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| Christians and ArtI read through this article for my course I'm working through. More on this later, but wanted to at least share the link with everyone here!
Christians and the Arts
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| Frustrated!Not really in a bad way. 
So I find myself at an odd point tonight. I have the motivation to attempt to shoot something. Not much planning involved, I just want to test, to create, to try something new. I decided to take the night off from editing to have a break, and watching some creative videos on Youtube has gotten me in a creative mood.
The only problem?
My camera is in South Carolina. 
Regardless, I haven't blogged in awhile so I figure I should put something here. I long for an audience to present my work to. I think the most encouraging thing is letting others see my work and getting their feedback. If I fail then I can take their encouragement and criticisms and apply it to my next project. If I succeed then I look at what I did right and try to duplicate it while striving to try something new.
I think this is one of my favorite things about being at CIU, was having an audience. I'm not saying that for the pride of success, I just loved the feedback. The thing I hate about commercials is that there's no feedback whatsoever outside of the client. They air on TV and I don't get to see anyone's reactions. What's working? What's not? Did people connect with the spot?(I don't hate commercials, just hate this part of it.)
Then, when I do get feedback I tend to question it. I can produce what is the worst spot I've ever done(regardless if it's my fault it's awful or not) and people will praise it. I've done some spots that I KNOW were awful...and then people praise it. It makes me either wonder if they're just being nice or if they really think they're good(I'm talking spots that are downright AWFUL. No, no examples for you - I enjoy having a job.)
The reason this frustrates me is that I strive to make all of my work some of my best. I'm not content with doing the same thing as last time, or not improving from last time. I'm always trying to push myself further, to achieve the next level. I think this is what motivates me to "work so much." One of my neighbors asked me the other day, "When are you not working?" I was complimented that he said this, only because it shows I am a hard worker(although I think I sometimes play this up too much.)
On the same note though, it reminds me to not let the world pass me by and to enjoy the life I've got. I don't want to work away my life, I want to enjoy it. It's a difficult balance. One that I'm continually pushing myself to try to balance. I find myself keeping busy with work or research here since I don't have as many friends as I did in Columbia. It's natural to have more there since I still had my college friends, my church friends, and other friends that I could see. Since I don't have that here, I'm reading more, watching TV more, and researching my work more.
On one final note, I've been reading a really good book lately - Words that Work by Dr. Frank Luntz. Definitely a good read for anyone who's interested in advertising or persuasive writing of any form. Not to mention that he keeps quoting Aaron Sorkin, so you can't go wrong there. Also, in terms of a life update...
1. I've started Grad school - first course begins in August.
2. I'm getting married in 1 week.
3. I'm debating pushing my way into the wedding videography market and researching methods of doing so.
4. I miss my friends.
5. Today is the first day where I was driving and really felt "successful" with life(in terms of the American way...not necessarily by any real standard.) More on that another time if I remember. :) | | |
| What TV commercial do you hate the most?
I just answered this Featured Question, you can answer it too!
Which to choose??? I'm pretty sure this question answers itself. :) | | |
| What's wrong with being a little green?Alright, I've got a small soapbox to get on. If you haven't noticed, the big thing right now is to be green. Well, alot of people equate this with Global Warming. Since they don't believe in Global Warming, they assume that being green is just as pointless(NOTE: Not everyone is this way, I've just come in contact with people this way and I'm using them to start the discussion.) My question is, what's wrong with being a little green?
God has given us resources on this Earth. We have oil, trees, and countless other materials that let us have the things that we have. What's wrong with conserving what we have of those items? Recycling, not being wasteful with items, and just small things here and there go a long way. Hey, it saves you money too. It's possible to live very comfortably and conserve as well.
One of the arguments I've heard is that we're giving ourselves too much credit to say that we can cause harm to the Earth since God controls everything. The thing is though, God never said we're always going to have an easy going life with everything right where we need it. Sometimes His providing is giving us the minimal that we need. Did He not put the Egyptians through harsh times of drought in the Old Testament? Who's to say that this couldn't happen on a larger scale because of us not watching the resources He has already blessed us with? Does God not bless us with much if we are faithful with much?
I'm not saying we're causing Global Warming, I'm just wondering why we still can't try to conserve in life. I'm not saying I'm a perfect example(I certainly could trim alot of areas that I haven't...), but I'm at least trying to do what I can to conserve. I have all of my electronics on power strips that I turn off when I'm not using the item. thus, they pull no electricity except when I'm using them. It takes about 5 seconds longer to turn something on and saves me a bit of power. I'm taking shorter showers, recycling anything I can(somewhat difficult when you live in a town that doesn't recycyle...stupid Fayetteville), I've used my heat twice all winter(if I'm cold, I put on a sweatshirt. My dog has a sweater for those times. Granted...it's warm in NC so it's not really a problem and my apartment is well insulated...so that helps too.) I also drive a car with decent gas millage and try to drive less. Finally, I pay a few extra bucks to have green energy piped into the Fayetteville system(I pay for the same amount of energy I use, so I'm breaking even on my green energy usage!) These aren't the only things I do(I also refuse to dry my hands after washing them. Air drying works well enough for me, thank you very much. I don't need to kill a tree to wipe clean water on it's processed corpse. I will use a towel, just not a paper towel.) With Allergy season coming up as well, I'm trying to figure out an alternative to kleenex...how the heck do you use a handkerchief anyways? They don't seem very...sanitary.
My monthly electric bill? $27-$40(this may go up by about $15 when I start getting bills for the green energy.) That includes using my TV pretty much from 5:30 until about midnight, using a laptop, and one livingroom light. Not to mention firing up the edit system on a regular basis to get work done. So I'm saving money and helping to make the environment a happier place for my dog to poop in(which is then promptly put into a biodegradable bag and placed in a trash can. Thank you apartment complex for providing such conveniences!)
Anyways, all that to say, what's it hurt to try to evaluate your life to save some energy? Regardless of global warming or not, what's wrong with saving our environment by throwing less crap into it? Any thoughts? | | |
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