Rotofugi

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Rotofugi has become a hit amongst my friends. It's a designer toy store, Japanese in style....owned and run by a couple in the Ukrainian Village neighborhood (or East Village or West Town....depending on who you ask, the boundaries and names of neighborhoods in Chicago constantly change or are revised for personal reasons..more on that later). I dipped in there yesterday before $5 gourmet pizzas at Cleo's (Thursday special) and purchased myself a Ye Old English Dunny. Here's an excerpt from their site....and a couple pictures.

"Rotofugi Designer Toy Store & Gallery, established in July 2004, is located in Chicago's eclectic East Village neighborhood. Since opening, Rotofugi has grown to become one of the world's premier sellers of designer toys from artists all over the world. Rotofugi Toy Store features a diverse selection of vinyl figures, capsule toys, plush and more from both eastern and western designers. The adjoining Rotofugi Gallery features monthly art exhibits by a range of both local and nationally known artists.

Beginning in late 2007 Rotofugi partnered with Chicago based product development specialist Squibbles Ink to begin producing artist-designed figures by the talented designers located in their home town. Click here for more information on Squibbles Ink + Rotofugi projects.

Rotofugi is owned and operated by husband and wife duo Kirby and Whitney Kerr. You can find the couple in and around the store on most days. They love to talk about toys. "

Worlds Tiniest Letter

Well, so far this week, I started teaching English again at the Not-For-Profit group in Chicago (immigrant English classes community members can take for free), I resurrected this blog (go me!), I even got started on my blogroll....and visited the library twice. Once to get a shit ton of books about Costa Rica for my impending trip and once to get some Spanish workbooks and such because I almost purchased two or three of them at full price at Border's. Why do that when I can photocopy what I want for half the price, or even less! Nonetheless I DO have my eye on the Spanish Picture Dictionary. I am pretty sure I'm going to buy it today. On to the world's tiniest letter. I'll expound more later on the ESL, Spanish, CHICAGO, and more. Guess I should start mentioning Chicago a bit more, considering I live there.

THE WORLDS TINIEST LETTER www.leafcutterdesigns.com


The World's Smallest Postal Service (WSPS) is a teeny tiny transcription service and roaming post office based in the San Francisco Bay Area and also available online.

Lea Redmond is the Postmaster, setting up her tiny mobile office in cafes and shops where passers-by can write a letter and have it turned into a "world's smallest letter." The letter is transcribed on a miniature desk in the tiniest of script, sealed with a miniscule wax seal with the sender's intial pressed into it, packaged up with a magnifying glass in a glassine envelope, and finished off with a large wax seal (see above). It is a double delight: for both the sender and the recipient, and the WSPS is very happy to provide this important service to the world.

You Know You Live In Chicago.....when you can recite the following commercials word for word......

Galco's Soda Pop Stop...Los Angeles

My hobbies usually run parallel with something new I've learned in a book that I'm reading. Or I am simply curious and question everything that comes to mind. Either way, I've been on a quest to find products (soda) that is made with natural cane sugar instead of the high fructose corn syrup that is a product of the corn surplus farmers are encouraged to grow despite the loss they operate at. It's funny because I was introduced to Kola Champagne (hispanic soda) many years ago...probably about eight years ago. I've been a fan and I seek it out when I can. Luckily it's not too hard to find in Humboldt Park, as it's a Colombian or Peruvian soft drink.

http://www.galcos.com/

http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/banned-books.html

(obviously I didn't finish this post. I'll try to post some pics....but it's now 4/7/09 and I'm just trying to make complete posts from here on forward. Please forgive me. Getting into my literary groove.)

We Are All Going To Die....But How Many Of Us Will Truly Live?

Have you ever read Kris Carr's crazysexycancer.com? It's a documentary too. A pretty powerful one at that. Stop and think.....just for a moment......reflect on this woman's words:

"What I do know is that ritual is the most powerful way to find closure."

Ritual:
I can barely stomach the idea of losing someone I love. How to go on? How to deal with the intense missing?

Life is a terminal condition. If you watched me on Oprah last week (funny, it was a show on death) you heard me say it. Tis true, we're ALL going to die but how many of us will truly live? And what does that mean? Is it just another one of my cliche media sound bites? Well, in this raw state this is what I think truly living means:

1. Telling people you love them even though there is so much poison that you think you hate them. Once you say it you burst open with white joy and then you miss the time lost in the negative.

2. Doing things that make you really scared but really exhilarated.

3. Muting the voice in your head that is always worried, always tentative, always keeping you in the land of stuck. "Fuck it". "Just do it". GO.

4. Saying no to people who only take.

5. Saying yes to people who give you as much as you give them.

6. Opening your heart so wide that you touch a space that is unknown, uncomfortable and exposed. Staying in that space. Holding it. Holding it. Ahhhh.

7. Turning addictions into accomplishments. Nothing has you in it's grips. You are the grips.

8. Service to God/Goddess. Everything else will fall into place.

9. Sacred sweat, lots of it. Dance till you bleed. Laughing so loud someone complains.

10. Forgiving the world and then making it better.

And of course petting a kitty. Loving all sentient beings. Taking them off your plate and placing them on your sofa with a toy. Note: You may need a bigger sofa.

If everyone I meet is a teacher then Crystal was the ultimate sage. She adored ALL BEINGS. It was weird. Charles Manson could come for tea (or Bourbon) and she would have poured affection all over him. It was uncomfortable at times. "ENOUGH", I would say, "you're being creepy". But she had to pour it on that thick to get through some of my walls. She was sent to me for this very purpose. To teach me how to allow unconditional love in. I give it, but don't receive too much. Not that love isn't all around me. It is. I'm just very protective - or I was until the little grey love thunder came rollin' in. Now the steel is down and she is gone and there is so much ouchie, and endless thanks.

Learn How To Speak Scottish

Indian remake of Michael Jackson's Thriller