I’ve had this glass jar sitting on my shelf since December. I set it up for the DWR Modernmart event back then and had it on my table for passerbys. What’s inside? Little paper fortunes, pieces of wisdom, well wishes. Whoever stuck their hand in the jar pulled out a nice saying, and a few lucky people ended up with a gift bag filled with Five and a Half goodies to take home.

I’d like to reenact the jar of wishes online, for all you who couldn’t be there to draw from the real jar of wisdom.  Only this time, it requires a bit of participation on your end. And yes, there are gift bags involved!

Interested? Here’s what to do:

Write in the comments section of this post your own original well-wish or piece of wisdom. (Include your name, e-mail and website.)

From the submissions we get, we’ll choose our favorite 3,  who will each receive a Five and a Half journal. Also, Shawn will hand-letter those 3 sayings into notecards (with each credited to its author of course) which will be printed and mailed to all of you who participate (we’ll ask for all your mailing addresses when the cards are ready, don’t put your mailing addy in the comments section for the world to see!).

To get you started, here are a few of the pieces of wisdom and well wishes that we had in the jar of wisdom (I was in such a hurry I didn’t think of any of my own):

“Wrinkles should merely indicate where smiles have been.” ~Mark Twain

“If life seems to have more questions than answers, try to be the one who asks the questions.” ~Lucy as Madame Fullcharge, Peanuts

“Do, or do not. There is no ‘try’.” ~Yoda, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Remember, these examples are by other people. We’d like to hear your own original sayings, created by you.

Okay, now it’s your turn!

{Update, April 22nd, 2008: Thanks for writing in with your quotes! We’ve picked our favorite three and are making them into notecards to send to the first 22 of you who wrote in with your original sayings. We’ll post pics of the notecards online soon!}

I think we need a corkboard to put up all the pics we like.

Elsewhere: amazing(!) vintage Japanese children’s illustrations, really clever designs by Jasmine Raznahan (had me chuckling), and Will Ashford’s play with words.

We heard it referred to that way in Sling and Arrows. Must be a Canadian thing. Oh and I should take this chance to tell you that I think Slings and Arrows is one of the best TV shows I’ve ever watched. We highly recommend, with two thumbs up.

Not so high on the we-think-you-should-try list, pizza from Patsy’s. We ate it after swimming the other day (and you know when you’re hungry everything tastes good). Even with voracious appetites we still couldn’t finish one small pie (and I can eat a lot). Patsy’s, the famous old coal-oven pizza place, seems to no longer live up to its reputation (well I’d only eaten it once before some five years ago, but it was pretty darn good back then). Oh and on the way out I read on the placquard that coal-ovens are no longer allowed in restaurants because they’re an environmental hazard but Patsy’s is proud to have one because it pre-dates the environmental regulations. Hmmm. I already contribute to my share of environmental decline by owning an air conditioner. I think I can pass on the pizza.

The leaves aren’t in yet; everything around seems to be some shade of red or brown.

We saw this cute tricycle when walking around Park Slope. I think I must be one of the few people who live in Brooklyn that doesn’t know how to ride a bike. Well, I’ve learned to, but I keep falling off.

… don’t last for very long but they’re really bright and pretty to look at when working.

And that’s a Nico Muhly CD we’re listening to. We don’t know much about instrumental music, but we think this stuff sounds really good.

Getting unexpected mail is the best thing. A new review book from Princeton Architectural Press arrived yesterday, and by 8pm last night, both Shawn and I had each finished reading it (and were talking about how much we liked it.)

You may already know of her, Kate T. Williamson, for her beautifully illustrated book A Year in Japan. This time, in her newest book, At A Crossroads, she tells us of what happened after Japan, when she moved home to live with her parents in Pennsylvania while “working on a book.”

I alternated between cringing and laughing out loud, as she recreates the awkward moments, the mundane moments, the outrageous, and even the sad and quiet ones with amazing honesty. Her stylized illustrations and witty writing cast light on the little things which make life precious: getting her grandmother to trim her crooked haircut, the squirrel glaring at her after she evicts the family from outside her window, watching her dad’s barbershop chorus perform at a quartet competition, and (one of my favorites) just walking the family dog.

There aren’t any grand ephiphanies or lessons here. We just see the things she encountered during the 23 months she lived at her parent’s house, while being “at a crossroads.” I think that’s where the honesty lies. And what makes this book so worth reading.

It would be the perfect Spring morning, if I didn’t have to use the radio to drown out the sound of drilling! Every half a block it seems, they’re building something new in our neighborhood. Soon our little home will be cast in the shadow of big skyscrapers. Our old Brooklyn neighborhood seems to be changing really fast.

A few interesting links: a recent interview with Maira Kalman, where she explains her secret to drawing is perseverance (aha!); Bibliodyssey, which Shawn’s been drooling over, and I’m like three weeks late on these: Inspiration, the second issue of Design for Mankind’s e-zine, and for all you t-shirt lovers out there, Rumplo.

We know quite a few of you have your postcard tacked to your bulletin board or fridge and are meaning to get around to it. This is a friendly reminder from the people who sent you the postcard that since the weather’s getting nicer, it might be fun to make a date with a friend, grab your postcard, and head into the lovely spring sunshine to complete the task. (And e-mail photos to us.)

Above, a couple of pics from our buddy Amy of Greenjeans who spent an afternoon in the park with her friend Mia doing what “the postcard says.” I know, we said no more previews of submissions we’re receiving till we put up the official site, but this one really put me in the mood for spring (green grass and sneakers!) so I just had to share!

There’s no right or wrong way to complete each task, and you can interpret the instructions however you like. The point is to have fun and to see something really ordinary in a very different way. And please don’t be shy, we’d love for you to share your results with us!

Feeling a little less chatty lately, so for the time-being, I’ll try to keep ya’ll entertained with more pictures than words. I hope you don’t mind!

yoohooo, is there anyone out there named “shawn” who does screenprinting and would like a barely used squeegee? if so, we’d be more than happy to mail it to you, in exchange for a screenprint you’ve already made.

or, is there anyone out there who wouldn’t mind owning a barely used squeegee with the name “shawn” written on it, who would like to trade for a screenprint?

p.s. the squeegee is 14 inches. i have no idea what durometer(?) measurement it is, but i’ll tell ya if you let me know how to figure it out!

{update, march 23rd: we have a taker! the trade is in process and we are looking forward to showing off our new print when we receive it. we’ll be posting a pic of it here!}