For Japan, with Love

Because I think we've all at some point said, "I wish there was something I could do."

A Change of Scenery

If you're reading this post then I'm sure you've noticed that What's Past is Prologue has changed residence and gotten a little face lift recently.  Please remember to update your Blog Rolls/Feeds/Following status, etc. with my new url!

The new home and new look (plus the little tweak on the name) were some things I really started thinking about doing all the way back in January (a sort of fresh start, I guess), and it's really just taken me this long to go through with it.  I think a big part of it was just that I needed both the motivation and the time to actually sit down and teach myself some basic HTML.  Well, last months Creativity Challenge helped with the motivation (this was the small side project I had mentioned but never went into detail about), and the fact that N.'s been gone for the past week has definitely helped with the time.  I've been on HTML overload, and I'm overall fairly glad that I chose not to pay to have a custom blog design done (though nothing's wrong with that because those things look amazing).  I just couldn't reasonably afford it, and it turns out I could do a pretty decent job all by myself!

Who knew?  Though I will be honest and say that Photoshop is still a beast that largely escapes me. 

Anyway, things are still awaiting some minor tweaking around here, and my old blog website will remain active for about 2 weeks before I take it down, but I'm really excited about this new look and, above all, the static page feature that Blogger has finally incorporated into its layout!  Please look around and check it all out, but don't pay any attention to any of the little bugs you may find here and there -- I'll be cleaning things up as I go!

Blogging confession number 5,365

I'm a lurker.  Not a creepy, real life, I'm-wanna-break-into-your-house kind of lurker, but a blog lurker.  I have tons of blogs I love to read, from design blogs to fashion blogs to the everyday journal type of blogs, but I only comment on a handful of them.  I don't have a reason for this other than the ridiculous notion that I feel sort of intrusive popping up in some strangers comments like, "Hey, you don't know me but I've been reading your blog for months now.  Just wanted to say hi!"  Although that's usually how it goes.  And there isn't a single blogger I know who would actually mind.

For the few blogs I do comment on, I'm fairly consistent and loyal about it.  These are relationships like any other, after all, and you should put some effort into them.  Aside from that, I generally just want to comment, either because I have something to say or because I now consider these bloggers friends and comments are the way we usually keep in touch (and you can always add me on Twitter!).

But this lurking thing is something I want to change (and at this point I'm thinking of renaming 2010, "The Year of Change").  Not that there's anything wrong with it, but I think I just feel like my blogging has moved passed the point where it's simply a journal I let others read.  This isn't completely about expanding my own readership, which is something I wrote about a few months ago, and I don't necessarily want to change the way I write or what I'm writing about in order to suit any would-be readers (because not only would that defeat the entire purpose of my blog, but I'm actually not sure it would make a difference).  But I think I'd like to put myself out there more.  Expanding the blogs I read and the bloggers I get to know seems to be as good a way as any to do that.

So if you have a blog and would like to expand your readership, please leave me a link!

All of this also makes me wonder if there are people lurking on my blog.  Are there?  Are you a lurker just like me?  If so, feel free to continue lurking to your hearts content, but I also just want to invite you to say hi now and then.  Like most people who blog, I love reading comments and I really like meeting new people, yourself included!

dear blogger, i've missed you

so the end of may and the start of june passed by in a blur of stress and tears, and here i am sitting on the other end of all of that and feeling a little worse for wear.  i'm trying to take this time in my life philosophically.  i'm trying to tell myself that these days will help to build my character, and my frustrations will only make me appreciate the good later on.  that, although i may not feel appreciated, and although i may not see the fruits of my labor first-hand, i am helping to make a small difference somewhere.  i'm trying to convince myself that this will all be worth it in the end.

i'm not always successful.

but if nothing else, at least this job (and these last 2 months in particular) have really clarified for me some things that i had remained somewhat on the fence on until recently.  those things are that: 1) this is not the sort of job i want or will ever have again.  2) i've been forced to really look into that mysterious future of mine and decide what next steps to take -- namely, to go back to school.  and 3) really and truly, the only important thing in life is that you are happy in every way (no small feat, right?).  because if you aren't happy in the aspects of your life which you value the most (i.e. your personal life, your professional life, your creative life, etc.), the dissatisfaction and unhappiness festering in that one arena will bleed into all others.  then where will you be?

my unhappiness in my professional life has definitely been bleeding over lately to the point where it's taken so much energy to even muster up the desire to pay any attention to the other parts of my life.  that's where my blogging suffered.  as much as i didn't want it to be, the stress of the day just made blogging turn into another item on this already too long list of things i felt i needed to do, when all i wanted to do was stare off into space for a minute or two.  and i also didn't want to fill these posts up with all the crap i'd been going through because, when push comes to shove, those aren't the things i want to remember or want known.

but things are better now.  or, at least, they're getting better.  i'm learning to put myself first when it comes to my job, even if that means that i need to start looking for another one (i'm sure i will write more about the job search pros and cons as i move forward with that), and i'm also learning to try and leave my job at the office so that i can come home and be a whole person for N.  because after dealing with me for the past month, he really has proved himself to be one of the best people i know.

all this is to say: i'm back, blogger.  and i've missed you.

the mildest version of the truth

okay, i'm going to be honest here and say that i was hesitant to post what i did yesterday.  at one point, i actually posted it then took it back down again.  i think i felt this way because, to me, the things i wrote about L. and about the many complicated ins and outs of our friendship were extremely personal, and i worried that it was wrong to share it.  i also worried that i was being too harsh in my telling of our history.  was i wrong?  was i too judgmental?

so it thought about it and thought about it as i do.

and i realized that yes, it was personal, and yes, maybe it was also a little harsh and judge-y (though, according to some it was actually only the mildest version of the truth -- i love the way that sounds for some reason).  but it was also honest.  mild or not, this was the truth as i saw it.  and maybe that sort of thing isn't supposed to be shared with strangers and the world at large, but then again, maybe it is.  what's a blog for, after all, if not to share our own personal versions of the truth?

and i guess i've been thinking about this a lot, about the usefulness of blogs and all, because i've been considering attempting to expand my readership.  i think there comes a point in every bloggers life...okay, i'm not really being that pompous, but seriously, there is a point where we have to ask ourselves, "is this blog just for me and my friends, or do i want reach more people, to know more people, and to be known as well?"  i don't think i have a problem with being known by perfect strangers.  it's actually being known by those in real life that scares me.  that and the fact that i just don't know that my subject matter really does reach other people.  like i said, this blog is about me, my life, my truth, you know?  it's so completely specific that i just can't imagine how anyone else would be even mildly interested in it.

but we'll see.

i know some of you out there have also faced this issue, the whole, "how do i get more readers and why would they even want to read about me?" question.  what answers, if any, did you come up with?  did you worry that you would reach not only strangers but people who knew you in real life?  is that distinction even a concern for you?  i'd love to hear your thoughts!

friday feature: creative blogs of note

with all the free time i've had lately, i decided to work on little "projects" here and there around the house.  some involved remixing my wardrobe to find new outfits i never knew i could make.  others involved painting an emily bronte quote on canvas.  and still others involved redecorating our office, revamping our bedding, creating a make-shift headboard, and beginning the process of rearranging our living room.  i haven't even begun tackling the back yard yet.

N. is obviously not very thrilled since, though i can arrange furniture by drawing it on a sheet of paper, he's the muscle behind this operation.

however, in preparation for all these projects, i've been scouring the blogosphere for ideas on organization, design, thrifting, sewing, art, etc.  and in this friday feature, i wanted to just share some of the best of the best blogs i've found.  if you're ever in a crafty, diy mood, i suggest taking a look at some of these blogs for inspiration and, in some cases, lovely freebies or goodies for purchase through etsy.  jamie meares of i suwanee even offers her affordable and awesome looking interior design services, which i totally plan on taking advantage of once i have the ability to save funds.

are there any blogs you're obsessed with?  i'm always looking for good reads!

blogging etiquette fail

have you ever been offended by what someone else wrote in their personal blog?  i'm not talking about liberal v. republican arguments, or snide remarks about perhaps liking bad music.  i'm talking about being seriously offended, like being called a piece of trash offended.  how did you handle it?  did you respond to the post?  did you ignore it?  should we, as voluntary blog readers, even waste our energy being offended by another's post?  i mean, isn't everyone entitled to their own opinion (even if their opinion makes them sound like a tool)? isn't that the whole point of blogging?  to be able to express your opinions openly and publicly?

but if that is the whole point -- that you can express close-minded, possibly racist and definitely classist opinions to God and country through your blog -- then doesn't the act of blogging necessarily welcome otherwise unsolicited responses?  should we, as bloggers, allow commentary from those we offend?  or should we, as blog readers, just click the "back" button on our web browsers and try to forget that this ignorant jerk (and their blog) even exist?  does your response change when dealing with a personal blog v. a more editorial/business oriented blog?

this all came about the other night while i was browsing through twenty-something bloggers, searching for bloggers in hawaii.  during my search, i came across a nearly-defunct blog written by a girl who isn't from hawaii, but lived there with her boyfriend back in 2008.  it was an interesting blog to begin with (i.e. very personal, to the point where i almost felt like i shouldn't be reading anymore because i didn't actually know this girl, and i'm not sure she'd want perfect strangers reading these things about her), so i hit the tag for "hawaii" to see if she mentioned anything about the islands in any of her posts.

oh, did she ever.

now, there have been several other times in my life when i've read something (usually about hawaii and/or hawaiians, and sometimes published as fact) that i felt was uninformed and insulting, and i've chosen to respond to those authors accordingly.  but i just couldn't do it this time.  i was so mad.  i'm generally not a very confrontational person, but i know that if i had commented on her post it most definitely would have been confrontational, just as insulting, and probably as close-minded about her as she is about hawaii (and, by default, me).

but i'm still left wondering 1) if i have any sort of "right" to be upset about a post some girl wrote on her blog more than a year ago which i read voluntarily, 2) if it's okay to write a response to her post on my blog that i don't really ever anticipate her reading, and 3) if this is just my induction into the the nature of blogging itself, much of which is made up of anonymous and passive-aggressive encounters.  i would love to know if any of you have had similar experiences, or just have insights into proper blogging etiquette.

also, because i didn't write a comment to her post, and i still had so much to say about it, i'm including it here.  if interested, you'll find a link to her original post as well as my initial uncensored and unsolicited response after the jump.

my unsent response to this open letter to the people of oahu:

i mean, it's one thing to be upset about something that may have happened (like having a car nearly run into hers) caused by a specific person at a specific time, and i can get behind a ranting post just as much as the next person.  but it's a completely separate thing to start an angry tirade against an entire island which not only mocks the locals that live there, but also shows a complete lack of understanding and compassion for a community she obviously knows nothing about.

because you know what?  yeah, people living with their entire extended families may not be okay with you, and it may show a lack of ambition in your opinion, but for a lot of the low income families in hawaii (i.e. local families, aka families like mine), that just so happens to be the only option we've got.  and it's also a cultural thing, which you would know if you ever considered learning a thing or two about the history of the place you're living in.

and you know what else?  i'm sorry, but it's pretty damn hard for people to keep their apartments (better known as the projects) looking like the sunshine-and-roses 'burbs you may have grown up in when they've got kids to feed, two full time minimum wage jobs to work that barely cover the rent and groceries, and the area they were lucky enough to find affordable housing in is already overridden by crime caused by unemployment, drug addiction, and skyrocketing cost of living rates which aren't helped by all the wealthy folk moving to hawaii, buying up property in the nice areas, and raising all the property taxes without giving a thought to the effect that's having on a people that have been there for hundreds of years and that have been made second-class citizens in their own homeland by ignorance like this.

oh, and p.s. regardless of the fact that i have family in the army and airforce, even i can't deny that the military is blamed for ruining a lot of hawaii because they illegally overthrew our government, they ruined one of the most beautiful bays we have and turned it into the disaster that is now pearl harbor, and they used an entire island for target practice.  and they continue to use whole mountain ranges for the same thing, meaning their big ass trucks get a free pass to trample all over indigenous plants and wildlife, tearing up land that -- in a place like hawaii -- was probably sacred once but is now littered with shells and unexploded munitions among other things.   look it up, there's about ten years worth of government reports and court cases on the topic of military pollution in hawaii. 

and first you want to say that if the military weren't in hawaii it should just be turned into a landfill for all the trash, and then say that locals can stay because we'd fit in so nicely?!

go home.

Randomness

in other news, i kind of want to revamp my blog... i don't really like the header very much, or the double sidebars on the right. i have some favorite blogs that i'll take some inspiration from, but this is gonna require me to relearn all that html i tried so hard to forget. :) i guess we'll wait and see what kinds of things i can think up!

fashion find

My 100th Post!

i know this makes 2 posts in one day, but i wanted to share! while i was blatantly and purposefully ignoring the fact that i should have been reading the tons of research i've gathered in support of my final paper in law school, i stumbled upon a really cute blog, ironically entitled: academichic

some of you who are into fashion like i am, and who are still wading your way through academia like i am, may just fall in love. you're welcome.

and in regards to my 100th post, i think i'll celebrate with a "100 favorite things" list in my next post!

(p.s. i made the 4 posts i'd promised i'd do this week in apology for being so absent lately! who knew i had so much to say?!)

great ideas are born every day

the wonderful ashley over at writing to reach you has a great idea that some of you may be interested in, so i thought i'd share it. i'll definitely be participating, and am looking forward to seeing how it all goes! even if you're not interested in this particular project, you should check out her blog - it's one of my favorite reads!

Calling All Twenty-Something Writers

by Ashley on February 23, 2009

Last Friday when I said I had an idea, I didn’t mean to be such a tease. I was just excited and couldn’t keep my mouth shut. But, I can’t keep this a secret anyway, because I desperately need your help. You can skip right down to The Idea if you’re not interested in the background stuff.

The Evolution of the Idea

The idea started on Thursday night when I decided that I really wanted to start a podcast. I’ve been an avid podcast listener for years, and I’ve always wanted one of my own, but I’d never felt quite so inspired to actually do it. So, then I was thinking about what I could podcast about and with who.

I decided that I wanted to podcast about writing, and I really wanted to podcast with some of my fellow writing-dedicated bloggers. The problem was that I didn’t know how to podcast and I didn’t know if anyone would be interested in participating.

I spent some time on Friday trying to figure out how to podcast (I think I have it about half figured out now), but then it occurred to me that I really wanted to do something much broader than that, so that more people could participate.

I thought then of a group blog that could feature regular posts and possibly also video and (hopefully at some point) a podcast.

The Idea

I want to start a writing community for twenty-somethings that would revolve around a group blog. The point would be to encourage each other to write. We would do this mostly by talking about writing. I don’t imagine this blog being a How To Write kind of deal, but more about sharing ideas and holding each other accountable. It might include guest blogs or round table-like discussions via threaded comments. I hope it will also include other kinds of media. The question of what we would do is something I need your help with.

I want to do this not because I don’t think there’s anything like it already on the internet, but because I’m interested in more of a small group atmosphere and, well, I really like you all and trust your insight. I find I stay most motivated to write when I keep it at the front of my brain and get my ideas–about story, style, etc.–out there.

My original intent was that this would focus mostly on fiction, novel-length writing. But, I think it could be much broader than that. I know that I’m interested in all kinds of writing, so I think anything could be up for discussion.

So, I’m cool with leading things, especially at the start, but I don’t want to do this by myself. I’d like to encourage participation at all levels, but I’d really love if some of you would co-lead this with me. And, this is why I’m throwing the idea out there even though I’m not sure exactly where it will go. If no one is intersted, then I’ll probably put it on the back burner.

What I Need From You

1. If you are really interested and might consider co-leading this with me, please let me know. Also know that you’ll have my undying love. But, don’t worry, you’re not committing your life. You can always back out, and I don’t anticipate this taking over your life. But, I’d like your insight on the planning moving forward.

2. If you are intersted in possibly contributing at some point, but don’t want to be involved in the planning, please let me know.

3. If you are not interested, but you’ve already read this far, make it worth your while, and let me know if you have any ideas about things we might do on the blog or any feedback on the idea at all.

4. If you need me to clarify anything, please let me know.

5. If you’re interested in the idea and think your readers might be as well, spread the word on your blog.

I really want this to be collaborative, so please let me know what you think and if you are even midly interested in the idea. You can leave a comment here or email me at writetoreach [at] gmail [dot] com.

A final note: The only qualification for participating in this project is that you must be willing to talk about writing. This isn’t about how much formal training you have (I have very little myself) or how good you are or even how much time you spend writing. You only ever have to share as much as you want. What I’m saying is that there are many good reasons not to participate, but thinking you don’t have anything to say about writing is not one of them.

i've got nothing to wear!

(side note: originally, i was going to entitle this post, "closet whore" but thought better of it after a brief deliberation.)

this is going to be a different sort of post than usual. ever since i started on this whole "saving money" thing, i haven't been shopping once. not once. and unfortunately, not shopping doesn't getting rid of the wanting to shop.

but it has given me time to think. about my style in particular. are you one of those people who are comfortable with their style? do you dress exactly the way you would dress if you had unlimited funds and confidence? what i've noticed about my own dressing habits is that i tend to dress rather simply. that's not to say that i don't prefer simple things, because i do. but after some thought, i realized that i actually have a pretty eclectic taste in fashion. it's just i don't have the confidence to wear half of what i like, and i can't afford the other half.

here's some of what i like:

there are some times when i love katy perry's style. her make-up to be specific. although i'm kinda liking the jacket, shorts, and knee-highs at the end of the vid...

i love literally everything from anthropologie. it's one of those things where everything i own would come from that store alone...if it weren't so damn expensive. but the shoes? the jackets? the tops? the jeans? the bedding, for crying out loud? awesome.

so i'm currently in a very turbulent love affair with urban outfitters. i love love love their cardigans and skinny jeans (because like many girls, i'm also still in search of the perfect skinny jean) and bags, etc. these are not necessarily from uo, but they might as well be.




alright, this is weird, but for some random reason, i completely adored alexis bledel's wardrobe from sisterhood of the traveling pants 2. it was just really clean and elegant and simple. lots of whites and blues, and a few bright colors thrown in. it was also a lot of dresses, which i don't usually do. i really should wear more dresses... maybe that'll be my spring resolution?



here's some other randomness. i'm into lbd's (though i don't have one yet), vests, long necklaces, plaid, boots, knit hats (i luuurve knit hats), and i recently discovered that i'm not too old for everything in american eagle! yay!

and finally, here are some fashion blogs that friends have suggested and that i love to read when i'm in a clothing craving kind of mood:

The Ice Coffee Book Club (used to be My Vogue Handbook)
Uber Chic (check out the recent Uber Chick Awards)
Coco's Tea Party
Philosophy of a Fashionista (used to be Oh That's Chic)
What I Wore
Karla's Closet (she just got these AWESOME new tattoos...)
...love Meagan
The Personal Stylist
Mama was a Rolling Stone

new year, new layout

so i've been a busy little bee today. i organized all of my photographs on my computer, took a crash course in photoshop, took another crash course in html, successfully revamped my blogger (which i decided to stick with rather than switching over to wordpress) and, after all that, was finally taught a lesson in humility (because naturally at this point i was feeling pretty darn impressed with myself) by none other than flickr.

so flickr is going to have to wait until next month to get added to the blog, since, in trying to figure out the best pictures to host, i inadvertently used up all of my bandwith. this would be all fine and dandy, but i didn't exactly read how flickr operated and assumed that it was based on space used to host, not bandwith. so i deleted the pics i had uploaded, thinking this would free up space for me to upload others. which it obviously didn't. and now i have no more bandwith to upload any more pictures this month.

stupid bandwith restrictions.

(**as it turns out, i had a tiny bit left of my allotted bandwith, so i uploaded a few pictures from back home, which you should be able to see in the badge in the far right column. more pics will come next month!**)

but what do you think of the new layout? i'm liking the two columns on the side thing. it's so much easier to see all of my stuff now that i don't have to scroll way down my blog. :)

and has anyone done any research on their genealogies? i think that's going to be my next mini-project and i'm trying to figure out the best online resources to begin my search.

blog love

so the ever-wonderful ashley over at writingtoreachyou has passed on some blog love to me, and i'm just going to keep it rollin' in the hopes that even more people will feel special too! thing is, i think i'm supposed to pass it on to 10 more bloggers that i enjoy, but i just haven't worked up to reading that many yet! so until then, let me send this:

out to: the artist in the ambulance, isn't she pretty in pink, goodminton, and of course, writing to reach you.