Monday meanders: 5

[A few new tidbits to share from my online poking around after a lengthy holiday hiatus...enjoy!]

{ Table Mountain in South Africa via Sydney Blogger }

+ Table Mountain: Major wanderlust has struck again—look at this gorgeous landscape in South Africa (pictured above)!

+ Owning up: Well, well, well, Coca-Cola admits that it "makes Americans fat" in a new ad, although it's heavily caveated. The ad acknowledges that soda contributes to weight gain, but also points out that obesity is the result of too many calories of anything. The bigger thing for me with soda is the sugar, which isn't mentioned, but at least it's some sort of start.

+ 100-year old cartoon predicting how completely texting would ruin the world, from a 1906 issue of the humor magazine Punch.

+ Otter wax not only has an adorable name, but would have come in handy when I wanted to keep my new shoes looking spanking new.

+ New favorite work tunes. Good rhythms for creating PowerPoint slides.

+ Ingenious way to live comfortably in NYC with very little space...and lots of good organization (and cash for crazy cool tech investments and well-designed furniture/objects).

+ And, PS I'm a huge Angelina Jolie fan for a number of reasons. 

2013: The year that will be—a formula

[Continuing my earlier scribbles about 2013—my manifest year. I told you my idea on Tuesday and here's my formula to help make it happen (with one more post soon!)]

{ Something worth internalizing | via }

After coming to a startling realization, and deciding that 2013 shall be my year of making things manifest, I came up with a formula for making it happen:

(A+B) - C = A better manifested me!
(No, I did not mean to make that rhyme).

Confused? Here's what I mean:


A. I started by making a list of things that make me happy—the types of things I would fill my days with if not for normal obligations and work:

• "Getting" something on my own (like, learning a knitting stitch, figuring out what something abstract means, putting together some little organizational system—yes, yes, I'm a nerd, untangling code to make this blog look the way I want it to, how a bunch of seemingly unconnected events fit together and create a huge repercussion—which is what I loved about my art history classes in university)
• A good happy/dramatic cry (from reading a book or watching something—I'm looking at you: West Wing, Brothers & Sisters, Grey's Anatomy, Gilmore Girls, etc.)
• Time alone
• Watching babies and/or dogs play
• Crafty sessions
• Music
• Candlelight
• Long walks/flaneurs
• Good wine in cozy wine bars
• Day trips
• Weekend trips
• Creating organizational systems (worthy of a second mention)
• Making plans
• Putting something together (trip docs, citizenship papers, scrapbooks)
• Surprising other people
• When I make R laugh or shock him when I know something (a word in Italian, random geography since I'm generally bad at it, etc.)
• Academic lectures (in art history, literature, nutrition, nature and related subjects)
• Reading uninterrupted for hours
• Reading "children's" literature: Anne of Green Gables, Laura Ingalls, etc.
• Keeping lists (quotes, places, books, goals)

B. And then I thought about the things I want to make a priority—either to learn/do/have, but haven't made any effort recently, despite being really interested:

• Italian: I've passively learned, but as I'm a perfectionist, I don't speak nearly as well as I should after almost 8 years with R
• Swedish: I haven't made any attempt because I know I can go to school for free in Sweden...but why shouldn't I spend some time with the basics now?
• Figuring out the perfect blend of things I'm good at and things I like doing to forge the most fulfilling career: I like organizing, planning, crafting communications, creating an experience based on an idea, editing, critiquing, branding...if I put all that in a magic hat, what career would I pull out?
• Until I figure that out, I'd like to find meaningful projects to take on as my normal work schedule allows to help me continue to prepare for a new (future) career by learning new skills (like graphic design), shoring up ones I already have and creating connections with interesting people that might lead to interesting projects
• Better relationships
• Stronger faith

C. And then, I thought about the things that get in the way of that, like:

• Wasting time reading blogs I'm not interested in anymore or trailing cookie crumbs all over the Internets from one random thing to the next
• The Netflix black hole (damn you, automatically-play-next-episode, feature!)
• Being tired
• Foul mood because I am one of those people that definitely sweats the small stuff (family angst, work angst, friendship angst, irritatingness of silly things I have to do but don't want to—like, rolling over a 401-K account, dealing with customer service, etc.)
• Using a rickety 6-year old laptop at home

If I could get rid of C (the time wasters/energy zappers/laziness/etc.), I'd have more time to focus on A (the things I already love to do) and B (the things I want to be better at), all so that I can manifest the life I want...which I might describe as living abroad, being multi-lingual, having relationships that delight me and life work that fulfills me. But...how?

[To spare you a lengthy read—my plan for doing something about this is coming up next!] 

2013: The year that will be—an idea

[Apologies if you saw this last week—was tinkering with my draft and accidentally hit publish!]

{ Soho office  |  14 January 2013 }

I've hinted a little bit about the things I've been thinking about recently—but it took me a while to turn them into words.

The gist of it is, I want to make some changes—and I'm not talking the physical/wellness ones, which you know I've got a pretty good handle on already, but bigger life changes. This isn't just about New Year's resolutions, but anytime resolutions. There are things I want to achieve, to do, to experience, to see, to be...but I let the mundane get in the way. I don't make time for the things I should, and then I wonder why I don't feel fulfilled.

Do you know of the practice of choosing one word to be your "theme" of the year? I've seen it floating around online every January, but never thought about doing it for myself, but this year? This year I shall.

The first word that popped into my mind when I considered what I wanted to inspire and influence my year has been floating around for two weeks, and it still feels right, so I share it with you:

Manifest

adjective: Clear or obvious to the eye or mind

verb: Display or show by one's acts or appearance; demonstrate

It feels right for so many reasons. I know there's something deeper, better, more meaningful in me, and this year, the year that may be one of many transitions for me, I want to dig down and see something that should be manifest to me already,but I've been too blockheaded or lazy to see it. And, I want to manifest feelings and emotions that will help me to be better. A better person living a better life and treating others better.

All this was on my mind at the end of last year and then I read Gretchen Rubin's Happiness books and something clicked: only I can be in control of how I feel and how happy I am. If I'm not happy, guess whose fault that is?

Reading them another super simple thing clicked: I LIVE for to-do lists, for charts and graphs and things I can check off. So why hadn't I written down the things I want to do and then the things I need to do to make them happen? Gretchen does monthly resolutions, but not something as airy as "be nicer", instead actual actions she can take like, "Don't expect praise", "Don't make my husband my dumping ground", "Leave things unsaid", "Sing in the morning", etc.

And to further pet my hyper-organized self, she clumped all of her resolutions into big buckets for things she could work on each month like: Energy, Marriage, Career & Leisure, Parenthood, etc. 

My first thought was, a woman who gets me! My second was: how come I'm not doing this?

[This is getting long, so my "formula" & plan for doing something about this are coming up next!]

2012: The year that was

{ Copacabana | Rio de Janeiro | March 2012 }

I love things tied up neatly with a perky bow. Beginnings, middles and ends. A coda, if you will.

And, I love reading personal roundups on blogs of things done, seen, tasted, lived and accomplished in a year. I think that's one of the main reasons I began reading blogs oh...10 years ago. For that peek inside someone's notebook, inside their calendars, their lists, their bags (I really can't get enough of those "what's in my bag" or "a day in the life" posts!). And, it's something I think about when it comes to my scribbles here, because I started this for two main reasons:

1. To remember the small things—especially when I think back to the old blog I had. I wish I had never stopped writing in these 7 intervening years because I'm sure it would have been amazing to read back through (especially since I'm "paging" through the offline archives now and remembering things I had forgotten).
2. To try and make myself more positive, which also leads to maybe being too "perfect" here, but I think anyone who does this for more than one post knows that it's always a little tricky to know how much to share (especially if you're like me and would rather stay anonymous for now). On the one hand, what fun is it to read someone's writing if they don't share enough for you to relate to, on the other, I don't want to share everything and on the other (third hand now?) it depends on who/what you're writing for. 

So, even though I didn't pluck away on my keyboard over here for all of last year, I'm going to do a little share-fest summary of 2012 anyway to remind myself of this past year and give more meaning to the 365 days that just passed. And, I'm going to borrow a bit from Holly's format, because, well, why not?

{ Buenos Aires | March 2012 }

1. What did you do in 2012 that you'd never done before? 

• Took on freelance projects (three!). 
• Had a grown-up, couples sleepover with friends that left the city for NJ (and an apartment three times the size of their NYC one for 2/3 the rent. Sigh.).  
• Spent a week alone while R took a trip to the Caribbean with family (obviously I've been alone before, but it was the first time he'd gone off without me). 
• Went to South America, the Mexican coast and Honduras.
• Saw the space shuttle Enterprise fly over NYC. 
• Went to the end of Long Island (after 5.5 years living in NYC as an adult!). Also, made a day trip to Coney Island (finally!).
• Went on a post-college vacation with just my mom (to Mexico). 
• Surivived without water, electricity or heat for 8 days during 30-degree weather.  
• Hosted long-term houseguests...twice. 
• Adjusted how I eat even more, completely rethought how I exercise and drastically changed the products I use. 
• Traversed the entire length of Manhattan on a bike. 
• Did a two-hour boat tour of the NY Harbor. 
• Drove a convertible. 
• Saw a blues show. 
• Swam with dolphins!

2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions and will you make any for next year?
Nope, and oh yes. Stay tuned.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My college roommate, whom I haven't seen in years, but still stay close to thanks to Facebook, her blog and the random texts we send each other quoting Friends.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Counting myself lucky to claim another year with everyone I care about still here.

5. What countries did you visit? Cities?
Countries: Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico and Honduras.

Cities:

• Sanibel/Captiva, FL
• New Orleans, LA (which I hated)
• Atlanta, GA (for work)
• Montauk, NY
• Hudson, NY
• Tom's River, NJ
• And, a couple of towns in NJ that are visible from NYC (not sure if that counts)

{ Riviera Maya | Mexico | July 2012 }

6. What would you like to have in 2013 that you lacked in 2012?
More time for things that I want to do, not just that I have to do.
Also: a dog. (Would not mind a washer/dryer, either).

7. What dates from 2012 will remain etched upon your memory and why?
Hmmm. Nothing really comes to mind. 

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Perhaps taking better care of myself physically and mentally (although there's room for improvement on the latter).

9. What was your biggest failure?
Not feeling like I was the best daughter, sister, wife, friend that I could have been.
Vague yes, but what grates on my mind the most.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
One weird bug at the end of the year, but nothing else that I can remember.

{View of Sugar Loaf | Rio de Janeiro | March 2012 }

11. What was the best thing you bought?
A ticket to South America in March. R and I spent 10 days between Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and Colonia di Sacramento. It was amazing.

Also: a slew of passes to Aire.

12. Where did most of your money go?
Travel. Rent. Savings.   

13. What did you get really excited about?
Making progress on the moving-abroad front.
Finding a good stash of creamy local milk from happy cows. 

14. What were your favorite songs of 2012?
Sadly, I had to actually look up a list of 2012 Top Hits because I couldn't remember anything specific, so this is probably not even accurate, but:

• Adele, Set fire to the rain
• Kelly Clarkson, Stronger
• Fun, We are young
• The Wanted, Glad you came
• One Direction, What makes you beautiful
• Carly Rae Jepsen, Call me maybe (seriously)
• David Guetta, Titanium
• Chris Brown, Don't wake me up
• Mumford & Sons, Babel (I pretty much liked the whole album)

15. Are you happier or sadder than last year? Thinner or fatter? Richer or poorer?
Neither happier nor sadder. A little thinner. A smidgen richer.
(Interesting: I'm "thinner"/richer", but not happier. All those happiness platitudes are right!)

{ Captiva sunset | Florida | August 2012 }

16. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Spent more time with my family—willingly.
Learnt new things.

17. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Complaining. Worrying. Stressing.

18. How did you spend Christmas?
Two weeks with R on an island off the coast of Honduras.

19. What was your favorite TV program?
I tend to watch shows after they've popped up on Netflix, so I'm a bit behind but:

• White Collar (love the bromance, love Mozzie, love the implausible plots)
• Mad Men (finally got on board)
• Private Practice (took me a while to start watching this, too)

20. What were your favorite books of the year? 

• The Space Between Us, Thity Umrigar
• Sarah’s Key, Tatiana Rosnay
• Husband and Wife, Leah Stewart
• Only Time Will Tell, Jeffrey Archer
• Seating Arrangements, Maggie Shipstead
• The Sins of the Father, Jeffrey Archer
• The Newlyweds, Nell Freudenberger
• The Fallen Angel, Daniel Silva
• The Island, Victoria Hislop 

{ New Orleans | September 2012 }

21. What were your favorite films of the year?
Like TV, I don't see a lot of movies when they're out, but of the ones I have seen that actually came out in 2012 were The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Skyfall. Sad, huh? Any suggestions for others?

22. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
Turned 29 on my first (and last) trip to New Orleans. Thought I'd love it. Instead I hated it. Was not the feisty, mystical, bayou, cracker-jack-of-a-place that I thought it would be.

23. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A job I was completely and wholeheartedly passionate about—the kind that you go to bed thinking about and wake up thinking about. Do those exist? 

24. What kept you sane?

• Being able to walk to and from work when I switched jobs—those pops of time outside alone made the days better. 
• Time to read 47 books and finish 8 knitting projects.
• Lazy weekends at home with R,  a pretty breakfast spread, pots of coffee, music, candles and the NYT.
• Adding a few new orchids to my collection.
• The newly-built dog park on the waterfront near our apartment—which makes for very amusing weekend walk breaks.

25. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2012.
Not everything will be like you imagined—and that's okay.
(Some things may be even better).

1 month of Pure Synergy vitamins & superfood powder

{ Mmm, green! | January 2013 }

Remember how I was going to do a little tweak to my daily routine and start taking a vitamin and nutritional supplement? Well, I ended up purchasing the Women's Wellness Pack A (daily vitamin/herb supplement in tablet form + superfood powder) from The Synergy Company because I liked that none of their ingredients were synthetic, everything was organic, the company is a small business in Utah and their business and wellness philosophy were inspiring.

{ Pure Synergy Vitamin Supplement }

{ Pure Synergy Superfood Powder }

Here's how it went:

Day 1: Took 1 vitamin (recommended dosage is 6 daily) and made a green smoothie with a teaspoon of the superfood powder for breakfast (recommended dosage is 1 tablespoon). I eat a LOT of vegetables, but that initial whiff of the powder was tough even for me to take. Yawned all day, no change in digestion, energy, etc. Feeling majorly bummed and wondering if I just wasted $100.

Day 3: Still suspect about the amount of money I spent on this stuff. No change in energy level/digestion/etc. Sigh.

Day 5: Status quo.

Day 7: Coming down with a cold—think it's a mixture of non-stop work and wonky weather (a 30-degree day followed by a 60-degree day and I had the wrong outerwear)—and I'm averse to taking NyQuil/DayQuil or any of its ilk, so when I woke up all funky Saturday morning I made a larger-than-usual glass of superfood drink and took 3 pills.

Day 9: I followed the same sick-girl routine as Day 7 and I feel the cold/flu whatever it is going away. So, maybe there's something to this stuff? Don't know yet.

Day 20-something: Faithfully taking my dosages, but don't feel any different.

Day 30-something:  Well, I'm sad to say that perhaps this wasn't the best investment. I really haven't noticed any major difference after about a month. I'll finish up my supply, but I wouldn't buy it again.

Of course if something changes (like maybe it's not built up in my system enough and I'll soon feel burst of energy/clear skin/better digestion/stronger hair and nails, although that seems unlikely), I'll come back to update you, but I'm a bit disappointed.

The Liebster Award

Well this is a first!

Just before the holidays Sparklingly was nominated by the very sweet Amanda at Pickles & Honey (thank you!) for The Liebster Award! To "accept" I have to:

1. Write 11 random facts about yourself (whoa that's a lot)
2. Answer the 11 questions given by the blogger who nominated you (with pleasure)
3. Create 11 new questions (harder than I thought it'd be!)
4. Nominate 11 bloggers and mention them in the post (um, we'll see)
5. Thank the blogger who nominated you and tell the bloggers you’ve nominated (thank you again!)

I don't know much about how this award got started, but I do love the chance to take a quiz! (I'm the person that loves filling out forms...well, not bureaucratic ones).

Here we go!


A few random facts about me (11 is requested, let's see how far I get):

1. I used to always paint my toes red and my fingers clear/white. Then I got more "adventurous" and did shades of coral/pink/nudes on both, but stopped a few months ago (part of my series of tweaks)...the natural look is starting to grow on me. But I'm always worried my nails look unkempt and therefore I look slovenly.
   
   
2. When I was younger I used to draw up elaborate plans for the farm and orchards and gardens I would one day have. I'd even pull down the encyclopedias and look up species of chicken and hens and goats and scribble them into the various pens and pastures I laid out.


3. I spent an incredible amount of time outdoors as a little girl—when we moved from NYC to VA we suddenly had a huge yard at the end of a cul-de-sac (which meant a ginormous forest beyond our house) and I spent almost all my time outside. Even when we went to our parents' store (when we couldn't stay home alone), it was a shopping area between a horse farm and a ravine-like area. Every weekend (until we were old enough to work) we'd muck around in the woods.


4. I learned to read at a really young age and get zero motion sickness (thank goodness), so I am always with a book in hand (or on my device). This made car trips between NYC and VA zoom by. I even walk down NYC streets reading now.


5. Some of the foods I love now (eggplants, mushrooms, brussell sprouts, meat) are things I didn't enjoy very much when young.


6. Whenever I doodle, it's always nouns that I like: names of people, places, streets, towns, etc. I threw a fit when the best apartment I found after university was on a street whose name I didn't like. I actually don't like my street name now, but, it's not bad (how great would it be to live in NYC and be on...Pearl Lane or Maiden Lane or Waverly Place? Sadly, I don't live on any of those).


7. I have wide feet, which makes shoe shopping immensely annoying...although they were the means through which I met my Sicilian Swede, so at least they've got that going for them. 


8. I'm still holding onto the belief that a town like Star's Hollow exists. 


9. Fun fact related to the previous point, I've also thought I'd open an inn or B & B some day. I could be Lorelai.

Amanda's questions answered:

Postcard from Honduras

{ Strolling down the beach | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

I'm back! Happy New Year!

I'd gotten used to falling asleep to waves lapping at the beach below our balcony, but last night I fell asleep to the lullaby of the city, which is a melody in itself. It's nice to be home—although, I'm not exactly looking forward to sitting at a desk tomorrow instead of on a chaise, staring at a laptop and monitor instead of the horizon, but, I have lots of photos and memories to remind me of our lovely vacation.

Lots to share with you, too, because I spent lots and lots of time thinking (when not reading, although some thinking prompted by what I was reading), but before I get into all that, a last look at Honduras:

{ Morning light | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ Beachfront | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ Looking up | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ Palms and pines | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ View from our balcony | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ From my chaise to R's | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ We got quite tan | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }

{ Leaving a mark | Roatan, Honduras | Dec 2012-Jan 2013 }