Big Day Runway

   Michele & John hosted a fashion runway show at their Olathe store, Big Day Boutique, tonight to premiere their summer collection, which will be featured on Zulily.com soon. A bunch of our friends & their adorable kids all turned out, in Squeaks & Beeps wear...

Showing off the merchandise

YUM.

The Kings

Jill

Stacy

I think Laura may be overserving...

A-dorable!

Jasper busts a move. Has he been in the wine?

Sean Speaks!

   ...with a lil' help from some Scrabble tiles, that is. (Kelley & I just might have put him up to it.)

Grandma Lizzie's birthday is February 11

What boy wouldn't love robots, skulls, & space invaders?!

Squeals for Squeaks & Beeps

   Sean seems to like the handmade bibs and burp cloths that Michele made just for him!

 FOR ME?

 WHEEEE!!!

Squeaks & Beeps Are in the House!

Teddi's house, to be exact. Holiday open house tonight...

    And in case you were wondering, the bibs fit adults too. Mine has Space Invaders. Don't be a hater!

Italian Lesson: Sprezzatura

   Okay, I'll admit it. I watch The Bachelor/The Bachelorette reality show on TV. And I consider it to be a very guilty pleasure, because it usually has so little redeeming value. (Other than the hilarity that ensues every Monday night as I enjoy it with John, Michele, Maureen and a stack of Spin! pizzas. We're very, very good at making fun of it.)

   But this last season surprised me a little bit; there was a male contestant, Ames, who maybe wasn't the best-looking (our nickname for him was "Superface" for his weirdly chiseled superhero features). But Ames had to be the most genuine, smartest, and sweetest man ever on the show. And in one of the final episodes he mentioned the Italian principle of romance called "sprezzatura." I'd never heard of it, so it intrigued me enough to look it up.

   Here's what Wikipedia says:

   Sprezzatura (Italian pronunciation: [sprettsaˈtura]) is an Italian word originating from Baldassare Castiglione’s The Book of the Courtier, where it is defined by the author as “a certain nonchalance, so as to conceal all art and make whatever one does or says appear to be without effort and almost without any thought about it.” It is the ability of the courtier to display “an easy facility in accomplishing difficult actions which hides the conscious effort that went into them.” Sprezzatura has also been described “as a form of defensive irony: the ability to disguise what one really desires, feels, thinks, and means or intends behind a mask of apparent reticence and nonchalance.” The word has entered the English language; the Oxford English Dictionary defines it as "studied carelessness."

   So it actually can be applied more broadly than romance, and Wiki goes on to say that sprezzatura is a necessary component for glamour. There are both positive and negative connotations to the term. I'm guessing that most films, songs, books, whatever that we are most drawn to, is due to the artists' mastery that allows us to be completely drawn into them to a point where the work feels natural and effortless, when in fact if you are aware of that and dissect them, you see endless evidence that most everything was intentionally and skillfully executed.

   I believe that I've been successful in achieving this principle (at least some of the time) in my drawings. When inspiration strikes me, I can usually sketch out something fairly quickly and without appearing to have expended much effort. If anything, all I give away for spectators is a grin on my face as I set to work, particularly if they're the unwitting subject and I'm about to zing them.

   Over the years I've been reasonably adept at channeling this same easy demeanor in my day job and have been commended for it. I can handle many projects and a ton of ambiguity without appearing flustered, and use that to help keep my coworkers calm (humor helps diffuse this as well).  Lately, the speed, complexity, heartache, and frustration have been building and I've lost my sprezzatura. My team talked to me about it—and thank goodness they did! So that's my new mantra. Italian is fun. Maybe I should learn some more of it...

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

   Please enjoy this festive photo of three of my favorite coworkers, Ginny, Kim and Dave on one of the three days it's acceptable to wear that much red (Valentine's Day, Christmas, and Cheifs' Red Fridays. When the Chiefs are good. Which has not been the norm in my experience).
   Tonight I will be joining my good friends John and Michele for our weekly ritual of watching this idiot make a fool of himself. Really, in all of America you couldn't find a single dude better than Brad? TWICE?!? Every time he opens his mouth I think he's had a lobotomy.

   The show gives us plenty to laugh about. Michele's "Michelle" lookalike stunt last week was classic. Too bad John's hand got there in time to protect her identity!

   Mich—oops! I mean "Brad"—surprised me tonight by thoughtfully leaving a card and a giant blown-glass rose just for me. I thought it would be funny to take a seductive photo with it, and it was...

    ...except that the rose is over 15" long, and VERY heavy, and it nearly pulled out all my teeth. John and Michele, my lawyer should contact you within three business days.

Love you guys!!! Happy Valentine's Day!

Birthday Treat

   Lucky me, my friend Michele of Squeaks & Beeps made a birthday present for me! You know the gift is going to be good when the bag is this cool:

   She made a set of towels for my bathroom using this cute Red Riding Hood fabric from Japan.  LOVE, LOVE, LOVE IT!!! 

   And then she and John and I watched "The Bachelor" and made fun of it while enjoying Spin! pizza. Awesome. THANKS, MICHELE!!!

Dunkin' Dawbarns

Tell me these are not the cutest kids you've ever seen: Hazel and Jasper all ready for the Blackbob Pet Hospital pet parade! They are Dunkin Donuts' employees and their dog, Donut, is... a doughnut! Michele made the costumes by hand. Here's the amazing part: they didn't win the costume contest. Is there justice in this world? Apparently not.

P.S. Rahrrrr!!!

Guest artists!

Some awesome coloring work by guest artists Hazel, 5, and Jasper, 3. Donut is their lil' rat terrier. I included her on this year's Dog-n-Jog logo. And judging from the speed of that dog, I'm pretty sure she'd win the race if we could find a human fast enough to keep up with her!

Nice work, guys!