A happy wife…

Posted by random olio

I know I rave about Chris all the time, but I had to share this beautiful present. First, our 1/2 anniversary falls on Christmas day. In the past few years, we have made the choice not to give each other gifts. Last year we were traveling for Christmas and due to the high cost of the trip, we decided to pass on gifts. This year, due to purchasing a home, we decided again to put aside giving gifts. However, he always has something up his sleeve.

In November, we were at a design show and we found and fell in love with this print. I was with my good friend that was visiting that weekend, and after seeing that print she said: “Guess what you are getting for Christmas?” Well she was right. Just not for Christmas. A few days before Christmas I had come inside from my run, and sitting on my desk was the below print, framed. I went to find Chris. Happily excited, I asked how he pulled this off. He said: “I have my ways. Happy 1/2 Anniversary.”

Chris and I are horribly picky about art. We have learned over time that if we both fall in love with a piece we have to do something about it right away. We have experienced first hand when we fell in love with a piece, and waited. Only to find out that it had been purchased before we made our decision.

I encourage you to explore more of Audrey’s work. The image below does not even begin to show you the detail of this piece. Thank you, Chris.

the Pine

A happy wife.

…learning to write my story…

Posted by random olio

How did you learn to write? Did you start with a diary that had a little padlock, where you would write all your innermost thoughts and experiences? Did you learn in school or when you started your first job? I remember writing a lot as a kid. I did not have the padlocked diary, but I wrote many short stories. I still have some of them. I do not remember what compelled me to start to write. There are also gaps, where I do not have any writing, no journal entries, and no short stories. Looking back to middle and high school there was too much happening in my life, that writing took a back burner. Later, in college, I began writing more, memoir excerpts, journal writing and taking notes of quotes I appreciated or that resonated with me from authors I read.

Recently I posted about “My Ideal Bookshelf.” I have continued to enjoy exploring the pages of this book. To learn what books have changed or shaped the lives of different authors, writers, chefs, etc. Two ideas stood out to me from different individuals. The first is from Michael Chabon:

“But that was how I learned to write, and it’s the approach I recommend to people who want to write. It’s through imitation that painters learn to paint and composers learn to compose. It is an incredibly useful way to figure out how to write like yourself in the long run. And it’s much easier and more pleasurable to imitate a writer whose work you love.”

And this one from writer, Andrew Sean Greer:

“We don’t write in a void. Our storytelling comes from reading, learning, and trying out techniques we love. As Pound says, we ought to have either the decency to acknowledge a theft outright or the cleverness to hide it. Since I can’t hide anything, I guess it’s clear where I stand on that point.”

Both quotes make me think more and more about why I read so much. As I spend hours and hours of my year reading, I learn more about what I like in authors and what I do not like. I learn the different ways an author sets their scene. I learn who inspires and challenges me as an author. Hopefully I will continue to find my own voice and write my story. Whether that be a memoir, a short story, or a novel, I believe there is a story, or many stories in each of us, just waiting to be told. Some of us tell these stories in the form of a book, others through acting, some through marketing or social media. Whatever the avenue we each have a story to tell, we just have to listen for when it is ready to be shared.

just a few of my journals…

Thank you for being part of my journey to tell my story.

Designing my 2013

Posted by random olio

It is officially 2013. Still so hard to believe. While I am not much of a fan of New Year’s resolutions, I do think it is good to have goals for the year. So much good happened in 2012, it is hard to imagine what big things will happen in 2013. Here is the start of my list of things I want to do in 2013:

Run a 1/2 marathon
Start writing a book
Read more than 125 books. Maybe 150?
Travel more
Celebrate my 10th wedding anniversary (via a trip)
Add more photos in my blog posts
Take my camera out more often so I can add photos to my blog posts!
Paint more
Get back into drawing, I have a new fascination with figure drawing
Start to meditate

Here is my dilemma: I am often hard on myself to do everything and then some more. For example, each year I add another project to my list. In 2010, I wanted to read 100 books, for 2011 I wanted to read 125 books. In 2012 I wanted to read 125 books, write in my journal each day, and post a blog each week day. This year what has come to me to add to that list is: to meditate each day. Is that a lot to take on in addition to my exercise regimen, professional work, and being a wife? Will I have enough time in the day to do each of these projects? Yes. Why you might ask? Because these projects fuel and inspire me. Often I will write in my journal and get a blog idea. Or I will run and read, and solve a problem at work. It all somehow connects together. I think meditation will be the perfect blend to what I am already doing.

What to do better next year…

I would like to cherish the small moments, smile and laugh more, play more, and reach out and connect with those in my life that I have not spoken to in a long time. I would like to let go more and control less. These all might sound like easy things to do, but for me they are not. They will take conscious effort and focus if I want to be better. Take cherishing the small moments: This means I have to live more in the moment, which means I have to be more aware when I am not living in the moment. Hopefully as I meditate more, that will help with each of the above items. Time will tell. I will try to share my progress throughout the year.

I am also going to start doing something I saw on Facebook. I have started a jar that says: “Good things that happened in 2013.” At the end of the year we will open the jar and read all the notes. I bet it will be quite amazing to look back and read things we had forgotten about, and to see all of them in writing. I am ready for 2013 – bring it on!

What goals do you have for 2013?

2012 in Review

Posted by random olio

It is New Year’s Eve. I can hardly believe it is *almost* 2013. I feel like I just got used to writing 2012. I can remember back in 2000 the thought of making it to 2010 was strange to me. It felt like such a long time away, and yet here we are at the beginning of 2013. Before I get excited for what 2013 will bring, I wanted to reflect back on 2012. Here is a list of a few noteworthy details of my year, then it is time to party like it will be 2013:

Launched randomolio.com
Enjoyed a few months of “layoff” land
Found a job that changed many things in my life
Read 125 books for a 2nd year in a row
Moved into my dream house, am still in awe
I am no longer addicted to feta or Triscuits
Let my hair continue to grow out – the longest it has been to date
Learned that I am by nature an introvert, and that is okay
Stayed consistent with my running regimen, sometimes 7 days a week
Interacted with some amazing online folks

My favorite posts of 2012:

What is ahead in 2013?

See Wednesday’s blog for details!

Also, I wanted to thank Jackie.Eat.World for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award. I have received this award a few times this year, these are my recent nominations.

Happy, happy, happy New Year!

Books find you.

Posted by random olio

I am in the middle of finishing my 125th book of 2012. This year I wanted to crush my amount from last year (also 125 books) but moving homes took quite a bit of my extra time these past few months, so I will have to be okay with meeting last year’s amount. 125 is not too shabby. Right?

One of the last books I read in 2012 is called “My Ideal Bookshelf.” It is not a novel or a memoir, but a book that shares the top books of many 100 well-known individuals: authors, chefs, fashion designers, etc. It shares a page excerpt from each person, and then their list of books. The website for this book states the individuals: “…reveal the books that matter to them most—books that reflect their obsessions and ambitions and in many cases helped them find their way in the world.” Since I am such a book addict I wanted to read this book before the end of the year so that I could hopefully feel inspired and add many new (or old) options to my list for 2013. Even though many of the excerpts talk you through different books that matter to them, they also share ideas that can uplift and resonate about their own life experiences. I was inspired by this quote from Rosanne Cash:

“I think books find their way to you when you need them. Whenever I feel like I’m not going to live to read all the books I want to read, I remind myself that the important ones find their way to me.”

What a cool idea. Often we think the right people come into our life when we need them most, but many times we do not have these people there when we need them. I like the idea of knowing that the important books find their way to us when we need them, especially if the people in our lives are not there for us when we might need them. I know there have been times when I have checked a book out from the library and brought it home, and because of all the other books I had checked out I had to return it before I had a chance to read it. Yet, many weeks and sometimes months later when I had the book back in my hands and I open and read it, the words were just what I needed to hear, think about, and ponder. In those times I have often thought about how that particular book found its way to me just when I needed it most.

I hope that the books you need find you in 2013.