1950s retro bed? Check.
Black and white loveliness? Check.
Mustard loveliness? Check.
Sunlight? Check.
…and who wouldn’t want hand-collected logs transformed into bowls? Recycling at its best. :)
Tagged: current inspiration, february, retro patterns, spirt self, yska photography
Ants can be particularly hard to get rid of—especially once they’re invading full-force. This week, I found out we were stricken with the little critters when I left some shredded coconut and some tea in a box…on the floor…Yikes!
All I could see was a long line of ants, proudly marching their way into our new apartment! The first thing I wanted to do was run and seek out the largest bottle of bleach that I could find. Not the best idea… After a few deep breaths, I thought it out and decided that a non-toxic blend would be a better idea…something that would make the ants feel more like they were entering a stream room rather than a death bath… I just wasn’t quite sure WHAT I should use.
Like most people, I contacted the lovely internet. Plenty magazine’s comprehensive look at Nontoxic Ant Antidotes was a wonderful resource. Black pepper, cayenne pepper, and chalkboard chalk are all good ant deterrents… and Dr. Bronner’s peppermint castile soap. Yeah! ANOTHER use for Dr. Bronners! I checked my cabinets but all I had was Dr. Bronners Rose flavor along with a nice Basil scented Mrs. Meyers cleaner. Even though both of those options are non-toxic, the flavors just SHOUT instant ant party.
Another option was to make an ant motel with Borax, a solution of sugar dissolved in water, some Kleenex or toilet paper, and glass jars. You can mix equal amounts of Borax and sugar water and pour over a crumpled tissue in the bottom of the glass, cover container and poke holes (i.e., ant doors) in lid.
I decided to try the black pepper since that was to most convenient option at this time. So far so good. Only time will tell…
Tagged: Ant party, ant pests, ant repellent, marching ants, non-toxic ant
I have a horrible shopping itch since we are moving into a new place and are in need of some new decor. Currently, our favorite home collection is sitting in Missouri, lonely in the attic. We haven’t forgotten our long lost possessions but there is no doubt that we will need a few things to fill the new place until we reconnect with our past. Current inspirations include:
Hopefully I will be able to keep some sort of theme this time….
Happy January!
Tagged: chinese paper, cutouts, damask, modern damask, traditional cutouts
Dave and I decided to take the imfamous Jung & Myers-Briggs personality test. Come to find out, we share the exact same personality — Give or take a few qualities of course…The only bad thing is that it says it is hard to share the positive qualities at the same time…EEKKK!! We both can’t be super idealist ALL the time, right?… So, take a look, understand us better and see if the test reads you right.
The MBTI preferences indicate the differences in people based on the following:
How they focus their attention or get their energy (Extraversion or Introversion)
How they perceive or take in information (Sensing or iNtuition)
How they prefer to make decisions (Thinking of Feeling)
How they orient themselves to the external world (Judgement or Perception)
Our Result: Extraverted iNtuitive Feeling Perceiving
(Extraverted Intuition with Introverted Feeling)
Rather than working, we should be sailing the seven seas! :)
General Overview
ENFPs are both “idea”-people and “people”-people, who see everyone and everything as part of an often bizarre cosmic whole. They want to help (at least, their own definition of “help”) others, on both an individual and a humanitarian level. On one hand they are interested in new ideas on principle, but ultimately discard most of them for one reason or another. On the other hand, they love life, seeing it as a special gift, and strive to make the most out of it.
They are warm, enthusiastic people, typically very bright and full of potential. They live in the world of possibilities, and can become very passionate and excited about things. Their enthusiasm lends them the ability to inspire and motivate others, more so than we see in other types.
They see meaning in everything, and are on a continuous quest to adapt their lives and values to achieve inner peace. They’re constantly aware and somewhat fearful of losing touch with themselves. Since emotional excitement is usually an important part of the ENFP’s life, and because they are focused on keeping “centered”, the ENFP is usually an intense individual, with highly evolved values.
ENFPs have what some call a “silly switch.” They can be intellectual, serious, all business for a while, but whenever they get the chance, they flip that switch and become CAPTAIN WILDCHILD, the scourge of the swimming pool, ticklers par excellence. Sometimes they may even appear intoxicated when the “switch” is flipped.
ENFPs are global learners. Because they live in the world of exciting possibilities, the details of everyday life are seen as trivial drudgery. Close enough is satisfactory to the ENFP, which may Read More
Photo Credit: Sara
When we mourn those who die young – those who have been robbed of time – we weep for lost joys. We weep for opportunities and pleasures we ourselves have never known. We feel sure that somehow that young body would have known the yearning delight for which we searched in vain all our lives. We believe that the untried soul, trapped inside its young prison, might have flown free and known the joy we still seek. We say that life is sweet, its satisfactions deep. All this we say, as we sleepwalk through our time and through years of days and nights. We let time cascade over us like a waterfall, believing it to be never ending. Yet each day that touches us, and every man in the world, is unique; irredeemable; over. And just another Monday. Ah, but those lost Mondays of our young friend! How much better they would have been! Years pass. Decades pass. And living has not been done.
~Josephine Hart
Artwork by Nick Owens
Seeing death as the end of life is like seeing the horizon as the end of the ocean.
~ Davis Searis
Tagged: Nick Owens, Nick Owens RIP, nick owens springfield kansas city, simon nicholas owens
Wheel of Clarity
The Hand of Bibi Fatima
The Hand of Bibi Fatima represents the Sacred Feminine in Islam. This contemporary re-working of a traditional symbol incorporates additional power symbols from different cultures.
••••••••
The yin yang symbol and Star of David are for male-female energy balance.
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The Celtic Triple Goddess symbol honours the three phases of a woman’s life.
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The henna leaf patterns remind us of our connection to Mother Earth.
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The spirals on each finger call in the energy required for spiritual evolution. The central spiral grounds that energy in the center of the palm.
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The lotus flower represents soul awakening. Infinity symbols signify limitless possibility and union. These symbols are propelled forward by whale’s tales, signifying fearlessness, beauty, power and balance.
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The Hand of Bibi Fatima calls us to reconnect with the Sacred Feminine in others and ourselves with love, balance, strength and gratitude.
Art in Nature
Wheel of New Beginnings
Art in Nature #2
Let us all fully take in what others are expressing and listen with our ears, our heart, and our mind to better understand the source.
Blue Jay noticed that bear had not said a thing. Finally, Blue Jay asked bear why was she so silent and bear replied, ‘I’m listening and learning. I don’t need to talk; I already know what I know.’” 5
In our usual and everyday discourse, it is rare that we get to express a complete thought without being interrupted. Most people do not fully hear the person who is speaking, because they are concerned with their own opinions, and the need to express those opinions immediately. One way to promote deeper listening skills is to invoke a no pen and pad rule. This rule demands that we put down our physical as well as mental pen and not take notes, but instead really listen and understand what is being communicated to us. We want so bad to reach for the pen and begin our own thought process before we are even able to take in what is being communicated. If we just let go and practice patience, we can feel the tension leave our body and our mind. We become engaged with the speaker and become involved in the conversation. What a beautiful feeling! The ideas and feelings will come out naturally and full of meaning if we can all just allow the conversation to flow and trust the source before we are ready to put our own thoughts into action. Practice patience and active listening. You will be able to truly understand the reason and meaning of the conversation and what you are suppose to take from it. Remember, you already know what you know.
While one listens carefully to what is said, it is just as important to recall that “sometimes humans need to listen to what people are not saying rather than listening to their words.” 6
The Great Spirit created us with two ears and one mouth. The Great Spirit did this with purpose. It is for us to remember to listen carefully to not only what another says but to what she does not say.
5- Kent Nerburn, The Wisdom of the Native American, 10 (New World Library) (1991)
7- Jamie Sams, Earth Medicine, 28 (Harper San Francisco ) (1994)
