Things to do on the journey

 

Be joyful. |  Be gentle. | Worry less. | Love.

 

Repeat.

 

Be joyful. |  Be gentle. | Worry less.

Repeat.

 

 

Be joyful. |  Be gentle. | Worry less. | LOVE.

 

And, repeat.

thoughts from my lovely,
inspiring,
and beautiful
friend.

what is your favorite memory?

perfect for someone like me who loves this stuff. i'm smiling ear to ear now.

some are predictable. some aren't. but they are all fantastic.

my favorite memory..... it's a tough but great question, because like the first guy says, all these wonderful ones come rolling through. but, mine center around friends and food, i'm sure of it. whether it was dinners during summer of 2008 with friends who came by, or parties thrown by my parents, or farewell summer parties. those are my favorites.

what is your favorite memory?

Once more, with feeling

I rode my bike today. I rode it to campus, then walked it to El Potreo, and then walked/rode it home.

And my goodness but it felt good. 

I learned how to ride a bike at 18. I then rode one about 15 times over the next 5 years.

Bikes don't make any sense to me. I have this theory that we must learn to ride bikes as tiny humans, otherwise our brains take over and tell us that there is no way that two little skinny wheels are supposed to hold us up. It's ridiculous. 

I digress. 

Basically, bike riding kind of scares me. Okay, it really scares me. 

But last night, I realized that gas had gone up yet again, that the husband and I had saved almost $260 from not eating out in April, and that it was ridiculous that I drove to places like the coffee shop, the university, the library -- all within, literally, a two mile radius of my apartment. 

I then realized that we bought this beautiful bike for me and it was just... sitting in a corner. And that was ridiculous.

Then I thought about the fact that I needed a basket and a headlight on the bike for it to be worth riding*. Because, clearly I can't be seen riding with a backpack on or ride during the hours of 6am and 8pm. That's just... well, silly. 

Or, not. 

So, today I rode my bike to campus, then walked it to  El Potreo, and then walked/rode it home.

*I was chewed out today for not having a helmet, so I'm on the hunt for one. Promise. 

Listening to my Heart

I went to the Vagina Monologues a few weeks ago with some friends. At the end of the show, the local belly dancing troupe walked on stage and began dancing. My friend, Stephanie, leaned over to me and said, "I've always wanted to do that." And my heart said, "Me too!" 

See, my heart said that, not my brain. Because occasionally our hearts are much, much more intelligent then our heads are.

I'm that person who goes to bars and watches the bags because others are dancing (assuming I even darken the door of a bar where people dance). I'm just really uncomfortable with my body, I have very little rhythm, and I step on everyone's toes. Poor husband wants to dance with me, but I'm just so awful at it. 

And yet somehow I have found myself in a belly dancing class. I'm still rhythm challenged and I feel so self-conscious during the whole process. But, I'm there. 

I do have to say that I love how my body feels when I'm attempting to move it. And with the hip scarves... it's amazing. I'm not good at it. I struggle to let go. I've found if I don't stand in front of the mirror I do better. And if I try to crawl out of my head, I do way better. 

For now though, I'm happy that I let my heart take the lead and talk me into this class. And I'm so grateful for a friend who joined me on this adventure.

Renting Convert

For a while, I wanted to own a home. I wanted to buy house so that the husband and I would have something which was ours. When we paid our monthly payment, it wasn't just going to a company. Nor would it feel like we were throwing money out because we would be paying a mortgage, which would mean that in the end we would own something rather than not keeping anything. It's kind of like the difference between leasing a car and buying a car - with one you own it and with the other you have to give it back.

The other reason I wanted to own a home was because I would be allowed to do things to said home and no one could tell me otherwise. I could paint, I could garden, I could put as many holes in the walls as I wanted because it was my own. I could try different things over and over because it's mine and I don't have to get clearance with a landlord.

I also want to say that I hate corporate apartments. They feel sterile. You can't add color and I've found that they are difficult to make them feel homey. No matter how many lamps I bought, I've never felt comfortable in a corporate owned place.

Last year, when we knew we had to find somewhere else to live otherwise we would be homeless, we started hunting Craigslist. That's where apartments are listed here, especially ones downtown. I wanted to find a house to rent, because by God, if I couldn't buy one we would rent one.

The one I wanted fell through. We could never get a hold of the company to show it to us and then it was rented. The next place we looked at I fell in love with. It was teeny apartment, maybe 500sqft, but it had a sense of home and a sense of community. The guy who managed the apartments lived on site and he was just awesome. You could tell he loved his tenants and he cared about the place. He would also allow you to paint and do whatever you wanted. Plus cable was free.

The husband wasn't a fan. It was a very small apartment with an unbelievably small kitchen. It had a mini-stove, and the husband was not going for it. We turned him down. Finally, we decided to contact this place that only ever listed studios hoping we would find something we liked.

The first apartment we saw in this complex was a gorgeous one bedroom, third floor walk up. It had a claw foot tub, stained glass windows, a beautiful murphy bed, a dressing area and best of all a farm sink.

The husband didn't like it.

The next apartment we looked at about a month later was a one bedroom under construction. The only redeeming quality it had was a gigantic kitchen with two sinks and built in booth seating. The husband didn't like that one either. That was okay because I wasn't sold either. As we were leaving, the owner said, "Well, I have another apartment that just opened up. It's a two bedroom first floor. The people who lived there before really didn't take care of it..." We thought, what the hell, and walked with her to go look at it.

Today, I paid month 12 of our rent and we're getting ready to sign a two year lease.

12 months later, I have made that apartment home. We've painted, and hung pictures, wine holders, hooks, and curtains. We've bought a dining room set, found a papasan chair, and built shelves. We've downsized and have learned to cook meals for 10+ people in a galley kitchen. We hung plastic to keep the cold out and used Window ACs to cool us down.

And this weekend, we're going to work on the coolest part yet. We're going to put in a garden.

I can't wait to show y'all.

LoveFest 2011

I'm one of those people who loves Valentine's Day, but only on the day of. The rest is just too much pressure.

But today, I love it. Even though I have a flat tire, my cell phone died, and my printer decided to hate on me. I love it.

I decorated Friday night and that was fun. See photos above.

The husband and I aren't doing anything together until much later tonight. We might get beer and cake is we're feeling crazy this afternoon before my class. But, he's working until 10:30 and I'm headed to a love-fest party with some good old and new friends. Excitement will ensue, I promise.

But, because I love cards*, I found this in my computer this morning:

How freaking adorable is that? And, I'm told there is more to come. 10:30 can't get here soon enough!

Anyhow, we are having gorgeous weather here right now which is fantastic. It still sucks my motivation dry, but I can deal with that. And yesterday, at my Sunday Study Brain Trust Group, I wore this:

And I felt super cute. Don't judge.

*At some point last year, I told the husband that I feel loved when I received cards. I didn't need gifts, just thoughtful cards. And though could be, "oh, Colie would appreciate this." And, now he does it. I'm a lucky, luck girl.

Light Painting

I'm getting into photography. Part of that comes from the better camera I got back in November. Part of it comes from the Diana that I got for Christmas. The other third is my desire to not only learn about Counseling techniques and to have a life. 

I enrolled in a continuing ed photography class, and so far it was been the most incredible thing that I've done in a while. I've learned so so so much about photography and cameras... it's been incredible. And, my photos are getting better to boot. 

Anyway, some of the things which I've learned is that for a camera, you just need a light tight box, a shutter, an aperture, and something to collect the light. That's it. That's all that's needed for a camera. Now, lenses and shutter speeds... all of that is important depending upon the kind of photo you want, but the basics? That's all you need. 

And that's all that pinhole cameras are. A light tight box, something to catch the light (film), a shutter (what let's light in) and the aperture (the pin hole). And you can get some amazing photos using a pin hole. 

For example, the one above. That's a pin hole camera made from an empty soda can with a 0.25mm aperture and a single sheet of photographic paper. The shutter was left open for 6 months... 6 months! From the winter solstice to the summer. See the streaks? That's the sun going across the sky. 

Photography doesn't have to be scary or hard and you don't need a $1,000+ camera... you just need to be able to paint with light. 

Photographers Website

Found at: HouseHold Name