i.n.s.p.i.r.a.t.i.o.n.

Thank you Chloe (via Amy) for showing me this enchantingly innovative music video. And the song itself is quite lovely, too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_HXUhShhmY

Fun Facts:
* The video was shot all stills - roughly 3225 still photos for the entire video, using one camera, hanging from the ceiling for the main body of the movie.
* It took 4 weeks before shooting to create an animated computer generated storyboard for the video, with 3d dummies for the characters.
* It took only 2 days of shooting for the live actors on set to re-create the 3.5 minutes computer sequence, frame by frame.
* Some of the bed sheets used in the video were taken from Oren’s own bedroom and are now considered collectors items, worth at the moment not very much and therefore used as bed sheets. *Each of the wonderfully talented people above have worked on the video for a fraction of their normal rates (except Oren who worked for his normal rate of zero).

[fun facts courtesy of http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=99738779&blogId=467348012]

*******
Kaizen: Actually quite an accomplishment for me today--ate a bit more food than I normally would, except I didn't allow myself to feel guilty! Healthier body, here I come! :)

Somehow, I will make time...

...for all of these beautiful crafts and oddities and artwork...

lovely lanterns

gift: treats with a "why i love you" list adorning the inside of the box

a way cute organization idea (tea cup organizers)

a branch mobile (i don't think there will be a point except to create)

these are so cute but will probably have to wait to be made till there's some sort of celebration

i'm gonna fill out my own brain :)

i think jars make clutter cuter

also gifts: picture to the left is a bunch of little match boxes made all cute and full of treats for valentines' day

Do you know why the caged bird sings?

*artwork extracted from http://www.warymeyers.com/warymeyers1.html

What did I learn today???

• That you should NEVER pick up your laptop by the screen (like my poor friend did the other day) if you don't like cracks running across your screen.
• That graphic organizers can be quite helpful for teaching students about finding themes in literature.
• That teachers MUST have a rationale prepared for any potentially controversial book he or she might teach; know WHAT and WHY you're teaching a particular piece of literature!
• That no literature is safe from censorship or being banned. Here are a few ludicrous examples of previously banned literature: Where the Sidewalk Ends, Black Beauty, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Don Quixote, Little House on the Prairie, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and The Lorax. By Dr. Seuss. Yeahhh. Oh, bonus! Where's Waldo. No lie, people. Here's a link with explanations: http://title.forbiddenlibrary.com/

*******

Kaizen:

• Productivity (way too much homework but it's all good)
• Not chewing too much gum :)
  

*******


this artist is so flippin' talented...seriously, how absolutely ADORABLE is his/her work? check it, yo, at http://apakstudio.com/apak/.

Can I please have a term for the opposite of Kaizen?

Kaizen: No kaizen. But I suppose destroying yourself, if you turn it into something positive and/or learn from it, is it really as bad as you thought?

Mmmm.

That's what I thought.

Positively Productive and Foreign

...are the precise words I'd like to use to describe my day. The productive part is easy to figure out, but not the foreign I suppose. So here is my account of two different foreign encounters today:

1. Guy comes into my candy store and I offer him my spiel ("Hi, how are you today? Everything on the wall's the same price so you can mix and match any way you like. We also have a deal going on if you buy a pound today you get a quarter of a pound for free!"). In his lovely Scottish accent, he asks for the Jelly Bellies, which I gladly and easily show him. I don't really expect him to buy much but then he starts really loading up with every flavor from icky black licorice to yummy strawberry cheesecake. As I'm ringing him up (he bought two pounds and got a half pound for free, in case you're wondering), I ask about who the candy is for, he mentions his nephews in Scotland, I ask why he's in Tampa, he says he comes to Florida every year to SKY DIVE! How cool is that? I asked him if he's ever scared, he said after the first fifty times you get used to it. We talk some more and of course he's charming because he's foreign. :)
2. Probably not fifteen minutes later, an older gentleman becomes captivated with the chocolates in the front case and tells me in his foreign accent that he could eat everything in there. As I'm ringing his purchases up (a bunch of truffles and vanilla creams), he mentions how the chocolate is not good for his Diabetes (ya think?) and I say that it's probably okay to have a little bit and not go overboard and we start talking about health and he mentions that he's 74 and I say no way! because he really doesn't look 74. I ask him how he stays looking so young and he mentions that he used to dive for the navy and all the extra oxygen and exercise he got helped him out. I told him that I'm a scuba diver, too, and then he was really excited to shake my hand. :)
   

This is my naughty puppy Jelly Bean who I still love very much because she's too cute not to love otherwise.

Kaizen:

1. Productivity
2. Putting up with (and not getting angry at) crazy group members in my expository writing class
3. Work duties before homework
4. More prayer time = the best part of the day :)
   

Why didn't anyone tell me that Demetri Martin has his own show on Comedy Central?!

Because being mad is more wonderful than you know...

...I dream of a sanctuary like this, a place that weaves its own magical tales...

..."Lost" tonight: perhaps my favorite episode of the season because they revealed so damn much (finally!)...

...and to end this post on a lovely note, my Kaizen for the day: productivity! I took few breaks and did not spend ANY time on the internet like I usually do when I'm on my computer but should be typing up a lesson plan or an essay or something. I finished ALL 3 ESOL lesson plans today! Yay!

*Bonus: Extra time in prayer every day this week so far! Yay for feeling closer to God! :)

*******

...loving you, always and forever...

Owl always be here for you...

Check it, yo! New plushes on my sister site, http://noplacelikeyoursmile.blogspot.com/

*******

Kaizen: Yay for productivity! I finished my Adolescent Lit project with a teeny tiny bit of time to spare and I even went above and beyond by adding extra elements that were not required! Yay (sometimes) for over-achieving...

***********************

P.S. Chloe, I loved my time spent with you last night. You are my favorite treat, always.

*******
P.P.S. Bum, I am loving you and thinking of you always, too. I must call soon, really, because it has been far too long and you are far too wonderful for me to let slip past without knowing the fantastic details of your life...

all i want is to feel.

beads of salty sweat kiss his dinosaur spine
he moves and it's beautiful and you can see that he will never stop
running and swinging and jumping and soaring
the show is unscripted yet the performance is flawless
strong movements exude grace
she watches in awe, wishing and willing her own body to stir in such elegant procession
a hungry energy comes alive
and two companions dance with startled passion
every night and far away from sad and ordinary life

i agree.

http://www.mikemillsweb.com/exhibitions_graffiti.html

so.tired.but.must.document.kaizen.

Kaizen: When Alicia (my boss) asked me to stay till 7 tonight (which was three freaking hours later than I was supposed to), I did not give in exactly but instead I compromised by agreeing to stay till 5. Ugh, I gotta learn to say 'ABSOLUTELY NO' one of these days. But hey, that kinda stuff takes time, right?

Thank the wOnderful Lord Jesus:

...for giving me such a beautiful day;
truly, it was perfection because

• everyone in my classroom management class loved my chocolate chip Reese's cookie cake frosted with chocolate funfetti icing
• I met personally with my classroom management teacher; she's just so cool and has SO much incredibly relevant info for me
• the actual class was amazing as always
• I got my exercise in (walk to school and back)
• lots of "God time" through prayer
• MAJOR productivity through homework, project, and paper completions
• no more Joe
• time with my babe
• healthy eating
• "Jeopardy!" and "Lost" during dinner
• loverly blog comments :)
• achieving all of my Kaizen goals
  
• and now "Zathura", blogging, fun fruit gum, and my babes (James and Jelly Bean) right next to me
  

[And I owe it all
to
Him,
the most lovely of all]

Kaizen: My goals were to

a) complete mass amounts of homework

b) make some time for myself

c) eat healthily and

d) NOT gossip or talk badly about anyone.

***Hooray for missions accomplished!***

Pure and perfect girl

"She smelled like soap and ice cream and girl: pure and perfect girl."

p. 37, Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson

My own versions of "pure and perfect girl":

• She felt like strawberry daiquiri and procelain and lacy ruffles
• She dances like mariachi music and red hot peppers and tiny flamenco feet
• She writes like pink streaks in the sky and song lyrics spilling of your tongue and ice melting in your hand
• She looked like golden ink and cascading waterfalls and just-bloomed roses
• She tasted like cotton candy melting in your mouth and clean clean teeth and sugar-encrusted lips
• She looked like diamonds sparkling in a dark cave and mermaids swirling in blue-green depths and twilight kissing the moon
• She walked like paint-splattered maracas and tiny naked pixies and leaves floating to the ground
• She sang like cars colliding and waves crashing and little kids fighting--yet he only felt the warmth of beating hearts and magical places and bursting dreams when she belted out the lyrics
• She spoke like raindrops splattering the roof and best friends giggling and thoughts zipping past
• She dreamed like everything is possible and songs never end and fantasy devours reality
• She sketched like castles on sparkling fire and heroes fighting for love and nymphs enchanting innocent passers-by
• She lived like shooting stars never resting and iridescent crystals forever glistening and wise men laughing
• She cried like rivers gushing and waltzes ending and twinkle lights dimming
• She loved like poetry exploding and little dreams growing and tiny hands grasping and love songs blaring and profound revelations glowing and broken hearts mending and splintered souls sharing...

Kaizen:

• James' needs over school work (building a better and loving relationship)
• Felt down at work but kept kind to customers (well, not the first few but then I got my act together!)
  
• Revelations and reflections concerning some of my "issues" and my yet-to-be-conceived children

Coloring inside the lines is never any fun.

What did I learn today???

• I learned why my Adolescent Lit professor prefers the phrase "Create peace" to just plain 'ole "peace": because peace only exists when we make it ourselves.
• A great example that I want to live by: in The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier (which I do NOT recommend you read, by the way), a professor accuses a student of cheating and ridicules him in front of the entire class. Everyone, including the students and the professor, know that the kid is not a cheater--yet no one dares stand up for the poor kid. He stands up for himself, though. And in the end, that's all that matters. Lesson: don't be a CAVEr.
  

Kaizen:

• I refused to "recycle" a previous assignment in order to finish a new one quickly.
• I really prioritized my time today by choosing productivity over extra exercise.

Flora's IF Balloon

This is the "If Balloon", which I found on the awesome blog http://happydoodleland.blogspot.com/.
Check it, yo.

So. IF the rest of the world backs down and lets go, do you follow?

[don't be a CAVEr]

IF there were no "must do"s and "need to"s and "have to"s, what might you do? And who might you be?

IF you had one way to spend eternity, how would you?


my advice: forget about IF. make it

r e a l

::

Craft + Kaizen

Fun Valentines' Day Craft [inspired by marthastewart.com]

Step 1: Pick a yummy candy. I chose Rolos because they're James' favorite (and they were the first wrapped candy I saw).

Step 2: Get out your super cute cupcake liners.

Step 3: Gather the rest of your supplies (i.e., scissors, paper, buttons, super glue, tiny toys, ribbon, and anything else you can think of to make a cute Valentine!)...

Step 4: Flatten the cupcake liners. Place candy in the middle of the bottom liner and use stick glue to attach the outside ridges of the liners together, so that the candy is in the middle of a little closed cupcake liner pocket.

Step 5: Make cute little Valentines using any material you want. I used poster board (to cut out pink hearts), stickers, ribbon, buttons, and the cut-outs of scented Valentines.

Step 6: Using the stick glue, attach the Valentine to the top of the cupcake liner where the candy sticks up.

Step 7: Share with anyone you love, especially your valentine!!!

*Bonus: This doesn't have to be a Valentines' Day craft! I also made Birthday and SpongeBob versions! So much fun! :)

******************************************************

Kaizen: Self-control. I was tempted to do something that I really felt like doing but knew would destroy my whole day. Instead of giving in, I looked to other outlets--like God, these cutie crafts, and homemade slushes--to get past my selfish temptations and become a better person for it.

Stunning

Kaizen: Generally, I make a point of getting every drab errand done before I can enjoy myself by doing something I really WANT to do. Earlier today, I took a break from all that work and journaled about some stuff I'm really truly thankful for right now. Sure, I had lots more work to do, but I took time for myself, time to build myself up by keeping a reminder of how wonderful life is...

*beautiful images via http://seaweedandgardenias.blogspot.com