Fall 2007

Fall looked like falling leaves and dance clubs and the inside of classrooms. Kate and I moved into an apartment in the same building as Randi and Natalie. Neola and I got into some hijinks.

all captured:

Ruining Banana Pudding

This Thanksgiving, I tried to make one of my mother's best desserts, banana pudding. The only trouble is, I never learned to cook desserts as a kid, and now my mom is 2,000 miles away. Like any good Southern woman, my mom doesn't keep exact recipes.

Fruit Loops

my friends and I went on a trip to this place called "Fruit Loop" in the Columbia River Gorge (about an hour east of Portland0. Fruit Loop has several orchards/farms all together.

Here's a video!

Lynette as artist

In her 50s, Lynette Hanson sold her first piece of art.

Click here to find out her story.

Podcast No. 4: I was a teenage Christian skaster

In high school, contemporary Christian music shaped my identity. At 15, I stayed out late skanking at concerts. But as I got older, I moved on to a different type of Christian music, one that led me to accepting an unlikely identity.

Click Here to Listen

What Edna Likes About Oregon

This ran on The Oregonian's Today in Oregon podcast. I recorded it last week.

Click Here to Hear What Edna Henderson Likes About Oregon

There will be more podcasts coming soon, but everything I have recorded lately sounds echoy or bad. I think I need a new microphone. And I really want to learn how to record a b-roll (basically background noise and stuff)

Podcast No. 3: Isolde Becomes a Citizen

Born to a French mother and Irish father, Isolde has dual citizenship. Until this week, she has lived in America for over two decades without being a citizen. In trips abroad when people have made fun of George Bush, she's hushed them away, reminding them she can't vote. But as the price tag for naturalization goes up, she decided to become a citizen. Why's she doing it now? Listen up!

Click Here to Listen

The music is Telegraph Canyon - Old Dark Hymns. That's my cousin's band! Look them up on MySpace

Got a Crush On You

My second podcast brings you the story of mine and Kate's first crushes. From fourth grade Hawaiian boy crushes to the perfect turkey sandwich, love was in the air in elementary school.

Click here to listen to First Crush





disclaimer: I am not great at editing audio yet, so there are a few places that sounds a little clicky or jumpy, I think. But still practicing ...

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My dad tries the dance

Below is a link to my first (miniature) podcast about my mom's dance. Here's a tiny video of my dad trying to replicate it.

My first podcast

I wanted to make this a video, but I really didn't have enough pictures of video to accompany the 7 1/2 minute long story.

first episode: My mother's dance
My mother has one signature dance -- she puts one hand on her stomach (curved) and the other in the air. Then she twists her hips, barely ever moving her feet. Here, I find out the history of the dance, what my dad thinks of it, and what it teaches me about my mom. Click here to hear it.

Also, here are some pictures for accompaniment:


Christmas Eve, 2005 -- The Dance


My mom as a little girl



My mom's dad



My mom now

I'll be keeping this blog to track my ventures into multimedia. This way I'll have a good documentation of my (hopeful) growth as I try become more skilled, and anyone who's trying to break into multimedia can come here for some kind of fellowship.

But beyond that, I want this blog to be a keeper of stories. I'm going home to my mother there, and she is the reason I am a storyteller. I will start with her.