Pookybears,
It’s important for me as a creative to make sure I’m consuming good quality creations… not just a mindless scroll of blabbering.
Here’s my scrapbook of all the things that have fed my eyes, heart, brain & soul over the last month. I usually collect all the things that inspire me in my art journal… consider this my digital version!
Filled with things I’ve read, things I’ve beauty, things I’ve watched…
Get yourself a big ole cup of tea… this is a long one!
Read this somewhere and it stopped my heart and I snapshot it on my phone but have no idea where I found it. Also, SAME, E.
Julia Child’s glorious, cluttery kitchen!
Antique sketchbooks! How positively THRILLING!
This living room is STUNNING. Even better is the behind-the-scenes of the years & iterations it took to get there!
A Map of the World of the Internet in 2021
These images are a bit of a glorious headfuck!
Watching this DIY process of a layered plywood herringbone table was just RIVETING!
I drink tea instead of coffee, but all the others totes apply. Grace Farris, via Cup of Jo.
Eric Carle, thank you for your work in the world. We will miss the creations you didn’t get to make.
- Wintering & dormancy
- Sinead O’Connor Remembers Things Differently
Holy moley, this is an EXCEPTIONAL article. I summed up my notes on it here:
Blogging isn’t just a way to organize your research — it’s a way to do research for a book or essay or story or speech you don’t even know you want to write yet. It’s a way to discover what your future books and essays and stories and speeches will be about.
- This theory had my brain turning all day
- Influencer Burnout & The Anxiety of Influencers: oh, what a surprise. Social media is not a sustainable way to build a long term brand or income. GOSH I WISH SOMEONE WAS TALKING ABOUT THIS.
- Non-binary pronouns: It’s Complicated But Wonderful Things Are. The Bloggess talks about her kid’s pronouns and explains non-binary pronouns in a smart, tender way.
At first I was like, “This is weird to me because non-binary didn’t exist when I was growing up” but turns out that this is about the same thing as my grandma saying, “People weren’t as gay when I was young.” They totally were but they just weren’t in the position to openly be who they are. Same with non-binary. Which I guess makes sense because now I have friends my age coming out as non-binary and I have a SHIT TON of friends with non-binary kids. This is the new normal, y’all, and we need to get comfortable with it.
- What have I missed out on this year? Myself.
- Digital Ad Waste: cartoon by the Marketoonist
- Inspiring. Emily Ford hiked 1200 miles in the dead of winter.
- The comment below on this post about depression had me thinking for dayssss:
- The 4 types of people who are vaccine hesitant.
- Caught in the study web.
- How to negotiate with ransomware hackers.
- Why personal blogs are great.
- The Havana Syndrome. OMMMMMMMMG. SO INTENSE.
- Trust without Metrics.
My personal thoughts on the above article: It shits me when marketing advice thinks of converting email subscribers over a series of days. My readers have usually been with me for DECADES. It’s not a one night stand. It’s a long term relationship, one that is mutually adoring and respectful. Trust can take YEARS to build. And I’m just going to keep turning up, keep creating, and keep giving.
- “Would you sell me pictures of your feet: A rabbit hole presented itself, so what else was I to do?” – honestly, just that article title alone is brilliant.
- Getting out of a creative slump
- John Saddington’s Notes on Temple Grandin’s Autistic Brain are great.
- Advice on what to do if you’ve fallen out of the habit of blogging:
Don’t get caught up in the reasons for your absence. Don’t feel you need to explain if you don’t want to, and definitely don’t fall over yourself to apologise. Blogs belong to the blogger, and gaps in the narrative are a natural part of writing a genuine, truthful blog which follows the ups and downs of life. There is no need to say sorry, or feel guilty.
Jump right in with something short and current rather than trying to back track and create a hefty “catch-up” post. Your blogging voice may well be a little bit croaky after a break and keeping things short and of-the-moment will be a good way to un-croak yourself. Lengthy catch ups and more specific posts can happen when you get back into the general swing of things.
Let the photos lead the way if the words aren’t coming easy.
- Transgender kids share their story
- Antique sock knitting book! I’m not really a knitter, but damn do I love looking at weird, glorious, creative artefacts!
This was by far the most searing thing I watched in the last month. The above clip from it is about the lightest, fluffiest part of it. It’s a quarantine creative project and wildly of our times. It’s a personal documentary on mental health. It is performance art. It is excruciating and exquisite all at once.
Also: I don’t know if I would recommend you watch this if you’re currently experiencing a depressive episode, or are feeling really tender. I absolutely felt depressed for about 48 hours after watching it. I’m in a pretty healthy place mentally at the moment, so could bounce back. But I just want to trigger warning the fuck out of this recommendation.
This was a beautiful video clip from Sons of The East… I’ve long been a fan.
And I also feel I can’t watch a Sons of the East clip without rewatching this masterpiece for the hundredth time:
Such a short video on such an important topic. I just wish there was more content discussing this conspiracy theory cult that is tearing families apart.
And older video, but it warmed the cockles of my heart.
James continues to be the #1 James in ALL THE WORLD.
Righto, this has been an absolute JOY.
And to think… when I was wasting my life scrolling social media, I wasn’t remembering ANYTHING important, useful, good or beautiful. I was just reading mindless, forgettable trash. Quitting social media & starting to mindfully consume brilliant creations again? Life changing. Brain healing. Wildly joyful.
Here’s to all the creators!
Big love,
