clip from the story:

Then came the pushback from the postmasters, who told Pearson and other lawmakers that “standard” mail, the post office’s name for junk mail, has become the lifeblood of the U.S. Postal Service and that jobs depend on it.

this is both a metaphor for why capitalism is broken AND proof that capitalism is breaking…now. clicky.

these are the first two photos that i made my favorites on flickr, and they are HILARIOUS together.

that’s stew on the left, and a fantastic puppet by the ultra-fantastic stacey rebecca on the right. stacey’s muenster cheese finger puppet was my first etsy purchase ever.

i like the lou grant show. there, i said it. i haven’t gotten to see it since i was a kid, and it’s not on dvd. that show made me want to be, not a journalist, but a newspaper man. now itunes has the show and i watched the first episode. it is extremely dated, but still an excellent watch.

like most of the things i love, it inspires questions: why can’t shows look like that anymore? why can’t shows have that much quiet in them anymore? why do i love ed asner so much?

no really, why DO i love ed asner so much? it’s as if i have a “you love ed asner” implant in my brain. the love is real, but i don’t entirely believe it.

anyway, this is a screen capture of one of the reporters digging up information, following a lead to bust open a law enforcement scandal. this one shot contains at least six items from days gone by:

1. typewriter
2. ancient desktop terminal
3. awesomely ernestine head set
4. ye olde neck-crane assistant
5. bona fide rolly roladex
6. INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER!!

sigh. clicky.

want to help some 1st and 2nd grade students learn about the postal service and the creativity of strangers?

my pal nick‘s sister is a teacher and has sent out a call for postcards of all kinds. their class will be collecting stamps and keeping track of the location of senders.

i don’t want to post the address online, so if you’re interested, leave a comment and i’ll drop you the info! viva mail art!

i’m fighting some serious arthritis flare in my hands this week and have been forcing myself to stay off of the computer…gotta save my hands for felting, you know.

anyway, this is one of my top three favorite cartoons of all time. it stars “owl jolsen”…really.

have a good weekend.

xoxo,

moxie

i had a fantastic time in portland yesterday. pictured above are my two new favorite women, sister diane gilleland and susan beal, giving away raffle prizes to the people. see how fun and kind they look? that’s cause they are really fun and kind! did i mention that i really really love them?

anyway, we had a lot of fun in portland, which you can see here.

while we were having our portland fun, there were monsters being born all across the nation. seriously, when i saw these photos today, i swooned. here are a few of the monsters made by party people:

more photos in the craft release party flickr pool:
chicago – clicky.
new york – clicky.
los angeles – clicky.

i’ll be headed to the portland festivities, being hosted by the prolific, inspiring and amazingly kind people known as susan beal and sister diane. sunday march 9, 1 – 4pm @ twisted.

btw, make sure to hit crafty wonderland while you’re out and about. it’s a great event and a big part of why the portland craft scene is so happening.

for more info about all the launch party events, get thee to craftzine, stat!

photo credit: mquest

having mentioned before what i refer to as my “perverse, white-knuckled humility,” regarding accomplishments of any kind, i’d like to take a moment also to speak of the seemingly widespread inability to accept compliments.

a friend mentioned to me recently that when someone tells me they like my work, “shut up” might not be a a gracious or appropriate response. i am genuinely enthusiastic about other people, making sure i tell them how i feel, and have come to realize that i’m not the only one who has a hard time accepting that kind of attention. (k…and b…i’m talking to YOU.)

we could get into all kinds of reasons and therapize all day long, but i came across this post on lifehack that deals with some concrete yet nurturing list of compliment-accepting techniques. here’s a snippet from the intro:

Think of the good we might do ourselves by easily accepting every compliment that’s offered us, even if we’re not entirely sure the person complimenting us is totally earnest. Instead of undermining our self-confidence, we would feed it. Instead of denigrating our achievements, we would promote them. And instead of tearing down relationships, we would strengthen them. A compliment is, after all, a kind of gift, and turning down a gift insults the person giving it, suggesting that you don’t value them as highly as they value (soon to be “valued”) you.

it’s a great read and, even better, completely actionable. clicky. <via>

being a font nerd and an iconoclast, i can’t stop loving this mirrored acrylic necklace by brookadelphia

also great: “post post modern” and i covet the “read.” one too. ooh, you can get custom words or phrases of your own! clicky.