crafty fanny

Declare Yourself Awesome

Have y'all heard about the Declaration of You yet?

Wait?

You haven't?

Ok, so you know how I'm always saying that you have to own it? That everyone in this world has something special in them, something that makes them crazy unique and one of the secrets to living your most happy life is to embrace that special sparkly part of yourself and be who you truly are?

Ladies and gent ('cause really, does more than one boy read this blog?) here's the news of the year: there is now a whole e-course to help you own it!

Um, can we just sit with that for a minute? An e-course to help you own it? To teach you how to find those sparkly parts of yourself and embrace them? Even if they aren't what your parents/boss/partner/friends/acquaintances/family members think that you should be focusing your life around?

This is gonna be good stuff, my friends!

And...wait for it...the course is being taught by Michelle Ward and Jessica Swift!

{cue lovefest}

Y'all know how much I love Michelle already, but I don't know that I've publicly swooned over Jess yet. Cause I've been busy. Busy doing things like working with both of those ladies on Spring! Busy doing things like working with Jess on my new website design (soon, folks, very soon!! But sooner if someone wants to come over and write all my copy for me! hehe). Busy doing thigs like getting so freaking excited about this e-course!!

Seriously. Registration opened yesterday and I'm already signed up!

And you should join me! It will be so fun...like a soul searching exploration of our selves. And don't worry if you're a little shy...you already have at least one friend to sit with at lunch! Me!! And, trust, I'm crazy-fun in the lunchroom!

New print: Grow

Happy Monday, my friends!

I wanted to share a new print in the shop with you this morning: Grow. 

I love how the flower seems to be growing through the muddle and in spite of it. I think this would be a good thing for all of us to remember.

mercury retrograde...how to deal!

Hey friends!

It seems that yesterday's post resonated with so many of you! I'm glad we can all revel in our shared experience of having such an f-ing hard time communicating with people! YAY! (that was an ironic yay, in case you were wondering!)

But, for reals, it is nice knowing that all of you are out there :) 

But here's the main thing with Mercury (and if you don't believe in astrology, just read this and when I say "mercury retrograde," replace it in your mind with "communication breakdown"): When everything starts falling apart with the external world, that's a sign that it's time to look inward and spend some time with yourself focusing on your own plans and dreams. 

I think it's an issue of control. Of knowing what you can change and what you can't. And then letting go.

So that's what I'm doing. Enough talking to people! (btw, wouldn't it be nice to choose when you didn't have to actually talk to people?) I'm working on myself, on getting organized (like really organized) and making sure that my vision is in the right place.

All of this is happening so that when things get back on track, I'm ready to go.

friday's confession: I don't always feel it.

This confession seems like a really good way to wrap up passion week, especially if any of you are feeling a bit put off because your life isn't crazy blingy sparkling moments ALL THE TIME!

So I confess: I don't always feel it. Not all the time.

And that's okay.

We all need balance in our lives. We can't all run around all the time shouting things like, "OMG, THIS IS THE MOST AMAZING DAY EVER. I FEEL SO MUCH PASSION ALL THE TIME. HOLY CRAP! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!?!?!" Cause then we'd be manic.

But the key is knowing it's there. Having those things that make you feel like you're living in all caps some of the time. So that when you go back to your lowercase life, you know that there's more out there. You know that there are things out there that make you feel like shouting. That make you feel like you are living your most crazy life. That make the mellow moments feel good even though they're mellow.

on passion discovery.

Uh oh...it looks like a bunch of you need some help in finding your passions since Laura was the only one who commented on yesterday's passion list post ;) To be helpful, here are some of my thoughts for you on finding your passions, just in case you're having trouble coming up with your list!

1. Stop being lazy.

Turn off the tv. Right now. Get up. And go outside. Even if all you do is sit on your front porch for 15 minutes, give it a shot. You might be surprised by what you see.

2. Take your ego out of it.

Chances are, if you haven't found your passion yet, you won't be very good at the thing you're passionate about. YET. Let go of not being good. Let go of that ego piece and just go with it. Honestly, if you are truly passionate and this thing makes you sparkle, you won't really care if you aren't good at it. I promise.

3. Pay attention to what moves you.

When do you cry? I have a habit of tearing up a little at the end of broadway shows (yes, I am a complete sap!) even the non-sad ones. Why? Maybe it's that I don't want it to be over or maybe it's that I'm just so darned moved by the performance I witnessed. By paying attention to what moves you, you'll be able to really tap into your emotions and see what you should be doing with yourself.

4. Take some photos

Carry your camera with you at all times for a week and take a picture of anything that seems interesting to you. At the end of the week, look through all your photos and see if any themes emerge. Are there specific colors you're drawn to? Foods? Flowers? Landscapes? These photos could be a great clue to you in finding what you love. 

5. Keep a passions notebook

You carry a small notebook with you at all times for writing down little inspirations, right? (If not, you totally should! Mine has so many amazing ideas in it!) Let this notebook double as a passions journal. Use it to make a note whenever you feel really good about yourself. Be sure to note what you're doing, who you're with, and how you feel. 

6. Be open to experimentation

Can I note that I never made a single painting until February of this year? And now I am selling original paintings in my etsy shop. The single influencing factor is this was taking a painting workshop in February. And I took it even though I had never painted before. So refer back to #2 up there about ego and jump in and try something new. Something really new. Listen to your own instinct and see what you're drawn to. And then make a leap of faith! 

What do you guys think? Is this passion discovery tough? Personally, I get so excited about all of the things out in this world that I don't yet know about, all the things I have yet to try, to learn. What do you get so excited about?

wednesday's inspiration: my passions

Ah, passion week is fun, isn't it?

I suppose you could say I have a passion for passion. HA!

I thought that it would be fun today if we all did a public declaration of our passions, however silly you might think them to be. Don't worry, I'll go first!

My Passions, in no particular order:

• The Avett Brothers!
• Anthropologie!
• Tim!
• Maggie!
• France!
• Anything French!
• Musical Theatre!
• Food! 
• Spring!
• Cards!
• Art!
• My Family!
• Pilates!
• Reading!
• Writing!
• My Friends!
• Laughing! 
• Champagne!
• Having Fun!
• Pretty Things!

This list shouldn't really be surprising at all to those of you who regularly read this or know me in real life. These are the things that you could say I live for. The things that keep me going, that make life fun! (Hence the excessive use of exclamation points!)!!!

My challenge to you: What things are you passionate about? What are those things in your life that make you feel most alive? That make living fun? I would love to hear all about this in the comments OR if you're so carried away by the passion, go ahead and write about it on your blog and leave a comment with the link so we can all check it out!

And, if your list is short, that's okay too. Michelle says I'm a Renaissance Soul. I'm okay with that! Oh! And I'm also going to be giving some tips tomorrow on how to find some of your passions, so if you're stumped, be sure to check back then!

more passion!

It appears that this is turning into passion week over here at live happy! I am just fine with that since I really do think that one of the key ways to live your most happy life is to know what you are passionate about...and then DO those things!

Here's another clip that I find so inspiring. Did you guys watch this past season's So You Think You Can Dance? It's such a fun, fantastic show! 

Youtube won't let me embed the video, but it would be here. No worries, just click through to watch. It's worth it, I promise!

One of the things they do on the show is have trained dancers perform an unknown style. In this clip, Alex, a trained ballet dancer does a hip-hop routine with Twitch, one of their all-stars.

So watch and remember, the guy in the red jacket is not a hip-hop dancer. He's ballet. But, man, just try to ignore the passion! I dare you!

passion counts.

A few weeks ago, Michelle asked the following question to her readers: Do you believe in passion?

Friends, I implore you, if you are doubting the existence of passion, please watch this:

What I love about this video is that you get a really great angle on the band while also being able to see the crowd. The crowd that is in love with these guys on the stage. The crowd that cannot help but to be swept into the musicians' own passion for what they're doing.

There's the word: passion. And if you try to tell me that true passion doesn't exist in this world, I'm going to call bullshit.

I'm going to call bullshit and then say this: if you are doubting the existence of passion in this world, in your life, if you are thinking that you are incapable of finding something you're passionate about then you're doing it all wrong.

If you haven't found your passion, you just haven't found it yet.

My advice: start living differently NOW. All of those things you always do because you've always done them? Stop. Do them differently. RIGHT NOW.

All of those things out in the world that you're curious about, but surely would never try: like archery or salsa dancing or painting or rock climbing or hiking or sailing? All those things? Go do them! Find a class or a group or a friend and get out there and start living your life.

If you don't have your passion yet, make it a priority to find it. And then get on it, because you might have to try out a lot of really fun stuff before you find that one thing that makes you feel so alive, so sparkly, so in love with life and with yourself that nothing can touch you.

And then come back and let's talk about if passion exists!

friday's confession: i'm saying eff the plan

Last week, I posted this confession on friday: I need a plan. I think this is something that resonated with a lot of you out there, since there are so many of us who are struggling with changing our lives, creating a path for ourselves and generally making our own way in this world.

I expected people to comment on this post, but I was not expecting this comment from the lovely Michelle:

Eff the plan. Get all the ideas out in a big brain dump and put 'em someplace safe. Then look at the list and see what calls out to you. What seems funnest? Easiest? Honor that Renaissance Soul lady! You can always switch gears whenever you want.

Can I please take a moment to tell you all how happy this made me?

Here's what I realized after posting last week and thinking all about the comments y'all left: It's okay to not have a "plan" because I can still get done all the things I want to do. I can naturally develop a plan even without spending days, weeks even, coming up with a schedule for myself.

Then the big light bulb that went off for me: Because there are so many things I want to do for myself, it might take a little longer to get them done since I'm collectively doing so much. And...wait for it...that's okay.

It's okay if it takes a while. I don't have to do it all right now. It's okay if it doesn't all happen immediately.

{Exhale}

That's nice to hear, isn't it?

how I conquered my Google Reader

Like many of you, my world changed the day I discovered Google Reader. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head when I realized I could have all of my favorite blogs in one place. And when I discovered a new one, I could just subscribe. So easy. And it would just tell me whenever something new was posted. Like magic! Like good old Google-powered magic.

And then one day, I logged on and realized I was subscribed to hundreds (wish I was kidding on this!) of blogs and had 1000+ items in my Reader! 1000+! Google Reader stops counting after 1000 posts 'cause they know you shouldn't try to get through that many.

Since that day, I've been trying constantly to win the battle against my Reader. I've gone through and strategically and unapologetically unsubscribed from blogs that I don't read often. I've attempted to put a module on my home page so that I can try to keep up with things periodically as they come in. But it always gets out of hand. There's just too much good stuff out there to look at, too much pretty on the internets that I want to see.

And just one day away would create a Google Reader monster. And I, being the over-achiever that I am, would feel so guilty, like I had let all of these blog authors down, buy not being able to read everything. But, oh, I would certainly try! I would try and try and then an hour or two would go by. And then I realized that there must be a better way to do this or else I would spent the rest of my life just reading blogs. The rest of my life, y'all.

So, are you dying for my solution? Can't wait to hear what I did to finally keep the Reader under my control?

My secret weapon: I use the "mark all as read" button all the time.

Here's my process:

1. I usually log onto my Reader as a type of reward for getting something useful accomplished. And I always give myself a time limit. Or I'll read things while eating breakfast or taking a quick break. Limits are key, people!
2. I check out how many total new items are waiting for me. Sometimes this is a low number like 7, in which case I'll just click on "all items" and go through the list. But sometimes, this is a crazy number like 347 or 1000+. In these cases, proceed to step 2.
3. When the number is high, I skip reading "all items" and scroll through the listing of individual blogs on the left-hand side. I then only read the ones that are very important to me. Artists I love, real-life friends, people who never fail to inspire me. Those are the ones I give my energy to. If I've been away from my Reader for a few days, this usually will take up most, if not all, of my allotted time.
4. Then I go to the top of the page and "Mark all as read." Yes, this is bold (hehe) and the first time I did it, I found it slightly terrifying, asking myself things like, "Oh, but what if there's something that I'm about to skip that is amazing, life-changing? What if I miss out on the coolest thing in the world?"
5. The key: Once you've gotten rid of everything, or actually right before, realize that your life is complete as is and reading blogs is only an enrichment, not a completion. Right? Don't we all have enough in our lives that missing out on a few blog posts isn't going to be life-altering?
6. Repeat as often as necessary.

Do you have any tips for keeping clear of online clutter? Please share in the comments! I'm sure we could all use them!!!