Protect Me From What I Want

The next morning was Up and At 'Em...
But we started at Cinco de Mayo!

This delish b-fast burrito was perfect...
And their spicy tomatillo sauce was an ideal fresh addition!

We bee lined it through Brooklyn and then deep into the city!
It was like summer everywhere!

We made a stop at the Whitney for the Jenny Holzer exhibit called Protect Protect.
I have to say...I didn't really know what I was in for. I know Holzer's work from her Truisms and was always wooed by her use of language as a medium.

But this exhibit was different. It started out with these really grand LED displays with statements...powerful statements...
I was in awe of it's scope - it was cloying and overstated and I loved it.

However, when we moved to another part of the exhibit I realized that it was far more complex and difficult than I had anticipated. Holzer had gained access to materials from the government pertaining to the insurgence of Iraq. I was stunned seeing large reproductions of reports, accounts, and stories written on government forms that detailed horrors and injustices that we've all simply brushed against in our heads, but not fully engaged.

I'm not using hyperbole when I say I broke down crying.
I literally had to leave the room and catch my breath...adjust my clothes...turn my attention to other things - the imagery coupled with the handwriting, the text, the meaning...
It kicked me straight in the ass.

Please have a look at the exhibit online, as the installation's time at the Whitney ends at the end of the month.
PROTECT PROTECT
It's worth it, I promise...even just a short meander through the online pictures will effect you.

They were selling some t-shirts by Jenny Holzer and I wish I would have bought one.

Good Deeds Eventually Are Rewarded...well, we can only hope...

Spencer and I parted ways after the Whitney...
He had an appointment at NYU and I had a appointment with E-RY!

This girl right here, my dear friend Emily, is someone I've known forever...but have only met a handful of times.
She's an internet friend. And yes, I know that sounds strange, but somehow, over the years, E-Ry and I have managed to stay connected.
She is funny, cute, talented, and so very dear to me!

I could gush all day about her!

Anyway, she met me at the MOMA and finagled my ass through the doors through her finesse and connections.

We dined on overpriced, but decadent, pasta dishes, drank lemonade, and shot the shit...
It was so great to catch up! I think we hugged a thousand times!

And...she ditched me, but in the most perfect way! Emily had to go back to work and suggested that I hang in the MOMA while she finished up at D.C. Comics where she works.
This was an arrangement I could get down with.

So, I wandered! And I have to thank Emily for giving me this opportunity...
I told her, "I've been to the MOMA in San Francisco"...to which she replied something along the lines of, "That place doesn't even count". And she was right!
The NYC MOMA is great!




Jackson Pollock - Abstract Expressionist...WYOMINGITE!














The Smiths!




The MOMA was a nice way to use my time while waiting for E-Ry to finish up her business at work.

When we were finally reunited, we did an unusually girl thing and went shopping.
We hit H&M, UNIQLO, and Top Shop...

I didn't take a single picture during the whole time Em and I spent together! We were so busy laughing, talking, and hugging that I straight forgot.

Which in actuality, is probably a good thing.
We thought it would be a good idea to pick out over the top outfits for each other at Top Shop.
Em picked out some insane ruffled shirt and ruffled denim mini that I told her reminded me of a 14 year old mother in Cheyenne, WY.
I got her a Lohan-esque backless tunic and Karen O. leggings with reflective rainbow animal print. The mental images burned in our minds provided us with hilarious fodder for the remainder of the evening.

Later, we met up with Spencer, Adrienne, Lenora, and Ross for dinner at Cornershop for a goodbye dinner...
AND...I had the fine opportunity to meet Emily's totally handsome dreamboat of a husband, Evan.
It was a wonderful time and I'm bummed that I didn't capture more of it, but I was lucky enough to be with people that made me forget about taking pictures. I was immersed in the moment and not documenting it.

I did take one picture at the end:

And it was a pic of these two sweet faces.

The rest of the trip is a blur...Gay bar called 'Nowhere', early morning car service to JFK, sub par Eggs Benedict, uncomfortable sleep on the plane, and then back to DIA where it all started.

I'm a lucky person in so many ways.
And I'm thankful...thankful for people and opportunities that come in and out of my life.

Super special thanks to Spencer, Adrienne, Lenora, Throbbing Gristle, Brooklyn, Emily (E-Ry), Evan, and all the other peeps that made my trip so important!

Three Cheers For Adventures!