A throwaway shot, or purposefully unfocused? This week, find beauty in a blur.
One easy way to blur photos is when they are taken at a live musical. My selection for this challenge was taken at Hong Kong Disneyland’s—The Lion King. It was an amazing constantly moving show on a small stage so blurred photos were common. Through their blur I can still see the passion 3 years later.
Although Australian I choose to drink wine not beer. It wasn’t until our recent trip to Canada that I began to learn about beer. At lunchtime on New Years Eve in Montreal my husband and I had lunch at The 3 Brewers Microbrewery and decided to try a beer float. Our beer float consisted of 6 beers all made on site:
I was excited. This was a new experience for me, the beers were beautifully presented and looked appertising—something I would have never consider possible before. And now for the test—what were my thoughts. I tried all beers in order as they looked to get stronger as they went.
White – I enjoyed this unusual beer. It was light with a gingery feel and had a pleasant after taste. I could definitely trial a larger glass later.
Blonde – I had tried blonde beers before so the taste wasn’t unusual. It was wheaty and fruity and whilst pleasant it wasn’t my favourite.
Amber – Described by the microbrewery ” as a specialty found nowhere else” I did enjoy this beer. It had a light, caramel flavour that went particularly well with my lunch—Beef and Mushroom Poutine.
Brown – This was my least favourite beer. I found it a strong, malty flavour that I felt took over. It was interesting to try.
Christmas Cheer – Made only for the month of December this beer was very enjoyable. It had a fun, light, festive taste. The flavours did remind me of Christmas. It was one of my favourites.
Portobello – This beer was dark and strong. Surprisingly, I didn’t find it bitter like other strong beers so I did enjoy it although only in small quantities.
It was a fun, practical learning experience and I am glad I took the risk. I will gaining more beer knowledge as the opportunity presents.
#AtoZChallenge
How do you communicate differently online than in person, if at all? How do you communicate emotion and intent in a purely written medium?
Communication is key. It is at the centre of everything we do. To me all forms of communication need to be consistent—written, verbal and body language. How I communicate is my brand. Working in mental health I nurture moving forward, making changes to encourage growth—both in myself and others.
Several years ago I did not realise how different my written and spoken word naturally were. I had just begun writing my book and given my first draft chapters to my collaborator. After reading them her response was—”the information is great but it needs to be in your voice that is what people connect with.” She was right. My written word was stiff and formal. It didn’t flow and wasn’t welcoming. This was a pivotal point in my writing career long before I started blogging. The way I communicate orally and in writing work when they are the same. My writing voice needed to change.
Now everything thing I write except formal work document as based on a conversational tone—my natural voice. I don’t use the shortened text message for of communication—I don’t like it. If I am writing a text message I write it exactly as I would ask it—clear and concise—so there is no misunderstanding. When using emotion and intent I describe the situation using the writing formula—show don’t tell.
If I am unsure how to phrase a sentence in my voice I memorise the sentence and re write it how I remember it. From my experience this puts it in the order I say it. This is particularly helpful when I am writing speeches. I rarely use long complicated sentences—they confuse me. I like easy to understand communication—in life and on-line.
My experience is by using this method even when I need to say difficult things they are taken well and the change I want is nurtured without the other person getting defensive. My aim is to respect all people I interact with—known or unknown—bringing inspiration and positivity into their world and hopefully brightening their day.
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/its-a-text-text-text-text-world/
This week’s theme: ephemeral. Show us your interpretation!
Last Sunday my husband and I took photos of the sunset from Cape Byron—Australia’s most easterly point. It truly was a ephemeral experience. The top photos show the sunsetting over Australia while the bottom two totally different photos are the hues over the Pacific Ocean. It was quite remarkable.
Over Australia
Over The Pacific Ocean
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/ephemeral/
If you were involved in a movie, would you rather be the director, the producer, or the lead performer? (Note: you can’t be the writer!).
I love acting. Bringing characters to life and making them believable. Acting allows you to totally immerse yourself in the character and find things about yourself you didn’t know existed.
It has been many decades since I last acted but who knows I may return to it in my retirement when I have more time on my hands.
My greatest acting moment was playing Wonder Woman to a crowded theatre. At the time I didn’t look to bad either—unfortunately I don’t think I have any photos to remember it by.
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/the-show-must-go-on/
Tell us about a time things came this close to working out… but didn’t. What happened next? Would you like the chance to try again, or are you happy with how things eventually worked out?
Inspiring Max was born on Mother’s day—12th May 2014. I knew nothing about blogging but thought I would give it a go anyway. As a self-hosted blog, I soon realised I had a lot to learn about how I was different to other WordPress.com sites. It was a very slow process. I was frustrated. In July, after completing Blogging 101 I had—34 views, 13 visitors and only 1 follower. So I stopped blogging and prioritised other things.
In late August I was off work sick for a week. I had nothing to do so I popped back to my site. To my surprise I had a few followers, several more views and an Inspiring Blogger Award. I was humbled and excited. Suddenly I got it. Blogging is a long-term journey—a commitment not only to yourself, but also every one who reads you blog. We all grow together and allow each other to reach our own individual goals. By the end of December 2014, my goal was 100 followers. I ended the year with 110 followers and now I have 335. It may have been a slow start but Inspiring Max is on the move.
Somewhere around September I learnt not to focus on the followers but the views. If people were regularly viewing more than one page of my work I was happy. This usually meant they would come back again. The more I connect with my blogging community—the more they connect with me. I view 3 new blogs a day that I interact with. As a result, I am excited to have been viewed by people in 105 countries—many of whom I didn’t know existed. I love the coloured in world map of where Inspiring Max has been.
My advice to bloggers is make sure you have great content and keep going. When you are discouraged visit new blogs. Connect with your community at every opportunity and overtime—your community will connect with you. Blogging is a rewarding experience that has allowed me to grow in ways I would have never imagined possible before. Thank you for sharing my journey. I look forward to our future together. To celebrate I offer you a virtual glass champagne instead of a cigar.
Draft a post with three parts, each unrelated to the other, but create a common thread between them by including the same item — an object, a symbol, a place — in each part.
“Mum can we go yet, I want to play?”
“Who or what do you want to play with, Sandy?”
“I want to play with Mary.”
“Mary is visiting her family in Queensland so that is not possible.”
“Yes it is mum she has her mum’s I-pad.”
“Sorry Sandy, remember yesterday I said during the day you play outside while the weather is good.”
“Okay mum I forgot.”
Practical and fun
Life’s building blocks
Alternate way of learning
Your friend
Last night I went to see the new play in town. Great story and the characters were so real. Initially I didn’t want to go but I went as a favour to my friend. She was worried nobody would go. Wrong. It was a sell out crowd and the critics loved it. Simply titled—PLAY—it is the story behind the importance of playing in our adult life as well as our childhood. So when you get the chance don’t forget to play.
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/weaving-the-threads/
For this week’s photo challenge, share with us a photo that expresses something fresh.
To celebrate our daughters birthday one year, my husband and I created this giant ice cream cupcake. We used a giant two-piece cupcake mould—to create our masterpiece. One half was lined with chocolate biscuit crumbs and the other melted white chocolate. This gave us the bottom and top of our cake. The middle was made of 5 layers of ice cream. Each layer was a different flavour. My husband choose 2, I choose 2 and the last was a mutual decision to bring it all together. They worked brilliantly. We then put it all together and sprinkled chocolate flakes over the top for an original fresh, yummy birthday cake. You couldn’t wipe the smile of her face.
Today I am joining Mara Eastern’s weekly poetry challenge to continue to develop my newly found poetry skills. To add some interest and mix it up a bit—each week using the theme I will write two poems, not one. This week’s theme is RIGHT—I have chosen to write a limmerick—in celebration of St Patrick’s Day yesterday and a concrete poem.
Is it wrong or is it right?
This is my common plight
How can I tell?
If I do not dwell
Because I need to prepare for the fight.
Alright.
Yes I got
uptight,
every time
I couldn’t
tell my
left-hand
from my right. Then
I solved the problem
I put a ring
on it.
http://maraeastern.com/2015/03/16/poetry-101-rehab-right/
What would you put in this year’s time capsule to channel the essence of our current moment for future generations?
Yesterday I discovered Tree Change Dolls—remodeled, refreshed and re-styled—rejected Bratz dolls by Australian artist Sonia Singh from Tasmania. Bratz dolls are everywhere. They are styled on high rock fashion with heavy make-up. The look alone was enough for me to refuse to ever buy one for anyone. My other problem is the name Bratz. It is not something I want to encourage in anyone. For the same reason, I could never buy the clothing brand No Rules.
Sonia decided to redesign the dolls into something her children wanted to play with, because of her love of playing with dolls. She found the rejected dolls in the second-hand shops and breathed new life into them. The result is beautiful natural looking dolls that children can associate with as their faces remind them of friends and people they knew. The photo below is the same doll—originally harsh looking, bordering on scary then given a new make-down—looking soft, gentle and angelic.
Photo Credit: Sonia Singh
Sonia’s transformation involves removing the original makeup using nail polish remover. She then paints on new eye brows, eyes and lipstick. Her mother knits little tops for each doll and sews some pants or a skirt—giving each doll an individual homemade feel. When the outfit is complete Sonia then moulds boots for their feet that match their outfits.
Photo Credit: Sonia Singh
Below is a sample of Sonia’s Tree Change family playing in the great outdoors—where kids used to play.
Photo Credit: Sonia Singh
Since Sonia created a Facebook page and Tumblir for her Tree Change Dolls in a no time they went viral. Everyone wants their own natural doll—the problem is she wasn’t expecting this level of support and isn’t sure what to do about it. Personally I think this is a great way to move froward. Reverting back to kids being kids and not the sexualised images of the original Bratz dolls. It has my support and is the reason I would put it in my time capsule today.