Farve: Walking the Plank

Dear Brett Favre,

The Vikings of the far past, never knew you; the Vikings of the near past despised of you; the Vikings of the present depend on you; the Vikings of the future falter in the rationale of the decisions that you will make right now.  Oh, the story of the Norse - according to football!!! 

Having grown up in a family that holds the Vikings engraved in our hearts, I cannot say that I ever liked you, but I can say that I definitely appreciated your game.  After all, from deep in my heart I still visualize you wearing your yellow and green (and it hurts).  And while you were a part of my team last year, it was your leadership, skills, and spirit for the game that carried our Vikings through the 2009-2010 season.  I respect that.     

That in-mind, please do us all a favor and please be rational before you decide to leave Minnesota.  I respect your game and I respect your age...And as long as you leave the game respecting your body, no bad purple blood will you leave behind. But if it's just because you're bored of football, or bored with the Vikings, please think precisely about this decision.  It takes 21 days to make or break a habit; and last year, you didn't even afford 21-days to the pre-season team.  Jump-starts don't work, even if you are a very seasoned veteran.  I hope that you don't think that was okay last year, and I certainly hope you won't go that route again this year!!!

Regardless of the 2010 pre-season kick-off being just around-the-corner, with or without Brett Favre, the team will carry on.  After all, by definition Vikings were Nordic adventurers who took to expeditions by way of the seas.  With that, we will be proud to bid you farewell after your premiere Viking season of adventure, shall you choose that route.  Now carry-on, get yourself straight, and be right-minded with a decision that will leave us all looking forward to the 2010-2011 Viking football "expedition" - WITH or WITHOUT you!  Skoal!!! ~K

This could quite possibly be the Vikings team bidding farewell to Farve,

as he walks the plank toward the retirement piranha!

Girl Scouts Logo Update

Today I discovered that the Girl Scouts have changed the original 1970s-designed logo to a more "modern" version of the iconic branding.  Being a former girl scout, I was surprised that it captured my emotions on such a personal level that I just HAD to blog it!

For those women who are former girls scouts, you will probably be able to relate to my feelings of uncertainty as you compare the two logos.  First, you can see that the "trefoil" design has more of a "squished" line.  The "corners" of the leaves of the trefoil are more defined, giving the leaves a more "cloud-like" and "child-like" character.  Additionally, the faces of the trio of females on the trefoil seem to encompass a more "youthful" shape.  Their noses are more lifted, their lips are a bit more rounded and smaller, and their necks seem a bit more erect.  The most obvious change is the addition of "bangs" to the design, on the first female on the trefoil.  After reviewing the logo, it is clear that the changes are virtually more evident of an appeal to a more juvenile generation of girl scouts.  

According to a news release from their website (http://www.girlscouts.org/news/news_releases/2010/new_national_brand_initiative.asp), the change is a way that the Girl Scouts are "revitalizing and reenergizing its brand to reach a new generation of girls."

While my personal feelings are still torn by the fact that the legendary designer, Saul Bass' icons have now dawned a new era of youthful feminism; I do feel as though the Girl Scouts have definitely branded their image towards that "new generation of girls" through the changes made to this timeless icon.  I am always going to personally have a soft-spot in my youthful heart for the icon that I carried on my sash through my youth and into my teens; at least I will never forget the "trefoil" my heart knows and loves.

~K

Brix 42 ~ Pasadena, CA

Thanks to our great friend Frank, who actually invited us to meet up spontaneously after work one Friday night, my wonderful hubby and I decided to join him and some friends for a fantastic "Happy Hour" in Old Town Pasadena. We discovered this great spot, that we have driven by numerous times, and never even gave a second look - until now!!!

It's called Brix 42, and it's right in the heart of Old Town Pasadena...{caddy corner from the ever-poppin' Twin Palms} Brix is located at 42 De Lacey Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91105. The facade of the building is very "Spanish Colonial"...and it has a inviting warmly inviting interior where you can relax in the lounge area, or be more social in giant oversized booths on the more "restaurant-lounge-side".

The place is just fabulous for some cocktails - great music - flat screens for the almighty sports fans - and believe it or not....THE FOOOOOODDDD! Yes, we had some amazing apps, from their garlic french fries, to the fried calamari, to their mussels in a yummy white wine cream sauce - We clearly indulged!!! My husband and I enjoyed an amazing NY strip with mashed potatoes and veggies to make anyones' mouth water! It was all beyond compare, and very unexpected. Although we never had the opportunity to do a sampling of their brews, to top things off - this place is also a brewery with house brews. Yep, so go get your beer-tasting on!

Around 9 p.m. the house lights dim, and the twentysomething Pasadena crowd rolls in, but do not be discouraged because the DJ just starts spinning some fantastic jams. Old-school, to new-school, this place really gets poppin'....Although we left around 9:30 - I am sure those that want to hang until the DJ stops spinnin' are more than illin'!

Regardless of your taste for winding down the week; this is one hot Pasadena spot that will get your mouth watering and your taste buds shouting....With a casual - loungy feel and a crowd that appeals from twentysomethings to sixtysomethings - all will be pleased with this little-known Pasadena spot!!!

~K

DESIDERATA

~~DESIDERATA~~
“desired things”

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann (1872 – 1945), poet & lawyer

Humility

As the New Year arrives, it's a great time to start thinking about the importance of what we do in life. Every year brings a fresh new discovery to mind. We all start thinking about bright new ideas and projects that can enhance our lives! Why not think about what values we have to offer this new year?

One core value that I have learned about this past year is humility. Hu-mil-i-ty {hyoo-mil-i-tee}, by definition, is "the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.". By definition, humility is the expression of being not proud or arrogant; of being modest; courteously respectful. Something I want to strive for in 2010.

Humility is something that I see heroes as having. My hero is my father. It was with humility, this past October, he accepted the Presidential Unit Citation by our United States President, Barack Obama. It was with humility my father triumphed over his teen years without a father. It was with humility my father has banished the inner-most temptations of drugs and alcohol that are everpresent, and had endured in his past. It was with humility my father overcame his own prejudice through life's more recent events. It's with humility my father loves so deeply that every time we separate ~ his eyes well-up with tears.

This past November I got married. Ever since I've been with my husband; even pre-marriage, my father has given us advice and carried on with my husband in a way that only a father and son can do. My father never had a son; my husband, never a father; but it is through humility my husband has become my father's son. It is with profound humility my father gives us both the most amazingly wise advice with regards to our relations with each other. My father will turn 62 this spring, and looks not a day past 40. I believe in my heart that humility has kept him young. Wisdom, however, is what will guide him through the next stage of his life. Because I now see how his humility is becoming his wisdom. I must say, that through everything we have been through as a family ~ and everything HE has been through as my father. He is truly a hero. My wish for 2010 is that as my hero's humility becomes his wisdom, that humility will be relinquished in me.

A Day In the Life...

Well it's my very first day of a blogger's life and my mind draws a blank. Isn't it amazing that for MONTHS now, I've been meaning to start a blog as a way to highlight life's little ups-and-downs and just genuinely speak about mind-boggling things. And the day my mind freezes up is the day that I create my blog?!?! Guess this means it's time for topics......First thing that comes to mind is the simple things.

I've recently been suffering from losses encompassed in several realms of our workplace over the past few weeks...and it recently triggered the topic of "How We Handle the Little Things in Life." Yes, this topic is one that is cumbersome to discuss. It almost seems as though it has been under recent burn-out; with literature and articles, and books on self lessons. However, living in Los Angeles has brought some developing perspective in my life, as it relates to the subject.

Having grown-up in Iowa for the first 18 years of my life, I had to take the road-less-traveled as a college freshman, where I ventured out to begin my college dreams in Tucson, Arizona. Upon transferring from ju-co I moved to Iowa City, Iowa; and from there life was expanded in places like Phoenix, Arizona; Rochester, Minnesota; Baltimore, Maryland; and in multiple communities throughout the Los Angeles area. Through recent loss of family and clientelle throughout the workforce, the topic of "Appreciating the Little Things" has taken on a completely new meaning. From the very current economic crisis, to the despair of losing a close family member, to the everyday stresses of family life, we all are affected by these triggers. The biggest difference is the way we handle things....Especially, in trying economic times, and all along while I live in a city that "feels" the burdens of these stresses.

Some perspective: Two adults are running errands on a Thursday evening, Maria is turning out of the grocery store parking lot, headed back home to her family. Jonathan is turning in, in a fury. The two automobiles crash and both people are instantly killed. Jonathan was the CEO of an international corporation, driving his Mercedes Benz, with billions of dollars in the bank and even more in investments. Maria, the single mother of two; with a job as a caregiver. She lived paycheck-to-paycheck. Both individuals are now gone. Looking back on their lives, do either of the two have any regrets? Have they lived completely fulfilling lives? If they could look back, were they truly happy? In their own rights, they probably were, but the moral of this story is not if they lived truly happy lives....It's that, in the end, both of them were given an unfortunate and unexpected circumstance...And now, although they had entirely dramatic ends to their lives on earth ~ they are now both in death's hands.

Sounds dreary, but the questions that puzzle me include: Do we all live our lives in complete and utter happiness? Are we truly and morally content in our minds, our bodies, and our decisions? Do we take time to slow down and take one last look to the left before driving through a stop sign? Are we out rushing around, just to get somewhere faster? Are we angry at the car ahead of us because they still have their left blinker on? Are we slowing down on our walks to smell some flowers? Are we waiting an extra 30 seconds while a little old couple walks across the street? Can we really just slow down and appreciate life in our world?

Living in a city like Los Angeles I feel the fury of people hustling and bustling. I can feel this anger in the tone of voices in this city....And it's really sad. Often I blame it on the stresses of the economy bogging us all down, but lately I feel as though it's just how life is nowadays. It's one big fury of exploiting our money, spending when we don't need to, and carrying on when it really isn't worth the effort.

In the end we are all people who were born into a world that was originated to enjoy. Now we are all just caught up in a mess of fury. Life is much too short on earth. Taking time to reflect on our own life goals before the New Year...and as the economy spins unconditionally ~ can only put our gifts into perspective. Slow down, love one another, and don't take forgranted that in the end, we all end up in the same glorious place. We might as well enjoy this one.