Do not interfere

There are no words.

I'm totally blown away by what Secretary of State Clinton said the other day, regarding China.  She essentially said that China's vast human rights violations will not interfere with America doing business with them.

Are you kidding?  

Seriously?

We'll not bother trying to keep human dignity a priority any more?  ESPECIALLY with the countries we have a priority to deal with?

And what's up with America getting itself so indebted to China anyway?  Why are we allowing our government to borrow money from China (and not to mention, from our own future generations)?  It's so not gonna work out well in the end.  

I understand the need for a global effort nowadays.  And with economies all over the globe faltering, I guess it's only right for other counties to lend a hand when they can.  But the business between China and the US has been going on for a while.  China keeps buying up American debt...government debt.  All those bail outs.  All these stimulus packages.  It's not our money.  We're going on faith that China's not gonna pull out the rug and call in our payment.  What would happen then?

All news that focuses on the economy makes it seem like the world is going to implode at any second.  No wonder consumers don't have any confidence.  No wonder everyone is so worried.

It's a self fulfilling prophecy.  

If we allow all this money doom and gloom to cloud our judgements...to be the only thing we focus on, we'll end up ignoring what's really important.

Other people.  People that truly need others to stand up for them.  

Right, Secretary Clinton? 

must read news articles:

Clinton's China Agenda Disturbs Rights Advocates on NPR

Clinton:  Chinese human rights can't interfere with other crises on CNN

American debt and the Great Chinese Mind-Bender

In Yuan We Trust (from 2005!)

2008 Annual Report for China from Amnesty International

China and Human Rights

Go see

Coraline

It's so cute!

And creepy!

And in 3D!

...Really awesome 3D!

I swear!

WANT

A few items in my "Buy Me" folder.

...I'm a very gracious gift receiver.  ::ahem::

A vertical garden from Smith & Hawken

The Olivia Sofette from Pottery Barn (in the Bettina print)

A Shark in my Soup bowl by Apostolos Porsanidis

Moss Carpet used as a bath mat designed by Nguyen La Chanh

Wood stool at Uncommon Goods

Gray cardigan with two rows of buttons at The Kooples

EEEEEEEEE!

Because THIS makes me want an Old English Sheep Dog EVEN MORE.

found via Cute Overload!  Of course.

No culture for you

Joe and I were walking around the Japanese Cultural Center downtown the other day. 

We were headed back to the car, when an Asian lady stopped us in the parking lot.  She looked at me, and asked, "Are you lost?"

"No, we're not.  Thanks all the same," I tell her as we walk away.

I turned to Joe, "What.. are we not allowed to partake of Japanese culture if we're not Japanese?"

Joe laughs, "Apparently not."

Lego

*love*

I Lego N.Y.

via Happy Mundane

Holy crap, people

Did you even realize?  Total now has Cinnamon Toast Crunch for adults.


Dude.  It's time to put on your grown-up pants.  Seriously.

Etsy: Turned into Reality

Artwork Inspiration

Adapting To You by Amandaatkins

Wearable (and Usable) Pieces

Teal Green Slip Dress from Victoriasvintage4u

Women's Eye Glass Frames from Chigal

Folding Camera from Ccce

Frustrated

The Porn Myth by Naomi Wolf

Not Tonight, Honey. ... by David Amsden

'Cyberporn has become the raunchy wallpaper to these respectable lives. A 43-year-old trader at a prominent firm spends much of his downtime trading porn—everything from unauthorized photos of Hollywood stars to twisted S&M pics—with his colleagues. “It’s just something to amuse you when you’re bored,” he says. “It’s just there—like white noise.”'

White noise.

Oh it hurts.

This. Is. AWESOME.

via Double Takes

ART

So Joe and I are at the Honolulu Academy of Arts, in Gallery 9, looking at the "Face to Face" exhibit.  It's a small collection of black and white photographs.

There's one photo of three children:  two girls, one boy, each around 10 years old.  They're all shirtless, each with a defiant look on their faces, the one in the middle has his arms crossed.  

Joe:  That's just wrong.

Me:  What?

Joe:  Those naked kids.  You couldn't look at that on a computer...you'd get arrested.  But you can hang it on a wall and make people pay to see it, and it's fine.  I don't get it.

Me:  Oh.

I know the object for a lot of artists is to buck convention and make work that causes strong reactions.  But what about pieces that walk that thin line between acceptable and indefensible?  Is there a line?  Is all art ok?  

Or is a lot filtered through our genders?  I see pictures of children all time, and it doesn't bother me.  Joe gets uncomfortable looking at baby photos.  Does a natural mothering instinct affect how people view art?

How much is cultural?  How ingrained are we all with social norms?  So much so that it dictates what we personally find visually appealing?  

Can you make something, and say it's art, and have it be Art?  Can you put limits on artistic expression, or hold all artwork up to a certain standard?

www.alreadypretty.com

Go read THIS NOW. 

My new favorite toy

Poladroid Image Maker

So awesome.

It's, like, straight out of the 70s.

(find the originals on my Flickr site)

Happy New Year

Love this

via 24 Free Dinners

Remembered

Have you heard about that movie, The Astronaut Farmer?

No.  What's it about?

Well, there's this farmer who wants to be an astronaut.

New Year

I'm back!

Which means posting should be getting back on track.  Soon.

And someone else has returned as well...  A good friend of mine, Nick D, has started up his blog again.  The Rebellion.

If you're politically inclined, take a look.  I just might have some posts up over there soon, too.

Holiday Vacation

I'm headed to see family and friends for Christmas.  

I'll be back after the new year...and hope you will be, too.

Happy Holidays to everyone!

GAH

There's nothing quite like having two tall, gorgeous, tan, bikini-clad women running passed you on the beach to make you feel like an albino three legged cow.

It's almost like when a cruise ship harbored in Kodiak

Joe and I did some shopping and grabbed lunch at the Ward Center, close to downtown.  We pass two Japanese girls laughing and snapping pictures in front of Ben & Jerry's.

Joe:  You know, this is just an everyday Friday afternoon for us.  But for them it's part of a once in a lifetime vacation.

Etsy: Turned into Reality

Artwork Inspiration

Pocket Theater - Bear Story by Roadside

Wearable (and Carriable) Pieces

Vintage Bally Black Pumps from TheABomb

Black Coach Purse from Merelle

Courage from CuriosityLovedBooks

Well Played

So, I have a thing for commercials.  Especially ones with amazing music.  Especially ones that are funny in a clever way.

Video game ads this season are amazing.  Have you noticed?

Gears of War 2 using "How It Ends" by DeVotchKa

Price of Persia using "Saeglopur" by Sigur Ros

And those GameStop ads?  First the cartoon bunny video game: 

And the most recent holiday/gift buying themed ones:

(This one is the most recent, and my favorite so far...but there's lots of others.)

Love 'em.

Take a moment to give

Just click to make donations:

The Hunger Site

Evolve One Evolve All

The NonProfits

Care2

Tehehe

It's insane how much this photo makes me happy.

via Cute Overload!

Happy Thanksgiving

I have a lot to be thankful for.  

And really, I'm very grateful for a boatload of crap.

But these wrinkles that appeared on my face over night?  Not on the list.

It runs in the family

My parents sent some local magazines to me a while back, and I thought it'd be fun to share.

99 blocks: Downtown's Magazine

June 31, 2008

Excerpt from an article grading different aspects of life downtown

September 11, 2008

Dad got his very own write up, because "he's a downtown institution."  And because he's super awesome.

Most recent rude awakenings

7:30 am on a Sunday:  across the street neighbors playing music so loud with bass so high it vibrates our bedroom windows

6:15, 6:52, 7:30, 8:45, 9:18 am on an off day:  wild rooster

4:45 am on a Tuesday:  popping sounds coming from living room which turns out to be Zeke eating the entire contents of the kitchen garbage can.  The buffet line started in the kitchen, wrapped through the dinning room, and ended on the living room rug.

5:30 am on a Saturday:  music and bass from neighbors again

7:15, 7:50, 8:05, 8:45 am on another off day:  wild rooster

5:49 am on a Wednesday:  68 pound King jumps on top of me, in the bed thought to be too high for him to get up onto, because the windows were open, and it was windy outside, and it kinda sounded like running lawnmowers, and he freaked out.

Not-So-Weekly Recipe

One of the best chocolate chip cookie recipes I've made.  Ever.  I think it was the Smart Balance.  And I might have added a bit too much baking soda...

(Leftover Halloween Candy) Chocolate Chip Cookies

ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup softened butter (if you use Smart Balance butter get the kind for baking, not the other kind...the other kind ruins whatever you bake...just a note)

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

1 - 2 cups chocolate chips (or 10 mini bags of Hershey's Kissables left over from Halloween that you had to promise to use up in cookies just so your husband wouldn't eat them all)

directions:

1.  Hand mix butter and sugars until creamy.

2.  Add in eggs and vanilla until combined.  

3.  Slowly stir in flour, baking soda, and salt.  Once dough is formed, mix in chocolate chips.

4.  Refrigerate for at least a half hour.  (If you refrigerate longer, you might want to cover the dough.)  

5.  Drop tablespoon-sized balls onto cookie sheet.  

6.  Bake at 375* for 10 minutes.  

7.  Let cookies sit on the sheet for a minute or two once out of oven.  Then cool completely on wire rack.  

Enjoy!   

Jelly fights over Jam

So during these very hard and difficult times, Joe and I argue.  About whether or not Jim and Pam from "The Office" will stay together.

Joe says Pam will end up cheating, and they break up.

I say that's pure blasphemy...then cover my ears and run out of the room, screaming lalalalala.

Renegade

Isn't it funny how when you wake up after dreaming about someone famous (whom you've never met) you want to call him up and start jabbering on about the best chai latte you've ever had, how Zeke does the cutest thing pushing open doors, isn't the North Shore amazing in winter, that Kerry would be one of the worst cabinet choices EVER, and asking if his first presidential mandate could be to cancel all 24 hour news networks.

But he would be all, "Umm, who are you?"

Flickr'd

Lots of new photos up on my flickr page.

You'll get a pretty good idea of what Joe and I do during days off.

Nerd Alert

Have you seen these?

Windows

and

Nintendo Wall Graphics

I kind of love them.

A lot.

This Halloween is brought to you by the letters PROCRASTINATION and the numbers OAHU DOESN'T HAVE ANY PUMPKINS FOR AT LEAST TWO DAYS BEFORE THE 31ST

Etsy: Turned into Reality

Artwork Inspiration

A Flower For Her Hair by Lindsayart

Wearable Pieces
Traditional

Vintage Lace Collar from Historicallyvintage

Ivory Large Mum by Floreti

Modern

Lace Collar by Dandelionblu

Blossom Hair Pins by PinkfireDesigns

Romp

Things I Never Thought I'd Hear My Husband Say

After watching an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia:

"I wish they focused more on the 'Sex and the City' part of it."

Kodiak!

Vaseline based a new product campaign in Kodiak, Alaska.

Prescribe The Nation

Everything happens after I leave.

Go figure.

But awesomeness anyway.

And now I'm super nostalgic.

See reason #W.

The A to Z meme going around the blogs:

A.  Attached or single?  Very attached.  Married, in fact.

B.  Best friend?  Lots of super amazing friends from forever ago.  But I'd have to say my closest friend at the moment is my new computer.

C.  Cake or pie?  Don't make me choose!  Ok - if I have to...chocolate cake.

D.  Day of choice?  Thursday

E.  Essential item?  Is there just one?  I feel extremely materialistic trying to narrow it down.  The right answer is probably Joe.  But then that'd mean I think of him as an item.  Pretty shallow.  But my real answer is black mascara...and that seems even more shallow.  Eh. 

F.  Favorite color?  The green leaves of birch trees.

G.  Gummy bears or worms?  The bears that are made in Baltimore.  (Hometown pride!)

H.  Hometown?  Oh.  I answered that early.  Oops.  

I.  Favorite indulgence?  Sleeping in.

J.  January or July?  Used to be July, when I went on family vacations.  Then it was January when I lived in Alaska, for all the snow.  Now I'll have to wait and see.  But it's probably still gonna be January.

K.  Kids?  None, but I'm starting to get baby guilt from my family.

L.  Life isn't complete without?  Someone who will share the good and the bad with you.

M.  Marriage date?  May 23, 2004.  Now go ask Joe.

N.  Number of brothers and sisters?  One of each.

O.  Oranges or apples?  I've been eating more oranges since May 23, 2004.

P.  Phobias?  My teeth falling out.  Seriously.  Worse than death.

Q.  Quote?  None that I use readily, or have as a life motto (even though I have a huge book of quotes from high school that is all dog-eared and highlighted).  However, to seem more worldly:  

Maybe all one can do is hope to end up with the right regrets. - Arthur Miller

R.  Reasons to smile?  Anthropologie catalogues, dogs at the dog park, a breeze from a fan at night, mail from home, art, favorite tv shows, the fuchsia celosia plant outside, special nicknames, slurpees, and iTunes' Genius. 

S.  Season of choice?  Spring.  However, I'm not getting much of a choice out here.

T.  Tag five people:  The first five people who read this and have blogs.  And go!

U.  Unknown fact about me?  There are a bunch of facts about me scattered around teh internets...so let me think...what don't you know 

a b o u t  m e e e . . .I'd  hate for this to turn out like I'm a contestant on Jeopardy.  They have the worst, most boring personal information, don't they?  Those meet and greets with Alex?  Ugh!  Well...

I never thought I'd be where I am now.  Growing up, I never saw myself married.  I thought I'd live in a city like New York, work in an art gallery or museum, own a cat, and wear black all the time.  I would eat take out, go drinking with friends at night, and never drive anywhere.  

The life I had pictured was stark, sparse, and dark.

Thankfully, it hasn't happened like that at all.

I wouldn't change how things are now for anything.

V.  Vegetable?  Couch potato.

W.  Worst habit?  Procrastination.  

X.  Xray or ultrasound?  Just those regular dental x-rays.

Y.  Your favorite food?  Hawaiian pizza (surprisingly not called "Hawaiian" in Hawaii)

Z.  Zodiac sign?  Taurus.

Crushes

I can officially stop blogging now because of this site:

Digital Crushes

'...so California can go hang out with Hawaii. Alaska can come, too.'

via Design Boner

It's true

Me:  rifling through Joe's wallet.  Hey, look - you still have your Alaskan voter registration card.

Joe:  Yeeeaaah, look at that.

Me:  I think that's an automatic vote for Sarah Palin.

Joe:  Alaska's not even gonna send out ballets.  Just thank you cards, with a moose saying 'Thank You'

Summer forever

It's fall?

You've got to be joking.

Etsy: Turned into Reality

Artwork Inspiration

Jade by GalaHouse

Wearable Pieces

Fleur Fatale by Annabronwyn

1950s Black Cotton Gloves from Persephoneclothing

Emo by HeavenlyNaturals

Love this

Blank is like Blank

It will end

Last month, I cried everyday for a week straight.  

It was a lot of things all at once.  And it passed.

But I'm glad to know I'm not the only one:

It'll End in Tears

Science Fiction for Realz

Too far? Or not far enough?

Large Hadron Collider, black holes, and extra dimensions

Etsy: Turned into Reality

Artwork Inspiration

"They Are Married" by anicastillo

Wearable Pieces

Vibrant Red Accordion Pleated Skirt from ChanticleerandtheFox

Wide Brim Wool Felt Hat from Damosel

Vintage Black Leather Pirate Boots from Santokivintage

Meet Zeke

Our new pup, Zeke



We picked him up at the Humane Society. He's a year old German Shepard/Shar Pei mix.
Full of energy. And loves annoying King.

Yay Women...?

I lived in Alaska for the past three years. I voted for Sarah Palin.

But I'm not too sure about McCain choosing her as his running mate.

I definitely have mixed feelings.
I'm really interested in seeing her debate, though.

Pros and cons about everything, huh?


Oh, and I have to say, reading through blogs and political articles mentioning where Palin's from...calling Alaska the middle of nowhere, saying there's more reindeer than people...it's a state! It's part of the US people. I mean, really. C'mon. I find it totally disheartening that Palin's location is being used as a negative.

And for everyone in the lower 48, the majority of Alaskans are for ANWR drilling. Do you know how much land and space is up there? I mean, there's more reindeer than people!
Who knew?

Sweet sweet nectar

POG juice is the only reason people should come to Hawaii.

Uhhh

The 100 Most Common English Words

I scored 28 out of 100

You'll just shake your head in shame when all the words you miss come up on to the screen. Well, ok, I did anyway.

Etsy: Turned into Reality

Artwork Inspiration

Blue Sisters by IrenaSophia

Wearable Pieces













Powder Blue Woven Wool Shift Dress from ShopGoodGrace
















Little Ocean Dress from FastenCollective












Miss Naomi by Oh, My Deer!

I totally got pwnd

Newest website addiction: Fail Blog

Here

Oh Blog, things have been crazy. Let's play a quick catch up.

Leaving Kodiak and moving to Hawaii...had it's ups and downs. Mostly ups. We were able to get a place (thank you Navy), and we're settling in nicely. I should have pictures soon. Well, soon as in 'as soon as I get everything put away, hung up, washed, and perfect.' So, you know, whenever.

But it's a cute place, so it'll be worth the wait.

Oahu is amazing. Beautiful. Insanely busy and crowed. And hot.

Actually, I don't think it's really hot-hot. It just feels that way to me coming from 40 degree Alaska to the middle of a tropical summer. King and I are taking awhile to get used to it.

But oh, the shopping. Stores everywhere, with everything. It's niiiiice. I missed malls.

As much fun as we're having here, I'm homesick for Alaska. And North Carolina.
I'm sure it'll pass though, when we get more settled, and involved.

As involved as one can get laying on a beach all day.

Back in July

No posts for awhile.

I'm on the move, and in and out of hotels for the foreseeable future.



Oh, Internets, I already miss you.

Mosaic

A fun Flickr find:

Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
Using only the first page, pick an image.
Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker.

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. Favorite drink?
7. Dream vacation?
8. Favorite dessert?
9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. One Word to describe you.
12. Your flickr name.

The result:

1. Kelly Time!, 2. Jen's Birthday Cake: The layers, 3. Rose Festival Fun Center, 900 seconds, 4. Nant Ffrancon and Glyder Fawr, Wales, 5. NYC Is Full Of Celebrities, 6. L'orecchino, 7. Campanile di Giotto & Duomo, Firenze, 8. Carrot Cake, 9. The Photographer, 10. Prayer, 11. the stoic and the optomist, 12. Beneath a steel sky

Initiated

10 days until our house is packed up

11 days until it's out of our hands

20 days until we're exploring some place new

21 days until I get the worse sun burn of my life

New thing

So I put together an Etsy treasury, and thought it would make a great reoccurring blog entry.

Yes, I'm that proud of myself.

Turned into Reality : Beautiful things to wear chosen from amazing works of art

False Advertisement

A travel ad for the Dominican Republic plays across the t.v. The end catch phrase is Endless.

Joe: "Endless? Really? That's pretty ballsy for an island. But I guess 'Dead-ends into Haiti' doesn't have the same appeal."