Team Up: Unexpected.

Unexpected was the theme this week and wowzers. It sure got my mind thinking.
Puna snapped up fish on a grill in an unexpected moment at a festival. I love it. For some bizarre reason, this image of hers has me conjuring up the conversation these two would have. How's about a witty caption? Can anyone lobby in on this one?
For me, it was this rare shot at a make-up counter. Another perhaps little known tidbit about me is that I'm not such a make-up kind of girl. If I find the time to swirl on mascara in the morning it is usually in the rearview mirror of the car while stopped in traffic. The moments of lipstick, liner, eyeshadow, foundation and powder, then the perfect kiss of colour are few and far between around these parts.

Skip over to Megan or Melody and see more Team Up in action.

You may not know...

• I am drawn to seahorses. Everything about the magical creatures amuses me.


• I am driven by challenges.


• I could care less if I watch a regular season NHL game but morph into a beastly form during playoffs. The excitement draws me in and while I don't have any one team that I love or loathe, I do pick playoff favorites. Hello wagon! It's me, Kristina (although I don't often pick the crowd favorites in the pairings).


• I can be extremely analytical. Someday, I'll share the story behind how I created my daughter's name.


• I love books and reading.

Please do tell me something about you.

Midweek and wonderful.

W ould you walk with me
E ntertaining fresh conversation
D oing what we do
N ot ever having met me but already knowing so much about me
E ven for a little while?
S ometimes its the people that we know by the words they write
D eep conversations had at via fingertips hammering away on keyboards
A las, a new way of thinking
Y es!

Show me your Wednesday.

On My Mind.

A man's errors are his portals of discovery. ~James Joyce

It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education. ~Albert Einstein

If you are planning for a year, sow rice; if you are planning for a decade, plant trees; if you are planning for a lifetime, educate people. ~Chinese Proverbs

Let's play - Apr 15

You're playing along with Friday Fill-Ins right?
1. For me, it was __something about the way the sun kissed me as I walked out the door___.
2. ___I'll entertain a friendly scavenger hunt__ at my local supermarket.
3. Behind the sound of the wind in the trees, I heard __her wimper softly___.
4. __Visit Paris___ is something I always wanted to do.
5. When it was over, __a bittersweet taste was left behind___.
6. __I stood all by myself___ but I never felt alone.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to __playoffs___, tomorrow my plans include __dancing___ and Sunday, I want to __submit what I've been working on___!

Team Up: Direction

Puna and I were in this week. Direction was what we wanted to find. I shake my head at the irony of direction as the topic and me here clearly lacking both the direction and discipline needed to post this on Thursday. Puna's shot has me in awe. Some weeks I am amazed at just how in tune we are despite having never met and living many many miles apart. Direction. I read so much of this theme in her image. A road trip across the Canadian Prairies in the spring is always an unpredictable adventure. Old Man Winter hadn't quite given us his licks yet and so, he blew out a final fury. Driving conditions were bleak. Complete white outs and a highway who's whereabouts was uncertain was what lay ahead. Direction. Faith. Hope. All things that helped us get home safely. Puna's image above from the National Cathedral pointing in all directions to faith. Melody and Megan have some more awesome team up shots happening. Visit them, won't you? To you, Puna, thank you! For partnering, for understanding, for being super awesome.

Study tactics 2

1. Situate yourself far away from the phone.


2. Resist online interference.


3. Keep your current novel out of sight.


4. Have a healthy snack near by.


5. The TV probably shouldn't be on. Otherwise shows like this one might cause distractions.


6. When you find that your mind just can't focus, walk away. It is better to breathe and come back than battle and become discouraged.

Study tactics 1

1. Be comfortable but alert. For me, this can be anywhere from my dining room table to my couch to a coffee shop to a quiet library. I have learned that when I put myself in an environment with too much commotion, I become easily distracted and frustrated.


2. Remove temptation. Otherwise stated, close Google Reader, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Email, TV, etc. This can also mean pop in headphones and turn up the iPod just loud enough to muffle the chatter around.


3. Review what you need to learn. The schedule usually identifies this. If not, the chapter should provide some guidance of the objectives.


4. Be realistic about what you can accomplish then push yourself one step further. I usually have in mind how much time I can devote at any given session. I try to optimize every moment I can when studying to prevent disappointment.


5. Read the required materials and make notes. I am a fan of writing out what I think is important. I used to highlight my texts but found this didn't work too well for me. Now, in addition to my hand notes, I also flag the textbook with the must-know materials, charts, exhibits, and such.


6. Listen to the audios and make shorter notes. I have a great resource that comes with handouts. I follow along with the handout to keep focus and also scratch out tips and emphasized info. Chances are if it has been mentioned in any detail numerous times, I need to know it.


7. Study the lesson notes and highlight what jumps out. This is where the highlighter gets its attention. After all, isn't picking out the perfect highlighter part of the whole new course excitement?


8. Work through the problems. The hardest part for me. In my experience, if I don't try doing questions directly related to the materials I'm studying, I'm not going to remember much.


9. Identify where you get stumped. How many times do I succumb to the temptation of clicking ahead to see the answers? That is my surefire sign that I don't know the topic well enough to move on.


10. Go back to the materials (text, notes, audios, etc.) and review what stumped you. What is causing the struggle?


11. Try the problems again. If at first you don't succeed...


12. Master the topic. Determination, perseverance and a whole lot of work rings this one true.

Study up!

This week is all about the books for me. I'm at the point in my class where it is get serious time. This also happens to be close to the losing steam time for me. I've lost steam before and the outcome of that sucks. It is like buying a ticket on the one-way train to failure. Robert Frost said in a favorite poem of mine two roads diverged in a wood, and I- well, perhaps I'm not taking the one less travelled by but I am certainly taking the one that leads to being on top of the books.

Last week I stumbled. I found excuses why I would rather put off putting time in than actually learning what I needed to learn. I was tired and I ignored what my body was telling me it needed. I needed nourishment, hydration, exercise and rest. When I don't listen to these things, I slip into a haze. I fall behind. I become miserable and defeated. I pretend to need more hours in a day only to immediately see right through that excuse.

A quick review of the schedule reveals that extreme discipline and devoted determination is required to pull it all together from here out. Assignments are quickly coming due; quizzes are demanding attention. Procrastination is not an option. While it is still only April, my calendar quickly tells a different story of available time. We are booked on the brink of too much through June 12. After that, there is rest.

With a tip of my I'm-a-serious-determined-student hat, this week's posts will be centered around studies.

Bopping along.

A new favorite for me. Crank the speakers and dance through the whole house!

Mission: April

This month, there is a full agenda but a short list.

1 - Drink more water! 2 - Take another gander at this list because new mega one is due out next month. EEP! 3 - Rock my socks off (or get back into some sort of movement routine or something equally as fun)

I'm slow this month. Instead of dwelling on this, I'm shifting it into a higher gear and it's GO time!

March ran away. In fact, the first three months of 2011 have run away. 1 - Top secret craft affair Booyah! This past weekend was the last meeting for my 2010/2011 stamp club. We each made a card front to swap. Watch for more details on these later this month. 2 - Crack a new text and keep the notes in order 50/50 here. The text is getting it's fair share of attention hence the semi-negligence around here. The notes in order business I'm struggling with. There is so much information. I have two 3 inch binders full of course material, a class notes notebook, a binder for notes and exercises, a quick reference guide of things I am struggling with. If you have any organization suggestions, please drop me a line! 3 - Get out into the frozen sunshine Perhaps not as often as I would've liked to and trust me, the jeans that have =ahem= "shrunk" are solid encouragement to get me moving this month. 4 - Summer camp plans beg to be made Absolutely yes yes yes. We are locked and loaded ready for a few months of sensational entertainment. 5 - Sing something (side note, if only the best birds sang, the forest would be a quiet place) My monsters and I have been scaring the animals in the house singing joyously 6 - Kick the laundry monster to the curb I think the laundry monster has a neverending supply of Energizer batteries. That rancid beast reappears every single week. 7 - Out Out Small Clothes! No and it makes me grumpy. 8 - The Wild Zone, The Gunslinger and I are to have a rendezvous tout suite! The Gunslinger is still on the back burner; The Wild Zone 9 - Pour some gravy on top My gravy on top this month was just getting to the bottom of this list. Because I did it, I'm absolutely impressed with March.

The month rocked itself out. There is still snow on the ground but most importantly, there is spring in the air. Geese have been spotted and while I still haven't seen a robin yet, I just know we are close.