Tues Ten 071310: News Headlines

Wow! A Tuesday Ten post. Yep, the last one made an appearance back in May. Ouch.

I know; I know. It’s been an unreasonable amount of time since I’ve posted anything with real substance, and to be honest, I doubt this one will qualify either. However, I wanted to update the Junksters on some things that have been going on lately. You’re not going to see George Steinbrenner or Afghanistan or BP (well maybe a touch of BP), but they are newsworthy in my world nonetheless. And since I was in press release mode for my day job recently, I decided some EJ headlines were in order. Much of this post could easily have been part of an Oh Happy Day! Gratitude Project report, but I’ve opted for Tuesday Ten since it’s Tuesday Wednesday, and I’m in the mood for lists.

So, without further ado, I give you this week’s Tuesday Ten: Top Headlines in Junkie Land. I’ll go ahead and say right away that I can’t call it “late-breaking” because, I’m, well, late. But, you know me by now and to apologize would be redundant.

1. “Tuesday is Wednesday”
At least in EyeJunkie world this week. Sure enough, I’m late and not late-breaking.

2. “EJ Discovers Guest-posting Rocks”
I was invited by my friend, Annie, over at SisterWisdom to write a guest post as part of her ReDefining Modern Homemaking series this June. I was ridiculously negligent in promoting the series or my guest post, but click on over there and read it. And read the whole series while you’re at it. It’s moms from all walks sharing about how they view homemaking. Good stuff.

3. “Baby Girl Becomes Verbose”
Yes, my planned Tuesday Ten of Baby Girl’s burgeoning spoken vocabulary will need to be bumped up to a Thursday Thirty soon. How has this happened in my brief neglect of EJ? The news of note here is that “cheese” and “sickle” read “popsicle” have been added to the list. That’s my girl! And, you’ll be comforted to know that “No, Mama!” is still a perpetual favorite phrase. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

4. “Gulf Waters Matter”
You may have seen my recent posting of a dialogue about the Gulf oil catastrophe. I submitted the essay to my friend Ann’s Blogger Monday with Ann Evanston weekly roundtable of blogs on Facebook. I was amazed to see the interest of folks outside of the Gulf region in this earth-changing event. So, click over to that article and scroll down to the comments. They are worth the read.

5. “The Queen is Relinquishing Her Throne”
No, not the Queen of England or the Queen of all Media. The Queen of Dux D’Lux, my day job home for 16 years, decided in late May to retire. She opted to close the company, and I’m very excited to see what cool creative endeavors she finds next. Needless to say, her abdication means big changes for my work situation, but I am so grateful for her mentorship and friendship over the years. Plus, she’s promised me a pie.

6. “Little Drummer Boy Steps Out”
Into the big ol’ world. In August, LDB will be starting “big school” for five-year-old kindergarten. Can I get a Kleenex, please? I’ll no longer be the mom of three preschoolers. I’ll be mother to two plus one kindergartener with a Spiderman backpack in tow. I’m sure my processing of this particular event will be fuel for several upcoming essays. At the moment, suffice it to say: “Thank God he still wants to hug me.” I wonder how long that will last.

7. “Haley Jumps Into the Deep End”
Given the advent of #5, I’m pleased to announce that I started my own company this month offering graphic design, website development and online media services. I’m calling this whole shebang Small Pond Graphics, and it’s been quite a leap. I’ve been so amazed by the support and encouragement of my Dux D’Lux clients as well as my network of family and friends. Starting a business is a scary endeavor, but an adventure I’m very excited about. So, hop over, dabble your toes a little and let me know what you think. Also, please connect with me on the Small Pond Facebook page. I’d love to include YOU in the dialog.

8. “Plop! Launches”
So, I’m spreading my writing wings a little more. In conjunction with Small Pond Graphics, I’ve also launched a new design and marketing blog called Plop! You can read the backstory in my first post there, but I hope to use it to highlight the wonderful clients who place their confidence in my abilities, to offer exposure to some of the “creative types” in my life who are using their talents to do cool things, to inspire readers with images from around the design world that are fueling my own creativity, and to share some of my experience and maybe expertise in the areas of business communications and marketing. I hope you’ll book mark it or “follow” it on Facebook and join the creative conversation.

9. “Reclamation is the New Black”
Yeah, had to work hard on that one. Obviously, the structure of my days has changed somewhat with the closing of Dux and the launch of a new business. I’m very excited that I’ve been able to reclaim an area of our house to use for my office space. Something about getting my surroundings settled always helps settle my spirit as well. So, the opportunity to make this space usable and comfortable was very cathartic during this time of transition. I’ve gathered my books, reference materials, design inspiration, crazy packrat files, art supplies and general Wacky Pack nonsense all in one spot. It’s lovingly displayed and arranged so that I have computer working space, meeting space, art/layout space and couch space (which is so important). Enjoy a quick look.

10. “Invisible Girl Returns”
With all the changes and transitions in my life of late, it’s been a challenge to find the time to write here. It’s been even more of a challenge to muster the energy for the soul searching so often required for a quality look inside. Thank you for hanging in there with me. Regardless of the new adventures ahead, I still need this blog as my unencumbered outlet for thinking, paying attention and writing about that process. I’m ready to return. I’m working on some new posts to share soon. The first will involve green flamingos and Nelson Mandela. How’s that for a teaser?

Tues Ten 051810: Half-Finished Books

Oh good grief. Do you ever catch a glimpse of your own ridiculousness? Frankly, it happens to me all the time. It happened last night. Yesterday was a difficult and tiring day in many respects, and I was looking to wind down at the end of it. Sometimes one of my wind-down pasttimes is reading. Now, reading and I have been on the outs recently. It’s nothing that reading has done. I have just been focused on other things and my free time has been in short supply. I haven’t finished a book since the adventure I mentioned a while back with Patti Smith and Robert Maplethorpe in Just Kids. While the book left me a little saturated with 1970s icons, it was a good read with no long-lasting reading baggage.

As an aside, I’ll share two of my favorite quotes from that book…

pg. 40 “… I understood that in this small space of time we had mutually surrendered our loneliness and replaced it with trust.”
What a lovely description of the birth of soul mates. Honestly.

pg. 116 “The politics at Max’s were very similar to high school, except the popular people were not the cheerleaders or football heroes and the prom queen would most certainly be a he, dressed as a she, knowing more about being a she than most she’s.”
Made me laugh out loud. Honestly. (Where Max equals Andy Warhol 70s hang-out.)

Now, back to the list at hand and my reading habits. They’ve been non-habitual lately. Last night after the long day, I was interested in getting reacquainted with the process. I usually have a couple of books in progress when choosing my preferred distraction, and I have a couple of places I keep them. There is a basket under one of our side tables where some reside in hopes of keeping them from Baby Girl’s growing obsession with books, and well, tearing their pages. There is also a small shelf by the fireplace where I keep a few. And, there may be a few laying around where the mail or magazines rest or next to my computer bag. It’s a haphazard storage system at best. Last night I checked all those places to choose a current pre-bedtime selection. Here’s where ridiculous steps in.

Honestly, there were at least ten books that were at various stages of completion. With that number of choices, I was suddenly and completely overwhelmed by making the decision. My effort at relaxing suddenly became an anxious, self-doubting exercise in “which book should I choose.” Ridiculous, I tell you.

Then, an idea occurred to me. I could salvage this ridiculous moment–by sharing it with you. Whoa! with the ten mid-read books. Emphasis on ten. Now, I realize that I’ve been all literary lately, what with the poetry shared last week. I hope you non-pleasure readers won’t take it personally. I’m sure I’ll be back to some new record of ridiculous next week like “things I didn’t know were in my refrigerator.” For now, you’ll have to bear with me.

I give you this week’s Tuesday Ten: Half-Finished Books Laying Around–made even more fun (and possibly more ridiculous) by highlighting their respective “bookmarks” as well. Enjoy!

1. Lost Symbol by Dan Brown — page marked by a day job business card
[On loan from the Queen, but as usual, Dan freaked me out in the first couple of pages and I'm still a little freaked but so up for the cryptography.]

2. Loving Frank by Nancy Horan — page marked by a younger photo of Little Drummer Boy & Bug
[Fictional account of a real-life love affair with the architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. It has me caught up in being all sentimental about architects and their buildings.]

3. Grace (Eventually) by Anne Lamott — page marked by its own book jacket at the moment
[A book on faith and its winding, but eventual path. This is where I'll start.]

4. Making the Blue Plate Special by Florence Littauer — page marked by a baby picture of Baby Girl, awww
[A great book on the importance of creating traditions. Made me cry a few times already. Why haven't I finished this?]

5. Called to Worship by Vernon Whaley — page marked by the only true “bookmark” that’s white with a green/white polkadot border and two green, yellow and red turtles plus “Haley” that I cross-stitched on it sometime when I was busy reading Little House in the Big Woods
[A head-bending look at worshipping God using various folks in the Bible as teachers.]

6. The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl — page marked by Kroger checkout coupon for $2 off a Duracell battery value pack
[A mystery involving Dante's levels of hell and a serial killer set in the 1800s. I'm scared this one will scare the pants off me, which is probably why it's unfinished.]

7. Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann — page marked by a scrap of artwork by Bug
[National Book Award winner I couldn't resist from Barnes and Noble, plus it starts with a dude walking a tightrope between two NYC skyscrapers. Cool.]

8. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott — page marked by a Gatlinburg, TN brochure
[I've loved this book since I learned to read it, and I'm reading it again just for fun. But, seriously, how much fun can one reading Junkie really have with all these choices?]

9. The Key to Your Child’s Heart by Gary Smalley — page marked by a notecard with Walter Anderson blockprint of a cat
[My token parenting book, and it has GREAT insight on how we can inadvertently close up another person's heart. But, it is heavy and thought-provoking and actionable, so it doesn't help me relax.]

10. Robert Frost Poems (anthology) — no pages marked, since I seem to simply pick it up, leaf and read
[This is why he's showing up in posts recently.]

(#17: Grace is on deck. Swing, batter.)

Tues Ten 051110: Poems I’m Reading

For some reason lately, I’ve been reading more poetry. Maybe it was the whole Poetry Month thing. I’ve been revisiting some of the poems that I’ve enjoyed over the years and experiencing some new ones from poets I’m not quite as familiar with. There is something about a well-turned phrase that just gets my Junkie juices flowing. And, great poems are full of well-turned phrases and concise ideas expressed in unusual ways. It’s a type of writing I’ve only dabbled in, but one that I tremendously admire. I decided to share a few of the selections with you. I can’t say they are my favorites because the word favorite has always carried way to much pressure for me. What if I decide I really like another one tomorrow? “Favorite” is such a relative term in my book.  So, let’s just say these are verses I’m enjoying at this moment. That totally leaves it open for me to change my Junkie mind. So, this week I give you the Tuesday Ten: Poems I’m Reading. Complete with a few lines I enjoy from each. Maybe you’ll enjoy reading them too.

1. “Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost

Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

I can say with complete assurance that Robert Frost is one of my favorite poets. I don’t mind using the term “favorite” with his work. I’m completely enamored of a poet who can rhyme without you realizing it’s a rhyme. This verse is one I continually come back to.

2. “Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar

I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,—
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart’s deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings —
I know why the caged bird sings!

I love the line… “And he would be free.” It speaks of an intense and unquenchable desire. He would be. Free.
full text here

3. “When Death Comes” by Mary Oliver

When it’s over, I want to say all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.

I’ve posted this poem before. Those two lines are remarkable. It finishes with “I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.” Indeed.
full text here

4. “Putting in the Seed” by Robert Frost.

The sturdy seedling with arched body comes
Shouldering its way and shedding the earth crumbs.

There he is again. I’ve always thought those last two lines were such a picture of courage and determination.
full text here

5. “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night” by Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

A poem, in part, about “grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight.” Sometimes the light is brightest when we realize it is waning.
full text here

6. “Words from a Totem Animal” by W. S. Merwin

Send me out into another life
lord because this one is growing faint
I do not think it goes all the way

My one-word description of this poem is ethereal. It is long and challenging, full of searching and beautiful.
full text here

7. “Narration” by Giorgos Seferis

We’ve grown used to him; like everything else you’re used to
he doesn’t stand for anything
and I talk to you about him because I can’t find
anything that you’re not used to;

George Seferis is a Greek poet I’ve mentioned before. This poem describes an encounter with a local man, someone people are “used to.” Can there be anything sadder than someone you’re just used to? I hope I never see the ones I love that way.
full text here

8. “Daddy Longlegs” by Ted Kooser

it would be the secret dream
of walking alone across the floor of my life
with an easy grace, and with love enough
to live on at the center of myself.

This lone walk of living at peace with the core of ourselves inspite of the world is found in a picture of the small and insignificant march of an insect. Amazing what we see when we pay attention.
full text here

9. “Passion for Solitude” by Cesare Pavese

A gulp of my drink, and my body can taste the life
of plants and of rivers. It feels detached from things.
A small dose of silence suffices, and everything’s still,
in its true place, just like my body is still.

Though translated from Italian, Pavese’s language is frank and beautiful describing a supper in solitude and the breath of calm and stillness it brings.
full text here

10. “Reluctance” by Robert Frost

Ah, when to the heart of man
Was it ever less than a treason
To go with the drift of things,
To yield with a grace to reason,
And bow and accept the end
Of a love or a season?

This may be my “favorite” Frost poem. His observation of human nature is very astute in all his poetry, but none more than in describing our utter resistance to letting go.
full text here

Tues Ten 050410: Drummer-isms Version 5.0

Since we’ve been celebrating Little Drummer Boy’s fifth birthday this week, I thought I’d once again share some of the insight that springs from his brain on a sometimes daily basis. He never fails to make me laugh, ponder and cry all at the same time. I give you this week’s Tuesday Ten: Drummer-isms, version 5.0. AND, I’ve included a bonus top ten list of my favorite previous posts featuring Little Drummer Boy. He’s provided much Junkie inspiration.  Enjoy getting to know my favorite 5yo and the lessons he’s taught me!

1. “Maybe that’s the Spanish way of saying it’s as easy as possible.”
[LDB's take on the etymology of "easy as pie."]

2. “Mommy, you’re my best friend.”
[Smile.]

3. “I think I can trust you to pick something cute.”
[On letting ME pick out Baby Girl's clothes for daycare]

4. “My mom said neat-o.”
[Said with pride when Mommy was being completely Mommy at a preschool party. I'm dreading the day that pride turns into rolling eyes.]

5. “I love tootin’ sounds. They make me giggle a lot.”
[Obviously. Sigh. Boys.]

6. “I thought it was dark in there. Maybe next time, if I’m a baby I should bring my flashlight in there.”
[From a discussion about being in Mommy's belly]

7. “There you go again. Huggin’ me.”
[Yeah. Get used to it.]

8. “Mommy, I like your new glasses.”
[Ever the charmer. Steals my heart every time.]

9. “You’re making my brain hurt.”
[I know the feeling, but can I get that with a side of "yes ma'am?"]

10. “Look at them flying, Mommy. They’re like tiny little airplane seeds.”
[On blowing dandelions]

AND Top ten Little Drummer Boy posts…

1. A Boy and His Transformer

2. You’re Mine

3. Gift Tag: All Over Us

4. Sugar Has No Daily Value

5. Doo Doo Chronicles: Breaking Up is Hard to Do

6. Gift Tag: Lessons in Dignity

7. Gift Tag: Mommy’s Lap

8. Gift Tag: Yes I Am

9. Gift Tag: The Hug Store

10. Tues Ten 042809: Drummer-isms

Tues Ten 041310: Notices They’ve Paved Paradise

I had a crazy experience last weekend. I went to the local not-so-urban, but sprawling shopping center where they keep my local Kroger grocery store. Normally, that wouldn’t be all that crazy, but I went on a Friday evening at 6:00pm. That definitely contributed to the crazy, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since.

Do you know Joni Mitchell? I have her album (read CD), Miles of Aisles. It’s a great compilation of her work from mostly live performances with the L.A. Express and offers a nicely jazzed up version of some of her classic folk tunes. Big Yellow Taxi is one of the classics included. It’s the tune that sprang to mind during my crazy Kroger on a Friday at 6pm experience.

In honor of convenient, but harrowing grocery shopping and the incomparable Ms. Mitchell, I give you this week’s Tues Ten: Confirmation Notices They’ve Paved Paradise (and put up a parking lot). And just for fun and juxtaposition and sanity promotion, I’ve included a BONUS Ten: Proof Positives Nature Still Blossoms (this time of year in the South despite prevalent concrete). The photo edition.

1. If your car stalls at the front of the turn lane, you might consider switching on your hazards. Just a thought.

2. Those giant 15-passenger vehicles aren’t really designed to be able to make u-turn into the parking space angling AGAINST you on the OPPOSITE side of the lane. Just sayin.

3. Neither is the brand new-to-me mini-van I’m enjoying. But, to my credit, I know that and don’t try it.

4. Even if you are in the middle of a parking lot on a Friday afternoon sporting cute blue jeans and flip flops, it’s still a good idea to look both ways before crossing the street. At least that’s what Mrs. Kendrick taught me in K-5.

5. Wowza with the nice Spring weather we’ve been having here over the past week. The sun off the windshields is practically blinding me.

6. Where is a good master plan when we need it? Seriously. How many angling lanes of traffic can funnel into one right of way?

7. What very friendly check-out clerks and baggers my local Kroger continually has! Smiling faces were a craziness bright spot. [Self: take note.]

8. The appropriate sequence of scan-and-remove-quickly required to use my Kroger discount card AND my debit card at the gas pump is difficult to discern. But, admittedly, that could be the result of holding a sick baby all day.

9. Wait. There’s a gas pump in the middle of the shopping center parking lot. Ok.

10. I can’t believe I actually found myself complaining about having to park 20 spaces rather than 5 spaces from the front door of the conveniently-located store where I can purchase cold milk and pasteurized apple juice for maybe more, but still next to nothing (compared to most of the mothers in the world) every single day. Somebody’s spoiled, and it’s not the gallon of whole milk.

AND, the bonus ten photo edition…