I make no promises that this will become a regular feature, because let's face it, there is nothing regular about any of my postings as of late. BUT, the intention here is to occasionally focus on those not so great situations or blights in life that pop up every now and then, and find the positive spin. Some people call this making lemonade.
Today we unfortunately have to say goodbye to a gargantuan tree that's in our front yard. We've known that it's diseased, however it still looks glorious and provides a ton of shade. The moment that a giant limb basically plopped onto our house in a very mild rain storm we knew the time had come to take some drastic measures. The downside.. well, it's a lot of money. Also, it's a living time capsule. It's kind of hard to make the conscious decision to remove a thing of beauty. (Quick note: there is an implied "we" in this story, but the tough choices have landed in my better half's court.)
So what can you do with a tree that's been given a death sentence? Find out after the jump...
Me too Woody, me too... I idealize many things and New York is top 5. I could probably go on forever but I will restrain myself. Links and goodies below:
I feel like my relationship with sports is exclusive to when it airs on TV, although unlike soccer and the World Cup I have watched tennis since I was a child. I don't remember why. I briefly took lessons when I was about 10 and "played" on a team in junior high, but I was never very good and didn't take it that seriously. I'm betting that some sort of fascination with a male player in little shorts could have been the big break in following the game. Yes, I apparently was a superficial little gal. Anyway, today is the start of Wimbledon, an event I certainly plan on watching, regardless of who is wearing the shorts.
TENNIS ANYONE: The World's Coolest Tennis Court [ Life Magazine ] Wimbledon Game Schedule [ Wimbledon ] Vintage Tennis Ball Cans [ Vintage Tennis Balls ] Andy Murray Tennis Street Magic [ YouTube ] Tennis the band [ Myspace ]
I'm going to sound old here... but I can't keep up with technology. Where I'm getting left behind is the $$$. Thanks Apple for coming out with something better, stronger, every, say 6 months (I'm not keeping track anymore), however my tapes and CD's and records, and even 1st generation mini iPod still play. That said, if I had the money I'm not sure I could resist your twinkling lights and 1,000,000,000G's. Sometimes it's good to be broke...
OLD SCHOOL AUDIO: Audio cassette tape nostalgia [ Tape Deck ] 9 Ways to kill an iPod [ YouTube ] Make an 8 Track Walkman [ Instructables ] World's greatest record collection [ Vimeo ] Analog bandages [ Incredible Things ]
This may not be common knowledge to some of you, but I have in my possession around 1,000 Pez dispensers. To say I love collecting them would be an understatement, however in these tough economic times my obsession has lately been limited to the occasional dollar store purchase rather than the ruthless and overpriced world of Ebay auctions. It's just as well.
Hearing of the passing of Pez pioneer Curtis Allina saddened me; he is afterall the man responsible for giving the dispensers a face, which to me is the mainonly appeal (I just say no to the candy believe it or not). Thanks for contributing to my passion for plastic and bringing joy to so many.
IT'S A BOOK, IT'S A FACE, IT'S A BOOKFACE: Book of Love [ I Touch Roses MP3 ] Reading Rainbow Theme Song [ YouTube ] Jim Halpert as Facebook/Bookface [ Tumblr ] Rent a Book [ Book Swim ] Faces [ Wicked Messenger MP3 ]
Andrew Musson is a long time Flickr pal. He is always quick with a nice comment and supportive of my images. Having someone in your corner like that is a great motivator. He also is a photographer and he has a great eye. I have especially enjoyed watching his style evolve and his pictures seem to get better and better. Above is one of his latest which I really love. Someday soon I need to get acquainted with my medium format camera (the clarity and format can't be beat); I am officially inspired.
I have to say that I am pretty excited about the upcoming Chris Rock film, Good Hair. The cast/interviewees is diverse (and I'm so happy to see Paul Mooney) and the subject matter is humorously educational ("creamy crack") and interesting (the birth of the asymmetrical Salt 'n Pepper 'do). It looks like a hilarious hairstory if you will.
So everyone knows by now that Polaroid is dead, or rather in limbo like poor 'ole Nicole Kidman in The Others. It brings a smile to my face however, that even though its ultimate fate still is a bit uncertain (I am eyeballing you, Impossible Project), Polaroid projects and news abound. Here are some of the latest morsels...
The Band of Outsiders photo shoots with Jason Schwartzman & Marisa Tomei [ Band of Outsiders ]
It keeps going, and going, and going, and going. This is a project that started in 2001 and follows a pretty straight forward yet excellent idea. Take a Polaroid portrait and pass it on. The next person poses with the photo of the person before them, and on and on. You can see the full collection on Flickr.
MORE THINGS TO SHAKE THAT YOU DON'T REALLY NEED TO SHAKE: Dry Erase Snap Frame [ Uma ] Impossible Project T-shirts [ The Impossible Project ] The Branding of Polaroid [ Giam Barba ]
You are probably familiar with the iconic imagery of Penguin book covers, specifically the Edward Young years. Now someone has turned the bold yet basic design into a series of coffee mugs. Not the first to capitalize on what seems like a current wave of vintage literary graphic design re-dos (most of which I'm into), I'd still let them carry my caffeine any day. See your options here.
Let me preface this by saying I had intended to start a weekly feature prescribing a few things to do with your week... a helpful recovery nudge if you will. I'm still going to do it, but in light of Michael Jackson's death I figured I'd change up my list and offer an all-MJ offering. Once I got started I was surprised to find how hard it is to narrow down, but hopefully this will do.
I'll say it again for good measure -- Michael Jackson was mysterious to put it most vaguely, but dang if the guy wasn't full of talent and churned out a bunch of genius in his prime.
I really would like to have some sort of garden and could live with just grass in my yard. I am terrible at keeping plants alive though. So I will continue to have one of the more shameful looking houses on the block and I guess a little less oxygen.
I can't take real naps most of the time... they turn into hours in bed and while I'm not sure how long equals a nap I'm pretty sure I go way past the definition. And "power naps", forget about it. Sometimes when I do sleep all day I tell myself that my long rest included my naps, then I don't feel so bad. Are naps an acceptable way to be lazy without being considered lazy by others? Or are naps a necessity to humans (not restricted to only little kids)? I have not quite figured this one out.
So yesterday I mentioned that I was running the risk of going "full-teenager" and since nothing dark and dreary came to my rescue I now find myself driving down girly avenue with the pedal to the metal. I don't know exactly how I got here but I have set my sights upon Mr. Barry Gibb, he of the Bee Gees (I'm sure he needs no introduction).
I swear this man is the spawn of some Kennedy and a lion, with extra teeth and a rich mane that could fly him to heaven if he tried hard enough. I speak of course of the 70's version, and only of the one Gibb to be clear (I think the other two split the difference with the hotness genes). This eight foot satin God single-handedly invented chest hair and although I would have to be a dog to hear half of his lyrics he is/was the definition of machismo (it's true, I looked it up on Wikipedia). Just standing in place, without even touching someone, I'm sure he can simultaneously impregnate at least a dozen women. Speaking of, as a child I was convinced that Kip Winger was his love child from a one night stand with a pair of acid washed jeans.
Anyway, delirium and a case of Bop-itus have brought me to this weird low, wasting time on YouTube looking at a man that was famous before I knew what music was and is more than twice my age. Today I have officially regressed. Someone either make a "funny" Disney movie about how I am young again and give me all the box office earnings or intervene with a jarring CNN headline to break the spell.
