Morning Glory Studio

simply a moment | 15 october 2017

 

 

10: 15 am: Norman just "arrived" for breakfast, toting a basket full of laundry. I've  just begun watching/listening to the monthly reveal of Ali Edwards' Story Sparks presentation; this month's theme: BEST. Lots of food for fodder I think as Ali, via  video, begins to share her initial thoughts on the word/subject and invites us to think about how we deal with perfectionism. I think: I'm just like most people and then I recall Brene´Brown's invitation to remember: "I am perfectly imperfect." 

 I watch/listen. I  make notes, inspired by an idea, a word. In the background, TV, panelists on MSNBC's AM Joy are discussing the potential of WW III - hardly a topic anyone wants to contemplate. The sky is grey and the temp, a cool 64 degrees...but, it's supposed to warm up and be sunny at 2 pm... I realize that my mind is beginning to consider 2018 words...just 77 days left in this year! Where did the time go?

12 N: Norman's finished his breakfast ( and I too; I ate  mine while watching Ali). We venture upstairs to resume assembling the bookshelf, yesterday's abandoned project.  Truly, a test of our patience and respect for one another. In addition to needing an extra pair of hands, I realized from yesterday's efforts that I also needed Norman's very practical, analytical approach in order to complete the project. I'm happy to report: we passed the test and succeeded (tho' there were moments) in putting the unit together.

1:30 pm: I resume watching the  Story Sparks presentation and Norman returns to the TV. A few more potential words for 2018  pop int my mind and I make note of them. Finished with the presentation, I return to my sewing studio... time  to bring some order into the chaos, now that the bookshelf is put together. 

And before I know it, the afternoon is waning. And yes, the sun did come out and the temp reached the high 70s. And those were a few of the moments that made up this glorious autumn day. 

Cheers~

Simply*A*Moment is the time on the 15th of each month when I stop, pause to document the moments: what I see, hear, smell, touch, feel, remember. 

#the100dayproject...

 

In 2003, Kayla, my youngest grand niece was just two years old. Her day care provider lived two doors away from me and about 5 o'clock, M-F, my mother would walk down, get Kayla and bring her back to my house until Cissy - Kayla's mom - came to pick her up  - usually about 6:30 pm. That hour and a half with Kayla was just the most fun: she was a typical toddler and into everything. She especially liked to hear stories read aloud, perching herself on the arm of the Queen Anne chair as either my mother or I read to her. It was at that time that I decided to start scrapbooking, to record the stories of our lives - as we remembered them and as we lived them. 

Fourteen years later, I am still gathering stories - they are in a variety of formats: notes scribbled on bits-n-pieces of paper, or stuffed in the pockets of scrapbook page protectors; layouts made or in the process of being made - photo/s, notes, memorabilia such as tickets, etc, gathered; blog posts written and published; etc.; etc.; etc... Twice in the past five years I've selected as my One Little Word , a word or phrase that I hoped/planned would encourage and enable me to apply some rhyme and organization and tell the stories of my/our lives...

Contemplating the project for the one thousandth time, I decided to use the 2017 #the100dayproject as the framework for getting (some more* of) those untold stories told. I'm not too sure how it will work out but I am committed and dedicated to working it out. Along with telling stories, words+photos,  I also intend to tell some via  stitching. Again, I'm not too sure how it will work out but I am eager to play, experiment, try, learn...and fail. Today, for example, I "penned" a story on my iPadPro using the Nebo app...and promptly, inadvertently deleted it! Smart - not! I am definitely learning as I go along...and fortunately I'd taken a photo before I deleted the text.

At the forefront of my mind is the admonition to not overload my plate, to focus on keeping it simple...and to remember that I can see both the forest and the trees! I have no idea how this will all wind up, no preconceived notions of what it must look like tho' some thoughts are emerging as to what it might look like. One thing I know is that by the time July 12 rolls around,  I should have mastered Instagram, that is if I remember to upload photos to it! 

And with having said that, guess I'll upload today's words + photo; on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/honorel/ 

TBC...

Cheers~

 

Over the past three years, I've specifically told a total of a dozen stories in the category of About Me A-Z. Just a bit o' trivia.

Memos, Mail, Me | getting it together ...

 

 

 I spent much of the long holiday weekend assembling furniture:

• Saturday, a standup/sit down desk;
• Sunday afternoon, a Raskog cart - I currently have 4 in various rooms; 
• Today, a shelf that sits on top of a desk though I'm currently using on my scrapping table (actually two counter-height kitchen* cabinets leftover from when we built the addition a dozen years ago 'cause -   I stand up when I scrap or paint).  Don't know why, just do. I may start sitting down and the next thing I know, I'm standing up.

Today, after a very leisurely morning, I've spent the afternoon tweaking the rearrangement of furniture - tho' mostly things - in my craft room. I'm thinking I should change the name of this place to something that has to do with story for it is this room that houses all my journals, memorabilia and scrapbook albums - in various stages ranging from done to undone - more of the latter - but, that's another story for another day.  Most of the items I assembled - well, actually  all - come from IKEA and I've had for several months.  It apparently took last week's ThinkWriteThursday prompt to move me off the dime! Oh my, have I enjoyed an endorphin rush over these past three days! And the weather is an added bonus! Between Mother Nature and my energy, there's no telling what I might accomplish. 

Mail over the past week, once we got past February 14 has been light:

1. a couple magazine/catalogs from local museums - besides being informative, I often find great images for collage journal entries;
2. two $10 off Amazon Prime Now  coupons - better spend these this week 'cause they expire at the end of the month! 
3. a mailer from the District of Columbia government reminding us "snow is coming!" and including snow shoveling tips and the City's snow removal regulations. So far, we've not needed this important piece of mail - especially yesterday, today, tomorrow...and looks like weeks to come! Could we really get through winter without any snow? Time will tell - only 30 days to go:
4. a "thank you" postcard from POTUS 44 - Barack Obama - via the Democratic Party. Clearly not a collector's item but it will go in my scrapbook album...and 
5. somehow, caught among the catalogs - a Christmas letter from a long-time friend that  evidently I kept aside to answer during InCoWriMo month. Time's awastin' and soon the month will be over...guess I'd better get busy with sending a few more notes/letters myself.

Today is the first that I've used my new desk! It's pretty neat and the control is a simple up/down that I press. I think it's a keeper! Now to think of a new name for this room; any ideas?

Here's to a grand week  - mail and otherwise - for you! Hop on over to  Sian at From High in the Sky and friends sharing their Memos, Mail and a bit of themselves.

Cheers~

*Note to Self: I must remember this: Story of kitchens and my first foray to IKEA, thirty years ago! 

ten tuesday morning thoughts..

 

 

(Scrapbook Layout in Progress - SLiP )

1. Continuing my new scrapbook layout in-the-making routine, I began this morning fiddlin' 'roun with my next layout, using the Ali Edwards'  May 2016 READ theme...
2. Deciding if I want to use the1967 photo (of me in my 20s in my first position as a Children's Librarian after I completed my MSLS (Master's of Science in Library Science) ... or find another ... or do something else. Lots of options and so it sits there; periodically, I look at it, move a card or other piece, jot down a thought...
3. Dipping into about 6 books simultaneously these days...all are on various aspects of writing. Some are re-reads and others, new to me...
4. Writing notes in my journal of follow-up ideas, inspiration and stuff to do - other books to read...
5. Reading your comments from yesterday's blog posts - thank you for them and especially, the ideas and sharing...
6. Writing notes for upcoming Think Write Thursday post...
7. Remembering a story and checking Google for today's dollar equivalent to 1962 twenty dollar bill: $157 and change...
8. Traveling back in time - late 70s - to a trip to Mexico and a story of unrequited love; noting it needs  to be told...
9. Penning more ideas and potential topics for future blog posts and life stories... Yet, when I sat here at the computer to pen this post, though, I had not a clue about what I wanted to write for today...
10. Realizing my post is done! A tad later than I'd planned but that's the way it is, somedays! And I know my next challenge: set up a schedule of  topics and batch process blog posts. After all, NaBloPoMo begins in one week! 

Cheers~

PS. Are you planning to participate in NaBloPoMo? Any tips to share? And has anyone seen any info for this year? My searching is bringing up nothing!

 

 

 

bananas, bologna and bread...

   

           Yesterday, on my way to quilting meeting, I dropped Norman off at the doctor's for a routine appointment.  Since I hadn't eaten breakfast, I had grabbed a banana on our way out...and as I approached  a red traffic light, I grabbed the banana to peel it and spied, out of the corner of my eye, a homeless man, standing at the curb, next to the lane one over from me. I thought: I could/should give him my banana, along with some cash*... in order to do that, I needed to make a U-turn. By this time, the light had changed to green, so, I jockeyed my way over several lanes in order to turn around and get back to him.

As I was involved in all this thinking and maneuvering, I recalled a  time my mother and I were eating lunch at a little cafe, outside a Metro (subway) station. A homeless man pulled up a chair and proceeded to watch us eat...he reached to  grab a bit of the food off our tray. My mother, very sternly, informed him in no uncertain terms that she was having none of that! I believe he was a bit taken aback...my mother then proceeded to pull a five dollar bill from her bag and gave it to him with this instruction: "Go buy yourself a loaf of bread and some bologna..."

These days, one sees not only homeless individuals  at traffic lights but also families: dad, mom, children... There is one intersection as I exit  I-95 N where a man perches, complete with his book. He's always reading and I've often wondered what...I've contributed a few times if I'm in the right lane and the light catches me...I haven't been able to find out what he's reading tho'. 

I saw my first homeless person when I was about 9 years old. I was astounded then and am more so these days, many decades later. I have friends who have family members who are homeless - apparently that is their preference. But for too many, it is not. And I just don't understand - though I'm sure I know - how this country can and does allow homelessness to be. 

*I gave the man $5, along with the banana. Today, we went to the grocery store and bought some bologna and bread...at today's prices, I think $8 would be just about right...

read-ing!

 

 

    As I mentioned in the 5/15 post, this month's Ali Edwards' Story Sparks/Theme is READ... a natural for me and I suspect all the others who subscribe to the monthly program (learn more here). Generally, Ali introduces the theme, the why behind it and  shares several process videos of her take in 3-4 scrapbook layouts...and a challenge for us to use the prompt to inspire our own creativity. One of the ideas she floated for READ was to document, each day for a week, all the things we READ. I liked the idea so here is my list -in no particular order - for day one, 16 may:

• email
• text messages
• street signs
• traffic lights
• receipts for purchases and a bank deposit 
• gas gauge, gas pump directions and gasoline prices
• mileage
• mail
• radio station call number
• clock on car dashboard
• package labels and nutrition information
• menu
• handouts from today's  Baltimore Album Quilt class
• directions for a new outdoors plant I bought for the front porch
• gas utility bill (wahoo - no payment due in June due to a credit!)
• tv program guide line up for umpty programs on a zillion stations

I could go on and on and on... This list is by no means exhaustive. I found it fun to pay special attention to how much reading we do as we go about our daily routines. So, what would your list look like?

Cheers~

PS. Can I hear a round of applause for Mother Nature? Today we had sun from sunrise to sunset! YAY!!!

 

 

Week in the Life 2015 | TGIF Surprises...

 

Mother Nature greeted us today with very low humidity - 40%. T'was most refreshing and surprising as I was putting out donations for pickup this AM. Added just a bit more bounce to my step!

I just didn't have the energy to go back to the dealership yesterday so the job could be completed  (remember: a replacement part  was on order), so I  went this morning. As I drove North on US -1 (the oldest national highway in the country), I thought I've been up and down this road a lot this week…and then it occurred to me that with the exception of about four years in the early 80s, I've lived about a block or so off US 1, both in Maryland and DC, in the 43 years I've resided in this part of the country. And I've seen a lot of changes take place; perhaps the most dramatic have occurred  on the University of Maryland's College Park campus. Nowadays, there are at least three cranes in the air; one is for a 247-room hotel and the others are for student apartment housing, no doubt.

  

Even though the job was to take only 15-20 minutes, I went prepared to stay longer… and t'was a good thing I did because - surprise -   a component of  the  replacement part was defective! A courier was sent to to get another  new  part and I pulled out my stitching, iPhone and earplugs and made lemonade. Instead of 15 min, I was there from 10 am until 1:30pm! 

Done and hungry - only had a banana and yogurt at breakfast - I called Norman and told him I was going to lunch and the credit union. It was nice enough to eat outside at Panera! On my way to the credit union, I stopped to pick up bananas and ran into my former admin aide - we're both retired  - and her partner (he's also retired). We hadn't seen each other in years so that was a pleasant surprise! 

In for another surprise at the credit union: cash is dispensed via some machine that operates a lot like the ATM, except the teller does all of the transaction.  For some reason, the machine wasn't working SO the teller couldn't dispense cash. Which meant I was fresh out of luck 'cause I didn't have my ATM card, either! Which is why I went to the credit union in the first place...

Arrived home and promptly went for a walk. 

Tonight's sunset is spectacular…despite all of  today's vexations, it was a good day and I'm looking forward to tomorrow and Sunday.

Here's to a great weekend for all!

Cheers~

 

 

 

Week in the Life 2015 | Thurs...

    Today was much closer to a return to normal around here: I realized as I reviewed today's  photos that I have a lot of "hand" shots throughout the day. It's significant 'cause when one doesn't have use of his/her right/write hand - as I experienced two Fall seasons ago - life's activities take on a whole new dimension. So much of what we do is predicated on what we've done before. We are best off when being mindful and appreciative of the little and yet, enormously huge, gifts of what we take for granted, in our day-to-day lives.

On this day in our life, I engaged in - and am grateful for -  all those little activities that make up the day:

• drinking a cuppa hot tea;
• journaling;  doing laundry;
• playing with fabric;
• stitching;
• cooking and cleaning;
• attending an online seminar on telling life stories; 

 

 

 

 and YES, being able to twist the right hand! 

Most of this week, Norman experienced the inability to use his right hand; today, his manual dexterity is beginning to return, as he's demonstrating in the above photo.  Over the last three years, he's had a bout with  gout: first, his ankle; the next year, knee; and this year, his dominant hand. Not only was this extremity affected but also, his overall feelings of well being, impacted. It is amazing the difference 24 hours and medication can make. He feels better and is happier to return to normal.

Here's to your perfectly wonderful normal day!

Cheers~

 

this is my story...

 

Sunday 5 April        circa 7:34 am EST

    It's early and even quieter for a Sunday. Top o' my list is to draft and post today's blog, so, here goes:

Every month I have a theme or focus project that is designed to hopefully help me fulfill my word CHRONICLE:

• January: write in DayONE app everyday;
• February: Create a scrapbook layout every day;
• March: Blog and create ta da lists everyday. 

This month, a busy and slightly different one, I am focusing on developing habits , especially those that strengthen my abilities to CHRONICLE the stories - yesterday's and today's - of my life. 

I enjoyed blogging everyday, last month - and I must admit, at times, it was a stretch. I'd look up at the clock and realize the day was nearly done and I'd not posted. One thing I learned - no doubt, already knew - is it helps to have a more solid plan, an editorial calendar so to speak.  I concluded that I wanted to create and post drafts earlier in the day. I  also had to acknowledge, I'd totally neglected another blog - one that is shared with two other friends all month. Not good! And I needed to address that.

So, I decided that in April, in order to solidify the habit of blogging more consistently, (I've had periods of drought) on a schedule, and meeting my own internal commitment, I'd revise my blogging schedule and actions. So, here's the plan:

    Post : Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday of the week and on the 5s: the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th & 25th of the month. Some times, those dates will fall on a Tu, Wed, or Thurs. I plan to continue the Simply A Moment posts - perhaps my most favorite "slice of my life” and to share the fruits of my quilting labors. I also imagine you'll get to know my family and friends a bit better as I create and share portraits -their stories - of them. For my other blog, I will post on Wednesdays.

When I first started this blog, I didn't want it to be a recap of my day-to-day life but over time, I've come to realize how could it not be? It is my story, Morning Glory. And I so appreciate that you are willing to listen.

Have a great day and I'll touch base on Tuesday!

Cheers~

chronicle | february 2015

Last month, I introduced my plan for my 2015 One Little Word: Chronicle. And true to my goal/intentions, I chronicled a story - sometimes two -  everyday during the month of January, using the DayOne app. 

Last month, I spent a lot of time thinking about, writing down, making mind-maps, lists and just in general, plotting, planning, dreaming, tracking, trying a few different ways to gather and catalogue all the stories that are in my head and on my mind. I invited my sister to participate - she claims her memory is not all that good; I beg to differ and I imagine that once we sit down and really start bouncing those memories off one another, we'll come up with a pretty hefty collection.  At least we're game to try and hope we can get to it later this month.

This month, I intend to continue chronicling those bursts of story ideas and  stories in DayOne - it serves as a holding place, among other things. And from time to time, throughout the month, here on the blog…though those stories are more than likely to be contemporary.  

This month, I am focusing on making scrapbook layouts - one a day, at least. Every February, for the past 4-5 years, I've participated in the LOAD - LayOut A Day - event. This February's theme is Once Upon a Time. The daily prompt themes are  loosely  inspired by  favorite children's classics, such as Goodnight Moon, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. It's a fun event and we can choose to ignore the daily prompt, if we so desire. The goal is to simply make a layout, to spend time doing and having fun with a large, worldwide group of scrappers. 

This month, I am also collecting my layouts using the Collect app and plan to share a collage at the beginning of March. 

So, that's my story on this the 5th day of February, 2015. What's your story, Morning Glory?

 

Cheers~

 

PS. Don't you just love those bluebirds of happiness floating around my head?!