NYC-based filmmaker Amy DePaola asked me to be a guest on her fantastic new podcast Pink Among Men. We spoke for an hour about Creating Feminist Media, my recent documentary, religion, mentorship, motherhood, and more. If you want to know more about me and what motivates my work, give it a listen below. I also recommend subscribing to Amy's podcast. It's great.

Pink Among Men Episode 103:
​Mentors, Religion, and Creating Feminist Media
​ 

I spent a day with a mother of twin toddlers. 

​I'm still exhausted.
​ 

I should know by now that feeling compelled to complete a series means I will inevitably lose the creative juices required to do so. I lose the inspiration to create new installments, but I don't want to post anything outside of the series, so I end up not posting anything. For months. Vicious cycle. (This is assuming that I am only responding to self-imposed deadlines, of course. If someone is counting on my deliverables, I always complete the project. Important clarification. Especially if you are a potential employer.)

Back in November, I decided to create a piece detailing something I was grateful for every single day until Thanksgiving. I had hoped to build this into a culminating gratitude event on Thanksgiving day... perhaps even recording the varied gratitudes of the people who had gathered at our home to celebrate. It was going to be inspirational and fantastic! It was going to inspire all who heard it to be more grateful and express their gratitude more readily! YES! GRANDEUR!

And then it was my husband's birthday. And then it was my mother's birthday. And my gratitude for both of these people was (is!) too overwhelming to just slap some crappy thing together. So I got a little behind. And then all of a sudden it was JUNE!

So, to sum up and lay this straggling, unfinished series to rest... everything I am grateful for in life stems from two realities: 
1) I have the ability to start over and re-commit when I fail.
2) I experience the enduring love of a family.

So this post celebrates both of those things. For your listening pleasure, I present my darling nephew Zachary singing "The W Song" (these letter songs are amazing, by the way).

THE GRATITUDE CHALLENGE: November 13-30, Re-commitment and Family.
For those following along in an RSS reader, click through to the original post to hear today's piece.

Thanks to the USA's celebration of Veterans, I did not have to work today. Not being compelled to sit in my office on a Monday is worthy of its own Gratitude post, but I decided to celebrate the Mystic River instead (sorry, Monday! Maybe next time.).

B and I often drive by this intriguing three-story wooden structure built on the banks of the Mystic River. We kept saying we needed to do some investigation (especially since I've been driving by this thing for six years now!), but we never got around to it. It was absolutely gorgeous outside, so B had the brilliant idea of remedying this gross error. Amazing idea, B! It was rad.

Turns out it is part of Torbert MacDonald Park... a huge and absolutely gorgeous park on the banks of the Mystic River. You cannot tell from the road how huge this park is... and even cooler: it used to be totally wrecked due to the construction of I-93. It was reclaimed and made super luscious! How lucky we are to live so close. Enjoy the bonus inclusion of photos documenting our adventure!

THE GRATITUDE CHALLENGE: November 12, Grateful for the Mystic River.
For those following along in an RSS reader, click through to the original post to hear today's piece.