Scenes from my weekend

1. Unwilling to share the scratching chaise, Carmen sat on it until Simandl grew bored. Total brat.

2. Tried a twist on my Dad's classic chicken noodle soup- added lemon, fresh parsley and a few bulbs of fennel, traded barley for the noodles.

3-4. A fabulous night at the Milwaukee Symphony. Ler & I were treated to complimentary tickets for a performance of a Mozart piano concerto & Bruckner Symphony No. 4. In my opinion the horn section was the highlight of the evening, followed closely by the hefty trombones & tuba. I do love me some romantic era epic brass. An added bonus was getting to chat at intermission with my former bass teacher. 

5. Sunday lunch with my brother, sister & mum. Followed by a decadent dessert of coffee & homemade truffles. That is not a photo filter- the truffles are just naturally that magical.

6. A gorgeous Sunday afternoon snowfall dusted everything in a fresh coat of white.

Let's Do This: 2013 Goals & Getonits!

As January comes to a close (is it really February on Friday?!) it is a good time to check in on the progress of our New Years resolutions.

In the past I have completely avoided the practice of drafting resolutions, mostly for semantics. The term resolution feels so absolute and over arcing, like a thesis statement for an entire year.  Yes, by definition resolutions are acts of volition and free will, but I feel this is a word best tied to a UN treaty or a legislative document proposed by Congress. I much prefer looking at the year in terms of Goals & Getonits.

 

Goal & Getonits: [gohl & ghetawnits] noun

1. A statement of intention in which effort is directed. 

2. Setting an incremental course of action in order to realize ones intentions.

In my mind the term resolution is not only formal, but it is fragile. A resolution is easily broken and allows little room for negotiation or failure. Goals & getonits are terms to describe a process of growth and determination. They allow for incremental progress and set backs. As an educator I am always thinking in terms of curriculum goals and learning targets. Children do not learn and succeed in a straight trajectory, but instead take a curving path with troughs of failure and peaks of achievement. Why would we expect anything different from our adult selves?

This year I drafted my goals & getonits for 2013 in a web organizer doodle (how cross-curricular of me). I began with broad topics to focus my intentions. Where in my life should I concentrate my energy? What am I in control of (Myself- yes. Others- no.)? What changes can I make to refeather my life into a simpler one filled with intention and purpose?

The next phase was to generate bite-sized goals for each intention. I made sure the goals were realistic, honest and flexible. Some goals needed to be very specific, while others were best left as broad ideas with room for discovery and divergence.

I will devote some future posts to the specifics of some of my goals and getonits. 

How did you approach your 2013 goals and getonits?

Scenes from my weekend

 1. Enjoyed the unusually warm weather and went for a lakefront run. Too bad the 40 degree temps have been replaced by single digit highs. -4 Sunday night. Brrrrr & gross!

2. Coffee with a splash of heavy cream. It was that kind of afternoon.

3. Carmen joined me for a nap. Apparently my palm makes a good pillow.

4. No socks & chili fixin's!

5. Being spied upon.

6. Tuckered out by lesson planning and grading.

New Life

While I was putting away the holiday decorations and tending to my window sill garden I noticed this new little sprout. It made me smile. In the dead of winter this plant is growing, expanding, and creating. It got me thinking...

I already had drafted resolutions (more to come on that), but it's not too late to add a new one. I miss reflecting, writing, creating. I decided it was time to "re-sprout" my blog. 

In the past I tried to write refeathered with a specific focus. Version 1.0 launched in the summer of 2011 when my husband, Tyler, and our two kitties left our cozy city apartment and became caretakers for my grandparents suburban home. Refeathered was supposed to be about fixing my grandparent's house and getting it ready to sell. Less than 4 months and too few pictures later, the house was sold and we were preparing to move for the third time in one year. Version 2.0 launched in late winter 2012 focused on gratitude and intention, which lasted for a mere five posts. I think the snow stuck around longer than I did.

I am a musician, educator, runner, wannabe yogi, design junkie, lover of coffee and vegetables, and kitty mom. The current refeathered (version 3.0 for those of you counting) will be where I write about stuff I think is worth sharing. That simple. Look for posts on the small changes I make to my home, projects I'm working on, things I think are nifty, and simple pleasures. And most likely many, many kitty pictures.

Yup. Kitty pictures.