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I love rainy days. Especially when I’m in the comfort of my own home. Yesterday was one of those days and it called for some of my favorite things… tea, tomato soup and good old cheese toasties (grilled cheese).
What brings you comfort on rainy days?
In late August, J and I spent the afternoon at Riverdale Farm. It’s just a short walk from my home and such a fab little place to leave the city without actually doing so. Sadly, I didn’t get as many photos as I would of liked (I find shooting in the blazing sun so bloody hard) but I was able to capture J and his new friend, the goat.
They spent a good 20 minutes together and they have plans to reunite next month when hopefully I’ll get more pictures.
What about where you live? Have any hidden gems like Riverdale Farm were you can forget the hustle and bustle of city life and escape for a few hours?
Ladies (and gents!), I need help. See, I no longer have a skin care routine other than washing it twice daily. I used to be a loyal Clinique user (though I’m not convinced it really did anything for me, I just grew up with Clinique users so I jumped on board) and then the day I quit my job, once it ran out, all that shit seemed like a luxury. Funny how buying booze didn’t feel like a luxury huh? Effed up priorities I know. Anyway I digress.
So yah, I need some help. While I don’t have horrible skin, it could be better. I have the odd break-out like most and on occasion my skin feels like a greasy chip (fry) pan. When I’ve had in-store consults before I’ve been told I have combination skin. While I have plans to improve my skin in terms of diet, I need to start a daily skin care routine again too. Where do you start? There are so many products out there that it’s overwhelming. Any products you can’t live without? If so, why? And it doesn’t just have to be related to the face. I know it’s hard to recommend a product when you’ve bought something based on your own needs/skin type, but a push in the right direction never hurt anyone.
I am waiting on samples from Mario Badescu. I’m not sure if they are going to arrive as I ordered them some weeks ago, but we’ll see. I’m hoping they do as some Twitter folk claim their products rock their world. I want my world to be rocked too.
P.S. If you want some Mario Badescu samples too, you just need to fill out this questionaire. Within days they pop you an email asking if you’d like samples. Tip from Anna of Door Sixteen. Thanks Anna.
P.P.S. Kindly overlook the nasty manicure. ;)
Yesterday J and I cleaned out our storage unit (we live in a condo). While much of it was thrown away, there’s one small item I will always treasure. I was born on the 20th February, 1978 and on the 23rd February, 1978, my Dad’s father, who at the time was out at sea sent this telegram to congratulate them.
Apparently he was hoping for a boy. Tags (a British term only perhaps?) equals well… penis. Sorry Papa, no tag here. ;)
I bought 3 indoor plants yesterday. I know what one of them is – Ivy – but the other two? No clue. All the label says is tropicals. I did some brief research on Google but have been unable to identify what they are. Anyone know?
While on the subject on plants, like many, I don’t have much luck with them. But, as they add so much to a space I’m not going to give up on trying to convert my thumbs of death into green ones. Any tips on indoor plants that are easy to maintain? Ideally ones that require minimal natural light. I want to put some in my bathroom and hallway which have zero windows so what should I put in there? Enlighten a girl would ya?
All month I have been quietly reflecting on my life and business. We all do it from time to time but often, when we force ourselves to self-reflect, we end up over-analyzing and run towards the first quick fix we can think of. These quick fixes seldom work and before we know it we find ourselves back at square one. It’s a vicious cycle we subject ourselves to and one I realize I have been spinning within for far too long. But, this time around something feels different that I can’t quite put into words just yet. Something shifted.
This shift is so loud and strong that I can no longer tune it out. Something within me wants to expose the realities I need to face and “call bullshit” on the excuses I make as to why I’m resisting change. I no longer want to ignore them. I no longer want to chug along as always and tell myself I’ll deal with my demons at “another time”. I no longer want to hear myself say I’ll do something and then consistently fail to follow through. As we shift into Fall and watch it shed seasons passed to prepare for renewal, it’s time for me to do the same.
For now, I’ll end the post here as there is so much I want to say and share but will save it for other posts. As I shift within myself, expect to see a shift over here too. I plan on sharing this journey with you and if you are going through something similar, I’d love to hear all about it.
Happy Friday.
Photo Credit: Johnny Lucus
Well friends, remember that condo re-do I’ve been saying I’ll do forever? It has begun. It all started on Thursday when J was rained out at work and headed home early. Rather than let me work in peace, he dragged me out to IKEA for a shopping spree. Many hours and meatballs (15 for $2.99 = SCORE!) later we exited with some furniture, rugs, frames and other knick knacks.
Before I go any further, it has to be said… I ROCKED the how the heck do you put this together IKEA conundrum. Not J but me! Me! Okay, now I can move on.
Some of you may of seen the basic mood-board I did for the main living area. While some of this changed (not too much but more on this later) the plan I had for the hallway completely changed. While walking through IKEA I spotted this and fell in love.
TORSBY Sideboard – IKEA
What this photo doesn’t show is the yummy lacquered finish it has. The description says it’s a foil finish but I’ve no clue what that means and lacquered sounds better anyway. So, yes, I changed everything on the fly while at IKEA. The next morning, I whipped together a quick mood-board for the hallway based around my new love.
First up, things to note…
What you don’t see in this board is the picture ledge we picked up from IKEA. The 3 frames will sit would have sat upon them if we didn’t realize AFTER (i.e. we freaking hung it) that there is too much risk of them toppling if the door slams or a certain 3 Huskies come bustling down the hallway as they usually do.
So we now we have to figure out a way to secure the frames to the wall and our whole idea to avoid multiple holes in the wall is up shit creek. You’d think securing them would be intuitive but it isn’t. There’s zip on the back of the frame. See…
Perhaps J and I are just plain old dumb. It’s entirely possible. We’ve been going non-stop for 4 days and we are frazzled (and I woke up sick today – yah!). That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.
Oh and the headaches don’t end there. All the painting it done (we also re-did one of the bathrooms) and most stuff is in place (the big stuff) but there is still lots more to do (i.e. small details). So, expect more posts over the coming weeks sharing J and I’s fun times fumbling through this shit. All I can say is I’m thankful I have a army of Keith’s soldiers in the fridge.
I plan on sitting by my door with a Keith’s in hand figuring out the world of interior design while staring at this which is yet to be hung. Another blog post about this particular WTF coming soon.
Cheers.
Eek… I can’t believe it’s been over 2 weeks since my last post. I always seem to be taking unplanned blog breaks don’t I? Oh well, I guess it’s better to say nothing that just write “fluff” over here.
But, I do miss blogging and I do miss you guys. I just have so much going on right now that I can’t process anything into words. Someone needs to introduce my brain to focus because they keep by-passing each other.
How are you guys? What have you been up to? Got any focus I can borrow?
Photo Credit: Daniel Nesbitt
Truth be told, I work in some capacity most weekends. That said, how productive I am is debatable as I tend to call Twitter or any computer related activity “work” when it’s convenient for me to do so.
This weekend is different. I have some fire in me that wants to get a whole slew of stuff out of the way and so I’m rolling with it. Don’t quote me on that though. But let’s pretend I do stick to my plan, here’s what I’m hoping to get done… shoot new products, reshoot some old products, get some ideas out of my chaotic head and into Illustrator … oh and admin, lovely jubley admin.
Of course I’ll throw in some downtime too but a lot of the above has been neglected due to procrastination. Yes, the lady with procrastination pads procrastinates. Go figure huh?
What about you? Slave to your work this weekend or is it filled with non-work related fun?
P.S. For the record, I don’t feel as overworked as the image shows and I hope you don’t either. :)
Photo Credit: beforethecoffee
I came across a fantastic article this morning called Why Better is Better Than Best by Simon Sinek of Re:Focus. With so many small business blogs out there proclaiming they have the golden key to success, it’s easy to become jaded when business related articles come my way. But this one really hit home for me and got me thinking.
First let me share the introductory paragraphs to bring it into context:
The fastest runners in the world run between 12-14mph (19-23kph). The average bear runs between 30-40mph (48-64kph). That means if a bear decides to give chase, even Usain Bolt, the world record sprinter, could not outrun it.
But there is an adage: to get away from a bear you don’t have to be the fastest runner in the world, you just have to be faster than the guy behind you.
The same is true in business.
Except taken from Why Better is Better Than Best by Simon Sinek of Re:Focus.
Pretty simple concept huh?
It’s extremely easy for us to get too caught up in what our competitors are doing. It’s just as easy for us to lay down because our insecurities tell us they are better and that we can never be as good. Essentially we drop our pace to watch them. It’s almost like slowing down to look at a car wreck on the highway. But guess what? Cars in other lanes have somewhere to be and so they just keep going. They keep their eyes firmly on their destination and quickly zoom past you.
I’ll be honest, I don’t consciously keep tabs on my competition. Of course, I see work of stationers all time. More often than not, I admire the beauty of their work rather than looking at it through envious eyes. Undoubtedly on occasion I see something and think “man, I wish I’d thought of that” or “I wish I were able to create work in that style” but I let that feeling out fast and move on. If I hold onto it, I find one of two things happen: (1) I come to a standstill; or (2) I find myself trying to change what is natural to me and something I can run with. If you allow either of these to happen, you’ll soon realize you’re running in the wrong direction which is backwards rather than forwards.
At the end of the day, I am extremely confident in my work and instincts as a designer. In some ways, I think that’s the key to design or at least it is for me. It’s important to work with your gut and instincts vs trying to be something you’re not. Quit jumping on a bandwagon because everyone else is doing it and it sells. When you do, you’re just running at their pace (plus letting THEM determine YOUR pace) and because they’ve been running longer than you, they’ll probably still outrun you anyway. So, next time you find yourself spending way too much time worrying about your competition, remember that you’re slowing yourself down and there’s someone behind you itching to pass you by.
As for the best vs better, this is a whole other post and so for now I’ll just say this. You see it all the time, people proclaiming they want to take over the world, be #1 in the category (or think they already are) or perhaps think they have everything figured out and only success will come their way… the list goes on. While there’s nothing wrong in having those goals in your sight (though the take over the world one always makes me roll my eyes), when you do achieve that, assuming you do, then what? Don’t assume you’ll never have to run again, because you will, and while you stand upon legs that don’t fail you, you should be.
Who’s pace are you running at? Yours or theirs?
P.S. I think the photo above sums up the article I referenced perfectly. The wanting to be the best vs better. Even when you reach the end of something (perhaps your ultimate goal) you still have to do something. So, unless you are ready to just stand still or turnaround, you had better get ready for your next destination.
Photo Credit: Julia Lillqvist
Yesterday I was putting together a shop game plan for the remainder of the year. I came to a realization. We are a mere 4.5 months away from 2011. Now let’s get the “WTF, OMG, say it isn’t so?, where did the year go?” responses out of the way, trust me, it ran immediately through my head too along with my Twitter buddies when I tweeted my realization.
We always hear (or proclaim it ourselves) the saying “time is flying” and boy, saying it yesterday was one HUGE wake up call. I had big goals for 2010. I’ll be the first to raise my hand and say those goals were derailed with an unexpected hiatus amongst other life events. I’ll also admit that I’ve dropped the ball and lacked in my follow through countless times. There’s no denying it.
While it would be easy for me to sit here and rue the facts (and believe me, here and there I will) all I can promise myself over the next 4.5 months is to give it my everything. To walk new paths and venture outside of my comfort zone. It’s pointless for me to look back on 2010 so far and see it as a failure. I don’t talk about every aspect of my life here and what can’t be shown on paper, or in sales and revenue is the life-changing events that have occurred. Thankfully mostly for the better.
Whenever I’d go quiet over here or throughout my break, I’d always bemoan the fact that I wasn’t sharing everything with you guys. I felt this need to justify why it appeared as though I was doing absolutely nothing while in the background things were often changing faster than I could comprehend. I’ve come (need!) to accept the most of 2010 wasn’t meant to be about modernemotive directly but more the centre of it – me. So, I can’t chastise myself for taking the time to recoup from it all. Truth be told, I was still regrouping from much of 2009s events too as well as other things. It’s typical of me to push any aftermath aside and keep chugging on. Eventually it all catches up to you but at some point you have to let it all go. Eventually you have to say goodbye to the “what ifs” and regrets. We have no choice.
As I’ve already said, it’s time to put everything I have into this. To put it mildly, I gotta kick some ass! When I used to work agency-side, no matter where I went, I was always known as the go-to girl to get things done with the key being I’d get it done fast with great results. There’s some slight irony that I take forever to get my self-assigned work complete, but with no bosses breathing down my neck, it’s easy to do. Very easy! So, I need to find that girl again and squeeze every drop of possibility out of the next 4.5 months. I’m ready.
What’s your take on 2010 so far? On track with your goals? And if not, what are your next steps to rev yourself up?
Photo Credit: .Mallory Beth.
I mentioned yesterday that September is the month of renewal for me. As luck would have it, September is gearing up to be a fantastic month. So far on deck I have a trip planned to Montreal for the Labour Day weekend to hang with J’s sister and my good friend Michelle of Holley & Gill. We also have the condo re-do. Then I won tickets via @unmarketing for the pre-season opening game for the Toronto Maple Leafs. We’re in the 100 section. 16 rows from the ice. OMG. Yah for September.
Another task weighing on my mind for September is a personal make-over too. I need it both externally and internally. I wrote about it before but erm, well, I didn’t follow though. No surprises there. We’ll ignore the fact this is a pattern with me. Trust me, I know it. I’m quite perceptive at identifying all my issues, but becoming reactive in fixing them is a whole other matter so let’s move on for now…
Some days I feel as though I’d be the perfect candidate for What Not to Wear. I’ve been so freakin’ sloppy with my appearance lately I sometimes cringe when I see my reflection in a shop window and come to the realization that I left the house looking quite frankly like shit! I haven’t had a professional hair cut in far too long, barely bought any new clothes this year, more often than not leave my eyebrow maintenance to the last minute… yes, what a pretty picture I paint huh? I can assure you it’s not as bad as it sounds. I mean, I’m not sat here looking like a total bum or anything (well most days) but I know I could respect myself a little better and put in more effort.
Another reason I need this make-over is because I’m tired of holding back from meeting new people due to my own insecurities. This feeling is ingrained in me due to a multitude of things but I know a good starting point to overcome this is working on my outer appearance. I’m not saying this will fix everything but I have to start somewhere.
I’ve built a fabulous network on local Toronto people on Twitter that I’d love to meet in person. I really believe one of the reasons I’m not moving modernemotive forward as much as I’d like is because I’m working in this self-contained bubble that is simply restraining me. One can only work alone for so long before the lines become blurred and you no longer know who you are or what you’re doing. I need to fix this. I need to spend more time with people that inspire me and give me the energy to keep at it. Working alone tends to suck all of that out of you and often you’ve floated away so far you don’t know how to make the trip back back to the self you know and trust.
What about you? Got any plans for personal change in the coming months?
EDITED TO ADD: Just wanted to clarify that the “make-over” will start now so I can start September in a happier place. While it feels odd to assign a timeline to something like this as it’s really continuous work, as September is going to be so much fun, I figured it would help me to have some goals to work towards.
Photo Credit: torpore found via Creature Comforts
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