when did I become a hippy?

as I stepped out of my prana yoga pants and into my epsom salt bath and lathered up with my dr. bronner's tea tree soap I asked myself, dear god! when did I become such a hippy? I realized I'm crocheting a sage green top in organic cotton, contemplating a good body detox, and wondering where I can buy a gallon jug of dr. bronner's magic soap (yeah, I have a serious love affair with dr. bronner right now). I am also thinking about rejecting processed junk from my diet (well, I might eat a tasty kake and a cheesestake here and there, I'm a philly girl through and through) and getting a serious grip on my life from the inside out.

Ten years ago I never imagined myself driving a littel fuel efficient car (always wanted a ford truck), listening to folky country music (rock + punk then), going to music festivals (again used to be punk shows in basements around the city), and graduating with a BS in marine biology (art school bound since 5), but suddenly, or maybe slowly, I became different. I grew into this person I am today, and now I need to accept this transformation and go full speed ahead into life.


My plan includes:
healthier food, more green tea and fruits, less gluten
yoga as often as possible, short sun salutations daily, longer sessions once a week
exercise, walks, maybe runs if I feel ambitious
better routine, early to bed early to rise
less stress

now the last one will be hard to accomplish, but I'm going to try. I'm going to start by emailing people about grad school applications this week, I NEED TO! I've been bullshitting too much about this and I need to get this done so I can move on with my life. Next will be moving to CT/RI, I've learned as much as he drives me crazy some days, my boyfriend is my greatest stress reliever ever. He makes me laugh more than anyone (except maybe Linda), I can be myself, he lets me nag him when I get overwhelmed with life, and he loves me more than anyone ever has. Plus he gives half decent back rubs, haha. After I make the move it's time to secure a job, any job so I can feel busy and productive, and then switch health insurance plans, because $700/month is way too expensive for me right now.

This is my plan, now I just have to do it. My biggest block is myself right now, once I can get past my own fears, doubts, and criticisms I know I can succeed, more or less.

So tomorrow when I'm doing yoga in the back yard after my green tea and organic fruit breakfast I can concentrate on elevating myself to new levels professionally, scholastically, emotionally, and spiritually, and maybe be at peace with my apparent hippy lifestyle.

whirl-wind week

Friday I finished my class, sent in applications, did some shopping at target to get travel essentials: quick dry red nail polish, dr. bronner's magic soap - tea tree, plastic travel bottles, bikini top, and a super awesome $40 duffel bag with WHEELS!! Dragging my dive gear around the San Juan airport last year was a little too much for me, so I gave in and bought non-army issued luggage for the first time in my life, haha.Saturday was a long drive up to NJ for Linda's graduation party. We've lived next door to eachother for 3 years, and been best friends since the moment we met. She's been going through a rough time, and for some reason her life is always more drama filled than daytime TV, but she has such a great sense of humor, is extremely raunchy, and has the best, loudest, most infectious laugh you have ever heard in your life. 12 hours of drinking, 1 dip in the pool, 2 tearfilled conversations, 4 meals, and 5000 laughs later I left with a massive headache but a smile on my face.

Sunday I got home late from Linda's and tried studying for my final. It wasn't easy, between small snacks and naps I managed to do my best to get through 8 chapters of biochemistry.

Monday I took my final, hopped on the train for the last time, got home, packed and headed to our camper in the Poconos to meet with the bf, and had a phone interview for a job out in CA. Last time we saw each other was mid-June for a few days, and before that mid-May, and this time just one night, one day, and one morning, that's all we had, not much time but its better than nothing. Lunch on the pond followed by a tearful goodbye and a 3 hour drive I'm back home.

Now it's all about packing for my month long research trip to the BVI. !!!SUPER EXCITED!!!

one last class!!

I have my last class of my biochemistry course tomorrow!!!!!! Officially the last class of my undergraduate career. Final exam on Monday and then done done done. Needless to say I'm excited. Even better than finishing the class, I finally get to visit my best friend in NJ for her graduation party on Saturday. Monday I'm jumping in the car as soon as I finish the test to visit the bf for a few days, and I leave for the British Virgin Islands on the 1st. Ahhh, it's like I can finally relax/work and do what I love, I'm stoked!!

Craftwise I've been working on some buttons, hair sticks, and shawl pins. My parents had to trim up some of the rhododendrens in the back yard so I cut down and sanded the branches into new wonderful things. I've already made a bunch of beautiful buttons for a sweater I made in May/June, and they add just the perfect touch of nature.

I've also added a bunch of pictures to my flickr of past projects that I will be adding to my etsy site, here's a few for you to chew on.

-click to zoom-

out of the hole

Found something to get me busy and overwhelmed: intense biochemistry class at Villanova. I have to catch the 7:12 train to get to my 8:30 class on time, and most days I can't get home until 12:30, and then I drive to work. The class is 2 hours a day, 5 days a week, for 1 month. We do between 5-7 chapters a week, and have an exam every Friday. It's kicking my ass.

-villanova train-station-

So with new found energy I have actually taken the time to look for job and I am completing applications right now, yay! I'm applying for some crazy stuff: internship on Catalina island at a boy scout camp working in the marine science center/ lab, salmon research and public education projects in Washington, Save the Bay job in Rhode Island, and teaching at Seacamp in the Florida keys.

I just need to keep myself going full steam ahead before I leave for the islands, then I can relax, sort of.

-this is the beach I will be on every day of my research trip-

digging

some days I am just tired of life, irrevocably tired of the everyday

I want something new and exciting, but sometimes I feel so bogged down that I just don't want to try. I've been "cleaning" my room for weeks now, still sleeping with piles of clothes on my bed, or at least trying to sleep. When I try to sleep my brain is spinning, whirling mad off in 100 different directions leading nowhere. I normally think about all the things I need to do tomorrow, the things I haven't gotten done today, all the things that I will forget to do, the things I don't want to do, and the things that I will try to ignore despite their utter importance in the continuation of my attempt at a "successful life." Sometimes the hole seems just a little bit too deep to pull myself out, but not so deep that I forgot what the surface looks like. Maybe that's why I keep sitting there, I'm not panicked to get out, I'm not at rock bottom, I know I'll get out eventually, someway or another. probably.

Boredom breeds sloth and bad habits with me, and I can feel them coming on, and I just don't care enough to fight it right now.

I need to find something to do and throw myself into with a slightly unhealthy mania, then I'll be in superwoman mode and I will somehow make everything fall into place and work like nothing ever skipped a beat.

My to do lists are long, and I have several, and I actually write them out. I have the things to do today, the things that I need to actually do today, the things I plan to skip even though I should have done them yesterday, the things to do tomorrow, and then the big picture list. Now the big picture list is the most important, and as a result the least worked upon. Things like confirm graduation, get all credits transferred, get money for plane tickets to Guana, fill out my dive log to maintain my certification I need to even dive on Guana, fill out job applications, submit job applications, look for jobs, and get the balls to just email professors about grad school.

Any time now that rope will be lowered, I'll crawl out, work my ass off, and get started on a new hole.

plain weave scarf

this is my rigid heddle loom at home, given to me by my botany professor, his wife had it sitting around and never used it, I adopted it and it now lives in wonderful home and it is used often.

this is the scarf I'm making, not sure what the fiber is, the blue seems synthetic, the white and the green might be cotton.

I think I like the spaced out blue bits contrasted with the tighter beat on the white stripes. I need to work on it more, I'd like to get it done before the end of school, so I've got a few more weeks.

Took pictures of my weaving samplers yesterday and put them on flickr, they'll be making an appearance soon, as soon as I figure out how to format pictures and text a little bit better.

March Spectrum

March Spectrum
Originally uploaded by spunoutcreations

crafts and photos for march project spectrum, more to come in april!

NORTH (March/April)
Color: Green
Material: Stones/Gems/Rocks
Season: Winter
Element: Earth





north: Maine landscapes (7,11,13)
green crafts: chenille yarn, plain weave sampler (1,2,3)
stones: stone walkway, tide pool (6, 11)
earth: moss terrariums (4,5)

trips in march: Florida keys road trip (9,10,12,14,15,16)

busy crafting and getting healthy

I've had a very craft heavy couple of days and I loved it :)

I finished my samples from my weaving class, all eight!
- overshot - 8 shaft twill gamp
- twill sampler - monks belt
- log cabin - indian march
- huck lace - free-form weave

I hand painted my chenille for a scarf (weft) to be done in my weaving class
also hand painted a skirt and shirt since my hands were already covered in dye

and I wound my warp for the scarf and threaded the 4 harness table loom
also worked on my scarf at home on the rigid heddel loom

and I planted a bunch of seeds with the bf for a spectacular summer garden
- nasturtiums - sweet yellow onions
- catnip - 200 lb watermelons!!
- sage - tomatoes

Very excited to take pictures of everything and post them, the yarn and skirt came out great, I'm so pleased with the variation of colors. I easily get bored with solid colors, especially in a plain weave, I like to keep things unpredictable and lively.

On a personal note: I am sick (again!) and went to the doctor (again!) and after talking and testing and looking in my nose, the doctor thinks that I might have allergies... well how else would you explain being sick for the majority of the past 3 months? So, armed with antibiotics, afrin, flonase, sudafed, claritin, ibuprofen, cough drops, and cough syrup I hope to beat this illness into submission and keep it from coming back. Only problem is, the bf's father joked that it always seemed like I was getting sick every time I visited... it may be true. I could be allegric to something in their house.

I blame it on overexposure.

project spectrum

I snagged this from lolly knitting around, it sounds like a great concept and I think it will really be inspiring, challenging, and motivating. I need to work on creating more, I've become lazy and hardly finish any projects, lately I haven't even started any new projects aside from what I'm doing in my weaving class and warping my rigid heddle loom last week.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

March 2009 marks the beginning of the 4th cycle of Project Spectrum! This year’s theme is the compass rose and the four cardinal directions. In many cultures, each of the cardinal directions - North, East, South, and West - are associated with a certain color. Using this traditional model of four distinct colors representing the directions on the compass rose, we will explore the ways that these four colors can be mixed, blended and combined with others through our projects, as well as taking notice of these colors around us day to day.

Colors inspire. Colors elicit deep emotions and memories. Colors symbolize life events and the changing of the seasons. We surround ourselves with color - in our homes, in our gardens, and even on our dinner plate.The idea of Project Spectrum is simply a celebration of the colors around us, and taking the time to notice them. Participants can dye, crochet, weave, decoupage, spin, build, stitch, knit, paint, scrapbook, construct, sew, quilt, cook, grow, collage, photograph, bake, or bead items in that color group (of course all arts and crafts that I missed are totally welcome as well!).It is really about expressing yourself creatively - making something beautiful, and creating something unique with your hands. It is also about thinking outside of the box - perhaps taking up a new hobby, or a long neglected one, or finally dabbling in design.

You can choose to make one thing out of the designated color(s) in the two-month span - or twenty things! This is a no-pressure project. You can simply make a photo essay - you carry around your camera with you and post pictures of the color objects you see throughout your daily travels.

Projects can be big or small - whether you plan to tile your kitchen or photograph a blooming tree in your backyard - it is not a race, it is just about sharing your creative work to inspire others and express your spirit!

Just as the cardinal directions are linked to a color, each direction is also linked to a season, an element, and a natural material in many cultures. This quartet of features (color, material, season, and element) are a part of this cardinal direction. As a participant in Project Spectrum, you can choose to simply explore the colors associated, or even the textures of the natural material. If you choose, you can interpret the directions through the lens of the associated season or of the element. Your interpretations can be literal or esoteric. You can explore the science or the philosophy. Like the Project Spectrums of years past, it is totally up to you!

NORTH (March/April)
Color: Green
Material: Stones/Gems/Rocks
Season: Winter
Element: Earth

EAST (May/June)
Color: Yellow
Material: Wood
Season: Spring
Element: Air

SOUTH (July/August)
Color: Red
Material: Metal
Season: Summer
Element: Fire

WEST (September/October)
Color: Blue
Material: Glass
Season: Autumn
Element: Water

Think of the liberty of having four colors - you can blend the colors and explore the different hues, or you can combine the colors with others in the rainbow, comparing and contrasting. You can play with hues of color where green meets yellow, or before red shades into blue.

The natural material aspect is something that I have wanted to incorporate in to Project Spectrum for some time. I love playing with texture in my own projects, and wanted to find a way to bring this aspect to the group. I think that the material may, in fact, be one of the most rewarding aspects of this Project Spectrum cycle! It also encourages participants to, once again, think outside of the box - expanding the creative process past the needles and the yarn. (Not that there is anything necessarily wrong with that!) Stonework, wooden buttons, metal pins, and glass beads - how do you interpret these natural materials alongside the colors? If you want to focus solely on the natural materials, this is also your decision.

I am most excited about the basic cardinal directions aspect, because it gives us the opportunity to think about where we are on this planet, and how our interpretations of the directions are very different. If we allow it to, this Project can teach us a lot about ourselves, and about others. Be open to it!

For some great discussion, inspiration, and project planning, please check out the Project Spectrum Ravelry group and the Project Spectrum Flickr Pool!

unmotivated

"I believe everything happens for a reason! People change so you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you can appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so that you will eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes, good things fall apart, so better things can fall together."
-Marilyn Monroe

Wow, she couldn't have said it better. I've long held this as a personal philosophy and I'm really hoping that things work out for me because right now I'm 90% unmotivated in school, 50% unmotivated in work, and 150% wanting to become a fiber master, move where it's warmer, live simply, and make my own yarn/fabric/fashion from start to finish (I'm talking growing/raising fiber plants and animals, growing dye-stuffs, processing everything myself, and spinning, weaving, knitting, crocheting, and sewing to my heart's content). Hmm, serious digression from my chosen career path as a marine biologist.

I suppose, things will work out eventually. Maybe not if I keep screwing around like this...

proposed schedule for today:
9:00 Italian
10:00 Biochem
-2 hour break in library-
13:00 Marine Environmental Physiology
14:00 Marine bio peer mentor office hours
-2 hour break for dinner-
18:00 Weaving
21:00 Schoolwork

what I actually did:
10:00 - arrive on campus, go to bank
10:30 - move from computer lab to computer lab, google-ing weaving, spinning, dyeing, knitting, crochet, classes, books, patterns, shops, etc.
16:00 - dinner
18:15 - weaving
21:00 - probably more screwing around on the computer, maybe some schoolwork, maybe some weaving. most likely: comp + tv + snacks - schoolwork = up all night doing nothing (again)

Touchstone Center for Crafts - sweet craft school in farmington PA, basically adult summer camp, stay in tent/bunk, eat in dinning hall, take awesome classes. I have my eye on the spinning class...

BAH! this is amazing, I want this issue. How the heck do you get a job working for a magazine like this?? iWant

Also found a bunch of really sweet patterns on interweave that I would love to make for the summer. After that trip to the key's I can't get out of the sunny lazy summer mentality and I don't want to wear winter clothes anymore!

I'll have to post some pictures of my scarf project on my ridged heddle loom and a few of my moss terrariums (once I can figure out how to get a good picture without glare from the glass)

spring break is over

I'm not ready for spring break to be over, but I don't have much choice in the matter. I have a ton of stuff due, a lot of work to catch up on, plus extra office hours and more swim lessons to do. I some how found time to post pictures of my trip to the keys. It was an absolutely amazing trip, my bf and I DROVE from rhode island to the florida keys, over 3500 miles there and back, but it was worth it.

too busy to think, to tired to care

well this is what happens at 2am when I should be writing a paper and studying for an exam, I start another silly blog that I probably won't even use.

tomorrow:
italian, biochem exam, doctor's appointment #3, paper due in marine environmental physiology, private swim lesson, quick dinner, then 3hrs of weaving class, hopefully I'll get a chance to warp my loom

current obsessions:
moss terrariums, apothecary jars, not studying