Thursday, November 05, 2009

My Box




Lettering #2 Mosaic
Originally uploaded by mlee.etsy.com
My project box that is. Through all of the not part of reality silliness in The Creative Habit I found a few gems. I finished it on my Kindle iPhone app the other day and am putting what I learned to use.

1) Start a morning ritual to get myself going in the right direction. My first thought and attempt was for this to be making green smoothies and then working out doing The Shred. But that was just too much to do every day, especially on days following a rough night with Alex. So it soon got whittled down to just the green smoothie part. Much healthier than a cup of coffee and a more long lasting energy, plus it is for the entire family. And Alex needs all the veggies I can get her to eat. Plus we are fasting for the next three weeks and coffee is out.

2) A box for my creative project(s). One box for each one to keep things focused. Right now I am using a shoe box, but when I get the chance I will probably take her advice and get the kind you can buy at Office Depot. In this box goes all the papers I have found that could possibly work for my project. Various papers including plain ones, pre-printed ones, washi and my own woodblock and gocco print scraps. Along with that I have a two tiered pencil case that keeps the small pieces so they don't get lost in the shuffle. And at the top level of that case are the ones I think I will be using. She just suggested a box, but she is a dancer not a visual artist, so I felt the need to expand to suit my needs.

3) I also have an computer based tool that I am trying out as a way to gather and organize various materials. I can save websites and images and put them into folders so they are easy to bring up whenever I need them.

Have I mentioned how much I love the Kindle app yet? Because I do, yet it actually keeps me from getting an actual Kindle rather than making me want one. I'm a minimalist when it comes to what I carry with me and having it in my phone is perfect. Now I read my physical books at home, but I always have something as backup on my phone.

Now along with a novel (The Blind Assassin for you curious types) I am reading another book to boost my productivity. This time it is a book that is practical for all people called Getting Things Done. The latter is on my Kindle app again which makes it handy for a quick read and note taking. I plan on always having one fiction and one non-fiction books going at all times. Funny how just six months ago I could barely find the attention to finish a book in six months and now I am reading books within a week tops.

Just another sign that things are improving.

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