The holidays have been leaving me a buzz with good cheer though sadly under the weather. It’s tough when you have many things you’d like to do, but not enough energy to do them. I need to reserve my energy for the weeks ahead of me. I am leaving for vacation, but not before being served a good helping of Christmas spirit in San Francisco. May you have a Happy Holiday, dear friends! Remember to spread cheer far and wide, and you’ll be rewarded tenfold. See you in 2015!
Photo source: The Daily Mail Two months ago, my neck froze up, my traps were knotted tightly, my right shoulder would not rotate, and my wrists and hands burned from carpal tunnel tightness. Daily indulgences in very refined gluten and dairy free versions of bread, chips, and muffins with small cartons of coconut ice cream on the side plus a dip or two into a very verboten take out box of carne asada fries later, I woke up one morning completely in pain, sick to my stomach and knowing (in a very Gwyneth way – natch) that my body was saying, “This has to stop. Clean it up or keep getting kicked in the ass by your own ass.” A series of physical therapy appointments alternating with acupuncture, modified yoga and barre mix classes, a new prescription vitamin supplement and two sessions with my beloved cognitive behavioral therapist later, I am on the mend. Feeling less than normal, it would be very easy to start schlepping around town the way subjects in PEOPLE Magazine do at the gas station and in …
Cell action Photo c/o Simone Anne Lang Me: Any chance you’re free that night? Her: I work those nights … Me: …it just means we’ll have to make plans for another time … Her: … but I was going to ask if you are free at all tomorrow? Me: (thinking) yes I am … around 3 or 3:30? Her: We can go here so you can finally meet him. I’m excited! Me: SURE!!!! (emoji of two girls dancing) Her: … is there an upper limit to your free time tomorrow? Maybe 5 or 5:30 so she can join? That would make my week!!! Me: (looking at schedule) Will do Barre at 1pm then. 5:30 it is! Her: She’s in! 6:30? Me: (postponing something else) Schweet Her: These plans sure changed fast haha! That work? Me: YES! Her: Yay! So happy this all fell into place! Me: When it’s important and there is a little wiggle room time wise, we make it work. (smiley face with kiss) See ya! This is an actual text message exchange …
Voices. I hear voices now and then. Typically my own thoughts, often my intuition speaking to me, but primarily it’s my stomach taking over the loud speaker. Case in point, a voice said last week, “It’s okay to miss Barre Mix in favor of pancake mix.” Pancakes get lonely with only a pour of maple syrup. Bacon, as we all know, is always a good idea. It’s convenient to toss it into the oven (400 degrees for 15 minutes) while brushing my teeth and washing up in the morning. This was not the first instance of bacon trumping barre but I don’t use that excuse too often. Just the other night the voice of my physical therapist played in my head as I ran to evening class in the pouring rain, “Unless you have a fever, you need to work out.” Maybe she knows I need to off set all of the bacon. My morning kitchen counter condition +++ The color gray has been speaking to me in a …
Sitting in a cafe exchanging ideas about creating content, technical challenges, general practices, and upcoming goals, I told my blog buddy that I’d been wanting to host another #happymailhappyhour but the logistics and timing of it had proved tricky this time of year. Continuing to discover more paper brands and itching to plan a casual girls’ get together, as I love to do now and then, she reassured me something small would work perfectly. I told her, “You know what? Let’s just do it. Let’s have another one, a small one the week after next. We can do it potluck paper style, and well … I can figure out the rest.” So we did. While exchanging a few gorgeous notes with letter pressing gem, Allison, of Ink Meets Paper last September, I kept in mind that her co-creator/ husband, Daniel, and she were more than happy to contribute to my next #happymailhappyhour in some way. Is there any doubt why this brand was a recent Martha Stewart American Made Finalist? They generously sent these popular postcards for guests with my order of friendship …
Lately I’ve been … Looking into this {Ambiance Pocket Mirror} Writing to friends in these {Little Arrow Cards} Thinking about when and where to wear these {Freshwater Pearls} Having one too many of those {My Dad’s Cookies Gluten Free} And not enough bites of that {Organic Pink Lady Apple} Reading a number of those {Remedy Quarterly} Admiring this {Spoke Art Gallery } Mendl’s window display by artists, Jill Bencsits and Dominic Guidote What have you been up to lately? All photos taken by bp
I bought a 2″ barrel curling iron but it did not change my life. I was really hoping it would. It prompted me to finally sign up for Dirty Pop, wanting to add more cardio to my workout and believing sexy hair is required to make the moves work, more than knowing how to dance. “One hour of choreographed hip hop moves poured out by a Pussy Cat Doll- like instructor” is how I would describe it. Forget the isolated hip thrusts and slithering around, I was fixated on how the teacher and two of the students were working their hair as much as they were gyrating their boo-tays. As important as coordination, what makes the dancing divine is the full hair tossing, mussing and flipping. How does their hair know not to stick to their foreheads? Why does their hair, when pushed opposite to their natural parts, seem sensual not scraggly? Am I the only one reaching for my elastic? For at least two months, my eye has been caught by many a beautiful head …
What’s funny as of late is this whole mission I am on to find a place to write that isn’t my home. I am not distracted by laundry nor by the television nor by the phone. My MoJo is just a ‘no go’ at home. It has started to piss me off. My writing. Or lack thereof. So there. I said it again. I said what you have been thinking about if you follow me here. Just friggin write, and let it go. Changing my dining table out will not make me more productive. Adding new shelving will not untie the knots in my head. A nicer light fixture will not expand my thinking. My habits need a shake up and that includes not overthinking what I am going to write as well as where I will write it. I have been packing up my things and heading out each day to find the elusive spot to catch my muse, because as DessertComes1st said to me, “The muse comes when you are creating, not while you …
Lately I’ve been … Sporting that print (vintage Christian Dior from mom) Knocking around in these brown boots (Rag & Bone Classic Newbury) Spending time in this home (family comes first) Looking up at that sky (fall scenery care of New England by way of Mother Nature) Living out of this bag (Longchamps Le Pliage) Coveting that hair (girl I met while shopping) Lately my blog has been quiet, but it is only signalling that I, along with the seasons, have been needing a shift. Noticing the beauty in the leaves I have to shed is a practice in patience, gratefulness, and humility. I have always been a fan of fall. Aren’t you?
White Rabbit moments. “I’m late I’m late! For very important date!” Alice in Wonderland The very moment I decide to increase my savings contributions I hate all of my workout clothes and want to buy new gear in the exact same shade of nondescript black in the same nondescript style to supposedly freshen up my routine. The very moment I am finally going to the farmers’ market for the day, I realize I have zero cash on hand and need to sort through the ten pound box of coins I have at home with the hopes I can buy at least two heads of kale or maybe some organic, cage free, etc etc eggs with the change in my pouch. The very moment I am due to be at the shuttle stop for work I decide to start getting ready for it. The very moment I map out my itinerary for the bus I find I have missed it and end up taking an Uber anyway. The very moment our plane tickets for our Christmas vacation …
Even If Nobody Reads This 