Saturday, May 7, 2011
Really have to get back to blogging!!
Saturday, April 23, 2011
A New Beginning
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
If I Were Editor of the Burbank Patch: March 30, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
LIVEBLOG: President Obama's Speech on LIbya, March 29, 2011
LIVEBLOG: President Obama's Speech on Libya
Thursday, March 24, 2011
March 24, 2011: If I Were the Editor of the Burbank Patch
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
A Break in the Clouds: Today's Edition of...If I Were Editor of the Burbank Patch
Isn't it nice to see the sun again? Don't get used to it, the rain will be back tomorrow, but according to the Los Angeles Department of Public Works, there is no danger of mud or debris coming down in the foothills due to the huge storms we have had the last few days.
They also anticipate that the coming 2 inches of rain expected starting tonight can be handled by debris basins. This storm won't be as bad as the previous one, thank goodness!
There will be a SELPA Family Transition Forum at the Glendale Civic Auditorium tonight at 5:45pm. Over 30 agency providers will be in attendance and students with special needs and their families are invited. Make reservations HERE. You are invited by the Burbank, Glendale and La Canada School Districts.
Burbank business Encompass Digital Media was awarded honors by the Los Angeles Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth last night. They were awarded Strategic Deal of the Year for their acquisition of Crawford Communications, Inc. Congratulations, Encompass Digital Media!
Apparently Burbank has signed off on the plan to demolish the Burbank Boulevard Bridge (which in my mind was just renovated) in order to be able to add carpool lanes to the I-5 freeway. Yes, readers, this bridge is two blocks from my house and is basically my route everywhere except school. Is this another silver lining to not driving up to the church every day? 14 months. Ho hum. Link is to the full article in the Burbank Leader.
Having a bit of a day today but that is what I would cover...
If I Were the Editor of the Burbank Patch!
Peace.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
St. Patrick's Day: If I Were Editor of the Burbank Patch
The carnival-like atmosphere of Purim, wearing of costumes, and bringing gifts of food door-to-door sometimes leads to it being referred to as the "Jewish Mardi Gras" or "Jewish Halloween" by non-Jews. Annually, at Temple Beth Emet, we celebrate the reading of the Megillah in as many as 8 different languages including, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Gaelic, Persian, Arabic, French and German. Bring your own groggers [noise makers] or share ours to drown out the nasty Haman's name and join us for delicious Hamantaschen [pastries made in a triangular shape representing Haman’s ears] following the reading.I am building up my sources and really wishing I had time to attend all of the events in my City! Hope Patch.com expands to Burbank soon!
Training is fun!
Monday, March 14, 2011
If I Were Editor of the Burbank Patch: March 14, 2011
View Larger MapThere is a $5 fee but if your kids are already starting with "I'm bored!" you might want to consider today: Shamrock Fun, Pattern Placemats, Edible Dirt and Lucky Windsocks.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Graduation Speech
Thank you to the Job Training staff, the Faculty and Administration of LA Valley College, Program Partners, our guests and representatives from our nonprofits for being here with us today.
I feel like I’ve been writing this speech for seven weeks. And I guess I have. On Facebook, on Twitter, on LinkedIn, on the LA Fellows Blog and my own and in my journal, I have tried throughout to think about what has really been going on and what the impact of the LA Fellows program has been on me...so far. I say “so far” because the journey isn’t finished yet. And even when we all have fabulous new jobs, the journey will continue.
We all came into the LA Fellows missing something. What, you ask? A job, I would have said. That’s what’s missing in my life. But what were we really missing? A lot...and then again not so much.
So I will say thank you to our instructors both for showing us what we brought with us and for what they gave us that we needed.
We came here with our spirits. Thank you to Jim Marteney for showing us that the spirits we have and bring to our work are important and valuable and then how to tap into those spirits and put them to good use.
We came here with our brains and our bodies. Thank you to Larry Braman, a special reconnection for me from long ago and far away, for showing us the skills and energy we have and bring to our work are amazing resources for ourselves and our employers. And for showing us that any way we connect with one another and the world is significant.
We came here with dreams. Thank you to Dr. Virginia Green who taught us to only accept the best from ourselves, from our team, from our lives, from our time. Some of us didn’t know what our dreams were, some of us even found that our dreams were different from what we thought. Wherever we are in our journey today, all of us have gained clarity and if we don’t yet know what we want, we do know what we need.
We came here with an idea of what job search was. Thank you to Tony Jaramillo for giving us concrete skills to deal with what we have to go through to reach our goals.
We came here thinking we knew about group dynamics and communications. Thank you to Michael Tompkins for reminding us that listening can always be improved and that openness to others is a huge asset in any situation. And thank you for being there for us after the program ends.
We came here feeling powerless. Great thanks to Roberto Guitierrez for giving us a safe place to find the power within us and proclaim it to the world.
And for the things we needed:
Thank you Doug Card for getting us up to speed on the computers with such good nature, humor and patience.
Thank you to Andrea Mitchel, who made “nonprofit” into a reality for us, a place where we can learn and grow and thrive. And for giving us a whole new skillset that will serve us well as we move on.
And to Lynette Ward, thank you for giving us so many things we really did not have at all through her immense knowledge and generosity: what to do, what to use, what to bring, what to say, what to ask, and what to do when we land.
And Allison, our bright shiny penny, our touchstone, our confidante, our mentor. I cannot imagine anyone doing this better than you do, working harder, being kinder.
But, sorry everyone, my biggest thank you has to be to my colleagues. Thank you for connecting with one another, for supporting one another, for becoming a family, for crisis counseling and for laughter. I don’t think any of us knew we were missing each other, but we were and now we’re not. And thank goodness, we never will be.
I will finish with an Irish blessing:
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
Until we meet again.Thank you.
Great thanks to all of my friends at LA Fellows Cohort 2 for trusting me to speak. I am humbled by your confidence.
Peace.
New Feature: If I Were the Editor of the Burbank Patch!
Sunday, January 30, 2011
LA Fellows: Week One
So we've had the first week of the LA Fellows program and, boy, was it intense! It feels to me like we've been there forever. We got so much information and the instructors were amazing, but it was a lot. And the days off didn't feel so much like days off as days to work by myself instead of with my friends. Facebook is becoming a fixture. LinkedIn is a whole new world. How do I use that properly? Twitter your job search? Really? Guess I'll find out on "Social Networking" day!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Website Development Workshop on Saturday!
What do you think?
Peace.
A New Home
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Would you like to see?
Monday, January 10, 2011
I'm an entrepreneur!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Things I Learned Last Year
- Spin up wool in colorways I'm not terribly fond of into worsted weight singles IMMEDIATELY. Takes an hour or two, and then I will have loads of yarn for quick gifts later in the year.
- It is possible to make something for all of the Middle School teachers for Christmas. Luckily, DD has one teacher for two subjects, but still. What I will do when they each have 6 I do not know. [I did not knit for them all, some got cranberry bread, which is FINE.]
- Starting the Christmas knitting Thanksgiving weekend is a good idea. But see the first lesson, as I had planned to spin more yarn for the gifts while knitting and that would have been impossible. I only spun 2 new yarns during the process.
- Commercial yarn is also FINE. Load up on single skeins of workhorse wools when they are on sale. Someday you will be glad you did!
- Wensleydale is not soft, but it is silky. Don't eschew the longwools.
- Socks go quickly when you're underemployed!
- Be fearless!
- Ask for help.
- Ask if someone needs help.
- The slow-cooker is amazing!
- It's okay to take a stand. Money isn't everything.
- It's okay to have high expectations. It's also okay to keep track of when people don't live up to them. Forgive, but know whom to trust with how much. Don't take big chances on the wrong person.
- Do your best work every day!