meet the crazy lady

Hi, my name is Andrea (hi, Andrea). My peeps call me Andy much to my harpy mother's chagrin. I'm a 33 year old ex-California girl turned Portlander trying to make sense of my life with a dash of humor and a side of awesome. And let's not forget a smidge of crazy.

Why am I crazy? Well, aren't we ALL crazy, dollface? I think once we all admit our own insanity, life gets a hellofa lot better. Mmhmm. I'm the adopted daughter of a drug addict narcissist and I anesthetize with a neurotic need for organization bordering on OCD. I've got a mouth like a sailor on death row. And just for kicks I behave completely batshit. It's a hoot. Or maybe I'm actually insane. Stick around and see!

I'm not a mommy blogger. I don't have kids. Instead I have a cat (crazy cat lady alert) who is the furbaby of my life. If you enjoy the ramblings and diatribes of the last single girl on earth and her insane little life, well then come on doooown. This is the blog for you.

I'm a writer, a photographer, and a dancer. I have the heart of a hippie and the soul of an artist in the body of a dork. But most of all, I love to read. My books are my most prized possessions. They're like old friends I can always turn to. Plus, reading is tres sexy.  Shall we talk about travel, huh? I lived in Europe in 2006 and I have the Wanderlust. They say there is no cure. I've tried creams and antibiotics to no avail. Maybe they'll put me on the Make a Wish list and I can go to India. ooooh India!

Update: I did go to India! So where's next? Open to suggestions...

I'm a jaqueline of all trades. I've sold alarm systems and lingerie. I've worked in fashion and TV production. Communications and event planning. I'm currently doing freelance work as a writer, web content editor, photographer, and social marketer. Give me a holler if you want to throw a paycheck my way!

I am available for photography sessions, including engagement and wedding photos, pet and family photos,  and food and real estate photography.

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Email me: 

 andrea.anthony.pdx at gmail dot com

Find me:

Twitter

Facebook

Flickr
Lefty Pop

Buy:

my photography

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Awards:

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My interview by Michele of Papoe for Studio 30 Plus, September 2010:

1.    Why did you start blogging?
    I have blogged off and on for years as a way to get my thoughts out, but never this seriously before. I'm a writer by nature and I find that when I'm writing regularly, I'm a much nicer person. But I started this blog kind of on a whim. I hadn't blogged on any platform for a couple of years and when I had an absurd encounter in a coffee shop, I knew I just had to share it. So I signed up for blogger, designed my first masthead, and didn't stop.


2.     You just recently turned 30 so we can welcome you into our club. What were your expectations of being 30? What do you hope to happen that didn't in your twenties? What do you fear might happen?
    Crap on a cracker I was so excited to turn 30. I am excited to be in my thirties. I know who I am more so than at any other point in my life and I'm excited to see who I'll become in this next decade. My twenties were hard, full of challenges and hard work, but I'm ready to go with the flow, seek some bliss, and take life as it comes. There are things I definitely want from life that haven't happened for me yet. I want a family. I want to make a living off of my writing. But if those things aren't in the cards for me, I think I'm prepared to accept that. I didn't feel that way in my twenties. I was very much attached to my plans. Now? I'm ready to take life as it comes. What do I fear? Well, the same fears I've always had. I don't want another broken heart. I don't want to fail at the adulthood and end up homeless. I think that seems reasonable.


3.    I love your about page. You are quite open and honest. “I'm the adopted daughter of a drug addict narcissist and I anesthetize with a neurotic need for organization bordering on OCD. I've got a mouth like a sailor on death row.” Are you this open in real life, or do you find that blogging gives you the platform to express yourself?
    Wellllll, that's all relative. I'm generally an open person. If you're a personal friend, you'll definitely get a dose of the TMI eventually. But I do compartmentalize, a product of my upbringing. Professional me is not as outrageous as personal me and bloggy me is a total nut. But all versions of me are completely kooky. I'm a dork through and through. But yeah, blogging is my open forum. I don't need to compartmentalize. It's like me x 10. I can let it all out on the blog and I often exaggerate for comedy's sake. But I also feel obligated to be completely honest on the blog. It's all me for better or worse and it keeps me honest.


4.     You mention that your books are your most prized possessions. If you HAD to part with your books but could save only three, which would you save?
    Ack! How can you ask me that? That's like asking a mother to choose between which child she wants to live. I just can't pick three. Cannot. Can. Not. I hate you now for this question. Oooookay. I'll play. Um, three books I have read over and over and cannot live without are: Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, and Sula by Toni Morrison. All of these books teach me teach something new every time. Those are my three fave-oh-rite authors as well.


5.     You combine writing about your life with some wonderful photography, aptly titled crazy lady photography. Was this always your intention or did one of them (writing or the photography) develop with your blog?
    Firstly, why thankyouverymuchly! I began my blog to write first and foremost and never intended to feature my photography. I've always been interested in photography. I dated a photographer maybe 4 or 5 years ago, started training my eye to see through a camera lens, and have been exploring my photographic skills since. And, of course, I've been reading Dooce and Chookooloonks for years and love how they feature photography.  I don't remember when I started doing the photo of the day, but it seemed like a natural fit for me. Now it's an easy way to do a blog post without actually writing much (but shhh! don't tell anyone!).


6.     What prompted the new series, The Blog: Sexy Saturdays?
    It had started to seem like I talk more and more about The Sex on my blog. Talking about sex, making it open and funny and accessible is really important to me. THEN, (and this is an exclusive scoop, y'all) I've been toying with the idea of writing a book. About *my* sex stories. Of course, first, I have to get over my fear of my papa reading it. But then it occurred to me that I want to create a place on my blog for just that. Sex stories, from real people, bloggers that I like and who I suspect would tell great stories. And it's a start to telling my own story. I suspect that I'll fit a few of mine in between guest posters eventually.


7.    Have you hugged a vagina today?
   
Not yet, but there's still time. Rosie (my vibrator) is getting a little lonely.


8.    You had an encounter with a douchecanoe. Was this a one-of-a-kind experience or do you have similar stories to tell about your new home?
    For the most part, people here have been super nice and friendly. I really don't have any other douchey Portland stories. But, ask me about my Hollywood days sometime. Now there's a plethora of douchecanoes.


9.    What was the result of the Halloween poll? I vote for Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany’s.  When else could you go around saying, “I've got to do something about the way I look. I mean a girl just can't go to Sing Sing with a green face,” without looking like a crazy person?
   
I'm going as Audrey from Breakfast at Tiffany's! I'm actually going to showcase the pieces I'm gathering for my costume on my blog soon. I don't even have definite Halloween plans yet, but I'll look awesome! I love the Sing Sing quote. But my fave? "You could always tell what kind of a person a man thinks you are by the earrings he gives you. I must say, the mind reels."


10.    What song did you sing on your birthday?
    Zombie by the Cranberries. I rocked it. Oh yeah. Believe it.