Maker Fest, BlogHer + blog news

Like I said, I have things to tell you guys!

Let’s start with things that have dates (especially the one coming up tomorrow) and move on to blog updates. Sound good? (No? Then just read in whatever order you want.)

1. Southwest Maker Fest

Tomorrow is the first-ever Southwest Maker Fest! It’s a free one-day event in downtown Mesa with singing robots, quilts, and possibly a collaborative welding project. (I know! Intriguing yet terrifying! You should definitely go.) I’ll be doing a workshop on making travel journals at noon at OneOhOne gallery. (Full program.)

I’m told the Maker Fest will have lots of kid-friendly stuff – as well as dangerous stuff, which kids also like. spark! Mesa’s Festival of Creativity will be going on at the Mesa Arts Center through Sunday, and it’s also free, so you can stop over there too.

2. BlogHer

Coming up this summer, I’ll be speaking at BlogHer. The conference I spoke at in October was BlogHer Pro, which is for people using their blogs for business. This one is the big conference – for all the bloggers. So…maybe even more terrifying than collaborative welding. (Saying yes often is.) But I’m in a break out session, so I keep telling myself there won’t be more people in the room than at Pro. Probably.

3. About Abouts

Also, I updated the About page, so now there are separate pages for About Travelcraft Journal and About Me. The About Me page is probably more information than you ever cared to know, but I needed somewhere to put all that. I’m finding myself in more and more situations where my graphic design business (Bold Avenue) and this blog (Travelcraft Journal – or TCJ for you insiders) are both relevant, so I needed a place to talk about different aspects of what I do and explain the connection. I might change this up later as I continue to spruce things up around here (it’s like blog spring cleaning!), but, for now, that’s what’s happening.

4. Comments welcome!

I realized a plugin I was using to include social media comments was requiring a login and making it a pain to post a comment here. Sorry about that. That barrier is removed now, so comment away! (I mean, be respectful to others and not spammy. Other than that, comment away!)

OK, so that’s way more about me in one day than I’m comfortable with. What about you? Now that commenting is easier, tell me something you’re up to. Also, I’m working on an FAQ page, so let me know if you have any Qs.

Southwest Maker Fest logo via Southwest Maker Fest. (Surprise.)

March 17, 2014

Luck and light

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

My sister- and brother-in-law got us this shamrock plant two years ago. I was worried an Irish plant wouldn’t do so well in the Arizona sun. (Maybe I thought it would sunburn like me-?) But it continues to thrive and bloom. The leaves close up every evening and follow the sun during the day. I guess you have to just keep seeking the light, no matter where you are.

I’m in another one of those spots where I have so much to tell you but, for various reasons, am having trouble getting it all written and posted. (I see all these articles about how to come up with blog post ideas. I have too many ideas. I think what I need is to learn to write faster.) I did write more about Arcosanti – a lot more – and I’m working on cutting that down a bit before I post it.

With any luck, I’ll be posting some bloggy and crafty news later this week, but I didn’t want to leave you hanging until then.

Speaking of plants (and hanging), I wrote a post for Brit + Co on DIY Living Walls, ideas for making a wall-mountable planter for a bunch of plants.

In case gardening isn’t your jam (or in case it is and you want to play music to your plants), my post about a crazy (and awesome) concrete, gesture-controlled speaker just went up on Brit + Co, as well.

So you have some reading material to tide you over, while I keep writing and seeking the light.

March 10, 2014March 10, 2014

Impromptu Peruvian bean chili

I posted this photo on Instagram of a Peruvian bean chili I made recently. My friend Anne asked me for the recipe, and here we are. Except I don’t really have a recipe. I basically winged it (wung it?), but I’m happy to tell you a story about that and maybe you’ll be able to deduce a recipe from there.

peruano-beans

The thing is Phillip had a guys’ movie night planned, and the other guys were talking about getting pizza. I panicked, forgot there is such a thing as gluten-free pizza (we’re total newbs at this gluten free thing), glanced around my kitchen, and decided I could throw together chili. Even though I started early, I probably didn’t spend more than 10 minutes actually pulling it together.

Here’s what went in there:

Peruvian/Peruano beans, enough to mostly fill the crockpot after soaking. (I get these in bulk from Food City, but I’m sure they’re available at other groceries with Latin American food items.)
Tomato paste, maybe 3 TBS
1 can diced tomatoes (If you’re substituting fresh ones, you may want to wait to add them, so they don’t get weird hanging out in the crockpot all day.)
Rosemary
Cumin
Lots of salt (I never seem to salt beans enough)
Black pepper
A little oregano
Garlic powder (Fresh garlic is a good idea too. Maybe better if you’re in slightly less of a rush.)
1 red pepper
Sriracha, as much as you can stand

Soak the beans overnight, then throw it all in the crockpot the next day. If it happens to be sriracha week, make the sriracha and red pepper into a smiley face and Instagram it. Cook 4-5 hours on high or 8ish on low. You may want to make the chili a day ahead, refrigerate, and let the flavors blend. It will be even more delicious the following day.

Also, if you’re not particularly attached to the vegetarianness of the recipe, some bacon probably would be a delicious addition.

Happy belated sriracha week to you all!

March 4, 2014

Daily Bread

I realized the last couple posts here have been named after meals (Breakfast at Arcosanti and The world over dinner). This could be because I’ve really had food on the brain lately.

We’re getting ready to try going gluten free for a bit to see if that helps with some issues we’ve (mostly I’ve) been having.

This is not going to be an easy transition for me. I love bread and cereal and pasta and cookies etc. I like being able to say I’ll eat almost anything and enjoy trying new foods when I travel. But I’ve been reading up on how to make this diet work, and I created a Pinterest board of gluten-free recipes and resources.

At one point, Phillip and I made a whole gluten bucket list of places to go eat before making this change. But the list kept getting longer and time was getting shorter, so we abandoned that idea. I did stop at Liberty Market yesterday, though, so we could relish one last blueberry scone. (I recommend you do the same if you ever happen to be in Gilbert, Arizona.)

Since there’s not really ever a good time to do something like this, we decided that Lent would at least be an appropriate season for denying ourselves. The 40 days begin tomorrow. And, even though our reasons for going gluten free are more health-related than spiritual, there is something about giving up something you love (maybe too much) that can refocus your heart and be good for the soul.

March 1, 2014March 1, 2014

Breakfast at Arcosanti

This morning we had breakfast at Arcosanti. The artist community was beautiful and inspiring. It was only about an hour away, but it felt like its own world.

I’ll fill you in more later. In the meantime, I hope you find something interesting, inspiring, beautiful, and/or unusual to do this weekend.