create

I am loving this creative manifesto from Frederic Terral of the design studio RightBrainTerrain. The number of visionaries truly pioneering a renewed emphasis on creativity, art, getting back to nature & valuing simplicity is sincerely inspiring me lately. It is out-of-the-box thinking and getting away from the mundane, seeing the world through this lens of opportunity and appreciation, that is more and more necessary to motivate and revive us. Check out Terral's work, motivational posters, t-shirts, and inspiration here, and spread the right-brain love.

ads of the world:  left v. right brain by mercedes-benz.

song choice, city streets.

How awesome is this video of a guy walking the streets of New York, asking people what they are listening to on their headphones? Such a great inquisitive simple project, and fascinating really to think of all of the music that people are listening to at the same time.

PS. Get to Redwoods in your lifetime. Trees are wild. Pictures to come.

gone camping.

Tent is packed. Mike and I are hitting the Pacific Coast Highway to California, to meet friends for a long weekend at Redwoods National Park. I've never camped in an Old Growth Forest before, and am so excited to stand in awe of such beautiful old trees. Plus, our campsite is only a five mile hike from the ocean, so hopefully we will be able to catch a few sunsets over the sea. Along the way, we're planning to stop along the long stretch of Dunes along Oregon's coast and other scenic spots. Hope you have a wonderful holiday weekend!

And, check out this (extremely relevant in our socialmedia-frenzy age) article :  

What Happened to Downtime? The Extinction of Deep Thinking and Sacred Space.

Take time to unplug this weekend, savor downtime, foster creativity! xo

photo.

documentary wishlist.

I cannot wait to see Wasteland. Just teared up watching this moving and beautiful trailer.
( I think this blog has started to focus mainly on exhibiting ways
that art can be used to empower and inspire people. I like that. )

WASTE LAND Official Trailer from Almega Projects on Vimeo.

on work .

I just came across Work is Not a Job- a wonderful design studio and overall revolutionary concept focusing around the idea of doing what you love. The mission statement includes: "We want to create a paradigm shift in how people approach "work" not as your 9-5 job but how you individually contribute to the world."

 

As I near the end of my service year with Americorps (which is somehow only three months away),  I have been thinking about the concept of work and what it means for my future job-entry a lot lately. I have no idea what is next for me come my return to the East Coast in September, but do know that it will be centered around interviews, job searches, and the like. I have broad ideas of what I would like to do (emphasis on broad), yet being a member of the undergraduate class of 2010, general talk on job prospects has yet to give the impression that I can be choosy. The unknown of my post-Americorps life lends to a mix of both excitement and slight fear thinking about it. 

While rent, bills, and the like are definite realities- I truly hope that I will be able to work in a job that is fundamentally centered around this idea. I want to feel like I am being challenged and am continuing to learn, that my skills are being used, that I can contribute to something I believe in, and that creativity will be an element of whatever I do. I  hope that somehow I will be able find a job where I can do this while making those other realities work (especially through a focus on living simply). 

Will let you know what that starts looking like in three months. Until then, I am fully appreciating right now-- the weather is starting to be beautiful and Mike and I have some great trips planned to enjoy the Pacific Northwest. Here's more from Work is Not a Job, and you can purchase their wonderfully inspiring & thought-provoking prints, shirts, and more here. (Also, check out Cathi's blog & join the movement.)

  

"Inspiration does exist, but it must find you working."  Pablo Picasso

thanks to cathi @ work is not a job for permissions (& for being awesome). 

urban poetry.

I love the ability of street art to cause you to pause and think while going about your day. I appreciate its potential and the whole notion of bringing art into public space--using its power to communicate thoughts on culture and grab our attention.

This is the work of London based artist Robert Montgomery, who hijacks advertising space to post text that is "part poetry, part an enquiry into our collective subconscious." See more of his work here.

For more thoughts on street art, check out the amazing work of TED-prize winner JR. And, have you seen Banksy's documentary Exit Through The Gift Shop? Definitely an interesting perspective/expose on the street art world (and quite the fascinating & funny documentary in its own right).

Hope you had a great weekend and didn't rock out too hard at that end of the world party or spend all your money at the casino!

friday musings .

How awesome is this illustrated chart of seasonal fruits and veggies? It serves as a guide to what is in season within a 200 mile radius of New York by Tyler Mintz of Brooklyn's Foodstalk, a campaign for local foods.  (Check out more on Foodstalk and eating local at their website.) I'd love to have this in my kitchen, hopefully it catches on and more cities start making these creative ways of spreading knowledge. You can see the full version here.

So, how are you spending what could possibly be the last evening on Earth? I myself am making a big dinner for Mike & his cousin & girlfriend visiting from St. Louis (a last supper, perhaps? will splurge on the good bottle of wine). Will be listening to This American Life's 'Stories of the Apocalypse' while cooking. Hope you have a great evening (catch an End of the World Party- Portland's East Burn is serving Champagne half price). And, if life as we know it does indeed continue on, I would recommend checking out this thought-provoking article: on a Well-Lived Life. Have a good weekend!

ps. I graduated from college exactly a year ago tomorrow, how strange. How fast a year flies by, and I remember it like it was yesterday (and do miss so much of those days, for sure). Did not think then that I would be doing what I am doing now, or living where I am. Guess that's how life works, with its opportunities, decisions, experiences, and flying days. Congratulations to the Class of 2011, may you find excitement, adventure, and continued learning in whatever life brings you next. 

songs for spring .

{SONGS FOR SPRING}

 Machu Picchu .  The Strokes .  Pa Pa Power .  Dead Man's Bones .  My Moon My Man .  Feist . Grown Ocean .  Fleet Foxes .  Second Chance (RAC Remix) .  Peter Bjorn and John .  Love Lost .  The Temper Trap .  Victory Dance .  My Morning Jacket . Will Do .  TV on the Radio .  Where Do My Bluebirds Fly .  The Tallest Man on Earth .  Calgary .  Bon Iver .  Cry ! Baby !  Bibio . So Beautiful or So What .  Paul Simon .  Lo Swaga (Live) .  Sound Tribe Sector 9 .

{photo via flickr}

on the things we value .

A few weeks ago, as I was driving on the highway, I had this strangely strong feeling that my apartment was going to burn down. I'm not sure why the thought entered into my mind, my apartment was still there when I got back, yet it did get me thinking. Which of my things do I have with me in my car? What is in my apartment that I would be upset to lose the most? I started thinking of individual items: my camera & photographs mostly, hard-drive of music, a dress I really like, letters from people I treasure, my favorite necklace. In discussing the thought later, I realized it is a pretty good exercise in a few things. First of all, every physical thing that I own is temporary. It can burn in a fire, be washed away in a flood, be lost or stolen. This is easy to say but hard to fully grasp. Our nature is to get attached to things, advertisements constantly yell at us that we need more stuff,  we compare what we have to what someone else has, and we truly exist in a culture of want.  

I am now trying to place this thought as a challenge to myself:  to be more conscious of the futility of stuff and to value simplicity. This then leads to changing my perspective on things I need or want. For example, if I begin to see the reality of my house burning down in the near future, I inevitably want to not have that much stuff. I want to have as few things as possible so that what I lose will be minimal and it wouldn't be a big deal for those things to be gone. I know this is hard; very hard, actually. However, I am trying to think of this often so that I will not purchase unnecessary things as much, and begin to increasingly value simplicity. Its not easy, but I've been trying to really think about it more consciously, and let it change the way I think about things.

With this in mind, I was delighted to come across "The Burning House Blog" (via everynothingwonderful), a site developed around this idea exactly. They ask: "If your house was burning, what would you take with you? It's a conflict between what's practical, valuable and sentimental. What you would take reflects your interests, background and priorities. Think of it as an interview condensed into one question." People take photos of the things they would take with them and can submit it to the site, along with a short listing of each item. It is such a brilliant idea, as it truly does reflect perfectly this notion of what we value. Here are some of the submissions:

all via the burning house blog.

What would you take with you? 

when in need of a great recipe

I love Foodily. The site serves as a recipe network, where you can type in an ingredient (or a couple), and it searches food sites and food blogs for recipes to match. It also highlights nutritional values of the dishes, and you can easily search through a bunch of recipes to find one that you want. Plus, the pictures of the meals are often great, which is always a win for me. You can save ones you like for future reference to your account, and see which ones your friends recommend. Tonight I've searched shiitake mushrooms and salmon (craving fish), and found a great dish to put together. Yum!

happy bicycle month !

sunny days & weekend hikes

I have been very thankful that, so far, whenever visitors have come to see us in Oregon, they have lucked out with very good weather. The place rains a lot, so it is quite amazing when visitors catch a sunny day of 70 degrees. Plus, Oregon is truly so so beautiful, that it is wonderful to be able to show them the full extent of it under the sun.

Taking full advantage of the day, we took my brother to climb Mt. Hamilton, a great hike only about 45 minutes outside of Portland. It is right over the northern border of Oregon, easily accessible by crossing the 'Bridge of the Gods' (cue dramatic music) over the Gorge into Washington. 

It was the perfect day for a hike full of intense waterfalls, wildflowers, views of Mt. Hood, and packed sandwiches.  Plus, having not gone on a solid day hike since we went to Multnomah Falls last month, it was great to get out to do it. 

My brother had a great visit- I think we did a good job of showing him a beautiful hike, plenty of microbrews, a trip to Voodoo donuts, delicious food carts, and live music. Mike had found an outdoor bazaar, which had a few bands playing outside and a full-on cast of interesting characters walking about. We perused vintage records that were being sold for a dollar and found some great Miles Davis & Ray Charles ones.

All in all a solid weekend to get out and enjoy all that Oregon has to offer- and great seeing my brother, too. Hope you had a great weekend and that your week is going well!

quote of the day

"And here is a doctrine at which you may laugh. It seems to me, that love is the most important thing in the world. It may be important to great thinkers to examine the world, to explain and despise it. But I think it is only important to love the world, not to despise it, not for us to hate each other, but to be able to regard the world and ourselves and all beings with love, admiration and respect."

-Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse1951

have a nature-appreciating weekend.

If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is alive. -Eleonora Duse

links:

go for a hike! find a trail near you

this book looks rad : 'cradle to cradle' : remaking the way we make things

eat local : american farm to table restaurant guide

necessary : seven natural ways to beat allergies

yoga time : mood-boosting poses

may is bicyclists month : ride a bike! find an event near you 

This weekend my younger brother is in town for a visit. It's his first time out here, so I am hoping to pack in all of the nature, beauty, food, and overall weirdness that I can. We have some solid trails planned, so hopefully the weather turns out! Have a great weekend!

photo

for the love of chalkboard paint.

I have a newfound obsession with chalkboard paint.
(How wonderful is that Dr. Suess quote on the door?)

It is such a fun and creative touch. I wish I could paint my (rented) walls.One day!

{photo 1 , photo 2 , photo 3, photo 4}

to raise awareness .

Did you know that May is National Skin Cancer Awareness Month?

{I was twenty-two.}
My story.

a snazzy weekend.

I admit it, every now and then, I appreciate some snazz. Not all the time--I value simplicity and hiking and cheap eats. However, every once in a while, I do appreciate and can revel in some snazzy occasions, beautiful venues, red lipstick, & swanky eateries. Especially, if I can manage to do all of that for a deal.

This weekend Mike and I were able to score cheap tickets to the Oregon Symphony- catching their performance before they leave to perform at Carnegie Hall later this week. Taking full advantage of it, we stopped by a thrift shop to dress up for the event. I found a great 1920s-flapper-esque dress that was perfect, and the whole thing was a fun break from the ordinary. The Symphony plays the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall- the iconic and beautiful theatre in downtown Portland originally built in 1928.  The show was absolutely beautiful. Afterward we met our friends at a hidden gem of a bar not too far away, that is set up like a secret speakeasy serving prohibition-era cocktails. All around we pretty much felt transported to another time, with great company, beautiful music, and fancy drinks (along with a stop in a  vintage photobooth)--who can go wrong? Hope you had a wonderful weekend!

photos mike noel

photo 1, photo 2

the pale blue dot .

via technoscience

This is the famous photo of the Earth taken in 1990 by Voyager 1 while on the edge of the solar system (approximately 3,762,136,324 miles away), at the request of Dr. Carl Sagan.

Sagan's words offer a wonderful perspective:

Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every ‘superstar,’ every ‘supreme leader,’ every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there — on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.

The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds.

Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves.

The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.

It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.

{wisdom}

happy mother's day!

This is my mom, when she was only a few months older than I am now, and that little chubs came along! I am so thankful to my mom for the compassionate, sincere, loving, and beautiful woman she is. I hope every mother has a very special day knowing she is loved! And, when you have a minute, check out this video that won the "Mom's Matter" competition, in advocacy of global maternal health. Hope you are enjoying a wonderful weekend!

a lovely weekend to you.

via deviant art

 Links :

support great music for a cause:

japan compilation by le grand cru

re-purposed crafts: 

how to make a perfect upcycled beach bag 
in new york city this weekend?
the festival of ideas looks awesome

words of wisdom :

things my dad was right about

love supporting fair-trade coffee?

join a direct-trade CSA!

happy mother's day!

honoring women around the world

for music lovers, a well-done video series:  

everything is a remix

wonderful documentary for a night in:
see 'the philosopher kings'
to make your heart smile:
high five for first kiss

We Live in a Beautiful World

Have you seen the BBC/Discovery Channel's Human Planet yet? 

These photographs by Timothy Allen are absolutely incredible:

Human Planet by Photographer Tim Allen

The show captures the cultures and beauty of the people of the world in such a detailed and moving way. Every time I watch it, I am continuously in awe at the ingenuity, challenges, determination, and sheer skill of the peoples that they highlight. The last episode I saw focused on life in the Himalayas, where they showed a man who walks his children through the perilous six-day journey for them to get to school each year. Not only are the stories and lives that they show so fascinating, but, as seen before in Planet Earth, the ability of the camera-people to capture what they do is mind-blowing. Nevermind the fact that it is completely  indescribable to think about the comparison of our lives in the Western world--and the everyday luxuries that are so commonly known to us (like not having to face a near-fatal six-day journey to have gone to school)-- It is a thought that I found is pretty inescapable while watching. It is definitely worth seeing!

ps. Junip's show last night was so, so good. If you get a chance to catch their tour, I would recommend it. His voice is so unique and the band plays so well together. The music has an almost ethereal quality to it, and I was not disappointed in the least. Jose Gonzalez is such a great guy, too, his humility and pure love for his music is so apparent, which is always a big win for me.