Wow, it was three years ago this week that Mommy brought me home. Time sure does fly. Halloween is a scary time for me because it brings back memories of the day Mommy found me. Makes me shudder. Imagine being a tiny (yes, I was tiny once) 5 week old kitten crouched against the concrete barrier on the Interstate 95 at rush hour. Cars and trucks were speeding past less than five feet away. It was cold and windy up on the bridge and there was garbage blowing around, too. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if Mommy hadn't seen me, a little puff of orange fur. Even though she doesn't like heights, she walked up that big bridge and scooped me up in her hat. I may getting hissy and act up sometimes, but I'm so glad to have my Mommy. And she seems pretty happy to have me, too. I guess that was a Halloween treat for both of us.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Pumpkin's Halloween Memory
Wow, it was three years ago this week that Mommy brought me home. Time sure does fly. Halloween is a scary time for me because it brings back memories of the day Mommy found me. Makes me shudder. Imagine being a tiny (yes, I was tiny once) 5 week old kitten crouched against the concrete barrier on the Interstate 95 at rush hour. Cars and trucks were speeding past less than five feet away. It was cold and windy up on the bridge and there was garbage blowing around, too. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if Mommy hadn't seen me, a little puff of orange fur. Even though she doesn't like heights, she walked up that big bridge and scooped me up in her hat. I may getting hissy and act up sometimes, but I'm so glad to have my Mommy. And she seems pretty happy to have me, too. I guess that was a Halloween treat for both of us.
Scary Stories for Halloween
Trick or Treat!
I had two interactions recently, and I thought they would make interesting "Scary Stories" for a Halloween post. I have a few actual real-life ghost encounter stories as well (maybe I'll post another time), but these seem much more relevant.
The first occurred last Friday as I was driving to work. I recently put an "Obama/Biden" sticker in the rear window of my car (I just can't commit to actually sticking something on my car... even my NPR sticker is a removable window decal) and seeing that happy little O as I walk towards my car makes me smile. It unfortunately had a very different effect on another commuter. As I was traveling down the highway, going a steady 65 miles per hour as directed by the speed limit signs, a silver car was coming up fast on my left. I saw him approaching in the rear view and didn't think anything about it, as I was not in the left lane and there was no one blocking his ability to blow past me. However, when he came up even with my bumper, he beeped. I'm not a big fan of gratuitous horn blowing, so I thought maybe something was wrong. I looked over my shoulder only to see him passing me: he was nearly turned around in his seat, eyes completely off of the road ahead and glaring at me, one hand on the wheel while the other hand was emphatically giving me a thumbs down sign...and he was sticking out his tongue. As I was not driving erratically, was not blocking the passing lane with my obsessive obey-the-speed-limit mentality, and there was no other aspect of my average-run-of-the-mill-Honda that could have elicited such a response, I must assume that this poor fellow was offended by my Obama sticker.
The second interaction occurred when I sent out a brief email to many friends, family and co-workers to inform them of Alana's Etsy store going live. It seemed a harmless email. I was not begging or badgering them to buy anything. I wasn't guilting them into supporting this cause. I just wanted to share the news and offer up an alternative to Christmas shopping at Walmart. A friend of mine quickly replied, not with any thanks or encouragement about the site or the cause but instead with criticism: they should be adopting US babies. When I replied that I was certain all options had been considered and this was the path they chose, I was then further informed that, if US babies are so hard to get they should adopt older kids in foster care.
Both of these situations struck me as offensive examples of one person holding so firmly to the belief that they are correct and everyone else needs correcting. They fail to see that diversity, and the ability to make our own best decisions, is fundamental to being human.
I know that there are people who truly believe that McCain/Palin is the right choice for this country (even though it's painful for me to even type that...). There are also people who feel strongly about the concepts of family: what makes a family, who it comprises, and how it's made. There are people who would say that I couldn't possibly love my step dad as a "real" father, even though he is the one who really raised me. There are people who vote party instead of issue, or vote on one single issue instead of looking at the political landscape as a whole (for instance, voting for someone who claims to be pro-life (read: anti-abortion) but sees no problem with capital punishment, turning a blind eye to genocide, or perpetuating/starting wars).
I can believe in my heart of hearts that those things are wrong and, if asked, I will explain why. But what I won't do is force my beliefs, opinions or ideology on others. I will not cast judgement on people or their beliefs because, frankly, who the hell am I to say what is or is not best for someone else? The best that I can do is to explore and evaluate my own belief system, strive to live up to it as best I can, and hope that by doing so I can reflect to others the strength of my beliefs. It makes a much better argument than sticking out my tongue and giving you a thumbs down.
Have a happy, safe Halloween!
I had two interactions recently, and I thought they would make interesting "Scary Stories" for a Halloween post. I have a few actual real-life ghost encounter stories as well (maybe I'll post another time), but these seem much more relevant.
The first occurred last Friday as I was driving to work. I recently put an "Obama/Biden" sticker in the rear window of my car (I just can't commit to actually sticking something on my car... even my NPR sticker is a removable window decal) and seeing that happy little O as I walk towards my car makes me smile. It unfortunately had a very different effect on another commuter. As I was traveling down the highway, going a steady 65 miles per hour as directed by the speed limit signs, a silver car was coming up fast on my left. I saw him approaching in the rear view and didn't think anything about it, as I was not in the left lane and there was no one blocking his ability to blow past me. However, when he came up even with my bumper, he beeped. I'm not a big fan of gratuitous horn blowing, so I thought maybe something was wrong. I looked over my shoulder only to see him passing me: he was nearly turned around in his seat, eyes completely off of the road ahead and glaring at me, one hand on the wheel while the other hand was emphatically giving me a thumbs down sign...and he was sticking out his tongue. As I was not driving erratically, was not blocking the passing lane with my obsessive obey-the-speed-limit mentality, and there was no other aspect of my average-run-of-the-mill-Honda that could have elicited such a response, I must assume that this poor fellow was offended by my Obama sticker.
The second interaction occurred when I sent out a brief email to many friends, family and co-workers to inform them of Alana's Etsy store going live. It seemed a harmless email. I was not begging or badgering them to buy anything. I wasn't guilting them into supporting this cause. I just wanted to share the news and offer up an alternative to Christmas shopping at Walmart. A friend of mine quickly replied, not with any thanks or encouragement about the site or the cause but instead with criticism: they should be adopting US babies. When I replied that I was certain all options had been considered and this was the path they chose, I was then further informed that, if US babies are so hard to get they should adopt older kids in foster care.
Both of these situations struck me as offensive examples of one person holding so firmly to the belief that they are correct and everyone else needs correcting. They fail to see that diversity, and the ability to make our own best decisions, is fundamental to being human.
I know that there are people who truly believe that McCain/Palin is the right choice for this country (even though it's painful for me to even type that...). There are also people who feel strongly about the concepts of family: what makes a family, who it comprises, and how it's made. There are people who would say that I couldn't possibly love my step dad as a "real" father, even though he is the one who really raised me. There are people who vote party instead of issue, or vote on one single issue instead of looking at the political landscape as a whole (for instance, voting for someone who claims to be pro-life (read: anti-abortion) but sees no problem with capital punishment, turning a blind eye to genocide, or perpetuating/starting wars).
I can believe in my heart of hearts that those things are wrong and, if asked, I will explain why. But what I won't do is force my beliefs, opinions or ideology on others. I will not cast judgement on people or their beliefs because, frankly, who the hell am I to say what is or is not best for someone else? The best that I can do is to explore and evaluate my own belief system, strive to live up to it as best I can, and hope that by doing so I can reflect to others the strength of my beliefs. It makes a much better argument than sticking out my tongue and giving you a thumbs down.
Have a happy, safe Halloween!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Etsy and the Handmade Pledge
There are at least two new Etsy shops open, just in time for holiday shopping!
My dear friend Alana has opened "Molasses - Sweet Handmade Stuff." It's a wonderful cooperative of artists (myself included!) offering their combined creative forces in one great shop. Check it out here: http://molasses.etsy.com/.
I was so inspired by Alana (thanks also go to Ian, who has constantly kept this thought in the front of my mind!), that I decided to finally have a go at selling some of the products of my creative endeavors in my own Etsy shop: http://skyetyler.etsy.com/. Okay, the name is not nearly as cute as Alana's. But when I created the site I was having daydreams about someday actually having my own line of products and thought "Skye Tyler Designs" was an apt enough name.
I only have one item posted at the moment, as the bulk of my projects are currently designated as gifts. That being said, however, I did just spend a chunk of change at the Fabric Place to buy supplies to stock my virtual shelves! Stay tuned for new items arriving soon!
If you want to try something new and exciting for the holidays, why not take the Handmade Pledge? It makes for better gift giving and is better for people and the environment!
If you aren't familiar with Etsy, it's definitely worth the look. It's a great way for small-scale artists to sell their wares at reasonable prices. Being one of those artists, I especially love the fact that it's geared to handmade things! Why buy some mass produced piece of mediocrity, when you can buy a one-of-a-kind piece of art and know that the money actually goes straight to the artist?
My dear friend Alana has opened "Molasses - Sweet Handmade Stuff." It's a wonderful cooperative of artists (myself included!) offering their combined creative forces in one great shop. Check it out here: http://molasses.etsy.com/.
I was so inspired by Alana (thanks also go to Ian, who has constantly kept this thought in the front of my mind!), that I decided to finally have a go at selling some of the products of my creative endeavors in my own Etsy shop: http://skyetyler.etsy.com/. Okay, the name is not nearly as cute as Alana's. But when I created the site I was having daydreams about someday actually having my own line of products and thought "Skye Tyler Designs" was an apt enough name.
I only have one item posted at the moment, as the bulk of my projects are currently designated as gifts. That being said, however, I did just spend a chunk of change at the Fabric Place to buy supplies to stock my virtual shelves! Stay tuned for new items arriving soon!
If you want to try something new and exciting for the holidays, why not take the Handmade Pledge? It makes for better gift giving and is better for people and the environment!
If you aren't familiar with Etsy, it's definitely worth the look. It's a great way for small-scale artists to sell their wares at reasonable prices. Being one of those artists, I especially love the fact that it's geared to handmade things! Why buy some mass produced piece of mediocrity, when you can buy a one-of-a-kind piece of art and know that the money actually goes straight to the artist?
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
What is Autumn?
Summer has faded into memory and the season has shifted firmly to Autumn.
What does Autumn mean to me?
Autumn is the time of year when our usually stoic and passive landscape puts on such a vibrant flash of color one might think the trees are dressing in drag.
What does Autumn mean to me?
It means picking apples...
and pumpkins! And other harvesting activities...
like making applesauce...
and salsa!
Autumn is the time of year when our usually stoic and passive landscape puts on such a vibrant flash of color one might think the trees are dressing in drag.
It means that the Praying Mantis is going to be leaving my marigolds soon, hopefully to come back again next summer to keep the pests away.
Autumn means that the days are shorter, the nights are colder and using the oven is now a welcome idea! Autumn is when I turn all my crafting energy in earnest to holiday gift making. There have been years past when I held a grudge against Autumn, in all it's vibrant glory. I viewed it as the last lingering note of summer's symphony before the crushing silence of winter's gloom. I don't deal well with the lack of sun and simple outdoor activities. But I know the value of winter. I know that all things must have a time of rest: trees, gardens, me. I'm going to make an attempt this year to view winter not as an end, but as a pause between movements: a chance to recuperate, recover, and allow myself to recharge.
Monday, October 20, 2008
My First 5K Race and a birthday party
This weekend was PERFECT for my first ever 5K road race! I signed up, and raised $90, for the Mystic Aquarium's Run (or walk) for the Penguins on Saturday, October 18.
The morning dawned cool and clear, and I woke at 6:30am to eat a few eggs for breakfast (with plenty of time to digest before the event!). I got to the Aquarium around 8:15 to get registered and warmed up. About 200 people had pre-registered, and another 300 or so showed up on Saturday! They ended up delaying the start by 10 minutes to allow all the new folks to get registered. 
There were two very bored looking penguins at the starting line to get us going.
The race itself was a lot of fun. We ran part of the course on back roads in small neighborhoods, so there was hardly any traffic. The course also ran through a field scattered with not-quite-ripe pumpkins and along a trail in the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Preserve. I was somewhat unprepared for the two seemingly large hills, but am still proud of my finishing time (race results will be posted here...eventually). I jogged more than I walked, but didn't push myself to the point of pain.
The best part, though, is now that I have completed a race I know that it is something I can do. Just a few months ago I would not have imagined myself as the kind of person to run races (I used to claim "I only run when I'm being chased"). Now, I'm looking forward to the 27th Annual Knights of Columbus 5K in Westerly on November 9. I plan on taking part in at least four 5k races over the course of 2009 and hope to be able to jog the entire way by this time next year. The fact that I'm doing this for myself and my health makes it even sweeter. I may never come in first, but it's the journey, and the process, that matters to me!
After the race I baked a batch of yummy Whole Wheat Oatmeal Peanut Butter cookies and walked over to Westerly for Sammy's 3rd Birthday Party!
After a little encouragement, Sammy was willing to share his bat with the other kids.
"I had cake for you, but I eated it..."
The Girls!
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