Thank You Notes

For this entry, I drew inspiration from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon's "Thank you," segment and combined it with my quest to find happiness in the simple things. The little things give us the biggest rewards--if we took the time to realize it!

Here are my thank you notes for this week:

Thank you, internet, for making this blog possible. I've long been a blog reader,  but never seriously donned the writer hat--you make it more possible to learn and execute projects like this...thank you! P.S. You also make hulu possible...which is additionally admirable.

Thank you, The Roost , for being an enticing establishment and luring in some other recent alums while I stopped by for coffee on Sunday morning. Through our conversation, it was discovered that we ALL feel alone and freaked out in this weird, post-college phase of our lives. Phew! (come back later this week for adjusting to post-college life post!)

Thank you, Trader Joes, for having every pumpkin-flavored product possible at an affordable price. I made mini loaves of pumpkin bread with chocolate chips yesterday afternoon--an indulgent fall treat to enjoy! Also, for your wittily-written flyers that come in the mail every month!

Thank you, sunshine, for waking me up in the morning, and going away when I am ready for rest. Although I miss you lately, (seeing less of you this time of year and such) I know you're looking out for me. I salute you.

Thank you, Mount Holyoke College Victory Eights (my former a cappella group), for providing your audiences with listening pleasure. Also, for singing with me again this weekend--boy, did that feel good!

Thank you, favorite slouchy hat, for keeping my head, ears, and smile warm. You're my adult version of a security blanket and for this, I thank you.

...and that's all I wrote!

Who/what/where are you writing thank you notes to this week?

The Friday Folio: Oct. 19, 2012

Every Friday, I'm going to post the best things I've come across by the end of the week: music, other blogs, art etc. This week is music-heavy...I didn't think you'd mind :)

Enjoy this week's findings!

First off is something rather dated (from Nov. 2010), but if you haven't heard it--now is the time! An all-star team of string players (including Yo Yo Ma and a new obsession of mine, Chris Thile) perform in the vein of Bluegrass for the Tiny Desk Concert series. The quartet plays three pieces from their album (The Goat Rodeo Sessions) so expertly and beautifully, it's beyond well worth the 15 min 42 seconds. Give it a listen. 

The Stray Birds & Three Tall Pines

On Wednesday night, I drove into Boston to Club Passim  to see a band I've been a follower of since spring, The Stray Birds (on left) perform on a co-bill with the Boston-local Three Tall Pines (bottom left). Passim was packed, and the bands didn't disappoint the expectant crowd. Surely in the vein of folk/roots/Americana, these groups combine expert instrumentals with nostalgic, beautiful song-writing.

Multiple stringed instruments and tight harmonies are the solid foundation upon which these groups expand into new musical territory. 

Look out for a future focus post on The Stray Birds...those guys are my jam!

images courtesy of thestraybirds.com & threetallpines.com 

Last, but not least: Lake Street Dive's cover of "I Want You Back" just gives me the happiest, goofiest smile--they're harmonies are rich and warm like a blanket of music, and the soloist...well...you'll see. Thanks, Mom, for sending these guys my way! 

Comment or tweet me if you like what you hear! 

No binders, please...

...although comments like Mittens' do spark the instant creation of memes that make me laugh, so I'm a little bit more okay with it: http://bindersfullofwomen.tumblr.com/

Here's one of my personal faves...

No, Sir, one does not. So excited for Jon Stewart & The Daily Show to comment on this. I can just see his face now.

Sent in my request for an absentee ballott -- CT needs my vote! Have you taken all the necessary steps to cast your vote on November 6th? It's simple. Google and the US Postal Service are all you need.

There's no questioning that it is your duty as a person who can read, write, and make an informed decision, that you participate in all votes. If we don't use our democrazy, how are we to blame it for its shortcomings?

Vote!
GOBAMA!

Rediscovering the Rainbow...the Reading Rainbow.

Take a look, it's in a book...

When we were learning to read, it's all we wanted to do; bringing home a big stack of books from the public library was the biggest treat for baby Lucy. Then came those YA novels that coincided with puberty and we were enraptured. Then high school where we read a chapter a night for our English classes--but the fact that reading was required seemed to take the whim out of it (and the fun). College further damaged the love I had for reading as a leisure activity; it was academic, hard to get through, and indigestible pounds of it were assigned every night. So when I graduated in May and put academia on hold, I also set out on the quest to find my love of reading again. I wanted to feel that sense of child-like wonder when I picked up a book, to smell those musty pages and know that there was nothing keeping me from the richness to be had inside.

The journey is just beginning, but I'm reading more and more for happiness (the phrase, "reading for pleasure" makes me vom) as the days roll by. 

A few things have helped me on this path:

1. time: I have a fair amount of it now that I'm out of school and working. There's nothing like being able to say "I have nothing to do for the next hour but read this book."

2. a library card: As the Arthur crew said, "Having fun isn't hard, when you've got a library card!" They were right. I love browsing titles in this FREE institution that exists in many of our towns and cities. Check it out...and check some out. 

3. a journal: Since we're not required to understand the text for a class, it can be easy to wander off (not that we didn't do this when it was required for a class). I find reading with a journal at hand gives me a place to keep track of what I'm learning (especially when reading Biography or other non-fiction).

4. a comfy setting...but not too comfy: I find the hardest part about loving reading again is how much I've grown to love sleep in the past four years. I can't read in bed...cause that would be sleeping...so I've been doing a lot of it in coffee shops, on the couch (upright), and often with some coffee at hand. 

This week, I'm reading a biography of Charles Dickens by Jane Smiley. Recommended to me by my Father, I think it will be the first of many biographies I read this winter. With my work at the museum, learning everything about Emily Dickinson, I've begun to wonder if the lives of writers and artists aren't the most interesting stories to be told. 

Here's a little reading inspiration...

What have YOU been reading lately for happiness? 

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Tunes for your Monday

Chic Gamine: four female voices and one percussionist form this band that performed on last weekend's Prairie Home Companion. The group hails from Winnipeg, Canada.

taken from Chic Gamine's website...

Chic Gamine (which translates roughly as stylish mischievous young thing - let’s face it, the French say these things so much better) will tease and tempt you with a nostalgia-inspired, fresh new sound – the mix is indescribable, but unbearably tasty. Do you believe in Chic Gamine? You’d be a fool not to.

I do! The harmonies these girls got going on are unreal and the combo of the female voices with nothing but drums gives me chills--the perfect music to brighten up this cloudy Monday!

Check them out, trust me. 
To Learn More
To Listen

Image courtesy of www.chicgamine.com/photos

About me

I'm a restarter, but not necessarily a completer.