Sunday Sounds: On The Nature Of Daylight

Sunday sounds like your own quiet heartbeats that you hear when you stretch yourself into a new day, the vroom of the vacuum as it effortlessly sucks up all that darn pet fur off the floor, the gentle flow of the black fountain pen as it dances upon the white page offering words of gratitude, clinks of the slowly dissolving ice cubes as they swirl themselves around the edges of the glass that contains your elixir of good tidings, and some Max Richter.




Oh, hey there. Long time, no see. I'm back from a wildly unexpected hiatus. A lot has happened since my last post. The biggest news is that I finally earned my Masters Degree in Teaching English. Woohoo! AND I now have my teaching certificate, however, I am still on the search for a teaching gig. I am currently subbing in two school districts. Can I get a "You go, girl!" because I could really use the encouragement - thank you. I'm glad to be back on the page. How have you been?

Mayonaise

I was almost home and Smashing Pumpkins' "Mayonaise" came on the radio. I didn't want to turn the radio off when I drove up the driveway so I parked, put the volume up a little louder, sat back, closed my eyes, and let myself feel the music until it was over.  Have you ever done this?

Love Yourself Up

I created a playlist to boost me on those days I feel like hiding under the covers. You know... those days when you feel your under eye bags are packed for a month vacation, when you've done something you aren't proud of and you question how good of a human being you are, when you get dressed and feel bloated and then you start comparing your 41-year-old body to the bodies in your Athleta catalog (reminder to self: view Athleta catalog after a good workout), when you look in the mirror and let that sad, scared inner voice take over magnifying every imperfection you see.

So, yeah, you ever have one of those days?  If so, I hope this playlist will help you love yourself up.

Colbie Caillat's TRY



Selena Gomez's WHO SAYS



Kimya Dawson's I LIKE GIANTS



Sara Bareilles' BRAVE



Laura Mvula's THAT'S ALRIGHT



Will.i.am's WHAT I AM



Britt Nicole's GOLD



FLEUR's MIRROR MIRROR
FLEUR - Mirror Mirror from Fixel Films on Vimeo.


Mindy Gledhill's POCETFUL OF POETRY



Natasha Bedingfield's STRIP ME
Natasha Bedingfield - Strip Me from Baeblemusic on Vimeo.


Amanda Palmer's IN MY MIND



Elle Varner's SO FLY



Glee's DEFYING GRAVITY



The Smiths' ACCEPT YOURSELF



Mary Lambert's BODY LOVE (PARTS 1 & 2)



The list without all the movement:
  1. Try - Colbie Caillat
  2. Who Says - Selena Gomez
  3. I Like Giants - Kimya Dawson
  4. Brave - Sara Bareilles
  5. That's Alright - Laura Mvula
  6. What I Am - Will.i.am
  7. Gold - Britt Nicole
  8. Mirror Mirror - Fleur
  9. Pocketful of Poetry - Mindy Gledhill
10. Strip Me - Natasha Bedingfield
11. In My Mind - Amanda Palmer
12. So Fly - Elle Varner
13. Defying Gravity - Glee
14. Accept Yourself - The Smiths
15. Body Love (Parts 1 & 2) - Mary Lambert


Are there any other songs you think belong on this list? Let me know! ♥

Sunday Sounds

Sunday sounds like an early morning, soft footsteps, crumpled paper, cracking of dried blackberry stems, giggles from 3 extra kids, whistles from the t.v. refs, a gentle heartbeat grateful for this day, and some Kings of Convenience.

Just a few things Friday

I have a very good friend whom I love very much.  The only thing that drives me nuts about her is that she has a birthday in December. So, every year I rack my brains for a cool birthday gift AND then a cool Christmas gift.  But, 2 years ago she went and had a little bundle of joy (whom I also love very much).  This bundle of joy came... can you guess when?  Yes, in December! 

Poor December babies.  Their birthdays come during the busiest time of the year.

With that said and done I hope you enjoy some of these web goodies I've been eyeing as gifts. Thank goodness my friend doesn't read my blog!

Jane Austen Tarot cards.  How cool are these?!

Jane Austen bandages

Jane Austen puzzle book.  Can you tell I like themed gifts?

A Book of Sleep by Il Sung Na.  The illustrations are the sweetest.

Handmade knitted owl hat.  You can get the pattern at Knit Culture.

These cute boot slippers at Amazon.  They are only $7.56 right now!

And, this old school Pearl Jam jam because it reminds me of my friend and driving around town on a Friday night screaming this song and feeling very much alive.

Sunday sounds

Sunday sounds like the clickety clack of knitting needles, fallen leaves crunching beneath my rain boots, laughter from the kiddos, cheers from TV land football fans, and a broken rendition of Coldplay's "Fix You" on the piano (Audrey is hoping to learn it).  A good Sunday indeed.

Sunday Sounds

"This is heaven to me"... a happy household, a warm soak in the bath, a quiet Sunday with crafting on the TO DO list

The first video is partial, but love William Galison's harmonica!  Second video is the full version.

Just a few things Friday

... my response to this article about stay-at-home-moms was "YES!!"

... you must acquaint yourself with Hazel and Gus.  They are two fictional characters I would love to meet.  Read The Fault in Our Stars now!

... this is currently on netflix.  

... this song replaces gangham style and you're welcome

Second Chances

Do you ever have those mornings that start out pretty great and then slowly something starts eating away at all that contentment?  Yeah, me too. Today I got sucked into that negative darkness.  It took a few hours and some fresh air to get me out of my funk.  So, today I am truly grateful for second chances.  

Also, I'm grateful for musicians who don't hold back when they sing.  When I listen to Bon Iver I feel as if he's telling me his deepest secrets. 

Sunday Sounds

Besides all the cheering we've been doing here at home and hearing on the television(Seattle Seahawks game AND Portland Timbers, YAHOO!) we've been in a Lost mood.  We are almost done with Season 2 and cannot wait to get in on Season 3.  This "Seashore" song from Lost Season 2 episode 19 lingers.  

/

Just a few things Friday

So, yeah, yesterday I got my first speeding ticket in 10 years.   $93.  Ouch. Washington State doesn't have driving school to "erase" your infraction from your driving record, but you can request a deferral.  I did that and fingers crossed I practice good driving behavior for the next 7 years (You can only request 1 deferral every 7 years).  Not a highlight to my day, but it is something I better remember.  And it is kind of funny that my Wordless Wednesday was a picture of slug and my title was "Taking it slow."  Um, not really leading by example, eh?  

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Lattes are helping me get over the fact that summer really is gone.  I was not looking forward to summer's end, but a cup o' pumpkin goodness sure helps.  A whipped cream topping helps too.

I finally finished knitting a little new baby gift for my friend's daughter. At least the cooler weather is snuggling up to my knitting crave.  What baby won't look cute in a hand knitted beanie and booties?  I found the beanie pattern here on Ravelry. The booties pattern I found here and ohmygosh it was the most simple and quick bootie pattern I've found yet. I changed the pattern up a bit to match the seed stitch in the beanie.  I hope the newest little female earthling likes purple.

You have to check out this video from Jimmy Fallon.  He, Stephen Merchant, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt square off in a lip sync battle.  It's so awesome.  JGL's last lip sync makes the video. He's such a little cutie.

And, tonight I FINALLY get to watch this:

I'm all kinds of excited! I hope Baz does me proud.  I loved his Romeo and Juliet.  

Happy Weekending, folks!

Sunday Sounds

My Sunday sounds a lot like Betty Who's "Somebody Loves You".  I'm loving those I'm with and I'm hoping they love me too. :)  Turn it up loud!!

Just a few things keeping me going this winter

Every winter my hands become super dry and ONLY this bee bar has saved me from "human sandpaper syndrome". I was introduced to it years ago by my best friend it's my go-to lotion when regular lotion won't work. It's natural healing powers are amazing! I always get the vanilla scent because it smells so pretty.

Honey House Naturals Bee Bar



This Feng Shui CD has lulled me to sleep many a night. It is peaceful and soothing. I toss it in the CD player for that spa-like feeling when I indulge in hot bath. The combination of music flows and it is perfect background music when you take a trip to that "happy place" inside yourself.

Have you heard of Smash yet? It's a line of scrapbook products. I love the design and the fun-ness. I went a little cuckoo and bought a bunch of their stickies, tape, pens and bookmarks. My particular favorite is the Glue Pen that has a pen and glue (duh!). I don't know why it appeals to me, but when I'm paper crafting I always need glue and a pen and this tool makes it handy. I have yet to purchase a Smash Folio which is their journal/scrapbook (right now I have too many of my own), but I am getting one for my daughter for her birthday.

It's kinda fun when...

you are driving home on a long stretch of road and blasting Disneyland's Space Mountain music 'til your ears bleed. It makes you feel wild and free. It makes the kids go nuts too. Good times.

Floating

This morning I'm pondering and dreaming and almost floating away with my thoughts. And if a song could be a soundtrack to my day so far, it'd have to be Weird Fishes/Arpeggi by Radiohead. The sound is ethereal. Ed O'Brien's backing vocals are amazingly airy and light. I can't help but get myself lost in the music.

Dear John,

I'm sorry about tonight. Sometimes I speak without thinking. Sometimes my emotions overwhelm me and instead of being considerate I let everything spill out and then I leave it up to someone else to clean up the mess. I guess what I really wanted to say on the phone was...

I miss you.

Ahhhh, Gerard Depardieu

Can't get this jingle outta my head. Good times.


Foux de fa fa by Flight of the Conchords