Creation Halt

Rhymes with orange

2011-03-06T22:48:00.000-08:00

The current political atmosphere in the United States is disturbing. A few years ago, before GW was re-elected, my DH and I considered diasporange. Diasporange is the act fleeing a political jurisdiction to avoid changing political climate.

Canada seemed nice. But we had great friends and good jobs and couldn't quite imagine leaving. And we suffered through 4 more years of politics we didn't agree with. Then Obama was elected and the need to flee diminished. We had hope. For the record, I am still pleased with the things Obama has been able to accomplish. However, the pendulum has swung and and I am considering diasporange again.

For example, this legislation in GA which could conceivably allow women who have miscarriages to be charged criminally. That would make me and most of the women I know potential criminals.

Look at what is happening in Wisconsin. The Wisconsin democrat's flight from the Capitol was a prime example of quorange. Quorange being the act of fleeing a jurisdiction to avoid a legislative quorum. It is similar to diasporange. What are the next steps? Staying informed, not going crazy and plotting potential diasporange are certainly on the agenda.

What?!? An actual post?

2010-10-11T15:32:00.000-07:00

Well, sort of. I actually posted here on my other defunct blog. I think I was an early adopter to blogging and I fizzled out due to Facebook. That's ok. Check it out if you'd like to read what I have been up to (assuming of course I still have some readers here).

Recipe - Tostones with Sauce

2009-09-10T13:59:00.000-07:00

Tostones Sauce

Ingredients:
3 garlic cloves
~ 1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp white vinegar
8 oz. can of tomato sauce

Directions:
In mortar and pestle, crush garlic and salt into a gooey paste. Add olive oil and white vinegar and stir. Add tomato sauce and stir until well mixed.

Here is a nice little video on making the twice fried tostones: http://video.about.com/latinfood/Fried-Plantains.htm.
The sweet ones are called maduros and the recipe can be found here: http://icuban.com/food/platanos_maduros.html.

Decluttering and found money

2009-08-07T10:20:00.000-07:00

It has come to me that decluttering may be a lifelong thing. I mean, I don't really want it to be...but I always seem to have piles of things to clean up. How do I keep the piles from existing in the first place? I still have no idea but I have managed to get better at going through stuff and getting rid of it.

In the past week, I have gone through 3 boxes of stuff. I made mountains of stuff to shred (which I have been doing little by little). This has given me some room on my shelves. I can actually see the back of some of the shelves! (Meaning they are not so piled with stuff that I can't see the back). I have a shelf for sewing stuff and a place for all my music books and equiptment. W even provided me with a hook for my borrowed bass guitar.

Hey! Only 3 years and my office / music room is starting to look better. Sigh...

I found a ton of mula in this decluttering. I found cash! I found gift certificates! I found old, old checks! It is crazy and I have already decided that I am changing the way I handle these type of things as they come into the house. My problem is that I often will leave a check in a card until I have the chance to write a thank you note. My mom pointed out that if I just keep some thank you notes by the mail slot, as soon as I get a check I can just dash off a quick thank you and put the check in my wallet. Voila! I am definitely trying it.

Ok - that is all for now. I will post some photos of the chickens soon.

Chickens

2009-06-08T10:32:00.000-07:00

Mariposa
James (front) and Violetta (I think)
Hiro (front), James, Mariposa, Violetta.

We recently got some baby chicks which have astounded us with how fast they grow. W built a cool coop using some old cedar fencing from a friend (thanks D and D). Our chicks are all female despite the names!

During our "chicken investigation" W found a cool blog where a photographer took a picture of his chicks every day for 8 weeks. The blog, 3chicksaday, is awesome. Check out the fantastic photos of Noodle Soup, Salad Sandwich and Pot Pie.(It is also finished - but he just started a new blog, The Occasional Chicken.)

Nature Scavenger Hunt

2009-05-18T10:12:00.001-07:00

I love the idea of taking the kids on a Nature Scavenger Hunt. Here are some ideas on how to make it a success. Have you ever done one of these?

Blue Sky

2009-03-05T07:46:00.000-08:00

We received a "2008 Blue Sky" report from Pacific Power. If you haven't heard of it, Blue Sky is our local program for supporting renewable energy. We pay a small premium to ensure that we support using Green-e Energy certified renewable energy. Below is text taken directly from a letter from Pacific Power.

Our details:
"Our total 2008 Blue Sky purchase of 12,833 Kilowatt-hours of renewable energy avoided the release of 15,548 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions into the air. This represents environmental benefits equivalent to not driving 15,767 miles. I believe this cost us $100.00."

Blue Sky details:
"67,000 Blue Sky customers supported 490 million kilowatt-hours of Green-e Energy certified renewable energy. That is equal to the output of 107 wind turbines. "

Do you support renewable energy?

On a roll

2009-02-18T09:18:00.000-08:00

Last September I started taking bass guitar lessons. I have been taking them ever since (with a brief holiday related hiatus in December). My teacher is super fun and basically makes it what ever I want it to be. We have worked on technique, scales, jamming, and learning other people's songs. She definitely keeps things interesting. In November my homework was to go write a song. I basically went home, asked my daughter what to write about (mermaids) and wrote out the lyrics. Soon after I had a bass line and started to sing along with it. At Thanksgiving this year I made all our guests listen to it. :)

Since then, I have been inspired to work on more songs. I completed another song (which I am still not perfectly happy with), and have started working on 3 more. Today on the way to work, I wrote some more lyrics and am eager to put them to music.

I am not sure what is inspiring me. It could be longer days and more sun. It could be that I have started drinking honey ginseng tea again (seriously). It could be that I am working out way more than I have in a long time. Whatever it is, I am happy to have that inspiration right now.

Maybe you'll get to hear one of my songs one day?

Try a Tri(athlon)

2009-02-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

In an effort to help create a new habit and lifestyle, I am planning to participate in a novice triathlon. In support of this, I have started a new blog where I will be posting daily progress. You can check it out here: Triathlete or Mathlete.

5 Things I Am Grateful For

2009-02-01T22:33:00.001-08:00

A few years ago I read a book which instructed the reader to write down 5 things a day that you are grateful for. I am totally blanking on the name of the book. Does anyone know? If so, leave it in the comments.

Anyway, I feel like we are living in a time both scary and hopeful. In order to keep the scary at bay, I think it is important to acknowledge the things you are grateful for in your life. We can get very caught up in the "what if?" game and miss the beauty of our lives now.

I am not saying to be Pollyanna and ignore the real issues in our lives. But sometimes you need to recognize the great stuff, too. So here is today's list:

My wonderful family (both my own and my extended).
My fantastic job.
My strong, active body.
Music, musicians, musical instruments, etc.
Snow (especially on Mt. Hood on a day when I am snowboarding).

What things are you grateful for? How often do you remember them?

Cleaning Out The Pantry

2009-02-01T22:16:00.001-08:00

W always tries to get me to cook from the pantry. I always respond that there is nothing in the pantry to eat. W challenged me to only purchase essentials from the grocery store but I kept saying we had nothing to eat. So this morning, I suggested we clean the pantry out and take an inventory.

HOLY SMOKES! We have a lot of food in there!!!

I filled an entire 8.5"x11" sheet of paper with the inventory. Then, we challenged each other to come up with 8 meals. The more things we used, the better. Here are our lists (which will also give you an idea of what is in our pantry):

W's list:

Lentils, onions, tomato sauce and spices over rice.
Steak with veggies in green simmer sauce over brown rice. *
Scones with scrambled eggs. *
Meat/rice loaf (like meatloaf but with rice). *
Salmon rolls w/sushi rice and seaweed. (We eat this a lot).
Tofu with veggies in green simmer sauce over rice.
Pasta with tomato sauce.
Lasagna w/tomato sauce and faux cheese. **
Tacos w/refried beans and / or burritos with scrambled eggs and beans.

My list:

Pasta Puttanesca. **
Rice and mung bean casserole. **
Cuban style black beans (from dried beans) and rice.
Linguine w/ pesto. *
Risotto with some frozen veggie.
Spring rolls (like the ones we get at our favorite Thai food restaurant) with water chestnuts. *
Three course meal: butternut squash soup, smoked oysters w/faux cream cheese on crackers, pasta with mushroom & truffle pate.
Miso soup with rice, seaweed and tofu.

Notes: Not everything on our lists is in the pantry but every meal on our lists uses at least one thing from the pantry. One star (*) was for using more than one thing in the pantry. Two stars (**) was for using a few things in the pantry and for creating something that sounded really good at that moment.

It was a really fun exercise and now we are challenged to eat out of the pantry. There is nothing wrong with having a pantry full of food unless you don't eat any of it because you don't know what is in there. That mystery is solved. For now.

Senge's Open Letter to President Obama

2009-01-21T14:38:00.000-08:00

Peter Senge, author of The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization and co-author (along with a friend of mine) of The Necessary Revolution: How Individuals and Organizations are Working Together to Create a Sustainable World wrote an open letter to President Obama. I have had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Senge and being with him at various conferences. He is a delightful person and when you leave him you are filled with hope for the future (sound like anyone else in the news these days?). In this letter, he puts his enormous brain to work on the idea of the US collaborating with China. The letter is definitely worth reading.

5-Minute Shower Check-In

2009-01-16T11:53:00.000-08:00

In May 2008 I began a quest to a shorter shower. In June I checked in on my goal and was still doing well. I checked in again today and the result? I think my shower is at about 4 minutes.
Calculating the savings, based on my initial calculations, I am saving 75 gallons a week from my original 10 minute shower. Since I first posted, 35 weeks have gone by. That is a savings of 2,625 gallons of water. Not bad for a simple change.

How are you doing?

G said when I am

2009-01-09T08:21:00.001-08:00

G said when I am a grown up and a dad I will make a purple house.

I just figured out mobile

2009-01-07T13:46:00.001-08:00

I just figured out mobile blogging.

If you can see this,

2009-01-07T13:39:00.001-08:00

If you can see this, I figured out mobile blogging.

In a Perfect World

2009-01-07T13:16:00.000-08:00

...I would post more on this blog.
...I would figure out how to post from my phone.
...I wouldn't spend so much time on Facebook at night instead of creating some posts here.

Over the holiday I had many thoughts for blog posts. Do I remember any of them? Just this one.

Happy new year!

Jokes

2008-12-16T15:21:00.000-08:00

R (who is 5) said to me the other day while laughing hysterically, "Have you ever seen yourself sneeze and blow your remarkable teeth out?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

G (who is almost 3) said, "7, 8, 9, 11".
I said, "What about 10?"
He replied, "10 is in the bathroom," at which point he started a full belly laugh.

They crack me up.

Anniversary / Birthday - Take Two

2008-12-01T08:36:00.000-08:00

My blog turned two on November 27, 2008. I look back on my past year and see that...I blogged less this year than I did last year. Which is ok, really. My life has been very full and really, it wasn't that much less. I asked last year what my focus should be. And you know, I don't know that I really got more focused. But as I said before, that is ok. My husband thinks that Facebook may be the death of personal blogging. It is an interesting theory. If you are microblogging your status on Facebook or using Twitter, what need do you have to expand / expound?

I am still holding relatively steady with the ideas that I don't want to create a lot of stuff and I want to try to eliminate stuff from my life. I did paint 3 pictures this past year. Two were "laundry room art" (who says your laundry room has to be a boring place) for our laundry room. One was a sunflower that I painted for my friend's 40th birthday. I went to her house the other day and she has it hanging in her dining room. That made me happy.

I have been creating more music which to me doesn't fall into the category of "stuff". More exciting news there to come at a later date.

Thanks again for reading my blog. Do you know what my blog wants for its birthday / anniversary? For you to leave more comments please!

Have a good year!

P.S. Here are the blogs that I read on a regular basis (or at least as often as they post):

101 Cookbooks
bite my cookie
Bob's Photo Blog
Cheap Like Me
CityMama
dooce
Eric Magnuson
Farmer Scrub's blog
Gene Ehrbar's [TBD]
Green Options
ikea hacker (1)
SeeingGreen (TM)
The Favorite Aunt
Unclutterer (1)
Will's Thoughtstream

Gratitude

2008-11-27T21:32:00.000-08:00

While on one hand, Thanksgiving is my favorite "food holiday" (followed closely by Halloween - yeah baby), on the other hand; it is also a day of gratitude. There are so many things to be thankful for. I am thankful for every member of my family (nuclear and extended). I am thankful for my friends, my cat, and my lovely house. I am thankful for my job which is challenging and interesting. I am thankful to live in a world where Obama will be the next president and the hope that brings. I am thankful that I didn't get booed out of my living room when I played the first song I ever wrote on my bass guitar for our guests. I am thankful to be alive.

What are you thankful for?

Closing the Political Gap

2008-11-05T11:15:00.000-08:00

Ok. The election is over. People are ecstatic. People are inconsolable. Everyone has an opinion.

This election was interesting for many reasons and here are two. One, voter turnout was the highest in 44 years. Two, we elected an African-American president. Here are some quotes from world leaders about Obama's win.

But, now what? Politics is divisive. People pick a side and they are passionate about that side. How do we now close the gap that we created? How can we find a way to be one United States?

I am not asking rhetorical questions here. I really want to know what you are thinking. How can we come together? Share your thoughts on how to cross political boundaries and work together to create a country using hope. I look forward to reading them. And I will share my ideas as well in the coming weeks.

Exercise your right to VOTE!!!

2008-11-04T07:16:00.000-08:00

I know the lines are long. I know they make it difficult. But it is your right to vote and you should exercise that right.

I don't even care who you vote for (well, maybe a tiny bit). The important thing is that you make your choices known.

VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!

Need more encouragement? Go here and read the quotes about how long people would be willing to wait in line to vote: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/11/4/9502/47563/225/651666

Sushi Train

2008-10-28T11:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took the family to Sushiland which is a sushi place with a conveyor belt which the kids call the "sushi train". It was a mad frenzy of plates flying as the kids jockeyed for position to get their favorites. We finally had to physically move G away from the conveyor belt since he kept picking things he wouldn't even try.

Winner of the "best sushi eater" of the evening? A surprising L ate 8 tobbiko sushi pieces. What is tobbiko you ask? Flying fish roe. My son, who won't eat anything except pasta and toast, gustily devoured 8 tobbiko sushi pieces. Amazing. Guess we will be going there again...

Good intentions

2008-10-23T14:36:00.000-07:00

Back in June I made a weekly appointment with myself to keep working on clutter. I figured that if I spent 30 minutes a week on going through boxes, I would get through everything by October. Sigh. Here we are in October and while I know that I have made progress*, I have not made it through everything. Maybe I would have gotten farther along if my whole world hadn't imploded**.

Today I moved some book cases into my office which got a whole bunch of stuff off the floor. All well and good except I still need to go through most of it. But at least it looks pretty!

* Both yesterday and today I got rid of a entire car trunks full of stuff (consignment, Goodwill, plastics recycling, etc.). That is two entire car trunks full of stuff! Gone!

** New job, search for new nanny, new nanny, travel, speaking on multiple panels, planning events at work. Whew!

Poverty: Blog Action Day

2008-10-15T11:31:00.000-07:00

Last year I wrote a post for Blog Action Day about the environment. This year the topic is poverty. Imagine you could help someone who was poverty stricken to build a life where money was a rule instead of an exception. Well, guess what? You can! You can loan as little as $25 to finance an entrepreneur. Kiva.org makes it easy to do person-to-person loans. You get to see a photo of the person (or people) you are making a loan to as well as what he or she is planning to do with the money. And this is not charity - you are not giving people money. You are giving them a monetary loan. That is right, a loan. And the majority of loans are paid back.

I just made a loan. How about you go and make one, too? If you do, let me know in the comments!

Omnivore's List of 100 Things Eaten or Not

2008-09-14T22:23:00.000-07:00

Here’s what I want you to do:
1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Mark any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos Rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush.
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle (love truffled anything)
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (are you kidding???)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float (love this with vanilla vodka...)
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail (my dad loved this)
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S'mores
62. Sweetbreads - Would never even try this.
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis - Nope - not going there.
69. Fried plantain (One of my favorite things. Ever.)
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette - Nope - count me out for this one, too.
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini (YUM)
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom Yum
82. Eggs Benedict (had this for my last birthday - thanks W)
83. Pocky (ditto)
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee (Don't drink coffee).
100. Snake

I scored a 64/100. What about you?

G's chocolate

2008-09-08T19:20:00.000-07:00

Background: A few years ago my wonderful father-in-law sent me the most amazing chocolate cake from NYC. It was so thick it was like fudge. Amazing. Then, they actually started carrying it in our local grocery store (how weird is that?). W got one for my birthday last week. We ate part of it and then froze the rest. This morning, W sends me this exchange:

R yells, “I am going to eat my chocolate."
So then G yells, “I am going to eat my chocolate."
G runs into the kitchen, and I hear the freezer slamming open.
Then the refrigerator slamming open.
And G yells, “I am taking my chocolate and putting it in the refrigerator.”
And I walk in, and see him moving your chocolate cake from the freezer into the refrigerator.

Spider Hatch

2008-09-04T20:46:00.000-07:00

Ok - imagine for a moment you are in your bed, looking up, and see a teeny spider dropping a thread down from your ceiling. Now multiply that by 20. It was like the spider paratroopers were coming to capture our bed. After frantically doing a "kill the spider dance" * on our bed and fibbing to our daughter ("it's nothing honey, just some dirt on the ceiling"), there are still spiders coming. I guess they hatched in the light fixture and neither W nor I are willing to open it up and check. Would you?

After several spiders fell on our bed, we pulled all the sheets and blankets off and will probably not sleep here tonight. I am sitting sentry and have killed another dozen** teeny spiders.

This is a true story and the sad part is that it appears to be a metaphor for my entire week. Er, um, I am not even sure what that means...just that I have had a hellish week.

* On the bottom floor of our house, in front of the kids, we use a spider ambulance and capture the spiders and then release them outside. In the bedrooms, we squish them.

** Make that 14.

Vignettes

2008-09-01T10:16:00.000-07:00

We let the kids watch about 1 hour of video per week. Last week at the Oregon Coast, we let them watch 2 hours of video in the form of "Finding Nemo". They had never seen that movie before and we have since spent a lot of time talking about the characters. One character they really like is "Crush". I have been imitating Crush and my 2.5 year old twin boys have been doing it right back to me. All morning they have been saying to me, "Hey Little Dude Mommy" and laughing like maniacs.

They have also been running around for the past several days screaming, "makin' bacon" at the top of their lungs. I am not sure where that came from.

Paranoid?

2008-08-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

A blogger I like to read posted this on Friday. Sigh.

Box update: at work

2008-08-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in a previous post, I am moving from a spacious cube at work to a much smaller cube. I am supposed to self-move on Tuesday but am unclear as to whether my phone and LAN will be moved by then. Thursday was my last day in a job I'd held for 8 years and after cleaning out my new cube (of dirt, dust, and office detritus) I realized that I needed to do some more "shedding". So, I got to it and cleaned out several older boxes. When I left yesterday, there were 6 boxes (one of which has my computer stand and foot stand) and two large plants. I know there is one box that I still need to go through but I am still feeling good about the amount of stuff I let go. I feel like I can start fresh in my new job.

Monday I have no plans (well, that isn't entirely true - I have many things on my list but nothing I have to do). I am hoping to spend some of it refreshing my knowledge of Getting Things Done and 43 Folders. Getting a new job means I have a fresh start and I want to have a plan!!!

Box update: some hard stuff

2008-08-01T07:30:00.002-07:00

Last weekend I took the opportunity to go through a box from 1993 (ish). Wow. That one brought back a lot of memories. Sort of one of those "good, bad, ugly" experiences. In simple terms, the good was that I cleared out another box. The bad was that now I have a huge pile of shredding to take care of. The ugly? In 1993 your entire credit card number would have been on a receipt (which accounts for the larger than normal pile of shredding).

In more complex terms, the box brought up a host of complicated feelings involving lost loves and missed chances. That sounds like it is about romantic love and I guess tangentially it is. But more it is about the fact that I was so focused on a boy (whom I now refer to as my "evil ex-boyfriend" - you do the math) that I missed out (ruined) some really important friendships that I had in my life. And you know, 15 years later, I don't believe those friendships have ever recovered. One is gone altogether - I get news only through common friends. I am still friends with the other person but not in the same way. Is it a curse of growing old (getting responsibilities, partners, etc) that you lose those deep relationships? Sigh.

Inbox Update

2008-07-29T22:11:00.001-07:00

I am in a class this week (M, T, W) and start my new job next Tuesday. Subsequently, I haven't been able to keep up with my inbox totally. However, I still only have 12 emails in my inbox. Not bad for someone who had 1700 emails in her inbox last week!

Melt my heart

2008-07-29T22:09:00.001-07:00

Last night as he was going to sleep, one of my 2.5 year old twins, G, said to me, "I love you a lot honey bunny mommy." Sigh.

One email inbox

2008-07-23T16:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had over 1700 emails in my work email inbox. Yes, 1700!!! Crazy, isn't it? After reading a post on Inbox Zero, I decided to tackle my email inbox instead of tackling a physical box this week.

I just started going through emails like mad. I sorted in all different ways. Most of the 1700 I file away. Some I deleted. I am currently left with 6 (as of this moment) and they are 6 that require attention I can't give them right now. I noticed that many emails I left there as reminders for action at a future date. It wasn't that the work needed to be done that second, it just needed to be done and that was my way of reminding myself.

I am going to see how clean I can keep my email inbox over the course of the next few days. And once I start my new job? I am going to save everything from my current job to CDs and biff it all off my computer. I want to start fresh.

There is no "away"

2008-07-23T14:23:00.000-07:00

What if you no longer had garbage? Think about it. We have a piece of garbage and we say, "I am going to throw this away." Where is away, exactly? There is no away. If you create garbage and throw it "away" it goes somewhere else on earth. And if it is toxic? Then it becomes someone else's problem. Portland, OR is rolling out (pun intended) new roll carts. One is for mixed recycling (paper, plastic and metal) and one is for yard debris. The idea is if they make it easier to recycle, we won't throw recycling in the garbage.

But what if you took a different tack entirely? What if your goal was zero waste? That is what the city of Vancouver, British Columbia is thinking about. Read the Worldchanging article here.

Another teeny box and a med sized box

2008-07-22T12:39:00.001-07:00

I think I must be on a roll.

Teeny box

2008-07-22T12:08:00.001-07:00

Last week I never got a chance to go through anything. Today I emptied a teeny box. I did give 4 bags of kids clothes away today but they weren't part of my original plan. (But I am still happy about it).

I am in a situation at work where I got a new job and will have to move from a fairly spacious cube to a very small cube. I am also going to a new job so I have the opportunity to shed a lot of the accumulation of 8 years in the same job. I have a feeling there will be a lot of clutter clearing in the next week or two.

The best part of clearing out clutter

2008-07-09T13:06:00.000-07:00

$47 found! Cha-ching!

The worst part:

$130.00 in birthday checks from 1997. :(

Here is my weekly report. First, I went to clear out another of my small wicker file boxes and, ta da! It wasn't mine! So I put it on W's desk (he hates when I do that) and now it is one more box out of my office. I also looked through the files that were outstanding from last week. I got rid of a box (I still have a pile to shred and a pile to put away) and I got half way through another box. The pile dwindles...

In another room, I cleared off my dresser which hadn't seen the light of day in a while. That felt good but I still have a small drawer to go through.

Summer cleaning

2008-07-06T07:03:00.000-07:00

As I recently wrote about, I made a weekly appointment with myself to go through one box and bag per week. This week I was not able to do this task on Wednesday at the scheduled time but instead worked on Thursday. I went through a small wicker file box which mostly contained bills and receipts dated circa 2002 to 2004. Sigh. I was left with 3 file folders to go through in depth, a pile of paper to recycle and a huge pile of paper to shred. I did this and ended up with three bags of shredded paper in addition to the pile of paper to recycle.
I still have to go through 3 files but I am pleased with the progress I made this week because...I also cleaned out our linen closet! And got W to work on it with me! And I made labels! Can you tell I am excited? It was long over due and is the kind of activity which makes you feel great.

5 Minute Shower Update

2008-06-30T09:17:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I posted about going down to a 5 minute shower. After using the timer for several weeks, I felt like I had gotten the hang of it so I stopped using it. The other day, I decided to use the timer again and make sure I was still under 5 minutes. To my joy, not only was I still under 5 minutes but there was a lot of time left. I must be getting more efficient.

How are you doing with it?

Two boxes

2008-06-26T09:02:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I had my first appointment with myself to go through a box and a bag. I set it during a time when I have a conference call where I only need to listen. I actually chose 2 small boxes to go through. One was a box of random stuff (I hate those) and the other box was the contents of some drawers for my old house. The majority of the stuff in the boxes went into two bags - shred and recycle. A small portion of things went to W and a few things got put away. It feels GREAT to clear out clutter and get organized.

How about you? Did you make an appointment with yourself?

p.s. I am doing this for two reasons: one is to make our home a nice place to live and the other is that I need some changes in my life. Clearing clutter is really good for that.

Made Box / Bag Appointment

2008-06-25T08:33:00.000-07:00

One of the most effective ways for me to get things done is to set aside time to do something. I am happy to say that I made a recurring appointment with my self for the next 18 weeks. I set aside 30 minutes per week to empty one bag and box. I plan to report weekly on my progress.

What could you do in 30 minutes a week? Anyone want to do this with me? You don't have to do the same thing as me...just pick something! If you want to join me, just add a comment with what you are going to do. Then, you can comment on your progress when I blog about mine. (Hint: I set up my appointment for Wednesday afternoon).

Another box and two bags

2008-06-24T21:03:00.000-07:00

Ok, I guess I am on a roll...I brought a big box o'books plus to bags to Goodwill today. More stuff out of the basement. Yay!

I did not make an appointment with myself as I mentioned in my previous post (mostly because I had technology problems). But I did send myself an email to schedule time to go through one box and one bag per week.

My favorite blogger has been working on a new website that will have local information for people with pre-schoolers. I guess it started as a site to find the right pre-school for you but is morphing into a link with local things to do. Sounds cool...but when will Portland be up and running?

One more box

2008-06-24T12:40:00.000-07:00

We love when our family comes to visit. Not only because we love our family but also because it always spurs us into "high cleaning gear". This is good for our guests and good for us. Today, I emptied a very large moving box. It felt really good to clear some more floor space. I certainly have many more boxes to go (optimistically, I would estimate 16 plus 4 grocery bags) but it is getting better all the time. If I could go through 1 box and bag a week, I could be be through them all by the end of October. Now wouldn't that be great?

Ok - I am going to set a date with myself once a week for the next 16 weeks and get through it all. When I am done, I will hang the beautiful hanging picture frame in my office (because there will be room!) as a treat. Then, I think the next step will be the organization of all the remaining precious items and craft supplies. But really - one step at a time.

What could you do once a week for the next 16 weeks?

The Girl Effect

2008-06-17T15:26:00.000-07:00

Whoa! Check this out. It might make you cry (and be hopeful at the same time).
Want to make one of those loans? Go here: http://www.kiva.org//

I saw this video on the CityMama blog but the video is a little cut off which is why posted the You Tube version.

What's it called when a log jam breaks free?

2008-06-10T13:22:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged about "stuff" in quite a while. But that doesn't mean that I haven't been thinking about it. In fact, up until a few weeks ago, a whole corner of my basement had been filled with baby items that were going to be sold at a huge 50 family rummage sale. The sale took place on the same weekend as Ladies Rock Camp and my mother graciously agreed to sell for me (bless her heart!). The sale got rid of about half the stuff. I went through the other half this weekend and saved a couple of items (which I think I can sell on Craig's List). I didn't count the rest of the bags but if I had to guess, I would say it totaled 16 bags plus two bulky items. Yesterday, I took that whole load to Goodwill. Whew! They didn't take one thing (a bed rail) which I still need to get rid of but basically I feel a huge weight off my shoulders. I still have some "clean up" to do from the sale. I had gathered a whole bunch of containers (mostly baskets and plastic boxes) for the sale and now I need to put everything back where it belongs. Once that is done, I can move some things in my office out of the way so that W can install an outlet and a heater. Just in time for summer. Sigh...at least I will be warm next winter!

Life changing

2008-06-05T22:37:00.000-07:00

Ever have an experience that you know, intuitively, is life changing? My hand is raised because I just had one of those last weekend. I attended Ladies Rock Camp here in not-so-sunny Portland, Oregon. I have been trying to write about my experience but honestly, I am having problems processing the whole thing. Suffice to say (for now) that it was an amazing accomplishment and I am going back next year. :)

More to come. If you are interested in attending a Ladies Rock Camp and you are not in the Portland area, it turns out there are a whole bunch of other camps in places like NYC and Australia. Or you can just fly in to Portland like my band mates did. Check it out.

Listening to the Dalai Lama

2008-05-20T14:07:00.000-07:00

Many years ago, W and I attended both a lecture and a talk given by the Dalai Lama. At that time we were practicing (or at least attempting to practice) meditation. Both events that we attended absolutely blew us away. I was literally awestruck. I look back at my notes from those two events and cannot make sense of them. And yet I know that I was profoundly and deeply moved.

I came across this post at one of my favorite blogs. It is a description and a Q & A with the Dalai Lama when the author of the post (Noah Weil) attended a talk at the University of Washington in Seattle. Two things amaze me about this post. First, the depth of feeling it arises in me as I remember the lessons I learned from the Dalai Lama all those years ago. Second, how wonderful Noah's notes are considering I couldn't even write a sensible sentence when I saw the Dalai Lama. Anyway, I hope you will enjoy reading the post.

I can change your life

2008-05-19T12:06:00.000-07:00

"I can change your life." That is a bold statement, don't you think? But I actually think I can. My life was changed dramatically because of my interaction and participation with an organization called the Northwest Earth Institute (NWEI). Because of the NWEI, I changed my job and changed my impact on the earth in many ways. I made new friends and deepened my connection with some old friends. Here is my story...

In the late 1990s, a friend invited me to join a NWEI discussion group called Voluntary Simplicity. The group was made up of co-workers and we met during our lunch hour. The mission of the NWEI is "motivating individuals to examine and transform personal values and habits, to accept responsibility for the earth, and to act on that commitment." Think for a moment about that mission. Think about a time when you examined something in your life and realized that you wanted it to be different. The only way it changed was by accepting personal responsibility. The class was like that - it opened my eyes. And once you "see", it is really hard not to take personal responsibility.

I enjoyed that first class and followed it up with two more: Choices for Sustainable Living and Neighborhood Sense of Place. I continued to learn and to grow.

Then in 2000 I had a crisis of faith. I was working for a high tech firm in the marketing department. My job was to create collateral (i.e. paper) to teach people how to sell more of our products. My emerging care for the earth and my job collided. I ended up taking a leave of absence from work to try to figure out what I wanted to do next. During my leave, I was attending a talk given by Paul Hawkin at Portland State University. Jeanne Roy, one of the founders of the NWEI, had organized the talk and she was running around getting things set up. I cornered her and said something like this, "You need to help me find a new job. Because I took the NWEI courses, I can't stay at my current job." She asked me where I worked and when I told her she said, "Then you need to stay there. We need people like you in big companies." And then she walked off.

Boy was I ever mad! That was not what I wanted to hear. Honestly, I was mad for several months until the truth of what she was saying really sunk in. Then I went back to my big corporation and found that I no longer had a job. They paid me for three months to find another job inside or outside the company.

A few days after I returned I saw the man who hired me into the company. He told me he hadn't seen me around and wondered what I was doing. I told him that I had just gotten back from a leave of absence and was looking for a job. He asked me, "If you could do anything, what would you do?" I told him I wanted to help my company be a better global citizen and be more environmentally friendly. "But there are no jobs like that," I told him. He replied, "Yes, there are and that person works for me. Why don't you go talk with her." I ended up shadowing her and working on some projects for her and came to the conclusion that the job would be a really good fit for my skill set. In a strange turn of events, the person doing the job took a medical leave of absence and did not return. At the last possible moment, the company offered me the job. I changed my life dramatically.

Can I change your life? Honestly, only you can change your life. And if you are interested in changing your life (and I am guessing you are since you are reading this long, long post), take a NWEI class. You can organize a class at work, at your place of faith, with your friends or even with your family. Don't live in the Portland, Oregon area? Not a problem, the NWEI has many sister institutes. Click here to find yours (or start your own!).

P.S. The Choices for Sustainable Living class is my favorite - it is informative and give lots of actionable ideas.

5 Minute Showers

2008-05-16T09:52:00.000-07:00

Last year W found a cool resource online. It turns out that if you are a customer of the Portland (Oregon) Water Bureau, they offer a variety of free water conservation devices. W went crazy and ordered a whole bunch of devices including a 5 minute shower timer. Of all the things he ordered, this was the one that confounded me the most. We put it up in our shower and occasionally, I would try to take a 5 minute shower. I never even got close! On a good day, I took a 10 minute shower!

But the shower timer continued to stare me in the face...and I kept thinking about how I could get to a 5 minute shower. It wasn't until I read about Jennifer Aniston's three-minute showers in The Green Book that I actually got serious about making a change. I mean, come on, if Jennifer Aniston can take three-minute showers, certainly I can do better than 10 minutes! She explains why she made the change in the book. Here is a quote:

"I found out that every two minutes in the shower uses as much water as a person in Africa uses for everything in their life for a whole day - drinking, bathing, cooking, and cleaning...everything!"

Think about that for a moment. A whole day's worth of water for someone in Africa going down the drain every minute we are in the shower. This may not inspire you to change, but it definitely inspired me.

How did I get down to a 5 minute shower? I changed the order that I shower and I cut my hair very short. I am happy to say that both these things got me under the 5 minute limit*. And do you know what I have figured out? If my shower is rated at 2.5 gallons per minute, and I cut my showering in half, I save 12.5 gallons of water every time I take a shower. I take a shower about 6 days a week (perhaps the next thing to work on?) which means I save 75 gallons a week. In a year, what will I save? A whopping 3,900 gallons! That is enough water to fill more than 10 hot tubs!

What about you? How long are your showers?

*Over sharing moment: I cannot get under 5 minutes if I am shaving my legs. But since that happens so infrequently (once per quarter?) I am not that worried about the effect it has on my water usage.

The High Cost of Stuff

2008-04-25T09:30:00.000-07:00

Last year I spent a lot of time trying to reduce the clutter in my home. I feel like I did pretty well - when we moved into my house, my office was filled top to bottom with boxes. Now, I have shelving up and my desk and I work there. I purged by selling things, giving things away, giving things to Goodwill. I have never had a storage unit, nor felt like I particularly needed one. After reading this article on Get Rich Slowly, I am glad I never got one.

Do you have a storage facility that you store stuff in and pay for each month? You may want to rethink that decision.

I still have a long way to go in my basement. In fact, I have a whole area filled with toys, clothes, and baby equipment that I am storing until the end of May to sell at a big sale. But little by little, we are getting things out of our house. Now if I can just stop the flow of stuff into the house (especially paper!)!

Honey Bees vs. Yellow Jackets

2008-04-23T14:20:00.000-07:00

Now, I can't really say anything bad about yellow jackets as that creature is the mascot of both my brother and niece. Yellow jackets are often confused with honey bees but they act in much different ways. Here's are some (tongue in cheek) ways you can tell the difference:

Pollinating flowers? Honey bee
Eating raw meat? Yellow jacket
Found close to bee hives? Honey bee
Found close to your picnic? Yellow jacket
Lives in a hive? Honey bee
Lives in a strange grey blobby thing? Yellow jacket
Fuzzy legs in the back (for acquiring pollen)? Honey bee
Non-fuzzy legs in the back? Yellow jacket

Both yellow jackets and honey bees are of great importance to the world. Yellow jackets eat pest insects. Honey bees make honey but also play a critical role as pollinators. Here is an interesting story about honey bees. Our neighbor on the next block has several hives and sells honey (how's that for ultra local?) and I am happy his hive is doing well. I am also happy to say that we have many of the bee friendly plants and trees on the list. How about you?

Happy Earth Day!

2008-04-22T07:22:00.001-07:00

One of our local alternative newspapers has an interesting story in their Earth Day edition. Living in Portland, Oregon I have often felt pride in our green city. This story says we are not doing enough. The author, Corey Pein, suggests "seven things Portland should do if we're serious about being green."

Here are the seven suggestions with a little commentary:
1) Do something about plastic bags.
States and countries worldwide are starting to ban or tax plastic bags. These bags don't break down easily and often end up as persistent trash. Our local grocery store doesn't even offer plastic grocery bags although most stoes in Portland do. Live in Portland and want to encourage a ban on plastic bags? Contact Commissioner Sam Adams and let him know that you want plastic bags to go (or whatever you want to happen). Oh, and don't forget to do your own personal plastic bag ban by using your own reusable bag.

2) Enact a "carbon tax" on consumption.
Canada has a carbon tax that is going into effect in June. It is a two step process with a reduction in income tax and an increase in taxes on pollution. These two tax moves are designed to make polluting more expensive. Choose a lesser polluting option like propane? Taxed less. Choose a more polluting option like diesel? Taxed more. Choose an alternative fuel like a biofuel? Exempt.

3) Use "congestion taxing".
In 2003, London created a congestion tax around its city center. Cars that travel into the city center during prime driving hours are taxed $16. Guess what? According to the article doing reduced traffic during peak driving times by 37 percent. An added benefit? Bicycle commuting increased by 43 percent. The best thing about this tax? All the money is spent on improving transportation - all forms including buses, cycling, pedestrians and drivers.

One of the comments for the online article says that the improvement to London's traffic issues were only temporary and after 4 years, traffic is just as bad. A friend also wonders how our downtown area would respond to congestion taxing. Interesting things to ponder.

We have some friends who live in downtown Vancouver. As much as we love them, we hate trying to drive to their house during rush hour (especially with a car full of cranky kids since rush hour is around dinner time). While it is not a monetary tax, the congestion itself is a tax on our time and turns out to be a great deterrent.

4) Use city's credit to fund home owner's green updates.
The city of Berkley, California is rolling out a new program whereby a homeowner can borrow from the city and the money is payed back over 20 years "through an increased assessment on his property tax bill." A great thing about this program is that because the loan is associated with property taxes they can be deducted from state and federal taxes. This may help decrease the return on investment for long payback items such as a solar installation, especially in combination with rebates, tax credits and a lower energy bill. According to the notes in the article, Portland's Office of Sustainable Development can help you navigate your way through paperwork that can reduce a $18,00 solar installation to $5,500.

5) Use money for buses instead of streetcars.
Curitiba, Brazil is a city known for getting buses right. You pay ahead of time, the bus arrives on time, the entire side of the bus opens facilitating getting on and off and buses are frequent enough and fast enough to be meaningful transportation. Where is Portland planning to spend its transportation dollars? On a streetcar which with a "6.7 mile loop on the inner east side." Is that smart? Would Portland's Tri-Met be better off putting that money toward a better bus system?

6) "Market rate" parking zones.
Examples of this item range from jacking up parking spot prices in Washington, DC to $18 per hour near ballparks to Redwood City's location dependent parking (the farther you get from main street, the cheaper it gets). This issue here is that if people are driving around and around looking for parking (ever been to the Pearl? ever been to NW?) they are wasting gas. The thing I can't figure out is how this helps. Does it just discourage you from driving?

7) Increase bottle deposit (and go a step further and fund glass recycling).
Increasing bottle deposits make it more financially attractive to return your bottles and recycling rates go up. In Michigan, where the bottle deposit is 10 cents, their recycling rate is 14 percent higher than Portland's recycling rate. The author suggests increasing the bottle deposit to 25 cents which would turn bottles into a commodity. But here's the problem, according to my work place, which now sports "glass is trash" signs on our recycling bins, we are too good at recycling. So good, in fact, that all the local glass recycling facilities are overcapacity. Instead of trucking the glass hundreds of miles (with a cost of dollars, pollution and added gas consumption), our company decided that for now, they will not recycle glass.

When I first read this item, I thought, hey, we can use some of the money to fund glass recyclers. But there is no money...you pay a deposit and then you bring the bottle back and get your money back. I did think of a way to really help this problem though, make your own beer and then reuse the bottles! What do you think? Or better yet, this idea from W, why have your soda or beer bottled at the grocery store? Of course this brings to mind the fact that you can bring a mason jar to any McMenamin's brew pub and they will fill it with beer. Don't forget about that!

So here is my question to you...what do you think of these ideas? Have you experienced any of them? Which one do you like best?

Happy Earth Day everyone...do something green!

TEENY HEDGEHOGS!!!

2008-04-16T16:09:00.001-07:00

I WANT ONE! I WANT MY OWN TEENY HEDGEHOG!

I mean look at these pygmy hedgehogs...could they be more cute? I don't think so!

Besides, I think it is a little more likely than getting my own hippo.

O, Reader, How Do I Appreciate Thee?

2008-04-16T08:01:00.001-07:00

How Do I Appreciate Thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth (your comments) and breadth (all two of you) and height (links to me) My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.

Today is "Reader Appreciation Day 2008" as suggested by The Other Mother. I got this idea from one of my fav bloggers Citymama who is also probably one of the first bloggers I got to reading on a consistent basis.

I have slaughtered, er, adjusted the beautiful Elizabeth Barret Browning poem ("How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.") in order to show you how much I appreciate you, my readers.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for commenting. You are why I am here! (Well, that and self-therapy and accountability). Thank you for joining me here, for witnessing, for providing love and support. Thank you all.

Cutting Grocery Costs

2008-04-15T10:34:00.000-07:00

Our food bill is astounding. I know that some of it has to do with the fact that we eat organic and some of it has to do with the fact that our kids inhale fruit (could be worse). It also probably has to do with the fact that my kids eat a lot of snacks (like Veggie Booty and bagel chips). Lately, we have been trying to figure out how to significantly reduce our bill. In today's Oregonian, there was an article about how four families cut their food bill. Perfect timing! Last year, Rebecca Blood did a whole series on how to eat organic on a reduced budget. Although we learned some things, they didn't seem to affect our total food bill. One thing has really helped, and that is Citymama's Meal Planning Mondays. I subscribe to her blog so every Monday I see what she is cooking for the week. This inspires me to talk to W about what we are going to cook for the week. Having a meal plan and sticking to it is a great way to reduce food bills. Otherwise you are wandering around the grocery store grabbing random things that may not add up to an actual meal!

This is our menu for this week:
Sunday - Will's Indian style franks and beans with brown rice
Monday (yesterday) - Tacos (ground turkey, refried beans, tomatoes, avocado, cheese)
Tuesday - Meatloaf (pre-cooked and frozen), mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans
Wednesday - Pasta with white beans, arugula, garlic bread
Thursday - Salmon sushi balls (basically canned salmon wrapped in sushi rice with nori around it)
Friday - Out for sushi and to see Ani Difranco (yay!)
Saturday - ???

We make it a practice to bring leftovers for lunch so I had Will's Indian style franks and bean with rice for lunch yesterday and today I am planning to make a taco salad. W is actually starting to gather data on exactly how much meals cost.

So what do you do? Do you create a menu for the week? Do you know how much your meals cost? Do you have any tips for us? :)

The Squeaky Wheel

2008-04-09T14:52:00.000-07:00

What do you remember, someone saying something good about a customer support experience or someone saying something bad? If you are like me, you remember the bad. For more information on what companies can do to make customer support better, go here: William Hertling & Support 2.0: The Rise of Support Activism.

Creative Spaces

2008-04-08T13:52:00.001-07:00

I have a note by my desk that says, "I have a comfortable, organized space to do arts and crafts." It has been posted for several months and I haven't made any progress toward it. My artistic endeavors these days are more uncomfortable with boxes precariously perched on my stool while I am trying to lean in awkward angles to actually do the art. Reality is about two extremes. On one hand, you have a space that is comfortable and organized. On the other, you have something disorganized and in a sense, a space that works against trying to create art. I don't like trying to create in a disorganized space but I realized today that the other extreme isn't right for me either. For me, at least in my current creative mindset, art is elusive. It is a muse that comes to call occasionally. In the best of times, I can invite her in and give her a cup of tea while I create. In the worst of times she gets ignored and the creative urge leaves with her. But the thing is, even if she comes, she doesn't always stay until I am finished. Some times she leaves me mid-project. I think I will forever be the type of person that has projects in a variety of stages. And I feel ok with that reality. Now, I still would like to have a more inviting space that lends itself to creativity, but that vision has yet to reveal itself to me.

What about you? What type of space do you create best in? What is your idea space? Do you currently have projects in various states?

Earth Hour Failure

2008-04-02T18:46:00.001-07:00

Remember this call to action? Did you do it? I didn't. I hope my excuse it good enough but I had raging flu / fever and I plumb forgot. If you remembered and did it, tell me about your experience! Sigh...there is always next year.

The Upside

2008-04-02T18:46:00.000-07:00

I have not been feeling well for a few weeks. At first, it was just a general malaise and nausea. Then last week I got the flu which sadly morphed into pneumonia. The whole thing started out with me not feeling like eating (rare for me - I love food) and as I got sicker, I never restarted eating. This was a bad mistake. I had a raging fever for days (it peaked at 105 - but don't tell my mom). What they say is true, feed a fever. And I didn't. And that is why, perhaps, I got pneumonia. I was just too run down. Yuck. But I will tell you the one upside. And I am only telling you this because you will understand that I feel so bad, I needed to find an upside. I am seeing my cheekbones for the first time in months.

Lights Out for Earth Hour - March 29, 8 pm local time

2008-03-27T08:14:00.000-07:00

Earth Hour: What is it?

What if everyone on Earth shut off all non-essential lights for one hour? What would the effect be?

You may remember some startling photos from last year's Earth Hour in Sydney, Australia. This photo was taken by NASA but I was unable to find the original photo. The photo here is from this website. For one hour last year on March 29, 2007, Sydney, Australia turned their lights out.

This year many more locations are joining Earth Hour and here in my household we are joining as well. Want to join in? Just go to the website and sign up. Then, on March 29, 2008 at 8 p.m. local time turn off your lights for one hour. Not sure what to do in the dark? Click here for a list of unplugged ideas.

Silly Peep(s)

2008-03-21T09:18:00.000-07:00

Ok...I should have known I would stumble upon something like this. If you like Peeps (tm) they you should check out the Washington Post "Peep Show". Very funny...which one is your favorite? I think "Peeping Peeps" is funny but so is "Say Anything". Here is another contest. I like "Harry Peeper at a quidditch match" (#4).

Mini Mini Retreat

2008-03-16T22:02:00.000-07:00

Friday was the day I planned for my mini retreat. I did not get 4 hours in, only 2 and they were far less productive than I'd hoped. I thought, in 4 hours, I will have everything figured out! Then, I only gave it two hours. The interesting thing was, it was a LOT more complicated than I had anticipated. At first, I was thinking that I was going to figure out what I was going to do with my many blogs. Then, after a conversation with B, it seemed worthwhile to think about my career. When I sat down, I was overwhelmed to say the least. What I realized was that both answers to these questions were related to my personal goals. What kind of life do I want to live? Where do I want to spend my time?

Many years ago I dated someone whose extended family created yearly goals. At that time (can I blame it on my youth?) I found the idea laughable. A few years later, I found myself creating my own goals. In the past few years, I stopped creating goals as I was just trying to survive. The exercise on Friday brought it all back. I can't just look at one area of my life separately because they are all connected. For example, spending time on blogging may positively affect my need for writing and creativity but may negatively affect my time with family and friends. (I am not saying it does I am just trying to show how it is all connected).

On Friday, I found myself going back to the basics of recreating personal goals. In the past I have chosen to create a goal or goals in areas such as career, creativity, health, finance and relationships. What did I accomplish on Friday? I worked only on the finance goal as this topic is something that I have been thinking about quite a bit. Creating the rest of the goals will take some serious time and I think that spending 2-3 hours each session seems both doable. My plan is to set aside 2 -3 hours every other week until I have created all the goals. (Also, this means once I am done creating the goals I will have a continuing appointment with myself to work on the goals).

One thing I have to do with the finance goals is prioritize them and set actionable next steps. What is the point of having a goal if you are not going to work toward it? Right? I will keep you posted.

Sources of Inspiration for Writing

2008-03-16T21:54:00.000-07:00

I didn't realize this but Leo, who writes Zen Habits also has another blog called Write to Done. On it he posted a nice blog post that included 31 sources of inspiration for writers. Some of them seem obvious but others might surprise you. The one I found most surprising was number 3. Which one did you find most surprising?

Mini Retreat Planned

2008-03-12T14:09:00.000-07:00

A few blog posts ago, I mentioned that I really needed to think about the future of this blog. I was telling my "might as well" be my sister about this idea and she immediately thought I was talking about doing a mini retreat to think about my career. Hmm. This was not a bad idea especially considering some of the things that have been going on at work.

I set up time in the next few days for a mini retreat. I will definitely let you know the results.

Last (blog) words

2008-03-12T14:01:00.000-07:00

Today I found a blog post that gave a tip for creating a truly compelling blog post. The idea is that you write as if the blog post were your last. Ever. If you could leave your readers with one thing, what would it be? Of course this brought up rather morbid thoughts for me especially after watching a video segment of Oprah where a dying professor is giving his last lecture. (You will need to click on a link to watch the video).

Warning: Don't watch this video in a place where you can't comfortably cry. Like work.

Trash Talk

2008-03-06T13:59:00.000-08:00

How is this for a crazy idea? You get someone like Phoenix Suns All-Star guard Steve Nash to work with you on creating an environmentally friendly shoe. Then you take your manufacturing waste and craft it into a high performance basketball shoe and send it on the court. This is what Nike did when they created their "Trash Talk" shoe. Check out the photo closely and you will see that the upper is made from many tiny pieces of scrap leather stitched together. While this isn't exactly closed loop recycling, it does reduce waste overall and turns those scraps into green.

Thanks to M via A for forwarding the story.

P.S. The Suns won the night Nash debuted the "Trash Talk" shoe.

(This was originally posted on my internal blog at work.)

Over achiever

2008-03-06T13:41:00.000-08:00

I enjoy blogging and I enjoy several other people's blogs. But I have a problem...and it revolves around being far too willing to say yes to blogging opportunities that come my way. I have this blog plus my accidental blog. I also own two more blogs at work plus occasionally posts for a group blog. (They are all internal to my company so I can't share them with you). All this adds up to a lot of fragmented blogging. I have struggled with finding my voice on this blog and on the others and I think that struggle is intensified by my schizophrenic blogging behavior. Sigh.

My friend Stuart says I am an over achiever (because I had to go and have twins instead of having just one baby at a time) and I think that it is applicable here - with this blogging thing. One of my favorite bloggers don't even stick to one particular topic but has an umbrella that many topics fit under. The name of my blog, Creation Halt, was chosen because it reflected my need to get away from creating more stuff. It also worked when I was doing a lot of decluttering last year to get rid of the stuff I had. But now I don't know what it means to me. It is like I need to go on a mini retreat to figure it out. Hey! That is not such a bad idea...I will plan to do that in the next few weeks.

One thing that W does that I don't do is that he uses some of the same posts inside our company and on his personal blog. Ok, I am seeing an action plan forming right now. Here it is...

1) Plan and execute a mini-retreat (let's say 4 hours) on the future of this blog. On this retreat, I would a) make sure this is what I want to be doing with my time (for me) and b) find something to focus on (for the sake of all of you readers).

2) Share some of my work posts here.

3) Do more simple linking posts once I have figured out where this blog is going and what I want to communicate.

Ok. I feel better now.

As always, thank you to whomever is reading this and thank you for your patience. Now I am going to quickly share a post that I wrote at work.

Just call me Erin Hussein

2008-02-28T13:18:00.000-08:00

This blog post is to show support for something the MOMocrats are doing. They are making today Just Call Me Hussein Day. My name, Erin, was not popular at all when I was growing up. I think there was only one girl who had the same name but she was a bit older. I didn't like my name because it was so unique. People in my neighborhood would often pronounce it like this, "Aaron" and ask me why I had a boy's name. It also bugged me because my name doesn't really lend itself to creating a nick-name. No Jen or Liz or Terri. In fact, the only nick-names that I remember from my childhood are "Air" and "Ernie" (that one was from my Dad).

My name actually means Ireland in Gaelic which I always thought was pretty cool. However, around St. Patrick's Day someone would dredge up the saying "Erin Go Bragh" which means Ireland Forever. Again, a nice sentiment. Until someone made it into "Erin Go Bragh-less". Ouch.

I think the worst name related snafu I experienced was when the new 8th grade teacher called roll for the first time and pronounced my name "Erwin". Just think about that for a moment. I don't know what your 8th grade experience was like but I'll paint you a picture - I was descended upon by piranhas and mocked mercilessly. I hated that.

I like my name now. It is not as unique as it was when I was a child but it is mine. My children also have unique names (or at least unique spellings) and I hope that they aren't made to feel bad because of the loving name choices we made. I remember a saying from my childhood, "Sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me." But it's not true; you can hurt someone by making fun of their name.

P.s. There was one Erin who made me proud of my name. I must have watched her on Buck Rogers.

The Twin Defense

2008-02-13T20:08:00.000-08:00

After we found out we were having twins 2 plus years ago, we were in shock. After we talked with some twin parents, we went into even deeper shock. Basically they said that we could write off the next 18 months or so of our lives. We would be so sleep deprived and so busy that we would have trouble forming complete sentences. We thought, "lovely" (in the ironic "oh crap" sense).

So we knew, going into twin parenthood, that it would be difficult. And we quickly understood, based on the reactions of the people we told we were having twins, that we had a "get out of jail free" card. It was called, "the twin defense". Parents of a singletons generally see a parent with twins and think about how hard it is to parent just one child. They tend to feel sorry for twin parents automatically because of this. People who don't have children cannot even imagine what having two at the same time would feel like and they really feel sorry for twin parents. Again, this is generalization, there are always folks out there who are either in the "get a grip" category or the "having twins should be easy - you are just more efficient" category. But from the beginning, we knew we could invoke "the twin defense" should we need it. Little did we know how often we would need to invoke it!

Our older daughter (did I mention we have a total of 3 kids?) is a great sleeper. Once she falls asleep, she is OUT for the night. Our boys, however, are not like their sister. When they were newly born, they got each of us up several times every night. Have you ever tried to function after being woken up 4-5 times a night? Did you know that one technique for brainwashing is sleep deprevation? It is also a form of torture. Let's just say we were not at our best...literally for YEARS. We are still getting up an average of 2 times per night. I cannot tell you how much better that is from getting up 4-5 times per night. And I cannot tell you how much I long for a full night of uninterrupted sleep. The problem is, on the few nights when all our children have actually slept through the night, I wake up anyway and wonder if they are ok. Then I have to go check to see if they are breathing. It is crazy.

All of this to say, if you have ever felt slighted because we missed your birthday, your child's birthday, an important celebration or anything that you felt we shouldn't have missed, we are sorry. We didn't mean it. We love you and care about you, really. It is just, well, we are not right in our heads. Some day we hope to be but in the meantime, we contine to invoke "the twin defense". We hope some day we won't have to any more.

Creating a new habit

2008-02-12T15:09:00.000-08:00

At some point I stumbled across a blog called Zen Habits which I have been reading regularly ever since. Here is an excerpt from the "About" page on the Zen Habits website:

"My name is Leo Babauta, I’m married with six kids, I live on Guam, I’m a writer and a runner and a vegetarian and I love writing Zen Habits.

Zen Habits covers: achieving goals, productivity, being organized, GTD, motivation, eliminating debt, saving, getting a flat stomach, eating healthy, simplifying, living frugal, parenting, happiness, and successfully implementing good habits."

I have enjoyed being inspired by Leo's posts and have tried to make some changes in my life because of them. One thing I am currently involved in is a challenge to create a new habit. The idea is that if a) you get into the habit of doing something daily and b) you report on your progress daily, you are more likely to create a habit. As such, I joined the February Challenge with the goal of doing my back exercises every day. I didn't read about it until February 4th but I have been doing my exercises and posting every day since then. My back thanks me.

Even better, the energy I am getting from meeting my committment to myself seems to be spilling into the rest of my life. The other day I finally cleaned off my dresser, I have been trying to keep the kitchen counter clutter free and I started the first paintings I have painted in I-don't-know-how-long.

Are there any habits you would like to cultivate? If you decide to join the challenge...let me know. I am planning to create another habit next month.

Cause he likes bows?

2008-02-08T13:54:00.000-08:00

R: "Why did Uncle Bobby and Auntie Brooke name their dog Bowie?"

Me: "I don't know. Maybe they just liked that name."

R: "Do you think it was because he really, really likes bows?"

Me: "Yes, that's why. I think they named him Bowie because he really, really likes bows."

Sushifest 2008

2008-01-31T15:51:00.000-08:00

Based on some droolworthy posts by one of my favorite bloggers, CityMama, I got it in my mind that I wanted to make raw fish sushi at home. One thing that really stood out in the second post was that she got an entire pound of tobikko. Yum! That is R and I's favorite! I made a comment asking her where to get tobikko (she used to live in my city) and she told me to go to Uwajimaya. In further correspondence, I asked her where to get sushi grade fish and she pointed me again to Uwajimaya.

Last Saturday, we took the kids and made the trek to Uwajimaya. The kids had a blast. The all loved the huge dragon hanging over the checkout counters. R got to meet her "Hello Kitty" needs and the boys wanted to sit in front of the live crab tank forever. As a raw fish sushi novice, I asked the nice man behind the counter to help me figure out what to get. Here is what ended up in our shopping cart: tuna (two cuts), yellowtail, salmon, octopus (my daughter wanted a piece the size of her head but we just got a few slices to try), tobikko (sadly no pound size containers!), and eel (unagi). We bought a variety of Japanese beers. I forgot all about the wasabi and the pickled ginger but happily, we had them both at home along with nori and avocado.

Our friends Nicole and Gene and their twins came over. Nicole had told me Gene was an experienced sushi chef. I immediately went to work with him to create nigiri, assorted rolls, and some sashimi (when we ran out of rice). Gene did turn out to be the master sushi chef (thank goodness). The kids had fun eating handfuls of tobikko (no kidding - there was tobikko EVERYWHERE!) and sushi rice while we were making the sushi.

It took us quite a while to make all the sushi. I had forgotten about that part! But in the end we all sat down at the table and had an amazing feast. R (who is 4) was game to try everything. Remember she was the one who wanted the octopus but in the end she didn't care for it.

Here is a photo of our spread. I can't wait until the next Sushifest!

Celebrating a Century of Posts

2008-01-31T15:49:00.000-08:00

...plus 3. This post is my 103rd post. Who knew when I started this adventure that I would get to 103.? Thanks to everyone out there who reads this blog (all 3 of you). I'll try to continute to keep you entertained but meanwhile...

YAY!!!

Magical Hay

2008-01-27T21:59:00.000-08:00

R: Mom, can you please go get my little truck from the car?

Me: Sure. I can do that right now.

R: Can you put it on the counter next to my money and my magical hay?

Me: Uh, ok dear. (R got a holiday gift from K which included some sparkly packing material. Apparently, that has now become "magical hay". Who knew?)

Temper Tantrum

2008-01-24T22:02:00.000-08:00

Me: Are you mad a me?

W - dramatically: It's just...I didn't get any time to myself tonight. I had to do so many things. It felt like I had to keep doing things.

Me: What things?

W: The car stuff and I had to start the dishwasher.

Me: Why were you doing those things? Why did you start the dishwasher? I could have started the dishwasher.

W: You never start the dishwasher.

Me: I started the dishwasher last night.

W: I don't want to change the sheets! I hate changing the sheets.

Me: Oh, that's what this is about.

W: I never want to change the sheets again! Let's just get a new bed! And books! I don't have any books to read.

Me: I have books for you to read.

W: No - you don't have any books for me to read.

Me - looking in the closet where we keep the books: Yes, I do. Here is a Wen Spencer book. You like Wen Spencer.

W - wincing as he looks at the cover art: No thanks.

Me: No, you like this author. You liked that book called...what was it?

W - as I am paging through to find the name of the previous book sees something: Space ships? Does it say space ships?

Me: Yes, dear. It says space ships.

W: Ok, I'll read it.

Potty Talk

2008-01-22T10:49:00.001-08:00

WARNING: This blog post contains poop humor. Read at your own risk!

My twin sons turned two at the end of December. One of them, G, just told he first joke. I said to him, "Are you poopy?" His reply? "No, mommy!" Then of course I said, "No, I am not poopy. Are you poopy?" "No, daddy!" He had the funniest smile on his face as though he knew he was being funny.

His brother, L, joined in the fun. During one of these exchanges, he actually tried to check my pants to see if I was poopy and then he started laughing.

They are funny guys...

Getting to know the neighbors

2008-01-22T10:42:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, R asked me to tell her a story. I started telling her a story about our neighbor's tree, whom our neighbor's named "Mabel the Maple". After I finished the story she asked us what our trees were named. I said we hadn't named them yet and did she think we should? She said, "Oh, yes!" very enthusiastically. I told her she could name one and that her dad and I would name the other two. The trees are enormous Douglas Firs and here is the name she came up with for hers (which is the one near the play structure). At first she said the name was "Hawk" because hawks like to live there. After she heard the names that W and I came up with her name turned into this, "Star Hawk Moon Lightening Moon Light." That is a pretty awesome name! She said she wanted to hang ornaments from the tree that were little bears and Cinderella and Aurora (I don't even know who this princess is!). She doesn't realize that the bottom branches of the behemoth tree are taller than our garage! I think she is thinking it is like our tiny Christmas tree.

W, after meditating on it, named the corner tree "Firestar". I named the hammock tree "Verde Sage". W said, "Do you have to roll the "r"?" I told him yes but really that is not fair because he can't roll r's.

Description vs. Dialogue

2008-01-20T19:59:00.000-08:00

I was discussing with my friend Kathi the fact that my novel is lacking in terms of description. She asked me what I liked to read - description or dialogue. I realized that a) I had never thought about this before and b) I definitely preferred to read dialogue. So it makes sense that what I wrote was heavy (I do mean heavy) on the dialogue. I was feeling very nervous about this until I read something in John Scalzi's book, You're Not Fooling Anyone When You Take Your Laptop To A Coffee Shop: Scalzi on Writing. Scalzi states in this book (p. 103), "As a writer, I am not particularly interested in description unless it's necessary to the plot." It was heartening to see it in writing. I had been thinking that I would go back and try to fill in description and I still may try that. But what will probably flow better is if I just honor the style that I have written in so far. I will have to cross that bridge when I come to it.

Which is not right now because...I am more focused on helping W get his book edited and published. I read through it a few nights ago (he also wrote it during NaNoWriMo) and it is really good. It is also very current which means he needs to get on publishing it because if he doesn't, I think someone else may beat him to the punch.

WRT my novel, I read a guide to editing your novel and the first step was just reading it through without editing it or making notes or anything. This did not work for me!!! While I did like what I was reading, I was too distracted by the edits I could be making. I think once W's book is on its way to the publisher, I will go back and read it at the computer and make edits along the way (having first made a copy on a CD!).

Clutter Entropy

2008-01-18T12:51:00.000-08:00

With all the work I have done in the past year to eliminate clutter and stuff, I still struggle daily with this issue. I came across this blog post entitled The Minimalist's Guide to Fighting (and Beating) Clutter Entropy. It was a good reminder to me of how to stop clutter from accumulating. This weekend, I will clean all the surfaces in my living room and dining room and find new places for things. I will report back on my progress early next week. Do you have a problem with this, too? What will you do? I

Creation Halt vs. Creation Spot

2008-01-18T10:19:00.000-08:00

I have been musing about how I now have two blogs* (sort of accidentally) and how the names are, in my mind, totally opposite. I started Creation Halt because I was overwhelmed with stuff and with the burden that comes from creating something. You put your time and energy into making something and that gives weight and meaning to those things. For me, this makes them very hard to get rid of and hard to give away to someone who must then bear the burden! I know, not everyone looks at stuff in the same way I do but still...I was having a crisis. My solution was just to stop creating. No more art, painting, pottery. Nothing physical.

It didn't turn out to work quite in that way. In the past year I have sewed a gold lame dress for my daughter, reusable gift bags, and purses. I have created collages. I wrote a book. I wrote many blog posts. I knitted a scarf. But through it all, I was very conscious of what I was creating. I am no longer creating just for the purpose of creating. Instead, I am creating with purpose.

But I am so drawn to creation!!! It feeds my soul. And that is why I think it is interesting that Creation Spot has come into my life. I was telling W that when our basement is finished being remodeled, I would love to have a monthly craft night with friends. I think it would be fun to have a spot for creation where a group can get together and have fun creating something together. I am still nervous about creating more "stuff" and I have to work my way through that but maybe, just maybe, I can find my way back toward creation.

* In reality, I have a total of 7 blogs that I contribute to - two public and 5 private, internal work blogs.

Calling Cards

2008-01-11T11:31:00.000-08:00

I really need to have some calling cards made up. Otherwise, how do you point someone to your blog? It is not like they are going to remember creationhalt dot blogspot dot com! Heck, you can find this blog if you search for "creation halt" but who is going to remember to do that? What about the rest of you out there? What have you done? How do you share your electronic information in the physical world?

Then of course, there is this problem. We sent out a holiday letter this year and what did I do? I put the name of my blog down wrong! Arg! Luckily, that name wasn't taken so I created another blog to point to this one but I think the damage has already been done. I need to be better at editing I guess!

We like tha moooooooooooon!

2008-01-04T08:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, who would have thought that an application on my customized iGoogle page would bring me closer to nature? I mean, who would have thunk it? When I set up my customized page a few weeks ago, I looked through all the applications that I could put on my page. I found a few that I really liked including "MapMyWord Dictionary" which shows pictorially how a word is related to other words (synonyms, antonyms) plus the definition. I put "Portland Weather" on my page and a direct link to "Wikipedia". But one of the best ones I have found is called "Current Moon Phase". Whenever I bring up my iGoogle page, I can see what phase the moon is in. Honestly, I have never paid all that much attention to the phases of the moon before. With this application, I am able to see that right now, we have a "waning crescent" that is "13% of full". This makes me look for the moon much more often (which isn't easy in Portland in Winter) and makes me feel inexplicably good.

Which leads me to another "moon" thing that makes me feel inexplicably good. DISCLAIMER: If you watch this, it may be stuck in your head forever. Be warned.

Note: It looks like MapMyWord Dictionary was bought by Thinkmap. If you go to the link above, you will be able to see what it is like. Either way, you can still get the original Google application.

Blog Vacation?

2008-01-02T13:39:00.000-08:00

I guess my blog took an inadvertent vacation. I didn't mean to be gone so long (especially after blogging so much in November)! The holidays just got in the way. We were on kid duty 24/7 and even with my sister in town (god bless you M!) it was extremely exhausting. We didn't even get to play that many games of Scrabble. They say it gets easier...I am still hoping!

Speaking of Scrabble, my four year old knows that her dad and I both love the game. She knows that Grandma E and Auntie M also love it and she has been interested in playing. There is only one problem...she can't spell. Well, she can spell the names of all the people in our family (including the cat) but that is just about the extent of her abilities. I finally relented (at the behest of my DH) to play a modified game with her. I told her to pick some letters and spell out a word. The first letter she put down was a "X". I said, "R, I don't think you know how to spell any letters that begin with "X"." Her reply was, "Well I want to spell x-ray but I just don't know how." It cracked me up for several reasons. I don't think x-ray is in the official Scrabble dictionary but I let her have it anyway. :)

I realized while we were playing what a great game it is. You need to know how to spell, add, and multiply. Very cool. R beat me in her first game and we had a lot of fun. I look forward to playing with her for years to come.

Top Baby Items for New Parents

2007-12-13T09:21:00.000-08:00

As parents of three kids, W and I have opinions about what baby items are worthwhile. We have created lists of these items in the past and I thought it was about time to put the information on my blog. That way, I wouldn't have to search for the list every time a friend told me they were expecting!

Just so you know --- you don't really need more stuff in your house. IMHO, I think baby essentials are diapers, breasts and a safe place to sleep. All the rest just makes being a parent easier.

Here is a list of our top baby items. They are in no particular order:

1. Sling for carrying the baby. You may want to try a variety of slings since you don't know what will work for you and with your baby. Also, different slings and baby carriers work at different ages of the baby. Our favorite sling is from Kangaroo Korner and it is called the "adjustable fleece pouch." When your baby gets bigger, and you don't want to carry the weight on one shoulder any more, try the Ergo Carrier. I find this carrier extremely comfortable and my twins love it (one at a time of course).

2. Pure lanolin (brand name I used is Lansinoh) if you are going to nurse your baby. Buy the smallest tube available because it lasts forever! This product is wonderful at helping soothe the nursing mother.

3. Breast pump (again if you are going to nurse your baby - which I highly recommend). Don't get a hand pump - it is not worth the time or energy! Electric breast pumps are very efficient which as a mother you will appreciate. I used a Medela Pump-In-Style which worked great.

4. Fleece car seat insert to keep the baby warm without messing with blankets. We used a Bundle Me which we really liked.

5. Lots of blankets for swaddling the baby. Swaddling new babies helps them to feel secure (like the womb) and helps them not startle themselves awake. The ones we liked the best were waffle weave which are a little stretchier than flannel. You may also want to check out a book - The Happiest Baby on the Block which has great tips for settling a baby.

6. Hylands Colic Tablets - a homeopathic remedy for colicky babies. Nice to have on hand. The Hylands Teething Tablets and Gel are great for when babies start teething as well.

7. The Baby Book by Dr. Sears. This is a nice "how to" for new parents. It has simple information such as how to bathe your baby or monthly milestones. I really love this book.

8. A bouncer is a nice tool to have when you need to have your hands free (i.e. while cooking dinner). Some parents I know have one on each level of their home. I like the simpler bouncers the best. We used one similar to this. One of our children, in particular, was really soothed by the vibration mode.

9. 3-D Activity Gym - you put your baby on the floor under this and the baby looks at it and plays with it. We had a red, white and black one like this where the kids did their "tummy time." Remember, babies don't see colors at first - just contrasts so red, white and black are best.

10. Lactation consultant!!! If you are going to nurse, I cannot stress this one enough. Nursing is not innate (which is what I thought). It is a joint learning process between you and your child. A lactation consultant can really help set you up for a wonderful nursing experience. If possible, get a recommendation from a trusted friend.

11. Cod Liver Oil. Taking Cod Liver Oil when you are pregnant makes your baby smarter. We use this tasty one (no really) that is lemon flavored. For more information on this topic, check out W's blog post on the topic.

If you go here, you will find a list of W's dad recommendations which includes the post on Cod Liver Oil.

I am recommending these products and books because I have had good experiences with them and not because anyone paid me or otherwise coerced me to post.

Check this out: The Ripple Effect

2007-12-12T15:08:00.000-08:00

I read a post today that really hit me. It looks at the idea of how a bad day can perpetuate itself. It also raises the question, can a good day / good thoughts / good deeds also perpetuate? I think so. Try it out and let me know if it works for you!

How is your energy generated?

2007-12-12T13:13:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Jason for sending me this link where you can find your electricity generation mix by zip code. For example, according to the website, my zip code gets energy in this breakdown: 2% non-hydro renewables, 49% hydro, 4% nuclear, 0% oil, 11% gas, and 34% coal. This "power profiler" is provided by the US Environmental Protection Agency so it will only work in the US. Does anyone know of similar tools for other parts of the world? How is your energy generated?

Oddly relieved

2007-12-10T09:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I guess I am back to my old ways...of not posting that often. But I must say, I am oddly relieved to be away from the stress of Nanowrimo and NaBloPoMo. I have taken a real break from my computer (except for work) and I think it has been good for me. I am getting more sleep - yay!

I have not done anything on my novel except print it out to be read. I am old school and need to see it in printed format where I can make changes in red. It will be interesting to see if the efficiency-loving part of my personality can overcome this to do my editing on my computer. I feel like I need to go back to the Nanowrimo website and figure out what to do next...

I know that some funny things were said this weekend but I cannot, for the life of me, remember what they were. :) I guess I am not getting quite enough sleep.

Using Flickr Photos on Your Blog

2007-12-03T15:47:00.000-08:00

Although I have put some of my own photos on this blog, I never really considered using other people's photos here. Today I read an excellent article on Skelliewag's blog about how to find photos on Flickr. Obviously, you only want to use photos that are OK to use. The author goes through all the Creative Commons licenses and what you need to do to use them. I decided to try uploading a photo here as practice.

Photo by SoftPIX_Techie

p.s. I took a couple of days away from the computer and I think that was a good thing. Now I am motivated to continue posting regularly.

Days 29 & 30: Nanowrimo

2007-11-30T14:04:00.000-08:00

Nanowrimo

Words written so far: 51,617

Impressions: Well, I am happy to say that I am done! Hooray! I passed the magical 50K number. The silly thing is...the book isn't over. I am not going to write anymore today and I may not even write anything tomorrow but I would like to spend a little more time writing before I put it away and let it ferment.

I like this story. I like the characters (and hate others, which is the way it should be). It doesn't make a whole lot of sense taken as a whole. It is disjointed in places but I still love it.

I have absolutely no idea what to do next. Well that is not exactly true. Here is my list of what I am going to do in the immediate future:

Clean out mail closet
Set up a new home page
Figure out a new theme for this blog (if needed)
Finish any Christmas shopping
Mail gifts.

But as for the book, other than finishing it and letting it ferment, I don't know what to do after that. What do I do next with 50,000 plus words? I suspect I will be (along with every other Nanowrimo winner) going to the library to search for books on editing. I believe I have a long road ahead of me but the journey looks interesting. Thanks for hanging in here with me.

Likelihood of Finishing Nanowrimo: 100%. I am done! Yay!

Recycling in Portland

2007-11-29T23:03:00.000-08:00

Shauna, looking at clear plastic tray from Newman-O's Organic chocolate sandwich cookies, "Do they take #8 here?"

Court: "Yeah, yeah."

Bob: "Just let God sort it out."

This conversation was followed by caroling at Paul's house but sadly, he was not home. We did, however, make a video which I am sure will soon be on You Tube. It is good to spend time with old friends.

p.s. A shout out to Jean MacDonald who is getting an RSS feed from this blog on her sweet iPhone.

p.p.s. W - you should read Jean's post.

Day 27: Nanowrimo

2007-11-27T23:10:00.000-08:00

Nanowrimo

Words written so far: 45,136

Impressions: I told a friend that I had written more dialogue than description and she asked what I liked to read. I thought about it and realized I like to read dialogue. A little description is nice but too much of it bores me. There are exceptions, of course, but generally I like things to happen and equate dialogue with action.

With less than 5K words to go, I am feeling a little bit like I am running out of things to say. I have grown out of the outline I wrote at the beginning of Nanowrimo and I am struggling to tie up all the loose ends. I am still not sure what I am going to do with all the bad guys. I already ruined their company. What else is left? :)

Likelihood of Finishing Nanowrimo: 100%. Only 4,864 words to go.

Happy Birthday Creation Halt!

2007-11-27T15:26:00.000-08:00

Year One

Today is my blog's birthday. Creation Halt is O-N-E. How do you celebrate the birthday of a blog? I created this blog around the holidays last year in order to come to terms with all the stuff in my life and stuff that was likely going to come into my life (and my kid's lives). During this past year, I have worked hard to get my "stuff" into some sort of reasonable order. I have given lots away to friends, given some away to Goodwill, recycled a lot of paper, and the list goes on. This blog has provided me with a "non-stuff creating" creative outlet, a place to bounce ideas off my readers and a way to keep me honest. It has also been a vehicle for me to learn a new skill (blogging) and to participate in NaBloPoMo.

A big thank you goes out to all my readers (all 3 or 4 of you). :)
A special thanks goes out to anyone who has ever posted a comment or linked to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Year Two
As I move into year two of this blog, I need to think about what my focus will be. I know I enjoy reading blogs that have a focus. Here is a question for all of you readers...what do you want to read about? I know that M has requested more "dooce-esque" type stories and I will try to capture those when they happen (but they don't happen every day). More sustainability? More novel writing? How about the novel editing process? What else? I'd love to hear from all of you. You can help guide this second year.

Thanks again!

Saving Grandma Kate's Needlepoint

2007-11-27T15:21:00.001-08:00

Well, I am finally giving up...in a sense and replacing Grandma Kate's needlepoint on our dining room chairs with something much easier to clean. It feels like in the past 2 months there have been several near catastrophic spills by my children. It seems crazy to put these pieces of history at such risk. I have been resistant to doing this and I don't know why. I do know that it makes me smile when I see the needlepoint and I will miss it. But the replacement is just temporary. In a few years, the kids will be at a place where we can bring them back.

Day 26: Nanowrimo

2007-11-26T22:17:00.001-08:00

Nanowrimo

Words written so far: 43,669

Impressions: According to Wikipedia, a novel is between 50,000 and 75,000 words so if I can make it past 50,000, I should be fine. I am nearing the end but am already starting to think about what I will do with my time after Nanowrimo is finished. There are things I have been procrastinating that will need to get done in early December. I am ready for a change of pace.

Tonight's writing was a little bland but told an interesting story. The problem is, I don't feel like the entire story is related - I feel like I have snippets of small stories. I realized today that even though I said I was writing a cyberpunk novel, the main character doesn't support that. I would need to change her or fit it into a different genre. Weird!

Likelihood of Finishing Nanowrimo: 100%. Only 6,331 words to go.

Days 24 and 25: Nanowrimo

2007-11-25T21:14:00.000-08:00

Nanowrimo

Words written so far: 41,822

Impressions: I swear, after Nanowrimo is finished (only 5 more writing days) I will only mention my novel in passing! (At least until Nanoedmo - National Novel Editing Month).

Yesterday, thanks to John and Babs, I took a well deserved day off of writing. We had a lovely dinner (see previous post about green beans) and I just didn't feel like writing when they left. I caught up during my kid's nap time today and then busted out more words tonight. I feel that I am getting closer to the end of my story. I am starting to tie up loose ends. I worry that it doesn't all fit togther but I am ok with that for now.

I realized today that there is virtually no description - of people or characters, in my novel. It is just about what is happening in the story. Is that ok? I have no idea. I guess we shall have to see if editing this unweildy thing bears more description.

I have heard that 50,000 words is not "technically" a novel, that it is more like a novella. Hmmm...I need to understand more about that.

Likelihood of Finishing Nanowrimo: 100%. Only 8,178 words to go.

NaPoBloMo update: Even though I missed on day, (see previos post about getting locked out of the house), I have blogged every other day in the month of November - some days even more than once. I still consider myself a winner on the blogging front. And I am coming up on my 1 year blog anniversary!

Too many green beans?

2007-11-24T22:07:00.000-08:00

We had a huge bag of green beans which didn't get used for Thanksgiving. I wanted to make something different to serve with the Chicken and Dumplings I was making. I searched on "roasted green beans" and came up with this recipe. I made it tonight and it was delicious! And that huge bag of green beans was not too many. We only had a few left over at the end of the night. Yum.

Days 22 and 23: Nanowrimo

2007-11-23T22:41:00.000-08:00

Nanowrimo

Words written so far: 39,225

Impressions: I did write very much yesterday and I did not want to write tonight. I wasn't feeling particularly inspired. But I sat down and decided to try to write something fun or exciting. I ended up writing a scene where a good gal and a bad guy break a woman in a coma, a little girl and a spirit out of confinement. It ended up being a really cool writing session. In total I wrote 3,173 words today which is my personal record for Nanowrimo. (I did have to catch up from not finishing my writing yesterday but today's word count still puts me ahead of my daily goal.)

Likelihood of Finishing Nanowrimo: 100%. Only 10,775 words to go! Wahoo!

Why I am Thankful...

2007-11-22T20:50:00.001-08:00

Put simply, I have a great life. To enumerate, I have a wonderful guy, super cute kids who are very much their own little beings, a loving family, awesome friends, a cool job, super-nice co-workers, and I could go on and on. I am thankful for all of you.