gift giving and the dangerous practice of self google

In an effort to reconnect with poetry--a difficult reconnection since technology, being out of graduate school and academia, and flux have made poetry seem like "something else"--I had to google myself. This was good and bad:

The bad:
Oh man, I've written some really ridiculous things, people spell my name wrong often, and I can't believe how many typos I've allowed. I hope my students never noticed, but I know they did since we laughed about it in classes often. Also, I don't feel so comfortable with an online presence in general...I'd like to drop into the world and be in that living/real world.

Yesterday, at work, Kim asked me if ginger would brown overnight if we precut it. I "googled" the question to see the answers. The whole time, we were talking about how strange it is to "google" a question, to not just experiment or see what happens. It's a scary thing to already know. Luckily, we were so engaged in our own conversation and the huge oven at work doesn't let me get an internet connection anyway, so we did experiment. For deeper conversation and thinking about this, I suggest the book Cognitive Surplus (I'm sorry I talk about this book all the time).

The good:
I like poetry and poetic communities--though there are parts of this that could have gone into the "bad" section, but I don't feel like that at this moment.
I like finding, for instance, someone who read something I said and thought it was "smart"--look here, this made me blush blush blush and treat myself to a truffle (or four). I'd like to talk to this person to see what was appealing, what was "smart" inside of the comment...someday.
I also re-discovered Goodreads and my author profile there. I think that this network was a good kick in the butt to remind me that people read, that communication is entirely possible through poetics and making. I've been needing more kicks in the butt lately as I've dropped in production, submission, and motivation since going through a year of preparing to be wed and preparing to move / quit my job / and uproot.

All of this flux!

And in all of this, time for gift giving! It's spring and there are some notes that need to be sent, friends that need to be contacted, and love that needs to be shared. I have two days off in a row and today was dedicated to eating lots of pasta, sending out cards, and updating computer things. Tomorrow will be a bit healthier--running again, making soap, and continuing the practice of gift giving.

Here's what was packed up today--cards and love notes not included:

slippers I knit for my current boss who has been extremely patient while I learn how to quickly convert to grams, multiply and divide batters, and know when coffee cakes and muffins are done...patience is so valuable.

learning whipstitches will make the leather sole look a lot neater.

luckily, I keep show boxes for this occasion and practiced bow / ribbon tying with Paper Source before getting married--an important skill!

in the box!

The attached card with a tree tamp is from the "error" holiday cards. I kind of think they turned out great, but they were a bit too creepy to be our holiday cards. Jesse and I have lost a lot of silk screening skills, including pulling the screen. We're looking for Ithacans who are pros and can help us out at remembering what we once knew how to do.

Chocolates from NYC, this is a vegan chocolate and it is made with health in mind.

 Health and cholcalate? A dream come true!   

Found this adorable photo album and I know exactly who to gift it to!

I wrapped up a few knitted bunnies and a sown bunny toy for friends and friends who have new babies. I sent out a few cards to Chicagoans who I haven't talked to in awhile to remind them that Jesse and I are in Ithaca and that we still miss and love Chicago and the people there.

I love making care packages. There are so many details to consider: boxes, packaging, wrapping, printing, those details make me so happy. I can't wait to home dry some fruits for a summer care package of granola bags to friends, but I do want to fix my typewriter--make that, find someone to fix it--so that I can be a bit more creative with the cards. 

Wrapping gifts, folding boxes, and writing cards made me feel more connected than the internet searches and self google experiment. I have to admit though, I'm glad those links are up for past poems and books in my projects page, it's rewarding to be developing a presence or participatory role in poetry again. Too often, I meet people who "used to" do something and found themselves giving it up and, you can tell from their tone, missing what they were doing before. Is it a contemporary condition to "want it all"?