Five Really Cool Things I Read This Week - #FiveFavorites

Pat's ready for all the cool stuff I read this week.
Are you?

So, Hallie Lord hosts Five Favorites over at Moxie Wife each week and every week I find it a challenge to come up with something cool, (hip, amazing - pick your adjective) to call my "favorites".

It's not that I don't have favorites. I just get distracted. You know, it's stressful out here. And then I whine and fuss about not finding "just the right thing". 

Talk about a first world problem.

I have decided that picking out some of the bright spots of my week is a very good thing for me (much like the whole #gratefultweet exercise). So, this week, I'm picking on my fellow bloggers and picking out my five favorite posts for the week.

1.  Jennifer Fitz: 7 Takes - Laziness n' Liturgical Living

This reflection and general instruction on holiday decoration/celebration/gift giving lets me know that, in fact, Jen Fitz is my twin sister. Seriously.

2. The Crescat: A Terrible Mother's Holiday Guide to Dangerous Gifts

My son wants Katrina to adopt him before Christmas. Not because he never had these things as a child, but because now that he's 21, I don't get him cool stuff anymore. Getting old is heck, kiddo.

This is MY kind of shopping guide.

3. Bulletproof Musician: Why The Wrong Kind of Praise Can Undermine Our Students' Confidence

I just discovered this blog and I really love it. This is the second post I've read here and it's pretty darn solid scholarship. It's aimed at musicians, primarily, but the lessons learned can be applied in other circumstances and disciplines, too. Good. Stuff.

4. hikeOO: newboard #middleage #haiku

My friend, Pam, an English professor, mom, actress, (amazing) singer and mompreneur writes this blog and her reflections are priceless.  That said, if I tell you anything about this post it will ruin it.

5. The Radical Life: What's Your Idle?

Last week, I went to the Digital Church Conference where I got to meet Brandon Vogt, Josh Simmons and Matthew Warner. The conference was amazing and very informative (more later on Tech Talk). When I arrived home, I immediately began to follow them all on Twitter, Facebook and so forth. 

Matthew Warner's blog, "The Radical Life" popped up and its promised format ("One short, radical post. Straight to your inbox. Once a week.") drew me into reading. But, this post, made me subscribe. It helped me see where I was wasting time and how to combat those habits.

So, in addition to the AMAZING day at the conference, I got the proverbial "ace" I could keep.