Wanderlust: I haz it

L: Dalí shushing us R: Partner in Crime's Opposite & Me @ La Tour Eiffel

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

Hell yes, Mark Twain. Hell yes.

Stravinsky Fountain

*Note: I don't necessarily believe these photos illustrate Twain's thoughts. I just didn't want a quote up there solo, so I grabbed a few photos of wonderful people-watching spots in Paris. From my travels.

How do I work this thing?

I totally forget how this thing works. Do I capitalize every letter in a post title? Or treat it like a sentence? Grammar vs. style. The ultimate showdown. In my mind, at least. I choose style. Yeah. So.

I finally started watching Adventure Time after admiring its aesthetic for a few years. (Remember this?! Ah!) All this time, I had no idea that Jake the Stretchy Dog is a kindred.

p.s. I usually don't include images unless I can give proper credit. Unfortunately a Google Images search didn't help me find the original source. Fucking tumblr culture. If you happen to know which AT fan created this, please let me know!

Great GOOD article + Ira

Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.

Remember, yesterday, when I said "we should create because we can"?  If your response was either "Yeah, but I'm not creative," or "Yeah, but what I come up with is crap,"—well, then, today's post is for you.

First, I'd like to remind you that both Ursula Le Guin and Pablo Picasso believe that creativity is innate; it's just a matter of recapturing it (if you ever feel you lost it).  If Ursula and Pablo's wisdom still isn't persuasive enough, please read Becca Nath's article on GOOD, How I Learned to Be Creative.  Before she needed to hem a pair of pants for a hot date, Becca would've said "nature" when asked if creativity was a nature or nurture thing.  But, now she knows the truth: being creative truly is a matter of being creative.  Creativity begets creativity.   

Now, for the scary truth: you may not like what you create, at first.  But fear not, friends.  Every creative person who is renowned as a "genius" created "crap" at some point.  (Don't believe me?  Perhaps Milton Glaser will convince you.)  And, if all of the words offered so far are still not enough to encourage you to create something, I direct your attention to Ira Glass's take on creative work (watch video up there ↑).  True, he's speaking of storytelling, but the same principles apply to creating in general.    

So!  What will you make because you can?

Thought for Thursday

Spotted in Portland

Grab your world-watching gear + do as the sign says, people!

Seeing the world through extraordinarily-colored glasses

"I used to dream about escaping my ordinary life, but my life was never ordinary.  I had simply failed to notice how extraordinary it was." - Jacob Portman in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs

Kinda reminds me of the Roald Dahl quote about magic—you gotta keep your eyes peeled.  Or wear special glasses, I suppose.

Apologies for the thug face.  I promise you I'm smizing behind those sunnies.  :)

Wish ignition (say that 3 times fast!)

I just finished reading Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (yes, I'm well on my way to reading more than my usual number of books intended for adults this year).  One of the circus tents in the story features a Wishing Tree: "You take a candle from the box at the entrance and light it from one that already burns on the tree.  Your wish is ignited by someone else's wish."  Charming concept, no? 

The image reminded me of Yoko Ono's Wish Trees, which were inspired by her childhood memory of writing a wish on a piece of paper and tying it around a tree branch at a temple in Japan.  Wish trees appear in various forms in other cultures around the globe, as well.

If you're still trying to devise a way to participate in the Magic Mission, I believe creating a Wish Tree for your community is another lovely* option.  Igniting some hopefulness in this world fits the purpose of the project perfectly.  :)

*and simple!  All you need is paper, a hole punch, yarn or string, some writing utensils, and wishes!  Oh, and a tree, of course.  

Celebrate!

Today, we celebrate love.  I'm down with that.  I may not support holiday-centric commercialism and blind consumerism, but I love love—both the giving and receiving of.  I'm into the simple observations and aesthetic of Valentine's day: the colors red and pink, heart-shaped everythings, doilies, glitter, handmade gifts, sweet gestures, and all things cute.  I rock a made-by-me red, white, and pink glittered-heart garland (on my mantle, not my person) with the best of them.  And, I believe there are more forms of love to celebrate than the "romantic".  To name but a few: love for my cats, different cultures, nature, and myself.  Being alone helps me focus on why I appreciate all that I'm fond of, deepening my admiration for the other whos and whats I love.  I agree wholeheartedly with Tanya Davis' message in this lovely video.  Be your own valentine and treat yourself to a look-see: 



My favorite lines: " . . . but lonely is a freedom that breaths easy and weightless and lonely is healing if you make it . .  . Cuz if you're happy in your head then solitude is blessed and alone is okay."

Isn't that the best sentiment?  Will you treat yourself to some alone time this week?  What will you do on your date with you? 

p.s. The valentine I made for Henri Matisse was mentioned honorably on SFMOMA's blog today!  When I finished gluing the final piece, I was so glad I pressed on despite my original fears.  I love making myself happy.  :)

I have something I want to give to you.

(Well, one of you, at least.)



You've seen this, no?  Marcel the Shell With Shoes On?  And the sequel?

My favorite quotes from the most witty and charming invertebrate ever:

• "Guess why I smile a lot.  Uh, cuz it's worth it."  Marcel, my little shelled friend, I wish everyone had your attitude.
• "... I also have shoes and, um, a face.  So, I like that about myself, and I like myself, and I have a lot of other great qualities as well."  Indeed!  
• "Sometimes people say that my head is too big for my body.  And then I say, 'Compared to what?'!"  When I was your age, I wish I had enough aplomb to improvise such a brilliant comeback.  

Beyond introducing you to Marcel the Shell (or reminding you of his magnificence), I actually do have a tangible gift for one of you.  Yep, this is We hope for more's very first giveaway!  A little thank you, from me to you.  I will send one lucky reader a copy of Marcel the Shell With Shoes On: Things About Me—Marcel's very first book!

Drawing Details:

1. To enter, watch either (or both) of Marcel's videos, and leave a comment below that states your favorite quote and why it's your fave or why it made you laugh or what it reminds you of, etc. etc.
2. Leave your comment by 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, February 2, 2012. 
3. I will most likely allow my cat, Cleo, to select the winner.  (Or just pull names out of a hat.  WWMD?  [What Would Marcel Do?])
4. I will announce the winner this Friday, February 3! 

Good night and good luck!

Did somebody say fear?

Milton Glaser – on the fear of failure. from Berghs' Exhibition '11 on Vimeo.

Oh, that was me.  Much like Pablo Picasso + Hannah Dancing, Mr. Glaser helped remind me of the truth.

Fear is unpleasant.  Fear is uncomfortable.  Fear is downright icky.  When we fear that something we create will suck, our brain is trying to help us avoid the emotional pain caused by enduring (potential) criticism from peers, critics, and ourselves.  Fair enough.  Makes sense to avoid a (perceived) source of pain considering that whole survival of the fittest thing.  So, without our explicit permission, but rather an instinctual will to survive, our brain is perceiving a threat and preemptively implementing the evasion tactic.  Decoy set, distraction engaged, paralysis full speed ahead!  But, wait.  An emotion that begins with such good intentions . . . actually suppresses growth and progress?  Go figure.

Luckily, there is a solution.  The facts according to Mr. Glaser: There is no avoiding the suck.  Just suck.  It's the only way to ultimately not suck.   

The moral of today's post?  Go forth + suck, my friends!* 

Originally found via Brain Pickings.

*Okay, okay, Mr. Glaser's musings are slightly more eloquent than my paraphrasing.  Enjoy his message + take heart! 

Yet 2 more awesome quotes re: being creative and/or a child

Color Me Katie + her balloons

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let's pretend that 5 out of my first 12 posts aren't "Quote of the Day" bits, okay?  I swear I'm not that girl who adorns her walls with motivational posters and compulsively refreshes her twitter feed after searching #motivational or #inspiring.  However, a handful of quotations I've read over the years resonate with me and align quite nicely with my purposes here.  And so, I like to share the curated few with you.  Without further ado:

Quote 1: "The creative adult is the child who has survived." - Ursula K. Le Guin

Quote 2: "Every child is an artist.  The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up." - Pablo Picasso 

Seems Miss Ursula + Pablo are advocating we all unleash our inner Peter Pan.  Fine by me!  Easier said than done, though, especially for the most hardcore of us "grown ups".  So, uh . . . how?  Since there is no step-by-step how-to guide out there (well, if one exists, google is hiding it from me), we must look for inspiration elsewhere.  Enter Color Me Katie.  This gal is all sorts of artistic.  If you'd like to get back in touch with your innate creativity and child within, but don't know where to begin, pick from 1 of these rad ideas, and give it a go.  Here are my Top 7 inspirations from Miss Katie:

1. Build a tent.
2. Relax in the rain.
3. Enhance your environment with dry erase markers.
4. Blow bubbles.
5. Arrange a balloon bouquet.
6. Walk with chalk.
7. Write + plant happy notes for folks to discover. 

handing out balloons to children on my birthday*

 

 

Photo credit goes to the extremely creative + fantastic, Marianne Szeto.

*an activity I'm certain both Katie + Peter Pan would approve of.  ;] 

Which brings me to my next post, re: Fear and two more awesome quotes

a book on magic

Quote 1: "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working." - Pablo Picasso

Oh, that Pablo.  So brilliant, so prolific.  Such understatements.  But I digress.  And I do apologize for the fact that these first nine posts probably feel like a collection of digressions.*  Here's the thing.  I've wanted to create my own blog for years (nay a decade!), but something unseen, yet almost tangible, has held me back.  That something?  In a word?  Fear.  Fear of not being good enough.  Fear of cluttering the unsuspecting cyber-world with worthless drivel.  Fear of having nothing to say, nothing to write about, nothing to contribute.  Fear of confirming what I feared.  So, I didn't; I haven't.  It was a vicious cycle, you see.  After all these years, I get what Pablo's saying.  Yes, Sarah, it's true: you have not written any crap—because you have not written anything at all.  Alas.  The gist of Pablo's quote?  One cannot create inspired art if one is not creating anything at all.

Which brings me to the second Quote of the Day, and why I finally decided to just start posting, even without a clear theme for this blog.

Quote 2: "It doesn't matter how big it is; it doesn't matter how fuckin' good it is.  If you're putting it out . . . it's worth something." - Hannah Dancing**

Hannah's talking about creating, and she's right.  I'm finished feeling this fear, and I'm tired of not writing about the things I care about.  Whether the result is "good" or not.  So, bear with me as the origins of this project seem to meander a tad.  This blog will not focus solely on crafting or fashion or yummy recipes or my cats (ha! You wish!).  I may choose to write about all of the above or none of the above.  Regardless, just because I don't have a theme, doesn't mean I don't have a purpose.  Prepare to read about the things I care about!  Prepare for joy, art, and hope!  :]

a sketch inspired by Harlem

What would you work on right now if Fear was not an obstacle?

* a "collection of digressions" actually sounds like the muse for a cool art installation.
** Hannah Dancing is a talented + all-around cool person, who is darn creative.

At the risk of being TOO discursive,

and forsaking a cohesive narrative, I give you a gem of a quotation. 

From Roald Dahl: “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.”

spotted @ the Hundertwasserhaus in Vienna

through the Berlin Wall

sparkly Nyhavn in Copenhagen

And indulge me once more, as I add my elaboration.  Glitter and magic and wonder are everywhere.  All around us, everyday.  But, if all that sparkly whimsy is eluding your vision, make your own magic.

love locks in Englischer Garten, Munich

MacArthur overpass in Oakland

on the London Underground

Where did you spot some magic today?

"The best laid schemes of mice and men . . .

. . . go often askew."

- Robert Burns

But that will not stop me from scheming some more!

michael cunningham: The Hours

"There's just this for consolation: an hour here or there when our lives seem, against all odds and expectations, to burst open and give us everything we've ever imagined, though everyone but children (and perhaps even they) knows these hours will inevitably be followed by others, far darker and more difficult.  Still, we cherish the city, the morning; we hope, more than anything, for more."

emphasis mine.