jaina makes a housecall.

sweet baby jaina arrived, with lovingly plump cheeks, rolls and all, to her grandparents' house and we welcomed her with adoring cheers! it's amazing how quickly babies grow in only two weeks time! during her visit, she seemed curious and yet still calm. she likes to look around a lot and observe her surroundings. my mother noted her inquisitive glances as well and stated that she thought jaina was thinking that she knew that the place where she was, was not her home and was enjoying noting the differences.

perhaps, perhaps not. either way, it's fascinating (as her aunt!) to see her growth and development.

(photos, courtesy of james' iphone.)

doing more because i CAN. and i WANT TO.

it's funny how sometimes we and by we, i mean me, (and you can also include yourself in this category) sometimes forget to do the things we actually enjoy, dare i say, love, admire, adore doing. i love art. i love thinking about it, sketching, drawing, planning, plotting, dreaming about all things art. be it being moved by and swept away by paintings and prints in a museum, gallery, or being amused and grateful for sweet graffiti art and stickers i see on the street, random bathroom art, signage, you name it. i will usually dig it. (unless it's crap. but then again, there's sometimes beauty in the ugly too. other times, it really is just ugly. YIKES!)

this is my time to take life by the balls. BALLS. that means i've got to do it. and when i'm doing it, i'm loving it. here's to remembering to honoring by DOING what i love: art.

in an effort to aid this process, i've called on my family and friends to collaborate with me. my first collaborator is my brother. when he was visiting bmore, he showed me pictures on his camera. one of them was a piece of artwork that he liked, a silhouette of an octopus, that he thought about buying. he didn't actually make the purchase, but it dawned on me, that i would love my brother to own original artwork by me, his sister! i like to hold myself accountable and for the most part i do, but it's also true that when others hold you accountable too, you can be more apt to get it done, sometimes, even better and faster. i thought about replicating the octopus image i saw, but my brother gave me an even better idea. based on his observations at the chicago zoo he was introduced to and was very taken by the axolotl. (pronounced ACKS-a-lot-uhl, which means "water dog.") i have time to embellish and draw variations on the funny salamander creature that is native to mexico. for now, i'm happy with the beginning! i'm well on my way!

accessible and totally do-able resolutions for a better life.

inspired by gala's (galadarling.com) radical self love resolutions as read on bust magazine, i'm relaying this info in blogform to remind myself (and those of you who also like gentle reminders) to continue learning, fostering, and embracing all the simply joys in life.

*devour life: be big, be bold, be brave, free and BADASS. wear red lipstick simply because you want to.
*develop friendship and relationships with your family: there is still so much to (re)discover about close friends and family.
*be responsible: it's up to you to make shit happen. DO IT.
*follow instincts and listen (& HONOR) your GUT: they don't call it a sixth sense for nothing. don't be afraid to use it!
*be kind to yourself: give yourself permission to be imperfect, messy, loud, carefree, beautiful and ever-evolving.

a big one. (what makes you smile?)

my friend, amber, who coincidentally makes me smile!, was visiting baltimore from idaho falls and to show her a grand ole time in charm city, i took her to various delicious eateries: one world cafe, the brewer's art, and golden west cafe. we also loved exploring the american visionary art museum where we oohed and ahhed, sighed with compassion, and laughed with delight and silliness! it's a fabulously curated exhibit that's adoringly filled with all sorts of insights into the things that make us smile.

there was a room titled, "toots suite" and it was decorated with all sort of fart related artworks. in the center of it all was a bench that was decked out with self inflating whoopee cushions--oh man! i had a ball! and so did the other museum goers who were tooting up a storm!

fart jokes very naturally lend themselves to poop jokes and this reminded me of a particularly exuberant and charismatic student named june. one day, he informed me that he had to go to the bathroom and asked to go, quickly. (insert the classic holding of the crotch and running in place motion.) i gave him permission to go and that's when he totally dished out too much (but funny!) information. he said, "teacher, i can tell it's going to be a BIG ONE."

wow.
thanks, june.
for being so memorable!
and for making me smile.

mom love.

dear mom,
i know that when i began to use an empty glass jar i found in the cupboard as a drinking cup, you questioned my choice and laughed at my unconventionality. but, you see, the jar seems to fit perfectly in my hand--an awesome combination of heigh, weight, and material.

the other day, when i returned home from a brief respite away, you handed me the same glass jar and told me that you remembered how much i liked it and so that i may use it again, you cleaned it for me. that simple act of kindness and love made my day. thank you mom for being so sweet. i love you.

love,
me

everything that can happen in a day

i just read a very quick book--it's actually a creative, silly, self-exploratory book of ideas!--and the title is everything that can happen in a day, by david horvitz.

he suggests that this string of words (everything that can happen in a day) is a nice way to wake up in the morning and think, "what will happen today? what can happen today? what can i make happen today? what will i make happen today?" i like that, a lot.

karma points

i just scored big (HUGE!) karmic points by returning a wallet to its rightful and very relieved owner.

yesterday, i went for my usual run in rock creek park and while i was stretching by the various exercise stations, on one of the signs posts, i noticed a black wallet with a very awesome bike screen print on the front. wondering if it was left there intentionally by the only other person in the vicinity--at the time he was swinging on the still rings. what a misleading name: still rings!--i let it be. but when the man ran by without so much as a glance at the wallet, i knew that it was up to me to do the right thing.

it wasn't as easy as i thought it would be track the owner! he had a very common name (matthew bailey) and my facebook search posted nothing. my linkedin search was also a bust and even though i had what i thought was his current address on his voter registration card, i came up blank in finding a contact number. so, i tried the next best thing. i called his dad. in washington state. from his driver's license, i was able to find a home phone number using his parent's address and once his dad realized that i wasn't part of the mafia or trying to scam him, i was given mr. bailey's cell phone number, in washington dc.

the story ends well. he met me in dupont and i happily returned his wallet. some high fives were also exchanged and i felt pleased doing my good samaritan and sleuthing act of the day.