Profound Discovery 1-4

Profound Discovery # 1

Nothing gets you from where you are, to where you want to be faster than action.
Saying I want to do something, planning to do something, even buying things in preparation to do something far fall and pathetically short of actually doing that something.

Profound Discovery # 2

Consistently perform any action and you will see results.
These results can be positive or negative, depending on the action, but rest assured if you perform something consistently you will see results.

Profound Discovery # 3

Action * Consistency = Change
If you seek change; determine what you want and the best action taken to get there and then perform that action consistently until change occurs. Once change has occurred you will need to consistently perform that action to maintain.

Profound Discovery # 4

How you live is essential to your happiness.
It does not matter how much money you have, where you live, your social standing or marital status. It is how you live, love, laugh, breath, absorb, navigate and exists in the world around you. Ignore the HOW and nothing else will matter.

It's a bird, It's a plane, It's ME!

Don't ask me why, but I have always wanted to go Parasailing... the opportunity arose, and I jumped in with both feet. I suspect if I had stopped to think about it, my little inner voice would have talked me out of it. Instead, I listened harder and I was shocked to hear an even smaller inner voice that I have been ignoring for some time. This voice whispered "you can do anything you set your mind to". So I went Parasailing... IT ROCKS!

The amazing thing about accomplishing something you have always wanted to do, you feel empowered to keep reaching for those dreams. It is like high octane for your self confidence. The trick is to keep trying new things and never let that can do feeling subside... So what is next on my list? Stayed Tuned!

*Note: Any discussion in this post about hearing voices is metaphor. As a general rule of thumb, I do not hear voice!

Tomato Centipede

I love the thought of starting every morning in my garden. In reality, I start most morning cursing the snooze alarm and running for a shower. But this morning, I woke up almost on time and took the time to enjoy a cool morning stroll amongst the weeds, grass and fading flowers that so lovingly encircle our home… A good thing I did, the one little tomato that had escaped my accidental vegetable killing spree ( I forgot to water for a week) was now bursting with tiny delicious jewels.

Share = Good

Surfing the net is like finding money on the street. I am always tickled at the cool things I find and then wonder immediately if anyone else knows they exist. Do I share them? Really not as often as I should, so here for all to see are the Internet finds that are rocking my boat this week.

100 Great Tips to Improve Your Life
http://liferemix.net/100-great-tips-improve-your-life
Number 1 of this list was so brilliant, I can't wait to read the remaining 99.

Frazier and Wing Mobiles
http://frazierandwing.com/mobiles
I love the concept of recycled art, but often feel I would never have it in my home. Until I saw these mobiles. Now I am eagerly awaiting the next rainy day when I can spend 6 hours flipping through and cutting up old magazines to make my own creations. I think I may try some vintage National Geographic. You know the ones with the really cool tint on the pages.

FD's Flickr Toys
http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/
100 more reasons to start uploading to my long neglected Flickr account. (Check out the cool pass I made for North)

Color Hunter
http://www.colorhunter.com/
Color makes me happy. So if you don't yet have a personal color palette, this is the place to go.

Decor8
http://decor8.blogspot.com/
It's like having an incredibly hip cool decorator friend who sends you link, pictures and advice all day long.

Happiness Project
http://www.happiness-project.com/
Not totally sure what to make of this site yet, but one thing for sure, I can't stop reading it.

If that's soup you're cooking it must be fall...

I don't care what the calendar says, what the weather looks like, or how many leaves are on the ground, the moment I start craving soup, it must be fall. And so after two weeks in which we have had Turkey Chili, Tomato Beef Stew and Chicken Soup I now pronounce that Fall is here. "August" you say, mere details... It is Fall.

Last week, I harvested the rest of the onions and despite their petite size, they are delicious and perfect. I have been caramelizing them in butter as a base for each of the soups I have made recently. And although it is a strong flavor, it makes for a warming savory broth, without a having to add too much salt. When it comes to soups, I use vegetables for everything. Carrots minced for sweetness (great in chili), hot pepper and tomatoes for a little extra bite (beef stew) and puréed potatoes to thicken the stews (much tastier than corn starch).

It has been such a treat to have so many fresh vegetables available for cooking. We get a few things from the garden (onions, herbs, tomatoes and cucumbers) but the local fruit stand and grocery store have been stocked with some of the best produce I have seen in years. Happy to report I am definitely getting my 5 servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

Craving Crafts...

Despite my best efforts I caught my partner's summer cold and I am miserable. But to make matters worst, the weather has turned colder (60's) and I feel it in my bones that we are in for an early fall.

Deep breath.... I LOVE FALL... The weather begins to cool after a hot summer and I am practically giddy with anticipation.... Fall is the season for home arts... redecorate the house, prepare for holidays, knit a scarf, sew a hat, cook a stew... I could go on and most likely will in the coming months.

My studio/craft area is still under construction and I am in a mad dash to have it up and ready to go by September 1st. Meanwhile, I am taking classes, to master the many skills that have eluded me... Last week jewelry, next week sewing and the week after knitting.

This year my goal is to make all of my holiday cards and presents, (with the exception of a few things for my sweetie and my family) I have enough yarn, fabric, buttons,beads and assorted dodads to stock my own craft supply store.

In years past I have done scarves and bath salts. My plans for this year blow these old stand bys out of the water... I have page after page of sketches and plans for stuff the likes of which many would easily pay real money for....

But first, I must get better *sniffle* and dig out my craft room..... In the meantime, I am really digging this site and drinking lots of Theraflu.

P-Patch # 2

P-Patches are the community gardens in the Seattle area. I love the concept of a community garden and personally I feel that gardening should be a required course for all children in grade and high school. Gardening teaches compassion for living things and an understanding of how truly precious plants are to our survival.

This summer I have challenged myself to visit and photograph 10 P-Patches. When I walk through one, I am so totally relaxed. I just click (my camera), smell flowers, sigh a lot and breath (very deeply). The people I meet are always extremely friendly and seem to understand the sense of peace I feel. There is no loud music, yelling etc.. just the occasional bark of a dog and the sound of a rake on gravel or peas being picked.

Note: I think it is almost impossible to take a bad picture in a P-Patch... Almost like it is some Digital Camera Bermuda Triangle. So these shots are just a sample of what I saw today.

Heat Induced Mania

Like some flammable gas, heat brings my drama up to all time dangerous levels. As the temperature rises just like water, my little drama molecules begin to speed up banging together and eventually escaping, not as steam, but as projectile drama and heat induced mania. This is exactly what happened tonight...

The first night in a long time I found myself not having to work into mid evening. Not wanting to waste a second but totally agitated by the heat I did the following between the hours of 6-9pm

1. Watched CSI- (seen this one 50 times so it barely held my interests)
2. Yanked out painting supplies and canvases
3. Convinced reluctant partner to join me for a Pollack inspired painting session
4. Painted lovely picture called four seasons- (guess what it is about) hers much more Pollack like than mine
5. Cleaned up supplies and set out paintings to dry
6. Watered garden- (front bed needs to be mulched but I am holding out for cooler weather)
7. Ate dinner- (My wonderful partner made a casserole with chili (homemade chili, rice, salsa, cheese and guacamole) - ate too much...
8. Grabbed magazines and designed Thank you card scrap book project for my grandmother- (must find time to actually make this over the weekend)
9. Vacuumed house (upstairs) loving our new million dollar Oreck (not quite a million, but almost!)
10. Back outside to pick remaining onions and garlic from garden (lord forbid they stay in the ground another second)
11. Impressed the hell out of myself with how lovely garlic(very tiny but edible) and onions look- set them out to cure in the now setting sun
12. Turned on computer- called guy from craigslist on a whim about a 1962 Nash Metropolitan- convinced myself and partner (although she might just be humoring me) this is a great deal.. (yes the middle of a remodel is a perfect time to buy a project car) then proceed to make arrangements to see car, possibly tow and find help to restore it
13. Download and send digital pictures from our weekend trip to Partner's Aunt's Farm (vintage tractor is killer!)
14. Silently berate myself for not getting anything done
    
15. Decide I am exhausted and go off to shower and blog

Did I mention I hate the heat!!!! Got to go, think I can get in a few more things before I loose consciousness.

Garage Sale War Stories

I love stories and stories of garage sale finds are some of my favorites... Check out Antique Road Show Stories for some great inspiring tales.

My Personal Favorite Finds of All Time:

• 1918 Knitting and Crochet book complete with patterns to make for soldiers
• 1950s Knitting Pattern book with amazing hats and sweaters
• Vintage 1950's table cloths in their original packaging
• Box of ladies vintage handkerchiefs for 10 cents each
• A bulldog hat pin 1960's for only 25cents (my sweetie collects them and loves dogs)