January's Links to Love

Artsy:

A new favorite crafting blog, Whimsy Beams.

Seeing the world in bubbles.

Upcycled doily lamp:




Short animated film:

Bon Appetit from Kilogramme on Vimeo.

Literary:

Google translates poetry (considering rhyme, meter, etc.).

Literary new year resolutions.


Mormon:

"Single, Female, Mormon, Alone." I don't agree with her decision, but the "problem" that she is accused of having sure is thought-provoking. As are the comments (especially #52). And a fabulous discussion of the article at Times and Seasons.

Salon.com's "Why I can't stop reading Mormon housewife blogs," and Amy Lawson's response.

An Evangelical Graduates from LDS Institute.


Yes, I Love Technology:

Cyberspace when you're dead (NY Times).

More fonts at Blogger!

Computer user humor (I have totally done this with so many easier functions, i.e. "Just press CTRL+C!!! No! Don't go to the menu, ack!"):




Random:


Blizzard time lapse:

December 2010 Blizzard Timelapse from Michael Black on Vimeo.

And as long as we're talking about weather, can you believe the Australian flooding?




German Löffelspiel (spoon game):





This orchestra fail made me laugh:




What a lighthearted Technorati article about sleep talking. :)


Check out this amazing dancing kid (he would rock my world at Just Dance on the Wii):




Crazy Things Parents Text. LOL (and that doesn't mean "lots of love").

And last but not least, babies are hilarious when they learn to say no (at first, anyway):




An inspiring TED talk:




A 3-year-old conducting Beethoven:




I cannot get enough of these hilarious graphs.

Ice cream, running, blizzard.

A could-have-been romance (do you do this too? I always wonder how much I should write, when, etc.):

Why Visiting Teaching is Great

"I might have known she needed help! I know how things can be--for women. I tell you, it's queer, Mrs. Peters. We live close together and we live far apart. We all go through the same things--it's all just a different kind of the same thing."

-Mrs. Hale in Glaspell's "Trifles"

Do you know what I mean by that title?

Facebook Wedding Pictures

Do you ever look at wedding pictures on Facebook and think, "Oh man! Where did she find him? Maybe he has a brother . . ."?

Oh, the life of a single social media-ite.

Thank You, Tanya and Post Office (a.k.a Guardian Angel of True Friendship)

Look closely at the address on this envelope (not the return address, that I blotted out). I was amused when I received it, because there wasn't a house number and there wasn't a completed zip code. And yet, somehow, thanks be to the guardian angel of true friendship, I got it.

Not only was the envelope a miracle, the contents were so personalized. Thanks for being a great friend and a great gift-giver, Tanya.

Giveaway Winner and Flash Report

The giveaway winner is Crystal! Thank you to everyone who entered!

My sister Sica, who was working with the University of Utah football team, is now working with the Flash. Yeah, I didn't know what that was either. Apparently there is something called a D-League, which stands for "Development League." The NBA has players there who need to work on their game, and the Jazz's D-League team, the Flash, plays in Orem.





Here are cool things about Flash games:

• There are fewer spectators (I don't know if there are any fans besides players' families, so we'll stick with "spectators,"), so you feel more involved with the game. (Tickets are probably cheaper, too, but I wouldn't know because Sica was able to get us some.)
  
• The dancers are called the "Flash Dancers," but in order to avoid the meaning that comes with the title, the announcer calls them the "Downeast Dancers" (Downeast is their sponsor).
• The coach is 28 and a sharp dresser.
• Most of the people there are there to see the halftime show, put on by local dance companies. At least, that's the impression I got.
• Flash the Fox's "surfing the wave by longboarding across a tarp moved up over his head by assistants" trick is absolutely so ridiculous it will puzzle you, but his "throw hoola hoops over a bald man with a plunger stuck to his head" trick is hilarious.
• There are mini shop tables behind the bleachers and in the halls: Downeast, Forever Young, and some other places were there, which was kind of weird, but also kind of awesome. (Who can beat a $5 dress?)
  

And now for the best part:

• If the Flash team scores 100 points, you can get free Crazy Bread at Little Caesars! Yum, yum! I think this was not only a good marketing strategy, it really contributed to enjoying the game because people count every basket!

Plus, there's this amusing little number in the game program:





Did you think that was a girl on the left? So did several members of my family. Poor Mr. Holdaway. Maybe that picture is extra amazing proof that EXLFITNESS is awesome, whatever that is.

Alfred Molina

I just want to give props to Alfred Molina. That guy has been in everything. You've got to appreciate someone who never gets to be the head character but who has played a plethora of villains and pulled off all kinds of accents. I think one of my favorites is his role in The Man Who Knew Too Little. If you haven't seen it, do it.



Good work, dude.

Chandeliers

Did you know how expensive chandeliers are? I'm looking for a mini one and I can't find one I like that is under $50. The one pictured here is the "Light Mozart Chandelier" and it costs $74 before shipping.

I really want to make one. Wouldn't that be awesome?

Giveaway Reminder

Dear beloved blog readers (that means all of you),

Please go to this link and enter my calendar envelopes giveaway right now.

You don't want to miss out on the beauty of writing a letter on red paper to match the high-gloss envelope, do you?



Please?

The Girly Tomboy Look

Don't forget to enter the January giveaway!

Have you guys seen Polyvore.com? I just discovered it and I love being able to create outfits, rooms, etc.

Check out this creation:

Girly Tomboy featuring a mod coat

cute as a button wool blend peacoat in black
$73 - shopruche.com
Mod coat »

AE Women's Super Skinny Jeans
$40 - ae.com
Skinny destroyed jeans »

White longline lace trim cami
7 GBP - debenhams.com
Red Herring »

CHUCK TAYLOR ALL STAR LOW
60 EUR - mytheresa.com
Star shoes »

Gracianna's Heirloom Style Blue Crystal Cameo Ring
$35 - fantasyjewelrybox.com
Cameo rings »

Gold fabric flower clip
4 GBP - dorothyperkins.com
Gold hair accessory »

Black Diamond Chandelier Earrings
$32 - 1928.com
Fancy earrings »

SEPHORA COLLECTION Thick Braidie® Headband Black
$10 - sephora.com
Black hair accessories »

Moop - Moop, Handmade Bags for Men, Women and kids! : The Letter Bag...
moopshop.com

Totally me.

Becoming a Weed

"[H]e grew weary of the world, which seemed to him an unweeded garden, where all the wholesome flowers were choaked up, and nothing but weeds could thrive."

-description of Hamlet in Charles Lamb's version of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

Kein Zurück

Es geht kein Weg zurück.

Wolfsheim's "Kein Zurück"

Weißt du noch, wie's war?
Kinderzeit - wunderbar:
Die Welt ist bunt und schön.
Bis du irgendwann begreifst,
Dass nicht jeder Abschied heißt,
Es gibt auch ein Wiedersehen.

Immer vorwärts. Schritt um Schritt.
Es geht kein Weg zurück.
Was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr ungeschehen.
Die Zeit läuft uns davon.
Was getan ist, ist getan.
Und was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr so geschehen.

Es geht kein Weg zurück.
Es geht kein Weg zurück.

Ein Wort zuviel im Zorn gesagt,
Einen Schritt zu weit nach vorn gewagt:
Schon ist es vorbei.
Was auch immer jetzt getan,
Was ich gesagt hab, ist gesagt.
Und was wie ewig schien, ist schon Vergangenheit.

Immer vorwärts. Schritt um Schritt.
Es geht kein Weg zurück.
Was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr ungeschehen.
Die Zeit läuft uns davon.
Was getan ist, ist getan.
Und was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr so geschehen.

Ach, und könnte ich doch
Nur ein einziges Mal
Die Uhren rückwärts drehen.
Denn wie viel von dem,
Was ich heute weiß,
Hätte ich lieber nie gesehen.

Es geht kein Weg zurück.
Es geht kein Weg zurück.
Es geht kein Weg zurück.

Dein Leben dreht sich nur im Kreis.
So voll von weggeworfener Zeit.
Deine Träume schiebst du endlos vor dir her.
Du willst noch leben, irgendwann.
Doch wenn nicht heute, wann denn dann?
Denn irgendwann ist auch ein Traum zu lange her.

Immer vorwärts. Schritt um Schritt.
Es geht kein Weg zurück.
Was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr ungeschehen.
Die Zeit läuft uns davon.
Was getan ist, ist getan.
Und was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr so geschehen.

Ach, und könnte ich doch

Immer vorwärts. Schritt um Schritt.

Nur ein einziges Mal

Es geht kein Weg zurück.

Die Uhren rückwärts drehen.

Was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr ungeschehen.

Denn wie viel von dem,

Die Zeit läuft uns davon.

Was ich heute weiß,

Was getan ist, ist getan.

Hätte ich lieber nie gesehen.

Und was jetzt ist, wird nie mehr so geschehen.

Defiantly vs. Definitely

Okay people, do you really mean "defiantly" (boldly resisting) or do you mean definitely (for sure)?

Just asking. (I already know the answer.)

A Giveaway

I crafted these lovely envelopes out of old German calendars and so I'd like to give a set of three to a lucky reader, specifically this set:





If you want to win, do the following:

1. be a subscriber to this blog
2. send a link to this blog to a friend
3. leave a comment

All entries must be in by the 20th of January! If I get a lot of entries, I'll do another giveaway and you can choose which set you'd like (see them on my Photobucket).

Calling Off Beef Stew

Yesterday, I opened the fridge and discovered leftover beef stew (from a can). It had been great the night before, but the congealed fat turned me off from it. Trying not to think about it, I scooped some into a bowl and warmed it up. It tasted fine; I especially appreciated the carrots.

Suddenly, I made a huge mistake (or maybe it was the key to my salvation). I looked at what I was eating. And there, on my spoon, was something that brought the word "aorta" to mind. It was gray. And firmer than eatable meat. With fleshy tube things coming off it. Chicken heart? Is there even chicken in beef stew? I couldn't even get myself to take a picture for your enjoyment. It went straight into the garbage.

However . . . there's some flavor in beef stew that draws me back to it. But I think I'm done for a while or until I can discover how to recreate that flavor myself.

I still get grossed out thinking about it.

Audrey Hepburn Silhouette Project

While at IKEA with friends last January, I saw an awesome black and white Audrey Hepburn silhouette. I liked the idea so much that I didn't forget about and when I found out I was to be giving my sister Heidi a Christmas present, I knew I wanted to try to duplicate it. I originally thought I would sketch it and then paint it with black acrylics, but I came up with a better plan. It was unfortunate that I couldn't find any square canvases, but I think it worked out just fine in the regular 16x20 format.

First, I lightened up a picture I had of it and made it enormous. Then, I split it into four sections on four pages and printed it out and taped it to the 16x20 canvas.




Next, I used a fine-point permanent marker to trace all the details. This took forever and sacrificed quite a bit of wrist power . . . each line took about 15 layers before it went through the paper--I really should have found some bad quality paper.




Finally, I used progressively bigger permanent markers to fill in the outlines. Whew, anyone in my room would have been high it stunk so bad. ;) But it sure looked cool. And I think my sister liked it.





What do you think?

Do you want to buy one from me? Go to my store here.

P.S. Enter my January giveaway here! (POST EDIT: CLOSED.)