whimsical wednesday

our journey was such fun for whimsical wednesday.  we played the license plate game.  our trip took about six hours and we drove across large chunks of three states.  we were very surprised at the results of our diligent effort.  during the drive from the midwest to the south we saw license plates from 27 different states! 

illinois, wisconsin, minnesota, indiana, maine, new york, california, washington, pennsylvania, texas, south carolina, north carolina, florida, tennessee, ohio, kentucky, missouri, michigan, georgia, kansas, oklahoma, mississippi, nebraska, askansas, colorado, montana and north dakota. 

wow!  we did not anticipate getting so many.  maybe the holiday season is a good time to play the license plate game. 

while we were at it, the grandchildren were given the challenge by their dad to come up with the names of all 50 states and they could use the license plate sightings as part of that process.  and they had to complete the list before reaching our destination.  the adults in the car could not give clues.  they managed to come up with all 50 with two hours to spare!  on the way home we are going to undertake the challenge of pairing capitols with the states.

get ready.....

i'll be on the road wednesday traveling with my grandchildren and their parents.  we shall play the license plate game.  you play too even if you are just driving around town.  because i'll be to our destination late, it might be thursday before i have the opportunity to post our whimsical wednesday experience on the blog.

whimsical wednesday!

it's sappy movie day.  being a day that i needed to rest, i have already watched (or slept through) two sappy holiday movies and i'm currently on number three.  i have no idea if i'll make it to the end as i'm very tired today and falling asleep sitting up!  the first movie i watched featured a six year old who lived in a hotel.  she was so smart and with it that she practically ran the entire hotel.  no doubt this tot could run the world.  but she did as predicted and saved the day by getting the two in love together and married, on christmas no less.  merry christmas!  the second movie was about a reporter being snoopy about a dude who played santa claus in a small town in mid-america.  of course she fell in love with kris kringle and protected him in her newspaper articles as well as falling in love with the perfect guy in town.  everyone was happy, which is typically the case in sappy holiday movies.  right now i'm watching a modern take on the gift of the magi, based on the o. henry story.  such a wonderful story about two people who give up what they love best to give to each other the gift they most want them to have.  the message of this story really touches me.  love at it's finest....when one loves so much that they care more about what the one they love wants without thought to their own wants or needs.  and in this story these two people feel such love for one another that they are always putting the other first.  not only is this a grand holiday message but it is a blueprint for living each day.  care more about what others need, especially those closest, and somehow personal needs are met as well.  hopefully i'll last long enough to see how this modern version of the gift of the magi unfolds.  however, if sleep over takes me i know how it ends for it can, in any version, only end one way.  with true gifts of love.

seek pleasure slowly

kierkegaard said, "most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it".

this is the season for much pleasure for many.  there are decorations to put in place or to look at throughout the town, cooking, baking, shopping, gift wrapping, cards to send, good food to eat, gifts to receive and give, programs to practice for and attend, parties and family gatherings.  it often becomes a rush.  a rush from one must to another.  what does the holiday season become?  an exhausting, harried series of have to and everything that people believe is wonderful about the season is lost.  many years ago i was in conversation with a group of women about three weeks before christmas.  they complained about everything they absolutely HAD to do before christmas day.  their combined list of tasks was overwhelming.  innocently i asked, "then why do it?"  they stared at me in stunned horror and when they recovered from the shock began to speak at once.  "how could they not?!  of course they had to undertake everything!  it's all so important!"  they explained none too gently as if i were from another planet (which could very possibly be!).  from their reactions i understood that they could not enjoy the season on their terms but had to adhere to some notion of what the season had to be as dictated by what or whom that should have no bearing on their lives.  as you enjoy this holiday season, seek pleasure but enjoy slowly.  you won't want to miss a single whimsical moment.

get ready.....

since thanksgiving (and even before), television networks like hallmark and lifetime have aired sappy holiday movies.  this whimsical wednesday watch one.  there are lots of channels to choose from or view a dvd of movies like it's a wonderful life, a christmas story (you'll shoot your eye out!  chortle!!......), meet me in st louis or white christmas.  by yourself, with others; enjoying hot chocolate or tea or popcorn.  come on.  you know you want to!

when the whimsey project began, it became necessary to think of an activity for each whimsical wednesday.  i noted early on that it seemed strange to plan for whimsey since whimsey (whim) is typically spontaneous.  however, it has been necessary to plan in order to alert people as to what to expect each week.   a few months into the process i noticed that most weeks the idea for each whimsical wednesday was indeed spontaneous.  often it was sunday night and it suddenly came to me what to offer on monday.  additionally, i thought knowing what was coming might dampen the experience.  however, what i have discovered is the sense of anticipation that comes when something is looked forward to.

on a whim

approaching people is not the easiest action for me to undertake.  i like people and enjoy their company but making the first move isn't my cup of tea.   on a whim i packaged christmas cookies for my neighbors (country living makes them visually close but physically distant) and delivered them right away before i could talk myself out of doing so.  i timidly knocked on each door and wanted to run away before the doors could open.  however, when they did, i was greeted by great people who gave me huge smiles of surprise and happiness.  i also got hugs and merry christmas wishes.  i returned home feeling grand.  on a whim can yield great results.  and remember.....kindness is never wrong.

you'll find me frolicking

a new twitter follower of the whimsey project led me to this website:  http://letsswap.it/, an art source where artists can swap pieces.  what a great idea.  immediately i sent the link to several artists friends so they can participate as well.  already i am thinking of what i might like to offer and bid for.  how grand to have discovered such a neat site.

one piece caught my eye.  it was entitled, "you'll find me frolicking".  instant bond!  it was already spoken for but i do not lament as it's the title more than the piece that endeared me (although the piece is grand).  YOU"LL FIND ME FROLICKING is whimsey, whimsey, whimsey.  in fact, it should be among the words we discussed in july; words that evoke whimsey.  you'll find me frolicking denotes a sensibility of heart, lightness, attitude and approach to the world.  try frolicking through your day today.  and tomorrow.  and the next and the next.  even the most difficult tasks and the most trying days are easier to manage when one is frolicking.  (reality check:  of course easier said than done.  but even the attempt at this frame of mind helps keep discouragement at bay.)

whimsey at work

this morning i got up, made tea and, while enjoying the first cup of the morning, stared at the two small pumpkins sitting on the kitchen counter.  these were in the thanksgiving table decorations and are still in such fine condition i could not throw them away.  not wanting to throw them away but not knowing what to do with them, it came to me.....  out came the festive holiday stickers i use on cards and letters and onto the pumpkins these went.  now the two wee pumpkins, still in fine condition, are ready for christmas!  let the whimsey in you shine.  and giggle at the results.

more snowflakes!

this morning i found a snowflake i cut yesterday and somehow lost as it was found on the floor in an unlikely place.  how it got there is a mystery, however, it was with much rejoicing that it was found!  it was immediately placed with the others on the window.  as i gazed at the grouping of snowflakes i knew another had to be made as there were now eight.  an odd number in a grouping of most anything is more pleasing to the eye. so out came another coffee filter;  a few snipes here and there and snowflake number nine joined the others on the window.  it was grand to prolong the whimsical wednesday activity just a tad longer.  of course, just enjoying the snowflakes in the window prolongs whimsical wednesday.  they remind me that i took the time to engage in an activity that served no purpose other than to delight and amuse.  every week i look forward to the opportunity to give myself permission to do something that matters to nothing necessary.  although, well-being is definitely not nothing!

whimsical wednesday!

as snow lay over the earth, i was inside happily cutting snowflakes out of coffee filters.  i can't take credit for that good idea.  a few weeks ago my granddaughter was home sick from school and she made several.  those were hanging in the window when i visited shortly thereafter.  once it began to snow here over the weekend i thought of megan's snowflakes and concluded that cutting snowflakes would be a great whimiscal wednesday activity for this week.  throughout the day i crafted seven snowflakes, each one unique as snowflakes are said to be.  they are hanging in the window, just like megan's, so they can be enjoyed. these were such fun to make when i was a child and they still are fun to make.  with very little effort a variety of snowflakes can be made and one can feel quite creative. if snowflakes are holiday decorations, then these are my holiday decorations.  and likely all there will be.  i'm looking forward to the soon-to-be-visiting grandchildren telling me what wonderful snowflakes i made.  let it snow!  let it snow!  let it snow!

get ready.....

the weekend brought  a blanket of snow over all the land.  that event sparked the activity for this week's whimsical wednesday.  let's make snowflakes from any type of paper.....printer, construction, coffee filters.  see how many different patterns you can cut without planning any of the designs.  have fun!

holiday memories at the mall

the whimsey project and times square mall celebrate the holidays.  from november 20th, in time for santa's arrival to the mall, to january 2nd, when ringing in 2011, the community has been invited to visit the holiday memories display.  along with items depicting holidays throughout the year, notebooks are provided for  participants to share their favorite holiday memories and to read the memories of others.  below are photographs of my family participating during the thanksgiving holiday weekend.

whimsical wednesday!

the internet is acting up and i'm not feeling especially perky or whimsical.  however, i did create the holiday card.  it was simple in comparison to the grand plans i had for it.  but it was made and the accomplishment felt good.  a piece of red construction dotted with flecks of silver sparklies was the basis for christmas stickers.  these were special stickers in that they were puffy to create a 3D effect on the paper.  the person the card was intended for benefits from a great deal of tactile sensations.  it was immediately placed in an envelope and prepared for tomorrow's mail.  no doubt, in a few days time, it will be thoroughly enjoyed.  at least that is the hope.

get ready.....

the season of giving has arrived. throughout the month people will be giving to others something from their hearts for all manner of reasons and celebrations.  for this whimsical wednesday, create at least one card for someone who really would benefit from such a creation.  i am already thinking of who for and what the card will be......

whimsical wednesday!

the car motored along the dark interstate for five hours last night.  all along the way, in the distance, bright christmas lights could be seen gleaming for all to see.  the ones that are so very magical to me are the lights glowing on singular homes, like farms, amid a sea of black above and all around.  they seem to be a gentle beacon; beckoning the viewer to come closer.  oh, but that i could.  passing population centers find the landscape filled with lights in all colors, shapes and variety of display.  chicago was the destination and the entire city became one enormous christmas light display to me for the downtown was awash in dots of light with it's usual adornment in buildings and on the roadways!  it was breathtaking to behold.  such a treat for me as my travel to the city is typically in daylight.  what i have missed not beholding this amazing sight after dark more often.  as i traveled to the home of my daughter and her family, i was able to enjoy the christmas lights on individual houses.  some provoke giggles, others astonishment and still others there is no adjective to describe them.  just think.  we shall all be able to enjoy these seasonal wonders for another month.  take the time to look.  i will.