Dreaming of Vacation

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Me at camp by the pool

Summer camp in the pool

It is that time of year again – summer! June 21, the summer solstice arrived on June 21 heralding the beginning of summer. Ever since I was a little girl, summer has always been my favorite season. Growing up in the Bronx, my family used to spend the summers at a bungalow colony. My mom and brother and I spent the entire summer up there, with my dad coming up on weekends after work. Days filled with camp and swimming rolled one into the next. I had nothing more pressing to think about other than getting up and enjoying the day. It was pure bliss! After we stopped going to the country as a family, I went to sleep away camp (from age 10-17). Each July I left to spend 8 glorious weeks in the country at camp, again with no stress other than the annual color war competitions. Those were the days! Every day was filled with activity – from softball games with rival camps to trips to the Orange County Fair, tennis and archery, campfires and cookouts,  movies under the stars and a camaraderie that would launch lifetime friendships.

Summer was easy then. At least for me. I didn’t realize at the time that the reason we stopped going to the bungalow colony was because it was no longer affordable for my parents. Times were tough back then. Times are tough now. With the economy being what it is I think twice about spending money on vacations. But give them up? I don’t think I can. Right now I am struggling with whether or not to join my friends down in the Turks and Caicos to go on my annual scuba diving vacation. I am stressing out over whether or not to book my flight and whether once I make the decision and book it whether I’ll find out that that is the week that a potential client will want me to come in and present the big proposal that I have submitted. When did vacations become stressful? What happened to those easy summer days?

I talk a lot about balance. My Life is Balance t-shirts (also available on Etsy) are a testament to that. Recreation is a necessary part of life. It balances out all the stress of everything else. I haven’t been away in a year. This is unusual for me. I used to try to take at least two vacations a year to refresh and renew my energy and creativity. I am feel pretty unbalanced at the moment. I think a vacation scuba diving will sort that out.

Beach chairs under umbrella in the Caribbean

My favorite place under the umbrella is waiting for me!

 

Balance and the environment: saving our oceans, one t-shirt at a time

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Life is Balance Protect and Preserve Ocean Environmental design Anyone who knows me, knows that the ocean is my second home (or would be if I already owned my dream home). From the time my father taught me to swim as a little girl, I have always felt comfortable in and around the water. Whether I’m sitting on the beach watching the ocean’s waves roll in and out or immersed in it, not only do I feel at peace, but I feel a connection to something special. When I scuba dive I am a visitor to another world — a world beneath the sea. There is an enormous amount of life under the ocean’s surface. Coral reefs are teaming with life, fish and animals both big and microscopic all living together in a fine balance. Each time I dive, I notice more damage to the reefs and less and less fish life. There are many organizations who dedicate themselves to protecting and preserving our ocean environments and educating divers, fisherman and the general population about ways they can help.

One of my Life is Balance® designs (above) represents our need to protect and preserve our oceans and their inhabitants. I have decided to donate portion of sales from this design to an environmental charity. The question is, which one? I am currently considering two different organizations. Blue Ocean Institute uses science, art, and literature to inspire a closer bond with nature, especially the sea. As an artist and ocean lover, I like this.

Another ocean environmental organization that I am looking at is Oceana Oceana is the largest international advocacy group working solely to protect the world’s oceans. Oceana’s vision is “to make our oceans as rich, healthy and abundant as they once were.” The oceans cover 71 percent of our planet. They control our climate, drive our economies and feed our peoples.
A sentence in particular from their vision statement struck a chord with me:
“For millions of sailors, swimmers and vacationers of all stripes, they offer a refuge from the metal and concrete that encase our working lives.” Now if that’s not what Life is Balance® stands for I don’t know what is!

I’d love for my readers to share their thoughts and opinions about these particular organizations and help me decide which one to contribute to.

Sea Foam

Don't ever take for granted the coming and going of the ocean's tide!

Balance from Head to Toe!

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balance scaleI’m sitting here recuperating from bunion surgery (I had my right foot done last Thursday and am scheduled to have the left one done next Thursday) and trying to decide how to incorporate this latest state of being into a post about balancing life. Right now I feel pretty imbalanced –bot literally and metaphorically. I have this very attractive (not!) cane which I walk with to keep me from putting too much weight on my right foot. Definitely not in balance! But next week I’m due to have the other foot done so, eventually (in about 7 weeks) I will be back in balance – literally!

I’ve been using my downtime productively. I’ve been feverishly been working on getting all of my Life is Balance® designs ready to be uploaded to my website and ready for purchase. Looking up keywords, cropping photos, writing descriptions and designing labels and hang tags. I’ve also opened an Etsy Shop as well.

In addition, I’ve joined a terrific group of creative and talented women on Martha Stewart’s Dreamers into Doers website. I am amazed by how much everyone on that site wants to help out everyone else. So I think that I am going to use this blog post to share a little love with some of those talented women that I am starting to get to know. Here are a sampling of some of my favorites. I’ve selected a few cool jewelry shops to feature in this post (my weakness – I confess!).

Sundance Good Luck Elephant Wrap Bracelet

I love the colors in this bracelet!

I love the wrap bracelets from The Lucky Elephant’s Shop on Etsy. An elephant with it’s trunk being raised up is considered to bring good luck and an excellent fortune and to have the magical power to take away troubles. Who couldn’t use one? I can’t wait to order one for myself!

Key To My Heart Necklace

I just love the vintage key and heart combination and the ribbon woven through the chain makes this very unique!

The above Key To My Heart Necklace comes from another shop called Nostalgic Summer. Being a summer/beach lover myself, I can’t help but love the concept of this shop! Shop owner, Renee Dittrich takes vintage artifacts and repurposes them for a modern use. Already I am dreaming of summer… past, present and future!

Lauren Chunky Pearl Necklace

A fabulous statement necklace!

Here’s another vintage jewelry collection from LV Vintage Jewelry. Lindsey’s designs are inspired by vintage fashion — and her three grandmothers! Check out all of her unique pieces.

With Mother’s Day around the corner, why not stop by some of these shops and check out their terrific designs! Oh, did I mention that my birthday’s coming up at the end of the month (LOL)!