Make a Pocket

No huge story on this one...there was a baby kangaroo at my kids church party the other night and it was adorable. Did you know that when a kangaroo is born it's only the size of the top knuckle of your pointer finger!? I'm inspired...mostly squealy and I want to squish everything...a totally normal way for an inspired person to act.

This week!
Construct a pocket in or on your journal. Get crazy philosophical or simple, make an interactive Frida Kalo with organs on strings that you can tuck in, or sketch out a kangaroo with a pop-out joey. Fold, glue, staple, stitch, and fill it up with something awesome.

If you want interesting construction tips check out Pinterest/Google and search "paper pocket" ;)

Go!

Inspirational Classroom Poster

 For those of you who don't know, I work in a preK-12 school. I know any office with a lounge will have some crappy coffee, maybe a Keurig, a microwave and fridge, leftover birthday cake...but there's always something extra special waiting in a Teacher's Lounge.  

 Students talk about it like it's a magical palace with spa water, chandeliers, live music, kittens, and ice cream. Teachers talk about it like it's filled with someone's old furniture and busted cabinets. Both are correct. It's a Cave of Wonders. There are many different areas in the 8x8' sanctuary, each with a sacred purpose:

On top of the fridge: No touchie. That's where the office ladies keep the vases. You may ask permission but no is the answer.

Inside the fridge: No touchie...unless someone has email blasted the school saying that the kid whose dad owns a Bruster's had a birthday and there are 80 million ice cream cups in the freezer.

On the counter: Free for all! Crappy Community Coffees all around! Hot chalk-olate? It's yours! How many different kinds of faux sweetener can one cavern hold?! All the different kinds!
...there's also a Coke machine filled with chick flavored Cokes like Diet Caffeine Free Spenda-d Coke Zero Free Lite (barf)

But the Crown Jewel of the Teacher's Lounge is the Coffee Table 🎉
If it touches the table it's up for grabs! The possibilities are endless. Leftover birthday treats? Amateur. Wine, cases of chocolate, lamp shades, books, flyers for all of the crap teachers have to side-hustle to be able to pay a mortgage, luau supplies, sandwiches, clothes and shoes, wheat, obituaries of retired teachers, furniture and linens, stacks of picture frames, a tower displaying 12 varieties of coffee creamers, outdated globes, semi-functioning microscopes, 35 pairs of star-shaped sunglasses, enough beaded necklaces to rival MardiGras, whatever didn't sell at the yard sale last weekend, blank scantron sheets- you know, just in case the tech apocalypse comes and we need to take multiple choice exams, and this morning...homemade hard candy, a homemade pie, and 23 inspirational and instructional classroom posters.

All this leads to this weeks prompt: Think back on your favorite class. Was it loaded with Carson Delosa smiles, or Barney Stinson quotes floating over mountains and rivers? Did you have the cool history teacher with the Janis Joplin poster? Kooky science teacher with Einstein sticking his tongue out? Lit teacher with tons of grammar rules posted like you had time to read them mid-exam? An acrostic explaining how an A-R-T-I-S-T works, or how to R-E-S-P-E-C-T each other?

What was it about those words and images that made you think or feel differently? If you were to put up a poster in your "classroom" what would it say? What is it's purpose? What do you want children to grow up knowing? What do you wish someone had told you? Are you the kitten hanging from a branch type or the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. type? Or both? Design a poster or two for yourself, your classroom, or to share with friends. You're welcome to photoshop but don't forget to print and paste it into your journal!

Motivation is what gets you started.
Habit is what keeps you going.
Jim Ryan

Possimpible
The place where the possible and the impossible meet.
Barney Stinson

Inspired ;)

Go!

This morning we're gonna party like it's nine-teen eight-y seven!
*according to the copyright on the bears ;)

Monochromatic Collage

1. Anyone doing the F*Facebook activity? I'm going a little nuts...I'm not huge on football so watching the Superbowl was a nice time to nap. I wanted to know what the Pink fans were saying about Gaga's flight, how my buddy felt watching his team come back, I wanted to share a dumb photo of the junk food we declared "dinner." I've been keeping notes on stuff that I would normally share or photograph and I'm feeling pretty lame. Here's a super good one, totally worth sharing: Tilex is great for baseboards and kitchen floors! Yep, I just cleaned the whole kitchen with bleach mildew remover instead of 409. hashtagMyHouseSmellsLikeAPublicPoolMyWindowsWillBeOpenForDaysImDyingALittle
I have a problem. Maybe this really will be good...just another step toward adulting?

2. Those bananas are awesome! They made my morning!

This Week!
 Grab some magazines, paint chips, and real photographs! This week we're going to create a monochromatic collage. Choose a color, an expression or idea, cut out letters to tell a story, grab a needle and thread and stitch through the page, find a lighter and a crayon to drip, glitter, paint, stamps, paper clips, staples, lots of glue...it's a collage! Do whatever you can smash into your journal.

Here are some fun links to inspire you (nothing is affiliated because, like, there are 40 of us, the internets are not paying attention):

Basic Google Search for Monochromatic Collage

Pinterest Pop-Ups

Sewing Pinspiration 

Don't stress about getting stitches and pop-ups and wax and glitter all at once. We'll have several collaging projects throughout. Just focus on one color this week :)

Go!

F* Facebook February

So, after a fun week of paying it forward I am taking some time to step back.
I am a Facebook addict. I don't check it at work...except at lunch. I don't check it when I'm driving...unless I'm stuck in traffic. I don't check it in the morning...unless I'm awake. So, basically, all the time.

I'm a hyper-emotional person so I always got a pretty great high from seeing babies, vacations, puppies, inflatable t-rex, and whatever other silly things were posted. Lately, in case you haven't noticed, Fb has become a cluster-f of hate and blindness. I actually spent extra time every day searching for something good...something decent...something tolerable. Almost nothing. Only one t-rex video, it was okay.

I absolutely got wrapped up in it. Moved to find counter arguments for everything I saw. I was heart-broken by the words and images being shared by people I love and trust. I cried every day for 10 days and decided that was it.

So here we are with this week's prompt:

Check you phone usage. What do you use way too often? What is no longer bringing you joy or filling its purpose? Can you delete the ap for a day? Week? Month? Forever? "For eh ver foreh Ver" -The Sandlot.

I don't know if I can go forever, I don't think I want to. But I am going to take this very short month off. Try to reset my brain. I'm not saying to walk away from all social media, all media, talk radio, games, shopping...whatever you do most on your phone. Just choose one thing for a day, week, or month and see how you feel. Take note of it. It's been one day for me and I've already noticed that I want to check my phone at every flipping commercial. Now I'm watching commercials like a schmo but I'm also not missing the first minute of every scene after commercials...it's a balance ;)

What will you ditch? How long?