One Rare Bird

You say "Pop" I say "Over"

I love popovers! And if you dare leave me alone with a pan of popovers and a jar of jam I'm likely to eat every last one and have the jar licked clean within 5 minutes. So it's no surprise that this recipe is a Sunday morning favorite; and God help the person who comes within a foot of the additional pan I make just for myself - people have been known to lose extremities in such scenarios. Seriously.

Popovers

*Forget what you've heard elsewhere. The secret in making good popovers is to start them in a cold oven.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1 cup white flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Put all ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly, without overbeating. Half-fill buttered muffin pans or custard cups. Put them in a cold oven and set the heat for 450 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 15-20 minutes. Test one to be sure it's done by removing it from the pan: it should be crisp outside and moist and tender inside.

(Makes about 10 popovers)

Take Action

Cameron Elisabeth

Prompt 13: Action _{^{{via Reverb 10}}}

"When it comes to aspirations, it’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen. What’s your next step?" (Author: Scott Belsky)

Quite honestly, I'm still trying to figure out what most of my aspirations are. So apart from aspiring to crawl into bed by 8pm tonight or have  yet another glass of wine, this is where I drop a cliche  line and say that  really, all my aspirations boil down to one thing: wanting to be happy and fully alive. Happy with the life I'm living right now, today, and fully alive to everything life holds - the good, the bad, the ugly, the amazing, the ordinary. All of it. I want to dance like no one is watching. Sing like no one is listening. Love like I've never been hurt and live like it's heaven on earth. Because I could "aspire" my ass off and it will mean nothing if that's not the end goal. So what's the next step? Sometimes all I can muster is the courage to turn off the computer and turn up the music, then move my body in the completely uncool, but totally original way that only I dance, and love every minute of it. Maybe tomorrow my aspirations and subsequent actions will lead me to work on my college degree or to re-painting Brannock's bedroom or to going to bed even earlier, but today, I dance.

Alison Tyne

Hot 'n' Cold

I never cease to enjoy  this cover of Katy Perry's Hot 'n' Cold by Ukrainian Polka Band Los Colorados. I even heard it rumored that Katy stole the song from them, but it doesn't matter what came first, Polka or Pop, just that we now have the means to annoy everyone within earshot of our singing for the next week because we can't get this song out of our head.

Hot 'n' Cold by Los Colorados 

And in case you're wondering what Katy Perry's version of this song is like, wonder no longer...

Hot 'n' Cold by Katy Perry

Crush of the Week: Lisa Congdon

Lisa in Martha Stewart Living, February 2011

Lisa Congdon. Need I say more? Ok, I will, but if you don't already know who she is, then shame on you! And shame on me for being completely speechless due to a chronic case of Major Crush. I honestly can't bare to bore you will my incessant jabbering because even the About page on Lisa's website makes my crush flare up. Just listen to this...

"San Francisco illustrator and fine artist Lisa Congdon was raised in both upstate New York and Northern California where she grew to love the trees and animals that surrounded her. That love is now expressed most intensely through her paintings and drawings. Lisa comes from a family of creative people and has been making things with her hands since she was a little girl, but she did not begin painting until she was 33 years old. Ten years later, it is now the most significant part of her life and livelihood. Aside from four painting classes, Lisa is entirely self-taught. Three years ago, she left a career as a leader in the education nonprofit world to pursue a full-time creative life."

Did you hear  that? She didn't even begin painting until she was 33 and she is completely self-taught! Lisa, you not only inspire me with your fantastic creativity and talent, but you give me hope as a self-taught and late-blooming artist myself. Your work is magic!

 

"Lisa is [also] a prolific collector of old and unusual things, including bits of nature, and surrounds herself with these things in her home and studio. In 2010 she chronicled all of her collections in her Collection A Day 2010 Project. That project will become a book, published in March 2011. You can read more about + order her book here."

Day 1

Day 4

Day 35

Day 81

Day 114

Day 177

Day 260

Day 302

Day 335

Genius! Thanks again Lisa for being my Crush this week and for inspiring me to keep painting and collecting. xo

Take It

Whether it's "not taking it anymore" or taking back your day or your life or your time or anything else, sometimes unapologetically taking what we need is the very best thing we can do for ourselves and the world around us. So today is dedicated to taking, to seizing, to reclaiming, to owning, or whatever word works for you. For me, today I just plain need to take a break. Happy Monday!

Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand

Take On Me performed by Reel Big Fish

Every Breath You Take by The Police

April Showers Bring May Flowers

{Cassia Beck}

"The earth laughs in flowers." -E. E. Cummings

{un arc en ciel dan le lavabo}

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to bloom.” -Anais Nin

{Tina Crespo}

"I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck."  -Emma Goldman

{Cassia Beck}

"It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are." -E. E. Cummings

{L. Grainne}

"Grow where you are planted." -Proverb

{Minna}

Integrate the Body

Prompt 12: Body Integration _{^{{via Reverb 10}}}

"This year, when did you feel the most integrated with your body? Did you have a moment where there wasn’t mind and body, but simply a cohesive YOU, alive and present?" (Author: Patrick Reynolds)

I think body integration happens for me in small, ordinary moments, and the first place I can think where it almost always happens, is at the beach. I can't quite explain it, but there's something about the salty ocean breeze, melodious waves, warm sun, and vastness of the sandy beach that wipes my mind clean of all worry and pulls my body into it's peaceful rhythm. I could sit completely still on the beach for hours without any effort or thought. I can't help but feel completely alive in body and present in mind when I'm near the ocean, and even though I can't explain it beyond that, E. E. Cummings sums it up perfectly:

"Whatever we lose, like a You or a Me, it's always ourselves that we find at the Sea."

Nan Lawson

Spoken Word Poetry: Who Knew?

My husband recently sent me this video of Sarah Kay speaking at TED2011, and even though I vaguely recall hearing the term Spoken Word Poetry before, I never really thought much about it  - that is until I heard Sarah Kay's speech. For someone like me who  is a verbal processor and often has trouble pinpointing my exact thoughts and emotions, this Spoken Word Poetry thing really has me intrigued. It has officially made the short-list of things to try this year, and even if I only do it by myself in front of a mirror, it holds a lot of promise for a girl like me.

If I Should Have A Daughter by Sarah Kay

Crush of the Week: Ashley Goldberg

I'm definitely not the first person to be crushing on artist Ashley Goldberg, and I certainly won't be the last. Who knew such simple design, muted color pallets, and woodland creatures could be so amazing? Not to mention Ashley is exactly who I always imagine myself being - if I was a completely different person and utterly talented, that is. Her first endearing crush-worthy quality? She's a girl after my homebody heart:

Second, if you've been wondering where those three adorable birds at the top of this blog came from, look no further because Ashley is the sweet girl who let me use them. She also has a ton more work to choose from in her Etsy shop:

And if that's not enough crushing for one day, you can hire Ashley to create a custom family portrait. These are far more original than any studio session with a photographer and cost about the same after all is said and done. You can see more of Ashley's custom work on her Flickr page, but if you're like me you'll probably start crushing on the families in the portraits as well, so consider yourself warned:

Thank you Ashley for being my Crush of the Week! You'll definitely be doing our family portrait before the end of the year.

Leonard Cohen Sums It Up

Today, Music Monday is dedicated to Leonard Cohen. I'm not sure if it's the mood I'm in or if it's Cohen music that puts me in this mood, but either way his music has a way of grounding me faster than I can say "melt down", and that's definitely saying something. Happy Monday everyone!

Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen

Dance Me to the End of Love by Leonard Cohen

I'm Your Man by Leonard Cohen

A Thousand Kisses Deep