My Morning Routine

     I am not a morning person, never have been. However, being the mother of school age children, I must put on a "morning face" and enter the world hours before I would care to.  The way I am able to do this is by getting up obscenely early.  If I am able to have my breakfast, meditate or read, and watch the sun rise, all before waking my children, I find that I am much easier to be around. 
      Summer has lessened this burden a bit, though, since our time constraints are not as rigid.  Now I get up around 7:30 and eat my breakfast, perhaps do a bit of writing.  Then I go outside and water that plants.  This is one of my favorite times of the day.  Here I can see all the changes that took place as I slept.  It may not seem possible, but new worlds can open over night.  In fact, I recently scattered some loofah seeds, on a whim.  My friend was clearing out some boxes and happened upon a plastic bag of these seeds that someone had given her years ago.  I thought they were likely goners, but decided to scatter a few to see.  This is what I discovered this morn:  

     There are several spots where the loofah seeds are sprouting.  I am pleasantly surprised.
    
      I have also found that my beloved Aloe is doing well after the last rain.

       She had babies!!

And remember yesterday?  I mentioned that I LOVE chocolate?  Well my chocolate mint plant is taking off, and I am absolutely thrilled.  I planted her below my kitchen window so that I can catch a whiff of her sweetness each time I open the window.

Sketch #3 - Favorite Food

 

     Chocolate is most definitely my favorite food, though I don't eat it very often.  I try not to, so that it remains a sacred, treasured food.  I only eat the finest of dark, bitter chocolate as well.  This also ensures the maximum amount of enjoyment.

     Have you ever eaten anything you love so often that the thrill and pleasure of it no longer holds the same intensity?  I have, and I want that never to happen with chocolate.  Practicing restraint allows me to always feel that charge and mouthwatering goodness as I bring the first piece of chocolate to my lips.....

Favorite Animal - Sketch #2

There simply aren't enough Giraffes in my life.  They live so far from my own residence that I only have wee stuffed versions of them about the house.  *sigh* 

Sketching

I have been working on my sketch challenge.  I have finished 3 to the degree that I am ready to share them.  Today I will share the first; it is my self portrait.  The face may not be mine, but various symbols in and around my hair are me.  Let me explain a bit. 

In my hair, at the bottom right, I have done my best to mimic the drawings of my daughter.  She is, quite honestly, one of my favorite artists.  Her characters have such style and whimsy. 

Up from my daughter's drawings are expressions in Arabic.  These expressions are not only common phrases in Arabic, but they are also mottoes I live by and through which I navigate the world.

The animals (frog, owl, giraffe, and bee) are my totem animals. 

On the opposite side (left), you will see the stars and moon.  I am a night person and stargazer.  I look to the heavens constantly.



The tree is one of my favorite subjects in my art - drawing, photography, etc.  I feel most comfortable in the mountains amongst skyscraping trees.

I am holding a book, of course while wearing the jade necklace that my beloved gave me when he first professed his love, and my throat chakra is glowing because I love to express myself through language and by singing.

Another 30 Day Challenge

neonsugar.tumblr.com 

Remember a couple of months ago when I was doing the "30 Letters in 30 Days?"  Well, I did finish it (in more like 60 days), but I removed it from my blog after the first 8, as I thought it was getting more personal than I cared for this blog to be.  I have decided, instead, to include this challenge in my blog.  Just so y'all know, I likely will not post daily, but more like a couple times a week.  Yes, art is personal and one can bear their soul to the world within their work, but there is always a bit of anonymity as well. Well, here goes, stay tuned......

The Green House

 

www.greenhouseaustin.com

I have been making jewelry and clothing for a great long while.  Actually, I have been crafting since longer than I can remember.  It is a family tradition, one might say. My mother is gifted in working with her hands, whether it be sewing, knitting, or anything else.  I, not so talented, but willing to put in the work. Though I have always been a maker/doer, I have never had more than a virtual corner in which to display my wares.... Until now.

New to the fine city of Austin, Green House is a boutique that carries the works of local artists and crafters.  They are situated in the heart of what is Austin, and they embody the unique feel that makes this city great.  (The address is 701 E. 53rd.). It has so very exciting to me as I have put my wares here and in less than a month I have had to restock!  They haven't even had their Grand Opening yet!!  

 In the short time that they have been open, I have learned about how to better marked myself on, as well as offline. I have been ramping up my Etsy shop, listing new items regularly and getting involved with teams.  I will do a separate blog post on the marketing end later....

Another plus to putting my items in this boutique is that I can test new products and get actual results and reactions from real live people!  I have been doing this, as it is inspiring to have a real audience, as opposed to virtual.  My Etsy shop has not allowed me this.  Now I can test items and place them in my Etsy if they are in demand. Very cool.

The actual opening party will take place on May 7th from 10am to 10 pm and will be an event *not* to be missed.  There will be live music, cocktails, a local artist's work in the gallery, and tons of fabulous  locally handcrafted goodies!!  I hope that you all can come and hang out with me!!

Andriod Apps - *My* Top Ten List

I have only recently become part of the "Android World." Though I desired an android phone since the G1 first came out, on an unemployed student's budget, I recognized the greater need for frugality. Now, however, I am a graduate, am gainfully employed, and actually have reason for owning an android powered phone.

In the few short months I have owned my smart phone, (2 months actually), I have collected some amazingly useful and geekishly cool apps.  Also, since I still cling to my frugal self, they are all free apps.  My top ten findings I shall share here, in alphabetical order:

1)  Any Memo:  How many hours in your life do you suppose you spend waiting?  We wait in grocery lines, lobbies, on the phone, etc. Why not use that otherwise "wasted" time to learn something new, or review something that  you learned long ago? Any Memo is a flash card app that contains flash cards on everything from Languages to Geography to Math.  I use mine to study Arabic.  I have found it makes waiting *so* much easier.  In fact, more than once, as my wait ended, I found myself thinking, "Damn! So soon?"

2)  Endomondo:  This is my personal trainer app.  It keeps track of your workouts.  It connects to GPS and can track a course you run, walk, or whatever.  Then it will save it for you. You can work on beating your record, or you can sync with a friend for a bit of friendly competition.  In addition, there is a handy playlist feature that pulls media of your choosing for play during your workout.  With such a tool, who needs a gym?

3)  GList:  This is my shopping list app. Whenever I run out of an item (i.e. foodstuffs, hand soap, etc.), I add it to the appropriate list and it is there when I go to the store, provided I don't forget my phone.  As I walk the aisles and acquire the items on my list, I can check  them off.  At the checkout, I press "checkout,"  and those items are removed from the list. What I especially like about this app is that is saves all previous items added into a list so that I don't have to retype them each time.  For items I use often, like almond milk, this is very convenient, just "check" it and it is back on the grocery list.

4)  Google Sky Maps:  This app has brought the amazing coolness!  I have always been a star gazer.  I even entertained the idea of being an astronomer...once... before I realized the amount of math involved.  With this app, though, I am able to wax brilliant and educated as I name every star visible in the sky!  I just hold up my phone, start the app, and the sky map tells me the name and mirrors the location of all I see... It is a beautiful universe!

5)  Laputa:  This is my kindle, except I don't have to carry multiple devices, just my phone.  Laputa is an Ebook reader that is connected to many free download sites.  I am currently reading the Dresden File books, turning each virtual page with delight.

6)  Posterous:  As an obsessive microblogger, intent on chronicling my life, I have a myspace, twitter, facebook account, tumblr, etc. I want to update them consistently, but not separately as that would take a ridiculous amount of time and is most inconvenient.  Posterous allows me to update multiple sites in one go.  Yeah! for saving time and keeping my peeps up-to-date!

7)  Shazam:  Have you ever been in a coffee shop and heard your new fave song, but don't know the artist or title?  This brilliant app will allow you to hold up your phone, capture a snippet of the music, and it will respon with Artist, Song, Album Title, and other relevant information.  Brilliant!

8)  ShopSavvy:  As I have mentioned, I have frugal tendencies.  Hell, frugal is my chosen lifestyle!  This being so, when I find something that I desire, I scan the barcode. In one scan, all my comparison shopping is done for me. I can choose the cheapest local or web price, then, fully informed, I can acquire the item.  Or, if I deem it too expensive, I can add it to the appropriate wish list.  I will also set a price alert, so that if the item falls to a specified price or below, I will be alerted so that I can make my purchase.

9)  Springpad:  This is my catch all notepad. Whenever I have a thought, idea, hear a quote, etc. I put it here.  I collect these and organize them in their proper places later.  This frees me from my previous mountain of paper notes.

10) Toodledo:  This one just might be my absolute *favorite* app.  This is my virtual To Do list.  I have always written To Dos on paper, sometimes multiple lists in a day.  The paper notes are cumbersome and easily misplaced, but the feeling of checking off a completed task.  Toodledo allows me to organize and keep tidy all of my tasks.  I can also add due dates and reminders.  The whole system is quite fabulous, and yet another paper saver!  Apps help people Go Green, haha!

So, these are my top ten, but I am always on the hunt for cool apps.  So, if you share any that I can add to my arsenal, anything that assists me in my mission to take over the world, you will be remembered in the regime change.