Photo love: Julie Andrews circa 1950

Credits: Everett Collection

Read this: The Last Bohemia: Scenes from the Life of Williamsburg, Brooklyn by Robert Anasi

Treehouses, the psychology of clothes and Cat Power

Tree houses

I have a fascination with tree houses. Thinking and reading about them brings me joy, peace, and some lightheartedness into my life. There is something extremely poetic about them. The thought of having my own tree house one day, tucked away in the woods or facing a beautiful scenic view of a lake, a mountain or ocean....a retreat of my own, to meditate, read, knit, write and reflect. Wouldn't that be pure bliss? The idea of these tree houses, these living structures, communing with nature....it makes me dream. One day, I want to create an association and a community of like-minded people who believe in this renewed sustainable sense of living. "The Tree Housing Sustainability Program".
Who's in?

The psychology of clothes



I was reading this article today in Elle Canada about this costume designer who talked about the psychology of clothes and what they tell you about the character portrayed by the actor at play. This topic is one that fascinates me. What do my clothes tell you about me? What do your friends' clothes tell you about them? It's true, there are certain days we dress in certain colors or textures, and other days, we opt for darks hues or minimalist outfits. I think sometimes it's a conscious decision but other times a subconscious one. For example, when I feel good about myself, I usually tend to have these great outfits put together. When I'm feeling like my self-esteem has taken a hit, I usually bum around in a hoody and jeans. But perhaps for others it's the other way around: when they feel good they might want to dress casual in a hoodie and jeans and when they feel like their self-esteem is at a low, they dress real good almost as a way to feel better about themselves. Thoughts?

Cat Power



Again, Elle Canada: I always read about inspiring topics and people in this great mag. Tonight I read this interview on Cat Power and her honesty brought me to tears after I YouTubed a couple of her songs. I always knew of Cat Power but I had never taken the time to read up on her or listen to her music. Everything that she said in that interview hit really close to home. She talks about the nature of our current society, the idea of renewal through the clothes that have been lived in – the magical wonders of thrift shopping that is. She also talks about heartbreak and how "she wanted to achieve security and family" and how hard it was now that she had lost it all. She also talks about how Karl Lagerfeld sent her flowers with a card that said "We've missed you, we can't wait to see you" which evokes that feeling of not being alone, of actually having people by your side who care about you and who want you around.
The following relationship insight really gave my heart a jolt: "...[T]he simplest things can be destroyed so quickly through miscommunication...."
Communication: how I wish it was more readily accessible to us. It shouldn't be hard to express how we feel, but sometimes we choose not to because we are afraid of our emotions, our feelings, our vulnerabilities. We are afraid of judgement, rejection or confrontation.
Why be afraid of communication when it is what moves us forward in life, brings us closure, hope or security?

-Claire

Horoscope, almost too real

I want to share my horoscope from today. It is quite extraordinary how I see myself in it.
Perhaps my mind is open to it hence my ability to connect with it.
Right this moment, this is exactly how I am feeling. Incredible how things can be at times! Coincidence or not, I am taking this one in for deeper reflection.

Here it is:

November 20, 2012 - Taurus -

Health: Everything is going better. You are opening up. This is a good time to meet people. You are always more attractive when you project this radiant energy.

Love: Make peace with your painful past that was filled with pitfalls. It's time to look to the future with optimism. Jupiter is pouring its horn of plenty over you.

Money: You finally accept to listen to what your wallet is telling you. Live according to your financial means.

Work: Do not get involved in conflicts at work. Ignore your rivals. You are not strong enough to deal with it right now. 

Source: mytelus.com 
Photo from: http://wisdomquarterly.blogspot.ca 

Five simple things that made my morning

1. coffee shop talk:

2. film for my lomo cam

3. Passion Pit tickets

4. vintage shop browsing

5. ugly christmas sweater spotting

Nothing Like You and I

I dedicate this song to my boyfriend who is too preoccupied to realize how much he means to me. I am lost without you, I am worth nothing.


Nothing Like You and I - The Perishers -

We spent some time
together walking
Spent some time just talking
about who we were
You held my hand so
very tightly
And told me what we
could be dreaming of

There’s nothing like you and I

We spent some time
together drinking
Spent some time just thinking
about days of joy
As our hearts started
beating faster
I recalled your laughter
from long ago

There’s nothing like you and I

We spent some time
together crying
Spent some time just trying
to let each other go
I held your hand so
very tightly
And told you what I would be
dreaming of

There’s nothing like you and I
So why do I even try?
There’s nothing like you and I

Bombay Bicycle Club: You Already Know

I've been a little bit on a writing hiatus lately but I haven't forgotten...
There are important matters in my life that need to be resolved before I can fully engage in honest and engaging writing. There is this piece I am brainstorming that I want to only share once completely polished. I'm a bit of a perfectionist like that. I think it'll make us think twice about the lives we want to live.

While we're waiting...

Claire....

Anu Raina: inspired by her grandfather's garden

I have been searching for inspiration.
Enters Anu Raina's spring/summer 2013 collection lookbook which was inspired entirely from memories of her grandfather's garden. What a great tribute.
Beautiful concept rendered into a beautiful bouquet of flirty and dreamy summer dresses.

Dreaming is so beautiful and even more beautiful when we are transforming these dreams into reality.
As you can tell, I have been soul-searching lately. This time to write and sit down in front of a writing device whether it'd be my newly acquired 1950s typewriter or my now deteriorating six-year-old Macbook has been truly refreshing.
It has been giving me hope about the lifestyle I'd like to live. I like writing and I want to write for a living.

Raina writes:

"Tathya's garden: My SS13 collection of prints is inspired by my memories of witnessing the majestic Echinaceas, the dew drop laden Daisys on the lazy Sunday mornings, the beautiful Pomegranate trees that humbly bore the weight of the biggest and reddest ever Pomegranates, the riot of colour and fragrance that invaded the senses as you walked into Tathya's Garden through heavy and massive wood/metal doors. Tathya was my maternal grandfather who lived in a large house by a beautiful stream in Kashmir. He was a quiet Mathematics teacher who loved his garden the most. While the little kingdom of flowers faded away with time, this collection is a tribute to the happy and carefree childhood spent playing in Tathya's garden."

It is Raina's simple yet beautiful creations that touched my soul today.  I hope it touches yours too.

This week, I will be applying to a magazine internship in Calgary. Wish me luck.

Claire

The diary of a minimum wage retail salesperson: beating traffic. Let it snow!

I had been on break for two days and so when Tuesday morning came along, it hit me like a rock. I hadn't showered the night before, my hair looked greasy, and I'm sure I did not smell fantastic. I hopped in the shower, made myself look presentable, but by the time I was done, it was already 8:40 (I work at 9:00). It usually takes me only 10 to 15 minutes to get to work, but for some reason, the construction on Elbow Drive was still backing up traffic.
I absolutely hate being late and since for once I did not have my uniform on, I decided to change in the car. I was shirt-less when we passed the road workers and pant-less a little further: I was determined to beat as much time as possible to avoid being even five minutes late. I got to my work's parking lot at 8:54, ran in the mall and ran to the locker rooms in the basement of the store I work at. I stuffed my bags and ran back upstairs: it was nine o'clock on the dot and the first salesperson with a start time of 9 to be there, on time.

I wrote the above paragraph more than a couple weeks ago and it made me think of this morning.
Today was the first heavy snowfall in Calgary (and it's not even Hallowe'en yet...) and believe it or not, traffic was backed up all the way to my apartment...I thought I was leaving earlier than usual but that extra 10 minutes was definitely not going to get me to work on time.

I mean, there's never going to be a good excuse for being late to work. Even snow shouldn't be a good excuse but we often blame weather for our tardiness. It's true: if I really wanted to be on time today, I should of left an hour earlier. But who knows, traffic could have been backed up even then.

Calgarians are ill-prepared when it comes to snowfalls. I bet you that more than half of the driving community did not have their winter tires on yet. I also bet you that nobody really believed it would snow that bad. Every year, it's the same story. Maybe Calgarians are just too optimistic in terms of the weather, thinking "oh, that Chinook will blow it all away sometime soon". Well, guess what, snow's here.

When I got to work, there were a couple people ready to work but I wasn't surprised to see three other persons after my 9:15 arrival (start time was nine) stroll in.

I'm not too sure where this post is going. Perhaps I'm trying to tell myself that the goal for this week is to arrive 10 to 15 minutes early instead of 5 to 10 minutes early.

Anyway, my winter tires are being put into place next Monday. I'll definitely have no excuse then...

The diary of a minimum wage retail salesperson: the stockroom

Like promised, I said I would start documenting my days at my new retail job in Calgary, AB. So here it is...

I'll be honest: I wasn't necessarily expecting to hate my new job as a salesperson but I was definitely expecting to bitch about it a lot more, what with the low wage and what not. But to my pleasant surprise, I haven't felt a bitch-fit coming on and it's already been two weeks! What can I say, I absolutely love clothes, the ongoing shopping atmosphere, the putting away of clothes and the search for clothes in the overwhelming stockroom. I love helping people out with decisions or pointing them out to clothing items they may enjoy. The people I work with are sweethearts, the managers are nice and professional; I feel like I am part of  a team of dedicated & hard-working people which motivates me to do the best of jobs. I enjoy coming in for my shifts, I like learning more and more everyday about the company and how things are done...I'm just quite content with how everything is going. Sometimes I think: why on earth didn't I turn to retail sooner? I remember girls in high school telling me to never work retail because all the people I'll work with will be snob bitches with no life. I really believed it and was expecting the worst. But, no encounter of such has happened, yet.

Yesterday was one of those days where I was in the stockroom for pretty much the entire day. I've been fighting a cold that's been giving me an irritated throat and a runny nose. Working in the warm stockroom was quite a nice alternative to working the air-conditioned sales floor. Pulling out replenishments for the sales floor is time consuming to say the least. It was my second time taking care of such a thing and I'm hoping I'm getting better at how fast I can find items in the overstuffed stockroom. Sometimes an item will be right in front of me and easy to pull out. At other times, I'll need to pull out a ladder and climb to the top to reach for the item I am looking for... I don't have vertigo but the items can be quite high and hard to reach. My small size of five feet two doesn't help either. There are times where I am sitting on the top rung thinking things like "if this ladder break, this won't be pretty." It's always satisfying to climb down the ladder, palms sweaty, with the article of clothing in hand, the pencil and replenishment sheet in the other. Then, when the clothing search reaches an end, there are two flights of stairs to climb before putting the clothes on a rack and back to where they belong in the store. Although the hours spent in the stockroom can be long ones, there is this serene and peaceful quietness that cannot be found upstairs on the sales floor. Most of the time you are alone or two other girls might be there doing their thing too. The break room is close by, but somehow I feel like the clothes and I are the only ones on the planet at the precise moment in time when I'm searching for clothes and admiring them at the same time.