Pearls of Wisdom

While we are in Turkey, let me leave you with this morsel of goodness that keeps me going through the trials and tribulations of trying to be a blogger...

It's so difficult not to compare ourselves with others we perceive as more successful, more knowledgeable or better off. The key word there is perceive.

I know a woman who has a very successful blog (no names to protect the innocent) but she also has a sister who is very sick. I know another man (again no names) who has a wickedly famous design blog but he just found out his wife has been unfaithful. And, I know a woman who has 27, 000 followers on Pinterest, a prolific Etsy store and a sponsored art site but she just lost her house.

I am certainly not trying to focus on the negative. I'm just saying that though P and P is not sponsored (yet), and I don't have tons of readers and I'm no authority in blogging, my sister is healthy, my husband is faithful and we have a sweet little cottage to call our own. When we put things in perspective and couple that perspective with hard work and patience, I think anything can happen!

Original photo by Tennesee Bunny finished artwork by me.

On that note, please tell your friends about Poppies and Paperbacks, follow me on Pinterest, follow me on twitter and come visit me anytime on Facebook (although, I'm not terribly consistent on "the book").

Instagram

There is a lot of "social media" out there. For instance, we all know about the book and the bird. And, by now, if you follow me here, you know about my love affair with (along with millions of others) The Grand 'P'! But, if you haven't hooked yourself up with the jolly wee camera, Instagram, I suggest you see what it's all about.

Instagram is a photo sharing website/application for Android and the iphone. I'm hooked and like most, I have my "favorite players." Following are a few things you might find there. These are several folks I love to follow because they have interesting photos to share with the world.

The first photo is my own. It is a halved walnut, still in its shell...hm...pinned to "The Shape of Love" on Pinterest as soon as I finish this post, I imagine! You can view more of my photos by following the link in the sidebar or you can connect with me here.

The next photo is by Tea Tree Vintage. So much variety in her photos,  a sweet Etsy store, a wonderful blog and a charming person all around...go see Tea Tree Vintage and follow her on Instagram!

What an excellent photo. I think there was an event at the Bowery Hotel in New York City...and a giant rain storm...just a guess. I follow newyorkcity because of shots like this.

Cxcart is perhaps one of my favorites. I find myself liking a tleast one photo of his everyday. The second photo here he titled, "Door Porn." I responded with, "Shutter porn, brick porn and window box porn."

Delbarr Moradi is best known for her wedding photography. I have featured her on La Bottine and since then have followed her on Instagram too. Look at that cute doggy! He matches the decor quite well!

I'd really love to hop down to the local bookstore and buy this off the shelf. Alas, they are only on their fourth edition of this sweet little independent magazine. Betty is a UK indie glossy with fashion advice and DIY stuff but, in their words, you'll never find diet advice! And that is why they are so nice to follow!

 And finally, johnbarnett! He captures amazing imagery and often uses the iphone app he cooked up called Wood Camera. John is no amateur he's the former TwitPic Media Director and photographer extraordinaire. I have recently downloaded the Wood Camera App but have yet to use it...