Finally

Yes. I have been m.i.a. lately. Believe me, it's not by my choice. I have officially declared this October to have been the month from hell. And now I have my fingers crossed that November is much better.
So, now that I have a minute. I want to share with you the Miz. Jo way of accomplishing things. Me and the hubby have been in the house for around six months or so. I still have piles of unfinished this and that and stuff stowed in corners until I can figure out what to do with them. BUT... I have found out the perfect way to push yourself to get stuff done around the house. Volunteer to host a party. Yep. That's what I did. I volunteered to host a baby shower for my aunt (who is finally having a girl, after having three boys). In the past two weeks I have accomplished more in my house than I have in two months. And (hopefully) I will have some pics to prove it soon.

In other news, I have recently decided to become quite blase about anything happening at my workplace. I have decided to do my best and then just let the rest sort itself out. I always try to do things to the best of my ability at work. I try to run things efficiently. But lately it seems that many outside stresses have left me getting fussed at for things that I cannot do anything about. So my new take is decidedly detached. The bills aren't paid? Well, get me some money and I'll pay the bills. The bathroom is running over? Yeah, that's not my problem. Such and such part came wrong? Sorry. I can't wave a magic wand and make it right. If they want to fire me for things that I can't do anything about, well then I guess that's just the way it will have to be. I'm not killing myself over it.

Two more days in October. Please tell me that November will be better.

~I love you all. I adore reading your comments. You never fail to make me smile. Thank you so much for being my sunshine. ~ xoxo Jo xoxo

*quote from Creature Comforts. photo from Marie Claire.

help*

Thirty more minutes until I can go home. And counting.

I will give you a post worth looking at when things calm down.

Love is...

Love is a stupid thing.



How can you want to rip a person's head off and eat it like a praying mantis one moment and want to hold them so tight that they can never leave the next? My husband can make me so mad. He can hurt my feelings like no one else can. At times I have even wondered how we stand to live with each other. However, he is also the one who can calm me down. He can make me laugh when I am trying like hell not to. And at times I wonder how on earth I could make it if I lost him.


Last night I was thinking about how complex love is. Yet, even in all its complexity, love at its very basis is embarrassingly simple. It has the ability to rouse every single human emotion. It can build up and it can tear down. Love is undoubtedly the strongest force available to mankind.

Marriage is a lot of work. You will never know how vulnerable you are until you trust another person completely with your heart. Its scary. And sometimes painful. But as I lie in bed last night, my husband's arm around my body, his chest warm against my back, I had one prevailing thought.

Love is stupid. But it's worth it.


* photo from Le Love

Bright

Finally! I actually had a bit of a stint of productivity yesterday evening. And it felt quite nice. I raked some leaves before they got completely out of hand. I finally hand washed my swimsuits and laid them out to dry. Thanks to the dandy people who came up with Dryel, I was able to "dry clean" a bunch of my sweaters. If you haven't already, you should really try that stuff. It's amazing. I done some ironing and promptly decided that some of those clothes are really not worth the time it takes to iron them. I also worked on getting my art/craft/project room in decent order.

I was thinking, while hanging paper lanterns in my project room, about how I used to despise the color pink. As a young girl I hated pink. I guess I thought I was too tough for it. But now I adore pink. I think it is one of the prettiest, happiest, bright, mood lifting colors there is. It goes well with about anything. It can be soft and understated or bold and vivacious. Pink really is such a great color. How on earth could I have shunned it for so long? I mean, just look at that room above. Doesn't it just make you smile? God was surely in a good mood when He came up with peonies, don't you think?

What color makes you smile? Like really, truly, happy making color.

* photo from House Beautiful.

She's got the Look

Just a few things that you've missed if you still haven't checked out Lookbook.

Weekly Ring Envy ~ Cheap Love

Need a little cheap love? Not like that, crazy. Get your mind out of the gutter. This love is in the form of a tiny shiny heart on your hand.

Little Green Room on Etsy has a new collection of tiny rings. Sweet little stamped silver stackable circles. Can you say that five times fast? Doesn't matter. What's the coolest thing about this handmade cuteness? They are only $15.00 a piece!! Pretty nice, huh? There you go. Affordable love that doesn't require an explanation.

Thank You

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Over and over again for all your wonderful comments on my last post. I am tickled pink. You have made my day. I wish I could take you all out for dinner tonight.

Love ~Jo~

Truth

In the land of Blog-life, everything is always wonderful. There are always sparkly rainbows and butterflies. The birds are always singing. And even when the weather is cold and damp, we still manage to have a smile on our face and a spring in our step. This is one of the reasons that I blog. To share all the pretty, happy things that I come across. And to soak up all the pretty, happy things that you come across. Blogging is a great escape, but it isn't always real.



Sometimes I find myself jealous of other bloggers. (Yes, shallow, I know.) But it sometimes feels like a lot of the ladies out there are so put together. They have wonderful, adoring, helpful boyfriends/fiances/husbands. They find time to be creative. They cook and take long walks, have lunch with friends, decorate their houses. They wear great clothes. They smile a lot. They take pictures of pretty things and post them regularly. They seem so effortless.



When I shut down the computer and leave the job that fills my lungs with millions of chemicals and my heart with bitterness, I shut down the magical world of Blog-life. I drive home in the rain, wearing jeans smudged with grease and dirt, an old hoodie and a pair of worn out sneakers. I scrounge to get together a decent meal and hope I have enough daylight to still let the dog out to run around. My head hurts. I am tired. The floor is dirty. There are four piles of laundry to do. The bathroom needs cleaned. I don't feel like working out.

I will undoubtedly end up in a fight with the husband. He isn't very supportive. I have to ask him for money to help pay the bills. He is terribly messy and dirty and doesn't give a crap what the house looks like. Isn't worried about ever having a place to call our own. Spends way too much time and money and energy on cars and motorcycles and four wheelers. Is utterly clueless most of the time. I will go to bed exhausted and still not be able to go to sleep.



For years (about 12 to be specific) I have been in an ever reoccurring fist fight with depression. I have highs. I have deep lows. I like to throw things when I get mad. I have worked really hard at identifying my triggers and understanding how my head works. And, honestly, I do pretty good the majority of the time. It's during that time that I take notes and write outlines for a book. I want so badly to write a book that helps others as much as some books have helped me. Sometimes I believe that I can. And then sometimes, like this week, I feel like I may as well scrap the idea entirely. I can't write a book that helps others. I can't even keep myself together. What was I thinking? Life is such a bitch.



I think it's important to be reminded that we are all human. Kind of like a little skit I saw on a popular kids tv channel that teaches "Everyone farts. Even famous people." Crude, but true. None of us are perfect. Some lives are definitely more gilded than others. But we are all mortal. We all hurt. We all get sick. We all get disappointed. And this is the tie that truly binds us. Think of how you feel when a fellow blogger mentions that she is sick, or that she has a birthday coming up, or someone has hurt her feelings. You naturally want to celebrate her achievements, mourn her losses, heal her sickness. We all impact one another more than we realize. So maybe we shouldn't underestimate the things that we do and say and what they mean to others. Even when we feel small and insignificant. We are all in this together. And maybe, just maybe, I will write a book and it will help someone in some small way. Just like all of you out there in Blog-land help me every single day.

Weekly Ring Envy - 4 Elise

OH - MY - GOSH - . I cannot believe I just ran across this!

This is the Happenstance ring by Rosy Revolver. I'm not joking. That's its name. And is it not the coolest, crazy design you have ever seen?! Big and bold, like a belt buckle for the knuckle. I am just beside myself on this one. Check out the rest of the store, too. Pretty impressive.

Blow Me Down

Do you remember summer? Do you remember what the sun felt like? Do you remember tank tops and warm breezes?

Yeah. Me neither.

Global warming, my hiney.

* photo from lookbook

Soul Sharing

There is much to be said for solitude. A time to rest, reflect, meditate, daydream. To give yourself some time to just be. To open your senses to everything around you. To let your soul fly. This is what I have craved lately. Moments to pull myself together. To feel like the world isn't just rushing by me faster than I can run. Time for me.

Katarina Krizanovicova must know exactly how this feels. She must understand solitude and peace. She is the master behind the lens of these gorgeous photographs. Working with natural light, as she does, renders such emotional pieces. I find myself staring deep into her photos, my mind drifting to another place. A peaceful, quiet place. A place for the soul.

Katarina just recently opened an Etsy shop. She also has an amazing website full of touching photography. So, if you find yourself needing a little escape today, look her up. Just be prepared to drift off to somewhere beautiful.

Love Letter

Dear Fiona Paxton,

~ I love you. ~


I love your metal drippy goodness. I love your serious attention to detail. I love your excessive use of beading. You are pulling on my heartstrings. You are causing mad fits of lust. You kind of make me want to cry just a little bit.

Somewhere in my dreams I see you. Draped around my neck. Wrapped around my wrist. Cascading like a waterfall. Shimmering like the night sky. I do not know your face, but I know your creations. And they are speaking to me, whispering in my ear. "Take me. Wear me. Love me. Keep me forever."

Someday, Fiona. Someday.

A Recipe, For You

My mom has been making this recipe for as long as I can remember. It's soooo good when it's hot out of the oven, with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream. Sorry I can't help too much on the biscuits. I make mine by memory and feel; I've never used a recipe. But most bags of flour have a recipe on the back. This is so easy. And worth the mess. Trust me.


APPLE RINGS

1 cup of granulated sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1 stick of butter or margarine
2 cups of water
1 quart of finely chopped apples dusted with cinnamon
1 recipe of biscuit dough using 2 cups of flour

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While its heating up, put the first four ingredients in a 9x13 baking pan and stick it in the oven until melted. Roll out your biscuit dough to about 1/2 inch thick. Evenly spread the apples on top. Roll up like a jelly roll and slice at 1 inch intervals. Lay your slices in the pan full of melty goodness. Swirlies up, of course. Bake it at 350 for about 30 minutes. Serve warm.


Hope you enjoy this as much as I do. Its a little hard to explain how to make something that we pretty much make by memory. My mom made these last week and declared them the best she had ever made. She used butter instead of margarine. Just a thought.

Love ya.
~Jo~

Friday again.

I swear, regardless of how long the work day seems to last, the weeks go by so incredibly fast. Here it is, Friday again. The sun is shining. It's warm, for now. I am hoping for a lovely weekend; for myself and for all of you, too. ( btw: Elise, you are such a darling and you regularly make my day. Thank you.)
I have a fabulous apple recipe to share. I've been telling Julia that I would get that to her, but I haven't yet. Maybe I will get it posted this weekend.

Go do something fun. Something new. Something interesting. And then report back to me Monday. ;)

* pic from dress,design,decor.

Yes, I Did.

I decided to shut up and do it.



I talked myself out of the more expensive Born boots. And then I talked myself into these less expensive Dirty Laundry boots. I'm pretty stoked about it. I hope I get them soon. And I'm thinking my Nebula bucket bag would look perfect with these. If someone doesn't buy it soon, I may have to keep it. Hmmm. We'll see.

Weekly Ring Envy

With Halloween right around the corner, I thought I would share a few pieces of Etsy jewelry with you that would go great with the holiday. Can you call Halloween a holiday? Is that politically correct? Well, anyway. This ring is from the amazing Missy Industry store. I love this store. Her designs are clean and pretty and a little bit rock and roll. And if anyone wants to buy me the ring with the red heart, you know, I wouldn't refuse. Awesome, right?

There are several pieces of beautiful spiderweb jewels in the Dolly Bird Design store. Also a sand dollar fossil ring that you shouldn't miss. What I like so much about these pieces is their understated elegance. I could totally see wearing this necklace with a black ball gown. "Come a little closer to my web, dear."

Check these stores out and tell me what your favorites are.

S.O.S.

People! We have a crisis on our hands. A very serious matter! Have you heard about the latest string of magazines to go out of print!?! I am starting to panic.

For as long as I can remember I have been obsessed, addicted to and enamoured by magazines. They are my escape from reality. My source for ideas and inspiration. They are what I look forward to in my mailbox, amidst the bills and junk mail. They are my comfort, my downtime routine, my ever flowing wellspring of random knowledge. And the best thing about magazines is the fact that I can carry them around with me. I can keep them for as long as I like. I can cut pictures and articles out of them and put them in my collection of folders and collages. They are tangible. Real. Literal. Glossy, for heaven sake. They are happiness in print form! I love them.

The internet is great. Blogs are great. You know I love them. But nothing, no nothing could ever take the place of magazines. And it seems like they are being shot down left and right. What is the future of print, people? What is going to happen? I am very sad about this. I know that you can't stop progress, and you shouldn't. But some things should always be. Some things are such a huge part of who we are as a culture. As people. Some things should remain the same.

Magazines should never die. Long live print!

*the pic above is from Domino, one of the fallen.

Just checking in.

I took some cold medicine last night before going to bed. It is almost lunch time and I am still not awake. Walking around work like a zombie. I don't have the energy for a decent post. Be back later, I hope.

~A Little Secret~

Most of the time I manage to be a pretty reserved person. I choose class over crass. I like my wardrobe to last forever. I like my hair smooth and straight. I stick with neutrals, navy and black. I am .......... pretty predictable.

BUT, there is another side to me. The side that used to come out more often than it does now. A side that happens to know how to swing glowsticks. A side that wears plaid skirts with hoodies and skater shoes. A side that has spiked hair and blacked-out eyes. (which, by the way, I should share a picture of for proof.) This side gets dirty glances from little old ladies on the street. And, yes, this side is still there. It still talks me into doing crazy stuff every now and then. This side makes my heart trip up when I see things like this:

How cool is a neon wall? No joke. I want to head to Lowe's right now. I want a neon wall.

Helllllooooo, hottie lightening pants. Alright, so I always chose baggy over melted on, but these are just too awesome. I want a pair of skin tight lightening pants.

Now seriously, every single time I see a picture of Alice Dellal I want to do this to my hair. Every single time. No. I am not joking. And here is the even crazier part. I would be more apt to do my hair like this than to paint my wall neon OR wear some crazy hot pants. I know. I've been told I'm not right in the head before.

Don't you ever just want to do something totally unexpected? Something a little daring? When was the last time you pulled out the punk?

*neon wall from Design Sponge

*kick azz pants from Lena Quist

*awesome pic of Alice from Garance Dore