TUTORIAL IT

And Im Back!

Did you miss me? I feel like I have a lot to catch yall up on, so Ill divide this post up into three sections: where Ive been, whats happening now, and whats coming up.

Where Ive been:

The reason I took a little break (ok, maybe 6 weeks isnt exactly short...) from blogging was because my husband and I had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help run a series of summer programs on Marthas Vineyard! Never in my life did I think that we would have the chance to leave our normal lives behind for awhile to work together on a property that hosts week-long programs for middle and high school students on an island in Massachusetts. Crazy, right? "Real adults" dont do this sort of thing, do they?

Well, we did!

With my husband finishing graduate school in May and me deciding to leave my career in healthcare to pursue Mix & Match Design Company full time, we created a gap of time this summer that freed us up to do this crazy thing. Our primary responsibility was to work behind-the-scenes to ensure that the programs ran smoothly from week to week. I nicknamed the two of us "the great communicators" because a lot of what we did involved collecting and disseminating info between the summer-long staff (kitchen, office and facilities folks) and the week-long staff/volunteers so that everything would go according to plan from day to day and week to week. We were also in charge of developing community among the college-aged summer-long staff and running weekly Bible studies for them. We had such a great group and I already miss them!

While we were on the Vineyard, we also managed to have a lot of fun in our off time. I feel like I should put together some kind of guide for all the fun things you can do there - we had a blast exploring beaches and cute little towns, hiking, catching sunsets, fishing, eating lobster, etc. I put together a little collage of some of the photos I snapped with my iPhone, which doesnt do our adventures justice, but it gives you a flavor!

Whats happening now?

As of this past Monday, Im a full-time entrepreneur! Ive turned my attention to running and growing Mix & Match Design Company.


Im excited slash a little bit terrified. Running your own business is no joke! Transitioning from a job where pretty much every minute was planned out for me to a job where Im the boss and its up to me to run this thing is quite an adjustment. Im definitely up for the challenge though, and Im pumped to finally be able to put all my energy toward my passion of offering folks affordable and approachable interior design services! With that being said, if you or anyone you know is in need of help in their homes, send them my way! You can find out more info through the website (linked above) or contact me via chaney@mixandmatchdesign.com.

Whats coming up?

So many things! Ive got two Mix & Match projects in the works right now that I hope to share photos of soon. I shared the plan for one of them before I went on sabbatical - the Philadelphia suburbs master bedroom. In case you missed it, here it is:

We tweaked a few of the items along the way, but this is the general gist! Its going to be beautiful and I cant wait to see it in person soon.

The second project is an industrial farmhouse style dining room. Im still working with that client to finalize a few things and I hope to share more about it in the coming weeks!

The last big thing thats coming up is that in a couple of weeks we start our big kitchen renovation. Yippee! Were ripping everything out and starting from scratch. Its time to say goodbye to cracked, mismatched floor tiles, the makeshift "bar," old appliances, a leaky faucet and oh so much more... This may be one of the last times you see it like this, so get a good look now!


I shared my kitchen ideas and inspiration awhile back and now plans are firming up, which is exciting. My father-in-law and I will be taking this project on in August and yall will get the full scoop as we get going. The #phillyrowhousereno is back for round two!

I think Ill wrap things up for today, but its good to be back in action here on the ole blog. More to come!

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Amorth Watch Hes back because hes got himself a TV show to help separate possession from psychiatric problems

The last time Amorth got mentioned in Skeptobot was way back in August 2006, and then he fell off the radar. So to pop up again a year and a half later hes got to be up to something, and indeed he is. Obviously most news reports about him are in Italian but Ive managed to find this report that states hes making a television and Internet report series.

Oh goody! The San Francisco Sentinel apparently watched the first episode as theyve got some quotes from it.

“Normally when a person experiences these conflicts and problems, the first thing he does is see a doctor and psychiatrist,” he said. “It is very difficult to distinguish the devil’s action from a psychological problem. The person goes to a psychiatrist and after years of therapy obtains no result.

“Then he begins to suspect that the problem is not a natural one and goes to a conjurer from whom he obtains even greater harm. This is what normally happens. At this point, it is possible that someone more experienced in these matters suggests an exorcist.”

The main crux of his show appears to be about getting respect for exorcism and urging Italy to separate possession from psychiatric problems. Call me old fashioned but tying a person with very real mental problems to a bed and telling him the devil has possessed him is probably not a very good thing to do.

He also claims “Mariology" is his field, and The Virgin Mary is Satans great foe because she is very pure and Satan is filthy. I know I shouldnt find that funny, but I do.

Im going to keep an eye on this, and see if I can dig up the shows, to work out what is going on. Hopefully he wont turn into the Gillian McKeith of Exorcism.

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Annual Awards Nerdism is Back! Oscar Predictions

The madness is just around the corner. Dashing to the cinemas every five seconds to see the latest awards-worthy movies (lol, I dont go to the cinema any more). Getting up at weird hours to watch nominations being announced. Trying every website on the universe to see who will stream the awards ceremonies. But thats all part of awards season, which is definitely my favourite season of the year.

This year will be a little bit different, though. As I am going to Japan in January, Im going to miss the Critics Choice Awards, the Oscar nominations and the Golden Globes - which are kind of the biggest things. However, I will get to them a few days later, so I hope some people will still be around! My awards coverage will officially start this week with the Indie Spirit nominations, where you will see the new Happy Fassy, Lowkey Loki and Overwhelmed Owen. As always, when we get to Oscar time, I will definitely be doing prediction poetry. If you want to know what you have to look forward to, heres my coverage from last year/earlier this year.

For now, though, here are my early predictions. Im proud of the design work that I put into them - hopefully that will overshadow the fact that Ive been awful at watching the right films this year.

So, whos with me in this crazy season? And what do you think of my predictions?

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and were back!

Last Friday I updated you on my relationship with the Coros LINX "smart helmet:"

In particular, I mentioned I still could not get the "emergency contact" feature to work, which prompted at least one commenter to point out that a certain popular ride-tracking application will now inform up to three "safety contacts" of your whereabouts in real time:


Beacon shares your location via a text message that contains a simple URL. Any athlete with an iPhone or Android can use it, and any safety contact with a mobile phone and an internet connection can watch your back. Loved ones can quickly tell the difference between “running a little late” and “stuck on the side of the road,” and you can go for big adventures with the confidence that someone out there knows where you are.

Of course, if you forget to turn this feature off then loved ones can also quickly tell the difference between "going on an epic ride" and "having an adulterous liaison with a neighbor."  However, this is largely theoretical, as the chances of a Fred or Frederica cheating on you are virtually zero for the following reasons:

1) No cyclist would use a ride as an alibi for an affair because no cyclist would forego a ride for sex;
2) Even if they did use a ride as an alibi for sex, the cyclists spouse or partner would see right through the ruse when the cyclist failed to go on and on about the mind-numbing minutiae of the ride for the rest of the day;
3) No cyclist could possibly muster up the energy or desire to start an affair in the first place since cyclists have no energy or desire to do anything thats not riding a bike;
4) Cyclists can barely conceal their upgrade purchases from their partners so theres no way they could also hide the cost of cocktails, dinners, and hotel rooms;
5) Nobody would ever have an affair with a cyclist anyway because cyclists are the most boring people on earth (see 1-4 above).

With regard to #5, if youre wondering how cyclists get into relationships at all, its because their partners correctly identified them as low flight risks.  Sure, life with a cyclist is drudgery, but at least theyre predictable--the exception being professional cyclists, who have more in common with musicians than with their Fredly counterparts:


Though even the pros are comparatively boring.  Consider Mario Cipollini, whose image as a Lothario is almost certainly a media construct of his own devise.  Seriously, theres no way somebody who doped that much could possibly have functioning genitals:



Anyway, all of this is a roundabout way of saying that the Coros helmet doesnt seem to do anything any other product doesnt already do better, including but not limited to: being comfortable; playing music; and telling your loved ones you just died.

Given this, my advice to would-be bike entrepreneurs would be to avoid trying to use technology in order to reinvent the wheel.  (Or the helmet, as the case may be.)  Instead, imbue your product with the elegance and simplicity of the bicycle itself--like this thing, which is basically just a friggin sack:




Some of the unique features of the Bicycle Porter include:

• Its fit to the saddle using an innovative design
• The fabric stitch pattern around the frame
• The super light weight design
• Excellent aerodynamic performance because of its position behind the rider

Available link for download