braveheart

Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.
                                                               -- Anais Nin

see how my garden grows...

"Container plants are a bit like babies.  They rely entirely on you for every aspect of their lives: food, drink, comfortable compost for their roots, the right amount of sun or shade.  But provided you plant them properly and treat them well, they'll be bouncing and bonny - a real credit to your fostering skills."

                                                       --from Easy Container Gardening 

                                                          by Jackson and Hutchinson

it's all in how you see it

If you are distressed by anything external,
The pain is not due to the thing itself,
but to your estimate of it;
And this you have the power to revoke at any moment.
                                                --Marcus Aurelius

reading material

What's on my night stand:
Good Things by Mia King - a sweet little fiction story about a woman in her late 30's finding her way in life
Can You Keep a Secret by Sophie Kinsella - another fiction story by the author of the "Shopaholic" series
French Milk by Lucy Knesly - a charming little story about a 23 year-old's trip to Paris with her mother, told through drawings
The Rape of Europa by Lynn H. Nicholas - the true story of the fate of Europe's treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World War
The Artist's Way and Walking in this World by Julia Cameron - two books that are each like a workshop on unlocking your creativity and finding your true purpose in life
The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp - how to be your most productive and creative self by incorporating simple exercises and habits into part of your daily life
Museum of the Missing by Simon Houpt - a history of art theft

just do it

 I got this from here.

say hello to my "Little" friend...

This is Little.  He is an eight year-old Chihuahua mix.  He belongs to a friend of mine who had to go out of town for a few days... so he is staying with me.  He enjoys short walks, all kinds of people food including chocolate and whatever wrapper it might come in, cuddling and rolling around on the ground.  Besides a slight Napoleon complex, he is just the sweetest thing and we are having a fantastic time together.

just a thought...

When life kicks you, let it kick you forward.
                                            --E. Stanley Jones

a day at the beach

Crystal Cove is one of my favorite beaches.  It is located along Newport Coast; between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach.  I love it so much because I can ride my bike there and there are never any crowds.  Rare to find that at a beach here in Southern California.  A perfect way to spend a day!

modular design

This is a photograph of the final assignment for the 2D Color and Design class that I took during summer session.  It was all hand drawn and painted.  The hardest part was mixing the paint colors, and then painting it perfectly.  I used drafting tape to mask off the parts I didn't want any paint to get on, which was pretty time consuming to do for each and every different color.  In the end, it was worth it- I ended up getting an A!

summer is all about...

...soft serve ice cream.  Today finally felt like summer to me.  I rode my bike to the beach to dig my toes into the sand and lay in the sun for awhile.  On the way home I stopped to enjoy a soft serve ice cream cone.  That's what I call pure summer bliss.  Image from here.

fond of font

Jessica Hische is a rockstar.  She creates the most amazing fonts.  I'm in love with the font above, called Buttermilk.  Yummy.

do you want it all?

a little fun in the sun never hurt anyone...

counter service

Hanging out at Mary Jane's coffee shop in San Diego.