Book Jackets and Big Faces

the new steve jobs movie: jOBS

I might like it, but it might also make me mad.

I also feel like Kutcher is just using Kelso's wardrobe. But that might make me like it more.

Did I ever tell you that the Steve Jobs biography just made me mad? Not that the writing was bad - overly technical for too long, maybe, but not bad.

The character of Jobs - whether real or exaggerated - was the issue.

We love his stuff. I get it. I'm an iUser too, so I can't hate.

He got wonderful results out of everyday and extraordinary people "but at what cost?" I ask.

Lost mutual respect from designers.
Stolen ideas.
Absent from his family.
Rude to his friends.
Abusive to his employees.

Not to mention the environmental and social cost of smartphones.

But dammit if I can't text/email/call/words-with-friends the shit out of my day!

I don't know I'm being a hypocrite or if "you can't beat 'em, join 'em" is my battle cry.

I also can't tell if this is a real post (long week, weird dreams, tough workdays, higher dosage of melatonin), I just know that I have feelings on this movie that stem directly from who I was introduced to in Walter Isaacson's book.

And I know I had to take the jacket off of that hardback because jackets are cumbersome and JE-ZUZ that face is huge!

via

Let the Personal Integration Begin!

Dear Diary,

If I am going to integrate my blogs and only have one of them on which to dump my brain, you'll have to be prepared for posts like this - 

1) Coffee on the porch this past weekend at 7 AM, before the day got really hot. I'm reading my kindle touch. It was a birthday present. And the coffee is decaf french press. Decaf because that's what I have and honestly I don't drink as much caffeine as I used to. It's nice to know I am not dependent on it.
(Advice: Break habits or addictions when you can. Prove to yourself you are flexible.)
Beverage Pairing: Coffee, decaf.

2) Pasta salad (made by me) on a bed of organic spinach (grown by the neighbors - thanks Bob and Josie!). Their little daughter brought it up to me to share. I asked her if she like spinach and she said no. I assumed I'm getting her 2nd choice, but I'm not mad.
(Advice: Eat your greens. Or eat someone else's greens.)
Bev Pair: Green juice, like Naked's Green Machine.

3) I wore a fishtail braid yesterday. This is my first time wearing one and doing it myself!
(Advice: Get out of your hair rut by trying a new style before you cut it all off.)
Bev Pair: Water. Hydrate and your hair and skin will thank you.

4) I went to Home Depot yesterday to get some plant supplies. I love their garden section. It feels like a cheap thrill to walk around in the pallets of pansies. I texted a bit with my brother who is a landscape expert to get some free advice :) I bought:
- spikes and twine to hold up my tomato plants
- pots to re-pot a hosta
- marigolds to ward off bugs from my other plants (the poor massacred lettuce!)
- a succulent for my desk at work
(Advice: Take time to stop and smell the roses. Even if they are Home Depot roses.)
Bev Pair: Lemonade. I saw a lemon tree at the Home Deep and wanted to buy it badly. 

5) I wore a suit today (am still wearing it) because it was our company's annual meeting. Yes, the suit is cream. I feel like I'm in a 70's movie or I'm Chloe Sevigny.
(Advice: Always dress over the occasion slightly if you are are unaware of the protocol.)
Bev Pair: White wine. Don't you dare spill on that lovely white suit!

all pics are mine except this one.

Get ready for more integration, Diary.

Flip it Friday: Writing it Out Loud

I'm going to write a book.


I had the thought since college and it reappeared last night as I avoided a small panic before bed and then again this morning as I implanted my bad dreams (of losing teeth) into memory.


And they say you can remember your dreams by reiterating them to someone in your wakefulness. So here, I'm reiterating this dream to you. I will write a book.


If I was in the business of making disclaimers, I'd say that I make no promises for its publishing. It might live in a drawer (a metaphorical place on my hard drive). I might not start to write it until next year, but at least I have an idea now. I know what's awake enough inside of me to finally put pen to paper. And who knows, maybe it'll be good. Maybe it'll be crap.


I'm not ready to share what it is because then I'll be locked into that idea. What I will tell you is that is will not be a novel. I will not be making anything up. And no, it's not my autobiography. I'm [I hope!] not that shallow.  It will be a commentary. It will be like blogging, but all in one place and all well-thought-out. 


This girl also inspires me. Her "Field Notes" read my mind:

1. Last night crossing over the highway to the train, the city’s skyline over my left shoulder was clouded in gloom—completely invisible. The other day B said, eyeing the fog, “It’s like someone took an eraser to the tops of the buildings,” and it is.
2. My bangs are cut so bluntly, that every time I pass a mirror my heart whelps out in horror.
3. The office is filled with heavy intermittent sighing. I want to hide behind this wall and call out, “Is your life really that bad?”
4. When my day-to-day becomes well, very day-to-day—very wash my hair in the morning, button up my shirt, trudge to the train, stare at this computer, go home and make potatoes, begin again—I think about buying a plane ticket. It’s true. I think about wandering a different city with my hands balled up in my pockets, my throat thick from not speaking. But suddenly I am fiscally responsible and can’t justify allocating any money toward what is now egregiously frivolous. If it isn’t the money then it’s the idea of leaving, alone, and stretching out in bed without B beside me.
4a. I dated a boy, J, who landed in Chicago only after he’d been living in New York and then Seattle and Missouri, or wherever really. The point is that he’d bounced, consistently for years. His parents had a little house off the train line that feeds directly into the airport. One time, after several margaritas on his mother’s kitchen floor well after everyone had gone to bed, he said to me, “It is dangerous to ride the train home after work, because there is always the threat of continuing right onto the airport and never coming back.” That being said, that was a summer of instability and mosquito bites.

 But my book wont be like the above bullets either.


So, on this Flip It Friday, tell me your dreams? In other words, what would you do if you knew you could not fail?

Source: art-sponge.com via C on Pinterest

How to Enter Modern Day Survival Mode/Advice I'm Giving Myself

The modern woman worker adult person sometimes just has to pull up their britches and keep on trucking. We often get overstimulated rather than under and let me tell ya, it's overwhelming.

Survival mode: Being so bogged down with stuff to do that one has to trim the fat in their day and decide what really needs to be done. Out of the options of fight or flight, put up your dukes. 

Some of you might know this as "finals week", "end of the quarter", "the publication goes live in x hours", "grades are due", "the G8 is coming to Chicago", "callbacks" or  "sh*t hit the fan".

All Photos via Pinterest. 

I've been busy lately. I've picked/torn/filed off all of my nails (after just painting them this past weekend!) from writer's block. We've had leftovers for dinner (which usually are only reserved for lunch) even though we have many fresh-meal options. I am only running a fraction of what I aspire to each day.

So how do we survive it all?

Here are my tips for surviving survival mode, keeping your friends/family and not looking homeless while doing it.

Health and Beauty Maintenance

- Stretch your hairstyles. Wash as little as possible and look up fun ways to do a bun to save you time in the morning. Say hello to more sleep.
- Don't get down on yourself if you don't stick to your usual workout routine. As long as you get moving everyday, let that be enough. Sometimes your time cannot be stretched. Let is go and catch up on the treadmill time after your deadline.
- Wear your glasses. Hide the eye-bags.
- Have a week's worth of work outfits ready in case you sleep in. You can still get dressed in the dark/with your eyes closed when you know what pants/shirt/socks go together. Plus, this will keep you from making a game-time decision to put on a "desperation outfit". You know you've had one.
- Keep a pair of nude/black/neutral shoes at your desk. I used to tote my shoes back and forth to work since I use public transit and commute in flats/Merrells Mary Janes. Now I keep all of my non-flashy pumps at work. I have an entire shoe drawer and I'm so lucky to have it.
- Get enough sleep. If you're stuck on a problem, go to bed if you can. Chances are you'll have fresh eyes and a clear head in the morning.

Friend and Family Maintenance

- Think twice before emailing/calling/texting. You're in survival mode and what comes out of your mouth might not be what you really mean. Think things through twice and even ask a 3rd party if what you're saying makes sense. You can always say "I'll get back to you" and think it through when you have a chance to slow down.
- Keep the appointments you've made, but make no more. You don't want to appear anti-social and you also don't want to keep piling on the obligations. Freeze your Calendar.
- Look a week/month ahead to see where birthdays are coming up. Use Facebook or your mom's memory to help you get them all mapped out now. Use an online service to help you send a card - at least - or have your significant other/roommate/mom remind you.

Media Maintenance

- Turn the TV off. Just do it.
- If you are chewing off your fingernails in frustration, try putting on some mellow music. Distract the immediate (medical term, I'm sure) part of your brain so that your deeper conscious can sort through a problem. I guess it works in classrooms too. Might I suggest Ron Pope's "Shoot Out The Lights".
- Close your email, turn off your phone. If you don't need these two things for the task at hand, then they are distractions just laying-in-wait. Give yourself a window of time when you can check them both and then turn them back off/log out.

Head/Heart Maintenance

- Be kind to yourself. Reward yourself for milestones or the job completion. Let yourself have a treat, but be wary about making food a reward. You're not running as much as you should, remember? Choose a low-cal popcorn, one piece of candy, as much sugar-free tea as you like, allow yourself to buy that book on Amazon, spend too much money on a candle at Anthropologie (it smells like "good boy"!), or just take a break and walk around in the fresh air.

Then get back to work.

Ok, long winded. Now you tell me. What do you do when in survival mode?

What to Resolve for NYE

Do you have a new years resolution?

I'm reading that some people are tossing them out of the window and just living 2012 like they did 2011. Fine, fine. But if you're going to change something, why not resolve to change it when you have the support of the world and their resolutions too?

Lost on what to resolve? Here are some strange/sincere/silly suggestions:

- Eat dessert. Whenever it's available.
- Do a walking tour of your hometown or some place familiar.
- Go to bed an hour earlier (or later... but do something awesome with that hour!).
- Pick a new tv series and follow it religiously.
- Immerse yourself in a new author's works and finish the lot of 'em.
- Cook "Around the World" by making a dish a week that represents another country.
- Become a "Yes man", but within reason. Not like Jim Carrey.
- Incorporate a new article of clothing into your regular attire (ponchos, scarves, argyle).
- Give up holding grudges.
- Live on less and save or donate the rest.
- Vow to do one thing that scares you a month (ski, see a movie alone, sing in public)
- If you haven't been in a while, go to the dentist!
- Give up caffeine (or don't, haha!).
- Instead of trying to lose weight, vow to mind portion sizes and keep a food journal.
-  Date wildly in 2012. Whether you have a permanent person to date or whether you are still open to suggestion. If you're shy, ask for phone numbers. If you're used to meeting people at bars, approach someone in an art museum. Walk up to the bassist after a metal show. If you're dating/married don't forget to date that person. Ask them out. Wear perfume. Turn up the charm! [Note: This is not a hint to S. I feel well dated... er, you date me well... er... you know what I mean.]

Maybe my favorite suggestion: Treat Yo Self

Drink pairing? Champagne of course!

Note: I am still not drinking until New Years. I got through the holidays only having 1 beer because I couldn't find an ibuprofen. I think it was a fair trade.

Reads

No advice today. This week has been all up in my grill.

Read this in the mean time. You know you can trust her, she's a Jenny too!

Flip-It Friday: READs

Ok, now that I am more mentally balanced than at the time of my last post, let's move on like nothing ever happened, shall we?

I found a new blog to read today. May I introduce you to Malori who also lives in Chicago and also has "Sunday" in her blog title like my friend Maddison. Which also starts with an M and who will be moving back to Chi-town soon. Neat! Two good Google Reader adds, people.

Anywho. Malori gave me an idea to share and talk with you about on this Flip-It Friday: Books.

Everyone should have a summer reading list. And, dare I say it, even S is sorta trying to become a reader. Blesshislittleheart.

So let's hear it. My summer reading list has included/will include/I recommend:

The History of Love by Nicole Krauss (Just finished and highly recommend!)

Hate, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage by Alice Munro (eager to read this on a recommendation that everything she writes is beautiful)

The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje (read this last summer or winter, or 2 years ago. Either way, good)

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri (Golden-child writer. She could describe a kitchen for 300 pages and I'd interject: "Yes! I do smell the curry and feel the heat of the rice pot and see the stain on the ceiling!")

Freakonomics by Levitt and Dubner(both Steven/Stephen-s, this on is "on deck" for me)

(Yes, I stole that image from Amazon. I'm not even ashamed that is has the "look inside" tag on it. Or maybe I am. Either way, you get the point.)

What's your list?

Any recommendations?

Are you more of a magazine-on-the-beach kinda person?

Do you prefer used book shops like my beloved Myopic, Amazon, or the ever-decreasing traditional book store?