Is it Tuesday already?! Well, in that case, it's time for me to tell you about two things motivating or inspiring me at the moment. Hopefully these particular things will not just be inspiring me right now, but will continue to motivate me for some time:
1) Recently I was digging through some old things that I had thrown in boxes and put away, but completely forgot about. One thing I found of interest was a camera my grandfather had given me before he passed away.
It's a 1960 Kodak® Retina Automatic 1 (with manually adjustable aperture/shutter speeds, too!) with a hard brown leather case, an attachable flash, four lens, and a lens umbrella. Unfortunately, I had completely forgotten it even existed until I was digging through a box of old photos. Also, I'm not sure if it still works; but I loaded it with a roll of 35mm film and snapped a few shots, so hopefully once I finish the roll, I'll be able to develop some nice pictures. Because the shutter release is on the front of the camera and a little hard to press down, I'm sure some of my pictures will turn out a little blurry, but maybe that'll give my pictures some character. Overall, though, this is a really nice, antique camera and because it used to belong to my grandfather, I treasure it.
2) Secondly, I came across some old karate uniforms and sparring pads and I realized I'm missing sports in my life...really missing them. I used to be so active and physically fit when I was a kid...now I feel like all I do is work. But I need to exercise and get back in shape; only problem is finding the motivation to go to the gym or get out and walk...then it hit me in the skull like a punch from the Great Khali, "DUH!!!" I took Tae Kwon Do for eleven and a half years, from when I was a little six year old in elementary school until I graduated high school. I had gotten all the way to a second-degree black belt and was getting ready to test for my third degree (but due to my erratic college schedule and increased work hours, I fell away from Tae Kwon Do). But still I'm a huge fan of contact sports, martial arts, and a healthy way of releasing stress while getting or staying in shape. While I'm not sure I would continue Tae Kwon Do, I am really interested in kickboxing.
Now I just need to get up and join a kickboxing class...I know I'll enjoy it and I'll be able to benefit from it too! Someone tattoo me with the Nike® slogan!
Well I'm in a giddy mood, if you can't tell by the title of this post...first I want to send a HUGE interwebbish THANK YOU to everyone who's been reading my blog posts. Thank you so, so much!! When I started blogging I thought, "This is silly, no one cares what I have to say and no one is going to even realize my blog exists," but according to my view counts, you do! And I promise (I really do) that I'm going to upload some new artwork to my Portfolio and I'm going to get the Etsy shop up and running (give me one more week, I promise!) And please feel free to share my blog on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, website, etc. Thanks again!! :)
Alright, so what else is motivating and inspiring me this week? I've got two things for you: MOVIES!! (Ok, yeah, I realize that's only one topic and technically there's a billion more than just two movies in existence, but I've become very inspired by two movies that I've recently seen):
Peter Jackson has really outdone himself; this movie is so visually stunning...if you were to pause it at any given moment, it would look like a publicity still. I love the color palette, the lighting, the soundtrack, the action, the ability to adapt a movie so closely to the original book...it's just amazing! I've seen it twice now, and I'm completely blown away by it. If you haven't seen "The Hobbit" yet, what on earth are you waiting for? Go see it...now...I highly recommend it! (Side note: now I want a hedgehog named Sebastian, he's so adorable! And I've even been called a hobbit--due to my big feet and short stature). Not only am I inspired by every aspect of this film, but now I'm motivated to create some colorful sketches. If you've noticed, my previous freehand sketches have been, well, for lack of a better term, gray. So expect to see some colorful drawings in my Freehand Friday post later this week.
Holy Lord! Talk about non-stop, inappropriate, completely politically UNcorrect, adult humor...I loved it!! This movie has to be my favorite of 2013; and yes, it's still only January. If you don't know anything about this movie, let me give you a little synopsis: So this all-star cast movie opens with Dennis Quaid's character trying to pitch a script to Greg Kinnear's character. The script Quaid's trying to sell is made up of several shorts dealing with some of the most raunchy and comedic topics thrown together in one hour and thirty-seven minutes...and it works!! If you're easily offended, you might be wound a little too tight, and you might want to steer clear of this movie. But if you have a sense of humor, you'll enjoy it...I highly recommend this one!
Now, for my bout of inspiration from Movie 43: I've worked in retail for the past 13 years (both full-time and part-time; morning, evening, and double shifts). I've dealt with all kinds of forms of crazy, funny, weird, and awkward situations, not just from customers, but from fellow staff as well. Last night, I went to see Movie 43 with a friend that I've worked many a-year in retail with (about 7 or 8 years total) and as soon as the movie was over, I brought up how I should make a movie based on my retail experience, showing little clips of "incidents" that have happened in the last 13 years. My friend and I spent about forty minutes sharing hilarious stories from the store. After nearly sending myself into an asthma attack and dying of laughter, I thought, "Huh...wouldn't it be funny if I wrote all these stories down and put them into a book or script format?" So now I'm motivated to do just that...who knows, maybe somebody will make "my life in retail" into a movie one day...well, I can dream, can't I? (Once I get some of these stories written down, I might even share some on here for your reading enjoyment...and yes, it's retail, so it's definitely funny and wildly inappropriate in most cases. Best thing about these stories, I couldn't make them up if I tried!)
Welcome back to my poorly attended blog. I've been sick for the past week and a half, so I haven't posted a new blog in two weeks...yeah, I have some work to do to successfully maintain a blog, I suppose. Well, thanks to a few days off from work, a Z-pack, and being uber lazy, I'm back on my feet and blogging. Since it's a Tuesday, let me get to sharing with you two things motivating me:
1) I'm still on a New York high from my four-day trip up there for the New Year, so I'm still majorly inspired by the images of New York. In my last post, I showed a few pictures of NYC from my iPhone; however, now I've got some pictures to share from my SONY Cybershot digital camera.
The above shots are of a sculpture of praying hands made from 9/11 debris inside St. Paul's Church, the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center, a view of lower Manhattan from the Empire State Building's Observatory Deck, a view of the ground 86 stories up on the Empire State Building, and a view of Central Park. I can't express how much I love the city of New York, especially Manhattan. One day, I will call this place home...one day...
2) For my second bout of motivation, I'm posting some links for videos that have been artistically inspiring me with their lyrics, sound, and the imagery of the videos...so yes, if you're wondering, that means there will be new artwork for me to share with you on Friday (and guess what? Since I haven't uploaded a new sketch for almost three weeks, I'm posting three new freehand sketches on Friday!) Now I leave you with these awesomely inspiring videos:
As I'm sure you can tell, oh wait, you didn't notice my absence from the blogging world? Shame! I took a bit of a vacay last week to enjoy the start of the new year in New York City! I meant to put up new posts last Tuesday and Friday, but in the "City That Never Sleeps," it was hard to find the time. Plus, last Friday my mother had surgery and my car's battery died in Maryland! It was a hectic week, but now my car's running again and my mother's doing quite well (thanks for the prayers from everyone who knew about my mother's surgery!!) Needless to say, going to New York again made me realize how much I love that city...if there were any conceivable possibility that I could, I would move up there in a heartbeat...literally! And you'd have to be a pretty dull person not to find some kind of inspiration in the Big Apple. Some people aren't "city folks," of course, and some can't relax in a city that's always "on," but there's truly something for everyone in New York. My home state's mascot is "Virginia is for Lovers," but New York has everything...no, I mean EVERYTHING!!! You like history or architecture? NYC's got some amazing historical and modern architecture and the history is everywhere. You want a quiet place to get away and relax? Um...Central Park or libraries galore! Animals? Central Park Zoo, Bronx Zoo, etc... Fame? Broadway! Fine dining, worldly eats, or just a quick and cheap bite? Look no further than every block! New York has the best mix of everything! I really can't even begin to explain how wonderful NYC is in just the written word... *begins jumping up and down with arms flailing wildly about, screaming, "I LOVE NEW YORK!!!!"* ...ahem... *looks around, notices terrified looks from everyone; quietly winces with embarrassment and sits back down.* Now, where was I? Ah yes, inspiration!
1) I snapped the above pictures at the Staten Island Ferry terminal on Staten Island, standing in front of the Empire State Building, and looking at some mugs in a Starbucks on West St. There's definitely one thing that stands out in NYC: the perspective. From the sheer massive height of the buildings to the unique designs in stores, I found myself taking a lot of "perspective shots" in the city. Instead of just taking the standard forward-facing photos, I was inspired by the natural and architectural design of New York, so I tried to capture the movement, lines, and balance of the items I was photographing.
2) Second bit of inspiration, and maybe more so motivation, came from standing for five and a half hours at 53rd St. and 7th Ave. on New Year's Eve night. While I usually try to make and adhere to the typical New Year's resolutions: lose weight, get in shape, budget, save money, become a better person, etc....something about just being in NYC on New Year's made it seem like anything was possible; so this year, my resolution and goal is to make becoming a New Yorker possible. Now, like I said before, I'd move up there in the blink of an eye if that were at all possible, but once the "vacation high" wears off, reality sets in. I'm still in a lease on a house through August, I've drained my bank account to have an awesome four days in NYC, and while spontaneity is good at times, I'm a planner. I want to make sure I'm fully prepared and ready, especially since I've never lived outside the state of Virginia--let alone central Virginia. I need to do my research, budget accordingly, and make sure I'm completely able and ready to relocate...so, it'll take a while; it may not even be this year that I can become a little worm in a big apple *pause for laughter at my oh-so-witty "punniness"*but it will happen. It will indeed happen! I am motivated! Go 2013!!!
Since Christmas happened to fall on a Tuesday this year, I figured I'd put up a short post about two things inspiring me at the moment. Course, I did go home for the holidays, so I don't want to take too much time away from the festivities of gifts and feasts. Anyone else cook a big feast for their Christmas dinner? You'd think we were feeding an army here, but I won't complain, I love the food!
1) Well it's Christmas time, people! While I'm not a huge fan of the more popular, teeny-bopper-sounding Christmas music and I work in retail so any song about Santa, reindeer, presents, etc. has been overplayed on the satellite radio to the -inth degree, I do, however, have a favorite Christmas song. It's "Carol of the Bells." It literally gives me chills when I hear that song. I love the versions with the choir singing and the rock-themed orchestra playing. To me, that song sums up the excitement and anticipation of Christmas.
2) For my second little bout of inspiration, and since it is Christmas after all, I'm going with a quote from the Bible. It's my favorite and my confirmation verse: John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one cometh unto the Father, but by me." This verse sums up the importance of Christ's birth; without Him and His sacrifice for us, we would not be able to enter the kingdom of God. Everyone is entitled to their own beliefs, that's part of the wonderful freedoms we take for granted in this country, but for me and hopefully all fellow Christians, the true meaning of gift-giving and the spirit of Christmas is found in Christ. Merry Christmas, y'all, and safe travels!
I mean "TWOsday!" Time for me to share with you two things that are influencing me at the moment:
1)First thing's first...music. Music always inspires me. Depending on the
genre, music can make you feel every range of emotion; it can make you
smile, make you dance, make you cry, make you laugh, make you tense,
make you want to do something...music activates your senses. Personally,
I can't even begin to pick a favorite genre; I'll listen to pretty much
any and everything. There are, of course, songs that I am more partial
to than others, maybe because of how I feel at a particular moment, but
right now I feel like dancing...kidding...have you seen me dance? I
can't dance...I can fall, I can fall ungracefully with arms flailing,
kicking and screaming...that's my "dancing." So instead of dancing, I
feel like something new...something to amuse me...something like a
muse...Oh hey! Muse has a new song out!
I love that song...I love that band! The song "Madness" details the trials and tribulations of a relationship between two people; however, it pretty much sums up the love-hate relationship I have with my art. When you put your all into something, it seems to tear away at you too. All of Muse's songs seem to be able to take exactly how I've felt at times and turn the emotion into lyrics and music. Now I'm really going to sound like an art student, but their music is so cerebral. I don't know if it's the marvelously organized compositions of their songs or Matthew Bellamy's amazing vocal range; maybe it's the synthesized sound. Who doesn't love a good synthesizer? Come on now, you know you do...why else would Christopher Wolstenholme be using a Misa Kitara in the song "Madness?" Because synthesizers are awesome! When I've got the inspiration to create something, most often I'll use Muse as my muse and be able to crank out several ideas for pieces.
2) My second inspiration for the moment is the quote, "A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others," by Ayn Rand. If you're reading that name and saying to yourself, "Who in the world is Ayn Rand?" Slap yourself one good time...shame on you...now go to Amazon, a library, your local bookstore, etc. and get yourself a copy of the books: Anthem, We The Living, The Fountainhead, and Atlas Shrugged. Read them.
Ayn Rand is my favorite author; her work is amazing. While her reasoning is a little more ego-based and she even created her own philosophical belief system called "Objectivism," I still love her work. While I'm definitely an altruist and Ayn Rand rejects the notion of ethical altruism, her work speaks to me. The first book I read by Ayn Rand was Anthem and I couldn't put it down. I don't want to spoil the plot (and the twist) for you if you haven't read it, but wow...just like Rand's quote above, her main characters are driven by the desire to succeed, thinking and reasoning on a higher plane than the rest of the material-focused society. And it is very important to realize that there is actually a fine line between achieving and beating others. Achievement is the reward for hard work completed and finding one's own way of completing a task, not just finishing first. And yes, maybe in order to achieve, you have to be a little selfish. But if you're only concerned with beating everyone else, then you have a juvenile mindset and you won't achieve anything; you won't grow mentally or intellectually. You might not be the best painter or designer, but if you put aside emulous ways and just create and share from your heart, then YOU will be recognized for what YOU have completed. Now go out there, go be motivated to achieve!
