I am continually surprised at how fast the stars are disappearing. The little jar of cards I left out is completely empty as well on an almost daily basis. Seems hard to keep up.
The other day, when I stopped by the coffee shop, I walked past a table in the corner and saw a little girl, maybe 8 years old? With two older women. They each had a pile of about 5 capsules each in front of them and the little girl was explaining why they each had which capsules. I caught something about being happy and sad and great. It made me happy.
I am also amused at the number of stars I find left behind that have clearly been taken apart. I can only assume people are looking for wishes. In truth, I did accidentally lose a whole afternoons worth of wishes about a year ago. I wrote all the wishes out and then had to hurry to an appointment, and mixed all the wish written paper in with the unwished paper. I had folded all the paper in my little carry case before I realized what I'd done - so you might find one. Maybe. But the stars in the machine aren't the wishing stars - those are going to go up for auction as soon as I have a thousand wishes. I think I'm getting closer. I haven't counted in a while.
I wish it wasn't so cold.
I hope I survive the winter this time.
I wish some things had remained whole.
What are your wishes today?
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Beginner's Success!
Beginner's Success!
You will notice that in this shot the machine appears to be about half full - because it is! To date I have had to top it off 4 times. I am very excited. I also got the story laminated and a little cup of stars to hold the business cards I had made. I also had to have a sign made about them not being edible...I'm sure the paper wouldn't really hurt anyone, but people seem to assume they are edible since it is a bubblegum machine. Better safe than sorry.
I have been asked a few times where one can leave wishes - in the comments section! You can leave them anonymously, or with your name, whichever makes you most comfortable.
I walked into Hilltop the other day, just looking to buy some chai, and saw a little girl at a table with two older women, and they each had a pile of these little capsules in front of them - she was somehow divvying them up when I walked past. It made me laugh.
I wish I had more places to put these, since they are obviously successful!
I hope that they inspire people to visit the site and leave their wishes!
I wish it was warm again, but that will happen in due time I suppose.
What are your wishes today?
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Hilltop Coffee, Portland, Maine
Hilltop Coffee, Portland, Maine
That pretty face is Kendyll, and she is a barrista at Hilltop Coffee in Portland, Maine - which is where my origami star machine is! Yay!
There will eventually be a sign - there were technical difficulties. That big white square is an artist statement though.
For those of you who don't know - the machine has little capsules with 10 to 12 mini origami stars in it, as well as a strip of paper with wishingstarcollective.blogspot.com on it. To get a capsule, you pay a quarter. The artist statement explains the whole story, why I started the project and how it all took off, and encourages people to visit this website! And that little jar next to the machine has the little business cards I've been carrying around with me in it.
Oh, and while I was sitting there, chatting with Kendyll, 3 people used the machine! And it was nighttime, which is a super slow time for a coffee shop. We'll see what happens tomorrow morning!
For local Portlander's, please stop by and say hi to the lovely ladies at Hilltop Coffee. For those of you elsewhere, wouldn't you like to see one of those in your local coffee shop?
Leave your wishes!
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Make any wishes today?
Did you find a stray eye lash today?
Did you happen to notice when the clock said 11:11?
Did you see a shooting star last night?
Did you get the big side of a wishbone?
What did you wish for?
Did you happen to notice when the clock said 11:11?
Did you see a shooting star last night?
Did you get the big side of a wishbone?
What did you wish for?
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Times
There are times when you realize you have too much of a good thing.
When I hit 2,000 I stopped counting. Unfortunately, those are unwished stars - the ones I make just sitting next to the couch keeping my hands busy.
I realized I haven't paid enough attention to this blog nearly enough, my writing thoughts have been bent on my book. But I didn't realize I wasn't paying attention because I was always making the stars, every day, every week, more and more and more of them.
Wishes! I wish my little star machines were welcome in more places. I wish I could get the word out about this collective a little better.
And you?
When I hit 2,000 I stopped counting. Unfortunately, those are unwished stars - the ones I make just sitting next to the couch keeping my hands busy.
I realized I haven't paid enough attention to this blog nearly enough, my writing thoughts have been bent on my book. But I didn't realize I wasn't paying attention because I was always making the stars, every day, every week, more and more and more of them.
Wishes! I wish my little star machines were welcome in more places. I wish I could get the word out about this collective a little better.
And you?
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Children
I've recently realized that while I spent a good deal of my childhood responding to being told I should grow up to be a teacher with, oh hell no, I'm actually incredibly interested in education and the way children are raised.
That being said, I'm not about to tell you how to raise your children. One of my older sisters just had a baby, and I would never dream of telling her what to do with her child - so I'm not about to correct strangers.
At a convention recently I went to a panel called Educating Through Play, and it was taking a look at how we can educate children through many different mediums. This particular arguments focus was in the favor of games - while I know we have a lot of work to do to integrate it into the system and a lot of problems to address, I think it's a fantastic idea. I've always been a little put off by how rigid the school system is, and have wondered if there wasn't a different way to go about things.
At the convention I was making my tiny origami stars - since I carry the kit with me everywhere, and I can't ever seem to sit still - and ended up being asked about it by the couple I'd just been discussing alternative education styles with. I could have told them my usual story but ended up coming at it from a completely different angle.
"What are you making?" She asked. Mini origami stars, I responded. I have trouble sitting still. "So does my son," she said, "the one with ADHD." We were quiet for a minute and then she said, "What do you do with them all?" Usually I wait for some version of this question and then launch into my whole project spiel. It takes a while, maybe as long as five minutes, and I usually get a glazed over look from whoever asked me the question. Or if I give my short spiel - I'm raising money for research into a cure for ALS - I usually get a confused look, or an uninterested one. Sometimes a confused look followed by an uninterested look. My point being, the conversation doesn't have a lot of places to go after that. So, instead, I said:
"Do you know what Lou Gehrig's disease is?" She shook her head and her husband said, "Isn't that what that baseball player had?" And I said, "Yes. His name was Lou Gehrig. The disease is also called ALS. I forget what the letters stand for. Sometimes I just call it Als." They both laughed. The lady asked if I had ALS and I said no. "My biological mother had it, she died a few years ago." They both gave me really sympathetic looks and then looked back at the stars - which I was still making. "You know," I said, "It was really hard for my baby sister and I. She was only 15 at the time. I was in my early 20's. There weren't many places we could turn for comfort then. I mean, you're not supposed to lose your parents that young. Neither of us were really prepared. What do you do?" More sympathetic looks. "I was in college at the time - I ended up dropping out. I just couldn't concentrate on anything. My adopted mother taught me how to knit around then, and I started making these stars, and they both really helped me get through the day. Repetitive movements. Something pretty in the end. It helped me focus." More nods. And maybe they were just really nice people, but they were still interested in the story. "After a while - like, maybe a year? I realized I had way too many of these stars. I needed to do something with them. Can you imagine a trash collector picking up a giant trash bag full of mini origami stars?" They laughed. "It's kind of a long boring story, but in the end I decided I should raise money to help." It came out sort of odd, because the line we were standing in had started to move. "You mean, to help the kids who have parents with ALS?" The mom said. And it hit me. Yeah, I should raise money for research into a cure. But what about the kids, the families, the parents, the loved ones who are left behind? Who are struggling along? Who helps them? I happened to have an excellent support system in place, but my baby sister still struggles with this. And it's been 3 years.
So I made up my mind, right then. I'm going to research some outlets for victims of ALS, and try and focus on helping the children. It makes sense - they're the ones most attracted to these stars anyway, in their gumball machines.
It's something to think about. I'm also looking to put together a team, to help with outreach for this. Any volunteers?
I hope people are getting the help they need.
I hope I can help people somehow, even a little bit.
I wish I could magically make everything better for someone.
That being said, I'm not about to tell you how to raise your children. One of my older sisters just had a baby, and I would never dream of telling her what to do with her child - so I'm not about to correct strangers.
At a convention recently I went to a panel called Educating Through Play, and it was taking a look at how we can educate children through many different mediums. This particular arguments focus was in the favor of games - while I know we have a lot of work to do to integrate it into the system and a lot of problems to address, I think it's a fantastic idea. I've always been a little put off by how rigid the school system is, and have wondered if there wasn't a different way to go about things.
At the convention I was making my tiny origami stars - since I carry the kit with me everywhere, and I can't ever seem to sit still - and ended up being asked about it by the couple I'd just been discussing alternative education styles with. I could have told them my usual story but ended up coming at it from a completely different angle.
"What are you making?" She asked. Mini origami stars, I responded. I have trouble sitting still. "So does my son," she said, "the one with ADHD." We were quiet for a minute and then she said, "What do you do with them all?" Usually I wait for some version of this question and then launch into my whole project spiel. It takes a while, maybe as long as five minutes, and I usually get a glazed over look from whoever asked me the question. Or if I give my short spiel - I'm raising money for research into a cure for ALS - I usually get a confused look, or an uninterested one. Sometimes a confused look followed by an uninterested look. My point being, the conversation doesn't have a lot of places to go after that. So, instead, I said:
"Do you know what Lou Gehrig's disease is?" She shook her head and her husband said, "Isn't that what that baseball player had?" And I said, "Yes. His name was Lou Gehrig. The disease is also called ALS. I forget what the letters stand for. Sometimes I just call it Als." They both laughed. The lady asked if I had ALS and I said no. "My biological mother had it, she died a few years ago." They both gave me really sympathetic looks and then looked back at the stars - which I was still making. "You know," I said, "It was really hard for my baby sister and I. She was only 15 at the time. I was in my early 20's. There weren't many places we could turn for comfort then. I mean, you're not supposed to lose your parents that young. Neither of us were really prepared. What do you do?" More sympathetic looks. "I was in college at the time - I ended up dropping out. I just couldn't concentrate on anything. My adopted mother taught me how to knit around then, and I started making these stars, and they both really helped me get through the day. Repetitive movements. Something pretty in the end. It helped me focus." More nods. And maybe they were just really nice people, but they were still interested in the story. "After a while - like, maybe a year? I realized I had way too many of these stars. I needed to do something with them. Can you imagine a trash collector picking up a giant trash bag full of mini origami stars?" They laughed. "It's kind of a long boring story, but in the end I decided I should raise money to help." It came out sort of odd, because the line we were standing in had started to move. "You mean, to help the kids who have parents with ALS?" The mom said. And it hit me. Yeah, I should raise money for research into a cure. But what about the kids, the families, the parents, the loved ones who are left behind? Who are struggling along? Who helps them? I happened to have an excellent support system in place, but my baby sister still struggles with this. And it's been 3 years.
So I made up my mind, right then. I'm going to research some outlets for victims of ALS, and try and focus on helping the children. It makes sense - they're the ones most attracted to these stars anyway, in their gumball machines.
It's something to think about. I'm also looking to put together a team, to help with outreach for this. Any volunteers?
I hope people are getting the help they need.
I hope I can help people somehow, even a little bit.
I wish I could magically make everything better for someone.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)