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miscellaney
I won’t see this date again. In honor of that, here are twelve things about me no one else has ever seen before.
- I love Excel. LOVE. IT. I’ve even used it for design before, which is stupid for a graphic designer (it wasn’t easy, but I am stubborn. And persistent.) But, OH, those rows and columns of orderly squares…[sigh] I love a good grid.
- I write on EVERYTHING. My desk, the walls, in books, on clothing, on MYSELF. On my CHILDREN. A constant comment from my husband was “don’t draw on the baby!” I don’t care if the kids do it either and many a wall in our house has had impromptu words appear on it. Letters and words are so damn cool looking. So, naturally, yes, I have tattoos.
- I’m really good at giving pertinent, effective advice. But lousy at following it myself. Do as I say, not as I do.
- I’m pretty sure I have ADD and OCD but I’ve developed some good coping mechanisms and am decent at hiding it from all the put-together, with-it people.
- I used to snore. BAD. Like wake-myself-up snoring. Like a trucker. (Do trucker’s snore? I don’t know, just always heard that saying.) But, I don’t anymore. Losing weight fixed that, so my husband is getting better sleep now, too.
- I’m terrified of aliens. A few people already know this, but most people don’t. I try to hide it because it’s irrationally stupid, I know. And makes me sound like an idiot. On the flip side, I’m fascinated by the possible discovery of life forms on other planets. Just so long as they stay on their own damn planet. I follow NASA with fervor.
- I read in the bathroom. Who doesn’t, right? But, no really, like it’s nothing for me to be in there an hour for no physical reason, I’m just reading. Husband at the door, asking if I “fell in?” It’s not even comfortable, no padded seat in our house. And we only have one bathroom, so it’s pretty rude of me, I admit, but, can’t seem to break myself of it. Also, my leg falls asleep while I’m in there. TMI? It’s always my right leg. Like paralyzed numb, tree trunk dead weight. Definitely TMI.
- I don’t wash my face. Like ever. And I have pretty great skin. I always thought if I started having problems with it I would start to do something different, but I’m 45 and it hasn’t happened yet, so I’m rolling with it. And yes, this often means I wake up with raccoon eyes. I like to think of it as my sexy, sleepy, groupie look. My husband probably thinks “crack-head hooker.”
- I’m obsessed with calendars. I have 5 on my desk RIGHT NOW, all within 12” of me, and I use them all (not for different purposes, just repeating the same stuff in each one). I have four more within 3 feet. And this is just my work desk. I have another 4-5 at home. I desperately want one concise, organized planner, but every time I go down that road, invest in that one system that will meet all my needs, I get nervous and start adding more. It’s irrational, I know.
- I have no sentimental attachment to things, momentos, bric-brac, etc. You’d think without that pull I’d have a beautiful, minimal lifestyle, but I am really one-newspaper-stack-away from being on Hoarders. I absolutely understand the power and importance of photographs and keepsakes, yet I don’t feel it about my own stuff.
- I secretly think I can sing despite EVERYONE’S insistence that I can’t. People actually wince around me if I sing outloud, like I’m physically hurting them, but I think it’s just them. They’re all crazy! I sound AWESOME in my own head.
- I’m more a 5-minute-rule kinda’ person than a 5-second-rule. Unless it’s sticky. Then I just call the dog over to clean it up J
That’s all I got. It was tougher than I thought. I’m a pretty open book so thinking of 12 things I didn’t think anyone knew about me took some work. And made me realize I could probably use therapy.
- This girl turns 13 early next week. I would be telling the truth if I said it never even entered my mind that that made her a teenager -- until my 20-year-old reminded me, “mom, she’s gonna’ be a teenager, duhn. duhn. duhn…” Egads! Does saying “egads” show that I am a long ways past being 13 myself? She’s my baby, the youngest in the house, and 13 is far too old for her to be!
- A little personal mini-goal set and reached. I joined a gym this past summer with the goal to eventually lose 100 lbs. Yup, that very big number is daunting, but I am really good at short-term challenges so every 5% bodyweight lost or every 10 lbs. or every size-smaller pant is what I aim for. And when I hit one, I aim for the next small goal in line. Currently down 25 lbs. and four pant sizes. Last Friday I stumbled out of bed, late for work, (it was the day after Thanksgiving, after all,) and pulled my jeans on from the floor where they’d landed the night before. They seemed a tad short, but being in a rush and still sleepy, I pushed it aside and headed to work. Later that morning I realized I was not wearing my jeans. I was wearing one of my daughter’s jeans. Jeans that were a size I hadn’t worn in years. And they were skinny jeans. Not that I really have much business wearing skinny jeans, but this was huge for me because they were skinny jeans from the normal-size section of the store, not the plus-size section. Being as they were her favorite jeans, she wouldn’t let me have them, boo, so I bought my own pair. I own a pair of normal-sized skinny jeans! Baby steps.
- This pillow from Ikea, the 365+ Fast, is for “side-sleepers and back-sleepers.” It’s really firm, but made of some kind of memory foam, so it’s soft, and is nothing short of life-changing. Well, sleep-changing, which IS life-changing in my book. Only $20 and I have slept great every night since. No more constantly shaping and plumping and punching and pushing to get my pillow comfy. It just fits, right next to your shoulder and the roll is the perfect size to support your neck while your head cradles in the center. The two sized rolls are for side or back sleepers, one for each. When I roll over, I just roll over. I don’t have to start the pillow dance again to get comfy.
- This is a very cool site I stumbled upon. It lets you enter either a stride (Beats per minute or BPM) or speed and then it returns a playlist of music matching that tempo so you can keep your pace. GENIUS! You can further narrow your search to just a specific genre of music too. And add any or all of the songs you want into your own playlist. You can hear samples of each song too, and there are several links to purchase the songs individually from multiple vendors (iTunes or Amazon, for MP3s.) I knew I was on the right track when I entered 8:00 mile and several songs on the list were ones I already listened to on the elliptical. I added a few more from the playlist and now have lots of stuff to keep me motivated. I do MUCH better with music
- This is a new patterned illustration I made and added to my Society6 shop. A graphic interpretation of my Grandma’s blanket. I grew up always having at least one of these chevron crocheted blankets on the couch and always think of both my grandmas when I see it. One taught me to crochet and the other always made the blankets. Love in every stitch, right?
- My daughter and I were lucky enough to be two of the eight lucky people to participate in a CreativeLive workshop in Seattle. Holiday cupcake and cookie decorating featuring Lucinda Larson. Had fun, learned cool tricks and we came home with this assortment of gorgeous, delicious cupcakes that WE MADE OURSELVES. Fo' realz!
- Same daughter (the pastry culinary student,) made dessert for Thanksgiving (her first ever "from-scratch".) A pumpkin-pecan cheesecake that was ah-may-zing! Can't wait for another piece tonight!
- My daughter and a friend rescued a homeless baby rabbit and my mother-in-law fell in love with him, so now Peter rabbit lives at her house. So cute, oh my, maybe we should have kept him ourselves?
- So grateful I DON'T participate in "Black Friday!" It's ridiculously crazy, full of rude, pushy people, overheated (over-smelly) and the total opposite of the compassion for fellow humans that this season means. I think a much better idea would be 'Giving Friday," where we all try to donate as much as possible to organizations like the Goodwill. Everyone needs to admit we have TOO MUCH UNNEEDED STUFF and surely someone else would appreciate it.
- A little print I made that is available in my Society6 shop. "If you know how to swim, an ocean's depth doesn't matter." Teach your kids to swim, literally and figuratively, and they will be better prepared for whatever life throws at them.
Boy, I've been absent from here. No apologies though, life happens. STUFF happens. Just because you haven't seen any evidence of me though, doesn't mean I haven't been busy. Like. A. Bee. Or a beaver? Which is busier? Whichever it is, I think I have them topped this last couple o' months.
My first born, pride AND joy, baby girl (who's TWENTY, O-M-G!) moved to Seattle to go to culinary school at the Seattle Culinary Academy to study "Specialty Desserts and Breads." Hello, can you say "sign-me-up-as-a-taste-tester?"
I started a new personal project, because I don't have ENOUGH to do...Called "Friday 5ive: A collection of observances." It will be just that. A bit of photography mixed with design, maybe mixed with some random blathering on things I have OBSERVED or that have occurred to me. Words and pics and all the goodness that entails, summed up nicely (or not-so-nicely) on a Friday.
This week:
- This is a BIG, awesome, graphic poster I made for that 20-year-old-pride-and-joy mentioned above (and in number 5, below.) She is the brand new renter of a cute little studio apartment on Capitol Hill (in Seattle) with big hopes of being modern and graphic and hip and cool and all that jazz that comes with having your own place for the first time. I wanted to create something to fit that bill for her, so she came up with some of her favorite song lyrics (from her self-proclaimed "hubby" and hot frontman, Adam Levine) and I turned them into this very cool, very BIG, piece for her wall. I LOVE the graphic feel of black and white and WORDS.
- Can you believe someone who has been working as a graphic artist and photographer for OVER TWENTY YEARS has never had herself a business card? Crazy, I know, what?? Oh, I design them all the time, but I never have them printed. Never needed to, to be honest, business is just fine, thank you. But, I got tired of saying "I don't have a card" and so finally crossed this of the old "to do" list recently. The back is my favorite wacky duck photo that is frequently seen on my website and blog.
- This family is moving and taking a little piece of my heart with them. But, they are going somewhere they really are excited about AND they are flying me out to continue shooting them this winter. Yay, so looking forward to warm Austin, TX in January when it's a thousand degrees below zero in Wenatchee. This little guy will be turning 1 when I'm there and it's the perfect conclusion to our year together of documenting his entire first year.
- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is coming to Wenatchee. And, as I have had the honor of doing for many years, I got to design all their promotional material. Posters and banners and t-shirts, OH MY! Please don't miss this, if you're at all interested. The cast is HUGE this year (180+) and tickets will go super fast, with those adoring family members and fans snapping them up. The Wenatchee School District does an OUTSTANDING job with each and every production they do and this will be no exception.
- I have been going to Seattle every single weekend for weeks and weeks, trying to help pride-and-joy girl, above, find that very special apartment. We have had a load of fun walking the streets of downtown together, her and I, and I will always treasure that time now that she is out on her own and I survived the minor mental breakdown I almost had when I realized that, "yes, your children do eventually move out and it is heartbreaking." I miss her like you can't imagine and am equally happy and excited for her. Such a salty/sweet combination. Love you baby girl.
