Thursday, August 06, 2009

creativity


it's been brewing for awhile now. i think i first got the inkling of it back in 2001. it was really there all along. as a little girl making up stories for my barbies and drawing, drawing, drawing and telling myself stories about the drawings. the run away imagination that got me in some trouble at school. a daydreamer i was and am and ever shall be. coloring. colors. photographs. old photographs. reading. traveling to distant lands with the turn of a page. days spent pouring over books at the library. nights huddled in the darkness straining to read by the street light outside my window. making tapes of myself doing radio shows. cooking. reading cookbooks. craft books. listening to music and getting lost in it. cake decorating books. martha stewart books before she was a corporation. watching cooking shows. dreaming about the cooking show i would have some day. acting. in one act plays, in skits at church, in dress up clothes in my bedroom and on my front porch. painting. water colors. making ginger bread houses and christmas ornaments and spending hours wrapping gifts. writing stories of our adventures at cornerstone. playing with makeup. doodling everywhere. journaling. more dreaming. taking pictures. making collages. taking trips to the museum. loving colors.

so where did i get the idea that i was more of a business person and should take that path with jobs? maybe it was the apathetic art teacher who made me wonder why i kept taking art year after year in high school. maybe it was the marketing class and winning a deca award and unrealistic ideas of the advertising world. maybe it was neccessity and having to take jobs to pay the bills. maybe i thought if i couldn't create any art or sing or play an instrument then maybe i would work behind the scenes. in radio. in the music business. at an advertising agency. at a cement company. at the grocery store. waiting tables. moderating message boards. at the bank. in telemarketing.

so for a long time i felt like a square peg in a round hole. wondering why i don't fit in the business world. wondering why i get so burned out and can't just go with the flow. i started to realize it slowly and i've spent alot of frustrating days in between. other people have even told me. i need to do something creative. that is where i thrive.

but how? how when you have to make money to pay the bills. i don't regret a single step that lead me to where i am today. how though? how when the 9-5 sucks all your energy and time?

all i know is this. i love taking pictures and i love telling stories. this little old blog has been sorely neglected but a new day is coming. sure i've said it before and maybe i will say it again......but it's coming. it has to. i want to see the beauty in the everyday and share it with you. i want to show ways you can live beautifully without a beautiful budget. i've started taking more pictures and soon i'll start to let a few people here and there know that if they want me to take pictures i'll be available and i'll try to help folks out that can't afford an expensive photographer. and i'll keep writing and looking for beauty in the everyday. and i'll try to do those things i love again like drawing and painting and cooking and decorating cakes and experimenting with color.

so we'll see what happens. even if no one else ever reads this blog or sees any of it, i'm so excited to begin again.

Friday, July 03, 2009

say, say, say



i almost forgot about this one. it takes me right back to being a kid.

Friday, June 19, 2009

things i'm loving


Horses on Cumberland Island, originally uploaded by Nathan Smart.




these wedding pics i stumbled upon, taken in my home state, of one of the cutest weddings i've ever seen anywhere

this television program, that we are very late to get in on, that has us completely mesmerized

these two love birds and their gorgeous wedding, which gave love and joy whole new meaning

jancee dunn, whose first book i really loved and whose new book i can't wait to read

re-reading old books from my youth.....like this and this

these t-shirts my husband is designing

oh yeah...and summer....

Thursday, May 28, 2009

house finders

here's a little video we made for nathan's comedy show (if you are in columbus come check it out on the 4th thursday of every month at wild goose creative!..it's free).

Monday, April 20, 2009

quote of the day 4.20.09


"I think it's really cool to put out a record where on one hand, digitally anyone can get it in the world, and hopefully be able to as long as that lasts. But physically there are less copies of it and they are totally individual and special. It's like traverse terrains simultaneously." - Jason Schwartzman in this interview.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

quote of the day


If I can do it with my tough schedule and Paula Deen cooking for me and standing in our restaurant day after day, y’all can too. - Jamie Deen

i read this on jamie deen's blog where he reveals how he has lost weight (just common sense and eating healthy). bless his heart, i believe he's right. i'm inspired. this photo is a cover of his latest cookbook which i'll check out for sure. i'm also getting more excited for our vacation to charleston, savannah and cumberland island every day. now i don't think i'll be able to pass up paula's cooking on our visit but i have started counting calories again and i'm going to give it my best shot.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

yard sale treasure map



yes, i say
yes to this
are you kidding me?
who thought of this, it's the best thing i've heard of in a long time.
to quote lifehacker.com ...

"Yard Sale Treasure Map is a Google Maps mashup designed to help you find and easily get to Craigslist-posted yard sales in your area.

You enter a starting address, a driving radius, and select from Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. Yard Sale Treasure Map then queries Craiglist for your area, and returns a route that will take you to all the yard sales it finds. You can click on the markers for each sale to see additional information about the sale and delete them if you're not interested. You can also add in sales that you find from other sources, like your local paper, by either putting the address in the left sidebar or double clicking on the map to place a new marker. This surprisingly elegant hack is free to use."


treasure hunt, here i come! check it out at yardsaletreasuremap.com

Friday, April 03, 2009

ewe are too cute!



how cute are these sheep! i want to smash them up they are so cute. little cake pops. who knew you could do such a thing? more importantly who has time to do such a thing?? oh to have that luxury. :) if you are so fortunate, here are the directions.

Thursday, April 02, 2009

so here's what i'm thinking.......


I wish I was a better blogger.
Big plans…..that’s what I have for blogging but they keep getting pushed back and back and back …until … a year or more has gone by. Last night I got inspired all over again. So here’s a list of things of some things I want to do this year:

1. Blog more – starting now at least once a week, then twice, then three times and working up to daily.
2. Launch goldiestereo.com and an Etsy store with vintage objects and hopefully someday artwork.
3. Keep learning about photography, take pictures, lots and lots and lots of pictures.
4. Write and write and write.

I’m excited in life. For the future, for our road trip with friends in May, for
other trips to come, for the chance in life to get caught up in at least one area, for my husband’s monthly
comedy show, for my new
camera, for our
community, for Spring, for new beginnings.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Beat Patterns

PAUL C TO THE ORGANISMS tee by beatpatterns. Available from MySoti.com.

my husband launched his new t-shirt line this week "beat patterns". check it out at the link above. it's "a clothing line dedicated to the fabric of hip hop: the producer" and the first shirt is dedicated to Paul C

Thursday, March 05, 2009

i miss my mom today


A Picture Share!, originally uploaded by goldiestereo.

she's about 10 hours away.........wish i could snap my fingers and bring her here.

Thursday, January 08, 2009

things are looking better....


think pink, originally uploaded by goldiestereo.

nathan's mom is doing so much better, she might even get to come home in a few days (edit 1/11/09: she came home!). thank you to everyone who prayed, we believe it's only because of your prayers that she is getting stronger every day. thank you God. so here's to mamma pam today and here's to more days like
this

Friday, January 02, 2009

happy new year


DSCF0758.JPG, originally uploaded by goldiestereo.

welcome 2009
we are so glad to see you and praying for ...mercy, grace, love, hope in this new year. we could use some around here.

nathan's mom is in the hospital in critical condition, her lungs aren't functioning properly and they don't know why...some things have been ruled out, some suspected, but there's a lot of waiting going on. we would certainly appreciate all the prayers we can get. her name is pam and she's pretty much the best mother in law anyone could ever have.

there is still so much to be thankful for. so, so much. i am reminded at times like this that not only everything we have but our every breath is a gift from God.

soon i hope there will be some celebrating of answered prayers and here's to brighter days ahead.......

Sunday, December 14, 2008

quote of the day

"i've discovered the secret of long term happiness and it is being intensely and sincerely grateful for what you have right now and not looking towards the future to fill any void."

i read that on my friend jenny's blog today and it hit me so hard. i truly believe being thankful is one of the best non medical cures for depression there is. this quote sort of paraphrases philippians 4:11-12.

this photo was taken friday night at some of best friend's annual christmas party, the baxters. they have it every year and it's become such a fun thing to look forward to every year. the food is amazing and they always have some sort of interactive game involving music like rock band or guitar hero....this year it was karoake.



nathan and austin pretty much killed it doing bon jovi "living on a prayer" and auggie (pictured above) brought down this house with his acappella "go tell it on the mountain".

these are good days. i have so much to be thankful for. i spend way too much time worrying about other people's opinions, how we're going to get from point a to b, what the future holds, how i look, where i live and on and on and on. i need to let gratefulness and thankfulness take over my thoughts, saturate my conversations and keep me in line.

so here's a little tiny list of things i'm thankful for right this second:

being happily married to the love of my life
family that loves me unconditionally
a warm, safe place to live
car that doesn't break down constantly
good job
church and our community
friends who love unconditionally
cable tv or specifically hgtv and the food network
christmas almost being here ....and...
2 weeks vacation for christmas!!!
all the wonderful joys of the holiday season
Jesus
the ability to buy gifts for the people we love
getting to enjoy our friends kids
taking pictures


that's just a little, little bit of the big picture....what are you thankful for today?

Sunday, December 07, 2008

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas...

It's that time of year again......that I love and look forward to so much every year. Time to go Christmas shopping and whisper secrets about gift giving plans.....time to give something extra to someone that can use a helping hand.....time to celebrate with friends and family....time for nostalgia.....time for scents and sounds that bring back memories of lovely days......time to celebrate the love that came down at Christmas, our saviour Jesus Christ. We had our first big snowfall yesterday and it's helping put me in the mood. I love this time of year. When I drive I only want to listen to Christmas music. I'm really only interested in seeing Christmas movies and we sleep to the light of Christmas lights every night. Hope you are all enjoying this time of year too...

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

autumn


wishing, hoping, praying, reading, wondering, thinking, dreaming, writing, making, living, loving.

Monday, September 08, 2008

first sight of autumn


first sight of autumn, originally uploaded by goldiestereo.

you can just feel it in the air, i so hate to say good bye to summer and i'll cherish every moment left of sunshine and indian summer but i do love autumn.

Friday, September 05, 2008

sign of the times

it's a sad day in columbus. we will still have one art theater left but the drexel grandview is closing on september 27th. first the symphony, now this?

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

traveling

here's where i've been in the whole world...


here's where i've been in the USA....


the blue indicates the places i've been. looks like i've got alot of ground left to cover. let's go!!
*thanks to maggie for the link to this fun site


update 8.28.08-thanks to my dad for reminding me that i have been to new mexico :) i threw in delaware and rhode island too because we toured all over new england and i'm pretty sure we went through both. :)