Preoccupied

I haven’t been posting for a while as I have been preoccupied with the following:

1.  Buying roller derby skates and gear

2. Learning how to skate in my roller derby skates and gear

3. Trying out for roller derby

4.  Being accepted on my local roller derby league (!)

5.  Practice, practice, practice (aka: making my dreams come true)

Currently, going to a standing position from a sitting position hurts a lot on account of my bruised tailbone but I sort of love it….SO worth it.

Happiness is Going Back to the Future

I've been hiding out lately, blowing my nose every 5 minutes for the second week in a row. Being sick is the worst. I've also been trying to wrap up a few projects on the computer which necessitates procrastination-breaks sanity-breaks every now and then. Browsing blogs has become my virtual break-room and lucky for you, I came across this gem of a project that I simply had to share.

Photographer Irina Werning has been a busy gal, inviting various groups of people to go Back to the Future by recreating a photo from their childhood-past.

Have you seen this genius? It's pretty amazing. This kind of stuff makes me really, really happy. To have a good day, check out more pics on her site HERE.

Lovely Package Exchange

Is it me or is getting some sort of personalized correspondence in your mailbox one of the best things in the world? The other day one of my sisters sent me a homemade card with words I actually read on paper. It was so sweet and pen pal-ish. I have also gotten two wedding invitations in the mail recently—which I was probably way too giddy over. Then my mom sent me a package of goodies from Ikea, with the cutest platter ever I might add and just when I thought I couldn’t love the post person any more, I received a parcel from a new blogging buddy I was introduced and assigned to as part of a “lovely package exchange” I participated via the Oh, Hello Friend blog.

My partner and I not only had the opportunity to send objects we thought the other would enjoy, we were also able to take part in something we both love; creating lovely packaging—which was sort of the idea of the exchange.

So today when I pulled the lid off the box that the lovely Catherine Hart from Austin Texas sent me, I was overwhelmed by the charm and vintage goodness that was cushioned inside. Although we only met a few short weeks ago in the blogsphere, I felt as though each little object said something about my character in some way and yet, at the same time, each item told me something about Catherine’s character as well. It was actually quite inspiring to connect with an almost stranger that way.

There were so many things to love like vintage "twist sticks" (aka mini pipecleaners), bingo sheets and yo-yo...

an awesome game of "endless landscape"...

tiny gift bag art...

and so much more. But one item I will particularly treasure is the best piece of handmade jewelery (made by Catherine of course).

Thank you so much Catherine. I love.

As stated above, this was a package swap so below is a sampling of some of the goodies I sent off to Catherine.

All wrapped and ready to go. The gift bow doubled as a hair accessory...

Inside the main package were smaller packages. Postcards packed in a homemade alligator envelope, little tug balls that revealed some prizes when the string was pulled and a few other delights…

When I found this mini kissing couple at a train collector shop, I knew it had to be used to accessorize the gift box full of miniatures.To see it from Catherins perspective you can check out here blog HERE.

Gifting is the greatest invention ever!

Life Lyrics

I know, I know, this blog has had a heavy hit in the random category lately. That is why I thought I would post a little project that I actually created a few months back but just barely did anything with.

At the end of the summer last year my grandma (aka “little grandma”) had given me a bunch of her olds games that I use to play with at her house when I was little. As I stared at all the miscellaneous game parts I became enticed to create something from some of them. Because I loved the look of the worn, wooden pieces from a very old game of Jenga, I decided to use the rectangular blocks as my main ingredient. The other ingredient was my much neglected wood burning tool which I used as an inscribing instrument. What resulted is the first piece to a series I am calling the “life lyrics project.”

In it’s entirety the message reads: “How very special are we, just for a moment to be, part of life’s eternal rhyme.”

If that sounds familiar to you it may because you have seen the 1973 animated version of Charlotte’s Web. The lyrics are from, Mother Earth and Father Time which is a song written by the Sherman Brothers for the movie. The line I used for the project just really inspires me.

I am glad I finally took a whole five minutes to get this on the wall, now I just have to fill up all the empty space around it. Stays tuned for more about the “life lyrics project” and guess what else? There is another giveaway in the works—I bet you can’t wait…mom…dad…anyone?

Ira

Did you know it was Ira Glass’s birthday a few days ago? (That’s when I first began drafting this post but I was distracted by a toddler and baby until now). Anyway, as I was telepathically sending Ira good birthday vibes, I was remembering something I really love which is when I just happen to be in the car on a Friday night in perfect timing to catch NPR’s This American Life. Of course we subscribe to This American Life podcasts but we don’t always make the time to play catch up. Besides, sometimes hearing a story that makes you either laugh your butt off or cry your eyes out is a bit better when it’s unplanned.

For my church "job" I have the privilege of writing up articles from personal interviews I conduct with other church members. This little calling is amazing on many levels; mostly for the fact that people I often hardly know are willing to share their incredible lives without reservation but also because I like to pretend I have an inner Ira Glass I can summon during interviews. Perhaps THIS kit created by Frank Chimero would help. I pretty much can’t get enough of Mr. Glass.

In fact, on an obsessive note, Jon and I considered naming our second son Ira—you can’t deny it is a great name. Considering our last name though, we ended up naming him Avi and then we just subscribed to Showtime for a while to watch the This American Life television series.

Ira Glass Kit via Something’s Hiding In Here.

Thank You Dr. Martin

"I Have A Dream"

(image)

Listening is an Act of Love

As you may know I am a huge fan of the StoryCorps project which is why I really wish I could go to this book tour which will be in Bolder tonight. Maybe if I get a million things done today I can reward myself by attending! Anyone want to come with?

Beautiful Jared: Inspiration Pages

Jon and I met Jared a little over 5 years ago as he stood across the counter from us as an Aaron Brothers employee. We eagerly watched Jared’s careful hands remove the brown kraft paper from a newly custom framed “cloudscape theory”, an art piece Jon and I had purchased on our honeymoon. At the reveal, Jared complemented us on our purchase.

When chit chat over the surfy landscape became sparse our conversation shifted topics to that of an object sitting on the table-top near the three of us; a red fabric covered journal which had been personalized with large black-sharpie colored stars. As the owner of the book, Jared described the journal as an on going personal project that he took with him everywhere. In reaction, Jon boldly asked if we could look through the “project book”. I was a bit taken back by Jons audacious inquiry and would have interjected halt to the idea to relieve Jared of a response but my curiosity kept me quiet.

Jared allowed us to take a closer look at the journal and what I saw next changed me and inspired me. The book was alive with images and words that represented Jared’s current journey in life. Each page was adorned with notes, doodles, intricately cut images from magazines, secret doors and pockets for prized objects. Items that had been abandoned and trashed by their original owners had become treasures in this magical book from the moment they were pasted to one of the pages. This unexpected treat swelled with significance as Jared told the story behind each clipping and photo. Receipts and old clothing tags became momentous as they no longer represented a purchase but a human life. The book was indeed an extension of the man that was standing before us.

In the midst of repeatedly trying to find the right expressions of gratitude to Jared for letting us experience this great book, he respond plainly, “You guys can have it.” Confused, we initially declined his offer as it was too great a gift to give to perfect strangers. Knowing we were puzzled by his donation he explained, “if you guys really appreciate my book as much as you have expressed and aren’t just spewing words to please me, mock me, pass the time or to make me feel good then I would want you to have it” At that, although still feeling undeserving of such a personal treasure, the beautiful book became ours. It was at that moment that Jared became a hero and role model to us as he was as inspiring a person as were the pages of the book he created.

Story Corps in Denver

If you don’t already know, Story Corps is a project dedicated to celebrating human life through story sharing and listening. This project enables willing participates to step into a Story Corps booth to record memories from their life. The participant is then given one of two copies of their recoded accounts. The other copy is archived in the Library of Congress for future generations.

Lucky for me and every other Denver resident, the Story Corps mobile booth is here today and accepting reservation for recording sessions tomorrow at 10 am. I am so excited for this experience, I can’t wait.

I love the fact that everyone has a history that matters and everyone is important. You can participate even if there is not a Story Corps near you, just go to their website to find out how.