Proposed Projects.

USDA

joeseppi.etsy.com

joeseppi.etsy.com

joeseppi.etsy.com

USDA

USDA

USDA

I'd like to do some design work. Something creative. Thanks to a very dear professor I had in college (Prof. Pravin Sevak), I enjoyed design class a lot, but I haven't had a chance to do much since I graduated. I'd like to do a group of posters advocating my beliefs of growing your own food and such, but make them look like propaganda posters. I googled "Victory Garden Posters" and found a lot of great examples. There was even an artist who created his own art project posing as revitalized victory garden campaign posters (which are available on etsy). Otherwise the images above are all from World War II's campaign. I'd like to just play with some designs and perhaps make them into full size posters for my daughter's room or even the kitchen. Aren't they neat?

Compelling Compositions

It's no secret that I'm a HUGE fan of National Public Radio's "A Prairie Home Companion" with Garrison Keillor. He is such an amazing writer, and I love his humor. I end up laughing so hard during every show. Anyway, I signed up for a daily email called "The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor" and have been really enjoying the little blips about various authors who were born that day and there is a daily poem too. Best of all, I can click on the little icon at the top and Garrison himself will read it to me. I suggest you sign up for the email too. It will bring some intellect to your inbox.

More Apartment Therapy Love.

I'm going to have the hubby make me some of these bookshelves in our library someday. Via Apartment Therapy~Jeremy's Endless Energy and Resourcefulness. I like the industrial modern look of them.

Apartment Therapy Love.

Looking at the house tours on Apartment Therapy is a wonderful way to waste a bit of time. I'm really liking the cabinet above. It was in this tour.

Blog of Note.

This week's blog of note is Honey & Jam. An amazing collection of yummy recipes combined with a bit of design and lots of lovely things to look at. I'm going to attempt to make the Pumpkin Bread with Cinnamon Pecan Filling this weekend complete with pecans from our tree that I shelled myself...I know, I know, fancy fancy. I'm excited about it nonetheless. Perhaps you might find something delicious to make from the site too. Enjoy, and have a great weekend.

Politics are Obnoxious.

One of the many beautiful landscapes I saw yesterday.

I loaded Joelee up in the truck and we took off driving yesterday. It was a lovely gallivant. I had the windows down, we found some beautiful roads, and most of the morning was spent listening to classical music on Public Radio. Then that station went out of range for awhile and I put it on a random radio station for a bit. Every single commercial break was a hateful message brought to you by somebody who wants you to vote for them instead of the guy they are bashing. I can't stand this time of year. I think it should be mandatory for the politicians to talk about their own transgressions if they say something bad about someone else.

I'm anti-political. I'm neither Republican nor Democrat. I've got views, but they are my own and can't be labeled either way. Personally I think the best thing we could do for America is to pull out all of the politicians and insert regular citizens off the street to do their jobs. Let's take a little stroll down a very ficticious road where I become a politician and what I'd push to have done.

Overall I'd like to see a step back from the national government. Personally I think they are getting involved in places where they don't belong (agriculture, healthcare, banking should all be left alone at the national level). Don't get me wrong, I think there should be laws to keep people safe and corruption in check, but I don't think Washington is doing a good job at that. Money talks a bit too loudly there.

In my perfect world, community governments would be where the power is. They would create jobs with beautification and community projects, and local businesses. There would be a local food supply too. Incentives would be implemented for small producers to sell directly to co-ops and for consumers to join these co-ops. This keeps money in the community and provides jobs as well. Not failing to mention providing healthy food options to boot.

Law making would be handled a bit differently too. I don't understand why a bill has to have additions that have nothing to do with the law they are trying to pass. A healthcare bill might have a line in it about corporate buy-outs or something to that effect. Not in my dream world. Each issue would be handled individually. The elected officials would listen to the community they are representing not whoever is lining their pockets. An issue from the community is put in front of Congress to be decided upon, and if a bill can't be agreed upon, and discussion hasn't provided any solutions then that item stays neutral and they should go on to the next bill. I'd think they could agree on individual items a whole lot easier than trying to pass a lumped up, jumble of issues like congress tries now.

I think if citizens thought their opinions were heard I think we'd be much more involved or at least aware of what is going on at a national and perhaps a global level.

Sorry, I know that was quite a rant, but these commercials I'm being bombarded with are as bad as little kids bickering on a playground. It's all a bith pathetic and petty.

Back to our gallivant. We walked around Salem's town square, ate our lunch (peanut butter sandwiches, pretzels, water, apples, and peaches) as we drove down the road, and we meandered down a lot of neat rural roads. Dog Trot Road was my favorite name we came across, and you wouldn't believe the mansion I saw in the forgotten town of Tunnelton (I've got pictures I'll show you someday). Best of all it was just a nice day out on the backroads with my daughter. It doesn't get better than that. So other than the stupid commercials it was a perfect day.

Real Estate Hankerings.

This property is on a tiny lot as far as the listing said, but it is in Tunnelton, Indiana. It is a 3 bed, 1 bath home with over 1,400 square feet of living space. It looked pretty rundown, but I liked the exterior and I think it would make a neat home with some elbow grease.

Artistic Moment of the Week.

image via Howard 33 on Flickr

I love the barn, I love the kids, I love the pasture, I love the calves. It just is beautiful to me. It was entitled "Julian, Victoria, Calves," and was thought to be taken in 1920.

Stormy Morning.

Yesterday was quite a morning for weather. The wind blew so hard and then the sky turned black and we had a quick storm with lots of rain. You want to know the best part about the storm? I'm proud to announce our house didn't have any indoor waterfalls for the first time in my five years living here! My old farmhouse is just about solid, and that makes me really happy. My husband is taking off the rest of the week from work to finish putting on siding, and then we get to focus on the inside. So maybe by this time next year I might have ceilings, walls, and a floor besides the subfloor (crazy thought I know). Yesterday was one of those creepy-sky mornings. Very ominous.

Anyway, with the non-drippy house, I got to daydreaming about having company over for big dinner parties and such. I don't want a single set of matching dishes though. I'm looking forward to building a collection of cookware and place settings from various auctions and on my gallivants. I got to looking at some of the vintage pieces for sale on Etsy and it made me want to start my collection now something fierce. Harvest. Vintage Pyrex 402 Bowl from Kultur

Spring Blossom. Vintage Crazy Daisy Pyrex 402 Mixing Bowl from Kultur

Shabby Chic Daisies from TheWeeShelf
Vintage Brown Floral Dessert Plates from Dulcet
Flowering Fall. Vintage Stoneware Dinner Plate from Kultur
Dogwood Blossoms Vintage Plates from Dulcet 4 Anchor Hocking Footed Sundae Glasses from StickyDaisy

I found so many neat plates, glasses, and bowls just in the vintage section (not counting the thrown pottery in the handmade section). I was drooling pretty hard, but didn't buy anything...yet. I definitely marked lots down as favorites to use as reference someday. What do you think?

My First Yoga Session.

I got up at a little before five, and decided to try one of the sequences in the Yoga Journal I read yesterday (All images via Yoga Journal Magazine). The first pose was easy enough--I could feel the stretch, but it wasn't painful. It was a nice start to the sequence.

This on the other hand was ridiculous. My thighs wouldn't let me lie back even onto my elbows, so I sat awkwardly with my arms back behind me--it is definitely going to take awhile before I master this pose.

I have a spot in my back that isn't privy to me bending this way. I was okay for this pose, but when I went to go into pose #4 it was all I could do to make my back unlock--ha.

I lasted all of two seconds in this pose before I had to move on. I'm not sure my back will ever let me bend backward easily.

Pose 6 was another nice stretch without being too advanced for a beginner like me.

Believe it or not #7 wasn't a bad pose either. Albeit I didn't quite have the straddle that the girl in the photo did, but I pushed myself to a good stretch.

I couldn't bend very far in the #8 pose, but it was a nice relaxing pose.

Obviously this pose is my favorite. It was wonderful to lay there being aware of my body, but letting myself drift into a relaxing state.

So, my thoughts? I'm definitely feeling more energized today, and my limbs feel wonderful, so I'm looking forward to continuing my yoga-trek in the coming weeks. I recommend giving it a shot if you're thinking about trying it. I'm the kind of person that if I think something could be interesting I research the hell out of it, and then jump head first. You never know unless you try, right?

Craigslist Cravings.

Still looking for a writing desk, but I'm holding out for the right one. This one is a hundred bucks in Indy someplace, but it doesn't have writing extensions, so it's not quite what I want.

Chow Down.

image via myrecipes.com

I do believe this is on the menu for tonight: Chicken and Smoked Sausage Pilau. Very tasty looking for sure.

Yoga and the Gallivanting Girl.

Not surprising to some, but I've always wanted to try yoga. I think it would be a nice way to wake up every morning. Just clear my head, stretch, and get focused for the day ahead. On my recent list of a hundred goals I added 'practice yoga' to the list, and I'm pushing myself to start this week. Of course, my beloved books.google.com has quite a few issues of Yoga Journal available for my perusal and the first one I opened to read had "Yoga at Home" in big letters across the cover, so I think it's fate. To keep myself honest I'll let you know how my first day (tomorrow) went. Hopefully it will be an easy habit to form.

Thinking about Writing.

I get The Writer's Almanac sent to my inbox, and Sunday was the birthday of playwright Harold Pinter. He was quoted as saying,

"You do have a leash as a writer. You're holding a dog. The great excitement is to see what happens if you let the whole thing go. And the dog or the character runs about, bites everyone in sight, jumps up trees, falls into lakes, gets wet, and you let that happen. That's the excitement of writing plays."

I am gearing up to write for National Novel Writing Month which is November. I love the fact that writing (good or bad) is yours. Your idea, your brain, your words. The crazy stories running around in my head have been finding their way to paper for years, and I'm hoping to pen one that is at least 175 pages or 50,000 words (which is the goal of NaNoWriMo). I'll let you know how it goes.

How quickly a year happens.

Tomorrow my baby girl turns one year old. I love being her mom. She makes every day better than the last. She couldn't just come into this world the normal way, nope, she blazed her own path and that's the way she seems to live every day. It's her way, and she has it all figured out. I'm looking forward to watching her turn into the human she is destined to be. One year down and many more to go.

Doesn't This Sound Amazing?

I downloaded the book A Self Supporting Home by Kate V. Saint Maur. She and her husband were city people who wanted the "Country Life," so in the early 1900s (the book was published in 1904) they rented a small farm and this is how she described it:

"...we eventually discovered a dear old house of nine rooms, two cellars, a summer kitchen, barn, chicken-house, cow shed, small smoke house, and twelve acres of land, five of which were covered with apple trees. Near the house were three pear trees, four peach, three quinces, two plum trees, and about half an acre divided between strawberry plants, blackberry and raspberry bushes. It was the haven of our imagination and could be leased for three years at $180 a year."

How amazing would that be? A time machine would be pretty amazing about now. I'm excited for the rest of the book.

Interesting Little Tidbit.

Today is the author Anne Rice's birthday. Did you know that her parents named her Howard Allen O'Brien after her father? Or that she hated it, and changed her name to Anne in the first grade? Pretty neat, although if I was her, I wouldn't have changed my name for anything. I love boy names for girls--hence "Joelee" instead of "Jolene" or "Josephine" for my daughter. I wanted her to be able to shorten it to the masculine version (Joe) instead of the feminine (Jo). Most people probably wouldn't think that matters much, but it was very important to me.

Anyway, in honor of Anne's birthday perhaps you could pick up one of her novels today. I haven't ever read her work, but today would be a good day to try.

Craigslist Cravings.

A day late, but who's really paying that close attention anyway.

I want a writing desk in the absolute worst way. How can a girl write the next "Great American Novel" without a great desk? This one is in Fairland for $70 bucks, and if I still lived up there it would have been mine immediately. I love the pull out writing extensions, and lots of storage. If anybody up in Johnson County wants to buy this for me and bring it to me (although I imagine it's already sold), here is the ad.

My Baby Girl is Growing Up.

This girl is all farm. She'd be out from dawn until dusk and then prefer to sleep in the barn if I'd let her. She's me all over again.

She'll be a year old in twelve days. Twelve days! How can a year fly by like that? How did she turn into a person in a blink of an eye? I brought home a little bundle that just ate and pooped and slept and now she runs and laughs and plays and thinks and does things for herself. My goodness is she independent. I swear everything is, "I can do it myself." or at least that's what I believe that stubborn look in her eye signifies.

We'll be walking along and she'll want to go in another direction or do something else. I start to pull her in a better direction, and she'll just let go and try to run headlong in the direction she chose. Go figure. At least she knows exactly what she wants and isn't afraid to go for it. I hope she keeps that trait throughout life. I want her to be the kid that doesn't need the trendy things that all the other kids have. I hope she dresses for herself and no one else. I hope she lives for herself and no one else. She's a tough kid, she gets hurt and she just brushes herself off and picks herself up. No tears required. She's a sweet kid, she hugs and kisses and smiles and laughs. She's a good kid, she makes our family complete.

She uses the big girl potty at least three times a day, and has been since she was a little under six months old. She has even taken to reading magazines while she pees in the morning which I find hilarious and wish I could take a picture, but I don't want to be that parent. This morning she spotted her shoes over by the changing table just as she sat down. "That." She said as she pointed her perfect little finger out (which at the moment has a huge gash on it from a tumble with a stick on concrete this past week). "Shoe?" I say to her. "You've got to finish pottying before we can go outside." This seemed a bit of hindrance to her, so she proceeded to attempt to hop down off the potty and get her shoes on herself. "No, Joe." I tell her with my best stern-sounding voice. She eyes me a bit to see if she wants to push the issue. I keep my eyes locked on hers and try to look as serious as possible. She decides it better just to finish pottying instead. "Good girl, Joe. What a big girl." I tell her and she claps her hands as we head over to the changing table to re-diaper and get dressed. When I set her up to tie her hair back she leans over the edge to again point at her shoes. "That." She says looking at me as if to say, "Well you told me we could go outside, so let's get to it." We put her shoes on and a heavy jacket and ventured outside.

She's got a barn kitten that took to her a few months ago and they are best buddies now. She usually meets us someplace between our house and the barn and as soon as Joe spots her she says, "Cat!" in a sweet little high pitched way. This makes the kitten pick up it's pace and Joe usually speeds up a bit too. They are like long lost friends meeting after months of separation. How preposterous to be kept apart all night long. It's pretty neat that they're so close. Although she likes all the farm animals very much the cats seem to be her favorites right now.

She's been in her own room for over a week now (she'd been in our room for the air conditioning over the summer). She (and I) are learning that it's okay for me to not jump up at her first whimper, and that she can put herself to sleep without being rocked (although I still cuddle with her before we head to bed). She's taken all this in stride. No screaming fits, not a tear. Just a few noises (mostly her singing to herself) and then all quiet. I peek on the monitor and she's curled up with her head on her pillow just like the big girl she is. Sometimes when I look at her she seems even older and wiser than her eleven months. She knows more than me, and I'm not going to try to act like that's not the case. She's got it all figured out, and I'm just along for the ride.

Smiling with her tongue between her teeth just like I used to. How I keep from squeezing her all day long is just a matter of utmost willpower.