Give Away Announcements
Hear Ye! Hear Ye! I hereby declare all of the winners of last week’s Give Aways!
From Friday, January 21 ~ which was for a Mystery Goodie ~ our winner is Jamie. Jamie will receive my Ordinary Sparkling Moments Postcard Set.
Tokyo Give Away #1 was for three Japanese greeting cards, and the big winner for those is Beth, whose blog Do What You Love is overflowing with inspirational goodness.
Erica is the winner for Tokyo Give Away #2, which was for one of the lovely little washcloths I’m obsessed with, wrapped beautifully, of course.
Here are the goodies for Wednesday’s Mystery Pack ~ a small decorative paper tray with tiny easel to display, cherry blossom stickers and little page markers. Kathryn is the lucky winner for this trio of treasures.
Thursday’s treasure chest includes a sticker pack and two rolls of decorative masking tape ~ I came back with a stack of these! Suzy Royle is the winner!
Friday’s winner will receive ~ from left to right in the photo above ~ a tiny notepad, some decorative coin envelopes, and a small stack of origami papers. Barbara I. is our winner!
Happy Birthday to Sarah ~ who is the winner for Saturday’s Give Away, and yesterday’s winner is Natasha!
Thank you to EVERYONE for all of your wonderful comments. It was such a treat to come home to so many kind, inspiring messages, and I loved having an excuse to throw a few extra goodies in my shopping baskets last week.
Today’s Give Away ~ my last Give Away for the month ~ is for the trio of inspirational goodness pictured above ~ my “Gentle Hands” wall art, a You Are… Postcard Set, and one canvas bookmark from my Demdaco collection. Everyone who leaves a comment today will be entered, and I will announce the winner in tomorrow’s entry.
Until then, here’s a sound snippet from Roppongi Crossing, recorded on Tuesday, January 25th:
Just Us
We returned home on Friday from Tokyo. Although we left at 6:30pm Tokyo time Friday, we arrived in Los Angeles at 11:30am the same day. Since then I have felt good in terms of jet lag, even thinking that maybe because it was such a quick trip it wouldn’t hit me so hard. Until this morning, when I slept in until 10:30 ~ which never happens ~ and even then the only reason I pulled myself out of bed is because my husband came up to rouse me. I am now sitting in our kitchen practically gulping my coffee, willing it to fill my body with the energy of a brand new day. Ah ~ jet lag ~ a small price to pay for adventures abroad.
Our first morning in Tokyo my husband and I went down to breakfast, where he promptly ran into someone he knew (in Tokyo!) It was a colleague of his who later introduced us to one of his colleagues ~ a young woman who works for him. After this introduction, the gentleman said something along the lines of this to me: “Too bad I need her today, otherwise she could go shopping with you!” My knee-jerk reaction was to take offense and say, “How do you know I’m not heading out into the city to do research for my thesis or documentary film or embarking on an archaeological dig?” But then it hit me ~ I am going shopping! That’s my entire purpose for the day ~ to shop. Till I drop. At the shoppiest of all Tokyo shopping areas ~ the Ginza. And I won’t be satisfied until I have bags bulging and arms weighed down with the long list of procurements I started working on the minute I knew I was going on this trip.
I don’t usually think of myself as a mega-shopper, but on this trip I was going for it. Thank goodness the things I like to buy are small and light ~ papers, small books and art supplies, stationery, and the small washcloths presented in colorful displays at the big department stores. My morning and evening ritual is to wash my face, and these little washcloths are extra soft and smaller than usual, so they are perfect for such a ritual. They are a big deal in Tokyo ~ women use them to blot their faces in humid summer months, and also at public restrooms where disposable towels for drying hands are not available. I came home with a rainbow assortment ~ with paisleys, stripes, flowers, daisies, and even Burberry plaid. It’s always the little things that bring joy into the smallest of moments, so even though these are nothing more than basic bathroom linens, I treasure them.
One part of Tokyo I discovered for the first time is the used bookstore area in Akihabara. Tokyo is all about these concentrated neighborhoods that focus on certain themes ~ antiques, electronics, musical instruments, and even motorcycle gear. The used bookstore section has more than 150 small shops filled with stacks of old books from floor to ceiling. Should I have the privilege of visiting Tokyo again someday, I will be sorely tempted to bring an empty suitcase in order to fill it with items found there.
More stories and snippets will be forthcoming this week ~ including a series of recorded sounds from all over the city. I’ve taken zillions of pictures in Tokyo, and on this trip I left my camera at home, wanting to release myself from the pressure of trying to record every detail that caught my eye. Armed with only my iPhone, I was able to take a few photos here and there, but was more focused on capturing what I heard versus what I saw.
In the meantime, today’s Give Away is for my “Quiet Spaces” Wall Art ~ pictured above. Tomorrow will be the Big Give Away Extravaganza, when I will post photos of all the Tokyo Give Away Goodies, announce each day’s winners from this past week, and also post the final Give Away of the month. After spending the week in a city with as many inhabitants as the entire state of California, I have been savoring the quiet few days my husband and I have been sharing with little Tilda in our home (although at more than sixty pounds, she’s not so little anymore.) It is so rare we get such a long stretch of time when it is just us ~ reading, resting, and letting the day unfold slowly ~ and I am grateful for these rare occasions. There is nowhere to go, nothing to perform, no errands to run, and no schedules. Only time, and the easy sharing of space and silence.
Spring 2011
With my completed manuscript just finished and submitted to my editor ~ on time! ~ I’ll be taking a breather for a while to work on new ideas, travel, and get ready for the November 2011 release of the book. But there are still plenty of ways to stay connected, with interviews, features, contributions, and stories in the following publications, websites, and e-courses:
Where Women Create
Create Mixed Media
Somerset Studio
Somerset Apprentice
Wish Studio
Gypsy Girl’s Guide
I Am Enough
Courageous Beginnings
Do What You Love
Sparkles
Winding Down
{Today’s Give Away is for another set of 8 Inspirational Notecards ~ only two more Give Aways to go!}
100 Books Project :: Paris, Part Two
{Book #90, left in Paris, France by Book Fairy Tara Bradford.}
Today’s Give Away is for another Tokyo Mystery Gift ~ the last one for the week!
Um, OK, I am the tiniest bit heartbroken to say this, but it looks like I accidentally deleted the email I received from the person who found Book #90! But I did receive an email and perhaps I will stumble upon it the next time I go on one of my email organizing rampages and I’ll say, “Oh ~ there you are!”
In the meantime, this email popped into my box last November, and it gave me a huge smile:
Hi there!
I just wanted to let you know that I have received one of your books and it is #30. I had my eye on this book for a little while and it was on my Amazon wish list. I actually got one from the used section and when I received it the book was like brand new. When I saw the sticker in the book explaining about the 100 books you sent out into the world, it triggered the memory of my having read this concept of yours in one of my art magazines put out by Stampington Company. So I was thrilled to have actually received one. And the book is BEAUTIFUL!!!
Thanks alot
Julie, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Book #30 was originally left in downtown San Francisco by Book Fairy Kate Swoboda, so it looks like whoever found it decided to sell it on Amazon, and it ended up being sent to Julie, who had read about the 100 Books Project right here. In other words, it ended up going exactly where it was supposed to.
100 Books Project :: Paris, Part One
{Book #90 was placed in Paris, France by Book Fairy Tara Bradford.}
Today’s Give Away will be for another Tokyo Mystery Goodie!
I guess this means the final countdown of stories for the 100 Books Project has officially begun. Only ten more stories to post, and then I’ll be able to say, “That’s a wrap!”
This story’s a good one ~ check back tomorrow for Part Two!
“Since I met Christine in 2008 in San Francisco – and took home one of her gorgeous paintings – I’ve been a fan. It was a treat to spend time with her in Jordan earlier this year and witness a book fairy episode firsthand at the Amman Amphitheatre. So when Christine asked me to be her Paris book fairy, of course I was thrilled!
My first thought was to take it to the Louvre Pyramid. But the guards may have viewed it as a security issue and every time I planned to go, it rained. On Saturday morning I went to Le Palais d’Iena, the beautiful Greek-revival rotunda by Auguste Perret, which houses the Conseil Economique Sociale et Envrionnemental. The bronze statue seemed like the ideal place for Christine’s book to catch the eye of a discerning passer-by. Hope the lucky finder enjoys Christine’s book as much as I have!”
~ Tara Bradford, August 2, 2010
Tokyo Give Away #3
Today’s Give Away is for a Mystery Tokyo Treasure ~ mysterious even to me, because who knows what will catch my eye over there!
I also want to give a shout out to my favorite new blog ~ This Every Moment by Maya Stein. You know what I have to say about Maya? She had me at hello.
Tokyo Give Away #2
…and a Guest Post from Kate Swoboda! Today’s Give Away is for one of the small, colorful Japanese washcloths I am crazy about. I plan on bringing a heaping pile of them home with me, and will have one wrapped especially as a gift for this Give Away. Do you know what I love about this? Knowing it will be wrapped beautifully, because that’s how it’s done. Even for a washcloth.
~
Perhaps my favorite part of Christine’s book, Ordinary Sparkling Moments, are the pages where she writes this:
“In any conversation, exchange, or discussion, I try to imagine communication as a game of catch. I can either throw my words and ideas to the other person gently, in a way that enables them to accept what I am offering, or I can hurl something violently without thought or consideration. Do I want the other person to be able to receive what I am trying to say or do I want the exchange to feel like I am throwing an object squarely at their forehead?”
I remember having a really palpable reaction to these words: YES! Absolutely! When someone’s upset with me, I feel as if things are thrown at me that I just can’t quite catch! And this must be how others feel when I’m showing my upset at them!
I resolved to think of this when I was communicating with others.
But of course–the most important way that we can reframe communication is with the inner critic–the side of ourselves that gets fearful and triggered, and in that space, can really throw some punches. “Who do you think you are?” “Why bother?” “No one would like you/your idea.” –When your inner critic is afraid, this is what she sounds like.
And, in reaction to that, how do so many of us respond? By either not throwing the ball at all and blindly assuming that the critical voice is right, or by throwing the ball with force, hating the side of ourselves that is fearful and afraid.
I’d like to propose that those two options are extremes, and that there is, as the Buddhists say, “the middle way.” Reframing your relationship with your inner critic is the most powerful thing you can do on the journey to love and accept yourself. Start seeing it as an aspect of yourself that is much like an 8-year-old who’s had a long day and who gets a little messy when she’s afraid.
Communication is key. Start throwing the ball differently. I started with the phrase, “Re-do, please.” As in, my inner critic needs to rephrase what was said, because I require respectful communication in my relationships. Again and again– “Re-do, please. I need you to rephrase that more respectfully.”
When kids get upset, it’s good to set up boundaries without going so far as to see them as “bad people.” When our inner critics get upset, we can do the same thing–requiring the same respectful communication that we’d require from others. Now of course–this process takes time. It’s two steps forward, one step back. It’s getting present again and again to the ways that the inner critic voice will morph to stay in control, until that inner critic learns (because this is what you’re teaching it) how to be in relationship with you in a different way–in essence, how to work with fear in a different way, since that’s when the inner critic comes out. You’re leveling the playing field, really– setting up the kind of relationship where everyone can catch the balls that are thrown.
To learn more about Kate Swoboda and her life coaching work, head over to Your Courageous Life.
Tokyo Give Away #1
{Sacred Balance, by Pixie Campbell}
I wanted to give a shout out for the ever so talented and wise Pixie Campbell, who is teaching at the June and September Squam Art Workshops 2011 Sessions. She has some astounding classes lined up, along with Lizzy House in the spring and Penelope Dullaghan and Christine Castro Hughes in the fall. What can I say? I’m proud of my peeps!
Today’s Give Away is for three Japanese greeting cards that I just might be purchasing right this very minute. Do you know what I love about these cards? The way the English translations are just ever so slightly off…always in the most charming way.
Across the Pacific
By the time you read this, I will be in the air, headed across the Pacific to Tokyo for a whirlwind less-than-a-week trip, tagging along with my husband who needs to be there for business. We will land in Tokyo Monday evening, and then I have just three full days to hit all of my favorite spots around the city. Rather than explore new places, I have decided to focus on the places I’ve loved best on all of my trips to Tokyo ~ the big departments stores in the Ginza, Ito-ya – the nine floor art and stationery store on the same street – Meiji Temple near Harajuku, and Shibuya – my favorite place to experience sensory overload!
Posts will continue to pop up each day here while I am away ~ each one announcing a Give Away goodie that I will bring back from my trip. That’s right ~ it’s a week of Tokyo Give Aways! This means I can write off my trip, right?
