If You Fear For The Future

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Carolyn

http://youtu.be/SYQtXpIuR6U

If you fear for the future, listen to this little video clip. It’s the voices of our future. And they actually sound pretty awesome. Just like Anjali Appadurai (see previous post) did when she spoke to the UN climate change conference in Durban. Just like all of those talented youths who are raising their voices in solidarity for humanity around this beautiful planet. Yes, I’m sure that we were just as passionate in our youth (those of us who can’t claim physical youth any longer), but our times weren’t nearly as desperate as they are today. Look around at all of the inhumanity in all walks of life (don’t get me started on politics) and tell me that things aren’t at the breaking point now!

But look at those who are rising to the challenge. They are creating a strong foundation that we must all help make stable so that we can grow responsibly once again. Because it really is up to each and every one of us. Our leaders have shown us just how truly selfish and shallow they really are. Stop supporting past glories, and start building future prosperity for us all. The youth are showing us the way. Just listen…

p.s. This one’s for you, Ralph.

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings | Comments Off on If You Fear For The Future

From The Mouth Of Youth

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Carolyn

I saw this video from a tweet by @GiseleNMendez (you rock as always, Gisele!). At the close of the Durban UN climate change conference, which has once again failed to do anything substantial, one student, Anjali Appadurai, spoke to those leaders at this conference and spoke in no uncertain terms: You’ve run out of excuses! Get It Done! And they even ended the speech with a mic check as is being done by the global people’s movements. Too bad that this happened at the end of the conference when it could have made a difference. Why do our leaders always think of the people last? Especially when most of them wouldn’t have their positions if it wasn’t for the people. Bravo to these youth for reminding our leaders of their obligations to the world.

I too am one of the tired, impatient, and disillusioned that no longer wants to hear the excuses of those who don’t want anything to change for what I can only assume is their own selfish purposes. We live on a globe full of people in all kinds of different climates. What one does in one climate does affect another portion of this globe because we are all interconnected. We share, and we need to do it equally and responsibly. So stop with the “where’s the scientific proof?!” If you want proof, then step outside of your door and look into the air. Do you see hear nothing but cars going by? Do you see the orange sunsets made so by the pollution? Is the weather abnormal for this time of the year? Do you see animals behaving differently? Is there any nature in your immediate surroundings?

There’s your answer!

– from DemocracyNow! and Desmogblog

Share
Posted in General Ramblings | Comments Off on From The Mouth Of Youth

Project RACE Is In Running

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Carolyn

**Go to their Pepsi grant challenge page and vote daily to help Project RACE (and you can also text 110401 to 73774 once a day) win a grant for a cause that makes sense: http://www.refresheverything.com/project-race. Voting ends on 12/31/11.

You’ve all heard me talking about being multiracial before, and I actually am getting to know a group that is really passionate about the cause for proper racial identity on forms. As we become even more interrelated in this global community, the ability to define ourselves by a specific race or bloodline becomes diluted because we are (usually) connecting with the individual (who is complex) and not the group identity (which is too 2D). I’ve written about this before here and at the Urban Times, because I’ve spent a lifetime filling out ridiculous government and medical forms that try to pigeonhole me into a uniform identity. Needless to say, I seriously despise that stupid “other” box, because it’s as close as it got for me back in the day! Even today, the data collection is dismal, which is incomprehensible in today’s world of technology and social communications. Of course, if you’re in the minority, then you’re not making the rules… Continue reading →

Share
Posted in General Ramblings | Comments Off on Project RACE Is In Running

SOPA Won’t Go Away Unless WE Make It

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Carolyn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s an act of the US Congress that just won’t go away (actually there’s two of them and more coming in all probability). Its detractors are being touted as unpatriotic and un-American, as though they are supporting piracy and copyright infringement. Yet the reality is no where near as innocent as supporters like MPAA boss Chris Dodd and Senator Smith are claiming.

I’ve been talking consistently about the potential it has to kill the Internet, and my voice is joined by millions. Look at the Avaaz.org global petition to Save the Internet: over 1 million protesters and still growing. And it’s not alone as there are numerous petitions in the US, like the americancensorship.org petition that is showing in my right sidebar, the stopcensorship.org petition with Senator Wyden, and the continuous flow of information from groups like EFF.

This week is critical to get your voices out there because word is that a vote is being pushed on Thursday, even with all of the vehement opposition. Congress doesn’t want to hear or understand the realities of what dangerous and draconian bills like SOPA and Protect IP will do to our most vital democratic arena: the Internet. They’re too busy kissing the asses of their financial contributors. The same contributors who support SOPA and Protect IP.

No one is saying that piracy and copyright infringement are OK, but everyone is saying that the global human rights are more important than actual economics. Especially when those economics are so flawed that we are staring continuous global financial meltdown threats on a daily basis. Those who make business and legal decisions need to understand that the world is not there to play at their beck and call. Your institutions need to be fixed before we’re willing to listen to your words. You’ve all shown that you lack the morality to play with the rest of mankind. Since SOPA and Protect IP won’t go away, it looks like we’re going to have to yell even louder until we make them go away. Continue reading →

Share
Posted in General Ramblings | Comments Off on SOPA Won’t Go Away Unless WE Make It

There Are No True Mistakes

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Carolyn

Stefon Harris and his improvisational jazz quarter show us a clear lesson here: There are no true mistakes. The amazing thing is that they do it without words for the first half of this Ted Talk…only music. Lots and lots of insanely creative music that just flows from their feelings to their fingertips as if by magic to create a tapestry of color tones that paint our emotions.

But when Stefon does start to talk, he explains that mistakes are not mistakes but missed opportunities, and this talk really starts to open our minds. Instead of forcing things to happen, he and his fellow bandmates use the bandstand to work together and affect one another in order to create a deeper palette of tones with which they can inspire one another. His comparison to forced vs fluid shows a clear image of how synchronicity is either built or destroyed.

We need to look at those opportunities that can be found in a perceived mistake to see if we actually received the true intention of that person. Since we’re not in their mindset, we can only guess at what they may or may not have intended. But if we let an opportunity slip by, then we might just miss the most important creation ever. That’s the beauty of creation…it’s true power can be found in what we make of it.

Continue reading →

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings, General Ramblings | Comments Off on There Are No True Mistakes

Thought For The Day – Curiosity

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Carolyn


 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Curiosity. We all have it. Apparently, this duck is extremely curious about the photographer, Tilly Meijer, who submitted this shot to Nat Geo. Isn’t this just adorable!

So, today’s thought for the day: What makes you curious, and what do you do about it? I find curiosity to be one of my biggest motivators. As soon as I read or discover something interesting, I just have to know more about that subject. I truly believe that this is one of my most powerful tools in my creative arsenal, and one that I use all of the time. When I write anything, I have to feel like I’ve done the best research possible in the time allotted before I even put down the first word. That first thought is my anchor on which I build everything that follows. I can tell if the anchor is secure by how I feel as I continue to write. When the feeling’s off, then I know that I still have more to find. When that happens, then off I go satisfying that curiosity. Because you know how well it worked for the cat…

How about you?

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings | Comments Off on Thought For The Day – Curiosity

An Animation Schools Teaches

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Carolyn

I caught this video, Creative Tanks, as I was hunting through Vimeo for treasures, and it really struck a note because so many of us are caught in this endless cycle at work. I love the main character, a fumbling creator who just doesn’t fit in. But what really gets me excited is that this video was created by students at The Animation School in Cape Town, South Africa: Paul Lombard, Jason Brown, Ruan Pienaar, and Marthinus Spangenberg.

You can check out more student creations at their Vimeo channel and the 2011 World Gold Medal winner (In Sickness) by some of the school’s graduates. The winning story is sad, beautiful, mesmerizing and oddly comforting. What a wonderful piece! There is some serious animation talent coming from this school!

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings | Comments Off on An Animation Schools Teaches

Vik’s Wasteland

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Carolyn

Vik Muniz is back once again (I’ve covered him before here and here), and once again he is out to help people. Wasteland is a story about the catadores, or pickers of recyclable materials, who work in the world’s largest garbage dump, Jardim Gramacho, in Vik’s native Brazil. This time, Vik asked them to participate in his art creation by becoming the inspiration for his pieces that went on sale through an auction. All of the proceeds went back to the catadores, who have since used it to make changes in their lives. The movie is already in worldwide release, and is even available on video in the US. I definitely need to see this, and not only because it covers the work of an amazing man. What beauty that’s found in an unexpected place.

Vik is an artist whose heart is so obviously bigger than the wide open skies. Every time I read about him, he’s using his creative talents to better another’s life. He is such an inspiration for me and many others out there.

– thanks again My Modern Met for covering an amazing talent

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings | Comments Off on Vik’s Wasteland

Daniel Danger’s Memories

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Carolyn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am seriously kicking myself for not having paid closer attention to a showing at Rotofugi back in October. Daniel Danger had a showing called “There is Wanderlust Growing in Your Bones”. The piece above is of the same title, and one that I fell in love with when I first saw it. Now, I happened to once again stumble upon this young New England artist on My Modern Met. The main reason that his works draw me in are the moods depicted in his images that remind me so much of another favorite artist of mine, Edward Gorey.

If you want to get a tiny but wonderful feel for who he is, just take a look at his bio: “Amidst old houses dead from the fallout of urban sprawl, railway bridges asleep from neglect, and trees that engulf everything; his work attempts to remind you of something you may have said to someone, or something someone may have said to you; back in that time period thats just too far away to remember clearly, but not so long ago you forgot about it completely. His memories and many of his friends are simply ghosts now, shaking him awake with mistimed alarm clocks and the sounds of a television from across the house. Documentation is key to get through the day. Things are always changing and its easy to lose yourself.” How can you not be drawn in after that intro? I know that he’s captured my interest.

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings | Comments Off on Daniel Danger’s Memories

Twitter Language

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Carolyn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eric Fischer’s work always deserves coverage because he has such a unique way of visualizing our world. He has once again looked at Twitter data with the use of a portion of Chrome’s open-source language detector which was extracted by Mike McCandless. This time he’s created a global Twitter language map which gives us a glimpse of how concentrated spoken languages are in different geographic regions. This image was created from data collected from May 14th to October 20th, 2011, using color markers so that they showed “maximum distinguishability” of the languages used near one another. The color marker for English was toned down as it is still common throughout the world.

But clearly, the interesting aspects of this map are the close-up views of different regions to see the pockets of languages that stand out against a country’s common language. Find out more takes on this map by going to DesignTaxi -> HYPENOTICE -> Big Think. It’s definitely becoming a popular share, with good reason. Once again, Eric brings us a little closer to understanding this amazing world we live, talk, and share in. I love Eric’s work!

Share
Posted in Creative Ramblings | Comments Off on Twitter Language