This time of year, I have no need for an alarm clock. The birds awaken as the sky begins to light and there is no sleeping through their cacophonous greeting of the day. It is odd that in a world where most city dwellers are awakened by traffic noises, I am awakened by birds!

Last fall purchased an electronic reader. A nook color from Barnes and Noble. I had resisted for a while, after all, you can’t turn the pages. One of the reasons (justifications/rationalizations) was it might be a novel way to engage the kids with reading. In reality, I decided I just wanted it! Isn’t that enough?

Right before Christmas a friend of mine working for the local office of a national design magazine called to tell me the office was closing. The staff had been given leave to take the books from the library if they desired and she wanted to know if I was interested.

I tend to tuck things a way. I was reorganizing some books and came across a photo album from long ago and far away. Glancing through the pages, I found my self reliving events that had fallen far away from my active memory.

One of the reasons I love Georgia is that it is about as far South as you can go (north of the equator) and still have 4 distinctly different seasons. I find seasonal rhythms important. They help mark the passage of time.

This year, we opted for a staycation for spring break. To give the kids something to look forward to, we decided to join the newest urban phenomenon sweeping our neighborhood and acquiesce to a request that we raise chickens.

Every now and again, I am asked about “smart house” technology. It is a discussion I’ve followed through the years, sometimes with interest, sometimes with amusement.

“My contractor told me I needed to call you. We know exactly what we want. How much do you charge for the blueprints?”In these cost challenged times, this is a familiar theme.

It is January.  The Christmas decorations are down and put away. The house seems to expand and breathe easier with the banishment of the trees and garland.

As 2010 ended, I felt overwhelmed by the volume of “stuff” oozing out of every corner of the house!

The day after Christmas proved to begin very early for me. As is often the case, I took advantage of the quiet time to peruse the blogosphere. I was amused to stumble across the following press release from Pantone…

The remarkable thing about the design field is that it is a lifelong journey. When you are young and idealistic, you are insistent that life match your design. As you mature, you come to realize that your design should match life.

Designers are, by nature, a fairly optimistic bunch. It’s kind of hard to be anything else when you live your life looking through the lens of possibility.

I logged on to Facebook the other day and found the above quote posted by a long-standing friend of mine. I immediately commented that I knew the feeling..