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Archive for November, 2013

linked: yeah, i can relate

Monday, November 25th, 2013

Hmmm…so between overbooking myself, and my narcolepsy going into overdrive, it seems I didn’t do so much on the internet surfing front. However, I did find a few gems that I am eager to share!

First, I loved this piece on Apartment Therapy about giving secondhand toys as gifts. I think it’s easily transferred to things for grown-ups, too. There are many objects out there that get purchased and cast aside before the new-item smell has worn off. In fact, I gave a secondhand gift this weekend for a wedding shower. It was a collection of vintage glassware that just made me think of this couple. I was worried they and/or the shower guests would think it was weird or tacky, but the couple loved it! It gave some things a second life, it made some people happy, and it kept some stuff from going into the landfill. Win-win-win!

I recently shared a link to Nubby Twiglet hugging a koala. She posted a whole piece on this magical place where one can hug koalas! I must go to there!!

Finally, I could relate to this person who feels slighted over an old job. I can hold a mean grudge, and I often judge myself too harshly. I think I can try to learn to let some things go.

Happy Monday, friends!
xoxox

why be a princess when i can be a queen?

Tuesday, November 19th, 2013

The Queen of Procrastination, that is! I am pretty jam packed this week, and for everything I get done, I am putting off roughly 142 other things. Today for instance, I managed to make a couple of stops to pick some things up for a party I am throwing this weekend. I called my mother. I got home to very many other things I need to do. Little things like put the dishes away and take a couple of things down to our storage unit. Bigger things like laundry wrangling and cutting up/cleaning/baking/pureeing pumpkins to freeze for doing fancy things later. In between things like wrapping up stuff for the party on Saturday and making decorations. However, after running some errands, and a long day of work, I crash in front of the computer, get as many rat snuggles as Ms. Billy Corgan will allow, and distract myself with puzzle games and messaging and Person of Interest.

I realize that somewhere in there, I need to get my blog post up today so I don’t fall any more behind and have a chance to maybe catch up on those posts from when I had not internets or my narcolepsy took over. The problem? I don’t know what to write about! I don’t have a finished piece in the pipeline! I need to catch up so I can get ahead and post pieces that are fully formed and well edited. I’m not there yet, so I need inspiration! Stat! Where? Where can I find this inspiration? So, I had to spend more time on the internets. I hit the Googles and my bookmarks that I stash away for days like today. If I’m honest, I also did a few more rounds of puzzle games. Nothing.

More Googling. More Person of Interest. More puzzles. Here we are.

But, I found something! A meme with a Disney princess. That got me noodling, and the next thing I know, BAM! My idea. Just a little one, but enough to get me through.

It all boils down to a Disney princess. A very specific, much beloved, Disney Princess. Many years ago (like two-thirds of my life…I’ll let you sort out the math), Disney released a little animated feature The Little Mermaid. There were so many things to be excited about. For one, I loved the story. It was poignant, and powerful, and the thought of the mermaid lapping the shore as sea foam was a little eerie. Seeing a new version of it, told with all the power Disney could put behind it. Second, this princess would be a redhead. I know many reading this blog might speculate as to what my natural hair color is, since I have been all the natural shades and many that might be natural if I were a fairy or a sprite. Unless you’ve known me since I was a young married lady or longer, it’s a tough call. However, I am a ginger. I love being a redhead, but I also like to experiment and have fun, and it’s only hair. So, the wee me was very excited to see a princess that wasn’t the usual brunette or the ideal blonde. Pins and needles, my friends.

Then, the movie came out.

I saw it.

I. Was. Angry. Angry like only a redhead can be. I could let the fact that it was a musical slide, since cartoons are allowed to be a little less grounded in reality. Maybe a cheesy song would be allowed. However, Disney done crossed a line with Ariel. She is not supposed to get the prince. SHE IS SUPPOSED TO TURN INTO SEA FOAM!!!! It’s supposed to be a harsh life lesson. To this day, the very mention of Ariel makes me shake. A friend was Ariel for Halloween, and it took all of my restraint not to shout, “SEEEEEAAAAA FOOOOAAAAAAAAMMMMMM!!!!!!” when she arrived at my costume party.

Seriously, I finally get a redheaded princess and she has to pretend she is something she isn’t just to land a man, and get rewarded for it. Get. Real. Sister.

So, now you know how I feel about The Little Mermaid as told by Disney.

…and scene.

linked: bad ass women

Monday, November 18th, 2013

A friend pointed me to this story on suffragette bodyguards. Those women were tougher than you might have imagined!!

This piece about poor people and what they choose to spend money on really hit home. When people want to jump all over what they perceive as misspending, I will always jump in to speak against that judgment. This piece provides even more insight.

Once, on a bulletin board site I used to frequent, a woman was looking for suggestions for a good place from which to purchase a cake for her son’s birthday. At each suggestion, she offered another requirement her cake needed and why the suggestion wasn’t a good one. The requirements included vegan, sugar free, any sweetness had to come from fruit, and so on. When I read this post, I wondered if the crazy mom in question was the same person. Yikes.

Over on Slate, a suggestion to stop saying goodbye at parties. While living in the land of long goodbyes makes this tempting, I just don’t know that I can do it.

Finally, one for my job-seeking friends. Eleven reasons why I won’t hire you. Some of them are pretty specific to the newly graduated, but most are applicable across the board.

squirrely sunday: photogenic

Sunday, November 17th, 2013

So, my parents are super fantastic. They are generally super fantastic, but in this instance I am referring to their amazing birthday/anniversary gift to G and I. It really should be an every-holiday/event-for-a-few-years gift, but they think that anniversary and birthday is sufficient. We selected a fancy-pants DSLR camera a bit ago, and they offered to get it for us! The camera has been ordered (we wanted a red one, and they get fewer of those in than the black) and will be here later this week! So, very soon, I will be a photographer squirrel!

photographer squirrel

I am so excited to take all the pictures!!!!

twelve things

Thursday, November 14th, 2013

So, there’s this thing going around on Facebook where people get a number, and they have to reveal that number of things about themselves that other people might not now. When someone posts their list of things, you can like it and they will assign you a number, so on and so forth. So, after seeing a number of them, I finally liked one. My number is 12. Yeah, 12. Not two or four or even eight. TWELVE! So, buckle up. You’re about to learn 12 things about me. Maybe. I can’t help it if you already know one or five or all of them. I don’t know your life!

1) I have some guilty pleasure songs. The guiltiest pleasures include anything by Britney Spears. Her music is terrible and amazing. The other guiltiest pleasures: “See You Again” by Miley Cyrus, “Glad You Came,” by The Wanted, and “Blurred Lines,” by Robin Thicke. I would be ashamed. However, I have no shame.

2) If I really like something or one, or somehow feel kindred to it/him/her I become obsessed. Ob. Sessed. Examples are taxidermy (if you see a reasonably priced taxidermied peacock and/or peahen, hit my digits), Tilda Swinton, little people (moreso the conditions behind it), hairless animals, albino animals, hairless animals with albinism, ravens, and old timey circuses.

3) I will make up and sing songs about anything. For example: We were remodeling the condo and I was hammering some nails to attach molding. So, I started singing a reggae-style song about hammering. It went a little something like this:
I’ve got a hammer, have you got a hammer? Let’s get hammering all night long. I’ve got a nail, if you’ve got a hammer, let’s get hammered all night long.
I plan to put it on my home improvement themed album.

4) When I was an assistant manager of a video store, a friend and I started a fake band called “Dumb Bitch.” The store manager was our band manager and song writer and my boyfriend at the time made us a CD booklet. I’m not gonna lie, we were going places.

5) I just might be the most misanthropic person you will meet. I generally hate people. I don’t like interacting with them, being around them, what have you. I tend to think the worst of people, unless they prove otherwise. It takes a lot for me to consider someone a friend and to let them in, so to speak. So, if you are reading this, and I consider you a friend, you are a rare species. I doubt that it will help you out in a useful way, but I will share my booze with you. My booze means a lot to me. I guess you could say it’s my love language.

6) I love pizza. I know a lot of people say that, but I really love pizza. I could eat it every day. I can eat it when I am not hungry. Once, while watching the academy awards, I consumed a large pizza by myself. I could regret eating too much pizza, but I don’t. I would blame it on the melted cheese, but I have eaten a lot of cheeseless pizza too. I would marry pizza, but it is illegal in all states (that I am aware of), as it should be.

7) I like gin. Not just any gin, but good gin. I am very picky about it. You don’t put olives in gin. It’s blasphemy. You stir gin, not shake it, so you don’t bruise it. Ideally you would stir it 50 times, and do every tenth stir in the opposite direction, not too fast because again with the bruising. Mmmmm….gin.

8) My CDs have to be in their cases, perfectly straight. I get all weirded out by abstract designs that make this difficult. I don’t like when the CD doesn’t fit in the case tightly enough to prevent it from spinning so that when I open it, it’s all janky. Yes, I still have CDs. Only the ones for bands/artists I really love, though.

9) If you tell me something can’t be done, I will do whatever I can to do it. Like, in preschool, when I was given those stupid safety scissors and told that while they could cut paper, they couldn’t cut skin. I was all, “Oh, I think they can!” So, I worked really hard to get those scissors to cut me, just to prove that they could cut skin and were not any safer than other scissors. I was a weird kid. I did not grow out of it.

10) I have a weirdly long neck. Yeah, I know. You will totally be looking at it the next time you see me. I didn’t know until I was in high school and it was pointed out to me. Then, I totally noticed. My neck problems made a lot more sense, since my neck folds over like a giraffe’s if I’m not careful.

11) My face is totally asymetrical. I don’t mean a little. I mean, enough that when I went in for the consultation to get braces, the orthodontist asked if I had been in a terrible accident or had reconstructive surgery. (Which is a really confidence booster for a 12-year-old!) One of my eyes is round and the other is more almond. My jaw is oblong on one side and square on the other. My theory is that I’m actually twins. It explains a lot. Oh, and the right side of my body is larger than my left. My right arm and leg are longer, the leg enough that it causes scoliosis, though not enough that I limp. Twins!

12) I was bowlegged as a wee lass. To correct this I got special shoes. They were basically hideous brown, open-toed boots that were attached to a flat steel bar. When we picked them up at the shoe store, I was all, “WTF mate?” Okay, that wasn’t a direct quote, but it’s the gist of what I said. There was another kid in the store getting shoes. Just regular shoes. I was very suspicious about why this other kid could totally get regular shoes that didn’t have a big metal bar attached to them. My parents told me they were my “TV watching shoes.” As in, while I was wearing them for whatever the period of time I was supposed to wear them in a day was I could watch TV. I think they thought it just might get me to sit still while wearing the apparatus. I was very proud that I figured out how to walk in them. I clanged around the house like a champ. I guess that didn’t matter, because I am not bowlegged now!

all the small things

Wednesday, November 13th, 2013

That Blink 182 title pretty much sums it up. We headed out to Anaheim, CA over the last week to attend BlizzCon. Since we already made the trek out there, we figured we would take advantage of being in the area to see some sights. We were going to be across the street from Disneyland, so that was a no-brainer. We’ve been there before so, while we could spend two days there, we looked into new places for our other free day in town. Lego Land, Universal Studios, and Magic Mountain were among the contenders.

So, I commenced research. I thought maybe Lego Land, like Disneyland, was geared toward the young and the young-at-heart. Unfortunately, a quick perusal of their website showed that the park is really geared toward kids. Not kids, like when I refer to college age kids, or kids like high school kids, but children. While we are pretty youthful, we don’t have children and prefer our entertainment to at least be adult friendly. So, Lego Land was crossed off the list.

We’ve been to Universal Studios in Florida a couple of times, and outside of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, it was a pretty disappointing experience. However, we were open to going to Universal Studios in California. I asked around to see if any friends could offer a comparison to tell us if the California park was a better experience. Unfortunately, no one seemed to have any info. Plus, when I looked at the location via Google maps, it was enough of a drive to be somewhat inconvenient. So, Universal Studios was crossed off the list.

Then there was Magic Mountain. It would be a bit of a drive, but G and I love amusement parks. Especially roller coasters. Give us some interesting coaster action and we are happy campers. It was a contender. Until I noticed that Knott’s Berry Farm was much closer. Plus, Knott’s was part of CedarFair. I have always been a huge fan of their park, Cedar Point. Once I was able to introduce G to it, he was also a huge fan. They regularly build rides, especially roller coasters, that break records. Height, speed, descent, drops, you name it, they come up with it. It’s epic. They also own ValleyFair, which is local to us. ValleyFair doesn’t have quite the same level of thrills as it’s sister park, but it is a fun time. So, we figured that Knott’s would provide us at least a similar experience with a variety of rides, and an efficiently run park. We procured tickets in advance as well as a parking voucher, looked at park schedules to plot out maximum amusement, and scheduled our day.

Now, I know that not everything is going to be a Disney experience. Disney is a well-oiled machine like no other. They have the money to spend, and want to insure that the money will keep rolling in. While every ride might not be a thrill-a-minute, the wait is interesting and thematic, the exit through the gift shop makes you want to buy things you never knew you needed, and all the cast members are trained to keep things moving at optimal efficiency. There might be a queue, it might be long, but they will make sure that it is not a longer wait than it absolutely has to be and that you will enjoy your wait.

Now, much like I said a bit ago on a Fabulous Friday post, “Fuck Hemingway.” Or, in this case, Disney. No one else can out-Disney Disneyland. Or World. So, instead of trying to do so, just do what you do and do it better than anyone else can do. Both Cedar Point and ValleyFair do just that. You know that you are going to ride some rides, and both parks make them interesting. They offer professional quality shows to watch during your down time, and food that takes a minimal amount of time to eat so you can get on more rides. The parks are clean and tidy, the staff is competent, and when you leave at the end of the day you know that you got in all the fun you possibly could into one day.

So, when we made our Knott’s Berry Farm plans, we knew that we were not getting a Disney experience. We were fine with that. However, we at least thought we were going to get the same quality of experience that we would get at any other CedarFair park. Sunday, our last day in Anaheim, we drove to Knott’s. We parked, and headed into the park. As you make your way to the park, you walk through a weird collection of gift shops that are sort of half-haphazardly made to look like they are old-timey. I assumed this was a nod to the days when the area was a ghost town, and pretty much ignored it. We entered the park, and I thought it seemed charming. One thing I will give California is that they hang on to the bits of their past. I enjoy seeing hotels and shops and restaurants that maintain their mid-century appearance. In fact, that’s part of what I love about Disneyland. It has much of the park’s original mid-century charm. So, when we walked in, I figured that was a bonus that Knott’s had to offer over their other parks. Some of that cute midcentury nostalgia. I was excited for a new experience.

That excitement quickly faded as we got in line for our first ride, the Sierra Sidewinder. It took us a bit to figure out it was the line, since that part of the line was just a group of people along a fence. Fine, whatever. Maybe it was just an especially crazy line. We get in line, and the line does not move. We are standing in exactly the same spot for several minutes, despite seeing the coaster run a few times. Finally, we see some people get out of line, which allows the line to move forward a bit. This doesn’t seem like a good omen. We get to the entrance of the line, the sort of gate with the big sign, and the height requirements, and see that there is no wait estimate.

Now, Disney has the extreme version of the wait estimate. They have everything computerized, and can update the wait estimate in real time. They have receivers, which they will periodically give to a guest entering the line, often a child since kids get all excited to be “helping” someone at the park. The guest is instructed to give the receiver to the cast member letting them on the ride, and BAM, wait estimate update. To the minute. Which they add five minutes to for cushion. Cedar Point and ValleyFair have slightly less sophisticated systems, relying on a painted wooden sign (which may have vinyl graphics these days), with an opening where they place a placard with the current wait estimate. I don’t know exactly how they arrive at their estimates, probably by how much of the serpentine guiding the line is full, but they are always pretty accurate. Also, at Cedar Point and Valley Fair, there is almost always an employee at the entrance to answer questions, double check height/size requirements so you don’t waste a wait if you can’t ride, what have you. There was definitely no employee at the gate here. We had no way of knowing how long we would be waiting, or if we should try to ride other things and come back. We were at their mercy.

So far, this was not boding well for our day at Knott’s. As the line very slowly moved forward, people would periodically push their way through the line. I was guessing that they knew someone in line and went to the restroom or something, but as we waiting long enough, if these people were in line at all they were gone a lot longer than a pee or soda break. Regardless, they were line-jumping. At the other CedarFair parks, I have seen security haul people out for it. However at Knott’s, despite what their printed policies said, they didn’t seem to care. The other people in line didn’t seem to care either. In our wait, at least 10, maybe 15, people jumped the line. Um, not cool. We also noticed that the coaster was only running one train. Super inefficient. Most parks have at least two trains on the tracks, one loading/unloading while the other is running. We figured maybe it was due to the age of the ride or something, but it turned out that was how they operated most of their coasters. We finally got up to the platform, and realized that the line was not so long. It was a really short serpentine, one that at any other park would have meant a 15-20 minute wait. However, we waited for an hour. Once we did get to the platform, there was no one directing people to get them into lanes to board. Thus, people just sort of stopped once they got through the turnstyle and created a cluster-you-know-what. You might think that they were short staffed or something, but we could see three employees hanging out by the operator booth, chatting and drinking soda. Not doing so much with the working or crowd control, though. Really??? Plus, the trains would regularly go out with empty seats. Not just one, but several. Apparently, it was too much for the person operating the ride/checking seat belts to call out for people to take the empty seats, and we sure couldn’t count on the three on the side to queue people up. With one train running, it seems like the *least* they could do was run a full train. The best part was their Fast Lane system. Instead of a Fast Pass, like Disney offers, where you can get a voucher to come back to a ride without a wait, you buy a wristband at an exorbitant rate on top of your ticket that guarantees you step on to a ride without the regular line. At both Cedar Point and ValleyFair, the applicable rides have a lane adjacent to the regular line so that the Fast Lane holders can be worked in to the line. At Knott’s, those folks come in through the exit. So, you get to the front of the line, think you are going to step on, and instead a family of four snipes you. This is especially nice when they have the whole train to choose from and they plop down in your car. Everyone else gets on, but you get to wait. Sometimes there is a staff member that will at least tell you that’s happening, but usually someone just sits down and you realize that you both can’t occupy the same space.

The rest of our day went on like this. A couple of favorite moments of complete incompetence were when we were going to get on one ride, and the whole time the people in front of us were trying to make sure that they would all wind up in cars on the same train. It seemed like they figured it out. They go to load and the gates close. Except that not all of them were riding. Apparently, one was just collecting all of their loose articles and heading out the exit. This left two seats open in the car we were waiting for. The operator just locked the seat belts, and they sent the train on its way. At another point, three siblings were trying to make sure they were in the same car. Two were in front of us, the other was in the next lane. There was one guy in front of the two. Instead of the single getting in the seat next to him, and the two going behind, they didn’t get on. The operator didn’t attempt to fill the car. One guy went in a car for four. Now, this might seem small, but when the shortest waits are over an hour, and if every train is going out with at least two seats open, that adds up.

Also, remember how I mentioned that the park seemed “charming.” My opinion quickly changed. I realized that it wasn’t so much “charming” as it was “filthy” and “poorly maintained.” I didn’t want to touch anything while waiting in line because of how visibly gross everything was. One ride, that I think was supposed to make you feel like you were in some sort of Mayan or Incan temple, was claustrophobic. There was no air flow, and the walls were gross. Not pleasant to be packed in with a bunch of people on a warm day in a space that not only has no air flow, but is actually dirty. The rides were all dirty. I’m not expecting that things are going to be spic-n-span. People are dirty and gross. I would at least expect that things get wiped down periodically so that I’m not looking at dirt that has clearly been building up for years. The rides were dirty. Now, I’ve seen the rides at Cedar Point and ValleyFair, and they look like they must be sterilized compared to the rides at Knott’s. I wanted to take some Clorox wipes to the visible surfaces. Heaven forbid anyone get near that place with a black light. Gross, gross, gross.

The thing is, the actual rides were fine. They have some fun roller coasters. Unfortunately, it’s all the details they are forgetting about. The coaster lasts only a few moments. The waits for everything are so long. So many small details that would change a miserable day into a delightful one are missed. They manage to do it at their other parks, yet drop the ball at Knott’s. In the grand scheme of things, it would not cost them any extra to properly train their employees to run the rides and actually throw out line jumpers. Placing signs and making one of the lanes (basically changing one of the serpentines into a lane) for the Fast Lane would be a minimal cost (I actually do know how much graphics run, and how the lanes would be adjusted, so I’m not talking out my ass). Hosing down the equipment at night might be the most complicated thing, but it would be worth it to not feel like one should decontaminate after leaving the park.

However, all the small things instead added up to a really disappointing day. At least we know for next time to do something else. Anything else. Just NOT Knott’s Berry Farm.

linked: now with more adorable animals!

Tuesday, November 12th, 2013

Just a few links this week, due to my spotty internets this last week. You’ll want to stick with them until the end, though.

This story about a how a waffle house that affected a whole town was fascinating.

Over at the Atlantic, take a look at the greatest innovations since the wheel.

The Fug Girls imagine a delightful conversation between two of my favorite people.

Some kids in France had a little too much to drink, and abducted a llama!!

Nubby Twiglet was in Queensland, and apparently hugging a koala is something you can do there! I know I’ll be scheduling a trip!

squirrely sunday: all good things

Monday, November 11th, 2013

come to an end?

a memorial squirrel in holiday finery

a memorial squirrel in holiday finery

We’ve been on a lovely vacation, but alas these are the last moments. Overall it’s been lovely. BlizzCon was the reason for the trip, and it was amazing. However, the real highlight was being able to go to the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland during holiday time. They deck it out in The Nightmare Before Christmas. It’s incredible, and perfect, and it makes me giggle like a little girl. It’s ruined me completely for riding the Haunted Mansion at Disney World, and I dream of coming to California once theirs is transformed. This year was extra special because it is the 13th anniversary of them doing the holiday theme. So, even though the vacation has to end, I can keep thinking of the holiday Haunted Mansion and continue to giggle like a wee one.

What things do you think of that take you to that happy place? I would love to hear all about them!!
xoxox

like father…

Saturday, November 9th, 2013

Most people who know me know that I rarely forgive, and I never forget. I don’t take kindly to being wronged, whether it be by a friend, a family member, a business, or an organization. If the offender atones appropriately, I might accept the apology. However, I will be on guard from then on out. I know that according to The Secret and Oprah and Dr. Phil I should forgive and move on and that’s the key to happiness or something. I’m just not wired that way. I could blame it on the fact that I’m a Scorpio. That might be partially right. I think more of it has to do with genetics.

Look at that handsome youngster!

Look at that handsome youngster!

Look at that handsome youngster...oh..wait.

Look at that handsome youngster…oh..wait.

Most people who know me also know that I’m just like my dad. I look just like him, I have the same temper, the same weird sense of humor, and the same ability to hold a grudge. When I lived at home, we would often butt heads. We are so much alike, that when an argument started, neither of us would back down. Now that I’ve moved away, we get along pretty well. Much less opportunity for our too alike personalities to come to a head.

My parents are about to remodel their kitchen. It’s been a long time coming, but the age of the kitchen has more or less forced the issue. There has been much discussion between my folks about what they want to do to the room. I’ve tried to weigh in with my professional interior design opinion, to some avail. My mom found a set up with many options she liked at a local cabinet shop. She asked my dad if he would go to look at the cabinets, and he refused. You might wonder why.

Well, the guy that owns the cabinet shop took over his father’s business. His father, too, was a cabinet maker. It seems that back in the day this guy’s father had an altercation with my father’s father (my grandfather). So, my family can never purchase cabinets from this guy’s family. Makes perfect sense, right? Well, my mother doesn’t seem to understand. Every time I talk to her she tells me how she wishes that my father would just go to the cabinet place. I explained to her that it’s essentially a feud. They can’t buy the cabinets there, I can’t buy cabinets there, if I were to have children, they couldn’t buy cabinets there. It’s a thing. She said she understood, but I think she’s gonna keep trying to get my dad to go to this cabinet place. If I know my father, and I’m pretty sure that I do, he is not gonna give in. She needs to pick some different cabinets.

So, when I mention that something or someone is on my blacklist, at least you know I come by it honestly.

fabulous friday: mo’s bows

Friday, November 8th, 2013

This fabulous friday hopes to provide you some inspiration both for your spirit and your wardrobe!! About a week ago, I was visiting my chiropractor. It was one of those crazy busy days when just about every patient was trying to get in, and there was a bit of a wait. Fortunately, there was plenty of reading material. I was working my way through O, The Oprah’s magazine. I was finding some worthwhile tidbits that I was trying to mentally file, since I left my purse and thus all my writing/recording/what-have-you implements in the waiting room with the hubs. Luckily I managed to remember the most important tidbits, one of which I am sharing with you right now!

There was a small piece about an amazing line of bow ties. I’m sure you’re trying to figure out what could possibly be that special about bow ties. I’mma ’bout to tell you. See, there was this young man in Memphis who admired the way the men in his family dressed. The suits, the ties, he longed to dress the same way. Now, when I say “young man,” I don’t mean presidential age. I don’t mean college age, or even high school age. This kid was a grade schooler, looking to up his sartorial game. At the age of eight, he asked his grandmother to teach him how to sew. He started making his own bow ties, since what he could find in stores just wasn’t quite right for him. By the tender age of nine, he was running his own business, selling his super rad bow ties. Now, at eleven, he has a very successful Etsy shop, a professional website, and, as I mentioned, Oprah’s seal of approval.

Whoa.

By seven, I would tell anyone who asked that I was going to be a “rich and famous fashion designer.” Unfortunately, I couldn’t sew, and my mother didn’t trust my wee orangutan self with her beloved sewing machine. I sketched a lot, I mixed and matched anything and everything (clothing item or not) into inventive ensembles. But, I couldn’t make very much, even when I tried with needle and thread and my two hands. I certainly wasn’t running a business!

I could look at this kid and wonder what I have done with myself. I could think that clearly I’m washed up. Instead, I am choosing to be inspired! First, he gives me hope that not all young people leave the house in pajamas or pants that show mostly underpants. There might be hope for the younger generation to leave the house looking like ladies and gentlemen. There might be hope for the rest of us to follow suit, so to speak, and up our sartorial game. It’s a nice reminder that it’s worth it to pass up the jeans in my closet for something sassier. Second, he is proof that no matter your age or your resources, you can live your dream. When most kids his age are playing video games or watching TV, he is actively creating. He is pouring his passion into something, and sharing it with the world! He is putting his heart on his sleeve (or, I suppose, around his neck), and making the world a nicer place to be, one bow tie at a time.

So, take a moment and check out Moziah’s site, Mo’s Bows. Read his stories, admire his ties, and glean some inspiration. Throw your age out the window. What is your dream? What is your passion? What is it you want to do above all else? I would love to hear all about it in the comments. I would be thrilled to support you on your journey to whatever your version of Mo’s Bows is.

Happy Friday, friends! xoxox