Reverb10

Reverb / Reverb10 / Reverb11 — 7 Comments
30
Nov 11

Ready to Reverb and Resound

Last December I participated in an awesome community called Reverb10. Reverb was started by Gwen Bell, Kaileen Elise, and Cali Harris. Yesterday, Gwen told us that she wouldn’t be hosting Reverb, but she did give us guidance on how to set up our own Reverb format.

I was disappointed yesterday when I found out that the creators of Reverb weren’t going to do it in the same format, but plenty of folks have taken up the Reverb mantle and are creating their own Reverb11 sites – including me! I’ll be posting prompts here starting at Midnight CST. I’ll answer my own prompts, but I’m also going to add a prompt from another site as well and that site is Resound 2011 (reverbate and resound go so well together don’t you think – I love me some alliteration!).

I met so many wonderful bloggers participating in Reverb10. And I had the opportunity to meet a couple of them this year in my real life (Marybeth lives here in Houston and Jyllian is in Fayetteville AR). They’ve encouraged me to grow and step outside my own boundaries, as well as provided me with many laughs.

I hope you’ll join me on this journey! If you do, please leave a post and a link to your blog in the comments below and I’ll add you to the Reverb11 List. If you don’t have a blog, explore the prompts in a notebook or journal offline.

#reverb11 is a daily reflective prompt that runs every day through the month of December. It is an opportunity to reflect on the year that has been and manifest what the new year may hold. It was started by Gwen Bell in 2009 and has been passed on to individuals to host in 2011.

Art / Reverb10 / That's Life — 5 Comments
27
May 11

Saturday Show and Tell – Edition 16

Pop Corn

Popcorn Stand in my home town.

I’m absolutely thrilled to be guest-hosting the Traveler’s Show and Tell Carnival for Mental Mosaic, while she’s off honeymooning with her new hubby. We’ve got a lot of entries this week for the carnival.

Steph, (a.k.a. The Travel Chica) talks about adjusting to life in Argentina in “How to Live Like a Porteño” where she talks about the 10 things she needs to do to live like a porteño.

Byteful Travel talks about the beauty he found in a California State Park in “The Wonders of Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park (From McWay Falls to Cliffs of Insanity)” and has some stunning photographs to remember his experience by.

Bryan at Finally Fast takes us to Los Angeles in “The Museum of Jurassic Technology” . This collection of oddities leaves you wondering and if you’ve ever been there, Bryan would like you to leave a note.

Sarah at “Not Just Another “Dolce Vita” talks about her first impressions of Italy as a teenager in “At First Sight” shortly after the SARS outbreak in 2003.

CBCreations at Measure of All Things gives us “Bintan Cycle and Seafood Indulgence“. She describes a 200kms bicycle ride around an Indonesian Island in 3 days and seafood feast indulgences. Could you do it?

Zhu at Correr Es Mi Destino talks about adding another stamp on her passport in “The Thai Adventure“. She shares what it’s like to ride on a “chicken bus” that’s run out of gas.

Aric Mitchell wrote “6 Stories of Extreme Skydiving Fall Survival” as a guest post at Extreme Sports Trader. In this piece, he talks about some amazing skydiving survival stories from 1942-2011. And people wonder why some of us don’t want to jump out of perfectly good airplanes??

My submission to the carnival is over on the Pig E. Bank Adventures site. “Pig’s Big Adventures to Iowa – Day 4” involves checking out some of my favorite places in my home town of Iowa Falls.

Marina K. Villatoro from “International Woman – It’s all about the Experience” closes out this carnival with a bit of indulgence with her husband of ten years. In “A Ritualist Spa Treatment that Rocks Your World” Marina shares us with their luxorious spa experience in Antigua, Guatemala.

Would you like to highlight your blog on an upcoming Saturday Show & Tell? If so, here are 2 ways to submit your post. Either send the link directly to tui [at] mentalmosaic [dot] com, or submit it through the Blog Carnival site via this link. If you have any questions, shoot Tui an email. She’ll respond when she gets back.

Maybe / NaBloPoMO / Project 43 / Reverb10 — 1 Comment
23
May 11

Whilst Travelling

Although it might not have sounded like it in the last couple of posts, I do love to travel. When I travel, I have at least one book with me to read and a journal to capture my thoughts in.

The book of choice for this trip was The Artist in the Office: How to Creatively Survive and Thrive Seven Days a Week. A slim tome, this book is a must for anyone who is employed and creates art.

One thing I like about the book is the “Try this” questions. Each question ties into the section before and makes you to think about your life not only as how you wish it to be, but how it currently is. You have to find your blessings and be centered where you are before you can take the steps forward. I used my journal to write down some of the things that sprung to mind while I answered some of the following questions:

  • What does my job provide me with?
  • How am I living my ideal life already?
  • What are small steps that I can take every day to move even closer to my ideal life?

I still have more questions than answers, but I feel like getting out of my every day environment made me look at it and see that I am moving forward. And for that I am grateful.

DSC_0219

Reverb10 — No Comments
31
Dec 10

Final Reverb Post for 2010

Today’s Reverb 10 prompt asks us about the Core Story of my life this year. It asks us to look at the thread that was common to most of our posts. I was very conscious of my core story this year. My core story is dealing with the death of my Mother. It has profoundly changed my perceptions of life, what is important and what is not.

My family is important. I’ve spend time with them these last few days and it’s helped heal a lot. We’ve laughed a lot and cried a little. And for the first time in a long time, I feel better. My heart doesn’t hurt so much. R is also a part of my family and he’s been my rock through all of this as I’ve sorted out my feelings.

My writing, art and photography are important to me. I will be working on bringing these things closer together through my Polariod Project and other endeavors.

The internet is less important to me than it used to be. While it’s nice to have relationships with people all over the country, there’s something to be said on local, face-to-face connections and I will be working on strengthening those relationships.

Things are not important either. I’ll be simplifying my life over the next few months and getting rid of the things that I no longer use. I saw how to much stuff can suffocate you with my mother. I don’t want my stuff to suffocate me when I’m in my 60s. I want the things I have around me to bring me joy.

My core story for 2011 will be change and creativity.

Reverb10 — No Comments
30
Dec 10

Achieve

I’m a bit behind on reverb10 Posts since I’m busy with family stuff. I’m okay with finishing reverb10 in 2011. Family time is way more important than computer time.

What’s the thing you most want to achieve next year? How do you imagine you’ll feel when you get it? Free? Happy? Complete? Blissful? Write that feeling down. Then, brainstorm 10 things you can do, or 10 new thoughts you can think, in order to experience that feeling today.

I want to complete my Polariod 365 project in 2011 – I’m not sure why this project is that important to me but I feel compelled to work on it and see what happens. I follow my gut instinct on these types of things and my gut is telling me I need to do this project.

Right now, I’m finding that the Polariod Project is not only generating interesting pictures. It’s also generating words. Each picture evokes something in me that I feel compelled to write down.

I really don’t know where this is going or what I will feel at the end of the project other than satisfaction. As for the brainstorming part, I don’t think I need to generate 10 things that I need to do or 10 thoughts that I need to think to get satisfaction today.

Satisfaction the past few days has been visiting with my sister and my niece; playing Rummikub with my favorite uncle and playing with all his interesting little toys and the stereoscope; making a big pot of chicken and noodles for dinner with my grandmother; planning a get together with my brother and sister and bringing our family together.

I am very happy and content right now.

Reverb10 / Zeitgeist — 2 Comments
27
Dec 10

Joyful Moments

Today’s Reverb10 is going to be short and sweet. Trip number 4 is happening!

Our most profound joy is often experienced during ordinary moments. What was one of your most joyful ordinary moments this year? (Author: Brené Brown)

My most joyful ordinary moments involved getting hugs from R. The way he holds me – I’m totally enveloped in his arms. The way he buries his face in my hair, always brings joy. See R. didn’t used to be much of a hugger. The first time I hugged him, I asked before doing so because I wanted to make sure I wasn’t invading his space. But now he blesses me with hugs on a regular basis. And that brings me great joy.

Paula's Picks / Retro Kitchen / Reverb10 / Weighty Matters / Zeitgeist — 2 Comments
26
Dec 10

Soul Food

Today’s Reverb10 Prompt

December 26 – Soul Food -What did you eat this year that you will never forget? What went into your mouth & touched your soul? (Author: Elise Marie Collins)

I try not to think of food as anything other something that sustains me. I believe that the ideas of “soul food” or “comfort food” are misplaced. Food is not something that feeds my soul. My soul is fed through exploring the world, reading the Bible, writing letters to God in my prayer journal and relationships with people whom I love and respect, and sharing my thoughts with others. Food does not provide me with comfort. Comfort is something I receive from being held by R in a tight hug, being held while I cry, or talking with my Grandma Pauline when I’m blue.

So with that being said, I’ll share my favorite recipe with you for Tandoori Chicken. It’s quick. It’s easy. And it’s full of flavor whether you grill it or bake bit in the oven. And it’s one of my go-to recipes that I make on a regular basis.

Chicken Tandoori
4 Chicken quarters skinned
3/4 cup Plain Yogurt
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ginger pulp
1 tsp garlic pulp
1.5 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp tumeric
1 tsp ground corriander
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp oil
(you can add a few drops of red food coloring if you want to have the red color you get in Indian Restuarants).

Rinse and pat dry chicken quarters. Make two deep slits in the flesh of each piece. Place in dish and set aside.

Mix together the yogurt, garam masala, ginger, garlic, chili powder, tumeric, corriander, lemon juice, salt and oil. Beat until well combined.

Pour the yogurt spice mixture over the chicken and marinate for at least 3 hours (I did mine over night and had no problems)

Preheat the oven to 475 and bake until chicken is cooked through and evenly browned on top.

Garnish with salad leaves and lime wedges.

NOTE: I did mine on the grill and it was nummy. I did about 15 minutes on one side and then 10 minutes on the other.

Chicken Tandoori

Reverb10 — No Comments
25
Dec 10

Could You Take My Picture?

DSC_1207

There aren’t many pictures of me, mainly because I am usually the one taking the picture. The picture above is one of the few I have from this year. It was taken by R while we were up visiting Grandma Pauline in Clear Lake after Mom’s Funeral. She and I were hamming it up. I like this picture because it reminds me that I have a lighter side. This year has been so busy and so full of not fun stuff. I’m going to use this picture to remind myself that I need to lighten up a little, laugh a lot more and not sweat the small stuff.

Reverb10 — No Comments
24
Dec 10

Knowing Everything is OK

December 24 Prompt – Everything’s OK What was the best moment that could serve as proof that everything is going to be alright? And how will you incorporate that discovery into the year ahead?

Since shortly before Thanksgiving, I’ve been one raw nerve ending because of the constant reminders of her during this time. She loved Thanksgiving. Then it was her birthday. Then Christmas and the New Year. I want to talk to her and I can’t.

My point of knowing that it everything is going to be okay happened a few days ago. I dreamed about both my parents in one night. After my father died almost 17 years ago, as I would drift off to sleep, I’d often hear the rumble of him talking to someone or laughing. It’s been a while since I’ve “heard” my father. I thought I would hear the same thing when my mother died. Instead there’s been nothing – no dreams, no talking, no laughing. Until this week.

I don’t remember the details of the dreams. I remember waking up after the first dream about my Mom and then when I fell back to sleep I dreamt of my dad. I woke that morning feeling at peace and feeling like for the first time everything was going to be okay.

Honestly, I don’t know how I’m going to incorporate this knowledge into the next year. I take it a one day at a time at this point and I plan to keep it that way.

Reverb10 — 2 Comments
23
Dec 10

What Would I Change My Name to?

Today’s Reverb Prompt:

December 23 – New Name Let’s meet again, for the first time. If you could introduce yourself to strangers by another name for just one day, what would it be and why? (Author: Becca Wilcott)

Me and My Grandma Pauline

Myself and my Grandma Pauline whom I am named after.

This is another prompt that I’m not comfortable with. I figure my name is like a comfortable pair of jeans – it fits me well. I can’t imagine being named anything else. It’s alliterative and rolls off the tongue with ease. Everyone remember’s my name because it’s fun to say (although I have to say, I’ve seen some creative spellings of my last name – the most recent being T-u-s-s-e-r).

I’ve had my name for the last 43 years and I’ll keep for the rest of my life. So thanks, but no thanks. Besides, I’ll avoid a lot of confusion for the new people by not changing my name for a day.

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