A, B, C

One, peace ,three

The size of an Irish town is measured by the number of pubs not by the number of people. (Thanks for the tip, K.)

How do we measure ourselves? The number of friends on facebook? The number of dollars in our bank account? The number on our bathroom scale?

Forget numbers. Stop keeping track. There is no score. (Nobody cares how many lb.s you can lift.) I repeat, there is no score.

What if we ceased counting and started living?

For those always watching a clock, follow the Brazilian saying, "hurry gets in the way of perfection." I'm NOT condoning lateness (quite the contrary,) but a way of life that flows with, not by, a timetable. How?

~ Make space: leave more time for everything.

~ Prioritize: wise up to what 'must' be done today and what can be left for tomorrow.

~ Say no to others: say yes to yourself.

~ Accept.

~ Loosen the reigns.

~ Get a watch. This may sound counter-intuitive, but you will save time wondering and checking your iPhone. Always wear a watch when traveling. Bonus points for a Swatch.

~ Go to bed early. No media in the boudoir. (Unless it's hanky-panky related.)

small house rules

Luckily smaller portions, smaller cars, and now smaller homes are attracting a lot of attention lately. A sane allocation of dynamic perfection versus an unmanageable expanse of mediocrity proves that downsizing can be exhilarating.

http://green.yahoo.com/blog/guest_bloggers/56/almost-invisible-mirrored-tree-house-built-in-sweden.html;_ylt=AuxkQppH.L7oWBud0WXznVGAV8cX

We can also thank the Swedish for:

IKEA

H&M

Swedish Fish

Ace of Base, ABBA, Roxette

Eating dinner on the earlier side

Build your own tiny house with the help of designer Jay Shafer who has through the love of his personal project, perfected the craft.

http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com/

My houses have been composed with meticulous attention to light, warmth, energy efficiency, and proportion. I have made the most of each cozy interior by minimizing transitional areas like hallways and stairwells and by using otherwise unusable space as storage. The simple, formal designs that have resulted are the best way I have found to order most any space and make it beautiful.

My houses have met all of my domestic needs without demanding much in return. The simple, slower lifestyle my homes have afforded is a luxury for which I am continually grateful. --Jay Shafe

There is a beetle outside my front door

and on my back porch

and both are there

no matter which door

I exit

No joke! The california beetles are out and about.

The Egyptian Scarab Beetle are associated with the Creator god Atum and represent resurrection. "heart Scarabs" were placed on the mummified deceased to ensure rebirth.

protection plan

Hamsa: an North African/Middle Eastern amulet worn in defense against the evil eye.

Nazar or Evil Eye stone: a Turkish/Greek charm also warn to ward off the evil eye.

Evil Eye: a look of envy or ill will that can cause injury or bad luck.

"Envy come from people's ignorance of, or lack of belief in, their own gifts." -Jean Vanier

Change your thoughts, change your life. In order to rid yourself of a curse (or just deal with a Jealous Jane) change your attitude to change the vibrational frequency around you, so you become impenetrable to any negative energy directed at you. You cannot change others, only yourself.

"If you don't like something change it. If you cannot change it, change your attitude. Don't complain." - Maya Angelou

Can a psychic cleanse your aura?... Know thyself. A psychic comforts many personalities but freaks out others!

Find Hamsas and Nazars at Beech in La Jolla.

lecher les vitrines

Quality not quantity, the slow life, and other musings from our friends on the Mediterranean.

Walk: daily to the market to purchase dinner.

Eat: soup, main dish, salad, cheese, and dessert in small portions.

Think: gelato not froyo.

Wear: one timeless Missoni versus five mediocre Banana Republics.

Bring: friends together even if it's imperfect (it isn't.)

know: when something works and do it again and again.

Combine-and-conquer: take all the tips and tricks you love from different parts of your family, friends, books, T.V., etc., and create your very own culture and tradition.

Passeggiata: take pleasure in life like an Italian with a leisurely stroll before and/or after dinner.

Paseo: The Spanish version of the passeggiata. Both involve window shopping, chatting with neighbors, and the whole family together. Especially nice on a Saturday or Sunday of big eating.

Olive Oil: liquid gold and one of the healthiest foods you can eat.

It's not about you

China for the bride! The gift you'll cherish forever ... teacups so strong you can stand on them.

Gift giving is a complex and important part of human interaction.

Psychologists say it's often the giver rather than the receiver who reaps the biggest psychological benefits from the gift.

So don't be a scrooge and take this joy away from them.

If someone wants to throw you a party and they want everyone to bring gifts, surrender to the urge to beg them not to, go with the flow, put your party dress on, wipe that pout off your face and accept all the fuss with grace.

At common law, for a gift to have legal effect, it is required that

1) intent by the donor to give the gift.

2) delivery to the recipient of the item to be given as a gift.

Ever lose sleep over whether or not you sent a thank you note? Just send that person a card or small gift "thinking of you" or "happy summer/labor day weekend/back to school" and you'll be on the nice list, regardless of any past forgetfulness.

a table of contents

A hostess prepares in advance

so when her guests arrive she is calm cool and collected with her feet kicked up on the coffee table enjoying a nonalcoholic cocktail.

Do not try to chop/cook/bake/set the table/bathe/get dressed/let people in/have a conversation simultaneously when seven p.m. rolls around:

~ Prepare anything/everything you can the night (or two nights) ahead during the down hours of your day such as late afternoon or after dinner. I invariably sloth around after dinner, so I like to use that time to bake, lay plans or set a glorious table.

- always serve a dessert you can concoct in advance

- chop veggies and wash lettuce

- whisk dressings or sauces

- soup is the perfect make-ahead, no-fuss, impressive starter

- choose serving dishes for the meal and those for nuts and app.s, too

- decorate: set or decide on a table setting and theme

~ After work it is a frenzy at the grocery store, do anything possible to avoid this madness. Many are open very early - check your local times, or shop leisurely during lunch.

~Since you always have fresh flowers and candles around your house, you won't even have to think about those.

~ Know what you are going to wear. Something you can move in, like a 1960's hostess gown or 1920's hostess pajamas.

Not everyone is built to be a host. If entertaining isn't your forte, but you wish to give back to your hosting friends and secure invitations in the future, take them out to dinner your treat.

shopaholic!

Yesterday I was feeling a little drowsy and lazy late in the afternoon and I turned on the TV (not my usual style.) I stumbled upon "Clean House: Messiest Home in America" (and, we can assume, messiest in the world.) These shocking homes are very educational. They scare the living daylights out of me (at one point I cried,) and can be a lesson to us all in becoming acutely aware of how much we own and how much time we spend consuming.

We might not wish to be considered thrifty, but let's at least be choosy (click for an older post on this.)

Shop from the heart:

~There is so much out there- if you don't loooooove it, on to the next!

~Any doubt in your mind? Pass!

~Make fast decisions, if it takes you 10 minutes to decide then you don't want it.

~Or walk away, if it isn't there tomorrow it just wasn't meant to be.

~Don't bring/listen to friends input, what do they know?

~Buy fewer more expensive/quality items rather than volumes of crap.

Anytime you buy something to bring into your home you must already have a place for it. As soon as you get home take off the tags and put it in that place. Everything a purpose, everything in its place.

~Never buy anything with the slightest possibility that you might return it!!!!!

That is just bad form.

Unconventional closet tip:

Keep crazy costume-y stuff, but get rid of the ragged or mundane.

Contrary to popular belief, I find from personal experience that the 'event' 'it' might be 'perfect' for is certain to come along. You don't want to be stuck looking for roller-skates and a poodle skirt the night before the fifties hop, instead have both on hand in your costume room/closet/drawer. It's not the pink cowboy hat you need to get rid of, it's the mountain of camp t-shirts you're keeping for 'sentimental' reasons that has got to go.

Also, buy crazy cool dresses/items even if you don't need them at the time but are pretty sure something will come up. Build an arsenal: have your army ready before war is declared. This may sound a little "hoarder-y" but a hoarder buys all the catsuits the day of halloween out of panic because he/she doesn't have the perfect leotard found over the summer already stashed away. Just like an extreme dieter ends up bingeing.

Checking in

This season's heat came a little late in California and I just switched our bedding over to "summer" mode (clean, light and white,) and upon coming home to the transformation J gave his highest compliment: "I feel like I'm in a hotel!"

3 easiest tips ever to hotel-ify your home:

1. Fresh Flowers! For a mere $10 or more a week flowers create an instant upgrade to first class. Buy whatever attracts you on a weekly basis. Add the flora to your grocery list, right there with eggs, as they are a necessity not a luxury. Arrange them in a pitcher or container of choice (get creative) and no matter how many flowers you can afford put them in a small enough 'vase' so they are pushed together and bursting out looking full and lavish.

2. Fruit in a bowl. Or go the extra mile and create a "mini-bar": have snacks in small sizes arranged nicely in a basket. Always have some sort of candy or goodie out in a little dish. Like the flowers, the image of abundance is key- let the fruit and snacks be almost too plentiful for their container. (As the plums/gummi bears/pistachios get eaten, downsize the vessel.)

3. Trays! Display all objets d'art on trays (or hide not so pretty remotes in ornate boxes and containers.) Burn candles when guests are over (another must with flowers and snacks) on trays! Place your flowers in their receptacle on a tray, serve glasses on trays, bathroom essentials on trays, place no item on any surface without a tray in between and put small trays on big trays! Start collecting trays (they are easy to store.)

Boiling point

Back in the U.S.A.

"Seemmereeng in the vibration," is what we did after three OMs in yoga this morning. The deep throaty voice on Studio Namaste's long-haired brazilian Elka is right- it feels good to seemmer: still cooking in the aftermath of the big boil, but at a lower, constant, and less violent heat. Still changing, but with less doing.

BRFWA: Breath, Relax, Feel, Watch, Allow.

Anytime, anywhere. BRFWA.

Coconut Chickpea Curry for two

~ spam

~ 1 tsp cumin seeds

~ 1/2 onion chopped

~ 1/2 inch fresh ginger root peeled and slivered

~ 2 hot green chile peppers of choice

~ 1/2 cup canned diced (smoked) peeled tomatoes

~ 1 can chickpeas, drain and rinse

~ 1/3 C coconut milk

~ salt and pepper

1. Fry cumin seeds in spam over low heat 1 minute until fragrant/toasted.

2. Cook in onion until translucent 5 minutes.

3. Add ginger, chiles, and tomato cook 3 minutes.

4. Add chickpeas, coconut milk, and salt to taste bring to a boil.

5. Reduce heat to low and simmer* 5-10 minutes.

6. Crank on pepper.

7. Serve with basmati rice.

adapted from Vikram Vij's Elegant and inspired Indian Cuisine.

*practice BRFWA: simmer simultaneously with your dish.

I am not a fan

J's grandparents have many words of wisdom, in fact, the family has published a book of them. A personal favorite: "don't be a fanatic."

(J's grandmother makes an exception for chocolate.)

Us Clevelanders have recently seen the dangers of blind faith, but this simple adage reminds us on a daily basis not to obsess or label and to leave room for life to happen.

I referred to myself in writing as a "aspiring vegan." (To which I have had several inquiries.) At the time, I said this with truth and conviction as I do feel it is important to protect our animal friends and be good to our own bodies, but I, like you, am ever-evolving and prefer to live in the moment and act as I deem appropriate in every situation, free of self-imposed rules. Nothing is finite, and everything should be taken with a grain of salt.

One thing only I know, and that is that I know nothing. --Socrates

I no longer refer to myself as a "vegetarian," "vegan," or anything else: why be limited to such confines? If a girlfriend makes me a lovely chicken dinner- I won't turn it away, if I am at a BBQ with the best pulled pork in the world smoked for three days (even basted in the middle of the night) I won't miss out on trying a piece, if a certain specialty and exotic meat purveyor wants to send me a freebee it will not go to waste, and if I feel like cooking chicken tonight...

For the most part we should all try to abstain from exploiting living beings, and understand the consequences meat consumption has on this earth but, above all of those beliefs, choose not to be Fanatic.

"Speak what you think today in hard words and tomorrow speak what tomorrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict everything you said today." --Ralph Waldo Emerson

It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind...

Other things I outspokenly hated but love now (and might hate again tomorrow.)

~ Trader Joe's

~ Uggs

~ iPhone

~ almonds

~ Louis Vuitton

~ shabby chic

~ wearing black

~ getting wedding presents

~ zero-calorie drinks

~the Fourth of July

I Often Contradict Myself

I often contradict myself.

Oh no, I never do.

I argue with me day and night.

That simply isn't true.

Oh yes it is. Oh no it's not.

I do this all day long.

Oh no I don't. Oh yes I do.

That's right. No way! It's wrong.

I'm really quite agreeable.

I argue night and day.

I love to be around myself.

I wish I'd go away.

So if you see me arguing,

it's certain that you won't.

I like to contradict myself.

I promise you I don't.

--Kenn Nesbitt

In other news Click Here if you want to know why it is so HOT out. Farmer's almanac predicted this long ago and is my new go-to weather man! Also, check out their "best days, " (click) today is best for painting, getting married, buying a home, entertaining, and traveling for pleasure: any important days or tasks ahead?! You can plan accordingly...

Vive la France!

I will be back in the Country and at the computer full-force in August!

Until then, I invite you to join me- live like a french woman! Walk wherever you can, indulge in fine foods, simplify your routine, streamline your home, create from scratch, enjoy nature, visit farmers markets and antique fairs or flea markets, relish every moment, read, or re-read Mireille Giuliano's books...

July 14th is Bastille Day, the French day of Independence. A french inspired party perhaps? Pourquoi pas?!