Guys say the most amazing things. Things that would never cross my mind in a million years. Or my friend Andrea’s. Here are a few examples:
1. What David said after our run
“Softscrub in the shower works great.” David said. “I use it on my body, on the tiles and if I’m still in my bathing suit I wash that too. I do three things at once. No brainer!”
“How can something that can take mold off your bathtub be good for your skin?” I was mystified by his disregard for the unleashed power of bleach disinfectant yet I marvelled at his logic.
“You do it once a week. It shakes up your cleaning routine, sort of like interval training when you want to kick up your running.”
Andrea brought a plate of fresh fruit to the table and shot me a you-pick-your-battles smile.
You certainly do.
2. What Seth said after I lost 11 pounds
“I don’t get it. I just lost all this weight on my Lemonade Diet and I still have a tummy.”
“Honey, you don’t understand. Weight loss is based the theory of everywhereness. You just lost the equivalent of two 5 pound bags of sugar all over your body. Look, let’s say this picture of a balloon around a bowlegged cowboy is you. Now, we take away the pounds you lost by letting out some air from the balloon. And that’s you!”
“So, you’re telling me I look like a deflated bowlegged cowboy.”
“Yes! And you’re not fat.”
Sigh!
Anybody else with something to share with us? Oh, and if any of you know a better way to scan sketches so they look clean, please let me know!
I live in the Rockaways, a beach community in the borough of Queens, New York City.
As I was running earlier this morning, I read a post by Chris Brogan about communities. He says,
“We don’t just join communities because we like a product or service or thing. We gather around people who feel what we feel, and we share passion for things that bring us some sense of pleasure or joy, or even healing.”
A passion for the beach is what brings me into the local surfer community. A rare and joyful zone populated by wetsuits, knowing smiles, and a shared sense of wonder.
My September board meeting
I belong to another community that is drawn together by the Queens Council on the Arts. My board members and I play golf together. I body surf with artists in the Rockaways. Every so often a group of us indulge our inner nonprofit knitters in a knitting circle.
Seattle knitting circle
We are many groups of unapologetically focused people that overlap and overindulge at times but all in the name of goodness, not evil. And the more ways we connect and care about each other, the stronger we are as a community.
Is it me or is asking someone to volunteer to be on a board, assume fiscal responsibility for an organization, fundraise, advocate and show up for meetings seems like a lot to ask? I think people like to hang out with the good news. With other people they enjoy being in the trenches and in the spotlight with.
What do you see when you visualize your ideal board? Your brain trust? Your inner circle? What part is passion, the desire to make a difference, the networking potential? And what do you bring to the mix to make it better and a joyful experience?
Video is visual judo. It is also SO much easier to show someone how to knit and purl in a video. That is my next project. Stay tuned!
This is a video about our High School to Art School portfolio program. As we think through our next videos, I am realizing how much better we can communicate the passion of what we do through via video.
I read a great guest post by Michael Hoffman on Beth Kanter’s blog about viral video. Michael hits the nail on the head when he says that often nonprofits overlook the importance of having a video strategy before seeking to produce a viral video.
He says,
“Where you should start with online video is to make a commitment to using this new medium to connect people to your work. You need to think about what the important and interesting things are and ask yourself, “How do we document this work?” You need to ask yourself why do you think what you do is important, and ask your staff as well. You need to then capture – on a regular basis – those important and interesting things. If you can find the funny stories, the creative metaphors, and turn your issue on its head once in a while, so much the better. But please, stop focusing on making a viral video and start focusing on making a viral cause.”
There is no question that visual storytelling is a powerful way to tell your story. The only question is how are you going make it work best for you.
Here is what I am encouraging my staff at the Queens Council on the Arts to do for our viral video strategy:
Think in story form.
Know what you need to tell your story – interviews, images, background shots, etc.
Brief is best. Focus on creating a series of short two to three minute videos.
Edit using a simple, free program like Windows Movie Maker or I Movie.
Make videos actionable. Using the annotations feature on Youtube is a great way to get your viewers to do something – donate, sign up for a newsletter, visit a website, etc. Watch Greg Hoffman’s video about annotations and apply this great feature to your video.
Link and love. Tell everyone about your video on Twitter, Facebook, your website, blog, e-newsletter etc. Make it easy to share.
Remember that attention is the new capital. Invest creatively.
What else is going on that’s video worthy? What are you doing?
Badly designed things are indifferent attempts at being an artist and deserve nothing more than to be used for skeet shooting targets. Although there are a million tank tops out there, I felt that it was time for a simple, well designed, knit tank top to be created.
If we are going to change the world, we must look good.
OK, dear reader, here it is: The Mermaid Tank Top
Don’t you just adore that image? Frankly, I can’t understand how anyone who doesn’t wear shoes can get along without something fabulous to wear besides a seashell bra all day! This tank is perfect for a mermaid to throw on after a day of frolicking through seafoam. A little something for evening.
And – of course it is well designed. I love spending time thinking about design details: how will this catch a second look, what colors would look intriguing in this stitch, how and where can this tank be worn, is it mermaid worthy? The stitch patterns are simple and intended to knit up quickly, the length can be changed to whatever you like and the entire piece is knit on circular needles like a spiral. No need to sew up the sides. It has a lovely shape that drapes like a dream on your body and you know how I feel about draping! Easy.
Pattern for The Mermaid Tank Top
Size medium
You will need
4 skeins of Patons Grace Mercerized Cotton (1.75 0z) in Wasabi or any of their other great colors. This shade of green sets off a summer tan beautifully.
#3 Takumi circular knitting needles. Always use bamboo so you can knit on a plane without setting off the metal detectors. Who needs the aggravation?
Stitch markers
Yarn needle
A small crochet hook for finishing.
Your label. Yes, your label. This is an often neglected design detail among DIY divas and knitters and one that I believe is a powerful affirmation of you as a creative design force to be reckoned with. Mine were made for my hand made knitwear company Miraculous Mandarin which, sadly is no longer around. But I, Hoong Yee Lee Krakauer, am here armed with the newly designed knitting pattern that I promised you urging you to invest in putting your name on a label.
label detail
Gauge
4 stitches of stockinette = 1 inch
6 rows of stockinette = 1 inch
Simple Knitting Stitches
St st knit all rows.
Garter stitch knit 1 row, purl 1 row.
Yo make a new stitch by wrapping yarn over the right needle.
Note: This piece is intended to be knit on circular needles
Mermaid Tank Top
Cast on 170 stitches. Place a stitch marker at the beginning and one midpoint at 85 stitches to mark front and back. Knit a few rows of garter stitch as a border. Begin knitting rows of the stitch patterns, mixing them up as you like until the piece is 17 inches long. I prefer a longer tank but you know what looks best on you.
Front
You will now be working with 85 stitches.
Shape armhole
Bind off 3 stitches at beginning of next 2 rows. Bind off 2 stitches at beginning of next 2 rows. Bind off 1 stitch at beginning of next 2 rows (73 stitches left).
Shape neckline
Knit 29 stitches, bind off center 15 stitches, knit 29 stitches. Bind off 1 stitch on every armhole edge row. Bind off 3 stitches, then 2 stitches, then 1 stitch on left side neckline edge. Continue to bind off 1 stitch on armhole edge until only until 7 stitches remain. Knit until side measures 6 1/2 inches and bind off. Repeat for right side.
Back
Work as for front
Finishing
Using a yarn needle, sew up both shoulder seams. Weave in all ends and trim with crochet hook. Sew in your label. Let your tank hang on a padded hanger for a day or two. Admire and get ready to reel in those second looks.
Not a mermaid but a merman? No problem! Here is a great book, Knitting with Balls, by a great guy knitter and friend, Michael DelVecchio that has some wonderfully well designed pieces to knit.
Enjoy! I am sure your tank will be beautiful. Let me know how you are doing.
Congratulate yourself for being a fei cheong (Cantonese for very) fabulous human being, artist, entrepreneur, nonprofit, or company.
Now, look behind you. Wow, there are a lot of people in competition with you for being the most fei cheong fabulous.
How do you stand apart? How do you compete successfully?
A post on this very topic by Chris Brogan, a great thinker about things like this, appeared way before my morning coffee the other day. Being #1 Daughter of #1 Hsiung sister in a sprawling Chinese family has prepared me for competitive living, one family reunion at a time. Over time, I have realized that if you accept yourself as your fiercest competitor and critic, you will never lose. Through my years as a nonprofit ninja, I find that my mistakes have been my greatest mentors. There are many ways to be an awesome competitor. Here are some of my thoughts.
Rewrite the gameplan
Can you solve a problem I didn’t know I had? Chris gives the example of how Virgin USA solved his “flying is kind of boring” problem. Its always better to be proactive in creating compelling value for people. Do you focus more time on value or product?
Reconsider the failures
Another great post, this time about failure, by Fred Wilson who ends his piece by saying, “So don’t hide your failures. Wear them as a badge of honor. And most of all, learn from them..”. Failure is nothing more than a GPS alert telling you to re route a new and perhaps unimagined path to your goals. Do you look through your failures for clues?
Reinvent your nametags
Constituent, consumer, service provider…. Hmmm. Accurate, but not sexy. When you have a problem with your Apple product, who do you talk to? An Apple Genius. Hey listen, do you want to waste your valuable time with anything but a genius? Apple knows this about you and has made it easy for you to get help. And because these geniuses have had this title professionally bestowed upon them, they are filled with pride in being able to save you. Do you and yours do more than your nametags?
Redirect the race
The race to the best price is always towards the bottom. Being competitive and focused on other market factors such as listening well, empowering people, making life easier and fun, building a relevant community – whatever it is you do best for people - puts you in the position of running the race, not running in it.
Respect
No one is a winner all the time. Your day in the sun may be tomorrow, not today. Look at the big picture and consider what you gained from each success and from each failure. If you can backtrack from each success to a lesson learned or an insight gained from an earlier failure, consider that a fei cheong respectable success.
I am counting on all you competitive types to come back with more cool ways to be a contender!
I am a momspy, artspy and nonprofit knitter. Hi! Welcome to hoongyee.com, my blog where you will find style notes for people who change the world. read more>
