Living the Creative Life

This weekend I've been reading Quiet: the Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain . It's definitely worth a read if you are an introverted type of person. Or even if you're not... it might help explain to you why your spouse/friend/child prefers to stay in most of the time or tends to think more than they speak. So... the gist of the book is based on the premise that the Western world tends to value extroversion to the point that we introverts grow up feeling like there's something wrong with us. We go to schools where talking (aka: class participation) is part of our grade and we work in offices that have no walls. We're made to feel like our desire to curl up and read a book or to leave a party early means that we're strange and inhibited and need to lighten up. Susan set out to define introversion and takes a closer look at many psychological studies on the subject, as well as anecdotal evidence from her own life. It

This is my final project in my Illustration class last term. I turned it in matted in a frame, but here is what it looked like right before I matted it. I'm not continuing my Illustration class next term because I have too many other classes to concentrate on, but it's been an interesting journey while it lasted. I can't say as I feel especially gifted in this area, but it has helped my eye, which is what you need as a graphic designer. For me, the laborious nature of hand-making an image is not as interesting to me as creating it digitally. At least not for making a living at. I do find the process cathartic and relaxing, but not when it's for a grade and a deadline. If that makes any sense. Anyway... so this project was to illustrate the phrase, "A book is a present that you can can open again and again". My teacher thought it would be a good idea to make it look like the books were creating a landscape - rolling hills below and cityscape behind. I'

I've been working on getting a new style of hat to sell in my shop and think I've finally settled one! This is a cabled watch cap, with a brim long enough to roll up, keeping your ears super warm. I love how comfy and slightly slouchy it wears, and I think it would be super warm to wear in the snow!

So apparently Google Reader is disappearing soon! Also, rumor has it that so is Google Friend Connect (which I know a lot of you use to subscribe to this blog). Don't panic yet though! I've got a bunch of alternate subscription options for you. You can find my blog feed feed also on HelloCotton ,  BlogLovin ', or Better Blogger Network , and I've added a plain old Subscribe link in my sidebar as well, if you already have a favorite reader that you use. Hopefully this subscription change-up won't be too confusing for everyone (thanks, Google!), and please let me know if you need help figuring out how to subscribe in any of these spots.

I had the opportunity this month to review some Lindt Chocolates that one of my readers sells. Elizabeth Osborne, of The Young Retiree blog, wrote to me awhile back and asked if I wanted some free chocolate in exchange for a shout-out, and how could I refuse? ;D I received a variety of chocolates and they are all very delicious ! I love how creamy they are and every flavor is just as wonderful as the last. They have varieties with and without nuts (although the facilities are not separate, so none of them can be considered nut-free). They have many varieties of chocolate, including seasonal options. While I haven't tried each and every one, based on what I have tried, I would recommend anything they sell! One really cool thing that they have on the Lindt website is recipes to make with your chocolate ! Interesting, right? I really want to try this one for an Iced Mocha : ICED MOCHA Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups (600ml) milk 1 bar (3.5oz/100g each) Lindt Excellence 70%

I've got one and half weeks left of classes in this term, and lucky me... allergy season started early this year. Which means I'm not feeling 100% AND I have way too much to do. Not a good combination, but I'm trying to finish well. Also I've been discussing things with my parents, who have been planning to move to L.A. this spring/summer, and I just might (probably definitely will) go with them! I suppose an act of God could still hinder this plan, but it's pretty much set in stone at this point. It's a brand new plan though (we just started discussing it this past weekend), so it still feels unresolved and not quite real at this point, but it really actually is. Anyway, they are moving there for my dad's business, and I had originally been planning to stay here in Oregon to finish my program, but... it turns out that the school is probably going to cancel the graphic design program after this year (nothing officially official yet, but my director says