The World According To Crystal

Not much time to blog this week. Lots of deadlines but here’s some cool stuff that crossed my radar:

1. Raging grannies My feminist fore-mothers let loose on CBS for allowing anti-abortion ad. (Hat tip to @MeckCharlotte for tweeting this one because I don’t read Perez Hilton.) FYI: Upon reflection, I changed “raging grannies” because it was disrespectful. I know these women made it possible for me to have the life I do today.)

2. Publishing will never die. A three-act play explains why. (Hat tip to former Charlottean Dan Hutson for posting on Facebook. Dan, I miss Newsstand International to this day!)

3. Thanks to Andria Krewson (@underoak) and Helen Schwab (@helenschwab) for reminding me about the “Incomplete Manifesto for Growth.”

4. Photographer James Willamor never ceases to amaze me. Here’s his “2009 in Photos” on his blog via CLTBlog… and I’m thrilled that he used some of his Crossroads Charlotte photos .

5. I love when smart people rant. Check out this one by Mark Morford on SFGate.com. Thanks to the newly shorn Jason Silverstein for sharing.

How many of you have met yourself?

You work with or befriend someone and she (or he) reminds you so much of how you were at that age.

The you in your mid-20s. The teenage you. The thirtysomething you.

Most of the time, I’ll meet my younger self and say nothing.

Every so often, though, someone will do something or be going through a situation and  I’ll flash back to younger me and want to yell “Danger, Will Robinson, danger!”

Imitating a robot doesn’t work. Trust me. It just makes people who didn’t watch “Lost In Space” look at you kinda funny.

What I will do, if younger me wants to talk, is listen.

Most people know the answer. They usually need someone to listen as they work it out. I gleaned that from my Yodas, senseis, therapists and Oprah.

I’ve also learned that sometimes you simply have to go through something to get to the other side. It may or may not be easy but you don’t know until you move forward.

That’s when I want to whisper to younger me: “You can do this. It’ll work out.”

But not in a robotic voice.

After reading and watching the reports about the devastation in Haiti, I needed to find a little happy today. I turned to YouTube for a little help.

1. You cannot be sad when you watch the Muppets sing a Queen classic. This one has floating around for awhile but I keep watching it. Fave part: Animal’s “Mama” section.

2. By its very definition, glee is opening yourself up to joy. If you’re not watching “Glee,” you’re missing great music, laughs and some astute social commentary. This is my favorite scene from this season for more reasons than the song. You have to watch the whole episode. I’m not spoiling it.

"The Firebird." Photo by Paul Williams III

3. Disco Chicken, meet Techno Chicken. For those of you who don’t live in Charlotte, The Disco Chicken (above) is the nickname (trademarked by Meck Charlotte) of “The Firebird,” the glorious mirrored sculpture in front of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. It’s my favorite piece of art at the moment. I had hoped someone would have made a Disco Chicken video. Nyet. Instead, I found the Techno Chicken. I apologize in advance for 1:47 minutes of your life that you’re about to lose.

I began 2010 with the goal – not resolution, but goal – of blogging more often.

And here it is, 10:31 pm on Jan. 3, and I’m just now doing it.

Matthew Vincent, aka @MinimumFailure and MiniFail, is one of my favorite Charlotte bloggers. He examines what’s going on in the margins of the city, the news and life. Last month, he asked me why I didn’t blog more. “I’ve been a little busy,” I replied.

I told people that I was micro-blogging via Facebook and Twitter for the second half of 2009. That’s mostly true. Really, I was trying to wrap my head and my arms around my new work life at Amelie’s French Bakery and From The Hip Communications (click this link for even more info and see the PS below on FTH).

Yet I realized, as the dust settled on the craziest (in a good way) year of my life, I miss writing.

Sure, being informative, witty, snarky or irritating, depending on how you perceive me, in 140 characters or less challenges and entertains me. And posting great content to Facebook and providing informative, witty, snarky or irritating, again depending on your perception, status updates challenges and entertains me… but it’s not the same as writing.

Plus, I figured if one of my heroes, Meck Charlotte of Keeping Up With The Belks, could take a hiatus, I could, too.

I do hope to write more… in this very spot… in 2010. I’m not going to make any promises. Feel free to nudge me if I don’t. I do succumb to peer pressure at times.

After all, this a goal – not a resolution.

ps: Yes, I’ll be updating the FTH Communications blog soon, too… after I do marketing reports for two clients, plan a major event with another, write a magazine article, conduct a programming retreat and blah, blah, blah… you get the picture.