Words In a Jar

Showing posts with label peace. Show all posts

John Lennon Quote Mural Project Update: Phase Three…Done!

So here it is! My John Lennon Quote Mural Project is done! I was so excited to finish this project and see the quote painted in it's entirety. It fit in the space just perfectly and I think it makes good use of that awkward foot and a half between the shelf and the love seat.

Just in case you missed it, you can find Phase One of the project here and Phase Two here.

Below are some pictures, enjoy!

Unknown No comment yet

John Lennon Quote Project Update/Phase Two

So Phase Two of the John Lennon quote project is finished! (For Phase One, go here.)

Phase Two includes the first side of the mural, with this part of the quote: "When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me happiness was the key to life.

So excited that I got this much done…stay tuned for the next phases!

Unknown No comment yet

An Epic-ly Awesome, "Amrazing" Night

On Friday night, I attended a stop on Jason Mraz's "Tour is a Four Letter Word" in my home state of New Jersey.

To clarify, I am not a concert person…I'm not particularly fond of crowds and there are not many artists that I feel strongly enough about that I would spend money to see them in person.

But for Jason, I broke all of those rules. My parents bought me tickets for my 22nd birthday this year and I was thrilled and overjoyed that I was going to get to see him live!

To make things even better, his "tour partner" was Christina Perri and I happen to really love her vocals and originality.

And I have to say, that I did succumb to "concert behavior"…somewhat…I screamed as loud as everyone else (with the result of a nice, sore throat the next day) and I sang along to every song, my voice getting lost along with his and everyone else's. (Thank God, because I really can't sing…hehe)

I brought my friend Heather along and we had a really great time eating churros before the show, quoting Psych and just generally goofing off (aka, being ourselves).

I loved every second of it.

To cap it all off, he played "Plane", which is an older song of his that I thought I had NO chance of hearing. It was a wonderful surprise to hear something I really wasn't expecting.

He was funny (see below), he did yoga (tree pose, see photo) during one of his songs; he inspired and captivated me all over again.

Soooo….get ready to be photo-bombed!! I took a ridiculous amount of pictures, so I picked out some of the best ones to show you…enjoy!

To start the night off, my dad rented an awesome Mustang to bring us to the concert!

Christina Perri Singing "Jar of Hearts"

I love this picture!

This one too!

Jason going into tree pose during "Make it Mine" :)

Awesome background effect for "Only Human"

Playing"I'm Coming Over/Hidden Track"…love this song….

His keys player also plays the accordion!! Cool!!

Some more of the awesome background graphics for "Butterfly"

"Butterfly"

"I'm Yours"

He sang Bob Marley!! "Three Little Birds"

Jason and Christina singing their duet, "Distance"

The band, taking a bow

Saying goodbye :(

While introducing the band (in the middle of a song) he continued to play his guitar, but then said, "I'm just playing some nonsense chords…I can't talk and play at the same time..weird right? If I was singing, it would all make sense."

Insert copious amounts of laughter here. :) …and a little bit of beautiful understanding…it does all make sense when he sings. I'm so glad I got to experience his music live, it was amrazingly magical!

Unknown No comment yet

I Believe In...

This is a clip from the Psych episode a few weeks ago. (Watch it now!)

It inspired me to created my own little list of things I believe in, below.

Unknown No comment yet

John Lennon Quote Project, Phase One

So my most recent project is a mural of a John Lennon quote that I LOVE.

Here it is: "When I was 5 years old, my mother told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down 'happy'. They told me I didn't understand the assignment, I told them they didn't understand life."

So because this quote is really long, the only space I had left for it (more on that in another post) was in my reading nook.

I decided to wrap it around the three walls underneath my bookshelves.

I downloaded a font of John Lennon's handwriting, which I think is really cool, because now it's like he wrote it on my wall.

I printed out the letters to the size I needed and then traced them onto Bristol Board, a really stiff artist's paper.

I had one for every letter in the quote and so then all I had to do was trace the letters onto the wall.

So that's phase one! Everything's all traced out and all that's left is to paint it! I can't wait, there's pictures below, stay tuned for phase two. :)

Unknown No comment yet

Peace Iced Tea: Tea with a Mission

So I originally picked this tea up because it had an awesome bottle. I don't often drink iced tea, and I actually just bought it to put on my shelf as art. Then I became curious and I picked up two of their razzleberry flavor (one to drink and one to look at).

I went online to look them up and see if they had any other flavors. They actually have seven different flavors, of which, my local Rite Aid only carries two :'(

On their about us page they have this blurb:

“If you cannot find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else.” -Marvin Gaye

On February 21, 1958, a designer and artist named Gerald Holtom rendered the Peace Symbol to support the 4 April march organized in London by the Direct Action Committee Against Nuclear War. The Peace Symbol has, universally, come to symbolize peace. The Peace Symbol is not something to be messed with, to be exploited or to be trivialized. The Peace Symbol is the very inspiration behind the creation of Peace Tea. Yes, Peace Tea is a product meant to be bought and enjoyed. However, that is not the point. Peace Tea was not brought to life to commercialize or rip off or capitalize on the Peace Symbol. There are fashion brands, bands, record labels and countless other examples of products which utilize the Peace Symbol.

Peace Tea was born out a yearning for a higher calling. It is all about one single and perfect and fundamental truth: To evoke an emotion, or perhaps even more importantly, an action.

Peace Tea is whatever you want it to be.

Peace Tea is based in the true meaning of Peace. Peace is a balance of a deep understanding in yourself and between others where a mutual respect results by accepting differences, displaying tolerance, erasing tensions and allowing each and every person to have a voice, an opinion, a right to be who and what they want to.

While Peace Tea is a product, it is a product that stands for social obligation, social awareness, benevolence, compassion and soul. It can, in the form of a mere liquid, be your own form of poetry, art, music, philosophy, belief system. But more than anything, Peace Tea strives to be a product that makes a difference. Even the most minimal difference.

If even one person reaches for a can of Peace Tea and thinks into what Peace is all about and is motivated to act, then Peace Tea has fulfilled its reason for being. Perhaps that very person sees their reflection and is moved enough to do something in their day that benefits someone or something. Peace, compassion and generosity can come in the smallest acts. It can be buying a meal for a person living on the streets; helping a blind person get across a busy boulevard; helping an elderly person off an airplane; taking the time to lift the spirits of a friend who is down and struggling; helping a lost dog find its owner. It can be anything. Like the bumper sticker says, it can be about “practicing random and senseless acts of generosity and kindness.”

Peace Tea is a product with a purpose. A product to believe in. Peace Tea is Peace, Love and Understanding.

Peace Tea is love over gold.

Peace Tea Beverage Company"

Peace Tea is iced tea with a mission. And I like that.

Check out their website here.

Unknown No comment yet

The Gratitude Bracelet By Jason Mraz on EnergyMuse

The Gratitude Bracelet, designed by Jason Mraz and sold on EnergyMuse is something I have wanted since I heard about it through Jason's RSS feed. Not only is it beautiful, but the message behind it is amazing:

"This Energy Muse piece is worn to align with our practice of Gratitude. Gratitude is that which shifts our attention back to love, abundance, and the divine qualities we have within us. As we express our gratitude awareness grows. Gratitude is what takes you to the next level.

This Energy Muse piece, co-created by Jason Mraz is inspired by Café Gratitude, a school of transformation guised as a raw food restaurant. This piece is made with Bayong Wood, which represents the trees that stand patiently rooted into the earth, being of service to many as their green tops transform carbon dioxide into oxygen. Wood is featured in settings of 5 – the number of transformation – a reminder that we are always growing and unfolding; our life a constant transformation.

The four multicolored stones Picture Jasper, Yellow Jasper, Tigers Eye and Onyx represent the people of the world, reminding us to honor the communities thru which we wander and embrace unity within diversity. By wrapping the bracelet twice, we can see the harmony within duality, we can acknowledge the masculine and feminine energies necessary for all creatures, and we can honor those generations that came before us and those that will come after us. “I am grateful for my family.”

The clear yellow stone Citrine surrounding the multicolored stones represents holding the community of the world’s people together, symbolizing being able to see beyond discrimination and prejudice. “We shift your attention from what’s distracting you back to love and gratitude. I am grateful for everything I see, and everything I don’t see.”

The Turquoise and Malachite together create a powerful energy combination for healing. They are considered the Master Healing Stones. “I am grateful for my health.”

Just as the food at Café Gratitude is prepared with love, so too is this jewelry. With this piece you are invited to enjoy being someone that chooses: loving your life, adoring yourself, accepting the world, being generous and grateful every day, and experiencing being provided for.

By purchasing the Gratitude Bracelet you are supporting the International Council of 13 Indigenous Grandmothers. They are an inspiring group of 13 grandmothers from across the globe that have committed themselves to traveling the world sharing their wisdom and delivering prayers of peace and unity for all peoples.

To learn more about the council visit:

www.grandmotherscouncil.org"

Unknown No comment yet

Jason Mraz: 3-18-2011; Journal Repost

Naturally, I subscribe to Jason Mraz's RSS feed. Sometimes there's updates about shows and appearances, but mostly it's journal entries from Jason.

This particular entry really stuck with me. It was written right after the tsunamis and earthquakes in Japan. The way he writes is not only beautiful, but haunting.

Enjoy and check out his full feed at his website.

"There's about a 5 second delay from the time I switch gears to when the chain actually falls onto the next sprocket of my bike. Those 2 seconds feel like 20 and in that short amount of time I know all is about to get better in the world. Because I know that the difficulty level is about get easier, I mash-down harder on the pedals and make my whole body burn as I progress uphill. I never stop. I just get a little help from innovative technology.

Since buying a bicycle I'm putting about 35 miles a week in the bike lane. I bought it to join others who ride, but it actually woke me up to how much money and fuel I'm saving besides getting tons of exercise.From my house to the grocery store is a little over 4 miles one way. From there I can merge onto a trail that's just a 7-mile jaunt to the beach. Once I'm on the coast, anything's possible. A round trip to Jitter's - my favorite coffee shop, is exactly "23" miles - another reason to love it. The doozie of every journey is always the last two miles home - of which I live near the top of 3 hills. But that climb is already getting less difficult thanks mostly to my enthusiasm to endure and again, some radical technology in my bike's gears.

This morning I stood on the beach looking out at the wash of the surf, currents pulling the water in every direction, waves looking fun at the line-up, birds in large numbers feeding on something peculiar just outside the break. Something didn't sit right with me. Call it caution. Maybe it's paranoia. Maybe it's preparation. I felt called to head inland back to my house.Japan's story has been on my mind a lot. The quake/tsunami/nuclear disaster is a reminder that we do NOT live on a human's planet - but that we are a guest here. With man-made ports destroyed, Japan residents and workers do not have access to fuel therefore have little means to transport food to the hundreds of thousands in need.

I was disappointed when Obama said Nuclear is an important part of our energy future. Besides the general pollution that oil and nuclear contribute, the past year has demonstrated just how bad it can get with the oil spill in the gulf and now the nuclear radiation being pumped into the atmosphere.

Honda issued a statement that they won't be able to open many factories until May. Wow. Who gives a shit about new cars? I'd love to see the large governments and industry such as auto and military put JUST A YEAR into developing the green SUSTAINABLE technology that could power our homes and cars and help us gain access to fresh food and FRESH AIR. Clearly NUCLEAR is NOT sustainable. And while oil is cheap and seemingly plentiful, neither is it going to help us sustain and maintain a healthy life on the surface of the earth.

Good bye fish. Good bye grandma. I live about 15 miles from the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant. If the situation in Japan had happened here in California, my life would be no different from theirs. I am not above this disaster. I am only here today by circumstance. I'm sure converting everyone and everything to natural resources, wind and solar, etc might seem like a long climb uphill which many of us look at and say, why bother when we can just drive around the mountain?

But I believe in the power of positive doing and I know once we start pedaling up that hill, our muscles will develop, we'll draft off each other, and we'll make it look so damn easy that it will be the normal thing to do in future generations. All we have to do is switch gears and go for it."

~Jason Mraz

Unknown 1 comment

Peace Sign Light: Weekend Project, Update- It's Done!!!

So because of school I haven't had a chance to post about my Peace Sign Light recently.

But here's the update: when I got home from work on Friday night and went up to my room, I got a big surprise:

It was done!!

I was so excited, it looks amazing! I just love it.

Thanks, Daddy!

Unknown No comment yet

Peace Sign Light: Weekend Project, Day Three Update

So today after I got home from school and my dad got home from work, we started cleaning up the sign. The edges were rounded and the face and sides were sanded.

This time, we have a happy face…that's due to the fact that the peace sign isn't crooked…

Then he spackled the walls, to get rid of any tiny imperfections.

Tomorrow when the spackle is dry, it'll be sanded and hopefully prepped for paint!

Unknown 2 comments

Peace Sign Light: Weekend Project, Day Two Update

Peace Sign Take Two- With Plastic Wood Drying on
the Router Mishap...

So day two brought it's own challenges...I'm not quite sure why this project is giving us such a hard time...we made my entire bed with less mishaps then this peace sign!

This morning after my dad cut the new, non-crooked peace sign out, he went to go route the edge where the back pieces are going to sit...and something went awry. (haha, I said "awry"!)

Anyway, the router went bonkers and gouged the face of the sign.

Don't worry, it was filled in with plastic wood and sanded down to look good as new.

Then, after a quick trip to Home Depot, then Lowe's, then Home Depot again, we came back and started to put the pieces on the back that will cover the lights so they're not visible from the side.

So that's it! the pieces are clamped down and in the next few days we'll be sanding, shaping and just generally cleaning it up to get it ready for paint and lights!

I'm so excited, I can't wait!

Unknown No comment yet

Peace Sign Light: Weekend Project, Day One Update

The Rope Light for the Peace Sign

The Empty Spot in My Room for the Light
(One of the Only Empty Spots Left!)

So yesterday we got started on my Peace Sign Light Project. First we tried to figure out how to lay the rope light out…

Trying to Figure out How to Wrap the Lights

Then we decided that it was a losing battle until we had an actual peace sign to work with. So we took the widest part of the wood and made a circle that big:

Then we started drawing the peace sign…at which point I took out my iPod Touch for reference and my father claimed that he'd seen a lot of peace signs and he knew what he was doing because he was, "a child of the 60s". I'm not going to argue with that…