Tag Archives: Books

Something Good.

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I woke up this morning knowing I had a few links for today’s post, but not sure what else I might include. I did some brainstorming when I was writing my morning pages, but nothing seemed to really spark. I worried this post would be sort of “bleh.”

And then I turned on my computer, checked my email and logged into facebook, and the Universe sent me so many good things I could share, so many, I had to stop reading my email, stop looking because the list was getting w a y too long. When this happens, I wonder why it is that I don’t trust it, how I could possibly have so little faith in the magic that happens if you invite it, if you show up and allow it to happen? Silly human…

“30 Things to Start Doing for Yourself”

I posted yesterday about a list from “Marc and Angel Hack Life” called “30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself.” Today, they posted this follow up, beginning with the quote “Remember today, for it is the beginning. Today marks the start of a brave new future.” I like the list, and I love that quote, because it’s a reminder that we can always make a fresh start, a new beginning.

Photo by Steven Depolo

“The Paris Wife” by Paula McLain

I am reading this book for my book club, and I can’t tell you yet if it will be good as a whole (I am only on page 22), but I am so far loving the language, especially the way the main character describes the feeling of meeting and getting to know the person she will love. For example, after their first kiss, she says “I couldn’t think about whether anyone had seen us. I couldn’t think about anything at all. His face was inches from mine, more charged and convincing and altogether awake than anything I’d ever seen.”

“The Man Who Dies With The Most Stuff” by Kristin Glenn

This is a guest post written for The Minimalists. There is one section that really resonated with me, verbalized why I have been attracted to the notion of a simple, minimalist life for the past 20 years.

With eyes wide, I realized my selfishness. For wanting, and wanting, and wanting. And never, ever, thinking about the impact that my want had on the rest of the world.

Generally, people turn to a minimalist lifestyle to make their day-to-day existence easier. To save money, to save time, to focus on what’s truly important. These reasons are admirable—they allow us to find meaning beyond our jeans and gadgets.

But my travels abroad turned me onto minimalism for a different reason. I slowly saw the impact of my consumption taking a toll on the environment, and on others. It became a personal thing. And I realized that minimalism isn’t just a lifestyle decision, but a chance to save humanity.

That’s a pretty bold statement: minimalism will save humanity. But over the following year, I became more convinced of the power that lifestyle choices have on changing the world.

My time abroad changed my perspective—not only on what it means to live with less, but to live. To live is to make choices, day in and day out.

“The Disintegration Loop” by William Basinski

From the user who posted the video to YouTube:

During the summer of 2001, Basinski set about transferring a series of 20-year-old tape loops he’d had in storage to a digital file format, and was startled when this act of preservation began to devour the tapes he was saving. As they played, flakes of magnetic material were scraped away by the reader head, wiping out portions of the music and changing the character and sound of the loops as they progressed, the recording process playing an inadvertent witness to the destruction of Basinski’s old music…the loops themselves are stunning, ethereal studies in sound so fluid that the listener scarcely registers the fact that it’s nothing but many hundreds of repetitions of a brief, simple loop that they’re hearing.

It really is like music from a dream, and the way it happened was some kind of tragic magic.

The Dream I Had Last Night

I had a dream last night that people where “evolving” into rosebushes. All of us in the dream knew it was coming, and wondering what our lives would be like as flowering plants. The alarm went off before I could find out, but I posted to my heART swap partner‘s dream art facebook page, and she (who works with dreams and dreamers) was able to give me the most wonderful interpretation. Lindsay said,

If it was my dream, I recognize unknown people as unknown parts of my own personality, evolving into rosebushes could mean that my shadow sides are transforming into beautiful flowers. With my feet planted in the ground, I know I have a deep connection with the earth, yet I know I am able to open my flowers and show my beauty to the world.

“Change for a Dollar” short film

This video is proof that it isn’t necessary to have a lot to give a lot. If you are like me and cry during Hallmark commercials, grab a few tissues and hit “play.”

This Quote

“We are so accustomed to disguising our true nature from others, that we end up disguising it from ourselves.” ~La Rochefoucauld

“A Father Who Creatively Captures His Kids (20 photos)”

These little girls and these pictures make me smile. If you need a pick-me-up, go view his Flickr photo stream, or go to their blog, “kristin and kayla: a photo journal of two sisters.” I’d share one here, but he’s a photographer and his work is copyrighted, but trust me, you won’t be sorry you looked. It’s a super duper, heaping, massive dose of cuteness.

1000 Lives in 100 Words.

This project is really cool. The author of the project describes it this way “1000 Lives In 100 Words is here to remind us that our lives are important. It’s here to remind us that it’s not the years in your life; it’s the life in your years. Because we’ll all end up as 100 words someday. So let’s make each one count.” The first one, as I look at it this morning, is written by Nicole, who says:

Your direction in life doesn’t matter. What matters is staying true to your self. Do this, and the direction takes care of itself. New roads appear, the right people appear, books fall off the shelf for you and the right lessons show up. Art and spirituality run on parallel tracks. They go hand in hand, and when they run at the same pace synchronicity happens. My art is writing and my real work is finding joy in everyday things; things taken for granted or overlooked. From flying squirrels to paper airplanes, nothing is out of the realm of my pen.

Color me inspired.

Scribble

Fortune in my Cookie.

“Do you want to be a power in the world? Then be yourself.” I immediately taped it to my computer screen.

Superhero Jr. Dancing the Nutcracker

Andrea Scher, of Superhero Journal, posted this video of her son Ben yesterday, dancing along with a performance of the Nutcracker. This kind of honesty and joy is my holiday wish, for all of us.

Nutcracker Ben from andrea scher on Vimeo.

  • Anything you want to add to the list this week?

Something Good

2 Replies

1. Monday is almost over. This is the last week of classes at CSU, and as in love as I ever was with my class and as much I adored my students, I am ready to be done now.

2. The art of Hugh MacLeod. He posts his work on his website, gapingvoid, and it is this lovely mix of sharply funny (like the edge of a knife sometimes), smart, and open-hearted.  In honor of the first item on this “Something Good” list, here’s one of my current favorites:

art by Hugh MacLeod

3. Seven Day Weekends. Not having to go to work for almost the whole week of Thanksgiving was great.  We should do that more often.

4. This kid, and everything about him and this video. The moment he takes a deep breath, wipes his tears, and holds up “But…I’m not going anywhere,” was the best, so brave. After you watch the video, make sure to read his update, which says, in part: “The video is real, and true…Love and peace to all who are hurting.” Amen.

5. Pine Ridge Holiday Project. Sorry to sound like a broken record, but I am just so in love with this, and I really think you should try it. You don’t have to be in Colorado, people from all over the world have taken part in the past, all you need to do is email Christine or Julie and get some names. In the last few days, they got more lists, specifically infants, and have so many kids, infants, and elders left who really need your help this season. From my heart: if you have enough this season and you are loved, please share that with someone who might not be so lucky.

6. “Women, Food, and God” Eating Guidelines. These are so simple, so complicated, and have been so helpful to me. I highly recommend this book to any woman who struggles with her relationship with food. Here they are, the seven guidelines to eating more consciously, (and if you can already do this, good for you–please be kind to those of us who are struggling):

Eat when you are hungry.

Eat sitting down in a calm environment. This does not include the car.

Eat without distractions. Distractions include radio, television, newspapers, books, intense or anxiety-producing conversations or music.

Eat what your body wants.

Eat until you are satisfied.

Eat (with the intention of being) in full view of others.

Eat with enjoyment, gusto and pleasure.

7. Felted animals. I have been in love with these since I first saw them.

by artist Alisha Harms

There are artists that will use a picture of your dog and make you one that looks just like them. If the ones who are really good at it didn’t charge so much ($299!–the work is worth that amount, but I just can’t justify spending it), I’d have ones made of Obi, Dexter, and Sam and take them with me everywhere. I’d especially like one of Obi. He’s gone, but I could carry his miniature around in my pocket. And I know just who I’d hire to make them for me: Kay from Canada, of Kay’s K9s.  Her work is amazing! Here are a few of her custom pieces:

Dexter’s Mini D is pretty good, but not quite as close of a match.

8. Sharing a banana with Sam every morning. No matter where he is in the house, no matter how soundly asleep, he hears the snap of the top of a banana and before I can get the first side peeled, he’s sitting in front of me asking for some. One thing I love so much about it, besides the cuteness of a dog eating a banana, is that Obi loved bananas too.  Right after he died, the first banana I had all to myself was the saddest thing ever, so Sam has returned eating a banana to a joyful practice.

9. The Idea Manifesto. This is the work of Bernadette Jiwa, a “Results Coach” born in Dublin and living in Perth, Australia.

10. Twinkly lights.

  • Love and peace to all who are hurting.