloween 2010: Disco Ball 5.0!

deep | [8] Comments 

[Ed Note:  What follows is just a lot of blather about how I decided to remake my classic Disco Ball costume - if you just wanna see it in action CLICK HERE for the 1 minute video for all you need to know :-) , otherwise see ALL THE PIX HERE.]

So every year around Halloween three things happen:

  1. I start wondering what costume I’ll do for Halloween since it’s my favorite holiday.
  2. People from all over the interwebs find my Disco Ball costume online, and start emailing me for advice on how to make one for themselves*.
  3. People start asking me if I’m going to do my Disco Ball again…


(Click for more pix)

In response to 1, I always have to do something that makes me happy.  That usually means it has to have high production values, it has to be ambitious, and it has to ”wow” people. Ideally, it is somehow interactive, and even more ideally it is something I can wear on my bike**….

Click HERE for more…

 

Sat 2 Oct 2010

Sainthood!

deep | [7] Comments 

Last weekend at FlashDance 29, Sister Viva L’Amour and Sister Selma Soul showed up & asked for the microphone & I of course, said “yes” immediately out of respect. They then proceeded to Saint me!! I’ve been Sainted by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence!

DSC_1959.JPGCourtesy of Adele Burnes

This means so much to me I don’t know where to start!

To be appreciated is always nice, to be honored is even better, but to be honored by people you admire, that is simply fantastic.

For those of you who don’t know who The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are, check this great Wikipedia article* – but in the best sense of the words, I’d say they are the clown-priests of San Francisco, steeped in social justice, gay pride, high & low comedy, and irreverent demolition of many of the most troubling aspects of organized religion (like guilt and intolerance.) Add to that the fact that they bring flair, wit, and humor to all they do, and you begin to understand why I hold The Sisters in such high esteem. And now they have deemed me to be part of their world. Wow.

The proclamation says it all:

IMG_0175.jpg

SAINTHOOD!

Absolutely, Totally, and Universally Administered by The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Inc., The Sisters Hereby Forever Proclaim Amandeep Jawa

Saint Deep Vibes of the Free Wheelin’ Patron Saint of Thumpin’ Trikes

For upholding and promoting the ideals, beliefs and convictions held sacred by the Order,
For creating positive changes in our world by honoring The Mind, The Body, & The Spirit,
For perpetually dedicating untold hours of freely expended energy
in service to The Order and to The Community,
For promulgating Universal Joy! and expiating stigmatic guilt everywhere you go,

Be It Decreed That From This Day Forward That Your transgressions shall be reduced to mere fluff in
the eyes of the Goddess who knows all and forgives all,
Your good works shall be remembered in honor and in perpetuity,
You shall forever stand as a pillar of strength in The Community, You are hereby perpetually allied with the
Order of The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Inc.

Therefore, Sainthood is forever Proclaimed on this Honorable Day, September 25th, 2010
in the presence of The Community & The Order of The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Inc.

Sister Anni Coque l’Doo, SPI, Inc. Sister Viva L’Amour, Mistress of Saints

Sainthood at last! Sainthood at last!
Thank Goddess Almighty, Sainthood at last!

I now answer to “Your Saintliness”, or “Your Holiness” :-)

-Saint ‘Deep

*Even if you think you know who the Sisters are, the Wikipedia article is a GREAT read. At the very least, check out their mission statement at the end of the “Inception” section & the list of my fellow Saints. I imagine those are the A-list saints (unlike lil ol’ me) – but nonetheless wow again! (Also there is a pic of Sister Viva L’Amour in the “Sisters at Reno Pride” section.

.ps for a few more pics go here…

.pps The Sisters’ website is here…

 

Fri 25 Jun 2010

Heroes, Villains & Cultural FAIL: Thoughts on Michael Jackson

deep | [4] Comments 

What follows are some ideas I banged out late the other night while writing  the invite to my 2nd Annual MJ Memorial Flashdance (tonight! y’all should come).  It isn’t particularly well-written (it was 3am!) but I’ll post it anyway, because the thoughts are important to me & I don’t have time to improve it just now (my apologies! – I’ll try to get back to it later I hope… feel free to leave edit suggestions in the comments :-) )

 

Besides color, what’s different about these two “Michael Through the Years” images?

mj-ct.jpg

from the Chicago Tribune

 

 

mj-dm.jpg

from the Daily Mail UK

 

I think it is that the Chicago Tribune stopped at 1990? Why? Maybe because it is easier for us.

In the aftermath of MJ’s death, I was once again reminded of the fact that we as a culture have a hard time getting it right when it comes to dealing with our heroes and our villains.

If the person is a hero, like one of my greatest heroes, Martin Luther King, Jr., we try like hell to make them into a saint – someone who was a perfect paragon & could do no wrong. Even if, as in the case of MLK with his plagiarism & infidelity, that is patently untrue. And if the person is a villain, we make them into a monster – someone beyond human understanding.  The problem with this approach is simple – in both cases we put a huge amount of distance between us and them, a distance that costs us in many ways.

Click HERE for more…

 

Mon 17 May 2010

How To Lose A Best Friend Without Even Knowing It

deep | [33] Comments 

Update 5/21/10: Bob’s Friends’ Memorial 5/23 Info

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Hiking with Bob, Mokelumne Wilderness, July 2003 (courtesy of Eric Arons)

I have developed a few life rules over the years & I have added one more over the past few days:

Rule #1: Avoid Death

New–> Rule #2: Make Yourself Known (Intimately)

Rule #3: Leave Things Better Than You Found Them

…

Rule #23: Avoid Tusks

—

A few days back one of my dearest friends committed suicide. Even writing that still brings tears to my eyes. It’s a very recent occurrence and we are all sitting here struggling – through pain and loss, confusion and anger, and mostly just struggling.

One of the saddest and most instructive things (yes, I MUST try to make some good come from the chaos) of this whole event is that I just lost one of my best friends and I didn’t even know he was one of my best friends.

Click HERE for more…

 

Thu 6 May 2010

Swaran Jawa’s Mattar Paneer Recipe

deep | [2] Comments 

Note: If you want to skip the hype-splanation, and cut straight to the recipe,  click here or go down to the “Click HERE for more” below….  Also note that I’ve included a plain text and a plain HTML version as well.  I recommend checking back to this page before attempting to cook it, as I plan on updating the recipe from time to time.

It is done.  I have done it.  I have perfected my Mom’s Mattar Paneer recipe!

MattarPaneer.jpg

You don’t know what I’m talking about? You don’t know what mattar paneer is?  You poor, unwashed, heathen.  Wikipedia will tell you that mattar paneer is “is an Indian dish consisting of paneer (cheese) and peas in a sweet and spicy sauce.”

What Wikipedia won’t tell you is:
  • “Mattar” = “Peas”, “Paneer” = “cheese”
  • It’s perhaps the single best dish my Mom makes (& she’s quite a cook!)
  • Paneer is home-made, light, mild, cheese – kinda like a firm cottage cheese, or ricotta cheese in taste (very subtle) and has a texture almost like tofu
  • Arguments over who got the most paneer were the flashpoint for many battles at the dining room table between my brother and I.  Eventually, my parents had to begin a strict equal apportionment scheme to reduce conflict.
  • It is one of my three or four favorite foods.

So you might be thinking “Ok, so it is a recipe, and you can make it.  Nice, but no big deal…”  This suggests you don’t understand that I CAN NOT COOK.  What little cooking skills I have, I have learned in order to make this dish (& a few others like it).  Seriously: Can. Not. Cook. Googled-to-look-up-how-to-boil-eggs-earlier-this-year.

Get it?  And now after years and years of learning and figuring it out, my Mattar Paneer recipe is as good as my mom, Swaran Jawa, makes it.  It’s now officially, crazy + delicious.  I have been attempting this for years…  Many of you have tried it and thought “Oh this is good” – but it hasn’t been – you just didn’t know better.  But now, finally it is legit.  Soooo good.

I should add that to be able to cook something as good as my Mom is huge for me as I still have little common cooking sense.  This means there are probably improvements, simplifications, and twists that you folks will come up that will take me years to figure out – so please put them in the comments and email them my way.  Seriously – it took me literally 2 years of trying this recipe to realize that I could avoid burning the pot by using more oil.  Yep. 2 years.  (And actually, truth be told, I didn’t even realize it – my esteemed sous chef, Bob, figured it out. THANKS BOB)  So feel free to help me learn faster.

Also, I’d like to ask that if you pass this recipe along, just make sure you give credit to my Mom :-) she deserves it!  (Happy Mother’s Day Mom! AND THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP!)

——

A few notes, before we jump into the recipe:

  • The two most interesting parts of this recipe can be purchased from an Indian food store as my Mom likes to remind me.  The gharam masala spice mixture and the paneer.  I say “Mom, if I wanted to buy Indian food, I’d just go to an Indian restaurant!”  But if you are looking to reduce the level of difficulty, those are real options.  I’d say whatever you do, make your own paneer – it is EASY and SOOOO COOL.
  • If you are expecting this to look and taste like mattar paneer you get in most Indian restaurants, you will be disappointed.  And you will deserve a good flogging. I’ve come across very few Indian restaurants that don’t do a lame job of mattar paneer.  They usually skimp on the cheese, and the cheese they do make is not very good.  They also tend to make the base heavy with cream (bleagh) – even the wikipedia picture is this style.  Bleagh.  This is the best version of mattar paneer I know folks & it is not just because it is what I’m used too – most Indians I knew growing up loved my Mom’s version too.
  • This is best served over basmati rice or with naan bread (lightly toasted pita bread is a good naan substitute – the fluffier the better).  I also recommend putting some plain yogurt on it if you are serving it with rice. Yum!
  • This recipe is in 3 parts, and two of these three parts are the key parts to two of my other favorite foods of all time, my Mom’s rajmah (red beans) and my Mom’s masala chicken! Once you get this down, those other recipes are pretty easy.
  • If you can’t do dairy, or are vegan – replace the paneer with tofu.  This is commonly done & quite yummy.  Also if you can’t do tomato sauce* (too acidy for an ex-GF – thanks for all the help Celeste!) you can substitute yogurt – still yummy.
  • I’ve uploaded a few random scattered pictures I’ve taken through the years - they will help you get a sense of what this all should look like.  Hopefully I’ll get around to adding a definitive set someday.
  • I’ll be updating the recipe from time to time, so check back before you attempt it – it may have been improved.  And hopefully, people will leave improvements in the comments.

Click HERE for more…

 

Tue 9 Feb 2010

Trikeasaurus 1.0 R.I.P.

deep | [5] Comments 

Trikeasaurus 1.0 is dead. The trailblazing tricycle of my affections can cart sound systems no more. She will be sadly missed. A moment of silence for the beast that sparked many a FlashDance and brought many many smiles to San Francisco (& me!)

3604625949_ff9ebbf813_o.jpg
(photo courtesy of KayVee.INC on Flickr)

Being a simple recreational trike, she was never really physically capable of the hard riding being Trikeasaurus required, but damn if she didn’t make a good try. Bent seat posts, broken fenders, and now finally, a cracked rear axle have taken a toll.

IMG_0545.jpgIMG_0546.jpg

The cracks* in the axle have more to do with my new speaker-mount rig (super awesomely heavy duty, but alas too heavy) than the trike itself, but it just reinforced the fact that this light duty recreational trike was never designed for the kind of wear and tear I put it through…..

Fear not, Trike-fans! I’ve ordered a new Worksman industrial grade tricycle** to become Trikeasaurus 2.0. Trike 1.0 – we’ll miss ya!

IMG_0307.jpg

*I’m planning on trying to get the cracks in the axle welded so it can be given/donated/sold to someone as it is still a useful light duty tricycle….

**I’m getting a “Mover“

 

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