February 29, 2012

Today I learned what it feels like to have a nose bleed. I have seen them befall others many a time but in all of my 28 years can not recall ever having one. It seemed frightening at first, like some sort of terrible zombie brain rot. But then, most new experiences can be a little scary, so I collected myself, got a tissue, franticly chatted my sister for sympathy, and lived.

I believe a combination of abused sinuses from my recent illness and dry weather had cause this sudden bout of exsanguination. I will be better prepared and react with much less drama in the future.

February 28, 2012

Today I learned (for not the first time, and I am certain not the last) that very special way you can actually taste your memories when you eat something from a certain part of your past that you have not eaten in oh-so-long. For that one bite it's like wooshing through space in a very low-tech time machine.

I also learned how to fry Chinese green onion pancakes and that if you make them too thing they just become strange crackers.

February 27, 2012

Today I learned all of the fun magical things that my new phone can do. Shiny new customizable interface! Colorful shortcuts! Wild wigets! The awe and amazement that is Google music!

I also learned that I had failed to transfer my contacts to my google account like I was supposed to before making the big transition. I am now only able to call the four people who's numbers I actually know by heart: my love, my mom, my grandmother, and my best friend from first grade (who I haven't talked to in years but I haven't been memorizing phone numbers in a very long time either).

So, if you happen to be reading this and know my phone number - I miss you and am lost! Please call or text me so I can find you again.

February 24, 2012

This is all I learned today. I spent the entire day (yes, actually all of it) in bed. As a result of pushing myself to be well sooner than was reasonable I have ended up in this state with a well warranted "I told you so."

It is good to know, however, that you have warm snugly things that will lay about with you as long as you need. Above: cuddle-pugs Olive and Sam and an upside down Lou. Below: Sam by kindle light.

February 23, 2012

Today I learned that Jerk Chicken has become a women - or at least laid her first egg. Great work! She is a French Copper Maran so she lays a pretty dark brown egg. This is my first experience with this breed and thus my first time seeing this color egg in real life. I feel like it should be full of chocolate but alas it is just yolk.

Today I also learned from Dan Savage about The Price of Admission. His words really rang true for me - that none of us are perfect but together we can be better.

"What's beautiful about a long term relationship is that you can be transformative. I pretend everyday that my boyfriend is the lie that I met, when I first met him. And he does the same favor to me. He pretends that I am that better person than I actually am. Even though he knows I'm not. Even though I know he's not.

We then are obligated to live up to the lies we told each other about who we are. We're forced to be better people than we actually are because it is expected of us by each other. And you can, in a long term relationship, really make your lie self become true. If you are smart and you demand it of them and are willing to give it."

February 22, 2012

Today I learned that Thai-inspired lemon grass soup with straw mushrooms and daikon root makes you feel better when you are sick. Or perhaps someone that drives all the way across town to find you daikon and then make soup from scratch with fungus (which she hates) just so you can have your favorite soup makes you feel better when you are sick.

I also learned that our friend Ginger survived her first night in the coop with the big girls. They can be quite mean but she seems to still be in good spirits.

February 21, 2012

Today I learned that pretending (even to yourself) that you are not getting sick does not in any way equate to actual health. Next time I will need to heed the warning signs sooner and perhaps get actual rest.

February 20, 2012

Today I learned that thoughtfulness and pride in ones work increases perceived value. And, I guess depending on how to look at it, actual value as well. As someone who makes things I like to stop and think about the items I have purchased that impress me in with their ratio of loveliness to price to functionality. It is hard to find the perfect trifecta. Things that are done right are just worth more, especially when you can tell just my looking that care was taken.

When something is just right you know. You may not even know why it is, but you know. I think it is a combination of simplicity and attention to detail. I will continue to strive for this kind of thoughtful clarity in my own work.

February 19, 2012

Today I learned that complaints and criticisms seem to be far easier to dole out than compliments. Somehow we feel the need to speak out when things go poorly. Customer service/wait staff was rude. This was late/bad/dirty/not as advertised. Send this back. I am unhappy. Let me speak to your manager (how often to do think this question ends in words of joy and praise?)

I found myself quite dissatisfied with a dining experience this evening - which ended in my fiancee and I verbally drafting a well deserved sad-face letter to said dining establishment. This is not the first time we have done this and I am sure it won't be the last. As part of our conversation the lovely lady at my side said she was disappointed because for the same price we could have gone to our favorite place and had a much better experience and meal.

I realized then, that while I have taken the time to write these sad-face letters, I have never bothered to write a love letter to the place where my experience has constantly been amazing. My words, I feel, are just as well deserved there and have been sadly lacking. I will attempt to keep this in mind and dole out more compliments and happy faces as the opportunities arise.

I also learned that fried yucca is delicious. It saved an otherwise gloomy meal.

February 18, 2012

Today I learned about naeng myun, a Korean cold soup made of a slightly sour broth with buckwheat noodles. According to a friend you are supposed to eat this on your birthday or after you give birth. It was neither occasion but we enjoyed it all the same.

It will not make my list of favorite foods but was certainly unique and worth a try. The rest of our fabulous feast and great company made up for any cold-buckwheat strangeness.

I am slowly learning that I am perhaps not the completely hopeless hermit that I previously thought.

February 17, 2012

Today I learned that Whitney Houston was the first black woman to ever be on the cover of seventeen magazine. This was part of her brief modeling career before her first record deal.

I learned that I knew more about her infamy and drug problems than I did about her early life and talent, which feels sad for many different reasons.

February 16, 2012

Today I learned that we are all a little crazy, no matter how hard each and every one of us pretends not to be. Or, perhaps it is just all of the people I know. Friends, family, coworkers, randoms on the elevator and the man that sometimes yells on the corner at 3am. I have intercountered but a small percent of humankind, so this is mere speculation (or maybe just projection). But, I think we are all a little crazy. Not to the same degree or in the same way or perhaps as loudly or colorfully as some. However, maybe we are not as far off as we would like to believe.

Basically - whoever you are - I think you are crazy. I think you are amazing just the same. It's ok. I am too.

February 15, 2012

Today I learned that no matter how hard I try to wear my stern big-girl pants, confrontation just makes me nauseous. I think perhaps I need to learn to accept this about myself and find new solutions rather than pretend it isn't so.

I also learned that Abraham Lincoln was likely gay and perhaps a vampire hunter.

One of those statements is based on historic fact and the other is just well marketed fan-fiction. I'll let you guess.

February 14, 2012

Today I learned that when it is a special occasion and out of all the options the thing that sounds the most enjoyable is to just be home in the life you have made with the person you made it with, then things are pretty darn good.

I also learned that special edition fun-fetti birthday Oreo cookies are absolutely delicious. The best Oreo ever, in my personal opinion. Om nom nom.

Love Luna Love

It seems that there is just something magical about love and the moon. I am so grateful to love and be loved today. And everyday. I hope you are lucky enough to feel the same.

Lovely moon art via Quill & Fox, Yellow Button Studio, and Felt.

Happy Love. Love, Luna.

February 13, 2012

Today I learned that babies are not born with fully formed kneecaps - just little bits of cartilage that will one day grow up to be real knees. It is amazing where you start out and all that it takes to be grown up. There are so many little pieces that have to come together just so.

But, I believe it important to note that a babies hearing is fully developed and just as good as an adults right at the start. They hear every sound and word and song just as well as you. That way, they can start learning right away, even without kneecaps.

February 12, 2012

Today I learned that in the 1950's the American Radiator and Standard Sanitation Company produced and marketed urinals for women. They, of course, did not catch on with the general public but the idea is sort of an interesting one. You can look at the lovely vintage ads that feature this curious product here.

I also learned that my Delaware Hen, Shelly, had popped out twins - or a double yoker as we have taken to calling them. It's not so rare as to warrant medical curiosity not also not so common that it's not still a little exciting. I can't help but think it looks like a good omen. Either that or it just looks painful.

As a bonus I also learned that the San Francisco Police Department has become the first law enforcement agency to participant in the It Gets Better Project. These darn things always make me cry and this was no exception - althought not quite as bad as the Apple, Inc video which I still can't watch without turning into a mess.

You can watch the SFPD video here and the Apple, Inc video here. If you are not familiar with this project I highly recommend you check it out.

February 11, 2012

Today I learned that my physical and social unease in crowds and my irritation over poor planning trumps my love for live folksy music. A small performance by one of your favorite artists in a local bookstore sounds quite enjoyable but then I am reminded that I live in Los Angeles where the words small and local don't really mean small and local. It turned out to be not what I had in mind and I will not venture out to anything similar in the future.

For now I will just listen to the lovely Ingrid Michelson at home. You can listen with me here.

February 10, 2012

Today I learned that there is a wonderful Photoshop plugin that magically turns your old sad Quark files Bippity Boppity Boo into nice neat Photoshop files. Thank you so much markzware for being my fairy god-programmer and making this little lovely. It is not perfect but has far less issues than I would have expected and is making my job much easier at the moment.

I also learned that because this is all I learned today (even though it was exciting) I probably need a vacation.

February 9, 2012

Today I learned a little bit of flexibility. I feel I am sometimes held back from my own creativity by a self-imposed rigidity to my own ideas and systems. I create too many rules and devise too many categories. It's ok to just let things be. Not everything is willing to be perfectly organized and color coded. Today that was ok and it all turned out for the better because of it.

February 8, 2012

Today I learned that a video exists of what some claim to be a living Wooly Mammoth crossing a river in Siberia. Wooly Mammoths have been extinct for 4,000 years and skeptics say that the blurry animal on the film is most likely a bear looking for fish. But, who knows what lurks in the hidden places of our planet - we can not pretend to know everything.

This may just be a bear but I would like to hold on to the off chance that perhaps dragons will be discovered in the treasure-rich depths of Norway or deep off China's coast. I will choose to remain skeptical but imaginative.

You can read more here.

February 7, 2012

Today I learned that the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals have (again) found Prop 8 unconstitutional. And the crowd goes wild. This of course is just one more baby step towards an eventual Supreme Court case. We are still likely years away but I have been hearing to much "Santorum" lately. It's nice to hear something new.

"Prop 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples"

You can read more here.

February 6, 2012

Today (and most of the last two weeks really) I have been learning from Lisbeth Salander. Well, more accurately her author Stieg Larsson. I had gotten caught up in hum drums and nothings and stopped reading for a little while. I realize now how much I have missed it. My imagination is whirling and my gears and turning.

Lisbeth is a very interesting girl. Her philosohy that "there are no innocents. There are only varying degrees of responsibility" is certainly one to ponder in many contexts.

February 5, 2012

Today I learned - maybe more accurately realized while exchanging childhood stories with someone dear to me over chicken nuggets - that things learned early in life have a way of sticking around. Small things, that may not have seemed important at the time, can actually grow up and become your adult worldview without you even realizing quite how it happened.

Throughout elementary school I was given a spelling test every Monday and Friday. The Monday test was brand new words and the Friday test was those same words again with a weeks worth of learning achieved in the interim. Being notably dyslexic (which I did not actually discover about myself until adulthood) I missed all of Monday's words. All. Just about every time.

But, I was a reader and a learner and a trier and a young girl with a cheer squad, so every Friday I returned with a newly acquired list of vocabulary - all the letters in the right places. And I got a sticker. A sticker for every week with no gaps. A whole folder of stickers. It it was enough to keep be from getting too discouraged about the Mondays.

And, FLASH, a light bulb illuminated my processed chicken snacks. At 6 years old I learned something very big that I still carry with me (but it was not spelling, because truthfully I still often have Mondays). I developed a belief that it doesn't really matter how you start out. If you work hard and you try and you learn and grow a little along the way you can always finish strong and get rewarded. I really believe that. I believe it in myself and I believe it of others. Sometimes it is simple. Sometimes it is very hard.

This belief is a huge part of who I am. It makes me hopeful (perhaps overly goal oriented and maybe a bit praise driven) but hopeful. When I was told flat out that my dreams were too difficult before my career had even begun, I thought: No. I have been here before. This is just Monday. If you just keep at it, you can get it right in the end.

I also, to this day, really like stickers.

February 4, 2012

Today I learned that my lovely hen Jerk Chicken, a French Copper Maran, is aptly named. Our friend Ginger has begun her slow introduction into coop life and spent the morning basking in the sunshine with the other hens and several curious dogs. Everyone got along fine except Jerk who was insistent on puffing up her shiny feathers, stalking about the yard grouchily, and attempting unsuccessful stealth attacks.

Meeting new friends can be hard and sharing your things is a challenge but we all have to work to get along and find common ground. It benefits no one to be a Jerk.

February 3, 2012

Today I learned that you can bake a cake inside an eggshell. "What nonsense is this?!" you say. Yes. A whole cake in a egg.

You can learn how here. Complete with lovely step-by-step pictures.

In my efforts to learn how to cook (which is not progressing as well as I had planned) and to use my ever-present horde of eggs I am learning that there are lots of interesting and creative ways to cook and eat eggs. I even learned how chickens make them. Fascinating stuff.

February 2, 2012

Today I learned that people actually have a dominant nostril that switches back and forth several times a day. Every time you smell one nostril takes in a big, quick gulp and the other a longer, slower one. They each take turns doing this. The difference in the speed of the sniff allows for both chemicals with slow absorption and fast absorption to get catch up in your mucus and read by your brain. Two nostrils allow your nose to always know. Very clever.

You can read more about your sniffer here.

February 1, 2012

Today I learned that the Susan G. Komen foundation has decided to end their long-standing partnership with Planned Parenthood and stop all funding to the organization which provides mammograms, breast and cervical cancer screenings and related health care to low income woman across the country. I am deeply sad and disappointed to learn this.

As a result, hundreds of thousands of dollars will no longer be going to breast-cancer related services that were helping the people most in need. It seems that SGK has decided taking a stand against abortion (only one of the NUMEROUS health care services provided by PP) is more important than helping to prevent breast cancer.

This is political warfare of the most depressing kind. Let's provide healthcare and let each individual decide how best to make use of it based on their own needs and beliefs. Stand up for what you believe is right with the choices you make in your own life rather than making those choices for others. I believe I will now retire my SGK fundraiser T froms its current rotation in my sleepwear and avoid them in the future by supporting alternative breast cancer groups.

On a less serious note, as it is the first I thought it fitting to check in with friend-of-the-blog Ginger Chicken, who began this journey with us when she was still brand new. She is now one month old and is starting to get her grown-up feathers. 2-3 more weeks and she will move out of her little heated box and into the real world with the big girls. It's amazing how much one can grow in just a month.