Links Roundup (Reading Lately)

I have to admit, I spend so much time glued to a screen and read as much as I can to keep up with the world. Here's what's caught my eye lately:

The WSJ on the Queen Bey: "The Houston-born singer’s business savvy goes back to the late 1990s, when she was managed by her father, who taught her the music business." I remember totally jamming to Destiny's Child when I was a pre-teen and I continue to be in awe of the empire she's built. May we all remember, we have just as many hours in a day as Beyonce.

The Missing Piece - oldie but a goodie from Shel Silverstein on what to remember about love and relationships. Maybe all the life lessons we need, we learned as children.

Also on relationships: The Divorce Lawyer's Guide to Marriage. Interesting to see it from the perspective of someone who's seen the failures.

I watched this movie a couple weeks ago when I was feeling some New York nostalgia, but I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to pull off a Margot Tenenbaum costume.

Online privacy: cancelling forgotten accounts and seeing what Facebook's got on you.

Newsletters (the email kind): I've mentioned a couple before, but I also enjoy Another Round, The What, and Of a Kind.

Original Thought, and Renaming This Blog

Lower Nob Hill

At a yoga session this past weekend, the instructor talked about our brains having no original thought, as well as how difficult it is to completely quiet the mind, even with yoga. Therefore, we could practice being aware of our thoughts and guiding them. After all, no one actually controls your unoriginal thoughts but you. (And also, when going through a challenging yoga practice, my thoughts were completely guided by what my muscles did and didn't want to do.)

Today we have so many platforms to express our thoughts and see what everyone else is thinking about every possible subject. There's so much content to consume, if we let ourselves. Social media can be great, but it also tempts many of us to spout off whatever is on our mind at a given moment, without any further consideration. Is that really the stimulation we want, for ourselves and those around us? For me, the practice of composing a longer post also helps me guide my thoughts and express them more coherently. It makes me slow down and pay attention, to be more mindful of what I send out to the world. Because of course it's also not just about  "me" or even "you" but the world around us.

And that is the overall purpose of my blog, and why I rechristened it this year as "Mindfully Modern." Throughout the content blitzes and hectic schedules, my goal is to remain discerning and to still be able to see the simplicity in life. Enjoy the world today, and reflect on it. Namaste.

Inspiration: Home Design

from pinterest

This year marked three years of living in San Francisco, and it's been the longest time I've spent in the same apartment. Someone recently asked my husband and me if we were indeed still in the same spot, and we said, "yea, same place, but we did just rearrange our living room furniture, so it feels kinda new!" It really is the little things, sometimes. 

I've loved interior design since I was a kid but also had limited ways in practicing it. A few throw pillows here, an accent wall there - generally things a young adult on a tight budget would do. (This post on home decor to get rid of by your 30s actually came out on my 30th birthday, and my husband and I had a laugh reading it.) Being a little more settled now has allowed us to spend our time and effort on building a home, albeit in the confines of a city apartment that we probably don't spend enough time in. All the more reason to have it look like we want it to (within reason), so that we can fully appreciate times when we can be homebodies.

Our apartment is pretty open-plan, so you can walk in and see most of the place right away. Originally we floated the couch to create more of an entry-way, but it also closed off the room a bit. By switching up the positions of the couch and a chair/ottoman that had been against the wall, we changed the flow of the room. I know, deep thoughts, right? I can't point to one single photo that led me to consider this layout, but that's not how inspiration needs to work, at least not on me. Here, a few rooms that speak to my influences...

I admire anybody who has the guts to write anything at all.

E.B. White (via stayholden-phonyboy)

The need for perfection and comparison isn’t new, it’s just been super-sized by the fact that all those images of betterment can now be garnered in one sitting at your computer.

Today’s online lifestyle industry is like being bombarded with a million different Martha Stewarts at once.

"Keeping Up Appearances"

Please and Thank You

Please and Thank You