A Star Wars Birthday

     When my older brother turned 26, my younger brother and I baked him sugar cookies, cut them out in weird shapes, and decorated them with dinosaur sprinkles. We were so very pleased with ourselves- there's nothing like celebrating youth, right? Well, my husband turns 26 tomorrow and after seeing a friend throw a themed party for her boyfriend's 26th, I told my husband he was having a themed birthday party. His response? "Uh, okay. Sounds good." My response? "Yay! Planning a party!!"

The decal was a gift Hubs
received at the party

     So, I set to work. We own a ton of Star Wars stuff, so choosing a theme was a no brainer. I didn't want to have to go out and get a bunch of themed items for a party, so I worked with what we already had. Which happens to include: 2 Star Wars cookbooks, pillows I made when we got married, Star Wars trivia and books, some "art" my husband had made for a contest in his chemistry lab (photos of nanowires that he had colored to look like scenes from Star Wars), 3 sets of Star Wars pancake molds and a set of Star Wars cookie cutters/presses. Clearly, we were set. I spent about $5 at WalMart to grab a black vinyl tablecloth and some glowsticks and balloons, and called it a day for decorating.

     For inspiration, I (of course) turned to Pinterest. Good news? Pinterest is full of Star Wars party ideas. Bad news? They are all posts with titles like "For your 5 year old's birthday party!" and when I thought about how much work would go into some of the decorating ideas, for just a few hours of entertaining mid-20's PhD students, I had to turn away from Pinterest. I only took away one idea: I'd seen a "Pin the lightsaber on Yoda" game, and thought that would be fun, especially after some guests had enjoyed a drink or two. I was little bit over the lightsaber hype after my Pinterst excursion though, and wanted to change it up, so things got a little nerdy. I had to ask the hubs for clarification on vocabulary before I decided on the exact title, and we settled on "Pin the Superlaser Cannon on the Death Star." Also, a Death Star is easier to draw out on posterboard than Yoda, for sure.

The Spread.

     My next focus was obviously planning the food. We were having a later party so I just wanted to prep some snacks. I picked out of the cookbooks a few dips and a cookie recipe. The dips were fairly tasty, and I really liked the "Darth Maul Dip" which was actually roasted red peppers, garlic, and cream cheese all food processed. You then, of course, sprinkle poppy seeds on top over the mold of Darth Maul's face and add pearl onions broccoli stem slices for the eyes.

Wookiee Cookies and cupcakes. From this party,
I learned that Wookiee is, in fact, spelled with
two "e"s at the end. Who know? 

     I had planned two cookie recipes, but Joe said he wanted cupcakes instead of sugar cookies. Bummed about not getting to use the cookie press/cutters, I got a little crafty with the cupcakes and made fondant cutouts with the cookie cutters. And then...I painted them! It was the most fun I've had decorating cupcakes. I definitely needed a smaller brush. The irony is that I thought about painting the fondant and how I already had brushes and gel food coloring, but I'd forgotten that almost all of my paintbrushes have been used on ACTUAL PAINT. Oil and acrylic. Probably not good to use them on food after that? Nope. I did have a few brushes that hadn't been used yet, and I chose the smallest one to use on the fondant, however it was not quite small enough for the detail in the cookie press design.

Phone picture of the painting setup. You add vodka to the food coloring/gel, so that it dries faster when you paint it
on the fondant. Just a little goes a long way! Other than that, it's just like painting with watercolors. 

Close up of the Yoda cupcake; I'm shamelessly proud of mixing the perfect Yoda-green on the first attempt. 

     Lastly, I made some "Yoda Soda" which is actually one of my favorite party recipes. Even for actual grown-up events like bridal and baby showers, jewelry parties, etc., you can make this soda. So I will end with that recipe and instructions! Happy Birthday Hubs!

Adding a striped paper straw
when serving is a way to make
this a fancier drink!

"Yoda Soda," or, the tastiest party drink

Ingredients:
- 1/2 Gallon of Lime Sherbet
- 2 Liters of Sprite

Directions: 
Scoop out the lime sherbet into a pitcher or punch bowl. Fill the pitcher or bowl 1/4 to 1/2 full with scoops, not packing the scoops or trying to save space. You will need room at the top of your pitcher. Then pour Sprite over top. As you do, the soda will foam up. Pour the Sprite until the foam reaches just under the top of your pitcher or bowl. When the foam dies down, add a few more scoops of sherbet, and repeat adding Sprite and sherbet until you've mixed your desired amount of punch. Pour into glasses (or scoop out of punch bowl with a ladle) to serve.

Clip Show

     My husband and I are Netflix "binge watching" all of the seasons of Malcolm in the Middle. We do this, during the school year; it's nice to have some time to snuggle up on the couch after a long day at work. Last fall we made it all the way through the Castle series, seasons 1-8! We may sound lazy, but we really only watch an episode at a time, and some evenings we won't end up watching due to other commitments. So really, I guess we don't "binge watch," we just become series monogamists? Maybe? Is that a thing? 

     Regardless, while watching Malcolm in the Middle, we rediscovered the lost TV art of the Clip Show. Aka, when you don't have material for a whole new episode but you have an episode spot in the season to fill, so you do a clip show of previously filmed stuff and make it a new episode that's sort of a flashback. 

     I have some new posts in my brain, but don't have the material juuuuust yet to write out those posts. So I'm doing a clip show of my own and sharing some old photos I took that are still entertaining to me. Here we go! 

These are my mother's crazy dogs. She actually has more dogs than this, but at the time, I was taking random pictures with my then-new DSLR camera and happened to catch this mirror shot of all of them looking at the same thing. The mold on the mirror (it is a relic from my great-grandmother's house, and I believe it has been cleaned since) gave the image an antique-y feel, and I just laughed when I zoomed in and saw all of the dogs looking at the same thing! They are VERY energetic and crazy entities, so this moment of stillness was a rare occurrence.  

This is another of my mom's pets- she is a camera ham, she loves attention, and she loves naps in front of open windows. She was being very cute one day years and years ago, and looked right at me when I took the picture. This photo was taken at my childhood home. It was an old farmhouse without central heating or air conditioning. In the summer, the windows were always open. While we endured the heat, humidity, and suffered on the breeze-less nights, the cats were in heaven. Except of course for when they tried to swat at bugs outside the screens and then knocked the screen out and fell out the window, or just hit their faces on the screens. Cats may always land on their feet but I'm not convinced they're a very intelligent species...

Senior year of college some friends and I went camping during spring break. Wild and crazy, I know, but we were the kind of students who had spent all of our previous spring breaks on volunteer and mission trips. Plus, we were flat broke. I worked at the gym on campus and got discounts renting camping equipment. The four of us decided to venture out into wild and wonderful West Virginia and camped around the Blackwater Falls area. We hiked the Seneca Rocks area. It was early March, so everything was cold and icy, but starting to have that fresh Spring glow.
















More pets...what can I say! I love capturing various animal expressions. This is a former roommate's dog, Bubba, who is unfortunately no longer with us. She left to explore Europe for a bit and I stayed home and hung out with Bubba. He was so depressed without her! He would lay around by the doors, sleep in her bed, and refuse to go outside unless I was going with him. I tried to spoil him with treats, trips to the dog park, and snuggles, but he was still downhearted. This picture captures his depression so well. I love it. I miss this guy!


This photo was from my grandparents' house one Christmas many years ago. I have not been back to visit them for many years, and I am deeply sad/sorry/regretful about that. Hopefully that changes soon, but for now I'll take the nostalgia of this photo. I had just gotten my DSLR that winter and I was trying out some of the editing and filtering.

There's nothing particularly exciting about this last picture, but it's really memorable for me. When I was in high school, I went on a field trip to Williamsburg, Virginia, where we were supposed to complete a photo scavenger hunt. It was one of the best field trips I've ever gone on, as a student or teacher. We had certain requirements for the scavenger hunt, and it was exciting to see what each group had put together when we returned to school. I later attended college in Williamsburg, and while taking a random walk down DoG street one day, I remembered the photo I took for the scavenger hunt, and recreated it.

Indian Inspiration

The "India" challenge on my baking list was one I was really looking forward to completing. I think that Indian recipes are often so much simpler than what I often cook or bake. I love the aromatic spices of Indian culture and the flavors they produce! Another great attribute of Indian recipes is that they are often nearly-vegan to start with, so if you are adapting a recipe to fit certain food specifications (allergies, dietary needs), it's simple enough to find a recipe that will easily fit your needs.

These cookies I made, for example. They are called Nan Khatai cookies and I used the recipe found on Blend With Spices. The directions were clear and simple. The ingredients were few and readily available- the only catch was the Cardamom. I don't use cardamom often, so when I went to the store and saw that the tiny 3 ounce container was $15 I went on a mini rant to my husband in the middle of the baking aisle. He just looked at me like "uhh....." which is understandable. It's probably the same look I gave these two college girls once when they stopped me in the same baking aisle and asked me if they could just melt butterscotch chips and use it as salted caramel. Uhhhh....

My little jar of Cardamom

What I ended up doing was going to the local Co-op grocery store, where you can buy many herbs, spices, and baking needs (cocoa powder, etc.) by the ounce. They have containers or you can bring your own. They also have these little plastic bags you can use and twist tie closed, which is what I used, and which makes you feel super sketchy when you go into the store to by an ounce of cardamom which looks like some other substance, and then you leave the store just carrying around your little bag of "ground spices." Sketchtastic. Worth it, though, to only pay 92 cents for cardamom, instead of $15.

Step 1: Mix dry ingredients. Step 2: Add wet ingredients

Step 3: Drop onto cookie sheet

Anyways, these cookies have a basic recipe with few ingredients. No refrigerating the dough, no extra steps needed- just mix, bake, and done. They tasted delicious! I might use less cardamom next time, because I found the taste to be a bit overpowering. However, the almonds on top help to smooth out the taste of the cardamom, so don't skip on the nuts if you make these!


I thought I'd blog the process of these cookies, you know, step by step style. I realized as I was uploading pictures that I took really boring and non-descriptive photos of the process. I also realized I need to edit the lighting in the photos because my kitchen has this one horrible fluorescent tube light and everything in the kitchen- cabinets, appliances, counters- are an off white color, so there is little natural looking light. When I take photos without flash, they come out a little dull. I could definitely have edited these photos and skipped this whole paragraph explaining myself, but I'd rather get the post up! I'm sure I'll regret that later...Enjoy for now!

And, voila! Cookies. 

T-Shirt quilt: Finally complete! (picture heavy post)

Here's a secret: I actually finished my T-Shirt quilt over a month ago. I've even used it twice since then. Sorry, y'all.

Yes, that is a Harry Potter pillowcase in the background. 

This is a special post- this blanket has been something I've wanted to complete for several years! I kept getting side-tracked, starting it then stopping, then starting again but forgetting what I was going to do, then having to redo things and oof! It was a very time consuming project. Every single step of it. I don't want to dissuade anyone from undertaking their own t-shirt quilt, but I will say this was a heifer of a project to undertake.

Back of the quilt. The square in the middle was not a
smart move, sewing wise. 

Things I learned 
Or, how to avoid a disaster


1. I am not a quilter. Nope.

Front of the quilt! Yay!

2. I rush through planning projects sometimes. This is not one of those things you can rush through! I learned that the hard way, more than once. Yikes.
3. Have a plan that you know you can follow. And keep it nearby for handy reference. I really should have printed out a plan at the start.
4. I have more skills than I thought when it comes to sewing! I also have fewer skills than I thought, as I learned from a few different points where I actually thought "UH. What is this tutorial even asking me to do?!" Oops.
5. Even if there are flaws, it still looks impressive once it's finished. People do NOT notice the things I do, like the lack of straight stitching, the pen marks I can still spot on some of the shirt fronts, my terribly tied knots between the layers...people only see this massive quilt and the shirts which make it up!

Close up of the backing fabrics. Totally wrinkly. Sorry, guys. 

     Resources for the T-Shirt-Quilt-Project(-That-Lasted-Forever-Because-of-Poor-Planning):

This is resting on a full size bed (ha, get it, resting?).

~Here is the website I should have followed the whole time. I found it AFTER I had already (poorly) cut my shirts and attached fusible. Most Unfortunate for me, but fortunately for you, I can save you that anguish.
        Some Notes: 
        ~ If you are a first timer, absolutely go with the "blanket as the batting, sheet as a back" suggestion. And if you are not a first timer, definitely do NOT try to put a square in the middle of the back of your quilt, even if the fabric is beautiful and you only have a square of it. It is not worth the trouble it takes to try and sew in a square between two single pieces of fabric and also be precise. Nope.
         ~Where the tutorial tells you to iron, don't think "Awwww heck, this fabric seems fine. Plus I hate ironing, so I'll just skip that step." It will not turn out well for you.
         ~You do use a lot of thread, but JoAnn Fabrics typically has spools (decently sized) of "quilting thread" that are 99 cents. I found the quality to be fairly sturdy!
         ~TAKE YOUR TIME doing the "math" parts. As a good friend's dad says, "Measure twice, cut once," or as I have adapted it "Measure quickly then cut once, and then do an hour of extra work for each hasty cut because you forgot about x, y, or z, ya dumb dumb."
 
Here are a few other tutorials which are thorough:
~ Cheap Chic Home
~ Sew Caroline (Part 1, there are 2 parts total)
~ Almost Casual
~ The Dixie Chicken (Part 1, there are 3 parts total)



I used some extra interfacing I had laying around, and unfortunately, it wrinkled in the dryer after I washed the quilt. You can see in the picture to the left how it has wrinkled; basically the interfacing disconnected from the shirt and bunched up underneath. When it is hot out of the dryer, I can sort of stretch it back out, but it stays pretty wrinkled. I have a few shirt backs like this. I didn't know that interfacing adhesive could go bad, but I suppose it did!

For the edge, I folded it all over twice and sewed to keep it in place. Not fancy, but also not super difficult!

Video I used for the edge of the quilt (I did not do as much ironing/gluing, hence my non-straight lines)

More of the edge of the quilt

You can sort of see the tiny yellow blob there, left of center in the picture to the left. That's one of the ties on the quilt, to hold the front and back together in the middle spaces of the quilt, so that it doesn't "bubble" out. These took a painstakingly long time, because I did them at/near each corner seam. I am not patient enough nor advanced enough to sew a quilting design into the quilt, so I went with the ties as a more practical option. I think it looks great, actually, and they are small enough that the bad ones are relatively hidden anyway. Wink!


Ta-da! What do you think? Is this a project you'd undertake? Or do you have a project that you've been putting off because you know it will take a lot of time?

I seriously love this pattern. 

Tetris! (long post)

I have played a lot of Tetris in the last few weeks. But not the fun kind. This is the fun kind:

Source. This person is not great at Tetris.

If you want to play the fun kind, feel free to download an app or go to www.freetetris.org. Those are great ideas. No, the Tetris I have been playing looks like this:

New Drawer Tetris- Contact Paper Level Reached.

Unpacking Tetris- Knick-Knack Level! 

Closet Tetris: Mastery Achieved; 

Unpacking Tetris- Mess Level Accomplished

Moving is my least favorite thing...ever. Packing, sorting, getting rid of stuff, renting a moving truck, finding people to help out, and cleaning out the old place is enough work- but then you have to unpack! As much as I enjoy organizing things (it just makes life easier), I do not enjoy organizing a whole house/apartment. In as few days as possible. While living among boxes and chaos. Ugh!! I have gotten in the habit of calling it "Tetris" this go around because that's what it has felt like!

A small bit of backstory:  We recently moved to a new apartment. We moved for a number of reasons, but I would be lying if I didn't tell you the biggest reason was saving some money on rent. Our old place was lovely and wonderful but rent had been going up steadily over the time we were there, and was going to go up again this fall, and we decided to look for a cheaper option. Due to all the timing of start/end dates on both leases, we had to move out of our last apartment and into our new apartment on the same day! I do not recommend that as it is the most exhausting process ever.

That being said, our move went fairly smoothly, as far as moving is concerned. I have a few tips to share that helped make it "rather efficient," to quote a family member.

Tip #1       Start thinking about it early. Knowing it would be a time sensitive matter, we began mentally preparing for it all weeks before the day arrived. 4 weeks out, I was starting to make lists of things we'd need to get done and brainstorm ways to make the process go smoothly. I used a note app on my phone for my lists, so that I could add to them whenever an idea came to me or I remembered something I wanted to add. What made the list? Some items I can recall were "email new place about getting key access," "ask landlord about cleaning requirements," and "clean out craft supplies before packing." This also helped me get an early jump on reserving our U-Haul. Our move in date was the most popular moving day in our area, and it is well known that even with a reservation, we could still have ended up without a truck on the day of. I also browsed Pinterest (search "moving tips") for some good ideas.

Tip #2        Follow up on reservations/requirements. The week before we moved, I called U-Haul place to make sure our reservation was still in place. I dropped a friendly "I know it will be a busy day for you all, but I will definitely be glad to know that the truck we've rented will be ready to go when we get there" and the 2 minute call reassured me that we'd be good to go. Aside from moving truck rental, we also followed up with our new landlords regarding documents needed before we could pick up our key, and our old landlords to know what needed to be done before moving out. All the paperwork was done 2 weeks before moving day, so we didn't have to continue worrying about the fine print.

Tip #3        Packing 

• Go room to room. Start with lesser used rooms (i.e. guest room) as early as you can. For example, I was done crafting and with school stuff until after moving, so it was easy to start packing that a week ahead of time. 

• Have a "done packing by this date" goal. Stick to it! Choose a room or part of a room (i.e. bookshelves, closet) to pack each day. Breaking it down makes it seem more "doable."

• Pack everything so you can easily carry it out. Don't just make piles! Use boxes, but also use things you already have: bags, purses, baskets, organizing crates, etc. You can get free boxes from many sources, so search that in your area before you buy boxes. On moving day, all we had to do was pick up and move our stuff, instead of gathering last minute items, odds and ends, etc. This was amazing because from start of loading the truck to emptying the last of our belongings, we were done in 4 hours!

• Label your boxes! It makes unpacking a lot less messy and chaotic. It's a pain to remember when you're "in the zone" packing but it really is extremely helpful.

Source

• For fragile objects, use what you have to pack it securely. No need to buy bubble wrap when you can collect these for free-  4 weeks supply of plastic bags from grocery trips, 2 weeks worth of the Sunday newspaper, blankets, pillows, towels, etc. For every box of dishes, I put a blanket in the bottom of the box, wrapped dishes in newspaper or plastic bags, and then packed in the empty space with more blankets or towels. Nothing was broken during the move or the week of sitting in the boxes. Victory! 

• For closet items, my favorite moving tip is this one  -->
  Cover your clothes in garbage bags and easily move them without having to pack them all. It makes unpacking pretty easy too! 
• Try to enjoy the packing- put on some good music, have a glass of wine, reward yourself with ice cream or a walk out in nice weather (which is great after being stuck inside)- whatever makes you feel better about having to pack. 

Tip #4        Moving Day Arrives! Start early! We picked up our moving truck as early as we could- 7am. This assured the truck was still there (hadn't been taken by someone else) and also helped with our "out and in in one day" timeline. We started moving stuff into the truck by 7:30. If you're not using a moving truck, ignore all the truck related stuff. 

• If you're moving into an apartment, check to see if you can pick up the key the afternoon before moving day. So you don't have to wait for the rental office to open, and can go in the night before and make sure it is good to go to move in (clean, do a walk through, etc).
• If you have help/friends, make sure to have water/sports drink/coffee aplenty. Also have enough for yourself. Hydration is important!
• Make sure you eat breakfast before you start. Have some snacks handy (make sure they are not packed!).
• Load the big items first, then pack around them in the truck. Tetris 101. 
• When you unload the truck, move things into the room they'll most likely go when you unpack. This is why labeling is important! It prevents you having to move stuff around or search to find things once you're moved in.
• Take a few minutes to eat lunch. It will avoid "hangriness" later on. Well worth it.
• Keep the coffee/water flowing! Energy abounds! 

     As far as the rest of the moving process, well. It doesn't really need a lot of explaining. Cleaning the old place was cleaning, just when we were super tired. And unpacking has been playing Tetris, trying to get everything to fit just right! The only tip I have here is to get everything you want to put in a particular space together, and then start filling the space. You'll be able to easily see what you have left, and what space you have left, and you can adjust as you go, instead of after you've already hoped you were done. 

     That's what I've been busy doing instead of blogging! But overall, everything really did go smoothly. Except the washer and dryer, but that's a story for another day. They're hooked up and working fine now, so that is what matters.

     Any tips to add? This was by far the largest move I've ever made, "stuff"-wise. We have a 2 bedroom place and it took two 17-foot truckloads. We didn't load the truck very full the first time, hoping to avoid breaking all the dishes we had packed, but because everything was ready to go and we were only moving a mile down the road, making a 2nd trip wasn't all that bad!

Cheap Bookshelf Rustic Makeover

     Last week I completed, with the help of a friend, a project I'd been wanting to take on for quite a while now! We own several of those cheap Wal-Mart bookcases (such as this best seller) and I have started feeling like I can't stand them. Yes, they function just fine, but I have two issues with them:
                   1. They don't look great! A bookshelf should have a certain aesthetic to it, and these                                 shelves have zero character.
                   2. The backs are flimsy, tear easily, and are not sturdy.

     So I did some research. Which really means I browsed Pinterest for way longer than I should have, Googled terms such as "cheap bookcase upcycle," and spent days taking stock of available supplies in order to take on this project. My inspiration came mostly from these two photos:

Source

Source

    


The supplies I had on hand:
- paper and fabric, to mod-podge on the back or shelves to give it a colorful lift
- a friend who was looking to get rid of some wood
- both stain and white paint, both of which match other furniture in our apartment (blanket ladder, pantry shelf, dining table)
- tools to get the job done





With this list fairly narrow, I decided to go for giving just the backs of the bookcases a facelift. I can always go back and add paper or paint, stencil, or sticker the bookshelves or backs later on!

Here's the products, process, and final photos!

Photos (on left)

In the afternoon sunlight...

Products

- 3 "cheap-o" bookshelves (two white, and taller, one brown and shorter/more square)
- various sized 1-inch thick boards, leftover from other projects
- hammer and nails (you could use screws for a more secure finish)
- circular saw and power sander (and sandpaper)
- Stain (personally I am in love with "Early American" by Minwax)

Process

*I began with all the bookcases in disassembled and in pieces. Before step 4, I assembled the bookcases without the cheap cardboard back.

1. Measure and cut the leftover wood to the length needed for the back of each bookcase. Specifically, I laid out the boards until they fit the width of the cheap cardboard back, and then laid the cheap cardboard back on top of the boards to measure length. If I did this again, I'd add about 1/2 inch to the end, to ensure sufficient space to nail them to the back of the bookcases later on.

2. Sand the boards to desired softness. I did not sand them much at all, I simply softened the ends and nicks, and went over each of the faces once with the power sander.

3. Stain the boards. I stained them and let it dry; you could stain and wipe them for a different color, or paint them if you wanted! Options!

*assemble bookcases if they are not already assembled
4. When the boards have dried, place your bookcase front-side down on your work surface. Place the boards on the back of the bookcase and line them up where you want them to be secured.

5. I nailed my boards on the bookcase. I started on the top, lining the boards up for an even look, and nailed the tops of the boards. Then, my friend and I nailed the bottoms of the boards. Some of them were warped and didn't quite lay flat, and there were some small gaps between the boards, lengthwise, but we accepted it as "character." You could also drill holes and screw them in if you wanted a more secure fit!

I might add some paper or fabric to these shelves for a pop of color later on..

Finished products! I'll post some "glamour shots" later on, when I've got them set up and functional!

Explaining the Title

Polymath (n.): A person of great learning in several fields of study

     I was at work and we were eating (surprise!) someone else's baked treat that had been brought to celebrate a birthday. It was a DELICIOUS pecan monkeybread. I'm still drooling thinking about it. Anyways, I'm standing in the workroom, laminating cards for my students to use to play "Go Fish" (with fraction/decimal cards), and a coworker and I are discussing aforementioned monkeybread (drool). He starts asking about my baking ventures. "You're like, a talented baker, right? You just make all sorts of things?" We talk for a bit about that, my previous life with an egg allergy, baking inspiration, yada yada and then he asks how my other projects are going- the quilt I've been making, packing to move, prepping for the school year, blah blah.

     Enter another coworker, and coworker #1 says something along the lines of "Did you realize all the different stuff Sarah can do? I mean she has a million hobbies." So of course I'm flattered and embarrassed and try to avoid the conversation by bringing up whoever made the monkeybread (seriously I need a bib) and fumbling with my fraction/decimal cards. The two of them start talking about how I should start a blog. And one of them says "There's a lot of blogs out there, but you really have a lot of talents worth sharing!" Generally, I never share this sort of flattery. I admit, I enjoy it, and it made my day, but I don't usually like to brag about people bragging about me.  It even sounds weird in that sentence. But it's relevant to the next part of the story, so, yeah. I'll just be over here blushing (and drooling)...

     Fast forward to later that day, while I'm trying to finish THAT DARN QUILT. I'm tying knots (only 9 more to go!) and listening to this when-I-was-in-college-era mix of mostly acoustic mousic (I'm leaving that typo because I like it) when a Mason Jennings song comes on that made my brain wax a wee bit philosophical. I thought a good blog pursuit would be something about being a "Renaissance Woman." That sounds so...touristy, to me, though. It didn't feel flattering. Like, "Oh I can be a renaissance man but I'm a female so I have to classify that with gender specific vocabulary" and I just wrinkled my nose at the sound of introducing myself as "The Renaissance Woman." I also pictured this horrifying scenario where I just start getting offers to perform at Renaissance fairs, totally not the same thing.

     So I did what any average human being does, and I Google search the term "Renaissance man." There it is! My inspiration! I had completely forgotten about the Greek word where the idea of Renaissance man originated- polymath. I love the way the word polymath flows, though! And as a newly discovered math teacher, who's been nerding hard over manipulative activities this summer, the word has the added bonus of containing the word "math."

     I have always envisioned myself spending my life learning to be good at whatever I'm doing. I anticipate that my life ventures may change every now and then because I'm a very flexible person with a large variety of interests. I love the idea of using this blog to be a platform to that journey of becoming a person who spent their time on Earth cultivating knowledge of all sorts. Do I have a cluster of more strong interests? Sure. There will probably be a lot more posts on this blog related to things I pursue often- baking/creative outlets, active lifestyle pursuits (I haven't talked about running yet, have I?)- but I hope that my journey to discover and learn can bring along all sorts of people with me. I'm sure there are many interests that I have yet to discover, and I hope that blogging about them when I do discover will leave behind a trail of inspiration for others to follow.