Peppered Thought – The Spice of Life

While I am still recovering from Disneyland and Six Flags (and editing photos. blerg.), I am staying upbeat and trying to avoid PDD by listing things I am thankful for.

disneyland. It was so full of magic and churros. I am buzzing with good vibes and can’t wait to go back!

smushed pennies. Not only are they inexpensive souvenirs, they are magical and great at becoming lucky charms!! Always make sure you use pennies made before 1982, because after 1982 the mint began to use a percentage of 99.2% zinc with a 0.8% copper – coating. In pre-1982 pennies that percentage was 95% copper, 5% zinc. Why yes, as a matter of fact I am a nerd.

the beau. What a trooper. Waking up at midnight to drive us to get to Disneyland right when it opened, and dealing with a grumpy kid (me) at 11:45 the following evening when I found out that the entire park was sold out fo those silver ear headbands. Quelle triste. He is amazing and I’m glad I got some shots of him in super-happy little kid giddy mode!

gala darling. The Universe seems to be slightly making up for the above ear dilemma. Gala announced a contest on her site and if you win the huge prize, guess what happens to be in it? The very same ears I had been scouring to find!! Swoon! Fingers and toes crossed I win!

photos. I love taking photos and thankfully there is probably no better place than Disneyland to take hundreds. I won’t bore you with every single shot, so stay tuned next week for the top ten pictures and tips for Disney fun!

my aunt’s birthday. My favorite aunt – whom I visited in Albuquerque last year – had her birthday today, so my mom and I called her up and sang to her. She said the one time she wears mascara, we had to call up and be sweet. I love making people’s makeup run from happiness!

Corgis on a Treadmill!

Some people might get put off by the mere title having glitter in it. One of my friends flips out whenever a spec comes in close proximity to her. But thankfully, glitter is not the main glue of this story. It’s friendship. Friendship tougher than any industrial craft adhesive, tougher than glitter. For fun, I made a littl Polyvore set with pictures of the book, the Chica herself, and some elements of the book:

photo info and credits here

This book touched me so that instead of just writing “it was awesome,” I thought I’d get a little personal and show you the letter I sent to the author, Kathy Cano-Murillo.

Dear Crafty Chica,
First off, as a fellow Phoenician I want to say a HUGE gracias for writing a book that takes place in a city so close to my corazón. Too much spanglish? I’ll try to tone it down. I just finished reading your novel and not only did it have me in stitches (haha craft puns!), but it touched me on a level that was completely unexpected. Star could not be more like me if she had been my glitter-covered Siamese twin! Her inability to finish things, her hurricane energy, her inventiveness, her wandering through life. A paraphrase of a line that really resonated with me, from Chloe: Star may not know what she wanted to do in life, but she would sure help you if you did.
I started crying at that point. That is me! I loved all the different layers of your characters and your passion not only for writing and crafting, but for forming characters you could read about forever.
Thank you so much for this novel, and I know something that will be stuffed in all my amigas stockings this Christmas!
Viva Love and Glitter!
Jessica

For more info about Kathy Cano-Murillo, Crafty Chica herself, visit her website. For information about her writing or tips on writing, visit her sister site, Chica Writer.

My glass is always half full.

So, with my love of lists and extreme optimism on my part, I have started thinking about things I have wanted to do. I decided that some of these things would never be done if I didn’t have a deadline, so i decided to make a list of things I have want to do before I turn 27. I have started a little late, considering I only have about 9 months left of being 26, but I am a sucker for procrastinating and working well under pressure. Without further ado, the LIST:

1. Another tattoo, or a beautiful touch-up of my existing ones

2. Get down to ideal weight (including some killer muscles!)

3. Make a vlog

4. Start a photo-folio

5. Begin writing my screenplay

6. Help out at a women’s shelter

7. Successfully grow a garden

8. Sew my own dress

9. Babysit

10. Take pictures in photobooths with all my closest friends (though maybe not all at once)

11. Do something for my mom she has been putting off doing herself

12. Having a significant amount of clutter released from my house and into the wild

13. Stay in an historic hotel

14. Have a girls night out

15. Road trip!

16. Have written a short story everyday for at least 3 months

17. Get all my craft hurricanes sorted and organized

18. Bake at least 3 new desserts and 3 new dinners

19. Photograph lightning

20. Watch a meteor shower

21. Bike to a destination (work, gym, store)

22. Not get into debt over Christmas

23. Visit friends in another city

24. Visit and help my grandma with yardwork and cleaning

25. Get my car running in tip-top shape (mostly) by myself

26. Shoot a short movie

27. Read a classic I have never read before

photo of my sis. But that was my coffee cup.

Dearest Morning Coffee,

      I just wanted to write you a sincere thank you for not only keeping me energized enough to function and not be grumpy, but for helping me feel like a grown up in work situations. I can come into a meeting with my mug and people know I am going to drink my coffee and look thoughtful. BAM.

     I am a very forgetful person. Ask anyone who’s known me for more than a day. I have forgotten my schoolwork, house keys, cameras, wallets, people, food…I could go on and on; but that’s not the point of this post. I have forgotten many things, but one thing I have never forgotten is my coffee on top of my car. People who do that, I question why they bother to buy things at all. They obviously don’t love life, or sunshine, or baby giggles. I WOULD NEVER FORGET MY COFFEE ON THE ROOF.

    Your Indebted Editor,

              Jess

I am in Love with Dashiell Hammett even more after reading Red Harvest. 

This week’s I will be taking five minutes to list my “Things I am in LOVE with right now.”

This is old, but every time I see it, it helps get me back to thinking on the positive.

I have been wanting to make my first international trip for a while, and I think New Zealand is the winner. It won’t happen for a while, but it’s good to start dreaming.

I love this post about finding fun everywhere but in buying things on Rowdy Kittens.

Always on the lookout for new, inexpensive, non-harmful plastic (or otherwise) water bottles, I found a few that I really enjoy. Even a cool French Army canteen!

I adore these shirts by Out of Print. I wish there were boatloads more!

These little teabag cookies are darling and every twee girl’s dream.

I am totally making one of these and wearing it when I have nighttime adventures, or astronomy walks!

Finding a new word: “magnasplendent” here and sprinkling my over-used exclamations with it. Planning a trip to the beach, making care packages and collages, The Beau buying me the new Dead Weather album(!), Mercury retrograde being over (finally!), and dreaming about a netbook-i cannot WAIT to get one!

Oh, and don’t forget the KSK Mailbag! The comments are gems, too.