Featured Fabulousness: Meryl Rose Phillips

We here at Bean Up The Nose Art would like to introduce you to one of our favorite creations: fabulous daughter (and artist, and oh so many other things) Meryl Phillips.

(This photo via wonderful Heather Kenney.)

We cannot take all the credit. Other people were involved. And this chick came into the world already packing her own amazing brand of can-do spirit.

She was, after all, the kid who explained to me as a six-year-old how to get over sadness:

"Two anger and and four happiness molecules come into my forehead. And then, I'm not sad any more."

And how she got over her fear of dogs:

"I said to myself, 'Meryl, you're going to be around dogs your whole life -- now, just get over it.' And then I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and did a 'poof' with my fingers, to make it stick."

And she's just become even more savvy and wonderful with age. These days, 26 years old.

Meryl's a 2009 studio art major graduate (minor in film) from Mills College.

She won awards. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa. I'm telling you this because a) I am her mom and I am proud of her and b) she pulled out of UC Davis as a sophomore when she was bombing out. And figured out what to do next, each step along the way. And went back to college with a better fit. And kicked ass. WE LIKE THAT WAY OF DOING THINGS.

Art from Mills time. Senior installation, examining neighborhoods of Oakland.

She did not want to take the required sculpting class. Voila.

She started Mills to study film and videography. She made butt-kicking documentaries there. But she didn't want to take the required drawing class, because she didn't think she could draw. She found out you could learn.

In the years since graduation, Meryl has strung together a stunning range of jobs and activities. Even more than us, Meryl is truly The Boss Of Herself.

She designs and draws by hand these shoes . . . which landed her in juried craft fairs, and now a designer spot at Bucket Feet.

For the past three years, she and her boyfriend Chris have been renovating their house in Oakland, which Meryl chronicles every step of the way on her blog, Picardy Project. There, her kick-ass nature abounds, replete with cussing and honesty and humor. The other day she let drop in a conversation that companies post her all the time, asking to advertise on her site. She ignores them, because she thinks it would cramp her style.

She is way more fearless than we are.

And she wields a mean skill saw.

But that's not all.

Nope.

When Meryl was three-years-old (and still sucking her thumb), we took her to her first baseball game. A night game at the Oakland Coliseum, before it became the Al Davis Travesty. As we came out to our seats on the third deck, with the green green green field spread out before us in the lights, Meryl stopped and stood stock still. She pulled her thumb out of her mouth, to exclaim in awe, "This is a VERY BEAUTIFUL PLACE!"

And from then on, she was an As fan.

And since 2008 when she got an internship there, she's been working every season behind the camera, behind the desk, behind the scenes as a slo-mo and still store/PDR operator. What does that mean? Well . . . she knows who wins every Dot Race and Under The Cap game. And the answer to all the Player Trivia questions. And who's going to be up on Diamond Vision. And sometimes, you see her out in the crowd, filming. Or down on the field. She's also a part of the film and video team for the Raiders, has worked for the Warriors, and Earthquakes.

She's also an organizer, personal assistant, bookkeeper, girl Friday to anyone lucky enough to book a slice of her time. Like we get to, every once in a while. Because she also trains really hard as an athlete, and is an incredibly fast distance runner.

And when she's got a cold and needs some down time? When she's feeling "unproductive?" She'll design and whip out a Kindle case from scratch in an afternoon . . . .

Here's a big, fat, wonderful Bean Up The Nose Art cheer for fellow artist, uber hip and crafty and oh-so-energetic go-getter . . . and fabulous daughter . . . Meryl Rose Phillips. As she said just yesterday when helping out Bean Up The Nose Art in our new digs, "Life needs more exclamation points." Meryl Rosie, here's a big helping for you!!!!!!! We are actually in awe of you, and think the Universe must be a pretty darned wonderful place if we were lucky enough to be a part of your making. YOU RULE!!!!!