Southern Smarts

Turning The Page…

Stephen Spurling — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 16:40:26 +0000

We all think we live life to the fullest and yet sometimes we spend too much time fighting, bartering, and often settling for less than we deserve. It maybe time to turn the page… Turning the page on some situations can be quite difficult. We find comfort in our routines even if our routines are not beneficial to our well-being! Living in a comfort zone of chaos is not very comforting or wise. Many of us can’t see this because it is all we know and we have become comfortable with settling. Is this why we have such a hard time turning the page in our lives? Is routine and consistency more important than changing our lives for the better???

Think of all the time we waste on situations that we have no control over. Being wise to what we can and cannot control is key to turning the page. I always try to give myself a time limit on my uncontrollable situations. Turning the page means… I have not only let go of the situation, but it has freed my mind of what was ailing me. So if it is time to turn the page in your life… Do it! It may be scary at first but look what you have to gain…a new and exciting comfort zone that will be beneficial to your happiness and longevity as a person living your life to the absolute fullest.

FOOTNOTE: This is easy to say and write… Doing it is more difficult! My chaotic childhood taught me the skill of turning the page. It is more than surviving in chaos, it is thriving in chaos! I have turned a lot of pages in my life and will continue to do so because my happiness is mine to have! It is easy to feel calmness and peace during the quiet times in our lives. It is a learned skill to feel calmness and peace in the eye of the storm. Stephen Spurling

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A GREAT Local Artist and Friend

Stephen Spurling — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:22:55 +0000

Rob grew up in Waynesboro, VA where he learned to love the outdoors. He attended and graduated from the Art Institute of Atlanta in 1985 with a degree in Visual Communications.

After college, Rob moved to Charlotte, NC and worked for several advertising agencies before joining one of the nations largest banking companies – eventually earned a creative director’s position. His career with the bank spanned 13 years, 3 corporate name changes and countless mergers.
Today, Rob makes his home in Charlotte, NC with his wife Heather, his children Morgan, John and their golden retrievers, Annie and Sophie.
If you don’t find him in the garden planting something colorful or on the lake fishing, he’s probably in his studio trying to put images to paper or canvas.

Where can you see more?

To view additional work, visit The Sleepy Poet where I maintain a permanent display.

The Sleepy Poet was originally in Charlotte’s Southend but in March of 2008 moved to a larger location at 4450 South Blvd, near Woodlawn Rd. Along with my paintings, I have a large selection of bookends, books and furniture dating from the late 1800′s to mid-1900′s. If you have a day to spend looking for vintage or antique items this is the place to start. Look for me on isle 9 or ask someone at the front desk for assistance locating vendor BWD. bluewater-design.com

Local Artist with so much talent…

Life After Death… Being Born In Spirit!

Stephen Spurling — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 15:47:32 +0000

The age-old wonder of death and how we can escape it. We can’t escape our physical death from this world, but we can live forever in spirit! I look at death as being born into a new life… a spiritual life!

I want you to go with me on this one, as I am only using a common sense analogy. It is not my intent to offer the believes of any religious groups. I am talking about our spirit… something we all have.

We are all conceived in the womb. This is a place where we lived for 9 months. We kicked and we sucked our thumb. We were alive in that warm cozy womb. Then one day “someone” says to us “today you are going to born into a new world where you will breathe in air, have parents, eat real food and run and play. It is going to be so different from anything that you have experienced over the last 9 months, you will be born!” You say … NO! I don’t want to leave here (the womb) I am happy here. It feels so safe and warm! You say that I will be born into a new world… to me it would be like death to leave the womb. What you call being born is death to me! Well as life goes… you are born into a new world, you breathe the air, you feel the love and comfort of your parents. You learn to eat real food, and you grow up to adulthood. Your life in the womb becomes a memory you can’t remember.

We come to the end of our physical life. Now “someone” comes to us again and says.. “it is time to be born into a new world” Some say NO! and some welcome it with open arms! We are going to be born again into a world that is so different from anything that we have experienced over the last however many years of our life. We are going to be born into our spiritual life!

Some of us will be afraid of this transition just as we were when we were in our mother’s womb. The fear will leave once we cross over to our spiritual life. A life that will give us all the answers to our worldly questions and a life that will be shared with all of those that have gone before us. And as with our memory of womb life, this physical life will also become a memory we can’t remember.

I am not asking you to dwell on the end of your physical life, just think of it as another phase of our existence. It will be greater than anything our minds can imagine, and therefore it is human nature to feel fear of the unknown. I for one will welcome it with open arms when my time comes. Stephen Spurling

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Life’s Disappointments

Stephen Spurling — Sun, 08 Jul 2012 15:34:48 +0000

I know that a lot of us live with some major disappointments in our lives, woulda, coulda, shoulda! The thing that will help us deal with our own demons is to remember that almost all of us can say this at varies points in our lives. I for one have my own disappointments and think of these disappointments as “did I have control over “what is” or “do I have control over what will to be?” The point here is that we all must move on from some of life’s biggest disappointments. We must be strong enough to make alternate arrangements. Be at peace with ourselves, find our happiness and propose in life the best way we can. We are not all destin to have everything we want, and we must be at peace with what we have. And above all… know that if your disappointments were within your control… You would have changed the outcome. Control over all things that come our way will never happen, but how we deal with it and make it through should be our focus. Stephen Spurling

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Cutting Edge Color! Tangerine

"Chabby" Chaberek — Wed, 02 May 2012 17:27:55 +0000

‘Tangerine Tango”: a bright, burnt orange hue was named 2012 Color of the Year by the Pantone Color Institute. here are three ways to incorporate this color, reminiscent of a sunset, in a home.

“Stage it with Accessories.”

A moderate amount of tangerine tango can add just the right amount of pop with pillows,throws tabletops accessories. Pair it with gray-scale neutrals for a modern flair.

“Mix it in the Kitchen”:

Some homeowners are choosing this sunset hue for kitchen appliances to add an extra colorful touch!

“Brighten up a wall”:

Try a painted accent wall in tangerine tango to create a “dynamic burst of energy” in the kitchen, entryway, or hallway!

Have fun and don’t be frightened to experiment..After all: It’s only paint!

Chabby

5 Low Cost Kitchen Redos.

"Chabby" Chaberek — Wed, 02 May 2012 17:07:42 +0000

Kitchen remodeling sales were up 36 percent in the third quarter of 2011 compared with the same time a year earlier, according to National Kitchen and Bath Association. It’s no wonder. The kitchen is the focal point in many homes. And it’s one of the features, should you decide to ever sell, that potential buyers compare most closely when they are shopping for a home. Here are cost estimates for some low-cost kitchen upgrades that can give you a real “POP” without breaking the bank.

1. Hardware

replacing cabinet hardware such as handles, knobs, and hinges is a quick, DIY way to enhance kitchen space. According to houselogic.com, an average kitchen is 200 sq feet with 30 linear feet of cabinetry,which equates to about 40 handles and knobs. averaging between $2.00 and $20.00 per knob or pull, a homeowner can expect to spend between $80.00 to $800.00 for this enhancement.

2. Faucet

There are a myriad options today in terms of height, spouts, pullout hoses and folding necks, with quality faucets starting at around $200.00.

3. Lighting

Adding an LED under-cabinet light can have a dramatic effect for around $40.00

4. Organization

Practical storage in the kitchen will go a long way. Over the door hooks, baskets in the Pantry, drawer organizers, wall hooks for pots and pans and stackable shelves for cabinets will add appeal, typically for less thank $100.00

5. Countertops

Laminate can mimic the contemporary look of granite at a significant discount. The cost for the average kitchen with 30 linear feet of laminate countertops is roughly $1575; the same space in granite would be about $2400.00

A House Renovating Fool!

Stephen Spurling — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 01:22:11 +0000

Sawdust runs through my veins… well not really, but I have often wondered if there is something in my gene pool that makes me love the smell of fresh-cut wood. The smell of a freshly painted house. and even the metallic smell of nails and screws. I have often thought of sweeping up sawdust at the job site taking it home and putting in a pot on the stove… my potpourri! Now that’s foolish!

I have to love it. After all; who could possibly like working outside in the cold of winter and in the heat of summer. How about crawling under a house, entering into the world of bugs and spiders that are carrying on their day-to-day lives were I am the intruder! No fear of cobwebs here my passion is too great! Sometimes it can be dirty work but it goes with the job. Now all this craziness is necessary to say that I am good at what I do! I feel as if I eat, sleep and breathe my work! It is my God-given talent to be a “renovating fool!” But sometimes I do wish God had made me a great piano player… as my back would surely be all the better for it!

We can’t pick the talents that we are given. We must just figure without how to expound on them. So find your God-given talent, and you too will be able to eat sleep and breathe your gift! Even if means working alongside the bugs and spiders, you will do it. This all leads back to one if my favorite quotes: When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, “I used everything you gave me.” Erma Bombeck Using the talents that God gave us is our intended path and there is nothing more gratifying than doing what we do best! Stephen Spurling

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A Small Kitchen With A Big Bang!

Stephen Spurling — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 02:51:44 +0000

This small kitchen was turned into a dream kitchen without adding any square footage. So when working with limited space, does size really matter? No. What matters is how you design the space you have for your needs and what pizzazz you can create. Remember pizzazz fits in any space! The most precious commodity in a small kitchen is the counter top space. This kitchen was designed with a built-in microwave cabinet below the counter top and an oversized single farm sink that holds large platters, both saving countertop space. The great contemporary/ traditional chandelier anchors the kitchen with “stand out” design. During the renovation we actually found an orignal plastered archway over the sink that had been hidden from a previous renovation… Why??? I was so excited to find this original archway as it’s true architecture for the age of the house. What a classy design in a small space that works for the homeowner and the chandelier is the real icing on the cake! Stephen Spurling

Smiling For The Camera

Stephen Spurling — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:03:04 +0000

Would it not be great if we wore a smile everyday instead of just for the camera! I was always told by my mother, “live your life as if your on a stage and everyone is watching”. I have always remembered this and thought of it in terms of posing for a picture. Don’t we always put on our best smile? After all no one wants to take a bad picture. This is a thoughtless process smiling for the camera. I say that we should carry this thoughtless process throughout our day-day lives. If you think about it we are almost always being observed by others whether we realize it or not. So smiling should be a thoughtless process when we encounter others. And hey, they are taking a picture of us in their minds anyway. We only have one chance to make a first impression so smiling is a guaranteed positive first impression. You say…. “I can’t walk around smiling all the time” Yes you can! If you want positive feedback from others you will have to learn how to smile even when you don’t feel like it. Besides I bet you will feel better just putting forth the effort! Smile for the snapshots that are being taken in minds of others. You will alway take a good picture! Stephen Spurling

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“Firecracker Friends”

Stephen Spurling — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 02:18:31 +0000

I have a friend that used this saying “firecracker friends” to describe our friendship. I thought what is a firecracker friend? Well when she explained, I was blown away! Here is what a firecracker friend is… someone whom you have not seen or talked to in a long time and when you do reconnect… you both pop and light up like a firecracker! I thought what great compliment to a friendship. Someone that you haven’t seen or talked to in some time, and you are completely able to pick up right where you left off the last time you were together. We laugh and talk as if time and distance have not come between us. Friends can become our chosen family and we can share so much of our lives with each other. I feel so lucky to have quite a few “firecracker friends”, and even luckier that this particular friend taught me that we make each other pop and light up!.Thanks my firecracker friend!

So I want you to remember the next time you reconnect with a friend and you both pop and light up with excitement… then you are “firecracker friends”. Stephen Spurling

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