Happy Little Sunsets

Growing up we all watched the guy on PBS painting "happy little clouds." Here's a happy little sunset from tonight at dog beach.

Squirrel! (aka Dog Day Saturday)

Today was a lazy Saturday, and we came upon this cutie at the dog park. The yellow ball made me think immediately of Miss Amy K Rosenthal!

Steven Schwartz + San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus = It Gets Better "Testimony"

So very proud of my BFF Michael J. Fouquette and the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus. Two nights ago I was privileged to attend their concert at Davies Concert Hall in San Francisco, featuring music by Stephen Schwartz (who was also there and performed a few songs).

During the show, they world premiered "Testimony." I was so moved, I couldn't cry. Does that make sense? It's like when you hold a sleeping baby on your chest. It felt heavy, and warm, and like home.

I gotta admit, watching the video this morning when they released brought forth a flood of emotions...while there's power in seeing things live, the team at Skywalker Ranch and Apple did a fantastic job of highlighting the nuances of the song, and I teared up.

Schwartz wrote "Testimony" for the SFGMC to perform, inspired by the It Gets Better Project. Mad props to the guys and SFGMC Artistic Director and Conductor Dr. Tim Seelig.  All the lyrics are taken right from the It Gets Better Project videos.



You can order the song at http://bit.ly/Testimonysong. Please Like, retweet, share and shout this from the rooftops. You can save an LGBT life.

Phillies vs. Padres Here I Come!

Look what UPS brought! :) Philadelphia Phillies at San Diego Padres. All 4 home games, with my mom in April, right behind the Phils' dugout.

And if the past few years are any indication, let's be honest: these are home games for the Phils, if the amount of red t-shirts in the crowd are any indication.

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

It's been raining cats and dogs here in San Diego with no end in sight. Here's a shot I took of my windshield from inside my car over the weekend. The drops were making the prettiest patterns as they lay on the glass, don't you think?

My TEDx Talk: "I Can See Stars" (Space Shuttle Atlantis, Cancer and Life)

Last summer I was selected by NASA to attend the NASATweetup at the final space shuttle launch, securing a spot by throwing my name in the hat for their Twitter contest. What followed was a whirlwind of activity, but it's safe to say I came home with 150 new friends and memories to last a lifetime.

Cut to four months later: a TEDx organizer who'd read my article on "How to Put on a TEDx Show" contacted me, and after corresponding back and forth, she asked if I would like to speak at TEDxYouth@BommerCanyon. Even though her event was taking place 2 days after my own show (TEDxIntuit at work), I said yes because, well, it's the opportunity to speak at a TEDx and who says no to that?

TED's mantra is "ideas worth spreading" and folks usually get up at TED and TEDx to share their "one idea." I began thinking about my life. What one thing would I want to tell folks about, given the chance? It became pretty clear, pretty quickly, that it would include my battles with cancer and how that dovetailed with the emotion I felt at watching people leave Earth in front of me in July at Kennedy Space Center.

What's it like to give a TEDx talk? Thrilling, terrifying, exhilarating, and humbling. I won't tell you how I think I did...I'm my own worst critic. So I'll share Mike Maney's thoughts when he shared the talk on Facebook:

"Wonderful, touching and inspiring TEDx talk by my
friend Kara DeFrias about the space shuttle, cancer
and life...and the 30% that binds them."




There you have it.


Related posts:
On Being Invited by NASA to the Final Space Shuttle Launch
L-2 Days 'Til Launch: Arrival in Cape Canaveral for #NASATweetup
L-1 Day 'Til Launch: Day 1 #NASATweetup Recap
L-0 Launch Day: Live from Space Shuttle Atlantis Launch for #NASATweetup

Living at the Beach

This view on my way home from work never gets old.

A Political Campaign Worth Getting Behind: #Kony2012 #StopKony

Jason Russell, who's spoken at here locally at TEDxSanDiego, heads a movement called Invisible Children.

Yesterday, he launched a campaign to oust Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda. He's enslaved over 60,000 children to fight in his army, many times killing their parents and families. The International Criminal Court at the Hague indicted him 7 years ago, but they've yet to capture him. Russell and Invisible Children aim to change that.

Here's the official launch video of Kony 2012:


KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.

TEDActive Day 3 Recap