Tea Time

©Cristina Kollet 2011

Writer for Hire

Life in over my head has gotten a bit deeper.

As of February 5, I am (for the first time in 15 years) without a "day" job. The contract I was working ended and was not renewed.

It's been nine years since I've been actively engaged in scouring the want ads. (My last job found me.) I know my skills are needed, though finding a job in the niche I am best experienced at may be a challenge.

Still, even the ads for jobs I'm not qualified for show that my skill set is needed. Take this one for instance. I don't have experience with HTML or "marketing automation skills" but I do have a well developed sense of irony.

My New Super Power

I've been taking pottery classes--a gift from my wonderful husband and well timed. The classes were to get me out of the house and to relieve stress. There is something about getting one's hands dirty that is very therapeutic. This is the one scheduled activity I have where I'm not shooting for perfection, as I do with the day job and the ceremonies I write for my clients, and when I'm teaching.

It's good to be a student for a change. When I'm at the wheel it's about fun and learning. When a piece collapses on the wheel it's all part of the fun.

This week I made a break through. I created three pieces and two actually came out more or less as I had intended. (My previous attempts can be best described with the words "let's see what happens this time.")

And so, my new super power is revealed. I can turn this

into this

and this

into this.

Of course sometimes things still go a bit wonky.  This

was headed towards becoming a nice cylinder when it collapsed.

But I still had clay to play with on the wheel and, while unstable and unpredictable, I was still happy with the results, so I kept it.

More Pics from Ice World

I had some fun with cropping. I think these tell a story.

All images in this post ©Cristina Kollet 2011.

Ice Henge: Brought to You by Rubber Pants

I bought a set of rain gear (pants and jacket) for my Whale Watching excursion in San Francisco back in August.  It’s been one of my better purchases. In addition to keeping me dry at sea, I’ve realized that it’s also pretty good in the snow—the pants especially.

Thanks to the added waterproofing I was able to kneel and lay in the snow for about 40 minutes fooling around with my camera and some icicles. Originally I was hoping to do a Superman, Fortress of Solitude thing, but the ice wasn’t the right shape, so instead I created Ice Henge.

© Cristina Kollet 2011

© Cristina Kollet 2011

© Cristina Kollet 2011

© Cristina Kollet 2011

© Cristina Kollet 2011

© Cristina Kollet 2011

Got milk?

©Cristina Kollet 2011

I'm Published!

Celebrant Foundation and Institute Association members are contributing weekly articles to Spirituality and Health Magazine's weekly newsletter. I've been helping organize the submission schedule in my role as the Foundation's Head of New Media.

I also had the opportunity to write one myself. You can read it here: Replenishing the Well: Sustenance Rituals to Get You Through the Winter

This was a lot of fun. I look forward to doing more things like this in the future.

I Made This!

Things have gotten very busy since the holidays.  I have lots of things I want to post about, but no time to write. Hopefully I'll get caught up soon.

In the mean time, I wanted to show (ok, show off) some of the fruits of my labor. I've been taking a pottery class. Last weekend I made these!

©2011 Cristina Kollet

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Wookie and I welcomed the new year on the banks of the Hudson. The first time we did this the night was clear enough to hear the cheers from Times Square. 

Tonight wasn't clear enough for that but it was nice to be out there with other people waiting for 2011 and to watch the fireworks over NYC after.  (I forgot my camera so these are from my phone. Please pardon the photo quality.)

©Cristina Kollet 2010

©Cristina Kollet 2011

©Cristina Kollet 2011

Thank you all for reading these last few months. I look forward to the adventures 2011 will bring and I wish you all a safe, healthy, prosperous new year filled with love, laughter, and celebration.

-Cris

Photo Fun

I am on vacation and snowed in. On top of that I have the flu--which really cuts down on my ability to write anything coherent. So instead of writing the posts I had planned to write, I am entertaining myself with my camera. Here are the best of the shots I took today.

Both are lovely ornaments that my in-laws sent from Ireland a few years ago. The lighting comes from the lights on the tree.

©2010 Cristina Kollet

©2010 Cristina Kollet

A Winter Tradition

This morning we were supposed to drive down to south Jersey for brunch with our friend Richie.  I admit that in my holiday haze I had not checked the weather. Thankfully, I checked Facebook before getting out of bed this morning; because it was posts about snow storms and changing travel plans that made me check the forecast.

Of course, our plans changed.  Instead of driving to Hazlet, we drove to ShopRite.

I admit that I don't know how far this phenomenon extends. But here in New Jersey, if so much as a dusting of snow is expected, people will rush to the supermarket for bread and milk. If you are expecting a blizzard, you get this...

At 10:44 AM, the parking lot was packed. Note that, at this time, there are only a few flakes on the ground.

© 2010 Cristina Kollet

Of course, we went straight for the milk, knowing that's the first thing to go.

© 2010 Cristina Kollet

And to All a Good Night

I'm sitting here with the hiccups winding down from a great evening with family and friends.

I plugged in our tree. It's been up all year, but not re-lit till tonight.

I wrapped the presents and completed a personal tradition. Every year I make ornaments for my nieces. Some years I get very busy and come close to forgetting. This was one of those years. But between remembering on the way to dinner and getting home some hours later, I had a vision.  Some wire and an hour later, I was done.

We'll be up early tomorrow to participate in what has become known as The Festival of Greed.  Mainly we watch the kids open presents and have a huge breakfast. The adults have switched to doing Secret Santa via Elfster.com--which is fun, but I'm not clear on the timing of the exchange this year.

Now, there are some out there who won't like the whole "Festival of Greed" concept, but to each their own. I'll say here that I'm not traditionally religious. Christmas in my family has been secular for years. Personally, I look toward the common theme being celebrated by many religions and cultures this time of year--the theme of light in the darkness--be that light from a person, a flame, or the ever lengthening days after the solstice.

I'm also celebrating my anniversary. It is 7 years now since I first met my husband face-to-face. Our first date was on Christmas and so I celebrate the day the light of Love came into my life.

And so I wish you all a happy holiday-whether it's a holiday of faith or just a day off work. I hope you all find something or someone to make you happy. My happiness is asleep upstairs. It's time to turn this good day into a good night.

My New Toy: Neat Receipts for Mac

This is my new toy and it's great!

I've lusted after this for about a year now, hoping it would do everything it said it would, but too skeptical to buy it. Finally, faced with the year-end task of getting together receipts to file for my flexible spending account claim and tax season around the corner (the horror!), I took the plunge.

It's not a very expensive gadget, the portable model that I got was on sale for about $130.  (It's usually about $180 and the desktop scanner is over $300.)


Setup was easy. One CD and the usual bit of clicking next when prompted. The scanner uses a USB cable and comes with a pouch for storage.  I'm still a little confused by the software. I was able to get it to do everything I wanted in the end, but I can't say exactly how and I am sure there is a better way. (I could have used a manual.)

What I was able to do--scan a pile of receipts, which the Neat Receipts software then read and categorized and created PDFs.  I was also able to import PDFs I had of online receipts into the software.

In the end I was able to create one PDF with all of my receipts in it which is so much easier to deal with than having to deal with lots of attachments.

Neat Receipts is supposed to be compatible with Turbo Tax and QuickBooks. So hopefully it will make tax season easier.  But I feel like just having it for the Flexible Spending Account receipts made it pay for itself.

I think my next step will be one of those Android apps that turns the Droidx into a scanner and makes PDFs. That way I can capture my receipts right away before they end up a crumpled mess in my pocket.

Tis the Season for Giving! May I Suggest the Gift of Clean Water?

Have you ever been inconvenienced by a water main break or just felt disappointed when the store didn't have your favorite brand of bottled water?

Imagine never having clean water you can count on--to drink, to cook with, or bathe in. Face it, if you're reading this in a warm home, with running water, you've got it relatively easy.

This is the time of year when we turn our thoughts to giving--to our friends and loved ones and to worthy causes.

So if you're looking for a cause to support, and whether you're giving out of the goodness of your heart, or for that last minute tax deduction, or a little bit of both, I suggest you check out Our Glimmer of Hope's Water is Hope campaign to raise funds for a well in Tercha, Ethiopia.

Tercha is a village near where my friend's daughter was born. My friend's adoptive family travel group is trying to raise $4750 to install one clean water source in Tercha. 100% of donations go to the well.

Please take a moment to learn more about it here. Water is Hope | Our Glimmer of Hope

Calling in Tech Support

I'll admit it. The heavy posting tonight has been due to my attempts to get Blogger, Twitter, and Facebook to play nice.

Since I'm not having great luck, I've brought in some tech support. If this post shows up in all three places, Biggles will have been successful.

©Cristina Kollet 2010

Biggles has his own fan page. I lean on him for technical expertise when the Wookie is not around.

When I Was a Kid...

When I was a kid, I loved putting up the Christmas tree. I loved lights, the decorations with all their memories attached, and even that empty space beneath it holding the promise of little dreams that might come true come Christmas morning.

I wanted to keep the tree up all year. This year, I did.

©Cristina Kollet 2009

I'm happy every time I look at it. With all the responsibilities of adulthood, how many times to we think back to being a kid and actually DO some of the things we said we would when we grew up?

If you get the opportunity, I highly recommend it.

That Most Wonderful Time of the Year

©Cristina Kollet 2010

This morning I saw the first snow flakes of the holiday season. Happily, it didn't stick. But here, the snow is fluffy white and no one has to dig out their car.

A Book I Can Put Down

I have recently rediscovered reading for pleasure. It’s not that I ever lost interest in it; more a combination of lack of time and not finding anything that really met all of my qualifications. I am picky.

You see, with all the stresses of my day-to-day life, I have very little tolerance for added stress in my entertainment, be it books, TV, or movies. And so some may say that my tastes have become simplistic.

I want characters I will care about and well-crafted interesting stories. I won’t tolerate getting invested in a character only to have them killed off. A little drama is good, too much drama it’s time for Food Network. (Nothing really horrible ever happens on Food Network.) Happy endings are required.

I recently devoured five books. It started when the title of a book I read years ago (probably back in high school) popped into my head and I found it was available to read with an app on my phone. Then I read the sequel and that got me to looking for more books. I found a new author, sucked down two titles by her, and then found an old favorite author had written a new book with characters I knew and liked. So I read that too.

All of these titles were totally engrossing; I couldn’t put them down. This led to some sleepless nights as I plowed through to reach the end of the story and see my fictional friends through to their happy ending. But I’m not writing about those titles tonight.

Having been bitten once again by the reading bug, but needing more sleep than I did back in my book devouring youth, left me with a bit of a predicament. I wanted to keep reading. It would be nice to read a chapter or two before I go to bed…provided I could stop there.

So this just added one more qualification to my already picky list. I needed a book that was enjoyable enough to read, but I also needed to be able to put it down.

Right now that book is Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol. It’s not that I don’t care about the hero, Robert Langdon. Back when the book was at the height of its popularity, I enjoyed Langdon’s exploits in the Da Vinci Code. (Didn’t sleep much during that one.) But Mr. Brown’s books adhere to a very strict formula. His formula is so strict that I was actually too annoyed by it to read Angels and Demons.

When I find an author and character I like, I will usually go through one book after another till the list runs out. So after enjoying the Da Vinci Code, I picked up Angels and Demons. A few chapters in I could see the formula at play and it was so obvious that I could not get past it. (I did enjoy the movie when it came out on cable, but that was largely due to Tom Hanks.)

I won’t go into the formula here, because I don’t want to spoil the books for anyone.  But I will say that this time it’s a comfort. Langdon is Brown’s cash cow, so I can be pretty sure he’ll live through the book. And the story is engaging, especially since this time it’s set someplace I’ve actually been, Washington, DC. But after each chapter, I’m able to say, “enough for now” and I don’t have that anticipation or anxiety that leaves me needing to find out what happens next. In fact, I realized today that, unlike my other recent reads, I can go days between reading one chapter and the next without even wondering what will happen.

And that’s exactly what I need right now.

"What this Wall Needs is a Giant Sperm"

I have to wonder about the design meetings for some of the sound barriers lining the highways here in New Jersey.  This one on I80 is particularly interesting when I stop to think that someone actually proposed this design and had it approved.

©Cristina Kollet 2010

“Most Women Wouldn’t be Prepared for This”

“Most Women Wouldn’t be Prepared for This” That’s what a woman said to me at the doctor’s office last week.

She was thanking me for offering my help. She had a flat tire and I offered to fill it for her so she could at least drive it back to the rental place. In the end it turned out she didn’t need my help. She was able to get it taken care of at a nearby garage.

But as I walked back to my car, I wondered…is it true that most women wouldn’t be prepared to fix a flat? And if so, why is that?

This was actually the second time this had come up this month. A few weeks ago, my husband and I were out to dinner and as we walked back to our car another car pulled into the lot making that telltale sound—wump! Wump! WUMP!—the unmistakable sound of a very flat tire.

My husband immediately looked to where the car had gone and it took us two trips through the lot to find it. The driver was a young lady; she was out of breath, frightened, and crying on the phone to her father. She didn’t think she had a spare. It was clear that if she did, she didn’t know what to do with it. (I’ll give her this, her tire had blown and having been through that myself I know the sound of an exploding tire can be enough to startle anyone.)

We calmed her down, showed her where the spare was and changed the tire for her—both of us, Paul and I, taking turns because the nuts were very tight. We were done in minutes and sent the driver on her way with advice to replace more than just one the blown tire.

When I recounted the story to a friend later, she asked, “YOU know how to change a flat tire?”

I am surprised that this should be considered a rare pearl of knowledge for a woman to have. We raise our daughters to be independent, confident, and self-sufficient. But still, there seems to be some basic survival skills that some treat like the purview of men.

I don’t expect everyone to be as prepared as I try to be. I am well aware that my often over-preparedness is fueled by a bit of OCD and an over-developed sense of impending doom.

“The purse” (my ever present bag of holding) is well known in my circle for containing way more than most people (men or women) feel the need to carry and my car tends to be an extension of that. Right now, I’ve got a SCUBA cylinder in the trunk and a regulator with an extra hose and adapter for filling tires. It’s there because I had a flat and several weddings to get to and I wanted to be sure I could fill the tire if it went down again. Once it was in the trunk, it became part of my gear (At least till the Wookie needs the tank.)

I know my rig is overkill. But there are plenty of more conventional gadgets available to fill a flat. And even if one didn’t carry that, everyone should have a spare, know where it is, and know what to do with it. Even if you have roadside assistance, there are times and places where you might not be able to call or the wait might be too long. You might just have to change it yourself.

So why would a woman not be expected to know how to do this? I think most of the guys I know could change a flat.

Maybe it’s generational. I should keep in mind when I’m looking at my own generation, that so many of my friends’ parents are as old as my grandparents. Expectations were different when they grew up. So it’s possible that it never occurred to parents of that generation to teach their daughters to handle their own roadside emergencies.

Then again, if we never sought life-skills beyond what our parents taught us, we’d still be living in caves. There are some things that if the knowledge isn’t gifted to us, we should go out and learn for ourselves.

I don’t have kids of my own yet; we’re still working on that. But Wookie and I do talk about the things we want to make sure we teach our kids if we’re lucky enough to become parents—how to manage money, how to read a map, first aid, and CPR. I’m adding how to change a flat to that list. There are just some things that should be considered basic survival skills in our society.