Sunday, June 17, 2012

Father Knows Best, Redux

I love my dad.

Actually, that's a bit of an understatement. Closer to the truth would be that I adore my dad beyond all reason, which is probably a good thing given that I am, for better or for worse, pretty much exactly like him. He and I share the same smile, the same sarcasm, the same habit of rubbing our eyes incessantly for no apparent reason, and even the same graduate degree. Suffice it to say that my father has taught me an awful lot through the years.

He taught me (on purpose) how to tie my shoes, how to shoot a BB gun, how to ride a bike, how to waltz, and how to drive a car -- all skills I consider essential for a long and happy life. He inadvertently sparked my interest in Atlanta through his love of Hank Aaron, and of NY through his yearly insistence on a Broadway-style family vacation. He gave me logic puzzles on plane rides as a child and later acted surprised when I told him that the LSAT just "happened" to use the exact same format. He, along with my mom, spent years attending my horse shows, convincing me that I could in fact learn math, and generally encouraging me in every way possible. For all of that, I am grateful.

My dad also taught me some important unintentional lessons, such as how to trap a raccoon in the backyard and what NOT to do with it afterward (take it onto a mountain and poke it with sticks until you finally - after much hissing and snarling and scary moments - convince it to leave the cage). He taught me what happens when a moth flies inside a human ear, though I'm quite positive he would have preferred not to teach that particular lesson. He taught me that riding your bike incredibly fast in NYC just hours after your daughter's "bad dry run" for a lung transplant might actually land you in the hospital, too. And he even taught me what to do when you accidentally drive a rented van down stairs in the middle of Portugal. Useful stuff, by any measure.

Thankfully, he also taught me how to laugh at myself and how to find the good in just about anything. And that, my friends, is the best lesson I could ever hope for.

So in honor of my dad and all the other awesome fathers out there, here's one from the vaults: a guest blog by my wonderful daddy, proving once again that lessons are everywhere you care to find them.

Father knows best, indeed.

http://amatteroflifeandbreath.blogspot.com/2010/04/guest-blog-father-knows-best.html

Happy father's day, beautiful people!

Saturday, June 9, 2012

GAME OVER (For CF)

Alright, guys, you asked for it!

No, seriously, you totally did -- I've had over 30 messages this week alone asking for these shirts. Who knew I had such stylish friends?!

In honor of the 2012 Great Strides Walk to CURE cystic fibrosis and all 70,000 of the amazing people fighting this disease worldwide (not to mention my 2 year transplant anniversary, coming up on 6/12/2012), we here at A Matter of Life and Breath are proud to announce our second ever t-shirt sale spectacular! Featuring shirts designed by the Amazing folks at SUNO fashions (a favorite of Vogue magazine, among others), this sale is a stylish and super-cool way to say sayonara to CF! Plus, every single penny earned is going to support the work of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Seriously, how cool is that?

Consider this your official sneak peek at this year's design. Even better, the award in the pictures is our FIRST PLACE trophy for best shirt at the Great Strides Manhattan/Brooklyn walk!

So here's the deal:

Adult shirts are $15 each, with all proceeds going directly to the CFF via the Great Strides fundraising system. I will send payment info to you directly upon receipt of your order.

Orders can be placed for S/M/L/XL shirts by emailing amount and size requests to Piper at matteroflifeandbreath@gmail.com (note that there is no "a" in the email!). Please also include shipping address for ease of process.

Child-sized shirts will be ordered IF there is enough interest from the community, so if you want one for a kid please include that in the email as well.

All orders must be received by FRIDAY, JUNE 22.

On a personal note, I just want to say a HUGE thanks to all of you for everything you do to help us win. Each of you is already a CF Challenger in my book, and together we can say GAME OVER to CF!

Love and light beautiful people,
Piper