Challenge Accepted: Create a Bucket List

So, today I was challenged to create a Bucket List: Write down 5-10 things you’d like to accomplish or experience in your life and why. 

We’ll, I’ve always believed in the importance of writing your goals down. I heard a long time ago that if you write them down your are more likely to achieve them. Maybe it’s because you are putting it out there for God or the Universe? Perhaps putting it in writing is like creating a contract with yourself? 

I’ve written down some goals in the past, and I’m happy to look back at those things that were once just a thought and today, and achievement. 

I told myself that I would accept this challenge without over thinking it (something I tend to do. I love to ponder, to process, to evaluate all the possibilities…). I was only challenged to write down 5-10, so here are the first ten things that came across my mind. 

Ten things I want to do in no particular order:

1. Travel to Europe (I have some specific spots in mind)
2. Travel to Asia
3. Write a book (non-fiction)
4. Write a book (fiction, most likely a children’s book)
5. Raise chickens
6. Buy a beach/lake house
7. Start a foundation/non-profit
8. Own my own store (gotta sell all those eggs, right?)
9. Go on a ghost hunt/stay overnight in a haunted location
10. Attend a Native American sweat lodge ceremony

November is a time for GRATITUDE!

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude. - Denis Waitley 

Happy November! 

A campaign very close to my heart, BodyImage3D's challenge this month is to start a gratitude journal, and since one of my goal's  this month is to publish at least two blog posts I thought this would a great opportunity to...well...double dip and send two birds out of the park. The questions came from BI3D's November Challenge. So, what are you thankful for this month? Here are the my answers: 

What are you thankful for? Why? My family. I was blessed with kind, loving and supportive parents. A strong brother that grew into an honorable man who chose a wonderful woman to marry, and together they blessed me with a niece and two nephews that light up my heart. I am so grateful and thankful for my husband. I’m thankful that he knows me so well and still loves me. I’m thankful he’s such a hard worker. I’m thankful for all the fun we have together. I’m also thankful for my friends, my great job, my old house, and each blessed moment I have with them all. 

What can you do this month to give back to your community? This month I donated to St. Jude Children’s Hospital. They are pretty amazing. No St. Jude patient pays a dime for any of their treatment. I wish I had more dimes to spare. 

Where do you see yourself in five years? Five years huh, I hope it goes by like molasses on a winter day.  I’ll be 38. Wow. That number seems un-exciting, but I know my life better than that. It is always full of excitement, sometimes known as change, sometimes not as welcomed but looked back on in reverence. I hope that G and I will be living in either an updated version of our house, or are renting out our updated old house and are living in something a little more modern. I expect us to be in the same area, since we both seem to like it so much and since it’s been home for over six years…establishing roots.

By then, I hope 1922House blog has many more posts.

What opportunities have you been given today that will help you get there?

MANY! I have so many to thank the Good Lord for! My husband (not my husband at the time, but I knew he was pretty special =) believed in me and us enough to invest in our property and took on many years of construction and challenges.

My parents paid for my education. They not only financed and facilitated some of the best years of my life, but left me with zero debt to pay when I graduated. I know it was a gift many parents only wish they could provide for their children and for this, I am ever grateful.

I’ve been given the opportunity to work for a wonderful employer that pays me to do things I love to do which in turn allows me to play house, play in the dirt and live my wonderful life. 

What do your friends and family do to help you be better?

I’m blessed to have such a support group around me. My friends and family encourage me when things are rough, and they laugh and cheer me on in times of joy! 

What are your best qualities?

I think my some of my best qualities are my sense of humor (which can also get me into trouble sometimes), my ability and eagerness to teach. Once a teacher, always a teacher I guess. I still enjoy it though. My resourcefulness and ability to FIGURE IT OUT (or at least try). I don’t traditionally consider myself a risk taker, but looking back on the last 10 years, I have been. You’ll never know if you can fly if you don’t jump, or flap your wings when pushed out of your comfortable nest.

To Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge: Open Sesame

Via my morning and afternoon commute to from Dallas to Arlington and then back, I've been watching the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge go up. Anxiously awaiting it's opening. Not because I'm a bridge architect buff or because I'm passionate about the redevelopment efforts the Bridge supports (although it does interest me). I'm looking forward to it for merely personal gain - and hopefully that is to gain a few minutes back from my morning commute. I spend several minutes of my M-F routine just a few hundred yards from where these pictures were taken. Yes, I took them quickly while driving. Yes, there's a cop in front of me. What can I say? I live on the edge.

At a family gathering this last weekend, a cousin (that also works for the City of Big D) brought up that he's shocked that it hasn't been vandalized yet. Evidently, so it The Dallas Morning News.

Stay tag free Bridge! Crossing my fingers for smooth commute.

Sissy's on Henderson

A few weeks ago I was driving down Henderson Avenue as I do every Monday through Friday (and most Saturdays and Sundays) and noticed that where the sign at Hector’s on Henderson used to be was just a blank white space. I wondered what was going on. A new sign for Hectors, or a new restaurant in its place?

Only a few days later, I received an email from the Advocate (One of my favorite magazines! Love seeing it on my door handle. I know it anxiously waits for me to take it inside and devour it cover to cover. ) giving me my weekly update.

The post on The Advocated site said, “And Chef Lisa Garza is planning to open her new restaurant, Sissy’s Fried Chicken, in the former Hector’s on Henderson space at 2929 N. Henderson.”

Now, I’m going to admit, I didn’t recognize the name Lisa Garza when I first saw it in print. And, after I clicked over to D’s Side Dish, I…well… still didn’t know. So, I just Googled it – Lisa Garza. Oh, yes! Now I totally recognize her as a former contestant on Food Network’s The Next Food Network Star. I remember watching this season and rooting for Lisa. Why?

First of all she LOOKS amazing. I know, I know, I mentioned how she looks first, but well, first impression is everything, and since I didn’t get my first impression via phone call, I’ll have to go on what I see, and I see someone who meticulously cares about her appearance. Am I meticulous about my appearance, no, but can I appreciate it? Oh yes. Secondly, she is a tough cookie and runs a tight ship – bottom line – I like that. Thirdly, she’s from Dallas and has a restaurant here – how can she not be my top pick?

I look forward to checking out the food and the atmosphere at Sissy’s and sinking my teeth into one of those delicious juicy breasts. Or, maybe a thigh.

I never made it in to Hector’s. Gasp! Yep, it’s true. Although Hector’s was often the first stop in many girls’ night adventures, I always preferred to meet up someplace after and not have to mess with the valet, after all I live close and valet can be such a pain.

Sissy’s is expected to open Monday, February 27^th. The website was recently launched and is still in “coming soon” mode, there is a link to check out the menu, but as of now it isn’t working. The site did give me the option to make a reservation, so I’ll be looking at my schedule and doing that soon. I “liked” the Sissy’s Facebook page (the one I could find), but as of now there hasn’t been any activity.

From what I’ve seen so far, I love the look and feel of the branding.

Pin-up girl, haute.

Font with a nostalgic Pabst Blue Ribbon feel, excellent choice.

Bottle of liquor next the pin-up girl, nice touch.

I could go on about the watering can filling up the glass, but I’ll save a few things for you to notice on your own.

DIY Jellyfish Art : Accompany the Octopus

Have I mentioned how much I love my Octopussy in the Bedroom piece I created awhile back? As soon as he was complete, I had a vision of exactly what I wanted on the other wall. I wanted two pieces, both of jellyfish.

I love working with recycled goods and working with as much as I have on hand whenever possible. My husband likes this too, because my projects always end up being cheaper this way. =)

I pretty much worked the same method as my Octopus, just a few differences. Found my images, super-sized and edited using Photoshop, had them printed super-sized at Kinko's (I think to have my jelly fish printed it was around $10 bucks). Glued them to their "canvas", painted them (I used food color and water to give them their water colored look), textured them, let them dry and then cut them to size.

For my octopus's canvas, I used some scrap wood we had at home (there always plenty of scrap wood around 1992 House). For my jellyfish canvas, I used two big pieces of card board from the box our new TV came in (yay for our new TV!). Yep - I used a card board box as my canvas.

I wanted my jellyfish to have a textured look and feel over them, so I used a mixture of whole wheat flour (you know 1922 House is green like that) and water over the print.

Ta-dah! I'm super pleased with my sweet jellyfish!

Next to do - FRAME THEM!