Practice makes it easier

This year, again, I did Nanowrimo (www.nanowrimo.org).  It is a yearly event where people write furiously.  The goal is to get 50 000 words.  More can be done.  I prefer to do a little bit more just to get the validation okay.  It is pretty boring to get the valitation and get a message that says that there is no 50 000 words.  Today is the last day of the event.  It is always set in november.

There is also a nanowrimo camp in april and june, I think.  I never try it since they started it iin the last few years.   It is pretty recent compared the event held in November.  The rules are a bit different for the nanowrimo camp.  I feel ambivalent about this nanowrimo camp but I should do it one year, just to try it.  I would have a clearer idea if it is for me to do or not.

What I learned, this year, in the past month, is that I fhad found a breeze to write 50 000 words.  It was easier than the other years I had participated.  In my past participations, when I was hitting the 30 000 words, it was beginning to be my no man land zone.  It was arid and painful.  I was going so slow.  It is as if I didn't worte much words.  It is as if I was hitting a wall.  When I was hitting the 40 000 words line, I was okay and was able to run to the finishing line.  This year, I did not have this problem.  I speed my way to the 50 000 words finishing line without hitting the desert land of the 30 000 words mark.

Another thing that I noticed this year: I was less stuck in the «what happen next» and I was not frozen when it was time to come up with names when the need arise.  I did not dwell in finding the perfect name even for a minor character.  I was thinking a few minutes before getting the next step in the story line.  I was having great idea to add to the story line I had in mind.  The connection I have with inspiration seems to be wider and fully functional.  It was easy to access that inspiration.

It made me realize one thing: with practice, it goes easier and easier.  In this case, it was writing, this mont.  I am sure it could be ppplied to other area of crafting.  It is just time and doing it that needed to be apply.  No need to wait for the perfecrt word, the perfect idea, the perfect image.  Just doodle and practice and get the junk out.  The rest will be springing like a fountain, eventually.

Planet Jupiter and spacecraft Juno

Nasa really love mythology.  I have heard recenly about the Juno mission to the planet Jupiter.  The name of the spacecraft is so well choosen.  I wonder how they came with thier snames for space mission.  Of course, for the planet Jupiter, Juno was quite easy to pick.  In mythology, Jupiter and Juno form a couple.  Jupiter and Juno are in Roman mythology.  Zeus and Hera are the equivalent  in Greek mythology.

I wonder why Nasa goes so often pick names in mythology. What are their drives toward mythological names.  For me, I find that mythology have strong themes and an appeal that speak to the unconsious.  It speak to a less advanced part of myself.  It reflect how people came up with explanations for certain condition.  It also show a sense of adventure.  Not long ago, there was no movies, no tv, no radio, no phone be it intelligent or not, no telegraph.  Everything was at a slower pace.

So, having a mythological space is good.  Haviing mythological exploration is even better.  I wonder if we colonize new planets outside our solar system, if we will use mythology to name the planets we will go to and gives a mythological bent to the cities on those planets?  Will we follow Nasa's trend with mythology or is it just a phase we will outgrow of?  What I think now:  I feel all return to mythology.  It seems we are deeply wired and connected to mythology.  We return to it again and again.  It spin around and evolve but it is still mythology.

A mystery solved! I know the secred behind the door.

I have solved a mystery in the last few days.  There is a place whre I go with closed doors.  I always wondered what was behind those doors.  Now, I know.  There is a short and large corridor behind the doors.  Further, there is a perpendicular corridor, more narrow but long.  So, the door is connecting two corridors by a large and short corridor.  I had the presence of mind to take photos.
Here is the doors:

The above photo is behind the doors.  It seems to be the reverse of the side where I am.  It is fun to know about this.  At the smae time, it remove the mystery.

Fashion Evolution

I am not into fasthion.  If I can find a t-shirt or sweater with no logo and a pair of jeans, I am okay.  Of course, there is some circonstances where I upgrade my look a bit more for example putting a shirt and fancier pants.  It is okay with me.  I am not following trends,  I am not a shopholic.  But I have found a rather interesting video on youtube on the evolution of the goth fasthion for men and woman.
They are here:
For men
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iti7HE1UBN8

For woman:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JXYLSbJ5FA

I even found the eovution of the goth shoes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIywOKrfhJQ

There are other videos that show the evolution of certain trends over time.  I have my curiosity wetted in seeing how some looks can rise and get out of date over time.  Eventually, it is becomig a cycle.  Well, now that I had found those videos, I am tempted to get inspiration to uplifht my drab look a bit.  Of course, I will stick to my no logo policy.  For the rest, I may get some ideas for new accessories.

Diamanda Galàs Not for everyone

There are artists who should be put in the front line in certain part of the years. as for some holidays in stores.  Diamanda Galâs should be more heard at this gloomy time of year.  It is an artist with an original songs.  Yes, she have her own songs, I ams sure of that.  I mean original songs in the sense that she don't do in the «nice and shining songs».  Also, she have strong titles and some of them are a bit disturbing.

Here is a few links to some of her body of work:
Here is a show on her Plague Mass album.  It is a bit lenghy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7lttF6tPZs

Here is a few songs with thought provocking title:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9YYv-oZfsk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ7ADZwEnKg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ7ADZwEnKg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ7ADZwEnKg

And I end with my favorite version of «I put a spell on you»:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ7ADZwEnKg
I think she was the best one to do the song as good as the original

What I like of her: she in not affraid to talk about some delicate theme and delicate subjects or events. She also put emotions in her voice too.  I like that.  It can be heard while listening her.  I also like when she use an more harder and cold voice.  It is almost as if she was sending knives with her voice.

I do not listen her music year round.  I find this time of year more appropriate to sit down and listen to her.  I am conscious that this artist is not for everyone.  For me, it is a need that I have when it become less luminous outside and that I enter in the darkness of my mind.  Her songs and her voice bring me elsewhere and then, I feel better.

Mythology and Paintings

Mythology is truely everywhere.  There are cars making references to divinities (I think there was a car compagny called Saturn).  There is even Nasa using references to the Greek/Roman Mythology (Gemini is a reference of The Diosicuri, Satun rocket, the Mercury programp, the Appollo mission)  Planets too but now not just on Greek/Roman mythology.  I still remember when they discovered Sedna way back.  In language too: just think when we say A Odysseys, it makes referenced to the voyage of Odyseus.  There also tour guides who are called Ulysses (French world for Odusseus)  The world panic comes from Pan, the satyre.  Names lile Sylvain also have a mythological origin.  There are a rasor compagny that is called Venus and they used an appropriate song that makes a reference to mythology too.  It was a connection really easy to make.

Today, my light bulb get ignited by mythology and paintings.  The first coming to mind is the Birth of Aphrodite or Birth of Venus.  Both are for the same divinity.  Aphrodite is Greek and Venus is Roman.  If you don't know about that picture, here it is in all it's glory:
https://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=https://cdn.paleothea.com/Pictures/VenusSea.jpg&imgrefurl=https://www.paleothea.com/Myths/BirthAphrodite.html&h=490&w=734&tbnid=se-Ql0zIopXOJM:&tbnh=160&tbnw=240&usg=__vWZTYa2Tzgo-wQHfyvz_TKiLs8A%3D&vet=10ahUKEwj-oqrsu8vXAhXJv1QKHS-iBJYQ9QEILDAA..i&docid=1ZY8infkRpTZbM&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj-oqrsu8vXAhXJv1QKHS-iBJYQ9QEILDAA
I should had put the picture itself but the link will have to do.  Again, I thought: well, I guess there must be more than this one painting with a mythological theme.  There is a long history of sculpture that celebrate the body, so why not having paintings that have mythological theme.  Well, with a quick search on google, my guess was right.  Here is the link with the result for my search:
https://www.google.ca/search?q=painting+mythology&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&gws_rd=cr&dcr=0&ei=8-cRWpyhIojwmQH_3qDgCg

A quick search of picture of mythological paintings was also fruitful.  Here a link where we can see many example:
https://www.pinterest.ca/worldofmyth/greek-mythology-in-paintings/?lp=true
So, really, the mythology theme is strong in paintings as it is elsewhere.  Mythology sell even today, even if it is no longer a mainstream belief.  I am definetively in the «go mythology go» team.

People, look and fashion

People's look are so variously plentiful.  Some people have great look that fit their feature.  Other peole have an element or accessory that look really cool.  It match with their faces and all.  I feel a bit envious sometimes.  I wish to find the look or accessory that would fit me perfectly and I would like.  Not an easy task.

I do have a cool accessory.  It is homemade but not really visible, exceopt when peole look down.  It is stripped socks.  The colours are a bit hard on the eyes, well, when I look at them:

I have forgotted that I had them and that I had this picture.  It is my maternal grandma who made them. I never used them.  I guess I no longer fit in them.  The colours are a bit at a contrast but they have a sentimental value to me.  It is from a grandma that I like.  She was a fun grandma.  Those socks reperent something she was good at.  Well, she was making a lot of socks, so she had a lot of practice over time.

So, still seachring for what will become my own style...

Creative coaching, anyone?

Business coaching is all the craze right now, or I had been out of the loop too long for not noticing it sooner.  It help a starter business debutant   Would be fun to have the same for creative people.  I would see it more like a mentor that see themes and pattern.  Could also suggesting paths that needed to be further explored.  I guess I come up with nothing new, someome else must have thought of it before me.  Even if I was the first one, I would not know where to start anyway.    I am more good in getting ideas and not always so good for applying them into reality.

Thiking it a bit further, it end like a business mentor.  A creative project need to be expanded.  So, the only thing that the business mentor should have is a touch in the creative field.  Having spontenious ideas is good but when we think about it a bit further, it end up not so good.  It is a chance that crative people have a lot of ideas.  After the brain storming, there is the hard reality that not all ideas are good to follow up and work with them.  Not always easy to let an idea go.  The ideas I have are mine, I am a bit possesive of them.  I like them, I cherish them.  I want to see them be born into this world.

Still, would be fun to have a mentorat system for creative people.  It would help me to learn more about the creative side of business.  This world need people expressing their creativity.  For me, it is a need.  I feel a bit ignorant about a lot of thing.  It may apply to creativity in a more structured businessy way...

Trees around the year

I do have a good folio file on trees.  Especially with various forms and with branches that goes in interesting ways.  I also am trying to capture light and shadows in trees.  So, I do have a good field of studies with trees.  I wouldn't lack in nuance of photos.  Trees are a topic of mine, a theme running into my life, it seems.

Well, I realized it would be good to had a little bit of further: taking photos of trees around the year.  I do have a few pictures of trees in winter, with snow, mainly coniferous trees with snow.  Why not go further on.  I don't have photos with trees with colourful leaves or with leaves growing up.  Time to remedy that in the next seasons.

With a still growing portfolio on trees, I could make an whole tarot of tree, I guess.  A tree without h's leaves would do a good Death card.  Getting trees with leaves of various colours or just various colour leaves would be a good Wheel of Fortune.  It is something I can think further on.  Would be a good personal tarot anyway.

Fabric, notif and patterns

I have started to buy some fabric recently.  What is my motivation?  I have bought my own sweing machine. I was tired of youtsourcing small repairs outside the home.  In addition, my sweing machine can do embrodery.  A big plus.

Since I have my sewing machine, my attention makes a pit stop for fabric.  There are all kind of fabric.  It is not my priority what kind of fabric I buy.  Not yet.  What caught my eyes until now are the patters and motf on the fabrics.  I find that really inspiring.  Inspiring in the sense I could do anything I want with those fabrics.

I don't have any projects involving my sewing machine.  No big project yet.  I know I could practice more.  Thinking of it, I am tempted to kame a blouse.  I should look for a model and the appropriate fabric.

Here is one example of a fabric that I like:

It is in the trival theme, I think.  The black background makes the other colours pop up.


Meanwhile, I have made a pin cusing by hand.  One error was to have cut the fabric too quickly.  I was too sure of myself.  I have put puffs into it before closing it.  I also put some magnets inside.  It was one of my brillant idea.  I thought it would be useful to have them in case I drop a needle.  In addition, no need to put the needle into the fabric of the pin cushion.

Here are my material:

Here is my pin cushion:

It was a first try.  Putting magnet into the pin cushion is a very good idea.  On the unsatisfied part, it is a very big pin cushion.  Another thing: I could put more puffs.  It is useful informations for my next try.

An experiment from a dollarstore

I bought a sun catcher at the dollar store.  I felt lucky.  I also wanted to try it too.  Here what the package look like:

And here is the content:

After having done it, I find I could have done better:

The problem: the paint. I think the package had been too long on the shelves.  It is surprising because i purhase it before Halloween and I didn't waited to do it.  So the paint was really paste.  The wrst was the white.  It was like rubber.  Amethyste, red and yellow where more speakdable.  It was easier to use them.

My first impression: these should be a test drive about those product.  If I saw a review of that product, I wouldn't had purchased it.

I had a second kit.  I pulled it out the next day.  I liked to experiemnt on the second one.  What did I do?  I thought to take some paint that I have and see if it will work.  I also want to see if it is easier to do the project.
Here is the final result:

It was easier to fill in, putting the colours with a paint brush.  I took some liberty with the colours   It was better with the second kit, with better results, I think.  It was worth the try.

Space in strip cartoon

It is well known to my entourage: I like strip cartoon, the ones that comes from Belgium and France, well, that area.  There are a few series of strip cartoon that I follow.  One of them follow the adventure of a girl called Yoko Tsuno (official site: http://www.yokotsuno.com/fr/accueil.html and the wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoko_Tsuno).  Her adventures have various setting.  Sometimes, she is on earth, other times, she is in space.  A few times, she had gone under ground or had done some time travel.  In her latest adventure, she was underground (english title of the latest album: The Temple of the Immortal: https://www.amazon.ca/Yoko-Tsuno-28-temple-immortels/dp/2800169532/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1509915329&sr=8-2&keywords=roger+leloup  It doesn't seems to be translated into Englis yet but there are many album that is already tranlated.  Here is one that had been translated: https://www.amazon.ca/Light-Ixo-Roger-Leloup/dp/1849183929/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1509915855&sr=8-6&keywords=roger+leloup.  The numbering isn't the same in French and English and it seems that only a few of the learly album had been translated) 

In her various adventures, she have contact with various people but also with an alien species called the Vinean.  They are very human like exept for their blue skin.  They are very technologicalled advanced.  What I like is their technology.  It is not like what we see elsewhere.  How it is picturally shown is very original and out of this world but not that alien.  What would be fun is to see how that technology work on the inside.  I am curious about how the magnetic part work with the rest.  Some part of the magnetic technology seems to be old fashion.  An example of that is in the back to Vinea album (The Three Sun of Vinea: https://www.amazon.ca/Three-Suns-Vinea-Roger-Leloup/dp/1849183023/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1509916380&sr=1-1&keywords=the+three+sun+of+vinea)  In there, there are counciousness and memories of Vineans that are magnetically stored.  I wonder how it possible.  The main reason?  The way I had interpreted it was making me think of cassettes and 8tracks (https://www.google.ca/search?q=cassettes+photos&dcr=0&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiW6orarajXAhVC7CYKHRbRAwgQsAQIJw&biw=1069&bih=865   and http://www.gettyimages.ca/photos/8-track?excludenudity=true&sort=mostpopular&mediatype=photography&phrase=8%20track)  It would be fun to have some explanations on how the Vineans technology work. There is an dictionnary about Captain Haddock's swearing, after all (https://www.amazon.fr/Haddock-illustr%C3%A9-Lint%C3%A9grale-jurons-capitaine/dp/2203017198  Would be great to have an English version to that!)

The Vinéan technology that I like the most is the flyover (https://www.google.ca/search?q=voleur+vin%C3%A9en+images+yoko+tsuno&dcr=0&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwivxt64sajXAhVBJCYKHdT_BokQsAQIKQ&biw=1069&bih=865#imgrc=_  It gies an idea of the flying technology of the videan.)  I like the older version of the flyover,  the one where we are on our tummy.  Not the most recent one, from the latest album.  I would like to have one of the old ones, One that work too.  I would lie to go where ever I want to go.  This is a personal dream that I would like to see in the future.

Dark month of the year

November is having a dark reputation.  I know some people who reference this month as the month of the dead.  It is a dark time in the year.  Days are noticely get shorter.  Halloween is really recent.  Great time to explore the dark recess of the mind.  There are audacious people who have gone the less explored path of darkess.  H. R. Giger (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._R._Giger and the official website: http://www.hrgiger.com/) is one in this path.  His work challenge, provoque, dig deep into the dark.

To set H. R. Giger to memory, he is best known for his biomechanical airbrush images.  In films, he made the Alien Queen in the Alien franchise (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/) and Species (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114508/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1).  This is the tip of the iceberg.  He had also touched other area of creation like furniture and album covers.  I don't know if the Giger bar is still open.  He is from Switzerland.

My knowledge about his is a bit limited.  I would like to know more.  Learning about an artist help understand more about the art side.  Both feed each other.  What I would like to understand a bit more is his relationship with Li Tobler (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li_Tobler)  She had a relationship with Giger up to her suicide in the 70's.  I think this relationship had an impact on Giger.  She was a model for Giger and her face is on many of his work.  I am nost sure but I think her death had an impact on Giger.  I just wonder if this kind of event had lead him exploring darker shade of the mind or the seeds where there before that.    I also wonder where he got his inspiration.  What pushed him to his thought provoking art.  It is almost wanting to go into their mind and creative process and make an autopsy.