Things Love Thursday!

image via weheartit

When my cats do the cute wigglebutt pounce! Spinning yarn on the deck in the sunshine; My herb garden; Having a dishwasher; Being able to go outside barefoot; Picking rhubarb; My newest lipstick, Revlon's Super Lustrous lipstick in "Pearl" which is a nice, light, everyday coral pink, like my natural lips only better; Gold eyeshadow; The perfect pair of skinny jeans (which I have on today!); The way my husband always walks around on his tip toes; Edgar Allan Poe's complete works on my Kindle; Feeling ambitious about taking on Master Spinner Level 2 homework after it's languished for a year; Having Katelyn come visit in two-ish weeks! Our squirrel that lives in the trees in the front yard and comes down to chatter angrily; My chamomile is sprouting flowers - which means tea soon!!; The poster of Abbey Road in my 70's living room; My piano 'Starla'; When work-days go by quickly; Braided hair; Getting mail; Honey Nut Oatie O's and soymilk; Making lists!

Concrete Ideas for Getting Inspired

Every once in a while I'll be caught. Something, an image, a colour, an idea or a way of being strikes me and I can't get it out of my brain. I'm driven to paint it, knit a likeness of it, learn all the lyrics or stay up all night thinking about it.

Now, I'm not overly into mumbo-jumbo advice with fluffy Bambi ideas like Follow your Heart. I am, rather, a huge fan of practical ideas for kicking ass in everyday life, and, specifically, creating something you're so excited about you just shake.

There are beautiful, wondrous and simple sources of inspiration around us, everywhere, it's just a matter of excavating memories that resonated with you which you may have forgotten, or discovering the new incentive to create.

• Make lists. I am constantly making lists of things to do, hobbies to pick up, movies to watch, books I've read reviews about that I want to check out. Expand the sources of your daily stimulus. Try new things. A phrase in a book or a song lyric might inspire the beginning of a painting, a scene in a movie might be the catalyst for casting on a new knitting design. I find that most of the time all I need is to start something - that's really half the trouble - once you really get going, it can be hard to stop!
• Keep your eyes, ears, and attention on finding the beauty in things, the exciting passages and interesting visuals wherever you go. Another great perk of keeping your mind on your art is a greater appreciation for simple pleasures. Not only is it a way to encourage your craft, it's a great way to feel good about your day-to-day life. Taking pleasure in the way a spoonful of rice feels in your mouth, the way the clouds look early in the morning, or the particular colour your cheeks flush after walking home from work - these are all full of images you can manipulate and use for your personal creation.
• Collaborate with, or study the methods of someone who is better than you at what you want to be good at. It's humbling, and frankly put, one of the best ways to get better! Chatting with another artist, writer, or other creator is one of the most productive things you can do - there's no one better to bounce your ideas off of, and have them reflected back to you in a new way, with a new twist or with constructive suggestions.
  
  And, finally,
• Learn some new technical aspects of your particular creative process. Try out a new painting medium, a different writing format or presentation, try spinning yarn rather than knitting with it, or give natural dyes, rather than acid fibre dyes a shot! Maybe a fresh new way of looking at what you love doing most is enough to kick start your next masterpiece :)

 Be bold, my dears. Every wonderful idea was once conceived in a brain made of the exact same stuff as yours!

About the growing things.

Since early May I've been trying to grow things. I've never been successful before, and it's not for lack of trying, I'll tell you that. This is my little herb garden on our back deck, with (from the left) oregano, thyme, sage, parsley, basil, dill and lavender. Yesterday was the first time I've ever eaten anything that I've grown, and it was kind of special. I picked a few leaves off my sage plant and chiffonaded them into the Portabello Pot Pie, our delicious dinner last night. The recipe, if you're interested, is from La Dolce Vegan by Sarah Kramer. I'm not vegan, but it's my favourite way to cook - it ensures that we get loads of vegetables, it's low in fat most of the time and it's often much less expensive than buying meats. Eating vegan dishes also pushes me to really make an effort to use spices and try new things which is tons of fun! One day, (as per my 101 in 1001 list) I'll choose some new recipes and go vegan for a month, documenting the adventure as I go. There are loads of compelling reasons why..

It feels good to take care of something alive and growing, and I've learned it's really not that hard! There's a crazily overgrown plot of land in my backyard that was once a vegetable garden, and next year it will be restored to its former glory, mark my words! We will be fed entirely by our land for at least a single meal next year, that's my goal!

Speaking of living off the land, I'm absolutely fascinated by foragers. This guy, Fergus the Forager (sounds like something out of Lord of the Rings) has tried to eat only from the wild around him for an entire year. I would love to learn to properly identify and harvest food from the wild and at least try it. The idea of getting free, nutritious, natural, and potentially delicious foods from relatively untouched land around me is so exciting! I don't know if I'd go as far as to hunt for wild game - that seems to be my husband's expertise - but going off barreling into the woods for lunch (and dyeplants for fibre!) seems like a really wonderful way to spend some time.

As I've been learning more and more this summer about canning, preserving and making decadent jams and jellies (!!!) perhaps this piqued interest is just some function of a recently apparent nesting instinct since the purchase of our home.

Is Fergus crazy for eschewing convenience in favour of his super slow food principles, or is he on to something?

For now, a list of 7000 plants that aren't commonly used as food - but could be.

How to Prevent Complete Meltdown

Every once in a while something tragic or frightening will happen out of nowhere, and you're blindsided. You encounter a situation completely out of your hands that you have to endure, something you simply cannot extricate yourself from.

Be gentle with yourself. Give yourself time to deal with what is happening or has happened. All you can do is your best. Drink some tea and breathe deeply. Worrying doesn't add a day to your life, but I can give testimony to the fact that it robs you of time better spent doing other things - because anything is better than the rotten-gut, hyper heartbeat, frightened feeling of fretting.

Come to terms with the fact that not everything is in your control. No matter how much you love them, people will get sick, people will let you down, or will outright stab you in the back. Now is the time to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and take care of yourself - so that you can take care of what needs to be done. 

Often, there isn't time for an emotional break down, the release of the pent up energy and heartache in all of the goings on and practical things you've got to do. This doesn't mean that losing your mind for a little while is something you shouldn't do. It's so important to have a personal fit about how unfair the universe is. Make time for it. Schedule a time where you can feel the pain you're carrying around with you to its fullest, it's only then that you can get rid of it. Embrace your personal rage, and then kick it to the curb. Don't let your horrible feelings overstay their welcome. It puts a bitter filter on your experiences and colours the way you see everything. 

I'm definitely guilty of this. For as long as I can remember, I've been a worrier. When I was a little girl, all my nerves and worries kept me up at night until I could talk about them. (Things might just seem so much bigger in the dark, to me.) I worry constantly about things I have absolutely no control over, and then when, inevitably, something goes wrong, or something goes horribly wrong, my brain grinds to a screeching halt and I wig out. From then on, I'm always on the look-out, watchful, and seeing the negative before the positive in almost everything.

While I'm trying to remove the things that I don't have to "suffer through", life has its trials and some are inevitable. Gather your courage from wherever you find it, because it's something you must do. There is no giving up, there is no wallowing in your pain. You are stronger, and braver than that.

Just do it, seriously.

One thing I'm learning more and more each day is that you can create your own happiness. I'm beyond the point now where I'm allowing life to just happen to me. A situation will come across and we are all presented with the decision to either suffer through, take steps to change it (or our attitude toward it). I'm learning to take the "suffer through" out of the equation. "Suffer through" is no longer an option. We're put on this earth for ninety years (often less). There are a finite number of days to live our experiences, and it will someday be over. I want to find myself at the end of that time knowing that I've taken every available opportunity to suck the life out of my existence here.

Finite days, people, and then we'll cease to exist? Do something to make your days count.

For you, my friends, I have compiled a fancy-dancy list. It's a "Make Your Life Kick-Ass" list. Here goes:

• Emancipate yourself from a negative relationship. Dump the asshole you're with just because it's comfortable, be alone for a while, or alternatively, find someone who appreciates you, for the wonderful, fabulous person you are. It's a favor for both of you, because every day you spend unhappy with someone is taking precious days away from when, eventually, you find someone who loves you, adores you, and is ready to forge ahead with crazylife with you. Cut ties with toxic friends who bring you down. Friends support one another and encourage. Anyone less is a waste of time, energy and resources. Move on.
• Stop making excuses. Take a scary chance and do what you really want to do. Here's a hint: the thing you really want to do has been in your brain, keeping you awake at night, keeping you daydreaming to pass the time at work. It's the thing that "oh, you could never do that, it's too.." Too what? Too awesome? Too time-consuming? If it's been done, it's doable, and you can be the next person to do it. Set the right steps in place to quit your job, start your business, move across the country (or to another country altogether), or whatever it is your heart desires. It's not going to fall into your lap, you've got to catch it, and make your happiness come sit beside you.
• Learn, and never stop. Make a list of things you want to know about, and teach them to yourself! I'm of the firm belief that anyone can learn to do anything, and do it well. I've proven it time and time again in my own life and I've seen others succeed because of this thinking. Be it a new artistic skill, calculus, exquisite cooking, or something completely different - DO IT. Go back to school, or take a course online! MIT has over 2,000 course materials online available for free. All you need is the drive, the resources are there for you. No excuses, you get one brain, don't let it rot!
• Be ridiculous. Have fun. Become that person at parties. Actually go to parties. Have ideas, and adventurize. Play pretend once in a while. One of my favourite things to do (that I haven't done in so long) is to put on red lipstick, high heels, and prance around my house with big band music on, pretending I'm a vampy, sexy, globe-trotting woman lounging in a hotel room in Paris waiting for my gorgeous kept man to come back from some secret espionage mission. Being silly is one of the best ways to make memories.
• Take lots of pictures, listen to lots of music. Few things "take me back" better than a photo album and a familiar song. Create a soundtrack for the summer of your favourite songs of right now. Make your gorgeous memories, and when you hear those songs again, you'll feel the same way you once did, like an invisible, melodic time capsule.

Make your life one that you want to be living, and forsake all to get there. It's ultimately the most worthy thing you can do, because in the end you've only yourself to blame (or congratulate!).