Goodbye, 2017

Whew, that crap of a year is over. Goodbye, 2017!

okay, so it wasn't all bad. Highlights in pictures:

I helped organized the St. Louis Women's March. It was an incredible learning experience, and so amazing to see how many people turned out for this, and for marches across the world. It also pushed me into more direct activism in my community, and for that I am thankful! #ResitTrump #ResistRacism #Resist!

I adopted a new cat! Anya is a beautiful and sweet calico. She has yet to realize she is food secure, so no man's plate is safe while she is on the loose, but she is a sweetheart when she's not hunting.

My first trip to the beach. Me and 4 fabulous friends visited Puerto Rico. A trip of many firsts - first real beach vacation, first time paddle boarding, and first trip the a rain forest. It was wonderful.  Sadly, a few months later the catastrophic Hurricane Maria hit.  Half of Puerto Rico is still without power.

Fun times at the farm with the family. Cooper was in heaven :)

Hiking! This fall was unmatched for it's beautiful colors. It was gorgeous.

2014 in review

I don't usually really sit down and reflect much on each year as it passes, but 2014 was a bit of a doozy, so I feel it warrants some reflection.

In some ways, it was an amazing year that brought me a lot of joy. But it was also a crappy year for many reasons:  loved ones (of mine or of people I love) have passed away, I've felt stagnant in some areas of my life, and I've been reminded that while some friendships grow, others, sadly, dwindle. And all of this was happening against the back drop of our community experiencing tragedy and unrest, filling many with hopelessness and anger.  It's really easy to dwell on the negative, forgetting that I actually have a lot to be thankful for. In an attempt not to forget, here are some of the highs of my year:

• Winter/Spring:
• I started a bunch of home improvement projects, these would actually continue through the year. My house definitely feels more "put together," and is a more pleasant place to be. Without the help of my awesome brother, this would not have been possible. He is super cool.
• Cooper and I had the opportunity to work with a fabulous dog trainer (Tovah) one on one for months. She helped me and my pup so incredibly much; her training has made our lives much happier. 
• I bought a new bike, and was able to hit the trails here and at the farm.
• Summer:
• I  traveled to see dear friends I haven't seen in years. Friends that my heart identifies as family. It was fantastic, and not to be traded for the world.
• I spent a day in Missoula, the city that breaths life in my soul.
• I ate huckleberries :)
• I watched my best friend full of happiness and love as she got married. It was a beautiful ceremony.
• I was able to travel to all these places to see friends for free because I won airline tickets in a raffle (yay!)
• I tried something new and terrifying:  rowing (ultra beginner stage), and found I absolutely love the peace that being on the water brings. 
• My niece (K) and I spent more time together; she is a ball of energy and makes the world better. She's hilarious, too. 
• My garden, especially my tomatoes and cucumbers, grew like crazy.
• Fall/Winter:
• I visited Boston (for free, again) and drank in the history and beauty of that city, meeting new friends while doing it.
• I cut 70-80% of the meat out of my diet. I feel better about my impact on the earth's resources in this respect.
• I found out Twin Peaks is coming back for a Season 3, with all episodes being co-written by Lynch/Frost (the only way it can work!)
• I was invited to a "surprise" wedding (the surprise being on us, the guests) by two of my favorite people. It was one of the best weddings I've ever attended.
• I, with a couple of friends, lots of community members tried to bring something positive  to our city in the midst of unrest and pain.
• I have a new fence that keeps my dog safely in the back yard. :)

So, what do I wish I'd done more of?

• hiked, climbed, biked
• cooked
• created less trash
• run (I couldn't, due to an injury.. hopefully I'll be able to this spring)
• gotten at least 7 hour of sleep a night
• made healthier choices
• spent less money/saved more money
• volunteered
• planted sunflowers

adventures in sewing: picnic blanket!

Today I decided to make a picnic blanket.  I've noticed several blankets with vinyl (or other water proof materials) on the bottom, and a cute print on the top. What a great idea, I thought!  So I headed to the fabric store.

I paired a neutral vinyl with a fun flannel pattern, and set to work. Pretty quickly, things took a turn.  Firstly, it is really hard to work with this much fabric. I had 2 1/2 yards of the vinyl, 5 yards of the flannel (because of width issues) and a table that was too small to accommodate it all. Also: vinyl sucks. Like seriously sucks.

But, all was not lost! I decided to try out using bias tape, as it would make super pretty edging and save me from having to fold over the vinyl multiple times, which my sewing machine (and I) would not have tolerated.

So, after a few bumps, the project turned out to be pretty painless.  I just sewed the two fabrics together (wrong sides together) and used bias tape to cover my pesky raw edges. Here is a really great tutorial I found on bias tape.  I also found that paper clips and clothespins worked much better than pins for this project. Binder clips would probably work, too!


The cherry on top: I have just enough umbrella fabric to make two small pillows, thereby turning my picnic blanket into a star-gazing blanket! :)

my nieces are delightful, exhibit a

Today, I got to read books and "talk about things" with my 3 (almost 4) year old niece, M.  We read two books: the Cat in the Hat and King and King*. 

At the end of the book M asked me "Why did the two princes get married?" To which I responded that sometimes princesses and princes fall in love and get married, but sometimes princes fall in love with princes, and princesses fall in love with princesses.  Side note: It's really difficult to say the plural of "prince" while also saying the plural of "princess" and have it not all run together. I should have said "boys" and "girls". Oh well, lesson learned.  :)

She seemed satisfied with the answer, and moved on to more pressing issues like: "Why do women have a uterus?"

After a very long talk about things related to the uterus (thankfully her mother fielded most of these questions), she then contemplated if she should have a baby. We told her she didn't need to make any rash decisions. She thought for a moment, and then must have concluded that she needed more information before deciding because she asked that a list of Dr. Seuss books be compiled. Very sensible.

My niece is awesome, by the way**.

* It's an okay book, although not as good as And Tango Makes Three, (M loved this book), which is about two boy penguins falling in love and raising a baby penguin
**I have 4 smart, hilarious, energetic and delightful nieces, they are actually all awesome, not just this one. 

public art for the win

Knowing I love and all things Sherman Alexie (and therefore fantastic), Bird's partner, Melissa, showed me a piece of public art in Spokane while I was visiting. For this piece, Sherman Alexie wrote the poem, That Place Where Ghosts of Salmon Jump, which is inscribed on the spiral. Upon reading it I  was blown away by the poem itself, the placement of the spiral overlooking the Spokane Falls, and the beauty and power in such a simple design. My picture doesn't begin to do it justice, but here it is:

About the spiral, Alexie has been quoted as saying, "The design forces people to dance. The true power of it is in watching people reading the poem in that way." Which I adore.

10 things I love

I realized it's been awhile since I've reminded myself of things that bring me happiness.  Here are 10 things I love right now:

• my green hat that I crocheted several years ago.
• the sound of rain on my tin awning.
• my friends, near and far
• sleeping in
• walls that are colored bright, beautiful colors
• my nieces smiling
• chevron prints
• quiet days with nothing on my schedule
• the West Wing streaming on Neflix
• Cooper and Lucy curled up & snuggling next to me.

Ten things I love

Yes, it is time once again for an installment of "ten things I love"

singing in the car

pinnapple

my reef flip-flops

striking matches

Lucy

a clean house

contact lenses

the Diane Rehm Show

Agatha Christie books

getting a letter in the mail

Three Things I Love

I Love:

the Cool Runnings soundtrack
the X-Files
the b-day mixes my friend Casey makes for me

This blogpost brought to you by "Things I Love Thursdays"

Even 10 more things I love

1. The Bourne Identity
2. Halloween
3. Turning leaves
4. The great words in this week's word box
   
5. Pumpkins
6. Alvin, of Alvin and the Chipmunks
7. Pulp (the band, not the annoying part of orange juice)
8. A clean house
9. Road trips
10. PaRappa The Rapper 2 on PS2
    

10 Radom things in my office

1. a "stress ball" in the shape of a green car from progressive
2. a picture of tadpole
3. a twin peaks pin
4. a key chain with tinkert toys attached
5. a magic eight ball
6. a wolves calendar
7. a fortune cookie that says, "sing badly, if you must, but sing"
8. a bottle of cream soda
9. a signed napkin from Chrarlie Webber (Ben from Buffy)
10. a nun-chukka bean trading card

nun-chukka bean

10 things I hate

...a negative nilly's take on the ol' "10 things I love" list

people talking during movies/tv shows

being "spoiled"

people who are "too cool" to have a good time

name dropping

the sound of the alarm clock

people who "don't watch t.v." and think they are superior because of it

filing

doing laundry

taking out the trash

changing lightbulbs

10 More Things I Love

Mail/Packages from friends
Ellen
They Might Be Giants' song "C is for Conifers"
Cinneman - to smell and to taste
Cooper, my IPOD
A sky that is cloudy, but clear enough so you can see the moon through the clouds
Lounging pants
Winter hats
TV on DVD
Clean sheets

Ten things that bring me Joy

seeing friend after a long while and feeling like it was just yesterday

noticing how awesome the moon looks

singing in the car

missoula

my pets

mountains

playing 500

the constellation orion

the jolt of "yay!" I get when someone unexpected, but hoped for, calls