Strong! - California Film Institute

Strong! - California Film Institute
This is a beautifully crafted documentary about a big beautiful weightlifter. Cheryl Haworth is the strongest woman in the US. The film follows her as she prepares to compete in the 2008 Bejing Olympics. She is funny, charming, charismatic and totally motivational. Julie Wyman should get an Oscar for best documentary for this.

Sustainable Goal Setting for the New Year

What I Want to Be, Do and Have

Here we are, many of us, back in front of that blank piece of paper, wondering what to resolve for the new year. Some of us will set our goals out in the stratosphere, so high that we court failure. The pessimists among us will not even bother with goal setting, “bah humbug.” The realists among us will choose goals which are a stretch but within reach. And year after year our successes will build upon themselves. Subtle differences often set these 3 groups apart, and with some simple coaching dramatic shifts of perception may occur.

What do coaching, purging, clutter control and space planning have in common? These are just a few of the functions shared by professional organizers. Not every organizer performs each of these services, but most do. The universal benefit of working with a professional organizer is stress reduction.

There are many roads to Rome.

A road I’ve taken for each of the past 33 years goes like this. On or before December 31st I write down “What I want to BE in 2012,” “What I want to DO in 2012” and “What I want to HAVE in 2012.” Then I list some goals under each heading. I challenge myself, but reasonably. After all, if I meet my own challenges, next year I will want to up the ante another notch and bit by bit I will get to Rome! I keep these yearly lists in a journal and each Dec. 31st I revisit the list from the current year, noting my progress. This reinforces the process and serves as a guide for the following year.

What do New Year’s Resolutions have to do with Organizing? Everything. An organizer is so much more than a person who sorts items into piles by categories. While the sorting process is indeed important, organizers are teachers, coaches, counselors, motivators, and encouragers. Teaching of prioritization and time management are hallmarks of a professional organizer. The organizer-client relationship is one of collaborative support. The basic concept of goal setting for a New Year encapsulates the very soul of organizing.

May your dreams and reality be one and the same. Happy New Year, and I’ll see you in Rome! 2012.

Three Little Life Enhancing (?) Gizmos

What a lyrical (for an organizer) shopping day it was today. I had a little malfunctioning gizmo from The Container Store which had annoyed me for like 100 years, so while at that mall today I went in to exchange it for a new one. They were out of my gizmo, so I ended up getting these 3 little magnifying gizmos with colorful rim decor in their stead. It has taken me years to realize this might be the "it" thing to read the small print on things. For when you just don't want to have to put your close-up glasses on. Just right there in the flap of your purse. So I got one for each purse. Stay tuned to whether they were worth getting. Small print is SO annoying! Okay, so here's the verdict: they're great. The trick is to have it where you can instantly find it. Great for reading labels of products to find out the ingredients...the ones in such small type size you have to wonder!

And the other set of 3 little gizmos I got in there, for a whole .99 was a 3-pack of teensy funnels for creating travel sized bottles of lotions. I think it'll have been worth it....a better way to get the insides out. Stay tuned on this too. The jury is still out. The one thing I tried to pour was so gloppy it took too long and then I realized it's easier to pour directly from the original container with the larger opening.

We must scrutinize "useful objects" as to whether they will be personally useful, as if they are not they can end up taking up valuable "real estate" in our lives.

Fashion Outside the Box

My newest fashion tip is for any woman with a small waist/torso in proportion to a full figured hip/stomach area. The trick is, you go to a thrift store and when you spot a cute blouse that is maternity, grab it. It works like a charm. Like someone tapered the sides, giving you ample room down below. Pefect for a pear! I got a really nice v-neck one today, light blue with grey stripes and a hood. $3.75. Even if I wear it just once it will have been worth it. But this one is special. Really soft light cotton jersey with just the right weight of ribbing. Ah, the surprise element of thrift store shopping makes it one of my favorite sports.

Kickboxing in the Water

Today I was in the deep end doing my water exercise when I became enamored with the movements of kickboxing underwater. It probably looked something like this. The freedom and grace provided by moving in the water is astounding. I consider it a big ticket adjunct to living life. What if neighborhood groups chipped in and bought empty lots to build community pools. I think there should be one every few blocks. The world might be a more peaceful place.

"The Tree of Life" Film

So four of us saw this tonight. We had looked very forward to it and it didn't quite do the trick. I loved a lot of the cinematography—not the dawn of creation part—but the 50's images so real you practically feel the air as you hear the birds singing. That part was exceptional—but not enough to carry the film as a whole. Or perhaps it was simply hard to behold the dismal beauty and ugliness juxtaposed in slow motion. Maybe that was their point. There was a brilliance in how that aspect was carried. Overall I felt the film was way too long and fragmented to leave me with anything close to a post epic filmgasm. All 4 of us are artsy out of the box types, and in the car on the way home we were screeching with outrage and laughter over our respective criticisms of the film.

I did, however, absolutely love the trailer. The trailer would have been a magnificent short. Click on the title of this post to see the trailer.

I am wondering what other people think.

Water Dancing

Serendipity has led me to become an avid water dancer. It is joyful and free flowing. I listen to minimalist electronic music on my ipod shuffle which is clipped to my sun visor and usually ride a styrofoam noodle for a little bit of extra support. It is the most fun sporty thing I can think of. It works out every single muscle in your body, and if you do it right you can keep increasing the force of the workout. When you build up heat you don't sweat. Floating aerobics are just that. You know you're really doing it, but the feeling of support from the water is like a warm flowy hug. You can make up any dance steps you want, run like a runner, do jumping jacks, walk on the pool floor for balance. You can work out your arms by themselves with straight legs, or do a leg workout with your hands either up in the air or at your sides. There is no limit to the stretches you can get while just simply noodling around the pool. My life now revolves around finding the perfect pool and water dancing an hour or more a day. Pools have so many different personalities. From 5 star hotels to fitness clubs, it is fun trying a lot of them out and weighing the pros and cons. Outside vs. inside, chlorine vs. salt water, very deep end or only 5', close to home or further away. It is a balancing act that I am happy to be engaged in. Oh joy!!!

"Counter Productive" Dieting Behavior

My husband and I recently joined Weight Watchers. He because he is overweight and pre-diabetic—and me: I'm a lifetime member. As long as I don't gain even one ounce the meetings are free because I am within "normal" top of the range weight for my height. So we have been trying to adapt our lives around eating healthy food, and not too much of it. He mentioned today that at night he can't help but eat some cheese when he sees it on the kitchen counter, where I've left it, knowing I will return for some more a few times. So I came up with the catch phrase "counter productive." If you are dieting or living with a dieter, remember that food left out in plain sight, and especially unwrapped is like a neon buffet sign. And back to the Weight Watchers model, you need to count your points, and we all know when you are scarfing cheese that's on the counter because someone else left it there, you don't count those points. So the phrase covers it all. Leave it on the counter and the count will tip the scale up. Oh, well. It was fun while it lasted.

Small Orbit

About 3 weeks ago, my usual life took a back seat to my current life of dealing with sciatica, which is very painful and makes it hard to walk. At first I pretty much freaked out, and over not that long a period I adapted my lifestyle to be in harmony with my environment, which as it turns out—is a small orbit. I can think of way worse things, such as commuting in traffic, attending events I wish I'd rather not be at, on and on. The small orbit is a great excuse to just 'be. And be I am. I finally ran the "washer magic" cleaner of washing machine stuff through the washer....twice. And I am almost finished with a big review of old photos, ready to send them off to Scan Cafe to be digitalized. These are projects that could have still been on my list when I died. Well, I aint going noplace except right here, making sure all the hums of the household sound about right, the sheets are clean—again—and I'm purging and having a good old time doing house things. As for the pain, I am using every pain management trick in the book, and some of them are pret-t-y pret-t-y good.

I like it how I like it.

I'm the one in the restaurant who asks for things on the side. I plead my cause to get them to leave off this and substitute that. Pleaaaaaase don't plop my fried chicken on top of my mashed potatoes, thank you very much. My husband sometimes shakes his head and blinks his eyes wildly like a nervous tic when I do that, to make a point. Other of my friends revere my boldness in getting things how I like them. I realize that this gives the server more to think about; however fortunately in upscale restaurants in Marin County, where I live, it seems to be easier and easier to do this without repercussions. And I tip well. Generally speaking, servers have been very accommodating. I rarely am disappointed in my food when I eat out, as I research in advance what to order where. Yelp.com is my holy grail. Stand up for yourself. It'll feel good. If you hate cumin, shout it from the rooftops. Oh, and in case you are interested the egg photo is they way my mister eats. He likes it how he likes it too.

Anther Day ~ A Happy Dollar

She is a happy happy dollar.

To Buy or Not to Buy?

Okay, so you have it in your hand, you walk up to the cash register; the moment of paying for it approaches. This is the time to have a dialog with yourself. Do you love it? Do you need it? Do you have one or more at home like it? Will this replace one of those? Is it more about the sexy design, or worse yet, the enticing packaging? Once you get it home, you have to find a place for it, get rid of the packaging, do something with the receipt, pay for it on the credit card later (maybe with interest,) on and on. It is a time consuming proposition to add a new possession to the mix. So—if you have a successful conversation with yourself on the way to the cash register, you may just realize you don't want, need, or "have to have" it. Sometimes just knowing you you can have it is enough to fulfill shopper's lust. Do you ever buy something, only to get home and wonder what you were thinking? You can always take it back. In this scenario, you get to have owned it briefly (acquisition) and then get rid of it (relief). But you do have the added annoyance of having to run that return errand, and risk buying yet another thing. Whatever your process, try and begin to have a dialog with yourself before you buy things. If there is any little shred of resistance, then you probably don't need it. The best part, when you put something back on the shelf, is the blissful moment when you walk out of the store unscathed. You don't have to do anything. It was just a moment of shopper lust. And you're home free.

Arts & Crafts

Some friends came over tonight and we sat around the table, decorating the dollar, making collages, drawing. What fun. With all the choices out there, what a dream that we got to sit around the table and groove on our own and each others creations while chatting up a storm. Like an old fashioned quilting bee. We only got the computer out once, just to look something up. I think the fancy name for it is art therapy. And what a deal. It's free.

Closet too Small? Too Small for the Closet?

The most obvious fix I know for too many clothes and not enough closet space is to purge heavily. But what if you just can't let go of enough? Here is the cheapest, fastest fix for most situations. Dedicate a portion of the closet for blouses / shirts. Raise the bar, enabling you to create a lower bar. In this way you get double decker shirt storage. When you measure for this, make sure the lower bar is high enough that (a) the longest ones don't drape on the floor, and (b) the longest upper ones don't drape on the bar where the lower ones hang. The supplies to do this are quite inexpensive and often someone with just minor handy skill can install it. Sometimes a vertical narrow wall needs to be installed so that you still have room elsewhere in the closet for long hanging things. This situation will require someone with carpentry skills; a good handyman should be able to do the trick. Another of my favorites is to lower the bar for kids, so they can learn about hanging things up from an early age; they can also get dressed without getting a grown-up to get their clothing down for them. This is a beneficial skill for children to learn.

Filmmaking on a Digital Still - Well Kept Secret

You don't need a camcorder to take likeable movies. I was all set to get a camcorder, when I had a chance meeting with someone who asked to see my digital still camera. He knew the camera well (Canon SD750 Digital Elph). He said I would be able to take really good movies with it and that he didn't think buying a camcorder was necessary for the level I was at. I took his advice, and sure enough, it performs really well. I have learned iphoto 9 and have spent a lot of time editing and sound editing footage from my still camera on my 13-inch macbook. The header of this post is a link to my youtube channel which has a couple of my short films. The only downside to doing this is: my camera has no line-in for an eternal mic, and when I import movies to my apple laptop, I have to bring them into iphoto and then bring them from there into imovie. So it is an extra step, and takes up extra room on my hard drive. Also, you can only film with 14:3 aspect ratio. I like the format, but don't like that you can't later mix a 14:3 with a 16.9 aspect ratio into the same movie. That said, it has been a practically no cost (other than flash memory cards) way to learn moviemaking. Now that I know I'm totally into it, the next step is to get Final Cut Express and a good camcorder and sign on for the learning curve. I think if I had jumped in initially to final cut and a camcorder, it would have been way overkill. Now that I've done this for 2 years, prices and camera quality are getting better and better. I have definitely benefitted financially from the process. But I think the best part was that I have felt no internal pressure to make movies. Add to this the benefit of people not having full perception that there is a movie being taken of them with the digital still camera provides excellent reality footage.

Internet Shopping

I recently discovered that if you want a deal on something you're buying, or travel you're booking on the internet, you can do a search for coupons for that item at that website. Often you'll find them. Then, when you're ringing out your purchase just fill in the coupon code!

Bed, Bath & Beyond Discount Coupons

The coupon mailers that Bed, Bath & Beyond routinely sends are usable even if they're expired! Plus, you can use as many as you want at a time. I consider this to be one of the best stores in the Bay Area for organizing supplies, kitchen items, draperies, bedding, cosmetics, and a wealth of other household items. Yesterday I used 5 coupons. My purchase would have been $145 before tax, and ended up at $110 before tax.

Yoga - Baby Steps

Back to when I wrote about New Year's resolutions. It took me 8 years of making a resolution to do yoga to actually do it. Now I do yoga with two friends once a week. We would always remark that we never do it on our own. So we decided to hold ourselves accountable to doing at least 3 poses a day. These baby steps have worked. Now we email each other daily to say we've done it. We sometimes slip, but the main thing is we're all feeling better from the added stretches. This can apply to any goal. Begin with baby steps.

An Under the Radar Dessert

Put a couple of tablespoons of Fage Greek Yogurt in a bowl. Sprinkle Sharffenberger cacao nibs on it, along with some Scharffenberger unsweetened cocoa powder, and drizzle agave syrup on it to taste. If you don't mix it it, your taste buds will get a fuller experience of the separate components. This combo can turn almost anything into a dessert. A bagel, a slice of toast (with cream cheese), crackers with butter or cream cheese, leftover rice...anything relatively bland can turn into a dessert with this magic combo. Yum! Enjoy!

Making New Years Resolutions

For 25 years, I have made 3 small lists on Dec. 31st in a journal. They are: What I want to do, what I want to be, and what I want to have in the coming year. I set goals that are a bit of a stretch, but doable. That way I have a good chance of achieving them, and my succeesses build upon one another. I haven't always accomplished everything on the list, but I do accomplish most things. Practicing yoga was on my list for 8 years until I finally developed a practice. Having it on the list helped. Someone today told me he is only having one resolution: to get in great physical shape. However you choose to set goals, be it several goals or just one or two, having the pure intention of accomplishment is, in my belief, a good predictor of if it will happen. May you, my reader, set just the right goals for yourself, and accomplish them with ease and grace! Happy New Year World!