i he(art) seattle

Today Jamie at Jamie Ridler Studios asked us the question, “What do we wish for the world” for this Wednesday’s Wishcast.

For a moment, I read all the latest news reports hoping to gather something wise to say about Japan’s tsunami aftermath and nuclear crisis and, well, it was hard for me… I have been distant from the news lately and from media in general. I’ve wanted to disconnect from the crazy obsessions, reality tv dramas, and overall anger and crud that makes headlines now-a-days. But this is life. This is not a dress rehearsal and it’s not going to stop. Day after day we never know what life may bring us, it’s best to show up and be present even amidst the craziness and the tragedies… the good and bad; is all a part of the experience.

Last night I watched an excellent but very sad movie, Never Let Me Go, based on the Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel by the same name. It was, at it’s core, about love but also even more-so about death and knowing our time here on earth is limited. I was left in tears and also in my memories of my life and my experiences, the people I have touched and been touched by, those that stayed up until now, those that were only here for a season, and those who are no longer alive.

The thing is that tomorrow is not promised to any of us… we live to die and that’s a fact. My wish for the world is that we can focus more on just that… on living, on experiencing ourselves truly and authenticly, and deepening our connection to each other in this world; because you never know if or when even the closest and tightest knits we have may unravel.

For this world I wish for us all to live for today, taking the hardship with the joy, seeing the humanity in each other, glorifying that, and recognizing it as what we have and what we live for.

Looking at the pictures of devastation in Japan, I saw a link to pictures of survivors… I saw people smiling, holding each other, a beautiful newborn, the elderly being helped, and those risking their own lives to save others. That glimmer of hope and that showing of service and love is what we need now and what I wish for us all, for our world.

This week Jamie asks, What gift do I wish to share?

I must say the gift of curiosity… I am forever learning and reading and listening and exploring.

I am more and more creating and making and doing and displaying.

I am so happy for this.

I wish to share this journey of curiosity, creativity, and clarity with others by example and through inspiring them to uncover their true desires and build their confidence through art practices.

Simple.

I have an amazing walking partner. She is in great shape, we have great conversation, and she gives me fitness advice. She works only 5 blocks from me enjoys walking the hillier streets of downtown streets of Seattle. But I didn’t always have a walking partner. Oh no.

Last year, I ran regularly then I got very very busy and couldn’t fit it into my evening or morning schedule. I even had to cancel my gym membership! Having no gym and no jogs to keep me fit, I had to do something. So I changed a few of my normal routines. For instance, I often listen to audiobooks on my bus commute to work. I decided to get off the bus a few stops sooner and walking those few blocks to work in the morning. I could listen to more of the books, get in a nice little stroll, and enjoy the brisk morning air. Then there was the elevator, I work on the top floor of a five-story building. I discovered the back stair entrance and vowed to only take the stairs in the mornings and after lunch. After a week of that I decided to add 2-3 walking lunches to my week. I break a sweat each day on the stairs… I really hit them hard each time. I was feeling pretty good about myself.

Then after a bad experience with a puddle on a rainy day walk, I decided to invest in some quality leather walking shoes. I’d been wearing whatever I wore to work that day and that just doesn’t cut it in rainy Seattle. I needed leather walking shoes if I was going to be serious about walking. So I got some, but not just any shoes… I got those Shape-ups SKECHERS. You know, the shoes that are designed for enhanced resistance training and accelerated muscle activation – basically they make your muscles work harder due to some fancy material wedged into the heal which makes the your butt get more tone with each step? I love these shoes! Every walking day, I pull them from under my desk at work (where they live), take off the shoes I wore that day and slip these puppies on… I feel very Mr.Rogers each time I do it. Which is awesome.

So how does this all relate to my finding a walking partner? Well, it’s a very Law of Attraction and The Secret type of thing… see, I started getting serious about my walking practice. From taking the stairs, to walking by myself, and especially buying my shoes and leaving them at my desk at work, I prepared myself for my partner – I kind of even “acted as if” she was already there.

It all worked out perfectly. I met my partner finally at a weekend retreat. She was clearly in very good shape and actually reminded me of my spinning instructor, private detective Auntie back home in Ohio. We totally hit it off and bonded at the retreat. Then a few weeks later, I saw her while grabbing lunch with my coworker. She reminded me that she worked downtown and we made sure we had each other’s cell numbers… set on getting in a walk that week. That was about a month ago. Now her and I walk about 2xs a week and it’s usually the highlight of my workday.

I guess the morale of the story is… if you want something in your life, you have to get ready for it first and you kind of have to “act as if” it’s already there waiting for around 12pm about to text you to meet it by the Starbucks on 4th Avenue.

This story has been brought to you by the numbers eight thirty five… it’s a contribution to @sheneeh‘s story tour.

So – what’s your story?

The Eight Thirty Five Story Tour is the online tour bus concept of storytelling one blog at a time, invented by Shenee Howard a storytelling designer extraordinaire. The tour features “a bunch of amazing people talking about stories on their sites for one day.” And I’ll be sharing a story soon too! Yay! Hope you can’t wait…

And check out Shenee on Twitter: @sheneeh

Me and Nikki on a cruise to the Bahamas

Happy Happy Birthday to my dearest friend, Nikki Jay. This post is totally dedicated to my best friend of basically my whole life. This song inspires me each and every time I hear it because it is sooo validating. I feel each time that this artist is singing to me.. about me… and I know that every woman that hears this song feels this way. It’s like a reminder of that wonderful quote, “To the world you may be just one person, but to one person you may be the world.” And I want to dedicate this post to her and her amazing-ness. I hope that everyone can be inspired by this song and testament to friendship!

Nikki Jay and I used to play Barbies at age 12 together… I’m an honorary family member, she has the best siblings ever! her family is like a tribe and her mom is the best-est and got me to change my eating habits (for the better) at age 14. She is a beautiful model (literally, my BFF is a model) that inspired me to wear eyeshadow, doll myself up more, and not be afraid to take wonderful care of myself and be fabulous! She makes lovely jewelery out of glass beads that she creates and always gives me first dips on stuff and tells me all about her process. She is so inspiring to me and is an amazingly creative being by nature. She is a fashionista with super sassy style that loves to shop for sales whenever I come home for the holiday. She is my fellow Indian food lover that also loves Bollywood and finger cymbals. She is my roll dog whenever I want to take a trip or do some crazy race (like the Muddy Buddy) or visit colleges in NYC for my MFA. She is my sounding board, voice of reason, and inspiration in this wonderful journey called life. She’s my Gayle! That’s what it is! She’s my Gayle!! (Wow that would make me Oprah! NICE!!! LOL!)

The best thing about my BFF is she’s the humblest, kindest, most sweet and friendly person you’ll ever meet…. AND she shares her birthday with my Grandmother.

Nikki Jay, You are Awesome, Talented, and Amazing… Just the way you are!!! xoxoxo

Seeds in the wind by Luigi FDV

Happy Wishcasting Wednesday! Today Jamie has prompted us to think about the limits we wish to set. Thinking on what to limit in the creative mind that is full of abundant desires and hopes and long lists of to-dos is such a valuable practice. It’s all about clearing out the “should dos” or “need to dos” and figuring out the “want to dos”. Overall, I wish to limit my distraction and doubt AND to maximize my focus in the moment on the things I have set out to do and feel empowered actually doing them.

Specifically for me that looks like:

• Limiting the time I spend doubting AND maximizing the time I spend believing.
• Limiting the time I spend worrying AND maximizing the time I spend rejoicing.
• Limiting the time I spend regretting AND maximizing the time I spend appreciating.
• Limiting the time I spend wondering and over-planning AND maximizing the time I spend trying and doing.
• Limiting the time I spend upset and frustrated AND maximizing the time I spend happy and optimistic.

Taking in the laundry, Painted Steel

Boombox, Steel

Brain, Steel

Chuck Taylors, Steel

Very cool drawings using steel by Barcelona based American sculptor Frank Plant. Please also check out his step-by-step visual documentation of this awesome piece, Somewhere Over the rainbow!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Frank Plant