this was a good week

Here's what made this week awesome:

•  I spent most of yesterday driving all over Houston photographing people who were doing kind things for others who could use a hand, for no reason whatsoever other than to just do it.  Next to watching people greet each other with hugs in the arrivals hall at an airport, this is one of my favourite things in the world.

•  This National Geographic Instagram photo of a "mermaid" is the business.

•  This photographer travels the globe capturing the oldest living things in the world.  I love this for two reasons: (1)  one of the things she photographs, brain coral, is off the coast of my country, near Tobago, and (b) there's a photograph of a spruce tree that is 9,500 years old.  What?

•  A Dutch filmmaker has been filming his 14-year-old daughter weekly since she was born, and he put together a time-lapse video of it.  Fascinating to watch her mature before your very eyes -- a whole new meaning to "they grow up so fast."

•  This week, an old law school chum came over for dinner, and Marcus made lamb with -- wait for it -- rosemary & mint from our garden.  It was amazing to see my friend again; also, surely I can call myself a farmer now, right?

•  Pharrell Williams is really happy -- and frankly? I totally get it.

•  My friend Hula reveals her secret for managing life through the crazy -- and honestly, she's onto something.

•  Registration for Lime Retreats opened this week -- and is already 2/3rds full!  I can't thank you guys enough for your support -- it's going to be such a fine time.  If you'd like to join us, I'd love to have you:  click here to register, and remember, once we're full, registration will be closed!

•  Have I ever mentioned the web series Live from Daryl's House to you guys?  My friend Trish turned me onto it early this year:  Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates, invites artists to his New England farmhouse to play music -- both their own, and some of his classics.  The song of the day in my last post is one example -- but there are so many more.  You should check it out.

•  Related:  the amazing husband-wife duo, JohnnySwim, were recent guests on Daryl's show.  One of the songs they performed was a beautiful ballad, "Annie" -- and for the song of the day, click here or on the image below for the official video of that song.

(Fun fact:  Amanda Sudano, the female half of JohnnySwim, is the daughter of the late disco queen Donna Summer.  How's that for a talented family?)

On that sweet note, have a great weekend, friends (and for those who celebrate, Happy Easter!).

of speeding up, slowing down and the art of intention

Yesterday morning, as I was doing my weekly coffeehouse visit, I sat next to a woman who was writing a letter.  She sat peacefully drinking her cappuccino, with a box of beautiful stationery next to her, handwriting a message in neat penmanship.  Every now and then she'd stop writing, sip her coffee and stare outside for a second, before returning to her words.  It was lovely to watch, and I couldn't help but think that it had been years since I'd actually seen anyone actually sit down and write a letter -- holiday cards, yes, but an actual letter?  It had been a long time.

No one ever slows down enough to do things like this anymore, I thought ruefully.  Technology is hampering our ability to connect meaningfully.

But then I remembered a moment this past weekend, when I was at my parents' house.  My sister and her family are in town, and at some point, she and her husband introduced us to Words With Friends (which, for anyone who is as anti-app as I am and isn't up on the latest technology fads, Words with Friends turns out to be, in effect, Scrabble for mobile devices).  I'm a little suspicious that perhaps the app somehow injects crack cocaine through your fingertips, because good Lord, what an addictive game this is.  In no time at all, we were all playing each other on our devices, and at one moment, all was silent as we each contemplated words for our next move.

I took a photograph of that moment, and thought to myself, huh, so this is what 21st century family Scrabble night looks like.  And I had to admit, it was actually lovely that we were interacting like this.  From the outside, I'm sure it would have looked like we were all ignoring each other, but in fact, the opposite was true:  technology was actually connecting us.  

So which is it, then:  is technology causing us to speed up and forego living in the moment?  Or is it the opposite?

I'm beginning to suspect that technology might be a scapegoat for all that is ill with the world:  after all, the woman sitting next to me at the coffeehouse could have just as easily taken her time crafting a beautiful email to her friend, and my family could've pulled out the dusty Scrabble board and played together, all with the same effect.  Maybe the point isn't that we should forego the ubiquitous smart phones and tablets, but that we make time to use them with intention, being mindful of using them more often as tools of connection, and less frequently as tools of escaping.  

(Although, honestly?  Ain't nothin' wrong with a little escapism, either.)

Song:  I can't go for that (no can do) as performed by Cee-Lo Green with Daryl Hall.  Because this is the best version of that song that ever existed in the history of the Earth, amen.

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If you'd like to learn more about how to make the art of intention (perhaps with a little escapism) a part of your life, consider joining me for the LimeLight Sessions in Houston this fall.  It'll be a weekend of introspection, creativity and dreaming, all in a funky setting with good foods and good friends.  Registration is now open, but slots are going really fast -- I'd love to have you, so register early!

it's official: registration for the limelight sessions is now open!

This is it, friends:  registration for my first Lime Retreat, the LimeLight Sessions, is finally open.

I think I owe you guys some backstory about how this all came to be:  As much as I've enjoyed hosting the Path Finder course online (and man, I really have), I felt like I was still missing something, not being able to actually meet the people who were taking the course, face-to-face.  For this reason, I've been thinking about putting together in-person workshops for over a year now -- but I've been struggling with how to actually make this happen.  

But it was time.

So, being a workshop- and conference-going veteran myself, I thought about what makes a workshop ideal for me:

• I love workshops that are smaller, rather than bigger.
• I prefer conferences that are held in spaces that are comfortable and have some personality, rather than soulless hotel conference rooms.
• When I'm at a conference, the best times for me are when I can connect one-on-one with people.

Keeping all three of these items in mind (and with some wonderful coaching from Andrea Scher, as well as good old-fashioned encouragement from my friend Maile), I began creating the LimeLight Sessions.  My hope is that the LimeLight Sessions are going to be relaxing, and inspiring, and filled with creativity juju -- a place where we can each focus on ourselves, while simultaneously receiving support from each other.  Oh, and of course there'll be good food and good conversation, as a bonus.

The first one will be held October 16-18, 2014, in a funky little studio right here in downtown Houston.  It's going to be tiny -- only 25 lucky participants! -- and we're going to relax, journal, make messes, and just generally connect with each other in a small intimate setting.  I really hope you will join me.

Also, at the last minute, last week I decided to put together a little promo video, to sort of communicate how I hope this little workshop will feel.  Click here or on the image below to watch:

I'm so excited for this -- I'd love for you to come.   Click here to register (and please note that registration will close after 25 people have signed up, so register early!).  And of course, don't forget to like the Lime Retreats Facebook page, so that you can be up to date on all the news!

the bad girls club, redux

About 6 years ago, when Alex was 4 and her cousin Julia was 5, they formed the Bad Girls Club. It was unclear what the purpose of the club was; all we know is that they named the club themselves, and the name stuck.

Every time the girls get together, I do another photo shoot, and since my sister and her family are in town, I was compelled to pull my camera out.  

Behold, at ages 11 and 10, the Bad Girls 2014.

Fact:  They're really not bad in the least.

this was a good week

Here's what made this week awesome:

•  Last week, I didn't get much work done, mostly because I was paralyzed with fear.  But this week? I broke through, baby, and Lime Retreats should be ready to blossom next week, right on time.  Booyah.

•  My friend Ernest wrote some lovely thoughts on living an extraordinary life.  Very much worth the read.

•  I love everything about this kid.

•  This bride and groom win for best reception dance.  Good Lord.

•  The pastel palette of Paris.  Man, I love that city.

•  And speaking of France, for the song of the day, this mesmerizing video of a French juggler.  It also makes me go "whaaa?"

A quick one today, folks -- but I'm back full force next week.  Until then, have a great weekend, friends.

silly things that matter

My bright-coloured, poorly hand-painted (by me), polka-dotted, chipped, oversized tea mug.  No one ever uses it but me (probably out of shame), but I love the thing.

Song:  Dream a little dream of me, as performed by Cass Elliot

at what point do i get to call myself an "urban farmer"?

Status, Day 16:

• there are tons of little carrot sprouts
• there are officially 10 asparagus bean sprouts
• the mint's going crazy
• the pepper plant has gotten huge (at least, I think it's a pepper plant -- it might be a weed)
• tomato plants have tripled in size -- and there's one tiny little green tomato!

I enjoy the solitude of watering the beds daily, and I live in fear of caterpillars (because the first time I see one, I will freak out, and Marcus will have to take care of it).  Seeing the sprouts pop through the earth is thrilling; however, I'm a little irritated that the bean plants aren't big enough yet to start climbing the poles, to say nothing of the fact that I have yet to eat a single vegetable from my garden.

In other words, so far, so good.

Song:  Green garden by Laura Mvula

telecommuting

Once a week or so, I spend the morning working in a coffeehouse.  I definitely have my favourites, but it's not always the same one.  Sometimes I'm really productive (usually if I'm actually handwriting my work), and sometimes I'm not (particularly if there's wifi), but since I generally work in solitude, it's sort of nice to be in the middle of the buzz of humanity every once in a while.

A few weeks ago, my friend Andrea shared a link to this "white noise" app that makes coffeehouse sounds -- I wonder if it would have the same effect?

Song:  Her morning elegance by Oren Lavie

self-portrait

On any given day, these are what my hands look like.

On any given day, the process of setting up this shot, complete with tripod and proper lighting -- when really, I should be working on more important things* -- is what procrastination looks like.

*  not long now.

Song:  Stay with me by Sam Smith

this was a good week

Here's what made this week lovely:

•  Fresh grocery-store daisies.  There was no way I could pass them up.

•  While I got a lot done this week, I didn't get nearly as much accomplished as I was hoping to.  That said, given how many of the great thinkers of history spent their time, I'm not going to feel too badly.

•  Besides, I made a list of productive ways to procrastinate.  So, you know, there's that.

•  Well.  It appears that I have to add Seoul, South Korea to my travel wishlist. Because a coffeehouse shaped like a giant Rolleiflex camera?  Yes, please.

•  These photographs, shot in Weeping Mary, Texas, are just gorgeous.  (Also, as an aside, I just love Texas site names and the stories behind them, man.  The name Weeping Mary reminds me of another personal favourite, Woman Hollering Creek.)

•  My friend Alice authored this short story, which has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize.  I could not be more proud of her (and it's a great read).

•  Marcus and I often dream of what our imaginary vacation home would look like.  For the record, it would look something like this.

•  Speaking of Marcus, he took it upon himself to educate me on the proper way for a woman to behave.  If I wasn't laughing so hard, he might have walked away with a limp.

•  And finally, some fun news from my friends over at The ONE Campaign:  this week, ONE launched one of Africa's biggest music collaborations ever, Cocoa na Chocolate ("Cocoa is Chocolate") in support of their do Agric, It Pays campaign.  The campaign is intended to push African leaders to make more and better investments in agriculture, including keeping their promises under the Maputo Declaration; in addition, the message of the song is intended to change the way young people perceive pursuing a career in agriculture, positioning it as a way to make a living that offers real economic opportunity. 

To that end, nineteen of the biggest musical stars from the continent of Africa* got together to record this song - the track features 11 different languages including Swahili, Pidgin, Shona and Xhosa, and each artist wrote his/her own verse.  The lyrics express the importance of agriculture for Africa’s future and in the fight against extreme poverty.  When I was in Washington DC back in February, I got to hear a sneak preview of the song -- it's wildly infectious, and sounds shockingly like the soca music I grew up with in Trinidad.  (When I first heard it, I may or may not have started dancing in the audience.  Ahem.)  So today, as the song of the day, I share the official music video with you:  but be prepared, the likelihood that you'll be able to remain sitting still in your seat is very, very slim.  

Simply click here or on the image below to enjoy:

And on that incredibly joyful note, friends, have a great weekend!

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*  If you want to learn more about the awesome artists who contributed to the Cocoa na Chocolate, they are:  A.Y. (Tanzania), Buffalo Souljah (Zimbabwe), Dama Do Bling (Mozambique), D'Banj (Nigeria), Diamond (Tanzania), Dontom (Nigeria), Fally Ipupa (Democratic Republic of Congo), Femi Kuti (Nigeria), Judith Sephuma (South Africa), Juliani (Kenya), Kunle Ayo (Nigeria), Vusi Nova (South Africa), Liz Ogumbo (Kenya), Nancy G (Swaziland), Omawumi (Nigeria), Rachid Taha (Algeria), Tiken Jah Fakole (Cote d'Ivoire), Victoria Kimani (Kenya) and Wax Dey (Camaroon).