goodtobeglad

Dream a little dream

2011-09-26T06:30:00.000-07:00

“I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?” ― John Lennon

I had a nightmare last night that defies explanation. I dreamed that my hair was translucent and half shaved. My skull was a hard mask of plaster of Paris. I was distraught (clearly) and went to the state fair in the country side to see my hair-dresser. She began to die my hair a color (any color - bright red) and to scrape off the plaster in a field of flowers.

Without warning, a huge wedding celebration began. People arrived in throngs by the hundreds to prepare. Huge, water tower-sized structures were erected to roast pigs and goats the sizes of blimps. Then people began dancing around the towers with glee until the frenzy uprooted a roasting pig. The pig tipped from his hearth and descended into the field half-burned, half-mad rampaging the wedding like a bucking bronco.

My skull began to crumble...

What a dream.

Giving

2011-08-12T16:30:00.000-07:00

"Life begets life. Energy creates energy. It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich." - Sarah Bernhardt

Today I nixed Netflix, downgraded my cable plan, and reduced the Verizon monthly payment all in the name of less is more. It feels REALLY good. And - you know what? I'm giving 25% of that new-found monthly savings to Cancer Research - specifically ACS. http://lnkd.in/YnEg4d

To be or not to be...

2011-07-26T07:01:00.000-07:00

"We spend most of our lives conjugating three verbs: to want, to have, and to do." - Evelyn Underhill

Hold on...

2011-06-10T10:38:00.000-07:00

"Anything can happen in stock markets and you ought to conduct your affairs so that if the most extraordinary events happen, that you’re still around to play the next day."- Warren Buffet

Good.

2011-05-02T06:47:00.000-07:00

"The universe is wider than our views of it." - Henry David Thoreau

Meta 4

2011-04-13T12:00:00.000-07:00

"Metaphors are not rhetorical frills at the edge of how we think. They are at the very heart of it." - James Geary

I used to think I was creative by speaking in metaphors. Now I'm thinking twice, like a double-baked potato. I enjoyed the article below and agree with the author that it’s important to pause every so often to ensure that we see the world as it is. It’s good to question how flexible and sensible our grip on reality defined by language is.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/12/opinion/12brooks.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

I was a monkey butane

2011-04-04T13:50:00.001-07:00

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." - Thomas Edison

Sing it, Tom! 10,000 and then some...

Milk and Honey

2011-02-27T11:07:00.000-08:00

"The trees that are slow to grow bear the best fruit." - Moliere

Oh - I really hope this is true!

So I saw the movie version of "Freakonomics" recently and I, like millions of others, was fascinated by the correlative effects of information. I often get confused by the cause and effect comparison to correlation and the conclusions inferred from one to the other (say that 10 times fast...).

So what I'm saying is that inference can really mess with truth...

With my birds image and fruit quote, Spring and rebirth are on the brain. I wonder what caused that...:)

Day of the Battler

2011-02-17T06:17:00.001-08:00

This was my birthday quote today: "To be great is to be misunderstood". - Ralph Waldo Emerson.

I'll tell you what I don't understand. I don't get why ANYONE would NOT want to see graphic art OR why anyone would graffiti a box saying as much...:)

Giving the world new ways to dream

2011-02-12T09:09:00.000-08:00

"Nothing happens unless first a dream." - Carl Sandberg

Hmmm...I feel like approaching this statement like a problem set.

I don't believe you can teach a person to dream. I'm not certain you can give someone a dream. I have heard of taking away someone's dream and even stealing another person's dream. So that means you can't make or manifest for someone but you can take/thieve whatever and go into the negative. I've oft uttered "Sweet Dreams!" as a kind of wish to another person (and then busted out into the refrain: "are made of these...who am I to disagree? I traveled the world and the seven seas. Everybody is searching for something"). Even though I was only singing that part for fun, I can actually get behind that awesome song.

Therefore, my geometric algorithm concludes that in fact, nothing happens unless first a dream.

Agree.

Whirlwind

2011-01-22T16:21:00.000-08:00

“Curiosity is, in great and generous minds, the first passion and the last.” – Samuel Johnson

Okay - so I've begun re-doing the ole 'Chateau Gladstone' and I've become obsessed with updating all my lighting fixtures and fans. I must say - that's it's a complete blast (of fresh, circulated air - hahaha - groan). I've tried really hard to be open and imaginative and INTERESTING with my choices knowing that good, clever design will keep my home COOL (literally, figurative, etc...more bad puns - and you love them!!!!!). Plus, I mean, we all know there will be nights when I can't sleep and I'll stare at the ceiling and I don't want to recoil in remorse over my design decisions...

Chill out, dude

2011-01-13T11:19:00.000-08:00

"There's an easygoing nature that comes with a perspective of things that aren't as important as we make them sometimes." - Marguerite Moreau

Cheers to chilling out...:)

Coddle me Beautiful

2011-01-12T08:19:00.000-08:00

"A stumble may prevent a fall." - English Proverb

I don't think it's right to anoint proverb-status to a statement that has "may" in it. That's hedging your bets. That's not "quivocating" one way or another. That's just bunk.

Look, I mean, I stumble all the time. Maybe I stumble because I'm clumsy. Maybe I stumble because I'm texting while walking. But I think it's dangerous and grandiose to my ego to assume that when I stumble I should look at it as an amazing save from a pending galactic wipe-out. I mean, that's just silly.

A much bolder statement is: "A stumble prevents a fall." Or, "A stumble proceeds a fall." And how about: "A stumble for one, is entertainment for all."

Just sayin'...

So glad it's 2011 :)

2011-01-09T17:58:00.000-08:00

“The old dreams were good dreams. They didn't work out, but I’m glad I had them.” - The Bridges of Madison County (1995) – Robert Kincaid (Clint Eastwood)

The best 4 paragraphs I have read in a long time!

2010-12-29T18:58:00.000-08:00

"The historian Diodorus from Sicily, second century BC (who is regarded as an unreliable source by other historians), describes the Amazons of Libya, which at that time was a name used for all of north Africa west of Egypt. This Amazon reign was a gynaecocracy; that is, only women were allowed to hold high office, including in the military. According to legend, the realm was ruled by a Queen Myrina, who with 30,000 female soldiers and 3,000 female cavalry swept through Egypt and Syria and all the way to the Aegean, defeating a number of male armies along the way. After Queen Myrina finally fell in battle, her army scattered.

But the army did leave its imprint on the region. The women of Anatolia took to the sword to crush an invasion from the Caucasus, after the male soldiers were all slaughtered in a far-reaching genocide. These women trained in the use of all types of weapons, including bow and arrow, spear, battleaxe, and lance. They copied their bronze breastplates and armour from the Greeks.

They rejected marriage as subjugation. So that they might have children they were granted a leave of absence, during which they copulated with randomly selected males from nearby towns.

Only a woman who had killed a man in battle was allowed to give up her virginity." - Stieg Larson, "The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest", Page 289.

Howth Bay makes me happy

2010-12-23T08:01:00.000-08:00

"The responsibility of tolerance lies in those who have the wider vision." - George Eliot

This is my favorite poem of all time by William Carlos Williams:

The Yachts

contend in a sea which the land partly encloses
shielding them from the too-heavy blows
of an ungoverned ocean which when it chooses

tortures the biggest hulls, the best man knows
to pit against its beatings, and sinks them pitilessly.
Mothlike in mists, scintillant in the minute

brilliance of cloudless days, with broad bellying sails
they glide to the wind tossing green water
from their sharp prows while over them the crew crawls

ant-like, solicitously grooming them, releasing,
making fast as they turn, lean far over and having
caught the wind again, side by side, head for the mark.

In a well guarded arena of open water surrounded by
lesser and greater crafts which, sycophant, lumbering
and flittering follow them, they appear youthful, rare

as the light of a happy eye, live with the grace
of all that in the mind is fleckless, free and
naturally to be desired. Now the sea which holds them

is moody, lapping their glossy sides, as of feeling
for some slightest flaw but fails completely.
Today no race. Then the wind comes again. The yachts

move, jockeying for a start, the signal is set and they
are off. Now the waves strike at them but they are too
well made, they slip through, though they take in canvas.

Arms with hands grasping seek to clutch at the prows
Bodies thrown recklessly in the way are cut aside.
It is a sea of faces about them in agony, in despair

until the horror of the race dawns staggering the mind;
the whole sea becomes an entanglement of watery bodies
lost to the world bearing what they can not hold. Broken,

beaten, desolate, reaching from the dead to be taken up
they cry out, failing, failing! their cries rising
in waves still as the skillful yachts pass over.

Exquisite Torture

2010-12-17T11:28:00.000-08:00

"The tragedy of life is not so much what men suffer, but rather what they miss." – Thomas Carlyle

Oh my if this isn't true. I'm probably tortured by this sentiment more than most...! If it's not what passes you by, it's what already has been. If it's not what you think will happen, it's what can't happen despite all of your calculations and schemes.

Exquisite torture.

Dreamy

2010-12-09T11:48:00.000-08:00

"Dreams are the touchstones of our character." - Henry David Thoreau

There is no better taro, image, idea or need that I could have on this day. It's a wonderful day of wholeness, perfection, satisfaction and happiness.

No Games; Pure Chance

2010-12-05T13:01:00.000-08:00

"I will study and get ready and perhaps my chance will come." - Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

I love that Abraham Lincoln was just like us. He tried hard and didn't know what would come of it. He did his due diligence and he woke up everyday with a true sense of hope while not being lost in it. This quote resonates with me - big time.

Fleeting Thoughts

2010-11-29T18:16:00.000-08:00

"Apology is a lovely perfume; it can transform the clumsiest moment into a gracious gift." ~Margaret Lee Runbeck

I think that perfume can be a gift because it wafts into our presence and changes how we feel. It changes how we respond to the next second that befalls us on a visceral level. That's quite a gift! Or, maybe perfume is just a distraction...:)

Elusive Ease

2010-11-26T06:42:00.000-08:00

"All things are difficult before they are easy." - Thomas Fuller

This photo and quote may seem 'one note' at first, and yes, I'm still on runner's high from Philly but bear with me...

I had a great conversation this Thanksgiving about all things being "easy". How striving for ease in one's life is a great goal. I took the position that "easy" is too vanilla pudding (read: boring) and how pushing buttons is where it's at. Spiking the graph with huge highs (and weathering the lows) provides the interest and spark that make life the grand adventure that I value it to be. My conversant was aghast and I laughed at how (admittedly) silly I sounded. So then some food was eaten, drink was drank, and I fell asleep 'til morning.

I think that easy breezy is most appreciated by me in contrast to the challenges of life. However, piling on the difficulty isn't necessary. Life provides bumps in the road and running a smart race is far from easy...You can choose to cut some corners, trample on those in your way, or smell the roses slightly off the beaten path; but running a marathon is difficult no matter how you slice it.

To "Go easy, not hard" is the most difficult challenge of all.

Go Slow...

2010-11-08T17:54:00.000-08:00

" To climb steep hills requires slow pace at first." - William Shakespeare

I love looking at landscapes - especially mountains. It expresses everything meaningful to me about life. Cracks, nooks, crags, crannies, plateaus, peaks, barren faces, rich folds... Staring at this image of Canyonlands that my mom took is a good example. You see the struggle of the earth worn down, pushing up, strong and expansive. It always gives me pause.

You have to breathe it in and look at the same time.

Back to the Future

2010-11-03T10:31:00.001-07:00

"I have memories - but only a fool stores his past in the future". ~David Gerrold

For me this is heavier than you might think...maybe for you too...

Beauty is Enough

2010-10-27T07:15:00.000-07:00

"Flowers... are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Flowers are restful to look at. They have neither emotions nor conflicts." - Sigmund Freud

So - I never used to "get behind" flowers. I would feel badly as their promise was that they would not last. I would feel happy and engaged to look, but just for a glimpse never to really gaze. Anyway- I've reformed my opinions and thoughts about flowers and these quotes sum it up nicely. Just beauty is enough. Simple, visual play - displayed. That is purpose enough.

And, this photo does not do it justice, but the yellow is so sunny and fresh, it makes me happy to see.

Theme Song Challenge

2010-10-19T09:01:00.000-07:00

"Sing the song. It makes a big difference, I think, making the words and melody come out of your mouth." Gail Blanke

Last night I had a great text/convo complete with mp3's with the T-man.

We were determining the big stuff in life, debating the merits of a life lived simply vs. one of mystery and complication.

He linked me to the song "Simple Man" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, which is just a killer song and one I hadn't heard in a while. I joked that it was his theme song. Then I retracted that text because I thought about it for a good while and disagreed. It IS his theme song - but only partly. The trick was really a "mix tape" of theme songs for how you know a person best...

This set off a texting/linking flurry of what I think a better theme song for him would be including one for myself that is yet incomplete.

My top theme song for 2010 for myself is "Soldier" by Ingrid Michaelson.

What about you? Any suggestions to share - for me? For you?

:)

Letting out the Hot Air

2010-10-17T07:08:00.000-07:00

There's something in a flying horse,
There's something in a huge balloon.

— William Wordsworth, 'Peter Bell,' Prologue. Stanza 1.

Off to see the hot air balloons in Millwood and looking for a little inspiration. Bottom's up.

Stop, Drop and Gaze

2010-10-06T10:00:00.000-07:00

"The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I went to the http://www.getmotivated.com seminar yesterday in DC and enjoyed it. The many, many speakers constantly cited how important it is to leave the world a better place that you left it: to give more than you get. That doesn't have to be in terms of donating money or even with a helping hand. You can actually "give" by taking the time to share your thoughts and ideas with another and especially to listen.

I found the reminder welcome.

Egg "Fool" Young

2010-09-28T10:55:00.000-07:00

"A lot of people mistake a short memory with a clear conscience." – Doug Larson.

Darn. He's right...

Apologies

2010-09-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

"If you want the last word, apologize".

Hmm...this is a tough one.

Maybe it's the most mind-bending, creative way of last-wording there is...

iDon't like it.

2010-09-14T08:43:00.000-07:00

"If in the last few years you haven't discarded a major opinion or acquired a new one, check your pulse. You may be dead." - Gelett Burgess

So - does this apply to new icons too? Everyone hates this new iTunes turn. I, too, think it's terrible. It's very rudimentary and backward, non-techy, generic, dull, and, drum roll...one note (Sorry! Had to go there...). BUT - is there value in change? Even in changing icons? HELL YES. I'm not sure how this particular disaster got approved, but I like that iTunes decided to put on some new makeup and update the wardrobe for 2010. Now, there's just that little pesky matter of "taste"...

Good Enough

2010-09-13T07:50:00.000-07:00

"Perfect is the enemy of the good." - Voltaire

I'm sitting here laughing at this graph. I laugh because this is my life. hahaha. It's funny, right? This quote is so good. it's captivating, interesting, feels slightly off and is often mis-quoted for exactly that reason. Some might say (and I tend to agree) that it makes more sense to read it as: "Perfect is the worst enemy of Good Enough", "Perfection is the enemy of Good Enough", "Better Than Is the Enemy of Good Enough", "Better Is the Enemy of Good Enough". Each seems to be an adaptation for a specific moral that the (mis)quoter is trying to convey. I like the original the best, of course, but it does feel like it needs wrangling into a better order - into more control and clarity.

Then there are people like me who make graphs like THIS all day long and I just laugh. This kind of graphic passes muster! Amazing. Voltaire had it right. Perfection can drive one to madness and that is not good for anyone. Regardless, I'd like to make friends with "cool" and leave "good" alone.

Putting on my Humanitarian Hat

2010-08-24T09:46:00.000-07:00

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." - Anne Frank

I was sitting around my cubicle - bursting with a little bit of extra pre-vacation energy and thinking about how I really want to just "do something different". No more complaining about my life and what I don't have or what chafes me. Why not - think more forwardly? I then happened upon this incredibly inspiring list on CNN about how other people thinking small, are making big things happen. I hope you get as much out of it as I do.

It totally made my day.

PS - this photo is criminally awful but absolutely cracked me up!

http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/08/23/10.simple.things/index.html

Revisions for a Quiet Monday

2010-08-23T07:09:00.000-07:00

"Youth disserves; middle age conserves; old age preserves." - Martin H. Fischer

I propose a re-write:

"Youth learns/upturns; middle age earns/concerns; old age u-turns/sojourns."

I miss my friends at Nick. Hope all is well!

Pounding Sand

2010-08-19T08:39:00.000-07:00

"I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity." - Albert Einstein

Audrey found a really long, but great article on Boomerang Kids in the NY Times online:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/magazine/22Adulthood-t.html

I read it yesterday but my thoughts and opinions linger. I can't get behind labeling this "age" in an official capacity. It seems artificial and repugnant. I question the age of the article's author as it stems from a voice that appears "parent-like" and overbearing. I am not a parent (yet) and am just a few years off from the median of this group - a woman who has freshly navigated the gauntlet of my 20's and a person who can easily relate to the remarks made here. From my view, it's these parents and experts who are calling a lot of attention to this special time with a hovering need to label this stage which, I propose, as a way to make themselves feel better. Perhaps they feel embarrassment and confusion as to why their offspring have not acted conventionally (like they did in their 20's). And, oh, how I loathe the box-checking of completing life mile stones that was cited no less than three times as a roadmap for being able to call ones-self a REAL adult. I'll allow myself a little vitriol here as I assert that those favoring the label need to express how they didn't raise lost souls on purpose! Instead they can say: "No...see? Johnny is just fine. In fact, he's emerging into Johnathan now. He's, well, he's "Johno" and that's "ok". He just hasn't reached full adulthood. Phew - we're good parents afterall!

I find the idea - neither here nor there - good for discussion but it's so personal and dependent on the socio-economic factors of the day. My guess is that if the economy continues flatlining than the uphill/ladder climbing of life stages will become more pyramidal and accessible only to a few people rather than the masses. Thus, this guffaw-worthy "extra stage" of development will flutter out with the wind. I mean - just get on with your life or not - but no need to enter a prescribed stage and call it mandatory as an express rite of passage.

The author of the article remarks: "If it really works that way, if this longer road to adulthood really leads to more insight and better choices, then Arnett’s vision of an insightful, sensitive, thoughtful, content, well-honed, self-actualizing crop of grown-ups would indeed be something worth waiting for."

I say the wheel was already invented. It's still going around: the pace varies depending on the rider.

Round and round

2010-08-16T11:06:00.000-07:00

May this house stand until an ant drinks the ocean and a tortoise circles the world." - Jonathan Carrol

Running track gets you these amazing short bursts of "fun". You get the adrenaline rush - but really - you end up right where you began: a little breathless and pink-skinned but no place new. With endurance running you are in for the long haul. You start somewhere - go on a journey and end up somewhere else (unless you do a loop and end up running an accidental half marathon across two States and a District). But even STILL - that is unexpected and full of new experiences that are unforeseen... I think it's no wonder that many people find endurance sports so attractive in their 30's, 40's and beyond after some maturing. Interesting, yes? no? maybe so?

Cheers to Fears

2010-08-10T17:36:00.001-07:00

The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one. ~Elbert Hubbard

Thank goodness for incredible friends and family. They won't let me indulge my fears. Thanks to their inspiration, I'm training to run my first marathon this year. What's in YOUR wallet?

Cheers to staring down your fears :).

*Thanks to Mindy for a great quote find!

Honoring Honoré

2010-08-09T07:45:00.000-07:00

"A woman knows the face of the man she loves like a sailor knows the open sea." - Honoré de Balzac

I stumbled upon this quote today and I simply love it. I love it for the drama and the romanticism and the absurdity. I love it for the gender stereotype of it that I usually protest against in earnest. What's funny is that Balzac (who adopted his surname for the formality and panache) is credited as being a naturalist writer; a writer who sees the world through a clear-glass and not a rose-colored lens. What a contradiction! The more I read about Balzac and his tortured, arduous relationship to the pen, I learned that he wrote in piecemeal, balancing an intriguing mix of passion, propriety and patience. I find that relevant to today's modern age. Piecemeal communication in bursts across different media is what constitutes communication. It's a wonder anyone knows what time it is or where (in terms of place) a person is really "coming from" to gain any context whatsoever! I love thinking about how meaning (in writing and really all communication) is less fixed now-a-days than ever and I wonder if writers from long ago felt the same... Critics repeatedly comment on Balzac's attempt to stabilize the extraneous realities of his own life by committing them to fiction. It was his way to stay on course. For me, this is a comforting notion, and it ushers us back to the quote above. Reading the sea...open and clear...like reading the face of a lover. AWESOME.

Imagining the Future

2010-08-05T09:01:00.000-07:00

"One of the ironies of human psychology is that desperately wanting something can make attaining that thing all the more difficult." - Daniel Gilbert

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/05/opinion/05gilbert.html?ref=sports

I read this quote as I read this article about A. Rod hitting his 600th milestone home run. I liked it and the article can be found here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/05/opinion/05gilbert.html?ref=sports

I never get tired of hearing this kind of sentiment. Part of me bucks against this concept foil to pure grit and determination as an approach to getting what you want out of life. On the other had, I can't help but agree with a concept that shifts the emphasis and focus away from control over imagined happiness to a more "gently guided" adventure approach to life. Mulder (I smolder for Mulder) embodied everything about BOTH sides of the coin. He was one-minded in his quest to find out what happened to his sister, but he was up for adventure along the way - adventure of the extra-terrestrial kind. Scully too, was all about order and control, but she probably came the "farthest" in subverting her beliefs after 9 seasons. Afterall, she gave birth to (arguably) alien spawn.

What's my point? Oh I dont' know...the usual: Navigating and wayfinding - yin and yang. Marriage for all. Chaos can't erode order completely and vice versa. Red Queen and all that jazz.

Runners' High

2010-08-04T13:01:00.000-07:00

"One's dignity may be assaulted, vandalized and cruelly mocked, but cannot be taken away unless it is surrendered." – Michael J. Fox

I really enjoy running these days. It makes you think. You can rebuild yourself up literally one step at a time. And if you falter, you can start again, within seconds.

Okay - and here's yet another visual of the DC RCC Van. I designed the logo and I'm obnoxiously excited to see it driving around town...:)

Waking Life

2010-08-02T07:10:00.000-07:00

"I dream of painting and then I paint my dream." Vincent Van Gogh

This weekend I was invited to open my mind and to celebrate Earth's bounty with the likes of Nefertiti, Demeter and Lugh. It was refreshing. The story of Greek goddess Demeter illustrates the tremendous capacity of a woman to love and nurture, within her own family and the world at large. Lugh instituted a harvest fair that featured martial arts and horse races. It was a triumph over the spirits of the Other World who had tried to keep the harvest for themselves.

Van Gogh didn't begin painting until his late 20's and most of his best-known works were produced during his final two years before he died at age 37. Despite a widespread tendency to cite his fragile mental health, Van Gogh's work had a far-reaching influence on 20th century art for its vivid colors and emotional impact. I choose the Van Gogh quote paired with these images of decorated cookies and Earth offerings because they embody my re-awakened creative spirit and gratitude for a bountiful season as we conjure up our hopes and dreams for the second half of 2010.

Twisted Business

2010-07-29T09:03:00.000-07:00

"The shortest distance between two points is under construction." - Noelie Altito

*This is kinda like necessity breeds invention, with a twist... Speaking of twisted - this website business and concept is absolutely hysterical: http://www.manpacks.com/ I guarantee you that the man who thought of this was absolutely going for the path of least resistance. Washing your underwear is harder than buying more? No doubt. Gotta love America...

Go Slow

2010-07-27T11:21:00.000-07:00

"I have noticed that the people who are late are often so much jollier than the people who have to wait for them." - E.V. Lucas

It took me into my 30's to begin to understand how the choice of Teenage Mutant Ninja TURTLES would be chosen as the animal-mascot for superhero stardom.

Go slow, mon.

Race/Sports T-shirt design abominations

2010-07-26T09:44:00.000-07:00

"Gloriousness and wretchedness need each other. One inspires us, the other softens us." - Pema Chodron

Okay friends... A lot has been said (and none of it pleasant) about the 2012 Olympic games logo design created by designers at Wolff Olins. It's completely wretched and horrifying but at least there is some LIFE and BUZZ to the thing. You can't miss it! You are not bored to tears as you shield your eyes from it's vibrating scream, and at least it has a presence!

I mean - make no mistake, I wouldn't want to be caught DEAD wearing a shirt with that gunk all over it - but at the same time - it SAYS SOMETHING about the nature of the games (energy, celebration, acid tabs and superhuman inspirational athletic feats).

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I actually LIKE the 2012 Olympic logo more than the 2010 Crystal City 5K Twilighter t-shirts. I will even say it twice. For, I am in complete SHOCK of how horrible this shirt design is. I was looking forward to its' unveiling this year (as were all of my running peeps) and man, it's just so beyond terrible. This t-shirt was my absolute favorite in 2009 and I wore it in every race (and therefore every picture). Who doesn't instantly see a friend in the community when you see a person in that red tee with the yellow moon crest on its' horizon? You KNOW that person is of like mind and body when you see them in that tee and you make a proud head nod in communal tee-shirt love and solidarity. But now...the CC5K cache just fell off a cliff. I am incredibly sad for this. Is this a trend now? To TOP the wretchedness of the upcoming summer games logo with something even more despicable? Notice the acid orange and teal colors battling the boring and stale commentary of rigid squares imprisoning the initial caps and numbers? And the typeface. The typeface my friends, has no flavor, no nuance. It's the IBM of running tees.

The Final Countdown

2010-07-23T06:48:00.000-07:00

"For everything you have missed, you have gained something else, and for everything you gain, you lose something else." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

So, here I am "just a graphic designer" looking for an image of a clock to illustrate the meaning of this quote. I take just a few moments to peruse images on Google and this one struck me. A full explanation of the image can be found here: http://pentagram.com/en/new/2007/01/new-work-the-doomsday-clock.php

What I thought was a simple, minimum "essence" of clock presented in a high-contrast and appealing way is actually a historic and powerful symbol for the threat of worldwide nuclear danger. Ever since 1947, the minute hand on the clock has inched forward and backward from midnight and the proverbial "Final Countdown". The closest the clock has been to midnight was two minutes, in 1953, after the US and Soviet Union both tested hydrogen bombs; the furthest has been 17 minutes, in 1991, after the US and the Soviet Union signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. The clock last moved forward in 2002, following 9/11.

Wow. And here I was just looking for a quote to usher in a change of perspective for the day. I sure got more than I bargained for.

Born to Run

2010-07-20T06:26:00.000-07:00

"You live up to your own expectations, man." - Caballo Blanco

Epic, legendary, and a must read: http://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Hidden-Superathletes-Greatest/dp/0307266303/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1279632912&sr=8-1

2010-07-16T06:38:00.001-07:00

"In order to bake an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe." - Carl Sagan

Exactly.

Correlation/Causation

2010-07-15T09:25:00.000-07:00

"You must understand that seeing is believing, but also know that believing is seeing." - Denis Waitley

Is this a mere correlation that tricks the senses to a causation? I think this quote is akin to wearing rosy glasses. If you want to see the good, you see the good. If you are in a bad mood and focus on the bad, then well, that's what pops to the fore. In this photo is the deer more surprised to see the viewer or is the viewer the one caught up in the moment by the deer? Either way - I love the photo. The gentle unexpected delight pricks my senses up a little higher. I witness him see me. We are seen.

I Drive the Ship

2010-07-14T06:41:00.000-07:00

"A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for." - Grace Hopper

Thanks to Mindy for helping me with my summer mantra :).

Rocky Gaps

2010-07-12T06:44:00.000-07:00

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." - Eleanor Roosevelt

This kind of quote used to really work for me - but lately I've been stuck contemplating the present much more than the future. Too much focus on the future makes your every step, today, seem fateful and overly important. Will it get you where you need/want/dream of going? I think what works best though is a balance (of course). Our dreams (like an XTERRA course) keep you on track to guide your future, but you have to be open to the flats (sorry Patrick!) along the way. And when a rock scramble interrupts a perfectly great mulchy-flat run along the river's edge, you walk with it but don't stop the momentum. And whatever you do, smile for the camera.

Sleeping Under the Stars

2010-07-09T09:13:00.000-07:00

"Now I see the secret of making the best person: it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth." - Walt Whitman

Off to the wilderness for a camping/XTERRA adventure...

Gossip Girl

2010-07-08T09:19:00.000-07:00

"If you want to understand democracy, spend less time in the library with Plato, and more time in the buses with people." - Simeon Strunsky

This quote makes me think of my Grandpa Arthur. He was a federal judge who lived to be 97 years old. He used to read (on occasion) gossip mags (or rags) like Cosmo, People, or US Weekly to keep up with the "public" and make sure he wasn't passing judgment from an out-of-touch, esoteric place. I'm probably not doing him justice (pun!) by relating it this way...

So, I had a little shindig at my place this past weekend and those of us who read this drivel were called out as Jake and Vienna battled on the Bachelorette on the TV in the background. I defend my occasional dance with this junk for just expressly this reason! Oh, and viva la jail time for Lindsay Lohan. That woman could use a little law in her life.

2010-07-06T17:16:00.000-07:00

"No one has ever learned fully to know themselves." - Johann von Goethe

This is the second time this concept has laid prostrate before my brain today. This morning while at the dentist my hygienist, Misty (who is awesome), says to me that we will never fully know who we are but you should try to learn more and more. I couldn't respond because my mouth was dry as cotton and the slurpee/sucker thing was stealing my saliva, so I thought about it and completely agreed. Further, a new friend of mine mentioned the book "The Facebook Effect" this weekend. I'd like to read that. I'd like to unpack the relationships of how we know ourselves, present ourselves casually/socially and what we reveal to ourselves and about ourselves by changing our avatars often (or not at all)...

Happy 4th of July

2010-07-05T12:50:00.000-07:00

"For what avail the plough or sail, or land or life, if freedom fail?" - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Our lives are free to live as we please...

2010-07-02T08:29:00.000-07:00

" The value of a man resides in what he gives and not in what he is capable of receiving." - Albert Einstein

Most of us have been touched by cancer in some way. This is my way of fighting back against a disease that has taken too much. I joined a 12-person (all-women's relay team) to run in a 36-hour, 197-mile course from Mt. Hood, Oregon to the seaside coast (called Hood to Coast http://hoodtocoast.com/) that will push us to the limit as We Run. On. Courage. When we cross that finish line on August 27th-28th, we will be doing it for you and for all the people we know who’ve been touched by this disease. It's overwhelming to learn that more than 11 million Americans can benefit from our efforts each year. Please support me with a donation so that together, with the American Cancer Society, we can better understand and fight cancer.

I'm touched and honored that so many of my friends, family and co-workers rallied to support me and have helped to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Thank you to all of you - it means a lot.

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/DetermiNation/DNFY10GreatWest?px=17286433&pg=personal&fr_id=25750

Layers and Rings

2010-06-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

“Things are not what they seem… Social reality turns out to have many layers of meaning.” - P. L. Berger

A lot of what I do I don't fully understand. I have limited time and virtually no access to logical discussion to unpack "things" that are "given", "unalterable" and "self-evident" to those around me. So, I operate as a mutable magician - a second generation acrobat who must 'go out' and learn...

P.L. Berger's work revolves around the relationship between society and the individual. His book "The Social Construction of Reality" posits that the social everyday reality (in contrast to other realities, such as dreams, theoretical constructs, religious or mystic beliefs, artistic and imaginary worlds, etc) of an individual is subject to a struggle of affiliation to often conflicting realities.

I don't know about you - but conflicting realities are the very fabric of my trade, my current job, my many social spheres and my raw inner nature. This quote pairs nicely with a piece I heard this morning on NPR about the inner nature of psychopaths and how their brains function differently from "regular Joe's". http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128116806. While I can't get behind excusing a social crime due to "limited brain capacity", the onion of MY mind unpeels as I question how to communicate ( with language, graphics and emotionally) in a way that effectively means something to disparate groups.

Know what I mean? :)

Please Give

2010-06-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

"The only people with whom you should try to get even are those who have helped you." - John E. Southard

Gratitude and thankfulness are on my mind today. I saw a movie this weekend called "Please Give" which touched on this idea - especially the main female character who worked through her need to help others in the overtly "help needed" category of her mind vs. the ones in her family so desperately in need of her "help" in a different way. I completely related to her overwhelming sense of sadness at how a simple act of kindness (that SHE was able to give) could rack her to her bones with how much it was needed. http://www.sonyclassics.com/pleasegive/

This image is from a series about a grieving, lonely orangutan and his friend, an old, sick dog who found each other at the zoo and became fast friends. They helped each other and you can see how they are in repose: natural if unlikely.

The image, the quote...well it snaps me into the fray of talk of Hamas and the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Well, it's wishful thinking anyway...

Enough

2010-06-28T07:04:00.000-07:00

“I have learned that to be with those I like is enough.” - Walt Whitman

To all you wayfinders out there (and a little bit me)

2010-06-26T08:08:00.001-07:00

"Adventure is just bad planning." - Roald Amundsen (1872-1928)

It's the weekend...break some plans and have an adventure :)

Life of Brian

2010-06-25T05:52:00.000-07:00

I snagged this quote from my cousin's AB's FB wall:

Brian: "Please, please, please listen! I've got one or two things to say."
The Crowd: "Tell us! Tell us both of them!"
Brian: "Look, you've got it all wrong! You don't NEED to follow ME, You don't NEED to follow ANYBODY! You've got to think for your selves! You're ALL individuals!"
The Crowd: "Yes! We're all individuals!"
-Monty Python

This quote immediately reminds me of the 1984 Apple Macintosh commercial where ONE person stands against the uniform machine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYecfV3ubP8

It makes me think of my 7-year old self wanting more than anything in the world to be "just like everyone else" (sad, but it was only fleeting!).

And now it's 2010, and what I'm really interested in is Lady Gaga and her one-woman quest to carve out a niche of individuality in the music realm, the feminist stew of body-politics and gender bending, and well, manners at the ball park. Seinfeld hates her, and I'm not sold. The WSJ wrote up an opinion piece that challenges her message and her stance on self-presentation. What say you?

http://theweek.com/article/index/204293/lady-gaga-feminist-icon

The Chicken or the Pig

2009-11-15T13:09:00.000-08:00

Here's the first quote to consider - my friend MG found it and it made me hungry:

"The difference between 'involvement' and 'commitment' is like an eggs-and-ham breakfast: the chicken was 'involved' - the pig was 'committed'."

Okay so to me this is an expression of female empowerment. The chicken compromises a part of her future to provide a meal (her eggs). Her involvement means she gives up a piece of herself forever (her potential offspring); but she can live with that.

As for the pig, his commitment = death. Is that more heroic? It's not a compromise at all; it's total sacrifice. Maybe there's a correlation here as to why men kick and drag their heels with regard to marriage. You see, they don't have to give up any of their eggs, but they only get to be the sausage for a short, short time.