Have you gone and visited Free People's blog website? Well if you haven't, the picture down below is one of many reason for you to take a look! :)
With its warm and welcoming style of writing, photos that capture and expand your imagination, and the bloggers' simple yet comforting attempt to make each of your days more unique and memorable, The website is a great way to spend whatever spare time you have when you need to relax and recharge. Enjoy! ~~MC http://blog.freepeople.com/
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1/21/2012 0 Comments Sweeps Away Cobwebs...There is something authentically reinvigorating about watching the clouds part to reveal a burst of energy in the form of sunlight. :)
I have been studying at Starbucks for the last few hours, and it wasn't until I looked out the window to see this transformation that I had gained enough energy and motivation to get through my readings! It's funny, you don't realize how big of an impact weather can have on you until it changes drastically. As a Seattleite, I've never minded the cloudy/rainy days that we get 90 percent of the time, personally because those days make me feel cozy and motivated to snuggle up with a hot cup of tea and watch a movie (...or study, if I have to :) ). But when Seattle gets those sunny days--which we only get during the Summer and on those unpredictable occasions in Autumn and Winter--, the bright, golden rays of sunlight seem to sweep away any cobwebs of weariness or frustration I may have had...And that is a great feeling indeed! Thus, I really appreciate those particular days that don't come around so often. It's great in general to appreciate the Sun and all that comes with it--with the all-of-a-sudden open range of things you can do outside (I am referring to what you can do in the Summertime when it's hot, of course), such as snuggling up with a cold glass of homemade lemonade...and watching a movie (again, referring to the Summer because no student would be studying in that time of year!). Or, even not during the Summer, those sunny days can always be effortlessly fulfilled by the brisk walks to take while wearing your warmest (and most stylish, no doubt) peacoat, hat and gloves; by taking the grand opportunity to turn yourself into a professional photographer and capture any aesthetically pleasing instance that sunlight bounces off of something (or someone, if you plan on taking portrait pictures...); or even just stepping out of the house early in the morning while everything (including your mind) is still fresh, to take in all the natural energy (and vitamin D) you may need to take on the rest of the day. So especially while we are still venturing through the cold, brisk days and nights of January, these are the chances to take advantage of everything the sunlight brings. :) Enjoy! ~~MC 8/11/2011 0 Comments Cheesy but TrueOne thing that I always find comforting is friendship. Being with a true friend who brings out the best in you is definitely a catalyst to making your day as enjoyable and memorable as ever. :)
I recently ventured to a peaceful waterfront with one friend, made a fresh batch of blueberry-glowing pancakes with another, and even shared blog links and photos with a different friend...There's something about little events like these that occur between you and a close companion, that makes you believe that happiness comes not from the most grand things imagined, but rather from the little things that together plaster a smile on your face so wide and for as long as you remember those fleeting memories. So raise a glass to the value of friendship and to always remembering to treasure every moment you share with those special people who cause sunshine to gleam all over your days! ;D ...And I realized that I have just beheld to you the cheesiest blog post of all mankind, but nonetheless you can't talk about the things you admire and love without being cheesy! ~~MC Hello!
I hope you are enjoying this lovely sunny afternoon wherever you are...and even if it's not sunny. :) I have found the Free People Boutique's blog (called Building 25) to be so inspiring, I decided to share a few pieces of their recent blog post for you to draw as much motivation and comfort from it as I have! This specific post had a list titled "33 Ways to Stay Creative," and I thought of posting a few of my personal favorites...
And here's the link to the entire box of chocolates in case you're interested: http://blog.freepeople.com/2011/07/some-much-needed-inspiratoin/ Enjoy! ~~MC What should you do on a rainy day? or even any day in fact? ...Go see a friend! :)
I say this today because, despite the blistering cold weather that was freezing my toes up to the inevitable point of complete numbness, and bullets of raindrops that were pounding the ground and causing endless chills to curl up and down my spine (these are slight exaggerations, but it definitely was raining and occasionally pouring), the couple of hours that I spent with my friend at Ugly Mug (my favorite cafe featured in a couple of my Foods for Fantasizing posts, under the "cafe" tab) made me think of the outside instead as rays of sunshine coming through the windows, illuminating the cafe that the two of us were seated comfortably and safely in. As we were having our lively yet occasionally calm conversations, I was being given the mindset of believing that today was going to last longer than most days, and therefore that today will end up more full of enrichment..than most days. ;) Friends make your days brighter, full of meaning, and full of possibility...And as long as you keep yourself surrounded with these lovely people I've just mentioned, who enjoy your company as you do theirs, who share laughs and jokes with you, and who lend you a comforting hand when you need it, you can be assured that you will always be armed for future obstacles and ready to embrace flutters of happiness. :) ~~MC 7/19/2011 0 Comments Memories you don't expectHello there! I was just feeling a bit nostalgic as I scrolled through the billions (not literally...there are just too many to count) of photos I took in France two years ago. I decided to show you these pictures I took out as evidence, of how some of the best memories you create are the ones you don't expect to remember so vividly months or years later, ones that go against memories people try to create especially in the world's most romantic city... Enjoy the photos, as I hope you will create memories just as lovely for yourself as you go about your day! :) ~~MC Sometimes, it just helps to think of your favorite things when those moments come where you wish you were in a better state of mind...
Like when I'm in the middle of jogging and I start to hear those lazy thoughts in my head about going home instead of finishing my last lap around the park, or when I've spent too many hours in front of the TV screen and then feel too sluggish to do anything and therefore feel guilty about having spent that long watching TV, I'll start thinking about the things that literally put a smile on my face, and so the rest of my day becomes infinitely better. :) For me, it's the littlest things that make me truly happy--My 2 year-old cousin's smile that can light up a room, remembering my uncle's many instances of shooting out his fireworks of energetic humor that always makes my day, the sound of birds chirping early in the morning, the smell of freshly brewed coffee, the rich and subtly sweet taste of Honey Lavender Ice Cream at the Molly Moon's homemade ice cream shop (one of many reasons Seattle is a lovely place to live...), the way that the sky looks on a clear Summer night when you can see all the stars gleaming quietly yet beautifully in the endless rush of navy-violet hovering above you, the Sunday mornings where I have just finished making a warm batch of pancakes and am watching rain gently fall outside the kitchen window, with jazz music from the stereo mixed in, as I wait for the rest of my family to wake up... What things make you happy in an instant? What little things do you hold dear, in that just one thought of each of those things makes your mood shift entirely in a second? They can be sounds, tastes, certain memories you only feel you could have experienced out of all the people that exist in this world...And you can list every one of these things down, just so you could feel that sense of gratitude once you've realized how lucky you are to have experienced these many, lovely things in your life. :) Enjoy the rest of your day and all the bowls of Honey Lavender Ice Cream and batches of pancakes that come with it! ~~MC 7/14/2011 0 Comments Spilled MilkWhat's a good way to take a break from listening to music, if you find yourself in the midst of a desperate crave for something refreshing?
Weeelll, I advise you to feast your ears on a podcast I recently came across, called Spilled Milk. It would have made sense for me to write this post on my Foods for Fantasizing page, but since this podcast has personally made my lazy mornings just a bit more vibrant and exciting, I felt that it therefore would fit more nicely within the terms of Life au Cochon (i.e. ways to make your life just a bit better). :) This entertaining and thoughtful dish of conversation is served once every week or so by Molly Wizenberg, author of one of my all-time favorite books titled A Homemade Life (which I briefly touched on in a previous Life au Cochon post), and Matthew Amster-Burton, author of the acclaimed Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father's Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater, who accompanies Molly on the air as an amusing complement to her intellectually stimulating reflections on certain foods... These two cuisine devotees will leave you in a mindset of fireworks about food that people would usually ignore and leave unappreciated. They will allow you to unearth the things you may have forgotten to admire at every encounter, or within every memory you may have visited. With their lovable sense of humor that wakes you up like a steaming cup of coffee served in the warm atmosphere of a Seattle coffee shop, perfectly blended with the syrups and spices of an utterly contagious passion for cooking, trying new and familiar foods and everything else under the Sun, you cannot help but feel your inner chef coming alive, energized and readier than ever to tackle all cuisine-related obstacles that might come your way...and of course, readier than ever to devour every opportunity of a delicious chocolate cake or piece of fudge that arrives along the way. :) So pour yourself a cup of green tea (or coffee, if you wish to become highly stimulated even before listening to the podcast!), sit down in your comfiest chair, and take a listen to Spilled Milk, where two voices will simply urge you to dive into the pleasure and experience food the way a skydiver leaps into their daring yet exhilarating journey! http://www.spilledmilkpodcast.com/2011/07/ (Here's the link) ~~MC 7/6/2011 0 Comments MagicWas there a time when you were walking among nature or just natural things in general, and you suddenly found yourself with the inexplicable urge to take snapshots of everything around you because of how beautiful it was?
Call me a Seattle stereotype, but this happens to me almost all the time! I am a lover of nature--I love taking pictures of pretty sunsets that take over your mind and imagination; of the emerald green, origami-thin leaves of the Japanese maple trees that stand and reflect the glowing Sun in my backyard; and I also think it's worth taking snapshots of times where nature may surprise you, such as the photo I posted here. :) This picture was taken on my last night in California, when my family and I were about to leave a shopping center after enjoying a feast of sushi and egg drop soup at one of the many restaurants there. These rows of palm trees were standing in the central parking area...but also, they were standing against the lovely backdrop of the clear sky turning quickly into night; the Sun had just finished setting, as the string of lights that wound around the trees' standing bodies were glowing just as brightly. This scene had surprised me because even though the trees were in the middle of a suburban area that consisted of pavements and buildings instead of pure damp dirt and rushing streams, I still found myself feeling that same peace with nature as when jogging in a trail. This is not to say that you would get the same experience from jogging a trail as standing in the middle of a shopping center at nighttime...But I do mean to say that these palm trees hadn't lost their magic despite where they were. :) So if you all of a sudden find yourself wanting to take a picture of that sunset above the lake in front of you, or of that row of trees that always caught your eye during your morning jog, don't hold back because you don't know when you're going to see that same feeling of magic again! ~~MC On this lovely sunny day that surrounds us, I wish you to do one thing (besides enjoy the sunshine of course)...
And that is to indulge yourself with a warm cup of green tea. :) It probably doesn't make sense to have a warm drink in the middle of an 80 degree day (at least that's what the temperature is in Seattle right now), but a beverage that calms the mind and warms the soul is suitable no matter the weather that occurs outside your window. Yesterday, I sat on the balcony to type a blog post (in case you're curious, I was working on my latest Artistic Appetite post); it was in the late morning, so the Sun was still going about its daily greeting to the world as it was rising high up in the clear baby-blue sky. I felt that I needed some sort of fuel, something that would clear my senses in order to write my blog post in the best way I could...And so I ran back inside the house, poured in a waterfall of boiling water into a cup that was begging for some warmth, and dropped in a green tea bag (one of many that my dad brought from his last trip to Korea and Japan), letting the nature-hued green slowly fill in the entire cup. A cup of green tea is known to be healthy for the high metabolism it brings, and for stimulating the process of making your skin glow like the warm, blurry-golden hue of a candle flame on a late Summer night. But also, a cup of green tea gives a great sense of comfort to a person, like when he/she was tucked into bed every night by his/her mother during childhood, being safely enveloped in the cascading folds of the blanket and the mother's calming words, taking him/her to the world where nothing goes wrong and everything smiles. Who doesn't want to encompass this feeling? I guess this all explains why people love drinking tea in the wintertime (besides that tea is hot and so it's for escaping from the blistering cold..)--People love to snuggle up in the memories of when they felt the most safe and protected, as they take their warm sips of quiet heaven and watch the rain/snow fall in the outside world that fails to interrupt this personal, peaceful moment of theirs. And in this time of the year that is already surrounding us with warmth, there's no reason not to envelop yourself in the same comfort you felt when your mother tucked you in bed and wished you sweet dreams. :) Enjoy a cup of green tea, and the rest of your day! ~~MC |
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