I made this for you!

Is it Friday already? Let’s do this!

I have an official crush on this lady now. Took long enough! (Related: we should all buy some of this wine. Unless, of course, we’re under the legal drinking age.)

OMG MICHAEL COLEMAN! SQUEEE!

“A mysterious band of hacker-artists is prowling the network of tunnels below Paris, secretly refurbishing the city’s neglected treasures.” I know you’re going to read this.

All the cool kids are talking about networking this week:
-What The Pros Know About Networking That You Don’t
-Network Like a Rockstar

Baby Got Book (I promise this will make your day.)

Make “quilts” with your photos – this is pretty cool.

Need to buy something for your Valentine? Here’s a sweet book-themed print, and here are a ton of amazingly cute cards.

FOODS THAT MAKE YOU LOOK GOOD! Or so they claim.

Can someone loan me their garage?

pesky resolutions, continued

January has progressed at an expected rate – faster than I can believe – so I decided to throw together a follow-up to my resolutions post before the year is over.

1. I can happily report that my first resolution, to sew something with sleeves, is nearly complete! I’ve been tracking the progress with instagram photos, which has reminded me how many tedious steps there are to sewing and also how many times I tend to rip out a zipper before I’m satisfied with its placement. (Inevitably, I will rip it out once more after finishing the garment and hand-stitch it.)

2. I’ve managed to refine the process of tracking my books, so that it’s somewhat less random and hopefully more accessible. I’ve also created a tumblr so that you can see all the books at once – most of them (or at least all of the new ones) link back to this blog. (I’m also morphing into one of those people who wants to create a tumblr for every passing thought. So far, I’ve managed to resist.) Psst. Check out the archive view to see them sorted by month.

3. On a semi-strategic whim, I applied for the Neighborhood Leadership Institute this year. (I heard about it only a few days before the deadline.) So one of my resolutions, in light of this commitment, is to increase my knowledge of and investment in this delightful city.

4. Last night, on another semi-strategic whim, I proposed Time Banking as an NLI group project idea, and the response was that exactly the people I’d been hoping to work with volunteered to be on my team. So, this crazy concept that I discovered over a year ago is continuing to grow, and my hope is that we can craft a plan to fully launch it in all segments of our community (with proper media exposure and government support) by the end of the year.

There are others, but I prefer to keep them top-secret for now. I definitely believe I’m susceptible to the concept that sharing your plans before they’re reality – and being affirmed for your intentions, results or no results – can keep you from working toward your goals. I’d rather be praised for having accomplished something than for coming up with ideas.

4 books finished in 2012: Straw House, Wood House, Brick House, Blow

Why are you reading this book?
It’s the first book for the IAM Readers Guild this year.

What is the first line?
The sun was faithful again that morning, rising above the farm with a shine so fresh it tasted like gazpacho.

Describe the book in haiku form:
creepy short stories
science fiction, fantasy
all sorts of awesome

What will you do with it now?
keep for reference
x keep and loan out to friends x
keep to read again & again & again
post to paperbackswap.com
throw it away

Anything else you’d like to say?
I’ve already loaned the book out to a friend, and recommend that you get your hands on a copy as well.

I made this for you!

I took the day off today, and slept in until SEVEN FORTY FIVE! (Decadent, right?)

Here are some interesting links for your Friday:

All the Single Ladies – I think I’ve posted this before, but it came to mind again. The most poignant line, for me: “What my mother could envision was a future in which I made my own choices. I don’t think either of us could have predicted what happens when you multiply that sense of agency by an entire generation.”

How’s your friendship with your spouse? – I can’t actually answer this yet, but I love this model of marriage.

“Men are like trucks: they drive straighter with a weighted load.” – Why men need marriage.

America Has a Dysfunctional Relationship with Work – omg MIKE ROWE! This is thought-provoking. How do we restore the honor of hard work?

Beyond the Borders of Postage Stamps – You must look at this.

That’s all I have! Enjoy your weekend. I hope to do some sewing, some cooking, and some lounging.

I made this for you!

Hey look! More interesting links! I wonder what this week’s theme will be…

Have you heard the Two Man Gentlemen Band? Well, I haven’t either. But I read their blog, because it’s hilarious. Here’s a handy chart they made to describe their music.

Confessions of Serial Entrepreneurs – “To entrepreneurs, the world isn’t a big threatening place. They tend to understand by education or experience what is really going on.” (I’ve been observing these types, wondering if they’re playing by a different set of rules than the rest of us.)

I LOVE this wedding from local photographer, Sarah Cramer Shields. Everyone is so expressive, and their smiles are HUGE! And the books! LOOK AT ALL THE BOOKS!

Garment Maintenaince for Guys – what a delightfully non-threatening name for a sewing class!

Hey guys, while I have your attention, go buy a bowtie and order yourself some custom dress shirts. The women in your life will thank me later.

The Greatest Paper Map of the United States You’ll Ever See – I know you’re curious. Buy it here. (HT Rachel)

“You might laugh, but the sort of immaculate movement control required of a vaudevillian is the same sort of control necessary for intricate flirtation. This is why football players are such bad flirts and ballet dancers and unicyclists, however weird, are such good ones.” – Scandals of Classic Hollywood: Cary Grant’s Intimate Bromance

The Morgan Freeman EP by Yellow Ostrich – “Inspired by Morgan Freeman’s wikipedia page.”

A friend and I had a conversation this week which reminded me of this blog. – We Like Nice Boys – It’s such a sweet concept.

And let’s end with some recommendations! Holly from NothingButBonfires gives a great summary of what she read in 2011 (I particularly love this because most of these books are new to me) and my friend Moose shares his top 10 movies.