Category Archives: Life

May 06 2012
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Life, Travel

Retail Therapy: Anticipation Purchases

I fancy myself minimally materialistic.  I won’t lie and say that I don’t like new things– I do, but generally I avoid situations that make me want to purchase items that I don’t need.  In other words, I consciously avoid shopping.

However, today I gave in.  Alex and I went to find new jeans for him and came home with goodies for me.  New running shoes, check.  Need those to run on the beach.  A hat to block the Hawaiian sun from my face, essential.  Flip flops to replace the ones rotting from yard work, yep.  1950’s inspired D&G sunglasses to look cute, okay, I didn’t need those, I just wanted them, badly.

Thanks to Nordstrom Rack I managed to purchase all of these items for around $160.  Not bad when you consider that the D&G glasses retailed for $155 alone.  In fact, it’s a rare dose of retail therapy that so far brings zero remorse.  Usually, I have a hard time buying anything for myself, anything, and often I end up taking everything back.

I don’t feel guilty this time is because I justified everything as “necessary” vacation purchases for our summer trip.  A stretch, perhaps, but I have always derived extra morsels of anticipation from buying little things to use on vacation.  Somehow, these purchases prolong the happiness derived from travel as their imagined use enhances the entire experience.

Maybe retail therapy is not the secret to lasting happiness, but sometimes, it really doesn’t hurt.

My collected treasures…
Now I’m officially beach ready!
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May 05 2012
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Home, Life

To sell or keep your wedding dress?

Most people sound surprised when I tell them that I’m selling my wedding dress.

“Don’t you want to keep it?”
“What if your daughter wants to wear it?”
“I bet you’ll wish you had it when you’re an old lady.”
Maybe they’re right.  It is not an easy choice.  I am attached to it.  
However, it also bothers me, hanging there in my closet, taking up so much space for the sake of the past.  My real attachment is to the memories, the pictures, the day.  The actual dress is just one piece that happens to take up a gigantic amount of space in my bedroom’s “quaint” 1950s closet.
While I understand the logic of keeping it, I also romanticize the idea of it living on as part of someone else’s special day.  Perhaps it will be like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants but with a wedding dress between strangers.  I almost imagine it becoming its own story, a book even.  Living on from love story to love story.  Ending its life well-used, tattered in some thrift store until someone finds it and decides to reinvent it again.  Maybe I have too much hope for my little old dress.
The hippie in me likes the idea of selling it though.  Let someone else use it again.  Reduce, reuse, recycle.
I know there is a chance I’ll miss it, but I also enjoy the small act of rebellion in not holding onto it.  We’ll see.  Someone actually has to buy it first.  
When I went shopping for a wedding dress, I thought I wanted something understated, tea length maybe.  I almost bought a vintage Audrey-Hepburnesque dress that hit at the knees.  I anticipated the shock value of defying tradition.  However, no other day in my life would I ever have the excuse to revel in such pageantry.  I didn’t even want to try this dress on, but my sister Kaitlyn convinced me, and once it was on, I was happy.  Now, it would be cool if this dress could make someone else feel the same way!
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May 02 2012
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Home, Life, Teaching

Happy May Day: Let’s Bring Back the 40 Hour Work Week!

Life is so much happier when we spend 8 hours a day at work.  The days that I leave school at 3:30 feel so much more complete.  I have time for a nap, yoga, writing, walking the dog, and spending time with my husband– all in one evening!

However, 3:30 days are rare.  And, I know I’m not alone.  Eight hour days were uncommon at my old job.  Friends all complain of being overworked.  Companies blame the recession.  A recent media debate exploded around whether people have to be parents to justify leaving work at 6:00.

I know that I’m lucky.  If I plan my time right, I can leave at 3:30 some days.  As a teacher, I also get breaks.  But, I sacrifice pay for these luxuries.

In honor of May Day, I proclaim my support of a societal shift back to the 8-hour workday!  Call me a Marxist, but we could all use a little more life in our life!

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Apr 28 2012
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Life

You Can Go Back

Last night, I went to Woodstock’s Pizza in Davis with my husband and a friend.  I never realized how many memories I have connected to this place.  Late night post-party pizza trips with beloved friends, pizza deliveries to the dorms in order to avoid the dreaded DC, infamous stories of fake IDs confiscated in the pursuit of alcohol…  Apparently, Woodstock’s Pizza was much more memorable than I ever realized back in college.

It has been six years since I graduated, which means that some of these memories are ten years old.  Whoa.  I loved college, but I never fully appreciated this glorious period of my life until it was over.  Sleep until whenever, do whatever, surrounded by friends, (even if do whatever was fairly tame for me!).  I loved studying outside underneath the trees on the quad, giggling with friends over dinner, riding my bicycle all over town, claiming my apartments.  Really, college was my first real chance to be independent, and I loved it!
This past week, the theme in my life has been that you can go back in time, it just won’t be exactly the same.  Stepping out of the car in downtown Davis, I felt old.  Not in a bad way, but in a wow, I really was a baby 10 years ago way.  Standing in line to order pizza, I felt so much wiser than the giggling bunch of girls in front of us.  I once was them.  
The funny thing is that I kept watching the door, expecting old friends from college to walk through.  I found myself looking for Rachel, Tanya, Liz, and Katie.  I felt the ghosts of us sitting around a table in the center of the restaurant, laughing, gossiping, planning our futures.  Now, the future is here, and I am alright that I can’t fully go back.  It was enough to sit there and remember.
As Alex and Ryan talked about the present, I remembered everything I loved about Davis!
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Apr 23 2012
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Family, Life, Travel

The Next Twenty Years

I celebrated my grandmother’s 80th birthday in Bodega Bay with my family this weekend.  It was a surprise party, much like the party that we threw for her twenty years earlier, for her 60th birthday.  My family, and my mom in particular, gets a big kick out of surprising my grandma.

As we ended last night watching family videos of a beach house that we rented two decades ago, I reflected on life, time, and family.  We all know that time goes by too quickly, but gathered in a house perched over the ocean, there was a comforting sense of repetition, that we can still have the past in the present, if we remember to try.

I look forward to many more new memories with my family smushed together in beach houses, and, if fortune is on our side, another “surprise” party for my grandmother’s 100th birthday twenty years from now!

There is something magical about Polaroids, like they instantaneously validate the present as classic memories.  Thanks Nick for taking these, (and letting me steal them while you napped!).

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Apr 17 2012
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Life, Teaching

You’re as smart as you work to be!

I love this!

I’m telling my students over and over this month that you’re not born smart, you work hard to become smarter: “Your brain is like a muscle.  The harder you work it out, the smarter you get!”

This has fascinating implications for praise.  If we tell our kids that they’re smart, they’re less likely to take risks, because they’re afraid they’ll look dumb if they make mistakes.  On the other hand, if we praise their hard work, they’re more likely to take risks, grow, succeed.  For anyone interested in this concept, New York Magazine has a great article from a few years back:  “How Not to Talk to Your Kids.”

Makes total sense to me.  It took me 26 years to decide to try something that I might be bad at, (and, it’s still painful when I don’t immediately succeed).  Granted, my parents did not just praise intelligence, they also praised hard work, but I’d be curious to know how much praise I’ve received in life based on intelligence alone.

Maybe effort-based praise does not solve everything, but it’s still a very motivating concept for kids.  Anyone can be the “smart one” if he/she works at it!  I guess it’s a good reminder for us adults too…

Time to do some brain push-ups!

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Apr 13 2012
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Life

Good News: I no longer feel like I’m going to die!

One of the occupational hazards of teaching is germs.  I am constantly surrounded by germs.  In fact, something so nasty is going around my classroom that I had 6 students absent on Tuesday.  While this was pretty wonderful for the sake of quiet, focus, and my ability to teach, it was also downright horrible because I got sick too.

Even though I still do not feel great, I’m past that absolutely terrifying point where you feel like you’re going to die.  Seriously, my head and neck hurt so much that I was busy googling Meningitis.

Thankfully, it feels like the worst is over and I’m ready to drag my tired little body back to school tomorrow.

The only upside of being sick?

The honest to goodness excuse to do nothing productive.  I did not clean, I did not cook, I did not work, I just sat on my butt.  Generally, I find the need to do six productive things at once, so this little mental break was nice, even if it was excruciating to speak or move.

Among my more entertaining discoveries while sequestered to the couch was the documentary The Hollywood Complex, streamable on Netflix.  It chronicles families that move their children to an apartment complex in Hollywood that caters to parents hoping their children will become big stars.  The complex even touts famous alumni like Zac Efron and Hilary Duff, (speaking of which, Hilary’s now a mom, what the heck?!).

Don’t get me wrong– this is cheap entertainment, verging on trashy even, and definitely an interesting commentary on our societal obsession with celebrity.  However, for anyone like me that harbored childhood dreams of stardom, it is highly amusing!  As a teacher, it also made me wince at the education these kids are receiving.  One scene at a private school for child actors actually made me feel like an amazing teacher by comparison.

At any rate, sick or not, if you’re looking for something to pass the time, check it out!  Otherwise, take some vitamin C, wash you hands, and don’t let children cough in your face, (words of advice from an expert).

Photo courtesy of http://www.thehollywoodcomplex.com/

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Apr 07 2012
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Family, Life

Entrepreneur Love

Alright, I know that I’ve shared these fabulous entrepreneurs on Facebook, but I am all about giving love to the entrepreneurs in my life.  Growing up the daughter of one of the world’s great entrepreneurs, (as well as the sister to a girl that once sold rocks in our front yard and will likely be another great), I have always deeply admired people that take risks to create financial independence.

Heck, I have even tried unsuccessfully myself, (wedding videography/documentary maker anyone?!), so I definitely know the spirit when I see it and strive to continue chasing it through my writing.  Soon enough, I will also be married to an entrepreneur again, as Alex is imminently headed back to real estate.  Which reminds me, does anyone want to buy or sell a house?  Oh, wait, that’s a different post!

Back to the point, it seems like I am surrounded by inspiring entrepreneurs.  Here are a few recent inspirations in my life, thank you ladies for reminding me to be brave and take risks!

1.  Shaka Soaps

My husband’s cousin recently launched her own home business making all-natural soaps and spa products in Hawaii.  Not only are the ingredients wonderful, but the products are stylish.  Jessica followed her heart to take the risk to move her family to Hawaii and has not looked back.  I admire the guts!  Her home business is experiencing great success, including the use of her products by celebrities.  Doesn’t get much better than that!

 Check out Jess’ awesome products at:  http://www.shaka-soap.com/

2.  Tanya Leigh

My dear friend Tanya is blessed with the courage to pursue her creative endeavors.  She has sold gorgeous wedding veils, fabulous dresses, and handsome silk neck ties.  As a design major at UC Davis, she kept us all on our toes in her various fashion shows, (excuse the rhyming!).  Currently, she blogs for Style Bistro and does amazing freelance fashion illustrations.  I truly cannot wait to see what she does next!

 Check out Tanya’s creativity:  http://drawntostyle.blogspot.com/ 
3.  Botany Factory
Apparently UC Davis is just a hotbed of creativity, because another lovely friend from college, Katie, is a designer for Old Navy as well as the owner of Botany Factory, a quirky cute company that creates terrariums and offers occasional terrarium-making classes set to live Blue Grass music in the Mission in SF.  Katie has also received press attention for her terrariums, and I cannot wait to buy one!
Check out Botany Factory and adorable Katie:  http://www.botanyfactory.com/index.html 
4.  Flock & Farm
Staying at my aunt Colleen’s house was always the biggest treat when I was growing up.  She has been an entrepreneur longer than I have been alive, and her house was always abuzz with her pursuits.  Whether I was pouring through the blue prints for her contracting jobs or chasing around baby chicks for her pet store, I was always in kid heaven.  The best of course, was when she had baby sheep that I could bottle feed and cuddle.  I can still remember the wooly softness of a baby sheep hug!  Now, Colleen turns the wool from her sheep into gorgeous blankets for her business Flock & Farm.  With baby sheep season upon us, I think I may have to go visit sometime soon!

Check out Flock & Farm:  http://flockfarm.com/
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Mar 30 2012
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Home, Life

A Little Indulgence…

Downton Abbey is my new favorite escape.

It’s actually sort of an obsession, and I’m really not one to be obsessed with television shows, (in fact, most nights, I don’t watch any).  However, this show hooked me.  It pulled me into its fantasy world:

Watch me, escape from the 21st century, you know you want to…

Really, it’s like Little Women and Pride & Prejudice created a glorious baby.  Even with its occasional writing flaw, (which I can’t harp on too much, since I’m sure my writing is full of a thousand), it’s seductive.  The early 20th century British countryside setting is gorgeous, the costumes amazing, the plot just maddening enough to keep you wanting more.  And, beneath the glitz of all the nobility, it still manages to tell a compelling story of war, class struggle, and the women’s rights movement.

Sadly, Alex and I made it through the first two seasons at a record pace and now I have to wait for the Roaring Twenties to arrive in the fall.  Until then, I invite you to check it out, (season one is streamable on Netflix), and join me in the strange cult following that surrounds this period drama, (I heard about it on Facebook from more than one person before I finally gave in…).

I tried to find pictures that captured my fascination with the costumes, but I think that you’ll just have to watch to understand!
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Mar 24 2012
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Health, Life

Mission: Fruit & Veggie Consumption!

Lately, the universe has been screaming at me: Eat your veggies!

As you may remember, Alex and I did a juice fast last summer after watching the documentary Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead, (streamable on Netflix, trailer below).  It was amazing, helped Alex shed quite a few pounds, and altered our diet for months to follow.  However, once the holidays rolled around, we got sucked back into white flour, sugar, and processed foods.

Now, we’re both ready to up our fruit and veggie intake, lower our meat consumption, and cut out white flour and sugar with the occasional splurge.  My friend Jen was a big inspiration for this shift.  She, her husband, and her sister recently watched Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead and embarked on their own reboot raw food diet.  Since their “reboot,” Jen has not had to use her asthma inhaler and feels like she is in the best athletic condition of her life, (which is pretty incredible because she is always training for triathlons and other intense races!).

More inspiration came from watching the documentary Forks Over Knives, (trailer also below, streamable on Netflix).  The film emphasizes the importance of eating fruits and veggies and minimizing meat consumption.  Ironically, one of my students, a quirky kid with a highly developed sense of irony, also mentioned this film this week when I asked him about his daily lunch of multiple strips of bacon.  It seems that even bacon-eating children know that our diets need to change!

So, here I am, taking on the challenge of integrating as many fruits and vegetables as possible into our meals.  So far, so good.  One week in, I’m craving fresh produce and have managed to eat very little processed food.  The first couple of days were challenging, but now I’m certain I can keep it going, (especially after a delicious breakfast of freshly juiced OJ, avocado/tomato/jalapeno guacamole on black bean, brown rice, and egg tacos, and a strawberry/banana fruit bowl!).

At one point in my life, I would have thought that this was extreme, but now I’m convinced that it’s critical to our health, (see mom, I do listen!).  Nonetheless, I’m still eager for more easy-to-make recipes that highlight fruits and veggies, (especially for lunch!).  If you have any favorites that fit this description, please send them my way!

Also, make sure to check out the trailers below, they’re super inspiring!

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Mar 23 2012
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Life, Teaching

Willingness to Fail & Succeed!

As a new teacher, I feel like I fail in new and exciting ways everyday.  I say exciting because I have to remind myself that failure shows us how to live better.  In fact, since I stopped being afraid of failing, I opened myself up to pursuing endeavors that actually excite me.

Before, it was too demoralizing to think that I might fail at something that I really loved.  I mean, think about it.  You finally go after your dreams, don’t achieve them, and then what?  What are you left with?  I feared that if I lost the dreams, then I’d really hit bottom.

Fortunately, my view of failure magically shifted.  I realized that the people who achieve anything worthwhile, fail, then try again, and again, and again.  So, here I am, “failing” in little ways at teaching and writing on a regular basis, but still doing them both anyway.  In fact, I’d wager that my little failures help me get better everyday.  And, at least now, my dreams are potentially achievable.  I was getting nowhere by protecting them from failure.

This may seem obvious, or repetitive with things I have said before, but it’s a reminder that I have to give myself all of the time.  Even though I also have little successes everyday, it is still the failures that keep me striving to improve.  Why are some of my students still not learning?  Why is that student still so behaviorally challenging? Why does that whole section of my book still feel like it sucks?

Now, here’s the thing, focusing on our failures may seem pessimistic or overly harsh, but I disagree.  As long as we also celebrate our successes, failure is our chance to grow, to take action, and to be amazing!

***

On this note of eventual success, I want to express my gratitude for two unexpected sources of generosity today:

Out of the blue, my stepdad and mom solicited a donation from O’Bon for a class set of colored pencils, (and, these aren’t just any colored pencils, they’re eco-friendly, durable, and just-plain cute!).  My kind helpers were inspired by a story from my classroom when students received their own packs of crayons, (also thanks to my stepdad).  The kids were so excited that they cheered.  Ever since then, we’ve colored coded EVERYTHING we do and the students are much more engaged in their note-taking, math lessons, and worksheets as a result.  Amazing what a little color and art can do to stimulate the brain!

Thanks Dave, Mom, and O’Bon!

Seriously cool art supplies!  Click here to check out O’Bon’s site!

I don’t know what was in the air today, but a parent also called to offer to buy pizzas for our class lunch party tomorrow.  We’re celebrating the learning growth of students that kicked butt on their spring tests and her daughter was among the highest performers.  Because our school serves a very low-income population, I often have trouble getting basic supplies, (like kleenex and dry erase markers), so the offer for pizza was extra generous!  The parent told me that she was just grateful for how much I’d helped her daughter grow.  This touched my heart and reminded me that even amidst the failures, there are still a lot of successes to celebrate!

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Mar 18 2012
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Dogs, Life, Pets, Travel

Carmel-by-the-Sea

Exiting a coffee shop in Carmel, Alex turned and said to me, “Maybe old men just know what’s up!”

Even though we were younger than many of our traveling counterparts in Carmel, we did not mind one bit.  We just decided that older people must have a better sense for what is good in life, (and Carmel is so good that we actually want to move there!).

Here is what won us over:

1.  Carmel is a dog lover’s dream.  Dogs in the hotel room, no problem.  Dogs off least at the beach– great!  Dogs welcomed in restaurants and stores, of course!

2.  Pristine white-sand beach.  Need I say more?

3.  Everything is just so darn cute.  Cute town, cute restaurants, cute houses.  Cute.

If you’re headed that direction anytime soon, here were some things that we loved on our trip, (I’m a big fan of passing along travel ideas because, if you’re anything like me, word-of-mouth suggestions go a long way in curing indecisiveness!).

Sleep:  

Monte Verde Inn:  We ended up at the Monte Verde Inn because it had solid reviews and was reasonable at just $99/night during the off-season, (now!).

We were highly satisfied with it at that price– cute decor, private patio (unit 9), breakfast delivered in a basket daily, five blocks to beach, great restaurants around the corner, dog-friendly.  The only downsides were the small size of the room and the comfort of the bed, but at the price the pros far outweighed the cons. We’d happily return:

Small, but cozy, AND dog-friendly! 🙂
Everything is newly updated!
Morning breakfast basket on private patio… Simon wanted in on this!
Shared patio with live music/wine tasting on the weekends

Eat:  

Casanova:  Walking distance from our hotel, delicious Italian fare with beautiful patio.  Atmosphere and food live up to the price.  Great house wine and vegetarian ravioli!

I’m a sucker for twinkly lights, good food, yummy wine, and my husband!

Mon Chay:  I was skeptical about vegetarian Vietnamese food in Carmel, but this was amazing!  Possibly my favorite Vietnamese restaurant of all time!  Located directly off of Highway 1, it is a five minute drive from the village in a cute shopping center full of twinkly lights, (did I mention that I like twinkly lights?!).  The food was fresh, healthy, affordable, and delicious!

Wonton soup!
Vietnamese Chow Fun
Loved the big Buddha statue!
Parker Lusseau Pastries & Cafe:  Located only ten minutes from the aquarium, this bakery was a real find.  Delicious sandwiches and incredible desserts!  Friendly owner and staff to boot.  If I were getting married in the Monterrey area, I’d want my cake from here!
YUM! (I’d tell you what this was, but it was too fancy to remember the details… just yum!)
Does not look like much, but one of the best vegetarian sandwiches of my life.  Perfect bread.
Cute little outside spot to let the dog stretch his legs!

Play:

Carmel Beach:  No leashes required, friendly dogs, friendly people, gorgeous water, white sand… Alex and I ran with the dog each morning on the beach, definitely the highlight of our trip!

Carmel Village:  So many cool little details hidden throughout the village.  It is worth spending time just wandering around looking for the public art!
Diggidy Dog:  Clearly, we are fanatical about our dog.  This pet store is one of our all-time favorites, with a huge selection of toys and treats to spoil your mutt!
Simon lucked out with a dog-friendly sausage and donut!

Aspirational House Hunting:  Alex and I spent a couple of hours wandering around the village, looking at the houses for sale.  When an older couple asked if we were house-hunting, we happily replied that we were aspirational house hunting!  So many cool places to daydream about… Now we just need five to ten million dollars to spend…

One of our favorites!

Monterey Bay Aquarium:  Last, but not least, Alex and I hit up the aquarium in Monterrey.  So cool.  My favorite was the gigantic octopus, (I never knew that octopus were so intelligent or affectionate!).  Absolutely worth a visit.

A live feeding of fish and sharks
I love watching the jelly fish!

Next time you visit the area, send your tips my way!  We plan to be back, many, many times.  In fact, you might just have to visit us here someday…  Hopefully it will happen before we get old, but even if we have to wait to live here, it will be worth it.

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