TWLOHA

I just bought two T-Shirts from the Non-Profit Organisation 'To Write Love On Her Arms'. One Green (I'm trying to branch out in terms of colours within wadrobage) and one Black. To say that these shirts are popular in the States is like saying that there's a few random people who actually watch X-Factor.

Needless to say, that when I live in Florida, although wanting  to embrace the loveness, it simply wasn't an option.

When the shirts arrived, there was a postcard with the order, which sums up what the organisation stands for, it read: 

"She has known such great pain; haunted dreams as a child, the near-constant presence of evil ever since. She has felt the touch of awful naked men, battled depression and addiction, and attempted suicide. Her arms remember razor blades, fifty scars that speak of self-inflicted wounds. Six hours after I meet her, she is feeling trapped, two groups of 'friends' offering opposite ideas. Everyone is asleep. The sun is rising. She drinks long from a bottle of liquor, takes a razor blade from the table and locks herself in the bathroom. She cuts herself, using the blade to write 'Fuck up' large across her left forearm.
Stop the Bleeding.
Rescue is Possible.
Love is the Movement."

Having encountered only a handful of people in my life that have suffered from depression or cutting, I am no expert. However, the heartache that one experiences when listening to the story of someone who has suffered from these issues is as intense as I have ever felt. None of us are ever quite sure how to help someone in this position and I'll be honest, learning more of TWLOHA, buying a shirt or signing up on their e-mail list may well not help in that situation. But it may well help someone and make more people aware of the issues facing so many young people today.

www.twloha.com

In a bit. Love J.

Why not?

Here's an idea. I'll throw it at you and lets see where it goes. I've been thinking recently about a new appliance for the kitchen, or like most appliances today for the side-arm of a Laz-e-boy.

Picture a microwave, but instead of heating things up in a matter of seconds it actually ices things. Let's call it the Iceowave. 

Basically, in less than thirty seconds you can take any can of coke or bottle of bud, lob it in the Iceowave and bingo it's Ice cold and crazy tasty. Listen, I'm not talking fridge cool, I'm talking a new level of Iceness. The sort of cool that even the Icey commercials can't convey. What's that? can it deal with metal? Answer - Yeah, course it can, we sorted all that out, man was that annoying.

Next thing you know you'll be Icing Bananas, blending cherries and chucking them in the Iceowave with some double cream, then Boom Cherry IceCream and a useless banana.

How can we make this work? Not my concern, I'm a Thought-Creator (see Blog #2). Are you an Executor? If so, Get it done. Mention my blog when you make it big!

In a bit. Love J. 

Lost Ambitions

This morning I read this quote on someones facebook wall.

"Shoot for the moon because if you miss you will fall among the stars"

Although the logicality of this is clearly mental, it's sufficiently cheesy to sort of get away with it. Needless to say the quote was on a girl's page and also inevitably the culprit was American. However, she also had a list of fifteen things that she would like to do before she leaves the party. Now let me tell you, in light of some of the things she wrote, getting to the moon seems more than plausible. Yet, it did make me think about what my own goals were for life, like I'm not sure I've properly written them down since I was a crazy 12.

So here's my top 10 (at almost 10am)
1. Become fluent in Spanish and Sign
2. Write a full length novel that is released into mainstream book selling.
3. Have Kids.
4. Perform in front of more than 5000 people.
5. Visit every continent.
6. Save a life.
7. Get a hot tub.
8. Sky Dive.
9. Live in very close proximity with any of my boys.
10. Be a great husband.

Maybe you fancy it. Maybe you fancy me. I encourage you to call me if the latter is true.

"Look up at the stars, you'll never catch them, but you'll enjoy the view"

In a bit. Love J.

Executors, Thought Creators and Catalystors!

There are three types of people in this world. Executors, Thought Creators (TC's) and Catalystors.

Executors are the doers of this funny old world, in short - they do stuff! It may seem like they are the foundation of the economical structure and the backbone of formal society as we know it. And, maybe thats true, in fact it's almost definately true. I have a good friend who is an Executor, he gets it done. He studies hard, he puts in too much effort, it might be said that he even is too committed (ie. he sells out to the surrounding culture to get it done better). Executors are usually well organised and efficient. They are also usually the leader of friend groups and great multi-taskers.

TC's are the creators, the innovators and the fixers. These people usually like a little of anything and everything, they are usually the game-creators, wannabe artists, and performers. They can be easily distracted, unfocused and lack perseverance. I have a friend who is a TC, he is easily excitable, loves to laugh and imagine new and crazy things. They are usually fun to be around and easy to talk to, yet hard to tie down.

Catalystors are enablers, they make it possible for the previous two to exist, uselessly modifying ideas, issuing orders over Executors hard at work, claiming to be busy whenever wherever. I also have a friend who is a Catalystor. He is all of these things, he is a typical procrastinator, he is also easily one of the funniest people I know, he also has a mild form of ADHD. Is he lazy? Wellll....

I am reading a book for work which emphasises the need to capitalise and eccentuate your strengths instead of your weaknesses. So figure out which one you are, play to those strengths, try not to let the weaknesses concern you. This collection of thoughts (which has turned out way too unentertaining than I ever planned. But I'm a believer in sitting down to write and leaving the uneditted ill-thought out nonsense that follows on the page rather than re-writing) proves the need for starters and finishers and the existence of inbetweeners.

Sidenote. There is a kid in my class who is part of a crew called... wait for it... 'Bottom-Enders'! 

In a bit. love J.

Start, because thats all that counts...

I'm a creative soul. (Soul is a funny word that I don't think anyone knows what it really means)

So, there are many times in this crazy old world when I get the urge to write a sitcom, paint life, sing a new song, dance for you, play with fire, film a short, or even blog. I start, there's rarely a middle and maybe once there has been an ending.

I'm not suggesting that endings have no worth. I mean after all I spent 4 years studying the most famous unfinshed literature this world have ever known. Endings are simply over-rated.

I thought I wanted 'Lost' to end - turns out, I didn't! When I was eleven, I was convinced I wanted Primary School to end - yeah you got it, I didn't. Ending is what we all seem to crave but are immensely scared of its arrival.

My last example could be a personal issue, but i am consistently perturbed by the concept of Eternity. I want to live forever and on the same hand it would scare me to lose any form of ending.

All of the creative 'projects' that I have started and been way too passionate about and completely naive about their completion. However, I look back on all of them and remember them with fondness and joy (Ok, joy may be strong, but it's all I had). I never once had to admit that the sitcom isn't quite good enough for Sky1, or that I'm not the undiscovered break dancer that one semi-drunk beginner B-Boy told me in a dark and dirty rock club as he attempted to break-battle me, or perform 'Snake Song' to so many audiences to realise that it isn't quite catchy enough to propel me to an appropriate level of fame where I would coincidently bump into Emma Watson at a party.

Anyway, examples aside, next time some wannabe guru preposterously advises you that everything you start must be followed through to completion. Turn around and Begin to tell them 'Start because thats...' and walk away feeling utterly satisfied.

In a bit. Love J.