Cath, etc.

Immersed

Like a believer on Sundays, I have been immersed. Baptized by the church of man-oh-man-but-I-love-my-job, I've been putting vast amounts of energy towards the production of magazines, the shaping of features, the moulding of columns, the creation of online promotional campaigns, and the delightfully bippy task of inspiring paper crafters all over the world to move from their coffee tables to their craft rooms to create a handmade card.

All more fun than I could ever describe, really. But amazingly, it's so much more than just that.

Because while I was not writing here in Cath, etc. I was doing all that AND attending the paper crafting industry's semi-annual tradeshow, CHA, in Anaheim. We left on a Friday and came back on a Wednesday--inspired, connected, rejuvinated, exhausted, and truly joyful. And while I could wax poetic about my experiences, I think the pictures say it best.

Me, Jennifer, and Kelly during our flight's delay:

A photo op on a different kind of runway:

Some Paper Crafts peeps, most of whom I hadn't met before the consumer portion of the show. So nice to put faces with names:

After learning that my dear and moxie fab friend, Kim Kesti, will be a mom for the ninth time in July:

Me and Kelly with some of our favorite people in the industry, Teri Anderson and Lisa Johnson:

Running into my old pals from Simple Scrapbooks, Wendy Smedley and Angie Lucas, whom I miss so much:

Reconnecting with Melody:

Margie:

Melissa:

...and Diane:

 Meeting Anna Griffin! *swoon*:

Catching up with dear friends Bev and Eileen:

 ...and Julie and Eric:

Laughing 'til it hurts with the Paper Crafts Go-to Gals:

...and generally being surrounded with a kind of love and mutual respect that validates, gives, and grows:

 

This industry--these women--rock my world:

...and I'm so grateful to be so blissfully immersed.

At the End of a Very Long Day

I am always delighted to see that there is new content on this amazing blog:

be-house

The tagline says it all: Be at home at our house.

I am, I so am.

Thank you Bertina, in Holland, for offering so much lovely joy at the end of a very long day. 

A Chance to Give Back

I found an easy way to help a school in Morocco.

Not that I was looking for it. It kind of fell into my lap as I was doing some research for my day job.

It's so stinkin' easy, and you get something amazing out of it, so I thought I'd pass it along to you.

It's never too early to shop for Christmas presents, handmade no less, and 100% of the profits from now until October 18 will go to a school like this:

 to help kids like this:

For more details and links, go to today's Moxie Fab World blog post.

And join me in supporting a friend, a cause, and a community.

It Is Like Walking Through a Dream

 If I were to miss the day each summer that I hike the Crest Trail, it would be like missing Christmas.

The Crest Trail hike remains my favorite hike in the world. Nearly 14 miles long round-trip, it begins at the Little Water Trailhead in Mill Creek Canyon and ends at Desolation Lake in Big Cottonwood Canyon. It climbs well over 2,500 feet in elevation and takes you through some of the most scenic high-mountain back country in the world.

It is, quite simply, the reason why I live where I live.

There are, quite frankly, no words to describe the beauty that I find here, the depth of which can only be glanced upon with a camera.

 

 

 

It is rare that I find myself without words. I suppose it is a testament to how deeply this scenery touches me, to say nothing of the sounds and smells that greet me upon each new turn in the trail.

If I attempted to assign words to this experience, they would pale in comparison to the feelings this pilgrimage evokes in me.

For it is religious. It is rapturous. It is sacred.

It is like walking through a dream.

2,340 Feet Up

Yesterday Mark and I hiked Grandeur Peak. It is 2, 340 feet up from where we begin at the Church Fork picnic area of Millcreek Canyon. One step forward, three miles to go. I am strong. I am willing. I am ready. I take another step.

The trail widens to expansive views. We keep going. We advance by degrees. There is more beauty...

...in every switchback.

We breathe hard, sweat much, and dig deep inside for the strength we need to reach the top; but I am hiking, so I am happy:

We marvel as blue flax scatters its joy across the hillsides, distracting us from our effort:

While we become intoxicated by this summery scent as it propels us up the mountain:

We are surrounded by loveliness:

...and grateful for vistas like these that put things in perspective:

...when we realize that all vistas are humbling, no matter how near:

...or how far:

And when, at the top of the world, we pause for a moment, 

catch our breath, and prepare for the steep descent, 

we are overwhelmed by the beauty that is here, in our own back yard.

For we are the best of friends

 

...especially at 2, 340 feet up.

Finding Levity in the Gravity

_{AP Photo}

The gravity of it all.

A new president in a difficult time. Our first black president and all that that means.

It means a New Era.

His hand on Lincoln's bible. Her green glove directly beneath, supporting it all. It all.

 A beautiful ball gown. J Crew stock going up. A thumb's up from Sasha.

2 million people roar.

And not to diminish it. Not to take away one thing from it. But after taking the day off of work to watch, to participate, to cry freely in my glass of champagne. After the quartet, the poem, the speech, the commentary, the prayers.

The parade. The dignitaries. The look he gave his wife as they danced. The speculation. The analysis. The ceremony. The hope.

The breathless seven minutes when he got out of "the beast" being relieved to find out that Reverend Jesse Jackson and David Gergen were just as worried as I was saying in my head "Get back in the car, please, could you please just get back in the car?"

It all just makes me want to lighten up a little. Take life a little less seriously for a moment.

You know? Being a witness to history takes a lot out of you. Frankly, I'm exhilarated but also exhausted.

So, I've got a little joke for you. In the midst of all this important stuff, I just want to tell you a joke.

It was one of my dad's favorites:

Q: How do you get down off an elephant?

A: You don't, you get down off a duck.

That's it. A little joke.

For there are serious days ahead. We must find levity in the gravity.

Praise Song for the Day

Praise Song for the Day

by Elizabeth Alexander, Inaugural Poet

Praise song for the day.

Each day we go about our business, walking past each other, catching each others' eyes or not, about to speak or speaking.

All about us is noise. All about us is noise and bramble, thorn and din, each one of our ancestors on our tongues.

Someone is stitching up a hem, darning a hole in a uniform, patching a tire, repairing the things in need of repair.

Someone is trying to make music somewhere with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.

A woman and her son wait for the bus.

A farmer considers the changing sky; A teacher says, "Take out your pencils. Begin."

We encounter each other in words, words spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed; words to consider, reconsider.

We cross dirt roads and highways that mark the will of someone and then others who said, "I need to see what's on the other side; I know there's something better down the road."

We need to find a place where we are safe; We walk into that which we cannot yet see.

Say it plain, that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here, who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges, picked the cotton and the lettuce, built brick by brick the glittering edifices they would then keep clean and work inside of.

Praise song for struggle; praise song for the day. Praise song for every hand-lettered sign; The figuring it out at kitchen tables.

Some live by "Love thy neighbor as thy self."

Others by first do no harm, or take no more than you need.

What if the mightiest word is love, love beyond marital, filial, national. Love that casts a widening pool of light. Love with no need to preempt grievance.

In today's sharp sparkle, this winter air, anything can be made, any sentence begun.

On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp -- praise song for walking forward in that light.

Gimme Some Sugar!

Sweet, Sweet Sugar Bowl: Utes Stun Alabama 31-17

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

 

Photo credit

 

Photo Credit

 

Photo Credit

 

Photo Credit

Photos and article courtesy of the Salt Lake Tribune

The Meaning of Christmas

_{Photo by Bob Hammerstrom}

A week ago tonight, the ice storm hit. Bringing rain, freezing rain, sleet, and snow, it spanned all of New England and upstate New York leaving over a million people without power for days on end.

Including my brother, his wife, and their three children.

When you are without power in this part of the world, you also are not just without lights, but you are also without water and heat. Your water comes from a well that is run by electricity. Your furnace is fueled by oil that is turned on by electricity. Without a generator, it's a triple threat.

Having been through severe storms there before, my sister-in-law, Maria, had the foresight to fill both tubs full of water before it hit. This is so that they could flush their toilets. This water ran out after Day 3. Fortunately, the fire station in town had water available. She and the kids would grab every container available and fill them up. At least it was warm in the car.

Later she learned she could drain the water in her water heater and use that.

Taking advantage of the wood burning fireplace in the living room, they would hang a sheet in between there and the kitchen to keep as much heat in as possible. Even still, one morning it got down to 42 degrees. The day it hit 55 and melted all the ice, they opened the windows. It was warmer outside than it was in the house.

They heated water over the fire and ate Cup o' Noodles.

They heated water over the fire and put it in the cage with Twizzler, the pet bird, to help him stay warm.

They ate a lot of Pop Tarts.

When the food in the freezer thawed, they grilled what they could on the propane barbecue.

The first day included a lot of organizing and gearing up. The second and third days were adventuresome for the sheer novelty of it. The fourth day it was starting to get old and Eric took Olivia, the twelve-year-old, to work with him where they had not lost power.

By the fifth day, it was getting more than old. The perishables were going bad, no one had showered, and they were tired of being so cold all the time.

During the days, the kids, home from a school that was without power as well, would make up games and play with Twizzler. They didn't miss TV. They did miss the computer.

At night, Maria would read to the kids by candlelight. Each night she read a different chapter from a Laura Ingalls Wilder book, and always the chapter that took place at Christmastime. It was amazing how easy it was to connect to their simple yet difficult lifestyle.

On Day 6, Maria was starting to get quite concerned about Christmas and all that was not getting done. Her mom was flying in in two days, and she was worried about her comfort if this continued. The official word was that it could go on until the upcoming weekend.

The neighbors had left on Day 2 for a hotel in Boston.

This was never an option for my brother's family. Maria put it this way, "We all really pulled together and it was a good thing for the family.  And now approaching Christmas, we are so grateful and appreciative of the things we have and of beautiful Christmas lights and warmth.  I think it will make for an especially memorable holiday."

And though her mom didn't have to bring a store of D batteries and her own toilet-flushing water, Maria sensed that she was a tad disappointed to be missing out on the Great Adventure.

I believe that my brother's family will be asking Santa for a generator this year, but the true spirit of Christmas is alive and well in their home in this blessed season of love, gratitude, and peace.

May the true spirit of Christmas be ours to share with those we love this holiday season.

And may we not have to learn this by being without power for 7 days beforehand.

Younger Next Year

So here's the scoop on the Cath's Getting Smaller on the Eat Less Move More Diet.

Once I got down to having lost 15 pounds, I decided to take a break. I was heading into a long vacation, the launch of a new blog, and the holidays. My new and necessary goal: maintenance. And, I'll be honest. Posting my weight and everything I'd eaten each day had lost its shine.

Now I'll be really honest. I have never been able to maintain the weight I've lost on any diet. I always end up gaining what I lost back and then some. So, I wanted to slow down and learn to trust that I could stay at my base weight minus fifteen before I tried to lose any more.

Is that a rationalization? A cop-out?  Since it's been a month ago today since I posted my last weight and I've completely maintained my weight loss, I say it is an attempt to learn to trust myself and know for sure that I've changed a lot of bad habits.

At the same time that I was having that conversation with myself in my brain, I started reading this book, which pretty much caused another major epiphany:

Here's why:

• Unless we are hit by a truck or are stricken with disease, those of us who are 40 and older will probably live into our nineties, whether we like it or not. Those of you under 40 will live longer. When you consider this fact, quality of life becomes a really big deal.
• New scientific research has shown that our bodies are dynamic, literally replacing themselves as old cells are destroyed and new ones are grown:
  • Thigh muscle cells are completely replaced about every four months
  • Blood cells are completely replaced every three months, your platelets every ten days
  • Bones are replaced every couple of years
  • Taste buds are replaced every day
• Exercise helps you grow more cells than what you replace, therefore slowing down the aging process, even at first reversing it, then leveling it off, until it drops sharply at the very end. The aging model we are currently used to: Once you turn 40, without exercise your body decays at a regular pace until you die. I prefer the former.
• Through exercise, 70% of the "normal" decay associated with aging (weakness, sore joints, poor balance, sluggishness) can be forestalled until the end--the end being the nineties.
• Ready for this? This one's astounding: 50% of all illness and injuries in the last third of your life (type II diabetes, certain kinds of cancer, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, etc.) can be eliminated by changing your lifestyle in the manner this book suggests. That's big. I mean really big.
• If you are over 40, you can become younger next year at any age. Even into your nineties.

Here's how:

• Exercise six days a week for the rest of your life. Recommendation: an hour a day.
• Do serious aerobic exercise four days a week for the rest of your life.
• Do serious weight training, with weights, two days a week for the rest of your life.
• Don't eat crap.

I have been doing this for 4 weeks now, although I haven't added the weights yet, and I have never felt better in my life. An hour a day, six days a week.  And while I haven't dipped below the 15-pound mark, the interim jeans are starting to fit a little lose through the seat.

Is it hard to exercise an hour a day? I was already doing 45-50 minutes a day, four or five days a week, so to add the extra 10 or 15 minutes was not a big change for me. BUT, the extra calories that you burn in that extra 10 or 15 minutes adds up fast. Now it is a regular part of my routine and I don't really even think about not doing it anymore. In fact, I've reached that blessed point where I am extremely unhappy if I am unable to work out. (Who is this girl? I hardly recognize her!)

There are more particulars to this regimen, of course, but just like when I realized that there are 3500 calories in a pound, I can either work them off or not eat them in the first place, this new information on how we age, and more importantly, how we can delay it, has changed my life. Pick up the book. It's an easy read. Give it to yourself for Christmas. I'd love for all of us to be younger next year.