Let the Games Begin

One of the most intriquing differences between what we know of campus life in Australia and what we are experiencing here in Oklahoma is that of the pervasiveness of College Football! We were warned by everyone we met when we arrived to "beware of the traffic" whenever there was a Home Game. "Stake your claim, whether you decide to stay home or go out. Once the game is within sight nothing moves!" So it was with great anticipation that when the first game came along, that my better half (the sporty side) went to check it out.

The day before the game we saw the 'tailgating parties' claiming their spots all around campus. This was a new concept to us: transporting your living room and kitchen to a picnic spot - complete with TV sets, easy chairs and microwaves! Gone, it seems are days when an ice chest, radio and a folding chair were considered luxury, nevermind dropping the tailgate of a pickup truck! The mind boggled.

And then we saw the transport vehicles! Wow. This was when it struck us just what Big Business College Football is!

When my explorer returned from his forage and I saw the photos, we laughed over the intensity of rivalry and jest aimed directly at the University of Texas even though that game was weeks away! No wonder we were cautioned against wearing the UT colour of orange on campus!

The spectacle of the game exhausted my man (but he will still do it again). All the noise, all the activity, all the excitement before, during and after the game! The food, the traffic, the cheering, the marching bands, the awards, the huge scoreboard, the crowds, the loud speakers, and yes even the game ... lights, camera, action. Wowsers. Life is like that sometimes!



It is highly unusual for me to post more than once in a week! However, a Facebook challenge at Laurie Callison's Visual Vocabulary using her templates and a free kit available from Janet Carr's Little Feet Digital Design FB page grabbed my attention. I had to play along, especially as I had this twist on the 'academic' theme that I have been waiting to share!

Unleash the Picasso Child

A recent conversation with a friend turned to how much more enjoyable it is to go to work when there is something to show for it at the end of the day. And yet so many jobs do not give us something to 'put on the fridge' so to speak. Long, sometimes boring, hours at work can filter down into our lives. Everything becomes drab. So what to do?



Why not embrace the inner child and actually make something for the fridge door? Making something that didn't exist before is a great way to feel alive and re-energise. Perhaps this is why children embrace creativity with such abandon.

Somewhere along the line as we grow up we become too sensitive about what others think of what we do. This inhibition then stifles our basic inclination to create and do something new.

So I am thinking that like my son at his chalkboard, it would do us all good to just grab some colour pencils, pens, paint, or chalk and tell a story with passion. Scribble if you like! Make it up as you go. Enjoy the process. And then do it all over again!

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Kit used is Janet Carr's Make Believe - Pirate's Plunder from PxlCafe. It is treasure chest of fun piraty elements to make you go Arrrr. Check it out!

Encouraging Words

Sometimes a week is so uncomfortable that all you want from it is to have it behind you. I just had a week like that. Most of the trouble was in my head. Lots of worry and lots of fear about a situation I cannot control. Then I remembered this poem. I first heard it as a teenager in the 70s and like most of my friends took it to heart. I shared the poem with my friend Janet Carr and she created this wonderful layout for me using it! (Click on it to see a larger picture.)




I was so touched by her thoughtfulness and also very impressed with the layout and the kit "Watercolours" that she used from Jen Martakis at 2 Peas in a Bucket.



This was not a week that lent itself to much creative expression, and the coming week will be much the same. So I am extra glad to be able to 'borrow' this sweet layout by Janet to share this week. Sometimes encouraging words can make all the difference, especially when served up so nicely. Thank you Janet!!!