Currently Reading:

Let me tell you why this pertains to my pursuit of creative happiness. After reading this book (I'm almost done) I'm at a point where I've hit a wall. I've now been forced to reconsider every food I eat (or have eaten). Food is our livelihood. It's directly linked to our other lifestyle choices. Or at least, it should be.

Up until I found out about my food allergies I didn't really worry much about what I ate. I value health and get a fair amount of exercise, and I figured I didn't really need to worry too much about what I was consuming. Generally speaking, I scoffed at vegans. Sorry, vegans. I always thought that they came off as being really pretentious. Then I found out that eggs are one of my food sensitivities. AND realized that almost anything I wanted to eat that was gluten-free would most likely have to end up being vegan too (because of the egg factor). I felt like it was my return karma for making fun of vegans for so long- but as it turned out, I really liked their food.

It's been a long journey over the past year, and it's certainly not done. I'm not a vegetarian or a vegan at this point in time (if I so much as mention it in my house during the holidays my dad just rolls his eyes and offers me more steak) but I'm more and more keen on the idea. It's becoming a more manageable lifestyle in our society. We have so much other food we can enjoy besides meat.

Give Eating Animals a bit of your time.

Today's Task. Un atasco. Kidding. No Disasters Here.

I've been relaxing today in Sammamish, working on my first quilt (pictures someday), altering a dress, watching an SNL Anthology of the first five years (wishing I had been there, living in the chaotic, lovable dormitory that used to be the 17th floor in Rockefeller Center), and drinking good espresso from Brooklyn. Also watched Made of Honor with Mom Hennessy. Don't judge.

Song #2.

A holiday song that Jess, Jon, Josh, Meg, Janelle and I recorded. It's the one that Jon, Josh, and I added verses to.

White Christmas.

Song #1.

Not the one I posted some lyrics to a few days ago. And no, I don't wish to comment on the fact that my last post was several days ago. I have really failed, NaBloPoMo.

This song is called "The Gift." In a nutshell- my friend Greg Stump wrote it and we recorded it last year for Sufjan Stevens' Christmas song contest. Josh, Jon, and I re-recorded it this year, which was super fun (especially being a choir in the bathroom at their apartment in Harlem). It's here on Senduit for the week. Then it expires, and you can't have it no more. Just kidding. Let me know if you want to download it. Email me. erinmhennessy@gmail.com.

Song description: It's about unrequited love at Christmastime. It's more WHAM! than The Carpenters, if you know what I mean. You know what I mean? "Last Christmas, I gave you my heart..." Yeah, that's what I mean. Enjoy. This song is near and dear to my heart. You know what I mean? JK. Merry Christmas.

The Gift.

First Snow, cont.

Much Farther to Go.

Finished picture of East New York from my window at work.

New Verses.

Jon, Josh, Janelle, Jess, Meg and I recorded a rendition of "White Christmas." The boys and I each added a verse. I'll post it as soon as I get it.

This is the verse I wrote.

FIRST SNOW.

I'm sitting in Gorilla Coffee. The windows are fogged and something like the Violent Femmes is playing as the snow crashes delicately into the ground outside. Rosemary was just with me, and now she's going to see family. I'm thinking about how great it is to have Rosemary here, and how much I miss camp (where I lived with Rosemary last summer). Camp was a big source of creative and spiritual inspiration to me. The peace, the people, and the place itself are amazing.

So, there you go. No, not quite.

Also swimming around in my head is the the teaching program I just applied to, the knowing that I'll braving the beautiful but frigid snow in a half-hour, the wanting to travel to far off lands like Miss Rumphius, the present Jess left for me under our tree, the want to create things that will benefit other people somehow- even the things that I make that just hang on a wall, like the fox painting. I want everything to have a purpose.

I'm having some sad health problems these days. As I write, my gums are covered with this gooky gum-like cast that goes over my teeth because I just had gum surgery the other day. It's not looking so good for my teeth. Why am I writing this...

Surgery scares me. It makes me anxious, makes me wish I had a job that paid more so I could pay for my medical bills. It makes me want to just choose a practical job. But I keep being inspired out of doing this. I know I'm capable of finding a livelihood that is in line with my passions, gifts, and self. The more I realize how fleeting all this is, the more I want to live with passion- or die trying.

Favorite Coffee.

Mind you, this is with the exception of Stumptown, a Northwest favorite of mine. Stumptown has the Carroll Gardens market under monopoly, due in part that it's brewed in Red Hook and the owners of Cafe Pedlar, Prime Meats, and Frankie's all serve it (so maybe they don't have a monopoly, but it certainly feels like it because I go to all of these places and they're all on Court Street). But seriously, they distribute to a bunch of other restaurants on Smith Street.

Gorilla Coffee.


It's robust. It's got Brooklyn pride. It's fair trade. It's on 5th Avenue right across from one of the churches I attend (TOO CONVENIENT).

I think my favorite thing about Gorilla Coffee is their marketing. They have a very bold and intentional design to their labels, t-shirts, coffee bags, etc. They ALSO give you a sweet box with the Gorilla screen-printed on the front when you buy three 1-lb bags of coffee. So good!

The point is, this place inspires me in its own right. There's a lot of other things I could say about this place- but I have to go to work. And you have to go check it out. ASAP.

Chalkboard Breaks @ Work.

Favorite Mediums.

Painter's tape, leftover paint, pieces of wood found on the sidewalk.
This picture is donezo, actually. I'll post the final product when I finish another painting. It's one based off of our new apartment name... "The Fox Box." I'm really excited about the new project. Anyway, here's the beginning stage of a painting I did of the view from my window at work in East New York. It's pretty much inspired by Ezra Jack Keats.

I Have This Idea.

It's really silly in some respects, and probably more trouble than it's worth.

I make paper bag envelopes. In fact, I think I have an earlier post that shows how to make them.

I see paper bags everywhere in this silly city. They're everywhere on the ground, blowing around like tumbleweed in a ghost town. They're the sad little bags that only have a distant memory of the bodega food or liquor they contained.

The point is, these babies are in excess (along with plastic bags, but that's another story). My thought is this; if I could collect enough of them and expedite the alteration process (Ford assembly line?) I could re-sell them on Etsy and make money for the perfectly good FREE paper bags I find on the ground.

In other random news, I just had a dream that my work was supposed to take me to London, and I forgot to pack anything because I went to the community pool before I got to the airport. Then a salesman tried to fit me for shoes while I was freaking out about not having anything to wear for a week. The end.

More Holiday Cheer.

Lamp shade + snowflake = Sufficient Christmas decor.


The Charlie Brown tree of all Charlie Brown trees. This baby is crafted out of branches Meg and Jess found in the street.


Jon sat for twenty minutes trying to remember how to make a snowflake. He said it would turn out real bad. Lies.


Better picture of the aforeposted treebranchmobile, only taken with a Nikon instead of a camera phone. Jess also included.

Studies in Paper

I hung this paper on the wall because I wrote a giant thank-you card out of it. Then, I ended up taking pictures of the paper. I really liked the texture, folds, wrinkles, and relationship the paper had with the shadows on the wall. Silly, but it's just the way I see things. I worked at a paper store for almost a year. Sue me (don't really, I'm poor).

Ezra Jack Keats.

I love love love his work. I appreciate his passion for art and storytelling. His style is really inspiring me these days.

I first learned about him because he's kind of an icon at the elementary school I work at. He went there when it was still a junior high, after all. We one of his books, "Apt. 3," to a few classes for our "Bringing Books to Life" unit. A lot of my co-workers didn't like the premise of the story (about little boys becoming friends with a blind stranger in their apartment complex) but I was really captivated with the artwork, and I think that was what improved my view of the story itself.



I feel like Ezra and I have a lot in common. I was reading a bit of his biography, and he was out on his own in Manhattan when he was 23 (his parents lived in Brooklyn, though! Mine live in Washington State). He had some good friends but he seemed like the kind of person who enjoyed his solitude. He also went to Paris in his mid-twenties and worked there for almost a year as a painter- one of my ambitions is to live in Paris, perhaps studying art. He had budgeted to be there for three months and then he ended up being able to stay for a year because his art was so popular. Maybe I'll be as lucky?

I still haven't read "The Snowy Day" but it's on my reading priority list. The illustration I've seen from it are simply delightful.

Family Photo.

This was taken at Thanksgiving. The holiday ended up being spread out over about 48 hours, because most of us arrived at the Harlem apartment the night before and left the afternoon after. We all brought something to the table. (Left to right, clockwise) Jess brought the bratwurst and cooked the turkey, Wingo purchased and delivered the turkey, Adam concocted the cranberry sauce and mulled wine, Meg made the sweet potatoes, Josh constructed the green bean casserole, Jon crafted the pecan pie, Katy assembled the no-bake pumpkin pie, and I (not pictured) attempted to re-create my mom's dinner rolls with spelt flour. Can you tell I was trying to diversify my word choice? We had several other lovely guests who dropped in throughout the night (also not pictured).

I apologize for not posting something more substantial. I still can't find the USB cable for my camera. I have projects I want to post, but not without the aid of pictures.

Why Christmas is Stressful (Cont.)

This is one of the things I constructed for Christmas that helps to counterbalance the crazies I see everywhere. It's a tree branch mobile with snowflakes.

Last Night.

Another fail. Does it count that I didn't have time to blog because I was doing exactly what this blog requires of me (pursuing creativity)? I think it's okay. I was playing music with friends! No matter what city I live in, and no matter what place in life I'm at- I hope I always play music... and most especially with dear friends.

In other excuses, I can't find my USB cord for my camera. I've been meaning to upload some pictures. I'M SORRY.

Why Christmas is Stressful.

Tonight I saw the gaudiest of gaudy fake Christmas trees, decked out with speakers in their branches that played "Carol of the Bells" loudly. Ew. I understand what how Charlie Brown felt when he and Linus went to pick out a tree at the aluminum Christmas tree lot.

My friend Jon said the other night that part of the reason he's always been kind of wary of the holiday season was due to the fact that he'd go over to friends houses when he was younger and his friend's mothers would decorated their houses hideously- with ugly Santas and snowmen and all that yuck. You know the stuff.

I think that sometimes the reason Christmas feels insincere or fake to me is because I only see the gaudiness- and that is a complete facade, isn't it? This year, I hope to find more meaning in this time of year. This not only means remembering the reason it's important to me- the birth of a man who symbolizes perfect love in my life- it also means that I must create out of celebration and act intentionally to enjoy everything going on around me. Step one? Find some good Christmas music. I just purchased David Bazaan's "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day." Good start. I couldn't find it online, but I found a similar cover. I think this guy has the right idea. He kind of has a beard like David's, too.




Tomorrow I'll try to post pictures of a fun mobile I created. But now, I sleep.

Failblog.

AKA I failed NaBloMo. I'm sorry. Just like this:


see more Epic Fails

Today is Saturday. I'm going to do my laundry, work on my French, play some music with friends, and maybe work on a window installation in my apartment, because Meg, Jess, and I are having guests over tomorrow for brunch!

I'll post it. And maybe brunch photos too.

Stuff I Do at/to/from Work.

During the commute- I crocheted this hat. I'm pretty proud of it. I didn't use a pattern.


I made this sign at work- It's forwards on the front and backwards on the back of the arrow (as pictured). It really confused the kids. I'll post more of my work "look and feel" (artwork) soon. I've really enjoyed the fact that my job is an artistic outlet.

Goal: Stop. Motion.

I am awake. I slept later today after a terrible train mishap last night during my journey from Washington Heights where my buddy Sharee lives back to Brooklyn. NEVER, EVER make a bad train call after ten- you may not make it home. I came up with a very crass and fairly clever slogan for my evening involving the letters of the trains I was supposed to be catching to get home (as a lady, I will not post them here- rather, if you want to know what I came up with, I'll tell you via email or in person if you know me...). I overshot my stop on the A (I thought it was running on the F track) and as I sat on the verge of tears at the Lafayette Station (I have to note that Paul Simon was taunting me with this fact on "That Was Your Mother" at the moment I was sitting in the station) it occurred to me that I could sleep on the bench I was sitting on, wake up at 7 am, and head to work. But I ended up going home, because the train did finally show up.

During the time I was sitting and pouting, I started to think about this stop-motion project I wanted to do about a year ago to a song called "Keep on Running" by Cat Power. I think I'm going to start working on it... soon.

Remember: This blog is called the "pursuit" of creative happiness. Pursuit sometimes feels like a snails pace. And sometimes like the ideas I have are never going to escape out of my brain. I keep on pursuing what I enjoy, slowly but surely.

Stone-Cold Brew. Ski.

First post of December! Woooo! I'm locked in to posting every day for a month with NaBloPoMo. Good accountability. Check it out.

In other news, it's 5:25 am and I'm kicking off my day with a new obsession- cold brewed coffee. I LOVE this stuff. I read about it in Readymade Magazine a few months ago (my favorite mag since the death of Blueprint- RIP Blueprint! There are hardly even any online remnants of this magazine to link to).

Essentially, you brew the coffee with cold water. Der.

I take an old 16 oz. peanut butter jar and fill it with delicious tap water. It would probably be smart for my roommates and I to filter our water... but we've made it this far, eh? I think the water's pretty good here. And you know what? If my inattentiveness to my water source makes me a bad coffee connoisseur, I don't want to be a good one, you suckers. Yes, suckers. I'm feisty at what is encroaching on 5:45 in the morning. Moving forward...

I put about 3-4 tbs. of ground coffee into the water, pop the lid on, and agitate the water a bit (in other words, shake it like a Polaroid picture). Leave it in the fridge for a few hours; I usually keep it there over night.

When it's ready, run it through a paper coffee filter to ditch the grounds. I just place the coffee filter in my coffee maker and run the coffee through the front filter like you would normally. As you can see, you don't really lose any steps here in brewing except for the heating of the water before it runs through the filter. Rinse the grounds out of your jar and pour the filtered coffee back in.

Voila! Cold coffee! It should be the color of the normal coffee you brew- perhaps a shade lighter. I don't add anything to it. I find that it's less bitter than normal coffee so I'm pretty content to drink it as-is.

Let me know what you think. Oh, and have a good morning!