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Creative Slush Concept Poster
— Chris Dunmire, 2005
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Another
Another Girl at Play Posted
Feb-26-2005
For the past five years, I've had a plan. My plan was
to chronicle the events in my life after I resigned from my
corporate job in 2000 and help other people to realize their
creative dreams. Along the way, I'd be realizing mine. |
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Alluvial
Mining Posted
Feb-23-2005
How to Dig Deep
for Creative Gold.
One of the recent creativity-inducing features
unveiled on Soul
Food Cafe was the opening of the Alluvial Mines.
Much like the United States in the 1800s, Australia
experienced its own version of an exciting Gold Rush.
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Bumper
Sticker Philosophy Posted
Feb-22-2005
NOT the "My kid beat up your honor
roll student" kind
How often do we overlook the simple truths found in proverbs
and other one-line wonders? Must every bit of wisdom be padded
with paragraphs and pages or deeply analyzed? I think not,
otherwise we'd ditch fortune cookies and bumper stickers.
Oh, and those Frankie Goes to Hollywood T-Shirts: RELAX!
Speaking of bumper stickers, here's neat little
exercise from Life and Creativity Coach "La
Comadre" Nancy Marmolejo. Regarding this meditative Loca Ritual,
Bumper Sticker Philosophy, she notes:
Welcome to the world of bumper sticker philosophy: life’s
little lessons boiled down into memorable snippets. It's
folk wisdom at its best, free to all who drive by. No gurus
to pay,
no hidden strings. Try this Loca Ritual to get the most
out of this free — and freeing — resource.
Learn more about this Loca Ritual and give it a
try here.
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Online
Writing Retreat Posted
Feb-21-2005
On Writing and the Writing Life.
A
self-paced at-home retreat by Sarah Stockton featuring reflective
essays and writing exercises you may download and participate
in over a twelve-week period.
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Hello,
Julia Cameron Posted
Feb-18 to 20-2005
I've known about Julia Cameron for
several years, but actually started "reading" her
about two weeks ago. I ordered three of her books: The
Artist's Way (Psychology / Self-Help), The
Right to Write (Writing) and The Writer's
Life (Creativity / Spirituality).
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Creative
Child Within Posted
Feb-17-2005
Some time ago, I had the privilege of corresponding
with Ashfaq Ishaq, Director of the
International Child Art Foundation (ICAF). Ashfaq
wrote two excellent articles for the Creativity
Portal,
On
the Importance of Creativity and Creativity
+ Children = Peace, detailing the goals and
accomplishments of ICAF.
ICAF produces a quarterly commercial-free publication,
ChildArt Magazine, featuring art by children and articles geared
towards 8 to 12-year
olds. Regarding the magazine, the subscription page
on the ICAF Web site notes:
A journey through the pages of ChildArt inspires learners
of all ages to be creative, imaginative, artistic and cooperative.
The journey takes the reader across the globe to different
cultural settings, back to the old masters for historical perspectives,
and into a 21st Century of creativity and cooperation.
Although learners ages 8 to 80 can benefit from and enjoy
ChildArt, the magazine is written simply and elegantly so that
8 to 12-year-olds learn easily from both the language and the
ideas.
After reading several issues of ChildArt Magazine,
I can't help but to promote this magazine as an inspirational
tool and visual déjà vu for an adult trying to get back in
touch with their creative inner child. •
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LUVerflies:
Butterfly Heartlings
Posted
Feb-16-2005
One day while I was doodling a butterfly in my notebook,
I realized how similar a butterflies' wings are to a symmetrical
pair of hearts. I applied that piece of knowledge toward
a foam craft project I went on to name LUVerflies.
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Money
Fun Posted
Feb-14 & 15-2005
I try to seek out creative ways
for giving money as a gift (or tip) when an occasion
calls for it.
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Freshly
Squeezed Quotes Posted
Feb-13-2005
"Write your life so that others may be illuminated." — SARK
An empowering reason to express what's inside us through the
written word. And guess what? We don't have to publish a book
to accomplish this.
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World's
Hardest Crossword Puzzle Posted
Feb-12-2005
Crossword enthusiasts will approach this seemingly simple puzzle with
confidence, only to be dazed and confused within minutes! This gag puzzle
was designed with "duel" possible outcomes: 1) The solver gives
up or 2) The solver figures it out!
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Humor:
A Natural Antidote for Depression? Posted
Feb-11-2005
If you or a person you care for suffers from
depression, should you feel helpless about the situation,
or rely solely on the medication to make you well?
Not necessarily.
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Selling
Your Soul Posted
Feb-10-2005
In the span of a half-hour, I received two
bits of news from two different sources. After contemplating
the second, the thought "selling your soul" came
to mind and propelled me to start writing what was
on my mind.
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Chronic
Creativity Reflections Posted
Feb-09-2005
When Angela Mack first approached
me in late 2004 with her Chronic Creativity excerpts,
I found her ingenious way of describing the condition Chronic
Creativity in diagnostic terms metaphorically
apt.
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To
Wit with Mag
Ruffman Posted
Feb-08-2005
It took only one half-hour viewing of Anything
I Can Do on PBS
You for me to fall
in love with Mag Ruffman. For
anyone who hasn't a clue, the show features a very
attractive Mag demonstrating a variety of how-to
DIY projects, many
involving
handsaws
and
power tools.
The episode I watched featured
Mag making a tree-shaped child's art station (Season 2: Project
#40 Aesop's
Tables).
Within minutes I realized that this was no ordinary "I
don't want to break a nail" woman. Although outfitted
in a skirt ensemble, Mag took the viewer step-by-step through
the table
making process:
planning, measuring, marking, cutting,
and assembly. Witnessing this goggle-donned woman using
a table saw gave me more confidence somehow.
The first giggle came out of me when Mag held a freshly-cut
table top midriff and suggested using it to serve hors d'oeuvres
on. Many more witticisms came out of Mag's bag throughout
the episode, and I think I saw her fall on
her behind once, too. She simply got back up and brushed herself
off laughing all the while. Who couldn't love her?
You'll also
smile at the creative titles of each show such as:
Project #45 Don't be a cart-alek!
Project #38 Stool crazy after all these years
Project #18
All's
weld that ends weld
Bio information about Mag from homeenvy.com:
Mag Ruffman worked as a licensed contractor before hosting
television's A Repair to Remember and Anything I Can Do.
Her trademark wit and philosophy that it's perfectly natural
to
make mistakes has won her a huge following. She recently
wrote a book of do-it-yourself projects called "How
Hard Can It Be?" •
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Next
Stop: The Home Depot Posted
Feb-07-2005
I used to hate accompanying my husband to
home improvement stores. It's funny because his enthusiasm
for shopping at The
Home Depot paralleled my enthusiasm for shopping
at Michaels.
Each of us felt completeness in our chosen environments
for our desired tools of the trade. His included
nails and lumber, and mine paint and paper.
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Creative
Gags & Pranks Posted
Feb-06-2005
Ever since I was a kid I've spent
a fair amount of money buying novelty gags. From
squirting flowers and cameras to spilled coffee cups
and a grab-n-snatch money lines, I've seen and had
it all. Now as a self-proclaimed Creativity Enthusiast,
I've put away my rubber vomit and
found other ways to express my creative prank-playing.
And guess what? You can use some of my nifty inventions
for your own gag fun.
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Documenting
Joy Posted
Feb-05-2005
The Life and Laughter of Leonie Allan
Inspiring
art, beautiful handwriting, and soothing colors welcome
visitors to leonielife.com.
The playful image gracing the welcome page could easily
find itself set in a frame and hung on my inspirational wall.
The site is infectious, and so is Leonie's creative spirit.
She sums "it" all up by writing, "I
am set on documenting joy and living the life I want to live.
Being who I can be. As simple and as complex as that."
Soon she will self-publish a chapbook of her artwork and
writing. I *simply* must snag me a copy. • |
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Notable
Quotable Tidbits Posted
Feb-04-2005
This isn't a compilation of worn-out quotes
circulating the Web. No, this is my growing personal
collection of favorite thought-provoking, inspiring,
and plain amusing quotes I've come across from people
I like and admire.
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Reverse
Osmosis Posted
Feb-03-2005
Before agreeing to Heather's interview with
me, I made her promise to allow me to interview her
back. All of this agreed discussion finally came
to fruition today when I received her answers to
my probing questions in my inbox. You didn't think
I traveled all the way to Australia for them, did
you?
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Token
Kindness Posted
Feb-01-2005
Have you ever tossed a rock into a still creek or pond and
noticed the subsequent ripples wave out from it? Those ripples
are fun to watch and demonstrate the law of cause and effect.
A new Web site started in January 2005, the Kindness
Project (www.kindnessproject.com),
is also demonstrating a type of cause and effect. Namely,
the effect of kind actions.
The creative
minds behind the Kindness Project invented an
innovative way of following the ripples of one kind action
through a numbered token system. They offer silver kindness
tokens that can be used to reward others with, and then tracked
online as they are passed along to others. Recipients
are encouraged add their experiences to the Web site so that
everyone involved in passing along the token can enjoy its
ripple effects around the world.
What is the aim of the Kindness Project? Their home page
states:
"The Kindness Project aims to prove that you can
have an exponential effect on the spread of kindness around
the world. It's simple — when someone does or says something
kind,
no matter how small, you give them a token. Taking a few
seconds to pass on the token empowers you to brighten someone's
day.
The tokens are passed from person to person, again and
again, turning the world into a kinder place. Can you imagine
how
you would feel if you received a token yourself?"
Tangible reminders of "the good things in life" are
beneficial and help us to develop a deeper sense of gratitude.
I see the Kindness Project as one of these reminders, and give
a hearty thumbs up at its design and intention.
"The beauty of the Kindness
Project is that not only do you get to make a difference in
someone's day by giving them a token, but everyone gets to
track their token and read about all its adventures. Be a part
of the Kindness Project by passing on your own tokens!" •
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