Small stone: Jan. 4

Thirty-odd years since these hands held a flute. Certain aspects of playing return without thought, but others are gone, completely. What else is back there in the dark corners of my memory, not used? I'm curious, but also not sure I want to know...

#smallstone

Thirty days of gratitude: Day 9

The word for today is music.

There are so many styles of music that appeal to me, but when I thought about music I'm grateful for, it's the music of my childhood: hymns. There is nothing like a group of people singing a hymn together--congregational singing, that's what I love. If it's a capella, that's all the better.

This hymn has all the words I need to hear, and need to sing. It's reassuring in times of stress and trial, and full of praise too. If you've been lucky enough to hear it sung well, you know the depth that the "with my soul," can add.

Monday morning inspiration: Music brightens my world

Some weeks I skate along almost music-less. The ride to work and back (short as it is) has either peace and quiet or NPR to accompany my journey. If Seth is with me, he'll sometimes plug in his iPod for a song or two to start the morning out, but more often than not we chat--it's six minutes, after all...

But then, suddenly, music will come back into my routine. A friend will introduce a new artist, a new song, maybe a cover of an old song, and I'll be a singing, humming, car-dancing fool once again. And, it will seem, for a time, like music is everywhere... posts on Facebook, maybe a blog post or tweet... some way, somehow, music is back (jazz hands). And each time I think to myself, where did it go, why did it go? And how can I keep music in my world all the time, even when I'm too busy to update my iPod?!

To kick this week off I thought I'd share some musical inspiration that's come my way recently.

This boy makes me smile:




Seth found this video and shared it with me. Very clever.




There's not much about JT that I don't like; same goes for Jimmy Fallon. When they get together, it's always memorable.




And then, there's my love for a capella... this very fun cover will have you humming all day.



What music gets you up and going for the day?

I hope your week is filled with humming, singing and dancing!

Common Miracles: Week #42

 “Rejoicing in ordinary things is not sentimental or trite. It actually takes guts. Each time we drop our complaints and allow everyday good fortune to inspire us, we enter the warrior’s world.”
–Pema Chodron

t's been a while since I've participated in the Common Miracles project, and if I wait for actual time on my hands to jump back in, it won't happen. Too much, on too many plates. And they're all spinning, madly. (But happily.)

This video may be overstating it (you think?), but boy did I laugh heartily when I was thinking of illustrating plates, spinning, juggling things:



Meanwhile, what's going on in my miraculous world? Here's what I noticed today:

* Smiles. You know how "they" always say smiles make a difference? True story, that. One of those things where legend and reality meet up.

* Boots and tights. Wonderful for cold mornings. Especially cold, sorta-snowy mornings!

 * Our dear dog. So after he learns how to text, I want to teach Chief how to make my morning coffee. Seems doable, don't you think? He watched me making my latte this morning with such rapt attention and intelligence, I have to believe he could get the hang of it. (Kind of like those Geico guinea pigs rowing, right?)

* Dreams. I have been having some whackadoodle dreams lately. Co-workers, dogs (duh), my dad circa 1978 (no beard though), therapy circles in the grass, and a child I once thought was really sweet, apparently not so much! Basically my subconscious, once removed. Hilarious and kinda makes my day/night. Knock on wood there isn't a crossing over into nightmare-land...

* Robins. Saw a robin with a bright red breast in the snow this morning. The contrast was stunning. Obviously the groundhog forgot to copy the robins in on the six-more-weeks-of-winter memo! I got it, I just didn't believe it.

* Spontaneous singing. Must say, I have the best kid. Bursting into Am I a Man, or Am I a Muppet? in the kitchen and having your son join in? Bonus.

* Cheese. I was talking with husband this weekend about food cravings--of which he has very few. How is that possible? Me, on the other hand? I have them quite frequently, and they almost always involve cheese, in some variety or form. Am I predictable or what?!

* Family read/prayer time in the morning. It's quick and we're often hurried, but it is one of my very favorite parts of my morning... my day, too. I am blessed, we are blessed, and stopping for just a minute and remembering that, saying thanks for this family I am so thankful for? Bonus.

* Husband's key in the lock, home after an evening meeting. Love that sound.

* Music that makes my heart happy. Case in point today:



There. A snapshot of my common miracles, on this day (just like any other day), in this week (just like any other week), in this month (just any other month).

Except it's not. It was today. And there will never be another one just like it. I'm glad I got to live it. And I'm glad you did too.

To learn more about the Common Miracles project, go here.

What miraculous happenings took place in your world today?

Thursday 13: A very specific playlist

an. Not. Believe.

There's snow in them thar hills. Again. Today.

I know, one word sentences can be annoying. I have no excuse. The. Situation. Is. Dire.

My only recourse seems to be somewhere between a) running away to warmer climes or b) sitting in the hot tub all day or c) hitting the tanning bed or... the most realistic option, d) listening to happy music that puts me in mind of warm and happy times.

So obviously my Thursday 13 this week are happy sunny songs. Some have been featured on Sweet Tea and Sunshine before, but you can deal with that, right? That just means they're. Really. Good.

1. I Was Made For Sunshine, The Weepies


2. Sunny Day, Kristiina Wheeler


3. Bright Sunny South, Alison Kraus + Union Station

4. Sunshine (I Can Fly), Raul Midon


5. Sunshine on My Shoulders, John Denver

6. Halo/Walking on Sunshine, Glee cast


7. Another Sunny Day, Belle & Sebastian


8. Sunny Sunday, Joni Mitchell

9. Running on Sunshine, Jesus Jackson


10. Bottle of Sunshine, Milkshake


11. Brighter Than Sunshine, Aqualung


12. The Sound of Sunshine, Michael Franti

13. Sunshine, Keane

Catching my drift?

This last round of pathetic weather has cemented in my brain that I will never live on the other side of the state, either Washington or Oregon. More power to you  (brave or insane, you decide) folks who can make it, but the moss growing between my toes is a big no-no. Not gonna happen. I think a little southwest desert action is in order.

I hope that wherever you are, it's a sunny day, (even if it's not).

Happy Thursday! For more Thursday 13 participants, go here.

Thursday 13: New music makes me happy

usic makes me happy, that's a pretty well-documented thing on this here blog... I've been having some fun in iTunes lately, playing around and buying a song here, a song there. I have actually sprung for a full album (Neil Diamond's cover album, "Dreams," which I'm loving), but I often like to run around and graze on music, a nibble here, a nibble there...

1. Bruno Mars, Just The Way You Are



2. Mindy Glenhill, Anchor



3. Sean Hayes, When We Fall In



4. Francesca Battistelli, Beautiful, Beautiful

5. Paul McCartney, I Want To Come Home



6. Ray LaMontagne, New York City's Killing Me



7. Hayley Sales, What You Want



8. Santana with India Arie, While My Guitar Gently Weeps



9. Shelby Lynne, Why Didn't You Call Me?



10. Eric Clapton, When Somebody Thinks You're Wonderful

11. John Legend and The Roots, Wake Up Everybody



12. Brandon Flowers, Jilted Lovers and Broken Hearts

13.  Katie Melua, Just Like Heaven



Yep, that's the stuff that makes me smile. And sing really loudly on my mower!

For more Thursday 13 participants, go here. Have a fabulous day!

Thursday 13: Work it, own it

ow long has it been since I've done a music post for Thursday 13? Too long. And in keeping with my (so far) injury-free running groove, this list includes 13 of my favorite songs on my iPod right now, specifically in my running playlist:

1. All Will Be Well, The Gabe Dixon Band. This is a wonderful warm-up song with all the right sentiments to get me in the right frame of mind.

2. Pokerface, Lady Gaga. Not a big Gaga fan, but if I don't have to look at her, I'm even happier.

3. Halo/Walking on Sunshine, Glee cast. This one gets me going!

4. Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It), Beyonce. Of course.



5. I Gotta Feeling, Black Eyed Peas. Such a feel-good song. I can practically see the Oprah flash mob every time I hear this song!

6. A Million Ways, OK Go. And oldie but a goodie. Again with the great video... look what a phenomenon it became that everyone copied their dance style:



7. Hey, Soul Sister, Train.

8. Jai Ho, Slumdog Millionaire Soundtrack. This is such a pick-me-up for mid-way through the run. I almost want to break into bollywood dancing, but somehow I contain myself.

9. I Will Survive, Cake. I love this cover of the old classic.



10. So What, Pink. Great anthem, very kick butt for picking up the pace!



11. Shine, Take That. This band is way old, but I love this song.

12. Say Hey (I Love You), Michael Franti. Boppy and fun, reminds me of Seth.

13. Now That We Found Love, Heavy D & The Boyz. This is from the wedding dance sequence at the end of Hitch, and always brings a happy scene to mind!



As you can see, some of these are a wee bit old and so I am in need of some new ideas... please share with me any songs you find great for getting the energy up! Many thanks.

For more Thursday 13s, go here.

Friday night grateful moment

week on vacation... what's not to be grateful for?

I'm especially grateful for  my brother today, as it's his birthday. Happy birthday, Shelby. You are, and always have been, a great big brother.

In honor of Shelby, I found a couple of fun videos with brothers front and center. Very cute. In the second one, I think I WAS that little sister. Ha ha. Sorry, Shelby.

I am grateful for my men; this week away with them has been relaxing and very fun. From driving on the beach to walking on the beach, going out to eat, playing dominoes, working on crosswords, playing tennis and watching movies, it's been so relaxing and exactly what we all needed.

I'm grateful for my little rituals of wandering around this tourist town (though it's not quite the same without you, Ma!). I hit the highlights yesterday afternoon and was talking with my SIL Kim at the same time... and taking pictures of my springy green coat to show her while we talked.

Isn't that the coolest little shop I'm in while taking pictures? Check it out: Sesame and Lillies. My other SIL introduced me to it, and it's a must to visit whenever I'm in town.

And no stroll is complete without a stop at the candy store or the bakery. True story. I am now back on the trail of figuring out how to make that fabulous apple cinnamon bread again. And this time I will NOT be deterred by my own ADHD when I get home. I swear. (Squirrel!) (Up reference, in case you're not in the know.) After tasting it again this trip, I'm convinced I can make it, but better (meaning, more apples!).

I'm grateful for storms, even if the power goes off. It was a good kind of family challenge to deal with no power on Monday.

I'm grateful for spring, even though it has felt more like November or December than April the past couple of days. I am looking forward to getting home and establishing some yard routines for the spring and into the summer.

I'm grateful for times of self-reflection. They may not come at the most convenient of times (hello, it's 1 a.m., I'd like to be sleeping, self!), but they are necessary and can really help me get on track with my priorities.

I'm grateful for music. Again. Always. I discovered a new artist, Diane Birch, when Guy Kawasaki tweeted on Thursday about this fabulous one-take video. Low and behold, not only is the video cool, but the artist is a breath of fresh air too.

Here's the video:


And here's the really fun "making of" video:


If you're anything like me, you'll watch the video, then watch the "making of," and need to go back and watch the video again. Quite fun.

I'm grateful for Easter, that we'll be home tomorrow night in time to celebrate with brunch Sunday morning with husband's family. And that some of my extended family are gathering in B.C. to celebrate Grandma, who turns 91 on Monday. Happy celebrating, fam!

And, like with Christmas, I'm grateful for the real reason we celebrate--bunnies and chocolate and egg hunts aside.

He is Risen! He is Risen indeed!

Have a blessed weekend.

Pop-culture moment: TV theme mash-up

veryone has a favorite TV theme song that gets stuck in our brains on repeat... well, check out this guy who has combined a bunch of them into a giant mash-up. It's pretty fun and covers quite a few different genres and time periods...



So which ones did he miss? I could have handled a little Greatest American Hero action, or even some Magnum PI, but I suppose lyrics might be helpful--although he did include The Office... Which theme song do you wish he'd included?

Thursday 13: Mellow spring music

t's been a bit since I've done a music post, other than to post videos occasionally.

Here are my current favorite 13 mellow songs in my iTunes right now (the upbeat ones will come next week!). Some of these I may have already posted as a video favorite, but when I get a favorite, it's quite tenacious. Many of these songs have gotten into my brain and won't go away. In a good way.

Links for the song go to YouTube, or you'll see the video itself here. Links for the artist go to amazon.com.

1. All Will Be Well. Gabe Dixon Band
2. Late. Ben Folds This is a tribute to Elliot Smith. (Quite melancholic, but beautiful.)
3. Know This (featuring Scar). The Remnant. (We're pretty much addicted to this song around here.)



4. The Book of Love. Peter Gabriel (Yes, I am sappy. I've never claimed otherwise.)
5. I Have Loved You Wrong. The Swell Season



6. Funny Little Frog. God Help the Girl
7. Man of the Hour. Norah Jones
8. A Friend Like You. Joshua Radin
9. All Of My Days. Alexi Murdoch (This wins the award for video and music not going together AT ALL. Humorous how that happens on YouTube rather frequently.)



10. I Don't Know A Thing. Lucy Schwartz
11. Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight. Amos Lee



12. All At Sea. Jamie Cullum (This was on the first album of Jamie's that I bought and I have very sentimental memories of where I was in my life when I listened to this song most.)



13. First Day of My Life. Bright Eyes. (I originally posted a video that featured stop-action animation to this song. I still love that, but this video is so sweet I just had to post it. This may be one of my favorite songs. Ever. But I say that about alot of songs.)

Happy TT! For more Thursday 13 participants, go here.

Friday night grateful moment

very now and again, it happens. The week is challenging; no other way to say it. Many areas of unrest, stress, tension, for many I care about. So what else is new?! But among the dark spots are the rays of light too...

This week I'm grateful for so many things, but top of the list is my gratitude for belief and faith and the comfort that faith brings. As a local family grieves this weekend for their son, I can't help but be there with them in spirit, wanting somehow for their pain to be diminished, and knowing how preposterous it is to think it even could, or should, be diminished.

I'm grateful for the space to have a bad day. Which is a roundabout way of saying I have a loving and understanding spouse who supports me whether I'm cheerful or not. Thank you.

I'm grateful that Seth enjoys school and academic things enough that when school conferences roll around I can (so far!) fairly well predict what I'll hear from teachers. Whew.

I'm thankful for Seth's courage in the face of difficult conversations. He's learning tools for navigating the world that took me much longer to catch on to. (Yeah, yeah, you can keep that comment to yourself.) Also, I am grateful that Seth has teachers and administrators that look out for him and support him. And friends who are true. Not to be underestimated.

I'm grateful that warmth has come our way, and that everything is greening up nicely. Daffodils are blooming, peonies are poking through, and yes, I need to clear out the tumbleweeds... or at the very least, pitchfork them over the fence during the next windstorm!

I'm grateful for friends and coffee and catching up. And homemade croissants! Banana bread! Wordy Girls! Love you all.

I'm grateful that the parents are on the homestretch from their cruise and should be here in a couple of weeks. I'm thankful, too, that the tsunami last weekend didn't amount to much and that Aunty MJ is having a fabulous time in Hawaii.

 I'm grateful for all the fun and interesting people I have interacted with because of my blog, or their blog, or both. From the Good List Daily folk, to my Thursday 13 connections to the Bits of My Weekend, it's always refreshing to see qualities I value--from creativity to gratitude to just plain old good writing or good food--running around out there on the web! From my runnings around just yesterday I met two new favorite Etsy folks--one was an artist I have been ga-ga over for awhile (but didn't know she had an Etsy shop! That's her art above.), and another (beautiful jewelry! That's one of her pieces below--you knew I'd pick the bunny, didn't you?!) found me through my Thursday 13 post. How very fun. 

I'm grateful that my internet issues won't be entered into the DSM this coming year! Whew. One more year free and clear from the diagnosis. Ha ha.

I'm so thankful for asparagus. For fresh and springy things. For Easter on it's way. For the birds chirping. For the promise of new life--we had a drive-by calf-birthing sighting last weekend. Always a miracle.

I'm grateful, as always, for creative and unique ideas. Check out this fun Scrabble cookie display. Clever. I can think of a lot of fun applications for this concept!

Saw this posted via Twitter this week, and was struck by both the blog post and the video. Good stuff to think about. I like M. Ward.



My favorite quote found this week:

"It's so hard to forget pain, but it's even harder to remember sweetness. We have no scar to show for happiness. We learn so little from peace." - Chuck Palahniuk

I hope your weekend brings you peace and joy and love (even if you won't learn a lot from peace, it's still nice to have a little every now and again!). And hope. It's always nice to add in a bit of hope.

Image at top of post originally found here.

Friday night grateful moment

h sweet Friday night. Is there any night so lovely? Nope, not really.

This week the list includes but is not limited to:
* Some wonderful chats with Seth this week.

* A great few days away with husband. Wonderful to be away from the day-to-day grind, lots of good talks and walks and even some sunshine.

* That amazing sunshine deserves its own sentence of gratitude. It was simply blissful to be warm in the sun, sunglasses on. Felt so good. So foreign. Came home to gray again, but just this afternoon it cleared out for some beautiful end-of-day sun. Lovely.

* The ocean. Beautiful. Chaotic. Tide in, tide out. Gorgeous.

* Wonderful to have a lovely place to come back to. I always enjoy coming home.

* Grateful that in the chaos and uncertainty that exists in this world, there are support structures of family and friends to lean on. I'm wishing the strength of that support on so many right now who have lost loved ones, or who are going through a rough patch. Hang in there!

 * Always grateful for the creativity that abounds. I love the birdhouse room pictured above (featured on designsponge). And the thank-you note pictured below comes from a blog I recently found, thxthxthx, where the author writes a thank-you note each day to some aspect or object in her life. It's really fun to see what she's thankful for each day, though I suppose the one below sort of covers the gamut!

* Popcorn. Even though I broke a tooth last night while eating kernels at the bottom of the bowl (and I know better!), I still love popcorn.

* Grateful for a good dentist and office staff who rushed me in to take a look. So glad too, that there's no pain with the tooth... just that weirdness where your tongue always goes over to see what's missing.

* Grateful for color in this endless gray. Aren't those the coolest chairs above? I love the different colors in the various panels. Bold, baby!

* Grateful for words. Found some good ones this week in my little search for fun and new quotes. Here are a couple of my favorites to ponder:

When was the last time God worked through you in such a way that you knew beyond doubt that God had done it? -Bruce Wilkinson

Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. -Robert Brault

* Grateful for music. Always like a new discovery... Here's a band I found this week; love this song.



* Grateful for World Nutella Day. How could I not? And the shake I made after lunch? Amazing. I did indeed put the banana in, in case you were wondering. It was delicious.

*Grateful for the weekend ahead, for family time and relaxation. Hope yours involves a bit of the same.

Friday night grateful moment

eady for rest. That's the motto for the two old occupants of our house right now. Tiredness has descended... we are whipped. Luckily, rest and relaxation are exactly what's on tap this weekend.

But before the rest, some gratitude.

For one day of sunshine. Well, maybe like two-thirds of a day? That's probably more accurate. But it was lovely lovely.

For color in an otherwise mostly gray week. Butterfly cupcakes? In rainbow colors? How marvelous! Found these on a fun food blog and they just brightened my day. Take a look at the instructions--not too difficult, it seems... now I just need a little girl to make them for! I don't anticipate Seth asking for these at his next birthday... Ha.

For a reminder of my Grandma, through her dish cloths. I framed these last summer but don't think I've shared them here. My Grandma makes these all the time, and when I visit, there are usually a couple of new ones for me to take home. Recently she made noises about not making them anymore, so I took my most recent batches and framed them. I love how they brighten my kitchen wall. A blogger I've recently been following, Swistle, made a cloth this week and posted about it, and even though I walk past them at least a dozen times a day, it made me take another look at Grandma's colorful cloths. And be thankful for them.

Good folks to work with, good cause to work towards. In the throes of another fundraising luncheon--seems like a blink since last year--and enjoying working with the group again. Fun times, and really heart-warming the extent (so far!) that our community has stepped up to help with sponsorship/tables, etc. Looks like our room will be full of people who care about kids--how great is that?

For a sense of humor. I got a lot of laughs this week from the silliness at NBC and the hoo-ha over what to do with Jay Leno and Conan... Ah well. Such important things to consider in this otherwise rather somber time. Mostly the fun came from people twittering (or is that tweeting?) and facebooking and blogging about it. Oh, and Conan's letter to the People of Earth. I don't watch either Leno or Conan (I can't stay up that late and the dvr is full of other things I'd rather watch AND if I was going to watch--I'd watch Craig Ferguson anyway) so I can't pretend there's any real loyalty one way or the other, but I have come away with a bit more respect for the redhead. Related, but not completely, here's Jimmy Kimmel talking with Leno. I like Jimmy too... he is good at sticking it to Leno, just a bit!

See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing.

Speaking of that otherwise somber week... grateful for those who survived the earthquake in Haiti, for those that have mobilized to help with the rescue effort and for the power of things like "Text HAITI to 90999 and send $10 to the relief effort." You know how much that one little phrase has rasied so far? $3 million for the Red Cross alone. Amazing.

For the folks of the blogosphere; the ones I enjoy reading, anyway! I have enjoyed Gwen Bell's ideas for awhile now (her blog title is Big Love in a Small World--major social media lady, she), and she started another blog at the new year: The Mindfulist. Good, simple ideas to improve your life and actually disconnect you from this darn addicting medium every once in awhile. The quote for the day at the Mindfulist: “Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” --Charles Dickens.

For coffee, and coffee dates. Had a few of those this week. Some work-ish, some play-ish. All good. And coffee, though I am mocked by the men of this house for my love... I just can't help it. Love love love.

 

For creativity. Take a look at that Starry Night cake! Makes the rainbow cake look kind of easy and pitiful, doesn't it? Though, husband seemed a little so-what on it--I think taking a bit of a bright blue cake isn't high on his list of must-have desserts. I just love the thought that went into it--how easy would it have been to just make a sheet cake with the starry night portrayed. But no, this cake artist wanted layers! Very fun.

Grateful for my family, near and far. I'm thankful that there is mostly wellness, and mostly blessings. But even among the blessings there are pains and sorrows of course, as with any family. We pray every night that God will hold all of you in his hand and bring you comfort. We all need that, the comfort.

Thankful for fun music. Jen sent me a new music idea today and I checked it out immediately, of course. And had to share it with you all too. The video is fun--it reminds me of being 15 and making those posters of all my favorite things and hanging them in my room... lots of glue and dreams.



Happy weekend. May you truly feel the blessings of rest.

Friday night grateful moment

sn't that image above just the perfect juxtaposition of most days? Or most hours of the day? Pick one, and hope for the best. Of course, I suppose a better way to approach things is the image below (from Lisa Ridgely's calligraphy blog)... I try, I really do. Some days are better than others...

I'm sure I've said this before, but this must have been the GRAYEST week ever. EVER. I used to poo-poo those people who claimed to have season affective disorder and had big old lights at their desks, but that was back when I was young and cheerful. Now I'm old and crotchety and a big light shining in my face would feel pretty good right about now. I am hoping for either snow or sun. Is that too much to ask? I think not. I'd even take both.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, you've got to keep on keeping on. Part of that is the practice of thankfulness, of which I have no short supply.

*Grateful for the best men a girl could ask for. I am blessed, every day. I could enumerate the many ways they both make me feel loved, but then you'd be blushing and jealous, and I'd feel bad for you. So just take my word for it.

*Grateful for color in a gray season. Wonder why the Christmas tree is still up? Well, it's coming down Sunday, much to Seth's chagrin--he was lobbying for the end of January. Ha. (Picture above is me experimenting with my new little photo studio set up. It pretty much rocks.)

*Grateful for beautiful images. 30 amazing examples of latte art--check it out. I was surprised at the detail! And also how many bunnies and little animal images are in the mix too... I'm all for bunnies, but on my latte? I think I prefer the more organic images...

*Grateful for promising health outcomes. My friend Jen is two chemo treatments down for her lymphoma and the tumor has already been reduced by 70%! That's amazing. So glad it's working and so glad you're sleeping better already, Jen.

*Grateful for interesting things to read and ponder... no shortage of that on the bedside table, or laptop... This week I hopped back on to Twitter and I know I've likened it to riding waves of information, but that's really the best way I can think of to describe it. There are a few little tricks in figuring out who to follow and who to NOT follow, so that you're getting information you care about, but generally, I enjoy being back. In my little web wanderings I found a few gems to think about, for your spare time...
The Good Guy Contract. Makes sense to me... I appreciated his thoughts on this somewhat common concept.
The Writer's Almanac. Love the inspiration--I get this delivered to my inbox every morning. And you can listen to Garrison Keillor read it to you every morning too. I really love his voice (Be well. Do good work and keep in touch. That pretty much sums it up). Today's snippet was about Isabel Allende, about her writing process, and it was quite motivating in the writing arena.
The Art of Community. I am really looking forward to taking a look at this book, which was available to download free online (but you can also buy it at Amazon if you would like!). He's got an interesting perspective on publishing and online communities--I'm curious about the applications for non-profit fundraising, as well as just for business in general.
Favorite news story this week. A heartwarming account of someone helping out a fellow traveler in a time of need. You would want this guy looking out for your grandma.


*Grateful for creativity and talent. These guys knocked my socks off this week. Can't get enough of them. At first I couldn't figure it out--I hadn't heard about them before... I know, I'm slow that way. But really, aren't they good? I have a feeling we'll hear a lot more about Sam Tsui and Kurt Schneider in the years ahead. At least, I hope so!

Here's their interview with Bonnie Hunt. (I love her. I'm sad her show got cancelled. I never watched it, but still... I really think she's a beautiful, entertaining lady.) Sam and Kurt explain how they got started and how the partnership works.







*Grateful for people who can make the most of bad situations. Remember when the Newark airport got shut down this week, because some guy went the wrong way into a secure area (to kiss his girlfriend goodbye?) and the whole place locked down. Well, some people decided to sing their way through it. I can imagine finding this rather amusing, but I can also imagine (in the moment) feeling not so much... but, since I wasn't there, I'm choosing to find it amusing.




*Grateful that Ma and Pa got faster internet service on the island! Now I can inundate them with video clips and they can actually watch them. Very exciting.

*Grateful for rosemary. The scent reminds me that we will have summer again. Things will grow again.

*Grateful for cheese. Always. This will never end. Bury me with cheese. Seriously.

*Grateful for hot chocolate with whipped cream AND marshmallows. (Did you know a 13-year-old boy can pretty much finish off a can of whipped cream all by himself? It's almost magical.)

*Grateful for the weekend ahead, the relaxation and the deconstruction of Christmas... and a clean house at the end of it! That's the plan, anyway.

Happy weekend, all. Peace, joy and love.

Music makes the world go round

o know me is to know that I love music. Not all kinds, but quite a few different artists and genres. I have some super music sleuth friends who are always coming up with new and unique artists to expose me to, which I greatly appreciate! And I do very little actual radio listening to find new artists; iTunes fulfills that role for me most days, and a little Pandora thrown in for good measure...

Of course, there's more than just music or songs, in and of themselves. With the amazing technology available to DJs, song "mash ups" are quite common--a combination of songs that together make a new one. The TV show Glee featured a number of great mashups in their first season, especially in one episode where the boys face off against the girls. The boys combined "It's My Life" with "Confessions Pt. 2" and the girls did a "Halo/Walking on Sunshine" combo. Kinda cool.

The two following videos take the concept even further by combining the top 25 songs of the year into one song. It's pretty wild. If you go to DJ Earworm's site, there's even a color coded lyric chart that shows which lyrics came from which song for the 2009 video.

• The Black Eyed Peas - BOOM BOOM POW
• Lady Gaga - POKER FACE
• Lady Gaga Featuring Colby O’Donis - JUST DANCE
• The Black Eyed Peas - I GOTTA FEELING
• Taylor Swift - LOVE STORY
• Flo Rida - RIGHT ROUND
• Jason Mraz - I’M YOURS
• Beyonce - SINGLE LADIES (PUT A RING ON IT)
• Kanye West - HEARTLESS
• The All-American Rejects - GIVES YOU HELL
• Taylor Swift - YOU BELONG WITH ME
• T.I. Featuring Justin Timberlake - DEAD AND GONE
• The Fray - YOU FOUND ME
• Kings Of Leon - USE SOMEBODY
• Keri Hilson Featuring Kanye West & Ne-Yo - KNOCK YOU DOWN
• Jamie Foxx Featuring T-Pain - BLAME IT
• Pitbull - I KNOW YOU WANT ME (CALLE OCHO)
• T.I. Featuring Rihanna - LIVE YOUR LIFE
• Soulja Boy Tell ‘em Featuring Sammie - KISS ME THRU THE PHONE
• Jay Sean Featuring Lil Wayne - DOWN
• Miley Cyrus - THE CLIMB
• Drake - BEST I EVER HAD
• Kelly Clarkson - MY LIFE WOULD SUCK WITHOUT YOU
• Beyonce - HALO
• Katy Perry - HOT N COLD

In a way, I prefer 2008's mash up to 2009's. Not quite sure why, but my niggling irritation at anything related to Lady Gaga might have something to do with it. But each year has artists I'm not so fond of (Mariah Carey, anyone?)...

Enjoy! 

Friday night grateful moment

y heart is very full as this rather peaceful holiday time comes to a close. All the hectic craziness of December seems almost a distant memory. Yeah for that!

This week especially I'm grateful for:
*A little extra time at home with husband. That's a pretty rare thing. I loved it. A girl could get used to that kind of attention. We've seen movies, gone out to lunch, hung out reading and swapping odd news stories... Oh wait, that would just be me, inflicting odd news stories on him (I love them... the odder the better!)... but still, very relaxing!

*Snow. I like that we were graced with a quick visit. I was a giddy little girl around about 9:45 on Tuesday night when the flakes were coming down thick and fast. I am also OK that it is going away too... it's a muddy mess out there right now, but it will all dry up pretty quickly and we'll be back to browns and grays until the next snowfall. (Side note: Right now there is more snow on the valley floor than there is on the hills, and it's kinda weird. I don't remember ever seeing it that way before... but maybe I haven't been paying attention?)

*New years. New years are right up there with birthdays, blank books to write in, and first days of school. Fresh starts. My pencils are sharpened! It's all new and clean and shiny--especially THIS morning. Blinding.

*Our morning breakfast shake. I don't mention this one enough. It is truly the answer to my mornings, and I can't believe we're going on more than two years with this gem--longer for husband...  took me awhile to get on the breakfast shake train. I love it.

*My computer. Something else I take for granted and don't give thanks for enough. Me and my multiple tabs open, flipping back and forth between watching something on Netflix, blogging, browsing through my saved feeds... it's an ADHD gal's dream. And that it's green? Wow. Icing on the cake.

*Inspiration and creativity. Found some really cool pendants (above) on the blog Just Something I Made, and got all jazzed and inspired. Yeah, because I need another project in the basement, right, honey? Sigh. Maybe I'll just appreciate that someone somewhere made them, and get to it when the pile of quilting pieces diminishes. But I do love seeing what people are up to around the web, like at OliveJuice & Company (that's where I found those cute velvet posh squash below!), chookooloonks (amazing photography!) and desire to inspire (where that fabulous and colorful Christmas chandelier below came from).

*My gratefulness would not be complete without music. I am ever grateful for songs, even the ones that get stuck in there and won't come out! (I try to have those be the good ones, of course.) Yesterday it was "Auld Lang Syne," and today it has been the "I Gotta Feeling" song from the Oprah season kick off in 2009. Since I'm not a real Oprah viewer anymore, I hadn't seen the episode until my sister-in-law, Kim, showed it to me on YouTube. I swear I thought that girl out front was a freak for the first minute or so, until the rest of the crowd joined in. Ha ha. Now when I watch it, I look at the crowd and think how still they are and how hard it must have been to hold quiet until it was their turn to let loose. How fun! That would have been a blast to be a part of...



Happy New Year! And happy weekend too! May yours be blessed.

Friday night grateful moment

Ah well, could have called that one, eh? In fact, you probably did. No postings this week... zippo, zada, zilch. And the baked goods flying out of the kitchen? Like bats, I say. Yes. Bats. It was a truly wild and crazy week, filled with all kinds of curve balls and crazy circumstances, but yeah yeah yeah for Friday night.

Tonight I'm most grateful for:
* A great visit last weekend with my brother's family. That is always a great way to kick off the holidays for us.

* An extra weekend with Seth to further stretch our holiday time out with him. We will enjoy every minute of it and Mom promises not to be grumpy anymore, I do so solemnly swear (last night I was tired and rather grumpy).

* A sweet husband who has accommodated all my baking fits, forgotten items at home (yes, he went and got them for me, what a gem) when I've been in the throes of food set up, and odd random crying spells (did I mention I was grumpy last night?). I've been a real peach this week, I tell you. A handful, yes, but all the good ones are.

* Sweet girlfriends who tell me that while I might still look tired, I don't look AS tired as I did earlier in the week. Just wait until after the weekend. I plan to look entirely rested!

* An amazing lunch today--might be the fact that I didn't have to cook it? But still, really heavenly. A cup of roasted cauliflower soup (creamy goodness!), a pear/parmesan/pinenut salad, and a piece of my friend Sara's grilled cheese sandwich (to dip in my cauliflower soup!). All at one of our favorite lunch spots, T. Maccarone's. It was de-lightful. De-licious. And the company was de-lovely as well!

* The fact that I'm done with holiday baking and catering and all those fun things. Now the hard part is packing up a few goody boxes and getting them delivered over the weekend. Oh joy. And getting a few goody boxes into the mail as well...

* All the fun and happy ingredients of Christmas, aside from the edible ones. The joy, the festive atmosphere, the snow that didn't last as long as I'd have liked...

* For a snow (ice!) day with Seth at home on Tuesday. We didn't leave the house all day and loved it. Chopped and prepped and cooked and baked; when I needed things from the store, husband brought them to me. How handy!

* For a beautiful wooden comb that feels like butter in my hair. Check out this sweet early Christmas gift from my lovely friend Suzanne:


* For Christmas laughs like this one:



And this one:



And of course my favorite one, the angry elf scene:



I had forgotten how much I just love Elf!

* For an extended family that I've gotten to know better over the years, and especially more since the advent of Facebook. The past couple of weeks we've gotten many beautiful cards and letters--I've been especially tickled to get so many via email... I may just have to make that transition myself one of these years! Today we received a Christmas card from my mom's cousin Jeanne, and the sentiments it held were quite thoughtful and inspiring. She included a quote from Ralph Marston, a motivational author:

Live today, and live it fully. Start out by reminding yourself how truly precious life is, and move forward with that in mind.

See the beauty and take time to enjoy it. See the possibilities and make the effort to bring them into reality.

You can do things today that will forever change life for the better. Focus on your own special way to create value, and make it happen.

Pay attention to those things that truly matter. Give your love, your energy and your time to them, and your blessings will grow even more abundant.

No matter what the outside circumstances may be, let joy flow from inside you. And watch as it changes the world around you.

This is a day to be filled with beauty, with loving effort, with the wonder, joy and positive energy of being alive. Live this day fully while it is here, and its joys will be with you always.

Love those sentiments. Good words to live by. Thanks for the reminder, Jeanne.

I also just love this flower arrangement for Christmas, from an online shop called Nettleton Hollow. How beautiful.



Hard to believe we're a week away from Christmas. Seems like it has snuck up so quickly, in spite of those ridiculously early Christmas displays in some stores... but here we are, and there we'll be, and there will be plenty to be thankful for then, too.

Have a great Christmas countdown everyone! Now that the cooking's done, the posting can begin. Famous last words!

Friday night grateful moment

Feels like Christmas, it really does. Biggest sign is that family is here... that always helps move me rapidly in the Christmas direction. And having a deadline to get the house un-sugar-crusted and un-flour-coated? Priceless. Thank goodness I do enjoy a deadline! (Just don't open the closet in the guestroom, please!)

This week I was reminded of many things to be thankful for, not the least of which is:

* A warm, clean house. The warm part I'm grateful for. The clean part I'm proud of! (Must do that more often, truly. It just feels so good to relax in a tidy, clean space. Ah.)

* A loving, thoughtful spouse.

* A cheerful, happy and affectionate kid.

* The beautiful alchemy of flour and sugar and butter and all the many variations available from those ingredients... and a few more ingredients (hazelnuts, chocolate, fruit, nuts...) tossed in for good measure too, I suppose.

* The cheer of Christmas music. And those great merry mixes from friends!

* The peace of a quiet day, just me and my baking, and my audiobooks.

* The generous spirit of friends, their kindness and laughter.

* The diversity of people and their backgrounds.

* Cookies, candy and cake. Isn't that what Vitamin C is all about? Ha. And then there's chocolate. (I think my sweet tooth is back, at least temporarily!)

* Knowing that my immediate family is safe and well and healthy. I don't take that for granted.

* The glow of the Christmas tree, and the multicolored bliss of our many and varied ornaments.

* The anticipation of snow.

* The laughter of my neices. Love those gutteral giggles. So glad they all made the trek over the mountains to see us this weekend!

* The fact that the whole house smells so good with all the Christmas baking--I go to sleep and it smells good and the scent is still there in the morning! Heavenly.

* That my arm/shoulder thing healed up quickly--really almost within 24 hours--and I was able to continue on with my week relatively unscathed.

* For hope and the spark that it brings, however faint for some. It is truly a powerful force... hope. For love and the warmth that it adds to our lives. For faith and the strength and courage it both gives and requires. For peace, wherever we can find it, however long we can hold on to it.

* For the multitude of lights around town, making these early evenings so much more bearble. My first choice after dark: home. But if I have to be out and about, hermit that I am (not usually), I appreciate seeing everyone's hard work in their festive outdoor lighting. And I'll keep the Griswold jokes to a minimum!

* For technology and all that it adds to our lives (no Luddites here, no sir!). I couldn't get a good picture of the tree with my point-and-shoot, and Kim was able to get the picture you see at the top on her iPhone and quickly emailed it to me--how handy! Things that we wouldn't have dreamt of 10 years ago we now take for granted... wonder where we'll be 10 years from now...

Here's a sweet video of a talented little ukelele player, riffing on Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours." I apologize for not being able to find the "real" version so you can see how the lyrics really go, but, frankly, I gave up after finding only covers or nonsense versions on YouTube... maybe when I'm a little more awake I'll find it!



Peace to all on this cold and frosty weekend!

Friday night grateful moment

Oh dear, it's been one of THOSE weeks again, when I look at the blog and reflect that while things certainly have happened since last Friday night, the translation of that activity that to "paper," alas, has not transpired. Sigh.

Still, grateful list on tap, many things to be thankful for:
* So grateful for a weekend, though there are many things to be done, not the least to clean up the tumbleweed-strewn yard (even though it's supposed to be pathetically cold out) and get the final touches on the tree. Rest will happen, and then work will happen. I swear it.

* Grateful we had extra scheduled time with the young lad Seth this week. It was a joy, even the homework hounding part.

* Seth had a band concert last night (no, I'm not grateful for THAT) and got to play his new (to him) trumpet and had a blast. He really enjoyed being able to provide inspiration to the 5th and 6th graders who watched the jazz band with wide eyes. That was him last year! And I'm grateful he's such a thankful kid for his newish shiny trumpet. It's a pretty one.

* I'm thankful for girlfriends and pierogies. A couple of my Canadian gal pals and I have a seven-year tradition of making pierogies and we spontaneously decided that THIS was the week--we usually do it sometime around the holidays. We made some lovely dumplings that I will post later this weekend. And my tummy is currently happily full with them too. Oh joy.

* I'm thankful for girlfriends and music. I did one of our bi-monthly swaps today with a couple of friends and it was happy, happy, happy. I have some fun new tunes (Christmas and otherwise) to explore. And it's always wonderful to catch up with the music-bearers, as well. Wonderful women to have in my life.

Remember these guys from last year? Here's their latest fun song, "The Christmas Can-Can."



* Took a quick jaunt over to TriCities with a good friend this week--I went to get all full-up on Christmas baking supplies for company events and my own little gifting indulgences, and she went to get a leg-up on holiday shopping. We both accomplished most of what we wanted to, and spent more time than we should have at TJ Maxx as well... well, a girl's gotta get a little Christmas for her too, don't you think? I'm grateful for our conversation (which is always interesting!), our PF Chang's lunch, and our efficient shopping methods!

Check out these wonderful cookie cutters I saw this week on a fun style blog I follow:



* Grateful for my dear friend Jen, who started chemotherapy this week, that she is surrounded by love and support and more friends (funny ones too) than you can shake a stick at. It's a good thing, and I know it will help sustain her through many a long chemo treatment.

* Thankful for carmel corn. Even though my sweet tooth is being a bit of a Mr. Grinch lately--I look at all my Christmas recipes and just say "meh" to most of them--there is nothing that gets me quite as happy as a bag of Bright's carmel corn, or Harry and David's moose munch, or... homemade! And the holiday gift baskets have started arriving at work, so I'm looking forward to the ones that make the cut to take the trip home--most end up being munched on at work...

* Grateful for my husband and our quiet weekend plans tomorrow. I am hoping to see snow! Maybe even touch snow!

* Grateful for all the fun and pretty things that make this season special. All the Christmas lights, all the "candles" in the windows, all the fun decorations and music. It's fluff and not central to what makes Christmas special to me, but it certainly is frosting on the cake!

And in case you haven't heard this lately, I think Linus says it pretty well:



Don't you just want to give him a big hug? That voice...

Peace to all on this very wintery weekend. Stay warm!