5 Things Friday

5 Things Friday

1. In October, after my name change and all, I re-launched my design business with a new focus and new name. It’s Studio Guerassio, and I focus on design & branding for the lifestyle sector (food & drink, writers, artists & makers, culture, events, balance & wellness). I’d like to ask a favor of all of my lovely readers: if you know a business owner or blogger or solopreneur who fits that focus and is in need of design work, please send them my way! I’d be über grateful. 🙂

2. Random thoughts on film and TV: I was browsing through the TV guide the other day and saw Meet Joe Black was on. It’s one of those movies that I really liked and can easily re-watch again. It struck me though, just how unusual it was for a movie like that to be made. It’s not hugely dramatic, there’s very little action- in fact, the pace of the movie is quite slow. It features a kind of abstract mythology/fantasy element that is never overtly explained. It’s mostly a romance, when you get down to it. Yet is has this AMAZING cast, and continues to have the staying power to be a TV regular. I can’t off the top of my head think of another similar movie. My other TV-related musing is about the show Elementary (Sherlock Holmes set in NYC, with Watson as a woman). I watch a LOT of crime dramas, and nearly all of them that are based on a main duo eventually have that main duo end up romantically involved. Elementary is refreshing because it doesn’t even have a hint of that. Sherlock and Joan have a solidly built friendship, but that is it, hard stop. I originally liked the show because of Jonny Lee Miller’s portrayal of Sherlock, and the show’s gender-bending (Watson and Moriarty are both women). But now I love it even more because they’ve stuck to their guns even 4 seasons in, and haven’t forced a romance between Sherlock and Joan. That is the best way to take something old and make it truly new.

3. I know I’ve mentioned that I neglected the shop this year, due to wedding planning and events. But that might actually have been a good thing. It’s given me some time to think about the shop and see a) whether I want to keep going with it and b) if so, how/with what products? The paper prints are going to ramp down, as lokta paper is a bit hard to come by post-Nepal-earthquake. So I’m thinking up other product ideas. I’m also going to put all of the one-of-a-kind shirts in the Sale section, and focus only on growing the made-to-order section. I know I want to retake some photos. Bottom line: there will be some big changes coming to the shop in 2016.

4. There’s a house on the corner of one of my neighborhood’s intersections that for the longest time had a car parked outside with a World of Warcraft sticker on it. It has recently been joined by a car with the license plate Moria (that’s a LOTR reference, if you didn’t catch it). I have now dubbed this house Dork Headquarters. I also kind of want to be friends with whoever lives there.

5. Speaking of dorky things, this weekend I am attending my first ever reading party. It’s exactly what it sounds like: a bunch of people get together all in the same place, but instead of watching a movie or playing board games or having a dinner party, they all read. It’s good timing, as I’m still chipping away at my 2015 reading goal. I haven’t picked which book I’m taking yet, but I’m still really looking forward to it. It’s a introvert’s kind of party. 😀

 

 

What’s been on your mind lately?
 

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Thoughts That Keep Me Up At Night

Thoughts That Keep Me Up At Night

If you’ve been around the blog for awhile (or Twitter) you’ve probably caught a mention of my insomnia. I wage an ongoing battle against sleep. And most nights, I win. I’ve figured out enough methods and tricks by now that it’s usually enough. But not always. Some nights, despite my best efforts, I just can’t. fall. asleep. Last night was one of those nights. Nothing bad or particularly stressful going on, I just could not get my brain to quiet down. So what’s running through it while I lay in bed awake? Contrary to what you might think, it’s not […]

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Bits & Pieces

Bits & Pieces

1. The quasi-in-laws are in town, which means last week’s cleaning frenzy has been followed by lots of cooking, eating out, watching movies/TV, and checking out Austin things like Torchy’s Tacos and the new aquarium – which is not great, but not terrible. It has lots of ‘petting’ tanks, so that was cool. I didn’t take today and tomorrow off like the boy did, so I’m home doing work stuff and blog stuff while they’re out seeing South Congress and the capital and things I’ve already seen. I like his family, but after a few days of house guests, it’s […]

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5 Things Friday

5 Things Friday

1. I’m a beta tester for a new stock image site, and it’s awesome. (and also sekrit, sorry) So if you’ve noticed new header images on regular post series (Bits & Pieces, TTT, this), that is why. And I have more lined up. Bwahahaha endless photos. Sidenote: I actually have the statue second from the left, and it always makes me happy – he’s just so jolly! So this image made me quintuply happy. 2. If you’re in the Austin area, BASHH is next week and you should come. Drinks and networking for everyone! 3. The Indie A-List is having […]

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Bits & Pieces

1. The wall decals I ordered came today! They were a pain to peel off their backing without pieces getting stuck to each other. But actually putting on the wall was easy, and I love how it turned out! This is our loft upstairs, kind of right outside my office. We already had the 5 framed prints (Ikea!), and I thought this pack of decals coordinated nicely. Eventually I’d like the wall that the window is in to be painted that blue/teal color, but that’ll have to wait a bit. 2. I didn’t think this weekend was going to be […]

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Sunday Confessions

Linking up with Alyx. 1. Sometimes I will bookmark an item in a ‘Shopping’ folder in my bookmarks instead of pinning to Pinterest because I don’t want anyone else to snatch it up before I can. 2. I’m really glad Elena got eliminated from Project Runway. She was unstable and obsessed with shoulder pads. I don’t understand how she’s the top fan favorite. I feel like whoever voted for her wasn’t watching the same show I was watching. That said, I like both the personalities and design styles of all of the final four, so it’s going to be a […]

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Bits & Pieces

1. It’s October, which means new sponsors (check them out in the sidebar) and lots of awesome things but mostly: it’s my birthday month! It should be good times here on the blog. I sat down with my planner yesterday and plotted out some fun stuff, and started thinking about goals for the next year too. 2. I’ve been printing up a storm, and new things should be hitting the shop later this week. Including more owls and more long-sleeved items. 3. I do a little mini-series on Instagram called Today’s Color Combo where I share snapshots of interesting/fun color […]

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