Whimsy and Wonder #5- Planetary Promenade

Leave it to Mike Bennett to keep adding whimsy and wonder with his art. His latest installations can be found on Mississippi Avenue and it's really out of this world!

I only found 11 of the 12 Planetary Promenade pieces and my completist self is really annoyed. I have the 8 planets, Pluto, the Sun, and the Asteroid Belt. What and where is the twelfth?

Anyway, it was a nice day for an Artist Date.

January 17th Edit: Remember how I was looking for the twelfth piece? Luckily someone shared a map since I definitely wouldn't have found it on my own. It's the Oort Cloud.

 

Whimsy and Wonder #4- The Morrison Street Minigallery

 

One of the things I want to do this year is to find as much as whimsy and wonder in the world. I had this goal in mind a few days before the new year began and then things happened. Sad things. Horrible things.

 

But I think it's during these difficult times that we need to be mindful that there is still good things, beautiful things, in the world. Sometimes, we just have to seek them out.

 

As part of this week's Artist Date- another of my goals introduced by Julia Cameron in her book The Artist's Way-, I walked to visit this mini gallery.

 

 

 

And, on my way to and from there, I found other Little Free Libraries and even a Wishing Tree.

 

 

 

And I'm grateful once again for sunshine and blue skies.

Whimsy and Wonder #3- PDX Free Fridge, Pantry & Library

First of all, sunshine and blue skies- what a treat!

And, not that I want to have to post something related to Whimsy and Wonder every day but I couldn't help but share this Little Free Fridge Pantry & Library near my work. These community sharing boxes are wonderful reminders that kindness is everywhere and is very creative and resourceful. Also, when we look at things in new light, we can perhaps see something more, something there, that we didn't see before!

 

 

Whimsy and Wonder #2- Antiracist Lending Library

 

In my search to find a Whimsy and Wonder, sometimes it just means taking a different route than you normally would and see what you discover along the way.

 

I love running across Little Free Libraries and came across this one focused on antiracist reading.

 

 

 

What's on your Antiracist Reading List? I was thinking of doing a readingc hallenge with this theme similar to what my friend and I do in June for LGBTQ books. Let me know if you'll be interested or have any suggestions on how it should run!

Whimsy and Wonder #1- Winterland PDX

 

One of the things I want to do this year is to find as much as whimsy and wonder in the world.

I had this goal in mind a few days before the new year began and immediately almost missed the first opportunity to do this.

 

I wanted to ring in the new year by doing something I wanted to do more in 2021: write. So I was writing away and was getting annoyed by all the noisy fireworks. And then I told myself that I should go and see if I can see them from my place. And I did see one nice burst of light.

 

And, this morning, I went on an Artist Date (as suggested in Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way) to explore the various art pieces being displayed as part of Winterland PDX.

 

I only focused on the westside and only found some before it started to rain heavily but it was a great way to walk and be grateful for people creating art in the world!

 

 

#TakeCareChallenge

As we get closer to the busy-ness of the holiday season and start reflecting on the past year to plan ahead, I wanted to share the #TakeCareChallenge prompts I posted this summer.

Prompt #1: What are 3 things about yourself that you are proud of? Sometimes we don't give ourselves enough credit for the things we've done. Sometimes we forget how awesome we are so the point of this exercise is to remind ourselves of it. And if for some reason you can't come up with 3, ask your family and friends to help you. 

Prompt #2: Brighten someone else's day. Compliment 3 people today.

Prompt #3: Think of what freedom means to you, all the things you have and all the the things you can do and enjoy that you may sometimes take for granted.

Prompt #4: What are 3 things you're grateful for? Gratitude is an important component in self-care. We should train ourselves to seek and appreciate the good.

Prompt #5: Watch (or rewatch) the Mister Rogers' documentary Won't You Be My Neighbor? It is a comforting activity to do during these crazy troubling times sure to inspire everyone to seek and be the kindness in the world.

Prompt #6: Do at least one small act of kindness for someone else. Notice how it affects them. Notice how it affects you. Sometimes you may not get any sort of acknowledgement but that's OK.

Prompt #7: Forgive yourself. Sometimes we're too hard on ourselves for things we did or didn't say or do in a particular moment. We are only human who make mistakes. Forgive ourselves for things we continue to stress about and maybe that will allow us to move forward.

Prompt #8: Thoughts and prayers aren't enough. Take action. If there's a problem issue you're passionate about solving, do some research to find organizations and resources to help you better understand it and see what you can do to help.

Prompt #9: Be serious about Self Care. Schedule the time- set an alarm on your phone, block it out on your Google calendar- for it instead of getting around to it.

Prompt #10: Don't let social media replace actual human interactions. Have a face to face with someone you care about. Even a good old fashioned phone conversation will be better than a typical post, tweet, email or text.

Prompt #11: Walk. Take in the beauty of the outdoors. Soak up the sun.

Prompt #12: Put away your smart phones. Enjoy time with family, friends and yourself. Challenge yourself to unplug from time to time. 

Prompt #13: What's one thing that you're good at that people tend to compliment you on? Go ahead, toot your horn.

Prompt #14: Give credit to those who helped you be good at what you do. Sing them praises!

Prompt #15: I'm a big fan of journaling. I think it's a great way to start and end a day. You don't need anything fancy. Pen and paper will do. Or even typing or texting. Simple prompts to write about. What are three things I'm grateful for today? What are some tasks I have to do today? What is weighing on my mind and what are action steps I can take? What could I have done differently today to have made things even better? What's something I could do that would be awesome?

Prompt #16: Volunteer. You'll be surprised at how good you feel after helping others out!

Prompt #17: Treat yo' self. It doesn't even have to cost anything!

Prompt #18: Remember, we are #StrongerTogether with getting things done in both our small and large endeavors, whether making our lives or the world a better place. Find your team. Check up on them. Get to work.

Prompt #19: The most important thing in order for the #TakeCareChallenge to work is if you actually take the time to do it. Do take time to take care of yourself and to take care of others. Schedule it on your calendar if you have to. Just do it.

Thanks to everyone for following along this month. I hope you found some things helpful!

#YouAreAwesome #BeAwesome #SelfCare #CareForOthers