Let's Get Red!

Heather and friend, Julie

Maple syrup it is, by one measly vote.  Good luck Heather and Susan in your Super Bowl Snack Throw Down.  We are anxious to see what each of you comes up with for your winning recipe.

Today we finish the first ever, Highlowaha Friendship Party.  It has been fun getting to know Laura, Mary Beth, Jessie, Jenny, Mandy, Marie, and Amber and, we hope in the process, allowing this fun group of women to get to know us.  Heather and "The Snowflakes" experienced the daily exchange of creative ideas, participated in our monthly Highlowaha ritual, were invited to our next Virtual Party (Sunday, December 14), shared the excitement of Highlowaha Patchwork, and have even had their voices heard in yesterday's vote for our next secret ingredient.  

But, in the words of Dr. Seuss... "That is not all. Oh, no.  That is not all."

Two more things.  

First, a giveaway to go to one of the six party goers mentioned above.  This giveaway is based on two things.  First, while we have all adopted some new forms of technology for staying in touch with friends, nothing beats Snail Mail.  I heard that repeated a lot last week.  The second thing on which the giveaway is based is my belief that one of the reasons we don't send more Snail Mail is because is because we don't have easy access to the necessary supplies.  If you have to rummage around for paper, pen, and stamps forget about it.  Not going to happen.

I have a caddy similar to the two I am giving away today.  It is chock full of pens, note cards, stickers, and stamps, making it easy to grab the caddy and go.  Sometimes I bring it to Starbucks and sit and have a coffee, while I write a note or two.  Sometimes I bring it to my kitchen table and spread out for thirty minutes or so.  One caddy will go to Heather, the host of last week's party.  The other caddy will go to the "Snow Flake" who volunteers first to host her own Highlowaha party.  Hosting is easy.  Identify six other people you think might enjoy the Highlowaha blog community and pick a party topic!  The party would be scheduled for February.

Next.

Today we introduce our new friends to the thing about our community for which I am probably most proud - the the use of our creativity to help others.  In an effort not to make today's post too long, I won't go in to great description about all the service and fundraising we've done since the blog started ten months ago.  Suffice it to say, that since the first service project opportunity presented itself in April, we've never not been working on serving someone.

I like to say this blog is about where creativity and community meet and l love the idea that we live that concept by putting our money where our mouth.  We, in a sense, help community by employing our creativity.  AND, in the process of creatively working together to help others... build a stronger Highlowaha community.  Hopefully the cycle is as evident to you as it seems to me.

With no further ado, let me get on with Painting the Town Red - a service project for, and in honor of, Heather's long time friend, Julie.  Phase one of this service project has already been launched and you can read all about it by going back to the post labeled, Paint Your Town Red (9/13) .  In that earlier post you will read how we have eight "Regional Directors" spread throughout the country in order to help make our project a success.  You will also see a website you can go to in order to learn more about the illness with which Heather's friend has been diagnosed.

Thanks to Julie S. another Highlowaha reader... today we will roll out Phase II of our service initiative.  Months ago Julie sent me a generous check, supporting another service project.  In that check she sent a little extra money.  She told me to hold onto it and spend it on Highlowaha, however I saw best fit.  Well today Julie, you will see how I've decided the $15.00.

Heather's friend, Julie loves Coke.  In fact our whole service initiative to this point is centered around gathering as many Coke Reward Codes as possible, so Julie can use them to purchase items she couldn't afford to buy.  Julie loves Coke like the readers of Highlowaha love performing Random Acts of Kindness.  Today, the perfect blending of both.

Each of the eight Paint the Town Red Regional Directors will receive in the mail $1.00 plus one set of these hang tags.  The goal... start a Kindness Chain.  The Hang Tags instructs readers to enjoy the Coke left for them, but then to keep the chain going by purchasing someone else a Coke and placing the hang tag over the new bottle.  The hang tag, in turn, instructs recipients to email the Coke Reward number in the top of their lid to Heather.  Goal: Keep the chain going from now until February 14!

So easy and such fun does this idea seem to me, I want to give anyone who is interested the chance to start a Coke Kindness Chain.  If you are interested, just drop me an email at cbeeny@lslog.com and I will forward you the PDF file of the hang tag graphic (special thanks to Sherry for making the hang tag happen, better than I ever could have imagined).  You can then print it off, (laminate it, if you feel so inclined), punch a hole in each of the bottles, and put a metal ring or piece of string through the holes.  Finally, hang it over the bottle and then you are ready for the real fun... deliver it for the person of your choice!

Colored copies at Alphagraphics ($6.72) +  Start-up Cokes $1.00 x 8 Regional Directors ($8.00) = $14.72.  I think, a pretty good use of Julie's money.  So let's do it.  Let's go out and teach the world to sing.

Signing off until Monday...   

Free for All Friday: Another Highlowaha Ritual

Congratulations, Mary Beth! 

 

You are the winner of the Patchwork Denim Apron or Bag (let me know which you would prefer).  Now you're ready to start collecting your very own Highlowaha Patches!  

 
T.G.I.F.  I love the feeling of Fridays.  If I was going to an office today, I would be looking forward to dressing down -  a turtle neck and a warm sweater to celebrate the arrival of fall and Thanksgiving.  I love this time of year!

I look forward to Friday's on our blog, because it is Free For All Friday.  This is the day of the week when we open the floor to whatever you want to talk about or brainstorm.  I have a few agenda items of my own, but I'll be brief, so we can open the floor to you and your interests.

A final topic I want to cover, before completely turning over today's blog to "free-for-all-ing" is the use of  technology in staying better connected to our friends.  The irony... I know NOTHING about technology (I'm still patting myself on the back for learning how to create files in my email).   I'm no dummy, though.  It is precisely the reason why I waited until today to bring up the topic.  I set the scene and all of you share what you know (which is inevitably more than what I know).  Already this week, Skype and Facebook were touted as useful tools.  What else is out there?

I do have one contribution on the subject.  Virtual Parties have become somewhat of a tradition at highlowaha.  Our first was a virtual dinner party to celebrate the opening of Olympics.  Readers ordered Chinese food and watched the Olympics in their respective homes.  Throughout the night, blog readers made posts and celebrated with one another.  We did something similar on Talk Like a Pirate Day, while we played an interactive, but virtual, game of Pirate Bingo.  Prizes were won (and stolen) and we had fun, fun, fun.

Announcement!  Get out your calendars!  Our next Virtual Highlowaha party is scheduled for...

Sunday, December 14

8:00 p.m.  

Join us for...

The Highlowaha Festival of Lights & 

First Annual Highlowaha Ornament Exchange

Rules of participation are easy.  Submit two photos to Katie Kolkmeier at kkolkmeier@g.mail.com, by Friday, December 12 at 5:00 p.m.  The two photos should include (1) a picture of your decorated Christmas tree, menorah, or other holiday decoration, and (2) a picture of a wrapped ornament, that you are willing to exchange with another highlowaha reader.  More details to come as the party gets closer.  For now, SAVE THE DATE!  P.S. This is a patch yielding event!!!

How about you?  Do you have a virtual party idea for you and your friends?  Or, one that we can use on highlowaha?  Let us know.

Pen Pal Match-Up: While on the subject of friends and correspondence... a favor for a good friend.  I am in search for a young girl who would like to have a smart, loyal, and conscientious pen pal from the state of Georgia.  She is in the fifth grade and turned eleven years old in September.  If I could hold interviews to find her a pen pal who would reciprocate her enthusiasm, I would.  Instead, I am turning my request over to the most reliable people I know - my friends at highlowaha.  Incidentally, if there seems to be a lot of interest, I would not mind coordinating a Pen Pal Match-Up.  Have a lead?  Either post a comment telling me so or send me an email at cbeeny@lslog.com.

Secret Ingredient:  Highlowaha is partnering with Struble Suds, a "resident" Green Bay Packer Bar, to host the Super Bowl Snack Throw Down.  Fourteen creative and courageous highlowaha readers are participating.  Each week, two readers face off in throw down by submitting a food entry and allowing the Struble Suds bar flies to judge them on flavor and use of the secret ingredient.  Winners advance to the next round, ultimately competing for a spot in the Super Bowl.  The prize for which participants are competing?  The ultimate hand painted Super Snack Bowl!  Guaranteed to make you the envy of all your friends and family.  

Today we must vote on next week's Secret Ingredient.  Chefs have been consulted and ingredients have been narrowed.  The two ingredients between which you are voting are:

Lemon Juice or Maple Syrup

Heather and the Snow Flakes... we are nearing the end of our first Highlowaha Party.  You all have set the bar high, with great participation and countless creative contributions.  We are better and more fun because of your involvement.  The good news... unlike other parties that actually end... this one doesn't have to!  Feel free to continue joining us, even after tomorrow.  We hope you will.

Remember to tune in tomorrow, for our final post on the subject of staying connected with friends who live at a distance.  There will be a fun giveaway and, more importantly, a tribute to Heather and one of her dear friends.  It will be a nice way to end the week and to start your weekend.

Signing off until tomorrow...

Bee A Friend

"Friendship Plates"

I can't believe we are already four days into our first highlowaha-sponsored party!  Time flies when you're having fun!  And, what a whirlwind it has been.

We covered snail mail, postcards, labels, technology, lots of rituals such as: lunches, weekly meals, "Friends Thanksgivings," coffees, Pallet Nights, Wednesday night Open Houses; and Thursday night Pizza nights.  Yesterday we used history to whack our conventional thinking about staying connected.  We reminisced about Circle Journals, Note Notebooks, the simplicity of making a personal visit, embracing brevity, instead of feeling obligated to write a lot; and employing the concept of a RAK box.  Mandy topped the day off with her suggestion to capitalize on shared hobbies as a way of staying connected.  Well done readers.

No resting yet.  We have three full days ahead of us.

Today we'll cover a few things: First we'll go into more detail on Amber's notion that one way to stay connected is to recognize things in our daily lives that remind us of our friends.  Second, we will expound on the idea of friendship symbols.  Finally,  I will break the silence on the whole Girl Scout reference, in an effort to entice this week's party-goers to stick around even after the party ends.

Let's get down to business.

I can be linear in my thinking.  Tell me something and it is forever so.  Just ask my friend Melissa Trifiletti.  Years ago (as in 14 years ago), my friend Melissa and I spent an afternoon painting pottery.  Melissa wanted to paint a plate in the same spirit as the Red Plate (see post titled, "My Great Day Green Plate" 3/20), but she wanted her own, personalized variation.  Melissa would frequently compliment people by telling them they were the, "Bees Knees."  I helped her sketch a bee in the middle of her plate and helped her come up with wording for the rim.  That's it.  From that point forward anytime I saw a bee, I thought of Melissa.  I showered her with bee cups, stickers, mugs, shirts, stationary, household items, cards, charms, pictures, ohhhh.. the list is long.

Funny thing is, Melissa doesn't collect bees or bee items.  It was I who collected bee items for Melissa!  Finally she had to call me and tell me, "Stop!  I like bees, but I don't need a bee colony."

I do this with everyone - good or bad.  Here are just a few of the connections I make between people and items...

• Lori, all things purple
  
• Heather, pink
  
• Amy, cupcakes and sprinkles
  
• Associate Provost at SMU, Penguins
  
• Toni, Roosters
  
• My sister Ellen, musical notes
  
• Dawn, heart shaped items
• My mother, flowers

What this means is that anytime I see anything with one of these images or colors, I automatically think of the person with whom I make the association.  If I'm in a store, and it isn't too costly, often times I will purchase it, so I can send a small package.  That can get costly, so here's another tactic...

Virtual Shopping Spree.  Sometime I see images in catalogs or magazines.  When I do, I rip the page from the catalog or magazine and stick it in a manila envelope.  Occasionally on a rainy afternoon or while watching t.v. I will sort the images by person and make a collage.  I treat it like a virtual shopping spree - all the things I would buy you if I were rich, but can't because I'm not.  My friend Dawn and I pass a friendship journal back and forth and Virtual Shopping Sprees are a standard activity for the two of us.

Friendship symbols.  I only have a few that really stick out as relevant.  In 1993, two friends of mine at Miami University found a pin for me at an art fair.  It is made of metal and it says, "Think Big" (my mantra).  Every time I wear it, without fail, I get compliments.  I love using it as an opportunity to tell people about these two fun women with whom I got to work.

Friendship Plates are my other favorite.  A few days before I got married I had thirteen close friends, from all walks of life, join me at a Paint Your Pottery store.  Each friend made me a dessert plate.  The only criterion I used was that the plate had to somehow depict our friendship.  These plates are GREAT!  They have images such as the Talbots red door, a favorite tree, m&ms, a ship, cactus, the number 7,  the zip code 90210, and many more.  Here's the fun part.  Often times when Richard and I host people for dinner (which we try to do as often as possible), we use my friendship plates to serve dessert.  While eating dessert, I tell guests about each of the plates and pay a special tribute to the friend who made it.  If time permits, I will stop what I am doing and actually call my friend to tell her we are eating from her plate.

Side bar.  I still have a dream of hosting an Annual Friendship Dinner, where the plates get featured and as many of the 13 women as possible can attend. 

Finally... The Girl Scout reference.  The readers of highlowaha are motivated, creative people.  In July we started an initiative called," Patchwork."  (See post titled, "Patchwork" 8/7)  The idea is simple.  Earn patches for participating in fun highlowaha activities.  Not everything we do is deemed "patch worthy," but opportunities for earning patches are plentiful.  Two Patchwork events will, in fact, be announced n the next couple of weeks.  The only thing you need to participate is sheer will and something denim to which you can affix your patches (jeans, a jacket, an apron, a denim bag, a pillow cover.  You name it).

Want the chance to earn some patchwork denim?  Make a post today telling me about some of the associations you make between items and friends.  Also indicate your denim preference - apron or bag.  I'll do a drawing and one of your will be named the lucky winner.

That's a lot to swallow in one post.

Signing off until tomorrow... 

Whack on the Side of the Head: A Lesson from Lincoln

Is there room for two more people at our party?

It's Wednesday - the day we invite Roger von Oech to join our blog community, so that he can whack our thinking.  It just so happens, Lincoln wants in on the fun, too, this week.  Newcomers... here's some quick background.  

The best way to keep this space a haven of creative ideas is to assure that the minds of our creative readers stays limber.  Think of Roger von Oech as our coach.  Roger presents (via a randomly selected card from his Creative Whack Pack - available in bookstores) a principle of creativity.  Then we, the highlowaha readers, apply the principle to our dilemma of the day.  In the end, our thinking has been stretched and we've generated new ideas or insights.

Laura, Mandy, Jenny, Jessie, Amber, Marie, Mary Beth, Molly(!) and all you returners.... Are you ready?

The context for today's whack is friendships.  What are easy, creative, and inexpensive ways to stay connected with our friends who are at a distance?

Now for von Oech's whack.  

Look to the Past.  History is loaded with creative analogies.  Napoleon marching on Moscow is really just project management.  Mao waging a guerrilla war is like launching an ad campaign.  Pick a culture from the past.  How would someone from that culture deal with your issue?  How about from your own personal history?  What were you doing ten years ago that might be useful now?  What ideas from history can you apply to a current project?

I've pulled this card before, but as a former history major, it suits me just fine to have pulled it a second time.  A quick glance at HistoryNet.com reveals a long list of things that happened on this day in History.  1620, The Pilgrims reach Cape Cod;  1863, Lincoln delivers the "Gettysburg Address" at the dedication of the National Cemetery at the site of the Battle of Gettysburg; 1897, The Great "City Fire" in London; 1969, Apollo 12 touches down on the moon; 1973, New York stock market takes the sharpest dip in 19 years; and about 15 other events I won't list. 

Me?  I'm putting my money on Lincoln and the Gettysburg address.  I haven't gotten that far in the 762 page book Maureen bought me for my birthday, in leu of my one of my Bucket List items (see post marked, ), but I think I remember enough  of the basics to eek my way through.

Here's what I know.  Lincoln was asked only 9 days prior if he would make a few remarks at the dedication of the National Cemetery.  Edward Everett, considered a great orator of the time, was actually appointed to be the equivalent of "keynote"speaker.  Everett's speech was 2 hours long (and something like 13,00o words), whereas Lincoln's remarks was 10 lines and 272 words long (that I remember, because his brevity always impressed me).  His speech lasted just over two minutes.  Lincoln's Gettysburg address continues to be acclaimed as one of the greatest speeches in American history, whereas Everett's was forgotten almost immediately.

My insight isn't going to earn me Mensa points.  It's actually pretty simple.  Writing  a thoughtful note to a good friend does not have to be 13,000 words long or take over 2 hours to write or read.  In fact, it can be 10 lines, or fewer, and have far more impact!

So stop putting it off.  Some say, Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg Address on the back of an envelope while on the train to Pennsylvania.  A letter from a friend on the back of an envelope, while killing time, is a.o.k with me!

One more unrelated thought and then I turn it over to all of you.

Newcomers, it is time we talked about my Random Acts of Kindness Box (affectionately known on the blog as the RAK box).  The idea is simple.  Send me a postcard with your name and address on it and I will put your name in my RAK box.  Then, when I'm feeling either blue or feeling generous, I randomly pull a name from the box and send a card, small package, or baked treat to the lucky winner.  I tell you this for two reasons.

• First, wouldn't it be fun to have your very own Friendship RAK box?  Include the names of your closest friends, relatives, and even former colleagues.  No pressure.  No expectations.  When you get a minute or need a break, randomly pull someone's name from the box and - in the spirit of Lincoln - send short note.
  
• Second, we want you in our RAK box.  Jot your name and address on a postcard and send it to me at Claudia K. Beeny, 4012 Harvestwood Court, Grapevine, TX., 76051.  
  

Now it's your turn.  What insight might you glean from another historical event, a different culture, or your own personal history that we can apply to today's topic - easy, creative, and inexpensive ways to stay connected to friends who are at a distance?  Contribute and help keep this a blog... "of the people, by the people, for the people."

Announcements:

• And the winner of yesterday's highlowaha t-shirt is... Montana Kelly!  Can you believe it?  Montana Kelly revisited us for the first time today, after having been MIA for the past couple of weeks and she won!  It was meant to be!!!
  

Biding Farewell to von Oech and Lincoln and signing off until tomorrow...

Low Cost, Lasting Impact

Announcements at the end.

Thank you.  Thanks to Heather and the "Snow-flakes" for making the first day of our six-day party successful.  Heather gave a nice introduction to our seven newcomers in the comment section.  We look forward to learning more about Laura, Mandy, Jenny, Jessie, Amber, Marie, and Mary Beth as the week goes on.  

Recap.  Yesterday's post talked about the use of postcards and labels as simple tools for staying connected with friends at a distance.  In true form our readers jumped in, adding to the mix other tools such as: Skype, Blogs, Peggy's Creative Greetings, Texting, Instant Messaging, Facebook, and Chaotic's suggestion of conveniently storing postcards and stamps in a Ziploc bag so you can grab them on the go.

Today.  Tuesday, November 18 we will examine another vital tool for staying connected.  Today we will talk about the use of rituals to connect with and celebrate our friendships.  Veteran readers understand why this should be the focus of today's post, for the eighteenth of each month is reserved for our very own highlowaha ritual.  It seems fitting then that we invite our new friends into the fold by asking them to participate.  In addition, we will open the floor for readers to share rituals shared by you and your friends.

Background.  Party-goers and new readers... our monthly ritual involves sharing our "high" from the past month, our "low" from the past month, and our "aha (something we've learned in the past month).  It is the perfect celebration, not only of our blog's name, but also of the significance of number 2(18) to our blog community.  The simplicity (and anticipation) of hearing where our highlowaha friends "are at" each month fosters warm feelings in the same way that reconnecting with an old friend over coffee might.  If you think might stick around this community beyond this week, consider taking a minute or two to visit the posts labeled "Ding, Ding, Ding... I Interrupt This Programming (4/29)" and "Begad, It's the 18th (9/18)"  They will give you all the background you need to feel in the loop.

Giveaway.  As part of our monthly tradition, we give a highlowaha t-shirt to one lucky winner each month.  All you have to do to get be in the running for this month's shirt is post your high, low, and aha.  Peggy, I have your winning t-shirt from last month in hand and will put it in the mail before the week is out.  I will insert a short note letting you know why I have been sitting on it.

Transition.  Before setting you free to post your monthly high, low, aha... a couple more examples of friendship rituals.

Example #1.  Chantilly Lace.  This was one of the best examples of a friendship ritual I've ever heard.  It was shared with me by a former staff person who, many years later, maintains close friendships with her friends from high school.  The group of friends has named themselves Chantilly Lace (can't remember why - sorry).  Every two years the group meets at a small cabin in Illinois where they grew up.  They play games, stay up late talking, share pictures, and laugh about the good old days.  The friends have made Chantilly Lace sweatshirts and anticipate with their excitement their alternate-year gatherings.

Example #2.  Another, less involved, example.  When I first moved from Louisville to Texas, life was bittersweet.  I missed elements of my life in Louisville and did not yet feel connected to Texas.  Heather and I were working on a professional project and we needed to have ongoing communication.  We agreed we would talk at 6:00 am every Friday morning.  Heather was on her drive to work and I was comfortably seated at my favorite Starbucks.  That one weekly friendship ritual became excessively important to me.  It was something to which I very much looked forward.  Some weeks we got right down to business.  Other weeks we'd hit the 50-minute mark and realize we'd not yet done any business.  Fortunately, our weekly phone call has been replaced with a bi-monthly lunch date , but that morning ritual served an important role in helping me through a transition and in feeding my friendship with Heather.

Question.  How about you?  Tell us about your highs, lows, and ahas in the past month - as well as any rituals you may share with friends?

Challenge.  Don't have a ritual?  Maybe you can challenge yourself to develop one before day's end.  Don't rely on traditional things like birthdays or holidays.  Pick the half-way point between the birthday's of you and a friend and establish that as your "celebrated friendship holiday."  Working with a group of friends?  Take the average of your birth months and the average of your birth dates.  Viola.  There's your personalized friendship holiday.  Now you just need to figure out how to spend the coveted day(s).  Got ideas?  Share them.

Announcements.  Lots of announcements today.  If you are a party-goer or a newcomer to our community, some announcements will make more sense than others.  Read them all, though.  It is a GREAT way to get a sense of the fun community upon which you have stumbled.

• Winners of the Infamous Postcards: Laura, Mandy, and Marie are the only three party-goers who either posted or sent me their mailing address.  That was step one in winning a stack of Picture Postcards.  Step #2.  I will mail the three of you a Picture Postcard TODAY.  The first one to receive the postcard and do what it instructs wins.  Veteran readers... no such fun and games for you.  Thirteen of you posted.  And the winner is... Chaotic!!!  I like it, Chaotic.  I can't remember you ever having won something from highlowaha!
  
• Blog-a-thon:  I got three more checks today.  That leaves us about eight checks short of having received them all.  I WILL mail the money to Tera on one week from yesterday (Monday, November 24).  Stick your check in the mail to me today and I will still get it in time to include it in the final tally.  My address is: 4012 Harvestwood Court, Grapevine, TX 76051.  Thanks to VERY generous checks from a number of you, we have already collected $285.00 in Blog-a-thon money (to go toward our Helping Hand Christmas family).
  
• Super Bowl Throw Down:  Congratulations to Melanie who won last week's Super Bowl Snack Throw Down.  The secret ingredient was peanuts.  Up next is Heather and Susan.  Tune in this Friday and help choose the secret ingredient. 

Signing off until tomorrow...