Wednesday, January 28, 2009

what's old is new

450-kcred

So what if we've all seen this poster everywhere lately? With the ways of the world these days, I know that I need the reminder. 

Sunday, January 25, 2009

an a capella delight

orange_sport_coat

I just finished reading Pitch Perfect, one of the titles I discussed a few days ago.

How fitting that the all male Clemson "Tiger Roar" group sang a very stylized version of the National Anthem before the game tonight. I don't know if they'll be winning the NCCA's anytime soon (yes, that is the actual acronym of the yearly collegiate choral competition), but they sure did look snazzy in their orange blazers.

I'll have to get one for David as soon as he returns. Minus the green vest, of course.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

happy anniversary, bug

sooner_075

Because Sooner is a rescue pup, we don't know his birthday or even what year he was born. That leaves us to celebrate our anniversary–three years today.

At the end of last year, I entered a contest in which I told our story. We didn't win. In honor of the occasion I thought it might be fitting to share with you.

It was my husband's idea to get a dog. Not mine. We were living in a strange state, far from friends and family, had been married only a year and I had never really liked animals, simply tolerated them. But he kept asking. And asking. And asking.

One slow day at the office, I started researching rescue groups. I had made up my mind that if I ever did get a dog, it would have to be through a rescue, one that really really needed us. So, I discovered Lab Rescue. We filled out our applications. I noted that I wanted a "chocolate female lab around 1 year." We carefully considered our answers and hoped for the best (for him that meant being approved, for me that meant.. well.. i wasn't quite sure). We got a call from an adoption coordinator and she was pleased to tell us that our application had not only been approved, but that she was so excited that we had indicated that we wanted a male. WHAT? Afraid to say otherwise that we might no longer be approved, David went along with her, of course, a male dog was perfect for us. She gave us the names of 3 dogs and the information of the fosters to contact. We could take home any dog that we thought would be a good fit for us.

So, off we went to meet these little guys.  The last one was a yellow, almost white, lab with no pigment in his nose or around his eyes. They called him "Alphie." He had been scheduled to be euthanized when he went unadopted at the pound. Lab Rescue intervened at the last minute and had put him in their foster program. He had truly been at death's door and needed someone to save him. We visited that afternoon with the guy, took him on a short walk, watched him play with his 2 foster brother dogs and told the family that we would think about it. Eating dinner that evening, David decided "This is it. This is our dog. He needs us." I, hesitantly, agreed and we took him home two weeks later. We named him "Sooner" so he would never forget where he came from.

I didn't know what to do with a dog. I was fearful to go home if David hadn't already gotten there. I was afraid to leave him in the house and I was afraid to be left alone with him. I just thought I was going to mess him up more.  He also had ear infections, ate dark chocolate, ate raisins, ruined our christmas presents and destroyed our hardwood floors, costing us much more than we would have ever thought. He was a handful, incredibly curious and always hungry, in much need of training and socialization. My friends jokingly called him "the lemon." But there was something to be loved underneath that. Slowly, he and I adapted to one another and, in fact, started to like one another. He brought us structure and routine and could be counted on to bring a smile to our faces when his wagging tail would inevitably knock over anything of value in our home. With lots of exercise and several training classes, he evolved into a loving, sensitive little man, still not to be trusted around food, but who would do almost anything to please us. And finally, he had become "my" dog, following ME whenever I left the room and always finding me when he wanted someone to take him outside or go on a walk.

Last year just after Christmas, David called me at the office, his voice audibly shaken. This is a man who doesn't cry, so my first thought was that someone had died. Instead, he informed me that he was being sent on a 14 month deployment to Iraq. As a military wife, I've made it through a lot of time apart from my husband. But 14 months seemed way too long and I feared for his life and our marriage. When we came home from work that evening, I sat on the couch and cried like a baby. I didn't want this to happen. I didn't think I could handle this. I didn't want to do this. I was so afraid and felt so alone. Sooner, obviously alert to something going on, lay down beside me and didn't move. Just sat and watched and every once in awhile, let out a long, slow sigh. That was the last time he let me sit and be sad.

We're six months into this deployment, and this little guy has been my trooper. He has developed a sixth sense of when I need to laugh, get outside or have a change in scenery. He makes me go on walks and runs (2 a day!) and is a constant reminder of life and all that is good in it. He doesn't sit or wallow when lonely, but instead finds something to entertain him, be it the birds outside the window or a search for a little morsel I might have dropped in the kitchen. He has taught me how to bounce back from the bad and find happiness in the small subtleties in life. He, I think, has saved me from a path that I would have easily gone down without him. He has given me purpose, love and hope.

The dog David wanted, the dog David wanted to save, Sooner. He has saved me.

shout out to Rachel Boling for her great portraits of the bug.

Friday, January 23, 2009

put it on repeat

bloodbank I had been waiting for weeks to download Bon Iver's new EP Blood Bank on Tuesday.

It couldn't have come at a better time.

Soulful, comforting, sad, pure, hopeful, haunting—all an accurate description of these four tracks. 

Fitting for the week we've had.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

well put

"It's easy to obsess about what might have happened when there are only two possible outcomes. But when you're not exactly sure what futures you're choosing between, whatever path you end up on finally feels inevitable." - Seth Mnookin

Monday, January 19, 2009

i can see the future

domino_family_photos

One day, we'll have three dogs, two children and many vacations worth of archived photos.

This is what we will do with them.

Until then (or at least until we own our next place), iphoto will have to do.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

"Now tell me, which one of these dogs would you want to have as your wide receiver on your football team?"

It might be because one of my favorite movies ever is "Best in Show." Or, it could be my ongoing obsession with all things canine.

Whatever the case, I must have this print by artist Dolan Geiman.

dolan_geiman_dogshow

Oh, and for running back? Because CJ Spiller is not a dog, and therefore not an option and my little man has an odd gait, I'm going to go with Maggie Adams, Sooner's girlfriend in Atlanta.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

the lines between artist and designer

nathan_dining

Ever since the finale of "Top Design" a few months ago, I haven't been able to stop thinking about the painting winner Nathan Thomas created for his dining room in the final challenge. 

I've even had dreams where I copy his technique and create one almost as stunning as his.
Apparently my dreams didn't do it justice. 

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

and then there was one

Print

Early in 2008, Martha Stewart's Blueprint ceased publication. I found out a few weeks ago that Cottage Living will no longer be printed either. Hopefully Real Simple, the third component of my magazine trinity, will hang on.

What's a girl to do?

I have high hopes for my new Domino subscription to fill some of the void. But I can't help thinking it will lack the charm and simple goodness of my two late favorites.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

read it and weep (or some other options if you're not really into that kind of thing)

I'm not a big fan of books that either make me cry, suspend a great amount of disbelief or frighten me. Since I cried reading the opening pages of Marley and Me, couldn't comprehend the idea of wizards and Hogwarts at a boarding school for magic and I wasn't allowed to read several editions of The Babysitters Club because they scared me, one might think my reading list is quite limited.

Fear not, my friends, because I have an uncanny appreciation for a certain genre. I call it "journalistic non-fiction with a snarky, sensationalized, pop culture overtone that is smart and funny without trying too hard."

Some recent reads that I strongly recommend:

The true story of a gay jewish forever single 40 something New Yorker looking for love in all the wrong places while his recently widowed father is drinking from the fire hydrant when it comes to women.

David Carr, writer for the New York Times, investigates the story of a drug addict, wife beater and drunk - his own. Apparently, his memory of his past doesn't always line up to reality. 

A look at American branding and its obsession with painting a prettier picture than truly innovating and creating new beneficial, smarter products. 

A rare inside look at what goes on in one of NYC's most swanky eateries. Here's a hint: be glad that you don't have to use the workers' restroom, and if you did, you would definitely want to tip better.

A writer vows to follow every piece of her trash to its final resting place for a year. It takes her farther than she ever imagined and it still makes me think twice before buying anything made of plastic.

And I've just started Pitch Perfect
A non fiction account of four collegiate a capella groups and their quest for greatness. 

Next on the list: Moose: A Memoir of Fat Camp.
Based on the title alone, I don't think it can get any better.

(Thanks to fauves on etsy for the cutest stuffed moose I've ever seen... not that I've seen that many, but still.)

Monday, January 12, 2009

wonder if i could keep from eating it?


Searching for a gift for a dear friend's upcoming 30th birthday, I wanted to give her something that said: "I might be older, but I've got enough fun left in me to spare." I found this necklace on etsy.

It reminds me of the candy necklaces that never made it home from school with me as a 5th grader. I think I could wear one for all of 5 minutes before I started to chew. 

This one might be a bit better for the new decade - both for our fashion sense and our diets. As long as I've tried to put off accepting that the statement applies to me, it is, nonetheless, perfect for the "young at heart."

Sunday, January 11, 2009

babies aren't normally the hot topic of conversation around here


I got to visit my new niece today. At just under 2 weeks, she is one cute sleeping sack of potatoes! Thankfully, she remained just that as I held her for most our time together.

Maybe she was dreaming about a ceiling like this.
My not-even-yet-considered future children will thank me.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

just when i thought i had enough orange in my closet


Today, Mom, Daddy and I went to see the Clemson Tigers basketball team go to 16-0. 
I also received the new J Crew Catalog.
Coincidence? I think not.

one. orange pattern ballet flats
two. orange gwendolyn dress - is the poof on the shoulder not just too perfect?

Friday, January 9, 2009

just because i don't speak french doesn't mean i can't appreciate it.


I may not be able to pronouce it. And I may be a few months (years?) behind of the trend, but I sure do love some faux bois.
(that's "fake wood" to all you non french speakers like myself.)

one. martha stewart faux bois cake (a must for my 30th birthday party this year!)
two. crate & barrel birch candles
three. viva terra tealight holder
four. nightowl paper goods letterpress notecards
five. room service home faux bois tableware in blue

Thursday, January 8, 2009

i've already chosen a wall


"What I do know is that it seems natural for me to make things and that I find immense joy in the act of thing making and for that reason I do it every day." - Mark Warren Jacques

I could buy it based on his sentiment alone. It doesn't hurt that it's beautiful.

heaven on a spoon


I'm not one to eat a lot of processed or manufactured "food products." However, my ethos is no match for this one.

Now if they would only come up with a turtle cheescake, whipped cream and hot fudge flavor that's 70 calories, all would be well in the world.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

113



113 days - that's all the time left until David comes home and we start our "real" married life after almost 4 and a half years of his deployments. 

2,712 hours.
226 more walks with Sooner. (at least 500 miles...)
113 nights going to sleep in that huge bed without him.

But, I'm working on focusing on the smaller numbers:

A little more than 16 weeks.
10 friend and family birthdays.
8 more Clemson basketball home games.
3 more haircuts.

Here's to them going quickly.