100 happy days :: day 55

not long ago, an organic boutique opened in town.
fresh, organic veggies from local producers.
frozen organic chickens.
local, inventive, amazing ice cream.
organic flour from a small mill.
awesome fair trade coffee (with the coolest labels) by just coffee.
in short, just what we needed in town.
so much happy.

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this piece, reminding me of what i love about russian literature.

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slow fashion?

yes, please.

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finding this more than frightening.
on both ends - both the problem and the "solution" offered in the piece.
what is happening to the land of my birth?

100 happy days :: day 14

today's happiness, seen through the haze of a headcold and slight fever; an intimate concert with viggo sommer and a two-man (very talented) jazz band in the children's area of our local library. what makes me happy is that all the seats were full, people were close to the stage (hence "intimate concert"), the musicians were relaxed and talented and entertaining, everyone appeared to have a nice time. but even more happy-making is the creative thinking that led to it - who would have imagined we could move around a few bookshelves and create an intimate music stage in the library? who would have imagined we could attract people who had never been seen in the library before? who would have imagined we could pull it off? and yet, it was a very successful evening for the 70 or so people who attended. here's to daring to make things happen even when it would appear, on the surface, to be impossible.

get out there and meet someone new

after my recent paradigm shift, i've been thinking about ways to be more active in my local surroundings. because previously, when i haven't found the human interaction i felt i needed in my everyday life, i turned to the blogosphere for such things. (easy now, i'm not abandoning that!) but husband has long teased me that i should find creative people in my area and hang out with them.

late last week, i stumbled onto the brooklyn brainery website and through it, found the society for the advancement of social studies and i longed for there to be such organizations in my area - somewhere to hang out with interesting people, to learn something esoteric, to teach about something i love (like blogging? or how to go about a 365 photo project?). and on facebook, i lamented that if there were to be such a thing in my area, i'd have to start it.

after more than a decade of closing myself off in order not to feel that feeling of rejection from the at times cold culture around me, i screwed up my courage and went to the library. i go to the library all the time, so it's not that bit that required courage. i knew that one of the women who works there is involved in the local "culture house," and i decided that i'd talk to her and share my ideas with her and ask how i could get involved. just out of the blue. like that. opening myself to rejection and everything.

and guess what? she was totally cool about it! she gave me her card and invited me to their january meeting where they will elect a new board and discuss the coming year. she said there are also possibilities for such activities through the library and not only through the local culture house (they managed to get their hands on the quaint old city hall building in our little town). and so last night, i sent her a mail with some ideas. and i'll talk to her some more on thursday. and i'm feeling pretty excited about it.

sometimes you just have to dare to get out there and meet someone new.