Take A Look, It's In A Book...
I visited the British Library for the first time on Saturday, and it absolutely BLEW my MIND! First of all, I can’t for the life of me understand how I’ve lived in London for two years and never visited the British Library. I mean, the British Museum is probably my favourite place in the city; and the Library is the Museum of books! And we all know how I feel about books, right? So why this weekend was my maiden voyage through those wrought-iron gates I do not know. But anyway. This place was ridiculous; it was borderline surreal. In one glass case—one case!—were all these original manuscripts, most handwritten…Beowulf, Bronte, Lewis Carroll, Plath, Hughes, Jane Austen’s final two chapters of Persuasion displayed on her writing desk!!! This place has the MAGNA CARTA, for crying out loud! And the Codex Sinaiticus! I saw Beethoven’s tuning fork, a house drawn by William Shakespeare, Beatles’ lyrics scribbled on the back of a birthday card, and one of De Vinci’s sketch books. I could go on and on...and we only visited ONE ROOM! Ok, enough. Enough nerdy joy, enough exclamation points. :)
ANYWAY
All this to say…I love London. I love free museums and accessible public transportation and corner shops. I love daily free papers and internet grocery shopping and the possibility of running into Jamie Oliver on the street. I just…I love it. ♥
What I do NOT love is flippin' sunset at 4.15 pm! [sigh] Blasted winter...
Labels: history, London
[Song]birds of Paradise
Last month I saw Sarah Howells perform at The Basement Door in Richmond (brainchild of my friend Katie Thompson), and I was blown away. She is petite, witty, and one-half of the band Halflight.
I am a little in love with the track “Lifelight”—although I find it awkwardly titled, considering the band name. Ah well… [shrugs]
I feel the need to also direct you to my lovely friend Mel's music site, since we’re promoting singer/songwriters today. She is truly fabulous! Plus, she has an amazing heart for social justice; and as a result her material is incredibly pertinent…it’s about REAL life and REAL issues. (Also, it sounds really good!) What are you waiting for? Give ‘er a listen!
Labels: Halflight, Mel Wiggins, Sarah Howells
The Pizza Man Always Rings Twice?
In the UK this week there have been reports aplenty that Pizza Hut is undergoing a major re-branding. They are changing the menu, the restaurant interior, and—can you believe it—even the name! Out of the dust and rubble of stuffed-crust dreams, “book it!” cards, and personal pan pizzas comes...
Pasta Hut!
Now, after some internet research I’ve discovered that, in the States, Pizza Hut announced this name change last April Fool’s Day; but later rescinded, saying it was a promotional stunt to broadcast its new Tuncani pasta dishes. Scott Bergren, president and CEO of Pizza Hut, said: "The launch of Tuscani Pastas marks a new day for Pizza Hut, and what better way to grab people's attention than with some tomfoolery. We committed a tremendous amount of resources to our Pasta Hut hijinx, including new signage on our corporate headquarters, a national ad campaign and a re-branding of our web site. We believe these efforts show our true level of excitement about these new pasta offerings from Pizza Hut."
So, could PH
possibly be trying to pull the same prank twice?! If so, shame on them! You can’t think of any original ways to generating buzz so you think, “
Hey! Remember that bit we did a couple of months ago about changing our name? That worked well—why don’t we just try that again?” I mean, come on, guys…doesn’t it kinda take the fun out of it if we see it coming? And if
not, all this talk about “tomfoolery” and “hijinx” is going to be really embarrassing for them.
(And more than a little anti-climactic, no?)
Labels: Pizza Hut, publicity stunt
Treasure Today
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Today (right now, actually) is the funeral of my co-worker and friend, Anna Salhani.
Newspaper article: "'Caring' women die in car crash"I will never forget hearing those words from the other end of the telephone: “they’re dead.” I never thought that two little non-tangible words could literally knock the wind out of me. Please remember Mercy and Anna’s families during this unimaginable time.
You just never know, do you? You never know when your last “today” will be...
From the heart and off-the-cuff
It is with abundant amounts of shame that I return to you. Clearly, a year and a half of not blogging is unacceptable behavior. In fact, it breaks the cardinal rule of blogging: Thou shalt blog regularly or not at all. That said, I am hoping to keep up with this on a slightly more regular basis, but I am too self aware to promise anything. No comments from the peanut gallery, please.
I wrote this a week ago out of nowhere. Actually, I was thinking about childhood and how amusing it would be to have a movie scene at a playground with a woman talking to an infant as if they were another adult. (Tina Fey played her in my mind—very dry delivery, very funny!) I sort of started writing it as a script; but then it morphed from that to what I wish I had known, and what I still needed to be reminded of daily. This epistle to the little ones in my life, somehow, is the final product. And seeing as Olyvia has just celebrated her third (THIRD!) birthday, I thought I would post this instead of keeping it trapped in the My Documents folder forever (with the rest of my unsolicited ramblings).
To children everywhere,
Enjoy this, really. Enjoy being this age. Because before you know it your life will be complicated…really complicated. It will be a heaving mass of jobs and relationships and money and stress. And no one ever tells you that when you’re a kid. You exist in this deluded world where grown-ups are all fabulously happy and functional and live to throw New Year’s parties and bake cookies and kiss on the mouth. If you asked a 7-year-old what he wanted to be when he grew up, he wouldn’t answer you with anything about being able to maintain a healthy relationship and pay off his mortgage. But a 37-year-old? Well, that’s just about all he’s thinking about. That, and his impending mid-life crisis. Does anyone grow up thinking they’ll become the crazy homeless man that is always shouting about Florida falling into the ocean? No, but someone does just that.
When did it all get so screwed up? At what age does all the magic get sucked right out of being alive?
Please promise me to at least make an attempt to retain some of your wonder about the world. Life is not all bad, despite what your observations will lead you to believe. People are flawed, yes. They let you down, they lie, they cheat, they think of only themselves; some even do things that will make you feel sick in the pit of your stomach. But you will, too—you’ll disappoint people that you love, you’ll do things that you’re ashamed of, you will make decisions that you’ll obsess over for the rest of your life (not too many, I hope; but inevitably one or two). Because—and here’s where you may feel defensive, but hear me out—you will be just as flawed as everyone else. No matter how much strength of character you have, how strong your will power, or how squeaky-clean your lifestyle (which will be RIDICULOUSLY squeaky-clean…right?? Ok.); you will not be perfect. And not perfect is not perfect is not perfect. Your life won’t be perfect: it won’t always go according to plan; at times it may even be downright tough to get through. The person who is perfect for you will not be perfect, but that doesn’t make them any less perfect for you. Also, adults don’t actually know everything nor do they have it all together. I know: it’s shocking and disturbing and not a fact that you’ll believe right away…or maybe even until your Mom or Dad proves it to you. But even if your parents don’t know everything—and may, on occasion, mess up—they’ve still been around longer than you and have picked up a thing or two, so…you wouldn’t do wrong to listen to what they have to say.
Now, I don’t want you to think that being a grown-up is a total downer. There ARE some fabulous things about the adult life! For example, you can eat ice cream whenever you fancy. Lyvi, you could wear a skirt everyday. Callum, you could have all the brown bread you wanted. You can pick the sugary cereal at the supermarket that doesn’t even pretend to have any nutritional value whatsoever. You can choose what you do all day, where you go, when you go to bed. Yes—you can choose your own bedtime! Crazy, right?! (Although that might be a privilege that some of us should not have…[sheepish grin]) You can travel and see amazing new places and people that you had no idea even existed. You can create a home for yourself, and maybe even share it with someone you really like being around. See? There are lots of things to look forward to.
So, keep reading books with happy words. Try to play outside whenever you can. Keep learning new things and asking “why?” (although maybe not after every sentence). Spend time with people who make you smile and laugh. Eat your vegetables so you can grow big and strong. Give hugs. Get plenty of sleep. Know when to use the word “good” and when to use “well.” Enjoy the sunshine. Love other people, even after they give you reasons not to...because they will. If you want to, go right ahead and sing at the top of your lungs. Do things because YOU want to do them, not because of outside pressure or because of some twisted sense of obligation. Don’t stress yourself out trying to please everyone else…it won’t work, no matter how hard you try. Don’t be ashamed of the things that you enjoy: cheesy music, less-than-critically-acclaimed films, or anything else deemed passé by your peers. In my humble opinion, it is a flagrant waste of time and energy (and oftentimes money) to keep up with the trends…and it has never made me a happier or better person.
Remember, little one: you are a work of art. You are loved. You are someone’s greatest treasure. You are capable; and even when you are not, you have friends and family to support and assist you. You are never alone. You encompass all of my hopes for the future, and I am confident that my faith is not ill-placed.
With all my ♥,
XOXO
[As I was writing this, I realized that there are SO many other pieces of advice I could give...Do you have any that you would offer? I am very interested to see what other people would say. Please feel free to comment.]
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