Category Archives: Shameless

Momversation

My Mom is…a little bit internet challenged.   Like, she called me once and asked me how to “do” Amazon.com.   No, seriously.   I’m not trying to be funny.   That happened.

To be clear, I’m not mocking my Mom.   I mean, I am, but I also totally admire her in lots of ways.    She’s my creative soul sister, she inspires me to be the best me I can be, and she is an A+ Grandma, but MAN is she dense about technology.    {You can probably tell by the way I’m sugar coating this that my Mom reads my blog.   Which is kind of a big deal considering I’m pretty much shocked that she even knows what a blog is…love you mom…}

So with that in mind, the following is an email exchange between my mother (readers, meet Margie, affectionately known as The Marge, and WOW is she going to be pissed that I called her that on the internet) and I which took place this morning:

{names redacted both for obvious reasons and also because I love saying “redacted”}

On Aug 16, 2010, at 10:55 AM, Mamasoy[redacted]@[redacted].com wrote:

Dear Morgan and Scott,

Please make a note that the 2nd night of Rosh Hashonah will be held at [redacted] and [redacted] [redacted]‘s. It is: Thursday, September 9th.  I will follow up with the time.

xoxo

Mom

Okay, so usually the problem is much worse than this.   This is actually a pretty casual email for her, but you see what I’m talking about, right?    Suuuuuuper formal.   Plus, she already told me this on the phone this morning, and was emailing me because I couldn’t write the date down when she called.    [Because I was too busy to find a pen, okay?]    I try to be a good daughter and help my Mom improve herself at every turn (because that’s what Mothers and Daughters are for, right?) so I decided to try to enlighten her as to the error of her overly-formal emailing ways once and for all.

In a message dated 8/16/2010 11:31:09 A.M. morgan@the818.com writes:

Dear Mom,

Thanks for letting us know.   We will plan to attend, and are waiting with baited breath for the time.

Also: e-mail is a casual means of communication, and therefore you are not required to use such formal salutations when composing.   I realize that you were raised on politeness and letter-writing, but we are living in a digital world, and I know you can be a digital girl.   So give it a try.   When you respond to this, just reply as if we were having a regular conversation.   Like, for example, an appropriate response to this email would be:

Stop being such a smartass.   I raised you better than that.   xoxo   -Mom

See?   Was that so hard?

Love you!

-m-

Helpful, right?    I know.    I am an excellent daughter.    But I don’t think she got it:

On Aug 16, 2010, at 11:33 AM, mamasoy[redacted]@[redacted].com wrote:

Dear Morgan,

Love you too!!

You little snot.

Mom

*   *   *

…and speaking of Momversation[s]…nope, it’s not a coincidence that this post shares a name with one of my favorite web series.   I had a chance to catch up with Momversation Managing Producer Jennifer Brandt at BlogHer, and by “catch up” I mean “sweat-so-profusely-they-had-to-slather-me-with-pancake-to-control-the-epic-shine,” with a healthy side of “flail-around-wildly-while-attempting-to-articulate-myself-not-on-paper.”   I swear I’m not this awkward in person.   There’s a reason I’ve never vlogged.    And yeah…I’m waaaaay too self conscious to post it here {and then there’s Jennifer who is all beautiful and collected and sitting right there for you to compare me to} so if you want to see it, you’ll have to head on over to Momversation to check it out.

And now I will go die in a corner.

 Subscribe

Sweet Child o’ Mine.

The most exciting thing about my new gig over at Cargoh is watching the marketplace fill up with all of these insanely talented people.    I try to keep my new-mom-ness from exploding all over my work, so in an effort to save Cargoh readers from having to sift through feature after feature about the awesome kid-related stuff, I’m going to share a few of my favorites with you guys… I hope you don’t mind.   I might make a habit of it if this level of cuteness keeps up.

Lemon Pie Handmades was one of the first sellers that nearly knocked me out of my chair with awesomeness.   They handmake these freaking adorable pillow friends for your little one from an ever changing supply of cuddly textiles.   Rawrie the Dino [above] is my favorite, and may find himself at home in Dee’s nursery as soon as I can break my credit card out of the ice block I froze it in to keep myself from spending us into oblivion.    C’mon.   In the name of independent artists, right?

In addition to having one of the coolest sounding shop names I’ve ever heard, Superfly Lullabies makes these gorgeous, cozy blankies (perfect for strollers or picnics) in a stunning variety of poppy patterns (that’s pop-y, like pop art, they don’t exclusively use prints with poppies on them.) Man are they pretty.

And I am loving Earthy Beginnings Philsophy Tee’s line for toddlers and tots.   Made in the USA from 100% Organic Cotton their shirts feature sayings meant to inspire the next generation.   {Also check out their musical instrument tee’s…I want to get Dee this one to represent her beat keeping lineage!}

Also, while we’re talking Cargoh, did you see my interview with Gregg and Megan Deal of Modern Bird Studios on Gregg’s Popmatic Show? And while you’re over there you have to check out the work of New Moon Ceramics, and listen to the enchanting sounds of Pomplamoose.

Also, and this is totally unrelated but pretty darn cool…one of my posts (the recently recycled Bat Mitzvah post, funnily enough) was just announced as a 2010 BlogHer Voice of the Year Finalist. And it will be turned into a piece of artwork and auctioned off at the Kirtsy-curated Voices of the Year Gala at this year’s BlogHer Conference in New York (proceeds will go to Gulf relief efforts) and I can’t wait to see how it turns out.   To say I’m psyched to be included in such tremendous company would be an understatement.   But yeah…I’m psyched.   Thanks BlogHer.

Vote For Us @ topbabyblogs.com Top Baby Blogs

 Subscribe

Like Crack for Design Enthusiasts.

That is approximately 1/3 of the pile of crap I brought home from Dwell on Design to sort through and eventually, in some form or another, write about.

The LA Convention Center is BIG (and NOT easy to navigate) and the eye candy was plentiful.   Designers and creators were on hand to chat at almost every booth, and as an added bonus for a PreFab fanatic like myself, the exhibition floor was {as always} literally litered with mini-homes, each one it’s own unique architecht-designed floorplan and range of materials – some of which were being autioned off on eBay (for really, quite an impressive bargain) while modernists strolled through.

I was amazed by the perfect blend of modern rustic luxury I found in the Reclaimed Space house {pictured below} and intrigued by the concept of the eco-friendly Hybrid House [from Sander Architechts]  “part prefab, all custom” as their literature so elequently puts it.    I was thrilled to finally see IQ Haus in person (some of my favorite siding options in the industry) and it’s always nice to see the stunning quality of Marmol Radziner’s Skyline Series (part of the Dwell Homes Collection) as a periodic reminder as to why they seem to price their floor plans so far above most of their competitors.

We brought Dee, which in retrospect, was il-advised {except I don’t regret it one bit because she got to sit for portraits with the incredible Sarah Wert of [San Francisco Based] Modern Kids Photography – teasers below} because she wasn’t quite big enough to take advantage of the Modern Family Lounge (although it was not to be missed if you are a fan of modern nurseries and children’s products that blend beautifully with your grown-up decor without sacrificing whimsy.)

The Outdoor exhibit was enough to tempt me to want to hold up my nearest bank branch and make off with the lot of it {odd that I think it would be easier to rob a bank than individual vendors at the the LA Convention Center, but the mind is a weird and wonderful thing…} most notably (for me) the breathtaking (and massive) Ancient Olive Trees which stood in massive wooden planters every 20 feet or so throughout the outdoor exhibition, hung with eye-catching orange and white Hanging Circle Pots filled with succulents from pottedstore.com .   (The trees were shipped in from Santa Rosa for the event and have already laid down roots in Laguna Beach.)

I also flipped for Plain Air’s throwback line of outdoor furniture {which reminded me of my beloved, now-defunct, vintage 1960′s rattan set which my dogs literally ate, a fate unlikely to befall Plain Air’s vinyl-corded update on the mid-century classic.}

Read more…

 Subscribe

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the internet…

So, I have some exciting news:  I’m now blogging daily on all things art & design at a wonderful little place across the internet called CARGOH.COM.

If you’re a lover of art, or fashion, or music, or design…this place is for you.  My new home away from home, the Cargoh Culture blog is an eclectic mix of the current, the vintage, the obscure, if you can name it, and it was crafted or created rather than mass-manufactured, chances are you’ll find it there.

I’ve been working on this for a couple of months now, and I am so excited to finally get to share it.   This is a dream gig for me – getting to work with people I love who are so passionate about what they do, and truly want to serve and support the independent art community has been incredible.    Getting to learn about new artists and watch the marketplace begin to grow is a true testament to the power of the internet to unite and mobilize, and I’m excited about the possibility that presents to independent artists and craftspeople.  So come visit. I’d love for you guys to see what we’ve been working on.

* * *

In other elsewhere-on-the-internet-related news, I somehow found myself nominated to be nominated for the 2010 Nickelodeon Parents’ Picks Awards for Best Parenting Blog (I’m not totally clear on the nominated to be nominated part myself, but that’s how they’re doing it, and as the old saying goes, it’s an honor just to be nominated…to be nominated.)

So, to be actually nominated, Nick (that’s short for Nickelodeon, we’re on a first name basis ever since they nominated me to be nominated for their award) has informed me that I should “Get the word out online! …let everyone know that you’re a potential Parents’ Picks Nominee! They all love you so they’ll totally nominate you every single day!”

Pssssh. Nick thinks that I can get you guys to click that little icon every single day.   I’d be happy (like, really happy) if you guys would just click it once.   So, if you’ve been visiting The818 for a while, and you enjoy the content, then would you consider giving that button a click?   Then you’ll need to scroll down, look for THE818.com, and click the “nominate” icon below it.   That’s it.   You’ve nominated me.   (And hey…if you really like the content on this site and you want to click it every single day as Nick suggests, I would totally appreciate that too – voting ends June 17th.)    You can nominate as many of Nick’s Pick’s as you want, so if you’re a fan of parenting blogs, you should check out the other potential nominees (including my friend Joanna’s blog RAISING MADISON!) and give them some love too.

 Subscribe

Boys of Summer

So on Saturday, Scott, Dee and I headed out to Elysian Park for a little pre-season freeway series, and also, Dee’s first visit to Dodger Stadium, which was very exciting [for Scott and I.   Dee slept through most of it.]

Dodgers vs. Angels.   An LA baseball fan’s dream (I’ll pause here for the requisite jokes about LA Fans showing up late and leaving after the 7th Inning Stretch.   You guys just about done?   Okay then.  Go Dodgers.)     Scott’s been a die-hard Dodger fan since he was a wee one (he’s a third generation Los Angelino) and my side has deep roots in the team’s original home town.   Needless to say this is a family that bleeds Dodger Blue, and we were anxious to take our girl to her first game.    It was Alvin and The Chipmunks Day at Dodger Stadium (thanks to Fox for inviting my little family and I to join the festivities) and while Dee enjoyed meeting the life sized Chipmunks, her Daddy was less-than pleased about the passing out of red caps with an “A” on them at Dodger’s Stadium during a Freeway Series game – even in the pre-season.  (That’s a picture of him refusing to wear the “Alvin” cap on principle.   He might have been right about the bad ju-ju.   Sadly, it wasn’t the Dodger’s best game.   But they still rule.)  {Oh, and have you seen these babysafe sunscreen wipes from MD Moms?  Amazing.   The kid is lily white and – although we eventually moved to the shade for safety’s sake – she didn’t get a spec of sunburn on her!}

Want to win a copy of Alvin and The Chipmunks, The Squeakquel on DVD?   I’ve got three copies to give away - click through to enter.

 Subscribe