one good bird: 07.2009

nostalgia - have a slice.

7.28.2009

when i was 4 years old, i attended a pre-school during the day. it was the most awesome place ever, Country Day School, where i was greeted every morning with a hug at the door.

my brother, being 2 years older, was already in 1st grade (read: the big leagues). when i got out of school at noon, he was still basking in the glory of reading groups, telling time, and maybe even doing simple math problems. definitely word searches.

we were lucky enough to have a stay-at-home mom until we were well into middle school. i cherish that fact. she'd pick me up from pre-school and we'd go home and make lunch. on special days, we would take a big blue blanket out into the back yard and have our lunch picnic style. south florida being what it was, some days on which we planned to picnic, it would thunderstorm and force us inside. so we would lay out the blanket on the floor in the "florida room" (is it called that other places? it's like a second living room) and have our picnic inside.

it was amazing. i will never forget it.

i would like to have a picnic today, mom. please come and pick me up from work. i'm ready.

your cell phone is NOT a camera.

7.21.2009

yes, it may technically contain a camera, but i have a fundamental aversion to photographically documenting one's life via devices with which you can also order a pizza.

this is one of those things that i am ok with being snobby about.

i mostly find this upsetting when individuals have some huge life event, such as having a baby, and instead of making a relatively small investment in a somewhat decent digital camera, they choose to take grainy-green-tinged-non-flash-terrible-white-balance pictures of their offspring. and think that they are of adequate quality to share with the internet, siblings, and distant grandmas and grandpas eagerly awaiting updates on their dna-sakes.

i fear a future generation whose vision is physically impaired for viewing the world and life events via grainy-green-tinged-non-flash-terrible-white-balance photos/videos.

all that being said, i am guilty at times of taking photos with my iPhone and doing things with them. i have actually tried to challenge myself and make them good (at least compositionally) to atone for the lack of sharpness, white balance, and proper exposure that i strive for with real photography. here is a sample of some of the times in the past 2 years when my hand has been forced (forced! i say!) . . don't try this at home:

word of the day: ubiquitous

7.16.2009

ubiq·ui·tous
Pronunciation: yü-ˈbi-kwə-təs
Function: adjective
Date: 1830 (date? who the eff cares?)

: existing or being everywhere at the same time : constantly encountered : widespread

i woke up this morning thinking of the word ubiquitous. i have no idea why, but i thought, "what a great word!!" then i promptly realized that i also didn't know exactly what it meant. therefore, it became my word of the day.

i suggest you might make this your word of the day, too. it will shirley impress all of your friends and co-workers. though i caution you to not overuse it (a la The Kids in the Hall "ascertain" sketch), perhaps once among each audience is enough. the raised-eyebrows-downturned-corners-of-mouth looks you receive will no doubt carry you through this thursday.

using it in a sentence:

my ubiquitous mother-in-law will just not leave! (disclaimer: i have no mother-in-law)

". . . Master Peter and the two ubiquitous young Cratchits went to fetch the goose . . ." (even Charles Dickens uses this word! = smart)

when i go to the airport this afternoon, i'm sure to be hounded by the ubiquitous Delta SkyMiles American Express card vultures. (my hard-hitting, real-life example)

there you have it. you're welcome.

INSTRUCTABLES - new favorite website alert

7.14.2009

my DIY obsession just got more obsessy . . look. out.

i'd stumbled across instructables.com before when trying to find a way to make a belt out of an old bicycle tire, but i kind of filed it away. my DIY craze got me thinking of it this morning and i've been ~~looking through tutorials~~ working all day!

current favorites:

cement-filled lightbulb hook