Hello!

Mellow Nights: Call For Artists

Mellow Massage Therapy Center in the East Falls section of Philadelphia is looking for artists for their bi-monthly event, Mellow Nights. Mellow Nights will combine fine art, live music, and massage therapy as a fundraiser for various charitable organizations that support the same artistic endeavors. The first event will be held on Saturday, October 24, 2009.

The chosen artist will have their original artwork featured on the evening of the affair in a “gallery-opening style” event. Artwork will then be required to hang in the lobby and treatment rooms at Mellow Massage Therapy Center for a time period of 2 months.

All pieces will be made available to clients for purchase. Whatever pieces are not sold must be picked up at the end of this 2 month period.

We are looking for art that inspires and/or compliments a relaxing atmosphere. Pieces should be of any medium, however they must be easily hung on a wall. Free standing sculptures will not qualify.

For submission, please provide a link to your electronic portfolio / website. You may also submit 5 samples of your work via e-mail attachment to info@mellowmassage.com. Please note, though only 5 pieces are required as submission for consideration, more may be needed for the exhibit dependent upon the size or the artwork.

You will be notified via email if we choose to display your art. The deadline for submission is Monday, September 7, 2009. All submissions not chosen for the upcoming event will be considered for subsequent months.

Please send questions to Vanessa Hazzard-Tillman at vanessa@mellowmassage.com.

Even When I'm a Mess...

"Revelling"

So Beautifully Written.
Have you been here before? I have.
Thank God I'm not here now...


"Revelling"
you were so in love
that it was all you could talk about
and i think i felt a little left out
you were on cloud 9 all the time
while i was levelling
i was wringing my hands and you were revelling

but then why shouldn't you?
it was such a beautiful thing to do

would that i could get me some
of your yum yum delirium
i could level off the ground that we stand on
but with you down on bended knee
always looking up at me
that feeling of standing up together is gone

and though i love you through all time and space
my love always seems to take second place

you were so in love
that it was all you could talk about
and i think i felt a little left out
you were on cloud 9 all the time
while i was levelling
i was wringing my hands and you were revelling

but then why shouldn't you?
it was such a beautiful thing to do

-A. DiFranco

Friggin' Wawa

I am often at the check out at the local Wawa… purchasing a sandwich… or Coffee... or maybe fruit and cottage cheese for breakfast….whatever.

And I tell the checkout person, “No thank you. I don’t need a bag”.

Now, I admit that sometimes these Wawa worker folks are just to fast for me and they get the bag all ready before I say my standard phrase.

Here’s the kicker. When I tell them that I don’t need the bag they have prepared, they THROW THE BAG AWAY! It boggles my mind!

All this talk about being friendly to the earth, reducing, reusing, recycling… blah blah blah… it’s literally everywhere you turn these days. Do I really need to explain that I wish them to use the bag I have forgone for the next customer? It seems obvious to me that when I say “No thank you. I don’t need a bag”, it does not mean “oh yes and by the way just throw it in the trash and waste it anyway!”

Is it not clear that I am trying to do my part by not wasting plastic bags when I can just as easily carry my purchases in my own personal reusable bag? The worst part is that this KEEPs happening. What's the point of trying if we're not all on the same accord?


I’m seriously blown right now.

What comes before Mellow?

Before Mellow, There was... well... there was this.

September 2007
Sherman Mills, East Falls, Philadelphia. Suite 1911

Brown is the Color of my True Love's Skin

Simply Put

I’ve been spending a lot of time lately trying to figure out quite a few things. I’m sure you’ve seen the themes on continuous repeat within the screens of this blog because they seem to always be in my heart and on my mind.

How to work smarter. (because I’ve already mastered the hard-working thing. I’m exhausted and frustrated by my impatience).
How to save more
How to lose weight
How to eat/live a healthier lifestyle
Etc.

The list goes on. And for whatever reason the answer that just now popped into my head is “most of these things can be fixed/answered simply by stopping the bleeding”

Spending money seems to be the root or my current evil. Not the money itself however. That’s not my evil. But depending on it as the only source of survival is evil. I’m probably exaggerating a little bit but think about it in those extremes just for a minute or two. For example, healthier foods like fruits and vegetables are far less expensive than processed, fatty fast foods. If spending money on fast food is no longer an option, we would be forced to make inevitably healthier choices in our daily food intake.


This is not a new thought. It often takes me months or even years to acknowledge certain thoughts though. This is probably one of them. I’ve always been fascinated by the topic of simple living. And I knew that it would be a help in finding a more peaceful life. But I never really looked at it as the “answer” to achieving many of my goals.

I think that I am going about this the wrong way.
I think that instead of trying to work the hell out of life I should be trying to keep more of what I already have.

I think that I should stop spending money. Not because I have to in order to pay the bills. But as a voluntary way to find peace, health, and a fat savings account.

Brooklyn

Brooklyn in Springtime

Spring 2007