Monthly Archives: June 2017

Gratitude Friday

1. Only one more week of work! Then, I get to be on summer vacation for two months. This past month has been about doing just the bare minimum, because even that was really too much, so a lot has slipped through the cracks or piled up. I’m looking forward to more space in my days, less responsibility, more reading and writing, answering some lingering emails, finally getting to some house projects that have been put off for too long, puttering in the garden, really taking care of my body, spending time with friends, long naps and walks with Eric and the dogs.

One of the house projects I need to get to: painting the house. It’s so faded now it looks almost blue when it should be a deep green.

2. Our front garden. We’ve been getting lots of strawberries and my flowers are all coming in so good this year.

3. Walking in the morning with Eric and the dogs. It’s one of the very best things.

4. Opportunities for learning and growth. The Social Justice Leadership Institute I attended the first part of the week, the Coaching as Activism program I’ve been in that has only one week left, the Creating Inclusive Excellence Program I’ll start in the fall, all the super smart and generous women (of color, in particular) who keep showing up willing to resist, write and teach and do their work in a way that I can easily access and benefit from.

5. Peonies. It’s that time of year, y’all. My garden is overflowing, which means so is my house. They just are so gorgeous!

Bonus joy: working from home, a meeting that went well when I hadn’t expected it to, clean sheets, a warm shower, clean water, a long nap, good books, good TV, good movies, some great shows coming up at the Lincoln Center so that I can go to concerts and shows at night like a grown up but still be home by 10 pm cause it’s only ten minutes from my house, bees, fresh strawberries, ice, pinto beans, good tortillas, meditation, yoga, writing, sleepy dogs with stinky feet.

Something Good

From my garden.

1. The right effort of generosity from Seth Godin.

2. Recipes I want to try: Sweet Potato Zoodle Ramen (confession: I adore sweet potatoes), BBQ chicken quinoa salad bowls, 2 Ingredient Sorbets, and Black Bean Brownies.

3. Couple Spends 26 Years Replanting A Rainforest They Bought In 1991, And Here’s How It Looks Today.

4. I Tried Medical Marijuana For Chronic Pain.

5. Scraping by: More Old Town homes being razed to make room for new builds.

6. Powerful Hashtag Highlights The Body-Shaming Comments Women Hear In A Lifetime.

7. The scientific case that America is becoming a more prejudiced place. “As humans, even at an early age, we learn what’s socially acceptable by watching other people.” In related news, Princeton Professor Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor Cancels Public Appearances Amid Fox News-Fueled Death Threats.

8. The Truth About Marriage Vows: Five Promises You Can Keep from Susan Piver.

9. Dear Girls, Life Is Too Short for Crappy Friends.

10. 9 Phrases Allies Can Say When Called Out Instead of Getting Defensive. In related news, It isn’t call-out culture that is toxic and Ten Ways White People can Stop Annoying People of Color on Social Media.

11. Help the girls who survived Portland’s MAX Attack. In related news, Attacks like Portland’s will keep happening unless we all fight white supremacy.

12. #FarmingWhileBlack: Black Va. Farmer Says ‘Nervous White Women in Yoga Pants’ More Dangerous Than Blatant White Supremacists.

13. The Average Black Family Would Need 228 Years to Build the Wealth of a White Family Today.

14. Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race. This is extra long, but worth the read. In related news, Why The White Feminism Of The Women’s March Is Still On My Mind.

15. Things I Love Lately on A Design So Vast. I was going to share one or two things off this list, but in the end I wanted to remember them all. Thanks, Lindsey!

16. 20 Young Writers Of Color Share Their Favorite Poems.

17. The Work You Do, the Person You Are, Toni Morrison in The New Yorker. In related news, Toni Morrison: ‘I’m writing for black people … I don’t have to apologise.’

18. Tattoos and baseball caps: This is What a Librarian Looks Like – in pictures.

19. Generation Anthropocene Interview: Camille Dungy, (Podcast).

20. My Arch-Nemesis : Internet Buddha from Adreanna Limbach.

21. Necessity Is the Mother of Invention from Jena Schwartz. “Impermanence is not an accident; it is a fundamental component of practice…Impermanence is all we have for sure. In this work, in this life, in our writing, in our relationships, in our health, in our friendships, in our communities. That doesn’t mean there aren’t real, lasting things. In fact, I think it’s the opposite: Impermanence deepens my awareness and appreciation of just how precious these are. It has also helped me through some of the hardest and darkest times in my life.”

22. Five Mindfulness Trainings from Thich Nhat Hanh on Lion’s Roar. “The Five Mindfulness Trainings represent the Buddhist vision for a global spirituality and ethic. They are a concrete expression of the Buddha’s teachings on the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, the path of right understanding and true love, leading to healing, transformation, and happiness for ourselves and for the world.”

23. Ten second portraits. These are so beautiful…

24. Live Awake Podcast: Loving and Listening to Yourself (Self Love). So good. Andrea Scher mentioned it to me during a coaching session the other day, and I’ve listened to it every day since. It’s really powerful, and every time I listen, I notice something new.

24. Extra Ordinary Routines, “Illuminating the everyday lives of creatives. The extraordinary in the ordinary. The habitual. The imperfect.”

25. “Every Day is a Victory a comic from Connie to the Wonnie. May your Monday be victorious, kind and gentle reader.