:: i love bullet points so much ::

i just came across this blog. i love it. it's not really suitable for young eyes or work viewing, so considered yourself warned - there are a lot of penis pictures (sketches, not real ones). if you are offended by nudity or cussing then i don't recommend clicking on the link.

here are some of my favorite (non-penis) pictures from the blog. you shouldn't be offended by these. unless, perhaps, you have a hard time showing a little leg.

blog.theblakewright.com

:: stud finder ::

i picked one of these neat little umbra conceal bookshelves on my last athens (ga) shopping trip in september, but i've yet to locate a stud on which to hang it in a place where i would want to hang it. so far a waste of money, so i just like to think how lovely it is all by its bookless self on a shelf in the hall closet.

umbra.com

and speaking of finding (or not) a stud: i had a meeting with a financial advisor this afternoon. one subject that came up was whether (or not) i am in a relationship. another was to determine my plans/goals for spending in the future. i jokingly said i'm looking to buy a boat. he advised against such a poor investment. i said, "i'll just have to find some friends with boats." he said, "or a boyfriend with one."

:: lovely love ::

i would like to know someone who buys this gorgeous chair so that i could see it in real life. perhaps even sit on it and see if it feels as lovely as it looks. or maybe borrow it for an afternoon for that little corner in my living room that just begs for something this adorably fun!

anthropologie.com

:: love you more ::

yesterday i was listening to the ben folds album, rockin' the suburbs. the last track always takes me by surprise. it's a sneaky one. i never think about it until it's there in all it's quirky sweetness. some things, like that song and this gorgeous picture, are just so beautiful they hurt. in the best way.

jaarongreene.com

i don't get many things right the first time. in fact, i am told that a lot. now i know all the wrong turns, the stumbles and falls brought me here. and where was i before the day that i first saw your lovely face? now i see it everyday and i know that i am, i am, i am the luckiest.

what if i'd been born fifty years before you in a house on a street where you lived? maybe i'd be outside as you passed on your bike, would i know? and in a white sea of eyes i see one pair that i recognize and i know that i am, i am, i am the luckiest.

i love you more than i have ever found a way to say to you.

next door there's an old man who lived to his nineties and one day passed away in his sleep and his wife; she stayed for a couple of days and passed away. i'm sorry , i know that's a strange way to tell you that i know we belong, that i know that i am, i am, i am the luckiest.

"the luckiest" by ben folds



[click on the song title to hear the song]

:: what a ham ::

the big lump wrapped in gold foil, resting in the center of the table, could only be one thing. well, really, it could be a variety of gold foil wrapped things. but in our family, on easter or christmas (or just about any other big family gathering - especially those that included maunga lil and poppy art), is was only going to be one thing.

Honey Baked Ham. the real deal.

every time i take a bite of one of those slighty sweet, slightly salty slices of goodness, i am taken back to maunga & poppy's house in decatur. and i can't help but wish i had some lemon pepper seasoning, as that was the requisite topping for HBH leftovers.

and really, that's all this is about. i just ate a couple of slices of leftover honey baked ham (thanks to my sister for having me over for new year's dinner last night and sending me away with leftovers!) with no lemon pepper seasoning. it reminds me of that feeling you get when you walk out of your house and realize you forgot deodorant. it's not a necessity, but things just aren't the same without it.

:: michigan mittens ::

i just had an idea. make mittens with a map of michigan on them. i googled it - already exists. but just because someone else had the idea (and follow-through) first, doesn't mean i didn't have a great idea! mine were much more thought out and definitely cuter, anyway.

michiganmittens.com

:: i love lamp ::

squintlimited.com

:: fifty fifty ::

she is one of my favorite people. she is creative, clever and cooler than she thinks. she likes a lot of what i like. she sends me great links and enjoys the few i send her that she hasn't already seen. we've seen each other in person a grand total of 5 or 6 times in our approximately 5 year friendship, yet i talk to her more than most people i see on a weekly (if not daily) basis. we work together, we type together, we laugh together - we have probably even cried together.

she is averagely envoweled, but far from average. (me? i'm fifty fifty.)

she has a blog. and i like it.

she recently designed and made these MERRY CHRISTMAS / HAPPY HANUKKAH (check one or the other) cards, which i love.

averagelyenvoweled.blogspot.com

:: fingerprints on your heart & hand ::

this is absolutely the coolest idea for a wedding band i have ever seen. visually (outwardly) simple & understated, but what a neat symbolic connection underneath it all - wearing the most unique & identifiable feature of the one you love.

fabuluster.etsy.com

:: breath to fashion ::

i could try to put this in my own words, but i feel that they would only fall short. so i will borrow hers. and accessorize with my own.



I lived in the south of France for a longtime. The weather was beautiful. I was young. I was in love. I had a scooter, amazing friends, and all was well. I tore through tons of magazines. I loved fashion, but it still felt a bit far.

But I gotta add, the simple fact that I would walk around in heels in the middle of the day would make people turn and look. Suddenly the boys felt it was ok to whistle at me. That’ll turn you off a little. So I learned to dress myself relatively simply, just to avoid the hassle. I still felt like one of the best dressed girls on the street, and I was always looking for stylish friends, exciting boutiques, and inspiring women.

The day I first arrived in Paris was a true shock. I had been plenty of times before… but to live there, it’s a totally different thing. Suddenly, me, who was relatively at ease with my own style, I felt like I got my thought of “one of the best dressed girls on the street” shoved back down my throat. Good lesson.

I met impeccably stylish girls who were relaxed, cool, unique. Girls with the most amazing looks. The most resourceful girls who could find YSL at Zara prices. Super feminine girls that never asked for a second, “What’ll they think of me?”

For the first few months, I felt like a rough draft of a woman. But when you love fashion, you learn quick.

And today, it seems only natural for me to leave my house in 5 inch heels or in a bustier in the middle of the day, or even a shirt disguised as a dress, and yet none of it even raises the eyebrow of my newspaper guy on the street and so I wonder…

Has anything really changed? What gives breath to fashion when you live far from the fashion capitals of the world?

substitute paris for new york. and just visiting did the trick. it used to even be atlanta, though it seems that complacent and easy fashion has now taken root down there as here. either way, i know the feeling: "But I gotta add, the simple fact that I would walk around in heels in the middle of the day would make people turn and look. Suddenly the boys felt it was ok to whistle at me. That’ll turn you off a little. So I learned to dress myself relatively simply, just to avoid the hassle."

after my recent trips to the fashionable apple, i'm starting to return to the days when it seemed "only natural for me to leave my house in 5 inch heels or in a bustier in the middle of the day, or even a shirt disguised as a dress" but i'm still getting the raised eyebrows (a dress? what's the occasion?) and, more significantly, still not comfortable with that. but i'm on what is probably the 2nd draft - not rough or final - and as Garance says, "when you love fashion, you learn quick."



what gives breath to fashion when you live far from the fashion capitals of the world?

inspiration & aspiration

courage & confidence


humor & creativity


trial & error (or success)

garancedore.fr/en

:: le ballon rouge ::

i was probably in 5th grade. maybe 3rd or 4th, but no later than 5th. it was a wednesday night. (right now i feel like that woman oprah had on who could tell you the day if you told her a date or she could give you the date of specific, even insignificant, events in her life.) i don't recall what we normally did at church on those wednesday nights that year, but i do know that this night strayed from the norm. we moved into a different room - the one where the elders (or was it the deacons? i always get those confused) met. across from what is now the ladies room. and we watched the red balloon.

and i loved it.

it was years before i developed a love for france. years before i had the chance to go, to walk through those very same streets that pascal and his helium filled friend explored. in fact, when i first traveled to france in 1995 i felt a sense of deja vu in one particular area. i didn't think much of it then, but years later came to realize why. in my youth, in a darkened room where the elders (or deacons) met, i had wandered through those streets. i knew those streets. i've never forgotten that short film and i don't think i've seen it since that night.

but i love it. and this image looks like a memory to me.

irenesuchocki.etsy.com

:: hello, yellow ::

photosmashing.blogspot.com

:: might turn you on ::

sixhours.net

i can boldy think that i don't want to fear. but i'm silent. i boldy live, but i do not always boldly speak. i cower behind a veil of timidity and "space." under the guise of not interfering. my fear wears many excuses, but it's still fear. God, enable me - motivate me - to speak your word...boldly.

i've made the most of love
you get a brand new chance in a brand new town
and if I don't hear what they whisper about me
i might turn you on to something i've found

silence. priceless. silence.
the only way we talk.

from "houdini's angels" by 7 mary 3

:: lifting up a dreamer ::

5 years ago this week i was in california, on tour with REM. it was a dream (that i've never even thought to dream) come true. it was the perfect introduction to california - los angeles, santa barbara, berkeley and irvine. the weather was amazing in each city. (a little cold for my liking near the bay, but it complemented the overall experience.) the company was entertaining (in so many ways) and our talented southern hosts were hospitable and incredible.

there is a certain kind of night that takes me back to the rock-lined bowl in the hills of santa barbara. the night that it all hit me. the night that i took in my fortune, the music, the lights and the weight of it all like never before. we were on the eve of an election. the message was clear. the response was mixed. the inspiration heavy and i carried it with me. 5 years later, on certain special nights, i still carry it with me.


i'm loving the following pieces by alvin diec. cheerful, but not frilly. clean. uncluttered. quirky. there's a "retro" vibe about them. well, except for the fact that they echo the oh-so-current fail whale.

alvindiec.com

"lifting up a dreamer" (the fail whale) by yiying lu
yiyinglu.com

:: for my mom, obviously. but for my dad, mostly ::

lyrics to the entire song:
pray God you can cope
i'll stand outside
this woman's work
this woman's world
ooh, it's hard on the man
now his part is over
now starts the craft
of the Father

i know you've got a little life in you yet
i know you've got a lot of strength left
i know you've got a little life in you yet
i know you've got a lot of strength left

i should be crying but i just can't let it show
i should be hoping but i can't stop thinking
of all the things we should've said that i never said
and all the things we should've done that we never did
all the things we should have given but i didn't
oh, darling, make it go
make it go away

give me these moments
give them back to me
give me that little kiss
give me your

i know you've got a little life in you yet
give me your hand, babe
i know you've got a lot of strength left
give me that pretty hand
i know you've got a little life in you yet
ooh, show me you understand
i know you've got a lot of strength left
my loved child
i know you've got a little life in you yet
whatever you need
i know you've got a lot of strength left
give me your hand
i know you've got a little life in you yet
give me your hand
i know you've got a lot of strength left

i should be crying but i just can't let it go
i should be hoping but i can't stop thinking
of all the things we should've said that i never said
all the things we should've done that we never did
all the things that you wanted from me
all the things that you needed from me
all the things i should've given but i didn't
oh, darling, make it go
make it go away
just make it go away

"this woman's work" by kate bush (sung by maxwell)