Desiderata

This is the beginning of a post I wrote about two months ago. Just thought I'd share. I'm sitting here at the beach watching this girl cry. It's not just a whimper but a full on why-the-fuck-is-this-happening sob and it's completely real. It's that deep, private pain that hurts in places you didn't know existed and it hits you unexpectedly--even when the beach is full of happy families and brawny lifeguards. There she sits, weeping from some true, unfathomable pain. And I feel for her. Because I've been her. I've sat at the beach looking out into its infinitely wise waves, wishing-hoping-desperately praying for some sort of answer. Eventually you're empty of wet and you brush off the sand from your jeans and wipe your swollen eyes. You take in a deep breath and breathe out I love you, Ocean . And you do. You really do. There's nothing like the salty smell, the colossal expanse, the repetition and mystery. It's a wonder we don't all ...

Food for thought on Cup of Jo today; I just want a way to revisit it again, so I'm posting it here: "I actually attack the concept of happiness. The idea that—I don't mind people being happy—but the idea that everything we do is part of the pursuit of happiness seems to me a really dangerous idea and has led to a contemporary disease in Western society, which is fear of sadness. It's a really odd thing that we're now seeing people saying "write down three things that made you happy today before you go to sleep" and "cheer up" and "happiness is our birthright" and so on. We're kind of teaching our kids that happiness is the default position. It's rubbish. Wholeness is what we ought to be striving for and part of that is sadness, disappointment, frustration, failure; all of those things which make us who we are. Happiness and victory and fulfillment are nice little things that also happen to us, but they don't teach us ...

Hi all, there's a new post on what is now called: Los Francisco San Austin . Sofia (based in SF), Nora (based in Austin) and I have decided to team up and write about what we do in our respective cities. We haven't solidified a rhyme or reason behind what we'll post, so it may seem scattered at first--bear with us. We also kept some older posts (from the pre-Nora era) and so you can browse through those if you like.

Just discovered Calm.com . It's pretty great. If you need some simple guided meditation, you will love this site. You can do increments of 2 min, 5 min and even up to 20 min meditations. Beautiful soundscapes and nature images are provided. Try it out, tell me what you think. Image via Kylie Johnston Photography .

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I was talking to Shane last night about what it's like working at Bergamot Station (the arts complex where my gallery is located) and the topic of potential new friends came up. There are about nine people I can think of off the top of my head that I would like to be friends with that work in the other galleries. I've been working at this location for almost 5 months and in that span I've started to say hello to these people by name, casually chat them up at the cafe, walk with them to get the mail or go to the bathroom and other common workplace niceties. It might sound silly, but I'm starting to seriously consider how we make friends as adults. It's definitely something worth pondering for a minute. Growing up, friends are handed to you on a silver platter in the form of neighborhoods, soccer teams, classmates, etc. Now, that silver platter is work; but when you work at a place where it's just you and one other person, you've gotta start looking for a b...

Sometimes the drama is so intense you actually can't think of anything else. Every small conversation you have with acquaintances- -how was your long weekend?  sends you spiraling down the rabbit hole of fury, sadness and helplessness. One thought can send weepy, unwelcome tears down your face. When there is no solution to the problem it is that much more frustrating. Ultimately when there is truly nothing you can do about the issue, all you can do is distract yourself. Here's how I'm distracting myself today: 12 quotes by comedians for when you're feeling shitty at work or in your career. Just make some freaking swirls and get over it. Some Kimye nonsense to rot your brain: Kim changed her name to Kim Kardashian West . Here's Kanye being, well, Kanye . I'm thinking about getting some essential oils after work. Here's some for sadness:  Cypress, Frankincense, Grapefruit, Helichrysum, Lemon, Mandarin, Neroli, Orange, Rose, Sandalwood, and Vetiver...