Workspace: A Year and Four Months Later

My mom was right. Time does move faster as an adult than as a child. She used to say stuff like that to me all the time (usually while I rolled my eyes at her) and I never believed her. I guess she just wanted me to stop fretting over the present moment, which obviously is the opposite of my problem today. I'm SO focused on what will (read: should) happen in the next week, month, year, five years, etc.

So what has happened in a mere year? I present my workspace from a year and four months ago. Can you tell just from this photo I took today how much has changed in my life? Probably not. Let me happily expound.

 Big news first, in exactly 19 days, I will be moving into my very own place, a Victorian house in Pasadena's Bungalow Heaven that was split in half and made into two apartments. It's actually my boyfriend's former place (ahem, his place of 10 years). Suffice to say, I know the place pretty well, including the neighbors, who are all great. My new workspace will offer me a window view - instead of me using my mirror for a view of the outside world.

I'm happy too that it will be quiet - a prerequisite for any apartment if a writer is moving in. My current place is often made noisy by the walkway right outside my window (kids running and neighbors pulling heavy equipment) and by neighbors who feel it's perfectly acceptable neighborly decorum to honk for their friends. Added that my neighbor, whom I share a wall with, has totally convinced me to never buy surround sound, unless I like blowing my neighbors' ear drums. Note: No matter how loudly you try to blast KCRW on laptop speakers, hip hop playing from a car - parked outside on the street - with a subwoofer will always win out. However, the new place will be a standalone house, oh yes! No more apartment living.

The coffee cup sits on an appetizer plate, which my sister gave me a dozen of for Christmas. Works great as a coffee cup plate. I already have a serious collection of plateware, so these are just frosting on the cake!

On my corkboard, I put up a card recently given to me by two new editors I started working with this past year. I won't go into too many details, but I was especially appreciative of one comment, "You have brought a great new voice and energy to ..." There's a process to keeping yourself motivated to pitch amid rejection after rejection - posting inspirations are just one very small way I keep my focus and drive.

At right, you'll notice a stack of Domino magazines. Seriously, I never knew how fun it'd be planning out your interior decor would be until I got the opportunity. I'm bookmarking to my heart's delight at Apartment Therapy and The Nest too. Most recently, I signed up for Netflix, it's terrifically easy and has a collection of vids that blows Blockbuster out of the water. I only signed up after my laptop went out of commission. I was using my boyfriend's laptop, which had Netflix available. Only after I returned it and he started getting recommendations for rommantic, foreign, feel-good movies, did he suggest I get my own account. Next on Netflix: Becoming Jane. Sigh.

Speaking of decor, my boyfriend has suggested the idea that my Umbra fotoholder makes my desk look cluttered. OK, sometimes it gets outta hand. Sometimes it feels like I'm making an exhibition of my bills, concert tickets, letters I need to respond to, I even have Forget-Me-Not seeds that I need to plant, handing from Umbra. Is there a better, cleaner way to put all your etc. papers away? What are your solutions? 

Come Undone: ReKnit Redesigns Sustainability, One Thread at a Time

Here's a recent story I did on an incredibly resourceful and creative mother-and-son duo. You can also read it here on your daily thread. 

Many of us have, at some point, been challenged with what to do with an outdated or unwanted sweater. We’re talking about the one that’s brandished with a pattern only the cast from Saved By the Bell would wear. Maybe someone special gifted you with something, er, not so special. Options are limited. Donning it is ruled out. You can’t leave it in your closet, dresser … pile of clothes on the floor collecting dust mites, and you can’t chuck it (definitely an eco-no no with our overwhelmed landfills. If you have time, you can always drop it off at your nearest Goodwill. What are your options when it comes to disregarded duds? 

Send it to ReKnit, a a Boston-based project started by graphic designer Haik Avanian and his mom. For $30, Avanian’s mom will unravel all the fugliness from your sweater and repurpose it into something new and rack worthy.

Or shall we say accessory-drawer worthy?

Each month, visitors can vote on the next item to be made. Sweatbands anyone? Starting in February, she’ll be reknitting accessories in the form of two different styles of cut-off gloves. Order soon, since ReKnit limits orders to the first 30 (he only has one mom, after all). Find shipping labels to send off your sweaters here.

“The idea is definitely to have seasonal items so that they're useful for the current month,” says Avanian.

“Reknitting has always been a part of my family and culture,” he says. “We've always been as resourceful as possible, in both tough and economic times.”

He hopes their yarn-y project will offer inspiration to others who might be thinking of resalvaging yarn or other fabric from old clothes (“It's really not that difficult of a skill to learn”). “I definitely think that there's room for repurposing in the world of fashion. People are slowing becoming aware of this option now out of necessity.”

“We're hoping people see the potential in re-using clothing made from yarn, and maybe start similar projects within their families and communities,” he says. “It's a small habit, but many of these small habits can add up to a whole sustainable lifestyle over time.”

Visit them on Twitter to vote on what you’d like to see in March. Current runner-ups include a hat, iPod case, socks and … sweatbands.

The Julie & Julia Effect

Just finished watching and enjoying "Julie & Julia." And of course, from a writer's perspective, it is happily inspiring. Julie Powell went from cubicle secretary to published author reviewed in the New York Times. The book, turned into a movie, and now, she's likely doing fine in life. And still writing. Although I may not want the same outlined career path as Powell, the thing I'm most attracted to with her story, is that she went for it, and wrote CONSISTENTLY even if she didn't have a "technical" deadline from any editor. She did have a deadline for herself. One morning she simply choose to actually start meeting her deadline for life everyday. I'd like to call this the "Julie & Julia effect" and challenge myself to start making my life's own deadlines - everyday.

How is that not genuinely inspiring?

Cubicle-occupant-turned-author Julie Powell

A "Whole Life" of Writing is Just Fine By Me

For the January issue of Whole Life Times, I was excited to be asked to be featured on the contributors page. For this issue, I wrote on throwing an eco holiday party and best of green card makers in Los Angeles. I always enjoy meeting and visiting with new local movers and shakers. Hearing people's stories about starting their own businesses, sometimes from nothing (including skills), always makes me feel inspired (more than usual) and driven to go for the things, which I know I would regret not having at least tried to accomplish in life.

I know I want to continue growing as a professional writer, maybe even an author one day. But more importantly, I know that desire is not enough. Somebody at some point, once told me being a writer requires, like many professions (we'll say especially in the creative professions) much practice - if you want to be good and have work that's substantial (er, substantial enough to pull in a living wage, haha), you have to put in the work. Author and New Yorker writer Malcolm Gladwell in his book, "The Outliers," says if you want to become truly good at something and maybe even succesful - whether that's piano, cooking, sewing a button or even writing a magazine article - you need to put in 10,000 hours of practice. That's a whole lot of time spent writing. Well, at least that's one theory in life I'm willing to test out.

Happy Monday everyone.