The Best

Here’s the trail of breadcrumbs. Chuck subscribes to The New York Times. That means in addition to the Sunday newspaper being delivered to our home, we also get full digital access. My favorite way to read the Times is on our iPad. Near the beginning of December I clicked on the Times icon. Before the edition refreshed I spotted an article about a blogger with the phrase “big ideas”. Then it disappeared and the new edition filled in. Some searching brought me back to the article which had caught me eye. Here’s the piece.

When I finished that article about 28 year old Maria Popova I clicked through to her website “Brain Pickings”. I was hooked. I quickly added the site to my RSS feeds and followed it on Twitter and Facebook.

Tonight I e-mailed my sister Gail in Georgia and mentioned it to her. That was when I realized I had never posted about Brain Pickings here. For which, I sincerely apologize!

Calling Maria Popova a blogger may be technically true but she is more accurately an editor, a collector, a curator, a librarian of all that is interesting. But not interesting the way CNN Headline News or USA Today are when you are stuck in an airport on a layover. Nor is Brain Pickings interesting the way BuzzFeed and Gawker can be. Brain Pickings is classier, deeper and draws you in with beauty, history and brilliance.

Brain Pickings has a separate page called The Literary Jukebox. Ms. Popova pairs a song with a quote or a poem. Sounds devilishly simple doesn’t it? I don’t believe it is and once again she makes it something special. Here is my absolute favorite combination which joins
John Steinbeck and Natalie Merchant. I find it both inspiring and beautiful.

Not every single Brain Pickings post is fascinating to me. But I am always happy to see the yellow avatar pop up in my streams. And I find it comforting to know that someone is working so assiduously to bring important and wonderful things to the attention of an ever widening audience.

The Prints and The Potter

Worcester, Massachusetts boasts a wonderful gallery and framing shop: The Prints and The Potter. Located at the corner of Highland and West Streets, they have been in business for 36 years. With an extensive selection of pottery, jewelry, glasswork and framed art, the cleverly named shop should be your first stop for a special gift - for yourself or others! They are also the only place we take artwork for framing. They have handled a variety of projects for us and always do a professional job with exceptional attention to detail. They really are a gem!

Precisely!

This is not my work.

Because I admire it so - both the sentiment and the graphic design - I am posting it here. I found it via Pinterest on a website called Wild Guess, which I think is part of Tumblr. I believe it was "Wild Guess” who created the poster/print. Liz Feldman is a writer and comedian.

It Felt Like A Sunday

Chuck and I met 26 years ago next month. In September we will celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. In the intervening years between meeting and marrying we became friends and fell in love. Shortly before we met, Stephen Sondheim wrote the Broadway musical “Sunday In The Park With George”. We were smitten with it. Song after song moved us; touched us in some deep way. The musical was inspired by Georges Seurat’s spectacular painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte”. In fact, the painting becomes a scrim in the musical production.

Back in the late 80s, right around the falling in love stage, we began thinking about visiting Seurat’s original painting. We even looked into a weekend plane trip from Massachusetts to Chicago, where the painting resides in a museum. But the cost of such a trip was prohibitive. When we drove across the country from Seattle to the east coast back in 1998, we were pushing to make a deadline. We were very disappointed to find ourselves traveling through Chicago around midnight.

So when the Amtrak adventure began to take shape we realized this might be our best chance. The only potential glitch was the timing. Because the railroad tracks are owned mostly by freight companies, Amtrak passenger trains often have to wait their turn to let long freights have priority. That can mean significant delays. We were lucky. “The Lake Shore Limited” arrived in Chicago on time, leaving us with nearly a four hour layover. We stashed our carry-on luggage in a locker at Union Station and hailed a taxi in the pouring rain.

Next stop: The Art Institute of Chicago.

We stepped out of the warm rain and into the cool serenity of the Art Institute. We paid our admission fee and asked for directions to the painting. In just a few moments we were in the gallery devoted to it and a few of Seurat’s other works. We were overcome. We had dreamed of this moment for almost a quarter century. We sat on a long wooden bench and tried to take it all in. Group after group of elementary school students bustled in with notebooks in one hand, folding stools in the other. They plopped down in front of the enormous image and listened while the docents explained the painting and the magic of pointillism.

I wanted to take a photograph. Chuck found a guard and inquired if non-flash photography was allowed. “Yes”, she replied. I took some photographs. We sat down again; still feeling overwhelmed. The guard looked at us quizzically and we felt compelled to quietly explain how we came to be there. Families walked in and out; individual visitors, many wearing the now common headphones playing the audio tours, stopped, looked and moved on. Most everyone seemed interested. No one seemed quite as taken as we were. But then, very few of them had been looking forward to that moment for such a long time.

2011 Is Just Around The Corner

If you are looking for a gorgeous 2011 calendar, Ilva Beretta, of the beautiful and delicious food blog Lucullian Delights is selling her calendar over at Red Bubble. A Swedish ex-pat living in Italy, Ilva’s wall calendar features some of her best photographs. Hanging in your kitchen, they are bound to provide you with culinary inspiration - and her recipes are just a few clicks away on her blog.

My Favorite Overpass

I don’t know who the creative geniuses were who thought to paint the overpasses spanning Route 146 in wonderful colors. Nor do I know which state bureaucrats had the good sense to authorize it. But my hat is off to all of them.

This one is located in Worcester at the intersection of Cambridge, Quinsigamond and 290.
It is, for obvious reasons, my favorite.

Wicked Cool

There’s a wicked cool Photoshop video tutorial from NAPP Executive Director Larry Becker over on Corey Barker’s Planet Photoshop. It’s called “Abstract Backgrounds”. It is very easy to follow and left me slackjawed with all the nifty permutations and possibilities - think filters, digi-scrap papers and more. Check it out here!

My experiment:
From stones to stripes

The Book Cover

As promised, a photo of my version of the Reversible Journal Cover.
It was well received. ;o)

Book Cover

I needed to make a book cover out of fabric. I had been thinking about winging it - my usual strategy! And heaven knows that once upon a time I wrapped all my textbooks with brown paper bag covers. (I also used the glossy store bought ones with ivy league college and university logos emblazoned on them. However inspiring they may have been, the brown paper bag ones lasted longer!)

Anyhoo, I Googled to see if I could find a good design. I found several. But if I was not going to wing it, I needed a really good tutorial. By good I mean clear and easy to follow directions, coupled with very good images to follow. I found a nifty one which, by the description, should have been way too complicated: “A Reversible Journal Cover”. It wasn’t! Lara Cameron in Melbourne, Australia posted the directions, complete with illustrations. I’m a visual learner so that was important. You have to look very closely at those illustrations but she really does spell everything out and make it quite simple: basically four rectangles of fabric and six seams.

Full disclosure: I neglected to double a measurement as advised in Step 3. That was my own darn fault for reading too quickly. But it actually worked out just fine. On my next one I will double that measurement as advised to give the “pockets” where the book cover slips in, better coverage.

Neither Mutiny Nor Michael

Over on Advanced Style, they have a pictorial post on stylish folks, of certain age, with canes. In recent years we’ve had some experience with canes and walking sticks. Two of our elderly relatives have needed canes. Neither of them was interested in anything too “loud” or too “flashy”. Believe me, we tried! But the goal for each of them was to be as normal as possible, to not stand out; to not shine a bright, hot light on age related needs. As someone who is inherently shy and has magically worn a cloak of invisibility for years, I absolutely get it. But as someone who also has a penchant for snazzy, eye-catching, often vintage purses; who always has a folding fan with her and is never, ever afraid to use it and who loves wearing bright striped socks - well I really don’t get it.

When Chuck and I recently chose hiking sticks we looked at function, strength, lightness, feel in the hand and yes, appearance. We chose a couple of sassafras ones. They were frankly inexpensive. But we wanted to try them out when we walk on dirt country roads, the carriage trails in Acadia, the rocks at Schoodic - pretty much anywhere that isn’t paved or a high school track. We wanted to learn to use them efficiently and effectively. We wanted to become comfortable with using something for pleasure and additional ease. But we also wanted to be prepared to extend our options and maintain our agility and mobility as the years roll by.

Yes, we’re young - well, we think we are! But our ERs remind us that, if we’re lucky, the road is long and hardly ever gun barrel straight. So we’ll start with a couple of sassafras beauties. However, should circumstances change, we’ve already got our eyes on something like these dazzlers. Fair warning to the generation behind us: Uncle Chuck and Auntie Lee will not be going gently (or dowdily) into that good night!

Look Ma - No Hands!

My Mom doesn’t have a computer, nor does she want one. When I started this blog three plus years ago, it was a little difficult for her to wrap her mind around the concept. Heck, it was a little hard for me to explain in the beginning! She finally settled on the notion that it’s like a diary and my readers and fellow bloggers are like pen pals. Not bad! And she has picked up enough computer lingo and information to advise her friend on how to begin researching a medical condition: “Just go to that Google place and type it in!” Two thumbs up Mom.

Today we went to Rhode Island to visit with Mom, have lunch together and run some errands. (Mom stopped driving back in August.) I decided to bring along a copy of last week’s Worcester Magazine. I wanted her to see where an excerpt from Pink Granite had been published in lovely, tangible, non-digital newsprint and ink in their Blog Log column. I showed her. She read it. And she seemed decidedly underwhelmed. Ummm... Mom? Something I wrote is in black and white in a genuine, honest to goodness newspaper! This is the moment when you’re supposed to clip it out, stick it on the refrigerator and leave it until the edges curl and it yellows - aren’t you?

To be fair, Mom was ridiculously proud when my poem was published. And she often leaves my greeting cards up well past their expiration dates as if they were on loan from the Louvre. Actually, she liked an abstract mother and child print I made so much, she framed it. So it’s not like I’m lacking in appreciation from the woman. I guess I thought she would naturally feel the same dizzying rush of excitement I felt when Chuck brought our copy of WoMag home. It’s good fun to write and post here on Pink Granite. It’s great when SiteMeter shows visitors popping in from all over the world. And it’s absolutely fabulous when readers become regular readers and commenters. Nothing can beat that community and friendship. But holding WoMag and seeing Pink Granite in Blog Log, I have to admit, I did a little happy dance.

So, in the spirit of fellow Rhode Islander George M. Cohan, may I say to Worcester Magazine and Pink Granite’s readers and yeasty commenters:
"My mother thanks you, my father thanks you, my sister thanks you and I thank you."

And thank you Mom - without you (and Dad) I wouldn’t be here doing my little happy dance...

I Turned In My Elf Badge

The hush-hush project which had me working overtime as an elf was a success. I made a photo book for my niece and her husband of their wedding day. When Carrie and Al opened it they were both surprised and happy, which was exactly what we had hoped for. After scads of research (bordering on the obsessive!) which included familiarizing myself with their websites and Googling lots of reviews and testimonials, I settled on Blurb to work with. These days there are a number of self-publishing outfits on the web. Shutterfly seems quite popular, especially in the digital scrapbooking world. But I didn’t want to upload my photographs to their site and then work on-line. Lulu was once almost exclusively text based, but has rapidly expanded their range. MyPublisher struck me as sophisticated as well as full service and was my second choice. But I chose Blurb because their site was welcoming, easy to navigate and intuitive. Plus, I was able to download their “BookSmart” software and work on the book on my computer. They offer templates and pre-made layouts for use. You can also create your own designs and templates. Or use a combination of the two. Blurb’s “BookSmart” software was a little difficult for me to work with initially. But after a couple of false starts and a few trips to their on-line “Help” pages I got it all sorted out. I ended up using some of their templates and creating several of my own. Because the book I made was photo rich, I decided against using any of their decorative layouts.

Once Al and Carrie’s 40 page book was completed I checked and rechecked unto the nth degree. I did follow Blurb’s advice and order just one copy, even though they were running some good pre-Christmas specials. Waiting was difficult! But as soon as it arrived and Chuck and I had a chance to look at it, appreciate the quality and feel the weight of the premium paper we had requested, I went directly to the website and ordered the other copies. Happily, they were offering substantial shipping discounts. Blurb allows you to keep your book “Private” and send folks an invitation link. That flexibility was another selling point for me. Here are some wedding photo books other people have published which will give you an idea of what you can do. I already have lots of ideas for other books I would like to create. And I would definitely use Blurb again.

F to G

I need to thank Chuck (BFF/Hero/Wonder Hubby). I finished designing the Christmas cards and managed to get them all printed. But it was not without a few hiccups. Each card has to be run through the printer a total of three times - cover art, inside greeting and credit on the back. I had a few cards that threatened to get hung up in the printer. No accordion-pleating jams, but it was enough to require close attention to the task. By the time I had everything printed I was not looking forward to doing the envelopes. Enter Chuck. He took over, despite my protests. Soon we were humming along with Chuck generating printed envelopes and me signing, sealing and stamping. I went from “Frazzled” to “Gratitude” in short order and the last of the cards are headed to the Post Office tomorrow.

Thank you Chuck!

Deputized

I’ve been wrestling with new software. It’s not Apple. It’s not Photoshop. It’s something I’ve never used before. The project is really important. But it’s very hush-hush. I can’t say any more. You see, I’ve been deputized, by Santa. Yes, I suppose that does make me an elf. Unless they’re unionized. I mean, I don’t want to be a scab. But this is just a seasonal gig... I need to talk to Santa; maybe the Head Elf as well. Wait a minute. If there’s a Head Elf, a president of the union, would that make Santa “Management”? Nah! No way!

O.K. I’ve gotta go.
I’ll be back as soon as I can wrap up this project.
And maybe one or two more...
;o)

Fun With Photoshop

I promised Sue that I would pass along any nifty Photoshop tips and techniques. I found one which seems to have limitless possibilities. Over at Ree’s Pioneer Woman blog, if you’re able to tear yourself away from the recipes and the love story, you’ll find her photography page. Recently she has been focusing on adding textures to photographs. The reader examples she has been posting have been fabulous and inspiring (start here). Happily, back in June, she offered a texture tutorial by Jodi Friedman of MCP Actions. It’s a very clear tutorial with lots of screen shots. The nice thing is you can keep the web page up in the background of your computer screen, while you try the techniques in Photoshop in the foreground.

Here’s the very first thing I tried using a photo from Washington state as posted last November:


And here it is “aged” and “textured” using Jodi’s downloadable “Rust” and “Brick” photos as texture overlays.


Have fun!

Rags To Litter

Chuck reached into his closet the other night to pull out a dress shirt to wear to see Pilobolus. The first to hand was a button down tattersall from L.L. Bean in beige and green. As he was buttoning it up, Chuck noticed the cuffs were more than just lightly frayed, they had split apart in the last wash! Upon closer inspection we found more fraying and wear - too much to make it an appropriate donation. But that green and beige colorway caught my eye. I asked if he minded if I used it for a little sewing project. He agreed it was all mine.

What is it with me and turning tired clothing into something else? I’ve never been a real patchwork quilter. But I am drawn to recycle items into something useful. Actually useful and cute is the real winner. This time, I had been wanting to make a litter bag for our car. The cheesy plastic one from a car wash which we had been using was a mess. Plus, it never stayed where we put it. So I took the tattersall and combined it with a previously retired and very holey chamois shirt and sewed it up. I dimensioned the bag so that a plastic zipper bag slips inside as a liner. The handle is actually the button placket! Yup, useful and cute!

RTF As Breadcrumbs

I was working on a digital art project today which suddenly stalled. I wanted to try a particular effect in Photoshop CS3, but for the life of me I couldn’t remember how to get there. It was something I knew I had done before which added to the frustration. So I plugged in my external hard drive where I keep my digital art and scrapbooking files. (Without the EHD, my laptop’s hard drive would have long ago burst forth like Lucy Ricardo’s bread did in her kitchen!) When I create a digital scrapbooking page, a greeting card or any sort of digital art, I make a separate folder for it. I found the folder I was looking for. It held four experiments I had done working with a photograph of autumn leaves. In addition to the four Photoshop files, I also had a Rich Text Format document (RTF) in the folder. On that little no frills document I had typed up each step, filter and setting I had used in each of the digital experiments. Sure enough, there, under #4, was the previously elusive setting of Filter > Distort > Glass > Texture > Blocks which I had been hunting for.

Moral of the story? Create an RTF doc and jot down what you did. With all the fun things to play with in Photoshop Elements or CS3, some nifty technique could easily fall by the wayside. But with the RTF you can find your way back.

Here’s an example of what I was working with (using a photo from Lexington) - which after all that and all that, isn’t what I finally settled on!

Much Better

After a solid night’s sleep, waking to sunshine in the morning was a big lift to my spirits. Finding encouraging comments waiting for me in my e-mail put a veritable spring in my step. I thank you for that. I also managed to get to a sewing project today. Not unlike last year when I created a bag for us to use on short hikes, today I made a little case for our iPod to go in. I still need to find a piece of velcro to close the flap with, but it’s pretty good. I love working out the design and the process as I go along. Which, since I don’t love following recipes and patterns always feel as if they slow me down, winging it suits me just fine. Mind you, I really dislike ripping seams. Even when I use a lovely seam ripper like this one which I bought from Cynthia a couple of years ago on eBay. Happily, today I did not need to employ that beauty even once! All in all, a good day.

This & That

: : The coughing and nose blowing which have been the hallmarks of this charming cold of mine continue. But I think it is safe to write that I am turning the corner on it. Unfortunately, Chuck is following in my footsteps. But he’s a couple of days behind me. I’ve also had a relentless headache today - probably from all the coughing. Blech!

: : I’m hoping the rainy weather down in Greater Atlanta, Georgia, where my sister Gail lives - and all over the southeast - begins to improve very soon. While they have needed their aquifers to be recharged, the relentless abundance of rain is too much of a good thing all at once.

: : On a far more cheerful note, I was “BlogLogged” over at Daily Worcesteria. I’m honored that Pink Granite caught their eye once again!

: : Here’s another good summary of President Obama’s Health Insurance Reform Plan. There’s a brief bulleted list and a four minute video. When you are contacting your Congressional representatives and The White House (which I’m sure you’re doing!) be sure to emphasize the need for a genuine Public Option. Thanks!

: : Ever feel overwhelmed by the enormous number of fabulous things over on Etsy? Then check out Etsy’s The Storque “Spotlight” section and click on any posts about their “Finds”. They lay out a lovely trail of artistic breadcrumbs for you to follow. Enjoy!

Do You Journal?

I used to. I kept a gratitude journal which truly was transformative. Focusing on the positive, every single day, no matter how infinitesimal that good thing was, helped me haul myself out of deep blue funk. I also wrote a poem a day for several years, which really was a journal in verse form. But since I began blogging back in November of 2006, my pen and paper journal has turned into bits and bytes. I miss the tactile, tangibility of my notebooks. Being prone to “all or nothing” thinking though, I’ve been reluctant to dive back into daily journaling. Enter two nifty, “low impact” ideas from Gretchen Rubin of The Happiness Project and The Happiness Project Toolbox.
: : First: The One-Sentence Journal. Simply jot down one sentence each day. You can even pick a theme: gratitude, dreams, books, things your kids say - whatever - it’s your journal.
: : Second: A Calendar Date Journal. In a fresh, fat, lined notebook, dedicate each page to a day of the year. Your entries on a given day will be by year. Example:
September 1
2009 - Celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary at Legal Seafoods.
2010 - Celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary at Legal Seafoods. Are we in a rut?
2016 - Today is our 25th Wedding Anniversary - How did we get so darn lucky?
Get it? It’s a long term project, but how neat it will be to look back on any given day to see the ups and downs, ins and outs across the decades.

For all the Do-It-Yourself-ers reading this, check out this idea for a handmade journal.

Digitally inclined? It isn’t the same as pen and paper, but if you’re an Apple user checkout Circus Ponies' software called NoteBook.