Distant Worlds

I was on my way to the kitchen last night, crossing the dark foyer, when Peter came downstairs to find me. It was early, maybe around 6:30, but already dark as midnight. I heard him from the shadows as he called my name, said, "You have to see this."

His vague shape with its familiar angles disappeared quickly around the bend in the stairs. There were no lights on in the upstairs hallway, no lights on in our bedroom or in any of the rooms branching from the hall. There was nothing but the moonlight from the second story foyer window casting its bluish light - movie dark.

I knew Peter had slipped into one of the bedrooms. I must have seen his shadow dart through the open doorway, although I became less sure at the top of the stairs. "Peter?" I called as I walked down the hall, then followed his reassuring reply from the room just ahead.

When I entered, there was no one. The room was empty. The curtains over one window were thrown wide apart. I was about to call again when a movement from the deep black brought his silhouette to briefly obscure the edge of the dark glass. "Look."

Stepping forward the blackness became a dark landscape. Blue-black sky above black-blue trees, car headlights flashing between the branches and tiny dots that were airplanes twinkling above.

"Do you see them?" His voice was close, above and behind, trailing past my left ear while his right arm came to rest around my hip. "Those two bright lights that look like planes?"

I saw them. Two bright lights shining straight ahead, one atop the other in a nearly direct line. They were brighter than planes, closer, but stationary. Peter's left hand reached forward to point from one light to the next.

"Venus," his finger hesitated near the first before trailing to the second, "and Jupiter."

I looked at them, these small lights that were brighter than stars. I blinked, feeling for a moment as if I had stepped out of my own time. Unable to put the feeling into words.

"They look so close," I said at last, though it wasn't enough.

"It's amazing," Peter agreed, "that we can see other planets, right there with the naked eye. Amazing when you stop to think about it."

"Yes," I nodded, knowing what he meant. For an instant, the perspective became clear. The planets around our own sun, the true distance of the other stars, the possibility of other planets around those stars, of other life, somewhere, gazing out at distant specks of light.

There was nothing else to say.

We went downstairs. We turned on the lights, made dinner, and went on with our lives.

Questions in a Pool Hall

I haven't taken pictures of Woody or Woody Jr. lately. Woody sits quietly on the corner of my desk, waiting to be of use again someday. I feel sorry for him, waiting so patiently.

I always have fun taking pictures of Woody. He doesn't mind waiting for the right light. He doesn't complain about lengthy photoshoots or whine that the pictures make him look fat. And he can hold a pose for hours.

So why haven't I taken any pictures of him lately? Probably the same reason I haven't taken many pictures of anything lately. I haven't been feeling inspired. It's been difficult enough to stay on top of the day to day without making the time for art as well.

It makes me wonder though... Is inspiration a chicken-or-egg proposition? Is there not enough time to let inspiration strike, or does a lack of inspiration keep me from making the necessary time?

Do I need a muse or just some time to take a breath and let my imagination take over? And why does it seem like there is never enough time to fit in everything?

Is inspiration like love? Do you find it when you aren't looking for it? What if you never find it? Or you find it and it goes away? Is it better to have been inspired once before than to never have been inspired at all?

Maybe Nike got it right. Maybe I need to let go and Just Do It.

My First Knit Lace Scarf

Ta da! I finished my first knit lace pattern. (Yay!) I've played around with a little knitting before, but never tried anything more complicated than basic garter stitch and simple ribbed scarves.

In the past, I'd found knitting a bit boring and a little awkward compared to crochet - which I can do with my eyes closed by now. But I love the look of knit and the thin, light weight. And it uses about a third of the yarn that crochet does, which is good for my yarn budget.

So, I decided to try something a little more interesting and it was much more fun. Plus, I'm very happy with the result.

This lace scarf is a modified version of a free pattern from Lion Brand Yarn (Pattern #: 70336AD). The original pattern is for a much shorter narrow scarf. The pattern repeats twice across, so I added one more repetition and made the scarf long enough to wrap around.


LBY has a matching pattern for a lace stole, which is simply an even wider version of this scarf pattern. It's a pretty, and versatile, design. I think the details would show more in a lighter color yarn, but I love this dark brown. (Lion Cotton - Espresso)

I think I see some more knitting in my future. :-)

Amazon Reduces Wrap Rage

When I buy a new product, I like to be able to actually open the packaging and use said product in a reasonable amount of time - without the use of box cutters, screwdrivers, or blow torches, and without cutting my fingers or hands in the process.

Maybe that's asking too much. Maybe that's a case of wanting my cake and eating it to. But why would I want the cake if I couldn't eat it? Isn't that the point of the cake?

Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, calls the current packaging frustration "wrap rage" and is doing something about it. In a letter to customers, he has announced Amazon's plan to begin offering frustration free packaging, which will be easy to open and will reduce packaging waste.

It's about time too. I've grumbled over clamshell packaging and plastic sealed boxes with wire-tied parts for years. I've grudgingly understood that these were anti-theft measures and sent more of my rage toward shoplifters than manufacturers. However, with online shopping, these anti-shoplifting measures are pointless.

There are only a few products available in frustration free packaging so far, but more will follow (hopefully soon). For the full story, click here. In addition, there's a place to upload your own photos and videos to The Gallery of Wrap Rage, which begins with a great video featuring The Great Unwrap Race.

Glum Morning

I'm in a bad mood this morning. I wasn't when I woke up. I was relatively happy, looking forward to the weekend and excited to try a new Yoga DVD. Then I sat down to read the news.

Humanity has a need to find a reason for living, a reason to get out of bed in the morning. A reason for life, the universe, and everything. I get that. I sometimes wonder why we feel that way and if all living creatures have similar thoughts and questions. (I tend to think they do.) But I accept that most people have those questions, if to differing degrees.

What I don't understand is the need to project personal beliefs on others. I'm a fan of lively discourse. I like sharing ideas and debating points. I like to look at life from every angle and consider new possibilities. But in the end, I do not feel like it is my place to tell others what to believe or how to live their lives.

Sure, life is more pleasant when it isn't a constant struggle against those who choose to lead a different sort of life. I'm in no way a sports fan, so I wouldn't be happily married to Bo Jackson (see, I can't even come up with a current multi-sport athlete and only know Bo because Bo Knows).

That doesn't mean I won't be friends with people who do enjoy sports, as long as we have other interests in common. Of course, it does mean my contribution to a debate about the Mets or Yankees would be limited to asking, "They're baseball, right?" (That's a slight exaggeration, but not much)

It also means that if a friend says they scored season tickets, my mind will instantly leap to ballet before football, baseball, or hockey. But, I won't think any less of my friends for liking sports. I might even go to a game once in a blue moon, especially if someone I care about, like one of my kids or a close friend, wants me to go.

It certainly doesn't mean I would lobby to end or otherwise limit national sports leagues. Live and let live, and all that.

Why is it any different when it comes to gay marriage? Why do some people feel the need to define marriage as only existing between a man and a woman? How does it hurt them, or in any way affect them, if another person wants to marry someone of the same sex?

Yes, I've heard the arguments about 'protecting marriage'. I don't understand them. Shouldn't 'protecting marriage' have something to do with preventing divorce? Perhaps by stopping domestic violence or encouraging affordable counseling services for couples? How does stopping loving couples from getting married 'protect marriage'?

There are similar arguments for 'protecting family' or 'protecting children' from gay marriage. How are families or children threatened by gay marriage? Generally the argument follows that acceptance of gay marriage will 'make kids gay'. Uh, don't we already have gay people without the acceptance of gay marriage? Aren't many of them the product of heterosexual couples? What 'made them gay'?

As to the argument of homosexuality being against God, that goes back to it being a personal belief. Yes, people have the right to believe God hates gay people. They also have the right to believe that Oompa Loompas make the best menservants (small accommodations, payments in chocolate, and creepy, yet entertaining, ditties).

However, personal beliefs are just that - they are personal. They should not be a basis to take away other people's rights. Freedom of religion should also mean freedom from religion.

I am exercising my own right to share my personal belief through this blog post. Agree or disagree, it's your prerogative. But I do urge everyone to remember that the same constitution that protects your own rights to believe and live the way you see fit allows every American the same freedom.

Even those who may not believe that the answer is 42.

Dollhouse Trailer

The new Dollhouse trailer has been released and it looks good!




I can't remember the last time I was this excited about a new series and this much anticipation always brings a little fear of let-down. I'm not worried about loving the show (Joss got me to absolutely love a Space-Western, Dollhouse should be easy) it's that fear of Fox killing it the way they smothered Firefly (said Space-Western).

For now, I'm going to think happy thoughts... and watch the trailer a few (dozen) more times.

***UPDATE: Dollhouse premieres Friday, February 13th (on Fox).
Set your DVRs!!!!!!!***

List of Happies

I'm taking a cue from Joss Whedon and writing down my own list of happies. Because the world, and the Internet, is full of enough complaints and I'm a firm believer that everyone should take a minute or two each day to think about the little things that make them smile.

So here, in no particular order, are eight things that make me happy at the moment:

1. Netflix Watch Instantly now works on Macs. I haven't tried it out yet and I hear there may be some bugs, but I'm still jazzed at the idea. That and my Roku box are rekindling my previously waning Netflix-love.

2. Helium.com (a site where I write) has some new policies that sound really promising. I stumbled on Helium.com last year and I've had a lot of fun submitting (and selling!) articles.

3. My husband is taking a few days off work. Sure, work called him a few times already and he had to work from home a little, but with his long commute and long hours, I appreciate any extra time we can spend together!

4. We bought new mattresses for the kids. Okay, that sounds kinda lame, but I think we got a pretty good deal on some really comfy mattresses and I like getting the boys things like that. (Maybe a mommy-instinct/nesting kind of thing?)

5. The election is tomorrow. That one is undeniably a scary as well as happy item, but at this point I'm really looking forward to the damn thing just being over!

6. My honey onyx countertop is being installed on Friday! It's my favorite piece of this bathroom remodel and I haven't seen it since we picked the slab at the importer's warehouse about six weeks ago.

7. I had an eye exam on Saturday and when I mentioned something in passing about scratching the lens on my favorite sunglasses, I found out they can replace the lens for me! Which is great, because I've been looking for new sunglasses for weeks and I've hated them all.

8. I finished knitting my first lacy scarf - finally! (I'll post pictures later.) I've tried knitting before but I've always gotten bored and gone back to crochet. Knitting this lacy pattern was much more fun than the basic knit-purl combos I'd tried before!

There you have it, eight of my current happy things. Why eight? I have no clue. It seemed like a good number. I could make it longer. Once I started listing things more came to mind, like the joy of rereading a favorite book (right now it's The Razor's Edge) or starting the morning with my favorite peach-cranberry oatmeal, but I had to cap it somewhere or else I'd be typing all morning. (and I'm getting hungry for that oatmeal!)

Take a minute to appreciate the little happies in your life, even if it's as little as finally getting that poppy seed out of your teeth or turning on the TV just in time for your favorite cheesy commercial. It's fun and if you thnk of some good ones, feel free to comment and tell me about them!