Question of the Day

I love the idea of New Year's Resolutions ( i.e. fresh starts, a chance for do-overs, opportunities for change); however like most well intentioned people I have a hard time following through.  I blame it on my "glass half empty" mentality.  At the beginning of each year I am enthusiastic , and secretly relieved to have survived another year of Christmas Mayhem, but the enthusiasm quickly fades.  The desire to lose weight, be a better person, conquer something on my Mid-Life Crisis List, falls to the wayside as the day-in-and-day-out routine consumes half of the liquid in my glass.  I am not alone, which is why many individuals choose not to make any New Year Resolutions.  For what ever reason though, I generally jump in enthusiastically every January 1st just to find out what I am not capable of conquering.

However, 2012 I decided was going to be different!  I decided to make two resolutions - neither of which deal with weight loss.  This year I decided I would make resolutions that involve hobbies, interests, obsessions - Paper!  First, I decided to do my part for the USPS and send out 52 Mailings in 52 Weeks.  I am proud to announce that the mailings are on track!  They have consisted primarily of cards to friends and family for birthdays or special events. I have made a conscious effort to personalize these items with a hand written note or letter.  During my first year in college (many moons ago), I wrote several letters every week and received oodles of snail mail in return.  There was no email, twitter, or social networking, just my P.O. Box.  I still have many of the letters I received during college.   These small little packages of encouragement and laughs were often times what kept me motivated.

Second, I decided to keep some form of a journal.  I knew it had to be short and sweet, or I would...well, QUIT!  Then I read the article below about the Q. & A. a Day journal that is posted below.  I knew that this was the answer!  I look forward to each day's new question, and it generally takes me less than five minutes to record my response.  As the article mentions, you answer a new question each day of the year.  However, you respond to the same question on that particular day over a period of five years.  It will be interesting to look back over the years and see how my answers have evolved...or not!

So, today's Question/Challenge of the Day is.....

Q.  Write down a new fact you recently learned.

A.  ?

I'll post my answer tomorrow just in case I come across a really fun fact over the course of my day.

Life etc.: Journal- Q&A a Day: A 5 Year Journal

Life etc.: Journal- Q&A a Day: A 5 Year Journal: I was just blog hopping a few days ago when I came upon this: Q&A a Day: A 5 Year Journal (on Anthropologie ). One journal for 5 years...

Omiyage Blogs: What Is Washi Tape?

Omiyage Blogs: What Is Washi Tape?: Let's talk tape! You might be wondering what all this fuss about tape is. You might be asking yourself - what is washi tape??? So, ...

Washi Tape 2 Dye 4...or 5

After reading the article posted above about Washi Tape varieties, I decided to try them out on Easter Eggs.  This is a great way to embellish dyed eggs, and it is uber-easy!  This decorating party was a hit with kids of all ages.

Not Too Late to Send/Receive Something Good

Time is running out, but you can still be part of the Send Something Good Project.  Click the link on the sidebar to learn more about the project on Gentri Lee's blog.

Send Something Good 2012 Project

Yesterday, I mentioned that the Send Something Good postal swap spurred me on to actually begin blogging.  So, the swap has asked new bloggers (that would be me) to share five things about themselves and five types of material they prefer.  So, here we go...

Top 5 Things About Christy

1. Occupation: Architect, in retrospect Graphic Designer may have been a better fit.
2. Favorite Color(s):  All shades of Green + Tangerine Tango (2012 Pantone Color of the Year)
3. Hobbies: Stamp Collecting, Rubber Stamping, Creating Paper Concoctions
4. Dream Job:  Owner of a Stationery Store featuring Artisan Paper Goods
5. 2012 New Year's Resolution:  To keep in touch with friends and family by sending out 52 Mailings in 52 Weeks via Snail Mail.  So far so good!

Top 5 Materials Christy Enjoys

1. Mail Art
2. Handmade Papers
3. All Things Letterpress
4. Business Cards and Calling Cards
5. Notebooks of all Kinds

Hope this helps my Secret Blogger!  

Time Flies

I started this blog over eighteen months ago, and am just getting around to actually blogging.  I knew I wanted to blog about paper related items but was unsure where to begin.  Well, yesterday I read about the Send Something Good Project, and decided I would love to send and receive Something Good via snail mail.  However, the project really wants participants to be bloggers - so this is my starting point.