Photo: Instagram User @mattrubin

I have this friend who has a perfect life. I can tell because she is constantly posting photos online -- of her home, her kids, her strolls in the park, her evenings at the events she plans, her weekend brunches and farmer's market and botanic garden visits, you get the idea. Every image is more beautiful than the last. Every moment of her life is glowy and bright and warm, with a crackly whiff of nostalgia. Therefore I know that despite what she says when I actually see her in person, her life is perfect.

Unless it's just Instagram. Could it be? Instagram, for the uninitiated, is a free iPhone app that lets you choose filters and frames to lend your humble phone-cam-pic the feel of a vintage photo. Mashable recently posted their top Instagram photographers, and I instantly recognized the ridiculous gorgeousness of my friend's photographic style. Yes, these photographers have good eyes, and (some of them) some really remarkable subject matter. (When was the last time you took a phone-pic of an elephant's eye?) I'm sure these snappers could take great photographs no matter what. But for the rest of us, the neat-o features on Instagram can transform a slightly blurry pic of a day in the park into a heart-stoppingly beautiful memento to share with the world.

And you know what the best thing about an awesomely addictive photo app like this is? The way you start to look at the world. That's beautiful, you start to think about every crocus sprout and parked car and pile of garbage you see. Or at least, it could be.

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There's something so appealing about the right quote at the right time. This must be why that ubiquitous "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster (even though, yes, now it's everywhere, has morphed into a million versions, and is as overplayed as that Adele song that you still love anyway) can sometimes still inspire a strange, teary, throat-lump, at least in this steadfast soldier—er, blogger. You know the one: the lovely, slender font; the regal crown; most of all, the stately, applicable-to-everything and somehow-oh-so-British message. It seems relevant to nearly any situation, from driving in soul-crushing rush hour traffic to, you know, surviving daily life in wartime Britain. Right?

The original poster started making the rounds a few years ago, swiftly followed by a raft of impersonators and spin-offs. (Check out Oscillator's great graph of the image's evolution.) But where did it come from? For anyone who's ever wondered where the original "Keep Calm and Carry On" carried on from, this video is a must-see. Find out who made the poster, who crafted the slogan, why it was never used when first made during WWII, and the charming story of how it resurfaced.  And don't forget: KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON.



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Hey, has anyone noticed that that whole Harry Potter series thing has gotten really popular? I think I have a theory as to why. Instead of using this powerful knowledge to launch my own mega-successful line of books and films, though, I'm going to share this theory here in this blog post (you're welcome!). I think it's that whole "muggle" thing. In these books, as in most whimsical children's fiction, there is an implication that most of the grownup world is dull and unmagical and without imagination—they just don't get it—and that only a chosen few are sensitive enough to know magic when they see it. So every reader has the chance to say to themselves (or out loud, if they are reading along someplace or else exceptionally unmuggly and free-spirited), "But I get it! I would believe! I would understand!"

And yet, most of us don't make nearly enough space in our lives for the whimsical.

Emily Dickinson said, "If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry." By that criteria, the artwork of Motoi Yamamoto is pure poetry; ever since I first saw photographs of his evocative mazes and sculptures, I've felt as if I were walking around with a nothing to me above the nose. And get this, the images below are made out of salt. That's right, salt.

If there is a somber, haunting quality to these images, it's intentional. Motoi Yamamoto told The Japan Times that he started working with salt after the death of his sister of brain cancer at age 24: "I draw with a wish that, through each line, I am led to a memory of my sister. That is always at the bottom of my work. Each cell-like part, to me, is a memory of her that I call up, like a tiff I had with her over a pudding cake she took from the fridge. My wish is to put such tiny episodes together." According to this article, "Salt has a special place in the death rituals of Japan, and is often handed out to people at the end of funerals, so they can sprinkle it on themselves to keep evil spirits away."

Photo: Thinkstock

The year after I graduated college I clocked approximately 80 million hours steaming milk, pulling espresso shots and moaning that my feet ached at a grocery-store coffee bar. I liked being a barista, but I also found myself bristling when people snapped things like, "This milk isn't foamy enough!" or "This milk is too foamy!" or "This milk is too... milky!"  I'm a really a creative person! I found myself thinking. How dare they treat me like some food-dispensing servant? (I concede that it's possible that I lack the correct attitude to succeed as a service professional.)

But as creative as I thought I was, the truth was: my lattes always looked like plain old cups of sad boring beige. Try as I might, I never figured out how to make those lovely leafy designs that elevate a coffee into a liquid work of art. I love them, though, and as it turns out, I'm not the only one: there is actually a World Latte Art Competition.  As Jeshurun Webb writes for Salon.com this week, the judges at this competition assess the milky masterpieces based on the following criteria: "Balance and Symmetry (dividing lines are even and show no hesitation), Harmony (between the size of the cup and the size and position of the design), Clarity of Design (contrast), Quality of Milk Texture (yes, it takes a lot of practice to perfectly texture milk)."

It's not just my fiendish need for caffeine that makes this list sound like poetry, right? Because these are qualities I'd like to have in everything I do. Balance and Symmetry? I love the idea that creating something beautiful involves showing "no hesitation" It's all about doing things with confidence, whether it's presenting at a meeting or painting a picture or creating a cup of coffee. Harmony? May we all match the scope of our creations to the size of our cups, so to speak. Clarity of design? May we all have vision (please). Even the phrase "quality of milk texture" seems to me to apply to everything—because shouldn't we all master whatever materials we choose to work with?

Plenty of us toil away at jobs that, like slinging java, don't immediately suggest creativity, but we can all strive to achieve balance and symmetry, harmony and clarity, in every day. Even the dullest task can become a canvas. I wish I'd been able to see this while I was sullenly concocting endless cappuccinos myself, but that's okay—when it comes to my day-to-day now, there's no end to mundane tasks that I can try to make creative. Here I come, Slow Cooker Casserole Art Competition!

You must see the rosettes gathered on the Salon site, which are displayed alongside the barsita/artists' signatures, as a study of line quality.

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Men! What are they thinking? We can't always answer that, but we'll be posting our favorite glimpses into their world in this space every Thursday.

Photo: Saverio Truglia

* Take a tour of master organizer Peter Walsh's California home, and learn his genius tricks for a clutter-free life. (O Magazine)

* Writer David Foster Wallace would have turned 50 this week. The Awl has compiled a fantastic list of things you can read if you'd like to mark the occasion. (The Awl)

* Come on, baby, don't you want to go... President Obama got bullied into singing Sweet Home Chicago at a concert on Tuesday, and it was very charming. (Videogum)

* Irving Wardle explains everything an 82-year-old man needs to know about Zumba. (More Intelligent Life)

"And what more can you say about books? They're the greatest things ever, and everyone should have more."—John Locke, a designer who's turning New York City phone booths into guerrilla libraries. (The Atlantic Cities)

Men! What are they thinking? We can't always answer that, but we'll be posting our favorite glimpses into their world in this space every Thursday.

Photo: High Museum of Art

* In 1928, Bill Traylor, an illiterate former slave in his seventies, moved from the Alabama plantation where he was born to Montgomery. There, he drew what he saw, and if you're lucky enough to live near Atlanta, you can see his amazing work on display at the High Museum of Art through May. (Prospero)

* Warning: These photos of author Michael Cunningham's library may inspire bookshelf envy. (Work in Progress)

* Jack Nicholson has been sitting courtside at Lakers games for 30 years, and the L.A. Times put together the photos to prove it. (LATimes)

* "I am still very much aware of people's perceptions of me—or what I imagine their perceptions to be... And now that I am a published young adult author, in addition to my job as, essentially, a reviewer of YA fiction, some of the people in my imagination look at the direction my life has taken, furrow their brows, and mumble: 'Weird.'"—Lucas Klauss on being a grown man who loves young adult fiction. (Omnivoracious)

Forgiveness is not a topic I think about often (and maybe that is telling). So many of us walk around weighed down by ancient grudges, chewing over some festering ache from long ago. Letting go of anger is good for your health, not to mention your relationships--if only forgiving junior high tormentors/philandering lovers/overly enthusiastic meter maids were as easy as plucking a slip of paper from a tear-off sheet, right?

Behold, the sheet of instant forgiveness:

I came across this graphic on Pinterest recently and found it strangely moving. What a handy way to deliver a moment of absolution, to yourself or to someone else. Tear off a tab and deliver it to the douchebag whose dog just peed on your doorstep, or just keep it tucked in your purse as a reminder. After all, one of the best ways we can let go of what's in the past and move on towards whatever bright and shining future awaits is by forgiving ourselves, too.

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Photo: Thinkstock

I firmly believe in not being dogmatic, but if I were I would definitely include in my dogma that being creative is largely about protecting your time and taking in the right stimuli. This is why I was always sure to make time to be obsessed with Bravo's art-world reality show Work of Art (season 2 just ended). For the uninitiated, this program claims to be able to find The Next Great American Artist by having China Chow (in an assortment of amazing dresses) issue some attractive artists a series of creative challenges, and then subject the artists to blistering critiques from art world insiders. Okay, so it's not exactly reading Proust, but at least none of the contestants were asked to eat scorpions, you know?

So  I was perusing the Facebook page of one of last year's finalists, the extremely talented Peregrine Honig, and saw a great post she shared with Jerry Saltz (the Simon Cowell-ish Work of Art judge). "This is great--have you seen this?" She asks, posting a list of "Commandments" by the novelist Henry Miller, written in the 30s. "Work on one thing at a time until finished," Miller commands himself. And— "Don't be nervous. Work calmly, joyously, recklessly on whatever is at hand."

There is other good advice here for anyone tackling a creative project (Miller was talking about writing novels, Peregrine and Jerry are referring to visual art). I especially loved "Keep human! See people, go places, drink if you feel like it." But perhaps what I love most are the many comments that follow—dozens of artists, aspiring and established, chiming in with what works or doesn't work for them. After all, creativity, any kind of creativity, is a process, and everyone has to find his or her own way. Still, it's nice to listen in for a moment here and there, get advice on issues like losing one's nerve, or not believing one's voice is worthy of being heard. To hear that even the Greats—Henry Miller, Peregrine—are sometimes in need of a little guidance.

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It's Friday! We had a wonderful week with lots to be thankful for, so let's get to it...

Scale from Brad Goodspeed on Vimeo. How to feel very small, in a good way.

Old meets new: The New York Public Library is opening one of its collections to the public and asking people to get creative.

25 lessons a bookstore can teach you.

From legwork to artwork: What happened when one man started tracking his bike rides (you won't believe this one).