Since I've dubbed my world The Creative Republic, I thought I’d give you a peek at the map of my landmarks and favorite places. Mountains-In the distance rise the towering spires of the achievements I dream about. I yearn to climb them with quick and powerful strokes, but every day isn’t a mountain-climbing day, and sometimes I have to turn my back to them and stare…
It was one of those synchronistic moments—she and I had chosen a long list of exactly the same presentations to attend as part of our freshman orientation, but then it surpassed a funny coincidence. We couldn’t stop talking. She asked me about my family, and though I answered with the usual bits of info (number of my siblings and their ages), she immediately told me about…
As a little girl, my favorite color was red for the longest time, but then the Power Rangers came along and I switched it to yellow (because the Red Ranger was a boy and I wasn’t about to be like every other girl who liked the Pink Ranger.) Colors are clearly emotional for me. Yesterday I was painting a landscape for my husband (see below). He…
As bad for me as it may be, I constantly want to know my future. It’s probably got something to do with my over-active planner gene that came into full expression sometime during college. I understand the fear of the unknown, the anxiety that just wants to get to the “other side” so I know what I’m up against. I find it impossible to not be…
“For gosh sakes, treat them better than they deserve! Who would ever escape misery, otherwise?” -Hamlet (liberally paraphrased by Elise Stephens) I have begun the most demanding creative project of my life. Growing a little human being inside of me is a harrowing, mystical, and unparalleled experience. I am a mother. I will raise another life to the light. I am flat on my back,…
On the back of my laptop is an orange oblong sticker that reads, Beauty will save the world. It’s no coincidence that my favorite fairy tale of all time is Beauty and the Beast. A young girl enters a dark stone castle in order to save her father, and through the power of her friendship, shreds the spell that enshrouded the selfish heart of a prince…
There are very very VERY few celebrities I’ll admit that I admire. However, there is one woman, an actress, who time and again has shown me she will reach for something funny or spunky instead of grabbing at the overused mystique of a sexy, unreachable female who is, well, an object. Every time I see Emily Blunt perform, she embodies the character of a flesh and…
Something small grows into something powerful. In the new powerful film version of Les Miserables, two small things grow to enormous proportions—Jean Valjean’s crime and the mercy that Valjean receives through the priest. Valjean stole bread to feed a starving nephew and served nineteen years in prison as a result. Yet, upon his release, when he’s caught stealing silver from the priest’s house, the priest calls…
I watched him rock back onto his heels, a bright smile on his face as he clung to his partner's hands and kept the beat, dancing was never so beautiful to watch. When a normally quiet engineer (or journalist or software designer) suddenly glows under the influence of music and friends, I believe dance is pulling us into its magic glow. The other day I attended…
As I watched him rock back onto his heels, a bright smile on his face as he clung to his partner's hands and kept the beat, dancing was never so beautiful to watch. When a normally quiet engineer (or journalist or software designer) suddenly glows under the influence of music and friends, I believe dance is pulling us into its magic glow. The other day I…