I Hope You Dance...!

I don't normally read things like this, but I have been on a "love who you are, and be true to yourself!" kick. I think its because its something I am working on myself, but from the looks of things in the world today, and the access we have to everyone's 150 character thoughts 24/7, you can tell this is an issue a lot of people deal with. *We suffer from insecurity and narcissism at the same time - damn you Facebook.*


This was an article Margaret Cho posted on her website yesterday that the Huffington Post shared today, that I think everyone (young people of America especially) should read. I think its a shame that it takes most women until their 30s to be truly comfortable in their own skin - and some never do. Take a moment to read, ladies (and guys - this goes for you too), because this relates to you as a person, and everything involved, not only your looks, but also your personality, your sexuality, your beliefs, your style, everything that makes you unique and makes you, you. 

You are not ugly. Don’t make videos.

February 27th, 2012

You’re not ugly.

Not in the least. Don’t make those videos. Take them down if they are up. You don’t need people to tell you how beautiful you are on there. You don’t need to put yourself in the position to be judged that way. You are better than that and you deserve the very best in life. If I could come through this screen and tell you and show you and bolster you and buoy you up and raise you high above all the bad shit you are going through – so your spirit is free and you feel like you are flying, I would. I’d give anything if I could find a way to show you how lovely and perfect you are. If you’d believe me when I say you are amazing, you are the only you in the world and that makes you special and precious and holy, truly one of a kind – it would make me the happiest.

I thought I was so ugly for so long and I wasted so much of my life on this dumb notion. I punished myself and avoided my reflection in mirrors and any windows. I would see myself reflected back and I would look away, trying to pretend I didn’t exist because I hated myself so much. I hated the way I looked and it started early on. My father found a school project from 1^st grade, where I had written on a photo of myself that I looked like a flat faced mummy – and firstly, how does a kid that young know what a flat faced mummy is and secondly, I cry at my own self judgement and thirdly, I was such a cute kid. Imagine my face and then miniaturize it in your mind until the age of 6. I know, fucking adorable.

One day I looked at myself and I thought, shit, this is it. this is what I look like. No amount of self hatred is going to change my appearance. I am who I am. I am stuck with this and I have to love it or else I am going to die early from my own suffering and idea that I got shortchanged in the looks department.

Why go through life feeling cheated? It does nothing but make you bitter. I don’t want to be bitter. I want to be better. I want you to be better. I don’t want you to waste all those years like I did. I didn’t get to the point of feeling real good about myself until my 40s. that was pretty much 40 years of uninterrupted self loathing that I had no need for. I never got to enjoy my youth, and I was a gorgeous kid and I missed it because I hated myself for no reason. I am kicking myself because I missed out on so much happiness because I had this idea that I was ugly that I couldn’t shake, that was supported by others – as they had their own issues with self hatred and so took it out on me. I don’t want you to miss out on a minute of your fantastic lives.

Let’s just say I am right, you are beautiful, end of story. I have so much love for you and I want your lives to be richer, happier and better than mine. I want to make these mistakes so you don’t have to. Like on a group ride when the leader rides ahead and can alert you to the potholes and other dangers on the road. I am just pointing them out to you because I have been there. I know this place, this life and I have some advice. I hope you take it.

http://www.margaretcho.com/content/2012/02/27/you-are-not-ugly-dont-make-videos/

Tossing out my collection of my face photoshopped onto models' bodies,

DML

What friends are for...

Watch my friend Jack and his sketch group DeadKevin!! Makes my day every time I take a break and watch one!! Then you can say you knew them before they got HUGE :)

"Undies"

"Sick Day"

"Dirty Dishes"

A fire hydrant as wall art? Yes please!

Last friday I was introduced to a new Artist from some co workers of mine. His name is Kenton Nelson and you should really check him out.

He has a knack for painting the every day object or activity and makes it look interesting. He also plays with focus much as a photographer would, and that to me is what makes his paintings SO spectacular. Look at the trees or bushes in the background of the fire hydrant or lawn chair. both items are sharply in focus, but the tree behind the hydrant are completely out of focus.  The lawn chair shows a great depth of field, as you see the chair clearly, and then the pool, and the bushes and wall are a shy out of focus and lacking detail, and then the trees in the background have no details and are just specks of color, playing with lighting and shadows. LOVE IT. I want the Lawn Chair framed in my house. There is something calming about it. Not to mention all of these photos have a mid-century vintage style to them, which is a time period I get excited about.

***

He also dabbles in human subjects. But he does two very different and very interesting styles. The first being that he will show a subject up close, but cut them off at the eyes. They are usually in a very common or typical setting or are being caught in an every day action, but having them cut off at the eyes adds an extra level of mystery. It also makes it more subjective, because you can't connect with the person without seeing the emotion in their eyes. There are many things going on in these scenarios.

The man in the first picture doesn't look all that pleased. At first glance, it is a man in a suit checking his watch. Is he an executive waiting on someone? Is it late to an appointment or a job interview? I feel like this book he is holding is important. This entire painting is very neutral in color, but the book is a deep red. I love the depth of field, again, in this picture.
The woman in the second painting appears to be what I would assume a young lady on the beach. She looks to be dressed trendy enough, but she is apart from the crowd. And isn't smiling. Maybe she's an outsider. Maybe she's just getting to the party, and the look on her face is a seductive, teasing face. Her posture leads me to think that could be the case.
The bottom painting of a woman lounging on a diving board is just lovely with its bright colors, and again, no emotional connection to the subject, but maybe you can invision that it is you yourself on that diving board, soaking in the sun. Ahh, a nice mental vacation.

***

The second style is portraits of people caught in the middle of an ordinary act, and feels very natural and organic.

A girl, feeling the heat of the sun on her hand and face, or maybe talking to someone in a window? I thought this painting was BEAUTIFUL, not only is the girl cute as hell, but the colors are magnificent and she looks so content.

A girl fixing the hem of her dress, or playing with her fingers and pulling down her skirt while sitting in a waiting room. 

A girl, curious, listening in to something that is going on downstairs.  This one is interesting because this is something you would be embarrassed to be caught doing, so it almost feels uncomfortable or anxious.

AGAIN WITH THE AWESOME PLAY WITH FOCUS!!!

If you enjoyed these, there are many more on his website (and the one that I first saw that caught my eye in my co workers office ISN'T on his website, which only alludes to the fact that there must be more to be found) you should absolutely check out his website: http://kentonnelson.com/

In and out of focus,

DML

Abandonment Issues

I have a real fascination with things that are abandoned. Things that otherwise would be so full of life, and motion and presence. Like houses, theme parks, and these cars. It feels sad, sometimes. It feels spooky 99% of the time. In this case, I think it is beautiful.

I found these on the photographers website: http://www.peterlippmann.com/

These images blew me away. The color of the vehicles themselves, the style of each car, the level of decomposition and rust is different in each, and beautiful. The contrast between earth/life and the industrial metal and glass is neat. The color contrast in the photos with the red and blue cars is just brilliant. The photography itself is very interesting, the composition almost feels posed, like these cars were modeling, and the editing on the photos makes them feel fantastical - like they were part of a fairy tale. The time period of these cars and the amount of growth on them tells a story I think. But what is that story? How long have they been there? Where were these cars going when they were abandoned by their passengers? Why were they abandoned, or were they abandoned at all? Maybe there was a house there once, and that too was taken over by ivy. What will happen to them over more time? What lives inside of them now?

I'd like to imagine something as mystical and fantasized as a little world of fairies making their kingdom inside of these, not unlike FernGully, or the more widely known remake of FernGully, Avatar. 

Or maybe a wonderful family of forest creatures, maybe animals of all different species who rebelled from their clans and found a misfit family life style within the crevices of one of these cars. I'm picturing puppets.

Maybe its a thriller, and the passengers were hi-jacked, or kidnapped, and these cars are the last proof of their existence, and even that is starting to be eaten up by the wild. Maybe the horror story takes place within the car, and the car is then left as it will be part of evidence.

Could be a love story between a man and a woman who meet driving on a long winding road in the middle of no where and when they eventually pull over to meet, they take off together in one car, the other left behind.

Or perhaps its a tragedy between a car and a man, and when the man sold her or was gone for any reason, the car went to find him and never did.

They always say a picture is worth a thousand words. What would those 1,000 words be to you? It astonishes me how many different ideas can come from the same source when multiple people are looking at it from their point of view. What inspires you to imagine, create, write, design, draw, express?

Considering new ideas,

DML

Adieu, Mademoiselle

Today marks one more point for women's rights in France. Women's rights that I didn't even realize was an issue.

France is beginning to phase out the need to mark your marital status in your name on official documents and forms. It was never an issue for men, as they were always Monsieur, either way. But for women, they only had the choice of "Mademoiselle" (single) or "Madame" (married). Here in the US we have the option to stay vague with our "Ms." However, on official documents, Americans still have to check the box that claims our marital status.

But honestly, I've never thought twice about it before. To me, stating that I am single has never felt like a thing to be ashamed of. Maybe if I were older and still single, it would be a different story. But especially over in France, where most people in todays younger generation are not likely to even get married because they are opposed to matrimony, why does it shame them? Or if shame isn't quite the word, why does it bother them to put mademoiselle and suggest that they are single? Is it the fact that they don't have the option to privacy?  Maybe just because they aren't married, doesn't mean they aren't in long term partnership, and Mademoiselle wouldn't accurately describe their status. It also is just another way that women's choices were different from men's, and that will always stir up some sort of disdain.

I personally think Mademoiselle is a gorgeous word. Maybe I'm a traditionalist. Maybe it is just another word in French, but in French everything just sounds so damn romantic and beautiful. It feels so classic and almost, regal.

I am not one to even pose an opinion, as I DO have the option of Miss or Ms and I almost always go with Ms. - if I even bother to put a prefix down on paper.

Taking the land of the free for granted,

Mademoiselle DML



P.S. For the record - I am not against this reform. I am PRO any women's rights movement, this is more about my simple mind not even thinking about things like this, and coming across news like this and being totally surprised.

Image taken from http://realitystudio.org/texts/william-burroughs-in-january-1960-mademoiselle/

My Stache

It's been a little while since I've remembered that I had a blog I was trying to write in religiously. But I've been hired and so I knew my free time would shrink immensely.

So let me tell you about my craft from last weekend. I almost bought a pig piggy bank for all my loose change (which, let's be serious, isn't all that much really). But then I was inspired by a mason jar - as I so frequently am (you can do ANYTHING with a mason jar, and they just have so much rustic/country charm!!) - that I came across on etsy.com.

The Gentleman Mustache Stash Jar

Now, I am not a hipster. Really, no where near it. But my boyfriend happens to be fond of mustaches, and men with great mustaches. I think they are funny, and since I love all things 1895, this style of mustache speaks to me, as well. So I thought, "Well now, I could make this for far less than 16 dollars + Shipping." 

Since I work in an art dept for a television show, I have all sorts of craft tools and goods available to me. I found a fun 'stache design online and a font I liked and created my own stencil using Adobe InDesign (Though this could easily be done on word or probably even paint - for you few PC users still out there in the world). I grabbed my handy dandy xacto knife and a cutting mat and carved out my stencil. Over the weekend I found a jar at a goodwill for just a little over a dollar - Score! I planned to use a fun acrylic paint that I already have in my art supply stache (get it? Hope so, thats the whole point of this jar) - which lives in a cluttered mess in a small closet in my small apt (MAN I want a craft room!). 

But then, something magical happened. I found a sticker store! They have so many great sticker finds. Stuff from my childhood that I haven't seen in years, and 3D stickers, and travel stickers for scrapbooking, and alphabet stickers in tons of fonts. I mean, this was sticker heaven. And right in the center of it all, were fuzzy mustache stickers, with real fake hair. My entire direction for my jar changed. Right then and there, I bought those fuzzy sticker mustachios and also a fun puffy bright orange alphabet collection and got to work on my jar. 

Because of the smooth glass surface and the stiff hair follicles of the mustache sticker, I added some extra super glue to it's sticky back, but the letters have held up just fine, and were far too thin to cleanly apply extra glue. If they start to peel off then I may want to add a sealer or some extra adhesive, but I didn't want to jump the gun if it wasn't going to be necessary and jeopardize the clear glass with sticky frosting.

Here she is:

Maybe the original jar is better being more understated letting the play on words alone be funny, and maybe my orange letters and real faux mustache is obnoxious, but I think its funny, and I wanted it to stick out a little bit! And had I painted it, I would have used a maroon red or a teal blue just to give it some color, anyhow. Do what you wish with your crafts, thats the fun part! 

Counting pennies,

DML