technology vs. paper

Sometimes, I get very frustrated with technology. Especially Illustrator. Sometimes I wish it didn't exist, and that we still had to create logos/drawings/maps by hand.

Now, of course that isn't true, but I do wish we could use ye ole' pen and paper more often. Technology these days is definitely helpful, I can't argue that. But I miss drawing. There's just something about manually making every line and stroke with your own fingers that feels more rewarding sometimes.

This is kind of related to a previous post I wrote; about how technology stresses me out sometimes. I guess it's kind of the same with this.

Bottom line is, I'm very thankful for the techology we have. But I certainly have my days where I need a break from it all.

What do you think? Do you like working on the computer better, or drawing with a pencil and paper?

one of my biggest blessings

One of the best blessings I've had in my life is a little girl named Gracie. Gracie is the three year old girl that I babysit every weekday. She has autism, which has certainly been a challenge. Autism is a very mysterious condition, and no one fully understands it.

Gracie doesn't really use words to communicate-but she is definitely learning. Because of this, it's kind of like I have had to learn her "language." Each week, I notice her start to use more and more words. I try and teach her little things and sing songs with her while I'm with her.

Autistic children tend to learn by seeing and repeating. One day, we were watching Sesame Street. They were building a tower with bricks on this episode, so she started building a tower with her toys and said "tower, tower!" She has learned that when someone takes a picture of someone, they say "cheese." So today, she picked up her fisher price camera and told me to say cheese.

Her memory is absolutely astounding. Four months ago, she came over to my house while her mom had a meeting, and I took her in my backyard to play baseball. Yesterday, her and her mom came over to visit with my mom-and Gracie remembered "baseball, baseball!" It was quite impressive.

Though she may not use language as much as the average three year old, I don't think she is any less smart. She is quite clever, and even understands when I'm kidding around or being funny. It's truly amazing and I would love to learn more about this condition.

The amazing thing is that the doctor said that people probably won't be able to tell she had autism as a child by the time she is 5. She goes to special classes and has speech therapy every week which helps her greatly.

Enough about the autism-Gracie may have this at the moment, but it certainly doesn't define her. She is such a sweet and fun little girl. Her mom tells me that she always asks for me, and that melts my heart. It makes me so happy to see that she is happy. It's also so refreshing to be able to act like a kid for four hours a day-singing, watching PBS, and playing dolls with her. Seeing her face light up fills me with joy.

I think babysitting is a great way to learn about kids. I certainly won't have kids for a very long time, but when I do, I know I will be a good mom. Even though I'm just Gracie's babysitter, I feel like I'm part of their family.

I am so thankful and blessed to be able to be a part of her life.

an inspiring website...

Has anyone ever heard of booooooom.com? It is probably one of the coolest sites I've ever found. There's everything from photography to graphic design to architecture design and more. It is soo addicting though-so give yourself at least an hour to scroll :) I'll post a few photos that I've found on there, as well as post a link. I hope you enjoy!

audrey hepburn

Last night, I watched "Funny Face." It stars Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire. I loved it! Audrey always portrays her character so well. In fact, I think she portrays these independent, self confident, down to earth roles because that's who she was. 

Audrey was not only an inspiring actress and fashion icon, but a sensible person as well. She had such an innocence to her; yet was so confidently independent. She expressed the importance in loving yourself, and that's something everyone deserves to feel. 

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from her:

"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!

"The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mode but the true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives the passion that she shows. The beauty of a woman grows with the passing years."

"Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, it's at the end of your arm, as you get older, remember you have another hand: The first is to help yourself, the second is to help others."

I've really been learning lessons in independence lately, and watching this movie made me so happy-I love how Audrey portrayed this trait. 

I highly reccommend this movie; there is just something refreshing about watching an old film. 

OH- and, it was interesting to watch the graphics. Every time a special effect occurred, I would really wonder how they did it back then. So interesting! And so crazy how styles have changed and technology has advanced. 

This is a bit scatterbrained and all over the place, I apologize. 

I hope everyone is doing well

-Anna 

my dear friend, polly

I am so excited for one of my best friends, Polly! Polly is a senior at the University of Illinois, majoring in costume design. She runs an online vintage/antique/handmade store on etsy, as well as a blog-but recently, she has been offered actual store space! I am so excited for her-she is 23 years old and is going to be running an actual clothing/antique business. It will be located in the same building as Bella on South Neil Street.

If you are interested in seeing her work, designs, and writing- here's a link to her blog. pollybland.com

PS- she was recently interviewed and had an interview published in the News-Gazette. It was about her store, dreams, and what she does. I was on set for the set photos, and was photographing her models. A photographer from the News-Gazette came to snap photos to be shown in the article. If you'd like to give it a read, here is the link to the online version: http://www.news-gazette.com/news/people/2012-10-08/fashionistabloggers-sights-are-being-someone-world-style.html

She has inspired me so much and has always been such a sweet friend to me, and I am incredibly happy for her. Her dreams are coming true! Hard work definitely pays off.

charmaine olivia

I recently came across an extremely inspirational artist. Her name is Charmaine Olivia, and I highly recommend that you check out her paintings. Here's a few photos and a link to her website :)

Enjoy!
www.charmaineolivia.com

social networks

Does anyone ever just get really stressed out from how connected you can get to the world? With facebook, instagram, texting, blogging, etc...it can really actually be a stressor instead of entertainment. Ever got to the point of boredom (though you have so much to do...) that you sit there and refresh one social network after another? Yeah...that's happened to me. And then I realize that I am being totally pathetic.

Anyway, I think it is very healthy to disconnect yourself from the world every once in a while. Last night I had soo much to do, yet I was texting and on facebook-a total waste of time. Finally, I got fed up with myself and decided to go running. I live in a small town, so going on a run at midnight is totally safe. Plus no one was out, so it was nice to completely be by myself for those fourty minutes. Once I got back home, I felt totally refreshed-and decided not to get on the computer or phone the rest of the night.

This reminds me of "Walden" bu Henry Thoreau. He went off and lived in the woods alone to clear his mind and find his self. Yeah, that's kind of excessive for this day in age-but even a few hours a day totally disconnected and being alone can be so beneficial to your mental health.

I came across a quote the other day that I really loved-

“I think it’s very healthy to spend time alone. You need to know how to be alone and not be defined by another person.” 

 

Just some thoughts from my over active brain :)  

 

music

There aren't really words to explain music...it's just.. one of the best gifts God has given us. It eases sadness, accompanies our pity parties, raises us up, inspires us, and motivates us.

Lately, I have a few musical obsessions- Especially classical music. Somedays I just set Pandora on the Yann Tiersen station, and it helps to orchestrate my day, in a way. I find classical music incredibly inspiring. It almost makes me feel like I'm in a movie, if that makes sense. And if it doesn't...then maybe I'm just crazy.

Anyway, it just makes me feel like there are no limits. The other day, I turned on my music, lit a candle, opened my window, and just enjoyed time to myself. I wrote letters to dear friends, painted, wrote several pages in my journal, and just took a moment to live in the moment. I listened to my blinds tap against my window sill along with the gusts of wind, I watched the shadow of my candle flickering on my ceiling, I listened carefully to the sound of my typewriter. I enjoyed the warmth of my black coffee with a tad bit of soymilk, I smelled the sweet aroma of autumn flow through my window. I tried my hardest to stop thinking-to just feel. And right there, on the floor of my room while looking around at all of my unfinished projects, I found inner peace. Because in that very moment, everything was just right.

It really is the little things in life that bring glimmers of joy to even the saddest of souls.

-A