Robin Hood all the way!!

Ooooh de lally!

Disney Parks Blog is doing a poll to determine which old characters will be back for a special engagement at Disneyland Park!!!!

VOTE HERE!!!!

I voted for the Sherwood Forrest gang, of course.

Seeing them back would be brilliant! <3

Pull up a chair, and listen to my back crack...

Time for yet another juicy installment of the "journal" papers the lady makes us write for Human Factors class. Not sure why the formatting got weird. Oh well. Here is a rant about chairs. Enjoy.

             As I sit down to write this, I’m thinking, “Oh crud, I’ve been sitting at a computer all day already, and now here I am doing it again instead of dragging out my yoga mat and doing some scorpion kicks to deal with my butt, which I have been neglecting.” So, let’s slink not so smoothly into the topic of chairs. Because I said butt; that’s the best introduction I can muster at the moment. I’m sitting in a chair right now, right on my aforementioned body part. It’s from Target, but I like to think I’ve gained enough knowledge and taste throughout the years to pick and choose wisely enough so as to discount my way through life while appearing as a fashion maven. Okay, maybe that’s taking it a bit too far. Still, my chair from Target is an oversized, armless, wooden legged, cushy thing in an off white canvas material with a pop-y black botanical pattern on it. I love it, and I really want to plop it in my new apartment as a side chair to my ever-so-kitsch living room set that will consist of that, a teak coffee table that Logan procured from his San Diego days, and whatever couch anyone is giving away come November. However, at this point in time, my lovely chair, which is very comfortable, is masquerading as my desk chair, and in doing so, is very uncomfortable. The problem with the current situation is as follows: the chair is not at the correct height for comfortable computer use. It really comes down to that, which is probably why, in the course of this discourse, I have unplugged my laptop and relocated it from my desk to my lap, and am sitting here comfortably cross legged. But I’m not actually using my desk. Drat. When I try to, I get that crick in my shoulder which I’ve affectionately come to call my “CAD knot”, because my right arm, (my mouse arm) ends up all screwed up over the desk at an unnatural angle. For that matter, my left arm gets messed up too, and I end the day looking like Quasimodo.

          It’s really mostly desk chairs that ever give me issues. Why the ever loving heck can’t 

there be a desk, office, or school chair that is comfortable, affordable, and oh, here’s the kicker: actually bought and used in said office or school. I’ve seen plenty of great, ergonomic, pretty desk chairs that are actually meant to support a person working at a computer on a desk. In fact, I just took a grip of photos of awesome chairs at the Haworth showroom that we just visited. They were comfortable, (I sat in some and said “ahhh”.) pretty, (they even had my favorite color!) but alas, probably not to incredibly affordable. Drat again. Here’s a question: Why is it that I pay bazillions of dollars to go to a school that makes me sit in crappy chairs all day? Is it because they are more affordable? Where the bleep is all my money going? (I do realize that was three questions, but if I may be allowed to continue my rant…) Chairs that spin and roll and go up and down are expensive. I get that, although I’m sure there is a better way to manufacture great chairs without requiring a fortune, therefore not needing as much from poor consumers like us. This aside, if chairs like the good for nothing rolly, spinny, up-and-downy chairs they bought for our classrooms and computer labs cost a bunch of money anyway, why not get us some well designed, comfortable chairs instead? I think I go to the worst designed design school of probably all time. They are trying, I guess. I mean, the school rents the building space in the Business Park, and they are trying to do things like paint and put decoratively informative graphics up on the walls. Can chairs be next, please? Granted, I’m out of here come September, but if they could find it in their hearts to replace the chairs that, judging also by the upholstery, haven’t been new since 1998, my scoliosis would thank them. That’s pretty much it, except that also I am staring a fund for a green Haworth desk chair.

 

This Rug is Bananas!

Can I just say, I want this rug.
Nay, I need this rug somewhere in my house. 
Possibly the bathroom.

jonathan adler banana rug $165

 Other than that, happy Tuesday- the day I'm at school all day working on my portfolio, drinking coffee and then having dinner beers & burgers at The Counter with friends before yet another class. Then I get to drive home at 10pm. 
Have a banana.
Brilliant.

Let's Talk About Public Bathrooms.

 I always want to discuss this issue, but it seems like a lame topic, and nobody usually cares to listen. I say, “Can I just tell you how much I hate the public restrooms?” and people pretty much look at me like I have a screw loose. I’m not saying I don’t, I just think that this may be a pertinent issue to discuss.

            Public restrooms are disgusting enough, even if they are kept very clean. I’ve always felt that one should need to touch as little surface area as possible. People think of restrooms as “accessible” if they have a handicapped stall and free floating sinks against the wall with pull up space. “Yay!” they say, “Everyone is happy now.”  This is definitely not “yay”, and I am not happy. Nobody thinks about the regular stalls and how grossly close the quarters are.

Here I am in the mall with my arms full of bags, and I go into a stall with bad lighting, bang my arm and the bags against the stall wall that looks smeared with some kid’s spit soaked fingers, and curse. My jeans practically wipe the toilet bowl as I back up enough to get all the way into the stall and close the door. Then I’m already practically sitting down because there is no space to stand while I attempt to hang my bags and purse on the single hook that’s screwed precariously on the door. By then, I already feel disgusting and flustered as I try to unroll some toilet paper which someone has inevitably refilled upside down, so the “clean” part of the roll is resting on the nasty metal receptacle that has a trash can attached with some I-don’t-wanna-know-what-the-hell-that-is poking out if it. By the time I wipe off the toilet seat, get a liner down and actually start peeing, it’s been 5 minutes and my fiancé is starting to wonder if I fell in.

We need to reset the minimum standards for “accessible” public restroom stalls! I never use the handicapped stall unless it is an emergency or all that is available, because as uncomfortable as I feel in a regular stall, it’s obviously impossible to get a wheelchair or crutches in there. Sometimes, there is a second stall that is larger, but not quite large enough for a wheelchair. Those are my favorite, and those should be the minimum requirement for every stall’s dimensions. I’m 5’6, and 125 pounds. I’m not a particularly large individual, and I feel like a bulky bull in a China shop every time I go into a standard minimum dimensioned bathroom stall.  I could understand if this was only in older facilities, but even new buildings seem to include this gross oversight.

What happened to Universal Design? Universal design is true accessibility, and I thought it was supposed to be the new standard! Let’s go over these 7 design principles and marvel at how much a public restroom stall does NOT adhere to them.

1.      Equitable Use- The design must be usable and marketable for ALL.

2.      Flexibility in Use- Again, for all. There is no flexibility in a space that a skinny person can’t even turn around in.

3.      Simple and Intuitive- The design must be easy to use regardless of any physical or mental barriers.

4.      Perceptible Information- The area must non-verbally or literally communicate enough information so that everyone knows how to use it. This may be the only standard that it masters.

5.      Low Tolerance for Error- It is highly possible that I’ll inadvertently bump against the trash receptacle and get an STD. Awesome.

6.      Low Physical Effort Required- By the time I’m done trying to turn around without falling into the toilet, hang my bags up and lock the door, I’m exhausted.

7.      Size and Space for Approach and Use- Um, obviously inadequate.

Please, dear building code writer, help us.

Its so irritating that I had to blog about it

Ok, seriously? 

I spend time carefully placing RELEVANT links inside my blogs so that you can conveniently get to whatever site I'm talking about and join me in yelling "Brilliant!" as you print out a template to make your own Christmas tree garland or what have you.

That said,

Who the h-e-double hockey sticks decided that every other word should have a link on it with some relevant and non-spammy annoying ad that pops up at you if your cursor goes anywhere near it? WHO?!?! 

End rant.

Pretty Placemats!

Ahoy-hoy! 

(Mr. Burns from the Simpsons answer his phone like that, and its fun to say. Try it.)

Sooo, I was searching the internet for free printables- namely save the date card templates for our wedding- and I got distracted and found Juxtapost.com (seems like a better Pinterest?)  Anyway, that site led me to this one: Oh! Crafts 
 Here's why they caught my eye:

 I'm already a sucker for free printables of any kind, (I just printed out some Disney valentines that I needed to have) but awesome placemats? Um, yes! I'm going to print these on 11x17 paper and get them laminated. 
Brilliant!

Creative Babbling

Last week, my Human Factors class was assigned a "Nature Walk", where we had to go outside, take a walk for an hour and then write a couple of pages about it. We were supposed to  get in touch with our feelings and observations, and think about what we miss when we "drive through life". I chose to do mine as a story narrative. I think I've been reading too many chick novels. ha. 

Well, here is is. Hope you like it. :)

              I stepped outside my front door and shivered. I heard a loud, crushing noise and looked up to see the wind bending the huge oak tree in my front yard near the horses. The front door was difficult to shut, as it was being pulled by the gust. “What a day for a nature walk!” I thought to myself as I ventured off the stoop. The wind was borderline ridiculous, and I considered heading back inside, as I was practically pushed sideways. My horses, Aowyn and River, whinnied a hello, with probably a touch of, “what-the-heck-are-you-doing-out-here-you’re-going-to-be-blown-away” in their loud trills. Sierra, the oldest in this equine group just stared at me as her brown mane blew every which way. My face was freezing at this point, and my nose started to run. I reached into my sweatshirt pocket and grabbed the tissue I’d put there. That was the first convenience I thought of during my walk, and I was grateful that tissues were available so I didn’t have to search for a non-poisonous, well hydrated leaf and scratch my already dried out nose on it.

            As I made my way forward, my feet tucked safely inside my black Ugg boots, I thought about how much more thankful I should be for shoes. I stopped and slipped a foot out. The ground was cold and rocky with loosely packed dirt. It was cold. I mean, if I didn’t put my shoes back on I’d probably be missing a pinky toe by the time I went back inside. Not to mention, I’d probably end up with a rock poking out of a gash in my foot. So, I opted for the luxury of sheepskin.

            The wind was still blowing like it meant it. All three horses were now looking at me, wondering what I was doing over there, playing in the dirt with my foot. It smelled like someone had lit a fire in their fireplace, and the wind carried the smell to my nose and then whipped it away with another huge gust that just smelled like cold. It was as if the wind were playing with me, teasing me and laughing that it was making my nose run again.

            I headed over to the smooth, and cold, again, fence and crunched on the long, sharp pine needles. “Those would hurt.” I said out loud to no one in particular. I ducked my head to walk under some low hanging branches, and kicked a pinecone. That was answered with a snort from River, who seemed annoyed that I wasn’t petting her and also that I didn’t seem to be bearing any gifts of apples or carrots. The tree groaned and bent again, and I wondered at how powerful air is. It’s a crazy element. You don’t think it’s that mean, but then it gets a tree branch to narrowly miss smacking you in the face, and you realize you don’t have very much power over anything. The wind was pretty much taking over my nature walk, jumping up and down for attention as I tried to notice to the rest of the trees, the pebbles, and the little patches of grass that were chewed on by either the horses or the frost. There wasn’t a cloud in the beautiful blue sky- the wind had whisked those away too.

            I kept walking down towards the mailbox on the long, rocky slope that is my driveway. I tried to position my feet so that the wind could push me down the incline, but it didn’t cooperate. Lame, I wanted to dirt ski. There were more patches of longer blades of grass by the metal mailbox. The pavement had begun, as I had reached my rural street, so I took off my shoes again. I tried to guess how long I could get an ice cube to stay whole if I put it on the pavement. It would probably be a long time. I looked around at the neighbors’ houses, and across the street to Vasquez Rocks. The beauty of those ruddy orange slabs jutting out of the ground is just amazing. The whole view makes you feel tiny and insignificant.

            These days, as we drive through life, we miss a lot. We keep our noses buried in our cups of coffee and adjust the heater in our car, and keep our shoes on. If I had done that today, I would have missed the cozy smell of someone’s fireplace. I wouldn’t have heard my horses neigh their greeting and swish their tails. We miss wonderful fresh air and the terms of what is real in life, when we drive through life on our way to indoor schedules. I think we all need to take some time to stop and smell the pine trees.