Monkey See, Monkey Do

Here is a tribute to Mr. Sock-Monkey, one of my favorite projects from last summer.  I am now considering making a lady friend for him.

       See evil...                              Hear evil...                        Clearly, don't care.

Inspiration:
http://www.craftbits.com/project/sock-monkey

The "Dad socks" I purchased from Target came in a two-pack bundle, so I got a little creative with the second pair and turned it into a argyle sweater vest.  This monkey has some serious swag!  His arms are a bit lumpy because it was my first time working with stuffing, but the joker in me wants to suggest that he has simply been working out.

Heightened Awareness

Inspired by a friend to revisit my blog :)

So my drug of choice lately, since I am above the influence and all, has been running.  And by lately I mean since Spring finally decided to arrive in the Midwest a couple of weeks ago.  I had heard of "runner's high" before, and since exercising always makes me feel good about myself, I thought I had experienced the feeling before too.  A few days ago I actually got a taste of the endorphin-induced high like never before, and have been tripping ever since (unintentional pun, but I think it works).

The key to the success of this running experience was probably that I set out sans ipod.  I was genuinely nervous at the thought of running without my apple buddy for moral support.  Fear of boredom is a legitimate thing, I just declared it.  I mean, if I got bored halfway through my run, I would be stuck a long ways from home with nothing to do but run... imagine that.  But when I pushed those thoughts to the back of my head and just did it Nike style, I saw that being outdoors with nothing but my keys tucked into my shoelaces, no sense of time, and no real destination was thoroughly liberating.  I know that is a kind of a sugary sentiment, but it is 100% true.  I could hear my heart pumping in overdrive, and the dogs barking across the street. It felt like a switch was turned on and I was suddenly aware of so many things.  So my new fitness goal is that from now on, more of my runs will be be tuned out.

This makes me think about the number of other things we do everyday, "disconnected" from the world.  When I take the train to work, almost every person has earbuds in his ear, or an ipad in his hands and is otherwise occupied. This recent running experience has made me realize how wonderful it is to be aware of yourself.  Is it not amazing that my body listens when I tell it to move?  And that I can sit in a train for fifteen minutes and travel miles without moving a muscle?  It is possible that I am getting carried away with these revelations but these are things that are on my mind.  I think need to be silent more so I can rediscover these simple reminders of how blessed I am.  I envision that this would be very good for me and my mental health.  So my new life goal is to tune in on the task at hand more often, or I guess tune out depending on how you look at it.

Cheesy jokes always win.

DIY Pillow Covers

In my quest to find inexpensive ways to decorate my new apartment, I made a trip to Jo-Ann Fabrics and was inspired to mix and match different colors and patterns.  My latest do-it-yourself project (which I spent only $5 on!) took me five hours to finish but was completely worth every blister on my finger.  Since I still have so much of this fabric left over, I am excited to play around with different shapes/patterns and make more of these removable pillow covers... hopefully with the help of a sewing machine next time!

 

I cut the two fabrics into strips, sewed them together in a quilt-like fashion, and cut the backing into two parts to create a flap...

Green is totally my new favorite color!

A "Personal" Reminder

People are people first, and how they fit into your life second.
I am tempted to take credit for this because Google failed me for the first time and has not come up with any hits for this quote.  I did hear this a while ago from someone else but regardless of the source, this line is a real thinker.  People, myself included, would most likely be much happier and would probably appreciate the people in their lives more if they remind themselves that each person is his own person (does the word "person" suddenly look funny?). Others do not exist simply to be a part of your life and cater to your wants and needs... they are each living a life of their own.  It seems like common sense, but I think it is also very easy to forget.

Everyone puts so much pressure, so many hopes, and so many expectations in the people around them and are disappointed countless times.  Think about any situation with another person.  How many times do you go into the situation expecting that things will go a certain way?  I am always expecting people to treat me a certain way, or to feel a certain way, or to react in a certain way and when they don't, I am disappointed.  This is rarely because of anything that he or she did but because of the preconceived notions about the person and situation that I created in my own head.

Being a part of society means that it is important to be social, but sometimes we get so caught up in everything that we forget about ourselves. As flight attendants say in their pre-takeoff choreographed routines, help yourself before you help others.  Work on turning yourself into the person you want to be, and then think about others. Because at the end of the day, it is every man for himself.  That sounds harsh, but I believe that it is true.

I am going to remind myself of this more often because I tend to get pretty frustrated when other people approach a situation differently than I would, which is silly.  I should have faith in that people are treating me a certain way, or feeling a certain way, or reacting in a certain way for their own certain reasons.  Besides, why should I sacrifice my own peace of mind for something, or someone, over which I have no control?  Why should something as important as my own happiness be based around somebody else? So you do your thing, and I'll do mine.  More on this later if I am still thinking about it...

Resourcefulness

I suppose that, even with three weeks' time, I still have not been able to come up with my list of resolutions for 2011... but I have been thinking that resourcefulness is an excellent quality to have.  People these days are busier than ever and money, time, and energy have become scarce resources. In less than a month I will be moving to a new city, working full-time for the first time in my life (goodness!), making car payments and dishing out more than half my paycheck on living expenses.  This year, more than ever, I feel that learning to make the most of what I have will get me very far.

Resourcefulness = Necessity + Creativity + Persistance

My first step in this new direction has begun with an art project I just finished.  I have been looking for inexpensive ways to spruce up the less-than-lavish apartment I will probably be living in and stumbled across this very resourceful way of adding a little color to plain walls using paint samples.

This cost me $3 and about 15 minutes of my time... can't wait to find a home for these in my new place!

**DISCLAIMER: You may feel slightly guilty for stealing these samples from the local hardware store but the feeling is only temporary and will pass sooner than you think :P

Resolutions

One of my favorite pastimes lately has been Googling. As it is the first day of 2011, I decided to enter "new year" into the search bar, which led me to spend a good part of the day thinking about how and why people celebrate the start of the new year.  New Years Eve is a holiday that simply celebrates the passage of time.  It makes sense then that people use this occasion to look back on the past year and to make goals for the year to come.

I have maintained and broken my fair share of new year's resolutions in the past: eating healthier, picking up a new hobby, avoiding procrastination, etc. But this year I really want to make a meaningful resolution. I am writing this in the hopes that the perfect resolution will materialize before the end of the day, with less than one hour left... so much for not procrastinating!

**Afterthought:  Perhaps maintaining this blog will be my new personal commitment?