I’ve got the Calculated Acts of Kindness (CAOK) gift for week #4 done and ready to share. Yet, rather than let you see all the fun details of the Brazilian Bunny Family, I’ll instead just tempt you with just one shot:

To see the rest of their great story, I hope you’ll make the jump with me to my new web site: www.africankelli.com. See you there!

~K

If today had a theme song, it would be that 1980s classic “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder. Oh, come on. You know the one. The hook goes like this:

“Ain’t nothin’ gonna break my stride
Nobody’s gonna slow me down, oh no
I got to keep on moving
Ain’t nothin’ gonna break my stride
I’m running and I won’t touch ground, oh no
I got to keep on moving.”

Wow. Check this out. I found a photo of Matthew Wilder.

Ain’t nothing going to break my stride today. It is raining good news:

1. Jill Carrol has been released in Iraq. I have prayed for this girl countless times and had tears come to my eyes this morning when I heard she’d been let go. Yay!

2. Backtack III is in the works. WOO HOO!

3. My brother and I made up.

4. My swim coach and I made up.

5. I came home last night to a surprise gift in the mail from my friend Mike. Love that boy. He is too thoughtful. He sent me this from Amazon:

It’s like the badge book for adults who want to do good. It couldn’t be more me. Thank you Mike!

Life is good. Sometimes you just need a little reminder.

~K
 

Yesterday was one of those days I should have turned off the alarm, pulled the covers higher over my head and said, “To hell with it.”

It started with swim practice, which is the normal Tuesday/Thursday routine. I’ve been swimming on this team for several years and enjoy the coaching and the company. (The company was even better when my dad was living here and we would swim together. ) I work out much harder when there are other swimmers there to push me. The pool is near my home and the fee is fair.

But the team has been changing lately. Fewer people are coming and our coach has been spending more time sitting with the lifeguard than actually coaching. I’ve been coming up with suggestions for how to get the team back to more competitive levels, yet each idea has been shot down. My frustrations came to a head yesterday when I quit. The coach wasn’t respectful of an idea I suggested and I could feel my face growing hot in anger as she spoke to me  in front of the other swimmers. Slowly, I pulled myself out of the water and returned to the locker room, literally biting my tongue.

I can’t change the coach. I can’t get more people in the pool. After five years, it’s time to find a new team. I’ve found one closer to work with more workout times available and a more experienced coaching staff, but I will miss my friends in Tempe. Perhaps with time I’ll return. Tomorrow, I’m swimming with a new group.

Then, it was off to Sedona. I left the house, grabbed my iPod and Nalgene bottles full of water and ice tea and headed north 100 miles. The drive is beautiful. From the interstate, you climb 3000 feet in elevation and can watch as the desert floor slowly transforms into brush and eventually pine. The beauty of the red rocks of Sedona stun me every time.

Of course yesterday the weather matched my mood. My plans of taking a long walk with my camera before my meeting were foiled.

That’s right — yesterday was one of three days we’ve had rain in the last 5 months. Mother Nature is mocking me.

At least you can see a bit of the red in this photo. Oh, the rain.

The business meeting went well and on my way home my brother calls. He needed to do laundry. Could he come over and use my machine and soap? Grinding my teeth, I agreed to meet him at my house at 5 pm. I drove like the wind to get home in time to meet him, trying desperately not to get angry that the last time I heard from him, he needed a ride home from the airport. I was beginning to feel a bit used. The anger again exploded when he called at 6:15 to say he’d instead gone out with his friends to play pool.

Gah!

At this point, I poured myself a nice glass of white wine, turned off my cell phone, turned on the BBC and sat down at my sewing machine. Creative time really does take the edge off. Well, that and the booze.

~K

I’m off tomorrow on a road trip to lovely Sedona, but will hopefully have lots of fun new Week 4 CAOK surprise gifty photos when I return.

In the meantime, why don’t you check out Amanda’s sweet new site? http://atpanda.blogspot.com/

Remember Friday when I said I was going to go through my closet and get rid of some things because “Spring is here! And I must have new skirts!”

 

The intended brief organization of the closet turned into a several hour affair with lots of folding, sorting and gasping. Good Lord, I own way too many skirts as is. It is fun to find pieces of clothing you forgot you owned.

And shoes. Good grief, I do not need any more shoes. (Although I am pretty sure this isn’t going to stop me from buying those Chacos.)

The point to all of this was to remind myself to be happy with what I own and to use what I’ve got. I’m participating in the new flickr pool called “Use What You Have.”

I’ve even signed up for April. It is fun to look at my craft and art supplies and figure out what I can create with them, rather than starting with the project and going to look for the supplies. It is just a different way of being creative. I’m enjoying the challenge so far.

In other news, I am happy to announce my hair is back to its natural state. Thank God. I wasn’t made for blonde highlights.

That’s the Manos shrug I knit. Ms. Nicole asked for a photo of me wearing it. So, I present a lame bathroom mirror self-portrait:

Happy Monday to All,

~K

My closet shelves are looking a bit disheveled. I need to sort out all the clothes I haven’t worn in the last year and tuck them away. Some I’ll take on summer travels — so I can wear them and leave them behind. Others I’ll schlep to Texas for my mama. We swap clothes regularly. And then there is the growing Goodwill basket that needs to be dropped off this weekend.

Focusing on that whole “earth mama” vibe I talked about last week, I’ve decided to pitch the bulk of my stilletos and replace them with these:

Too cute, non? I have a pair in black I received as a bridal party gift at Finny and Andy’s special wedding two summers ago. I wear them all the time. And while they are definitely not the most flattering shoe to my wide Flintstone-esk patas, they are comfy. [Do you think these are workplace appropriate? Remember, Arizona is HOT 2/3 of the year. I think I could pull them off for non-meeting days. Hmmm] And man these pink ones are sweet! They’ll look great with a new slew of skirts I’ve had my eye on:

And dresses. I already own two white sun dresses, but this one is so pretty and so cheap. Got to love the Old Navy:

Then there is Old Navy’s stuffy older sister, who you can’t help but love too, Miss Banana. Damn if I don’t love the brat. She’s much more likely to provide me with duds suitable for the workplace. Like these shirts, made of my favorite cotton/lycra blend. Love these:

 

Who doesn’t like flowers in the spring? I have two favorite flowers. I love pots of red geraniums, which I have growing like weeds on my patio until the heat arrives next month. And I love hydrangeas. Check out Joelene’s here. Aren’t they lovely? These grow wild in Nicaragua. I remember seeing them roadside on my first trip to the Central American country and shouting from the back of a crowded bus, “My God! Are those hydrangeas?” The purple and indigo blooms were everywhere. The peasant woman sitting next to me couldn’t wait to get away from the crazy American, who was a bit too excited about the local flora and fauna.

No hydrangeas in Phoenix, but there are lots of other pretty palates to select from. This week’s CAOK surprise was a pot full of sweet-smelling spring color left at the front door.

These were simple to put together, but far more difficult to transport. I need to get my car to the carwash this weekend. That purple on in the center spilled over and I’ve still got fertilizer in my passenger seat, three days later. It smells lovely.

Regardless, isn’t the color fantastic? Maybe I’m so enamored because color is fleeting in the desert. These plants are not olive, nor sage, nor taupe. Nor will they poke you until you bleed if you accidentally touch them. Therefore, I am in love.

What is your favorite flower? What blooms in your area, reminding you spring is right around the corner? [For my Australian friends, this post means nada. They are hot and bothered and dying for fall. ]

~K

I’m having one of those weeks where everything is whizzing by at warp speed. Ay! Easter is going to be here before we know it. I’m going to Texas to celebrate with my folks. I’m super excited to see them and hang out for a few days. It is going to be a nice little vacation. I’m keeping my sights set on good barbeque, great company, crafting time with my mami and time with our family dog, Dharma. She’s my dog by proxy, and is the yippiest, most annoying and most loved animal on earth.

~

This weekend I attended another fundraiser for work. Since I haven’t had ample time to craft this week, you get photos of the food from this event. I grew up eating gumbo and love southern cooking, but I’m not so sure about the crawfish. They tasted good, but really do look like giant cockroaches.

Then there was the fried alligator.

Anything this fried tastes just about the same to me — like a battered flip flop.

But that chicken and sausage gumbo smelled delicious. Yum!

And check out the great backdrop. Can you tell why this mountain is called Camelback? Such a pretty spring day in Phoenix. We’ve got to enjoy the great outdoors while we can. We’ll be hovering over our ACs before we know it. Gulp.

Cheers,

K

I think the best part of my CAOK campaign to date has been the response from others saying they too are participating. I am one of those cheesy sentimental sorts who truly believes in paying it forward and the power of karma. Make the change you want to happen in the world start with you, so the saying goes. That and peace begins with a smile.

I’m smiling at all of those who are sharing a little love in the name of kindness. Rock on!

Week 2 goodies, which were finished this weekend:

I learned a great lesson from this little sewing assignment. When you are sewing strips together like this for an apron tie, don’t iron the center fold. It makes it much, much more difficult to sew the piece together nicely. If there isn’t a center ironed fold, the fabric sews together nicely and you can iron it flat when you are done. I made seven of these fruity aprons. [Photos here.] They are being dropped at the post this afternoon.

Week 3 CAOK gifts are being assembled and delivered tonight. Details manana!

~K

I came home this week to some great crafty loot in my mailbox:

These were a surprise gift from my knitting circle friend Sarah. So sweet! She made the small orange bag to hold a knitting project. I’m using it to hold my lunch today. I love the colors.

I love having crafty friends. Thanks again Sarah!

~K