I read this post
today and it got me thinking about the things I keep around me while I work.
Regardless of what kind of work I’m doing, I find that I
like to be surrounded by objects that inspire me to create. Even if I can’t get
to that “creating” until a later point.
I really can’t stand white walls. Okay, that’s not entirely
true. I love white walls when I move into a space, because of all the
possibilities. I can stand in the blank space, envision what I want it to look
like when it’s done and then get to work on making it happen. Buckets of awesome.
But if I don’t do anything with them? Then they drive me crazy.
But if I don’t do anything with them? Then they drive me crazy.
It’s like being surrounded by nothing but blank pages,
knowing the story you want to write, but not having access to any kind of pen,
pencil, marker, crayon, stick with your blood on it…
Madness quickly overcomes me.
So, to avoid all this shenanigans, I do my best to keep some
color around me. Now, I am not at liberty to paint my work office, so some
creativity came into play.
Here’s an inventory of the things I can see from my desk:
-
Pictures upon picture upon pictures
o Family,
friends, pets, and all the places I’ve been.
-
Canvas
o One
of my attempts at art. Moderately successful. Definitely brings more color to
the room.
-
Drawing done by the big bro circa ‘91
o A
circus lion who’s just finished eating his tamer. Perfect for work. Some days
I’m the lion. Some days I’m the tamer.
-
Tin lunch boxes
o Wizard of Oz and Star Wars. Classics.
o Because
of the awesomeness.
-
Framed postcards
o One
from Paris, one with the Love
This Life manifesto.
-
Small pile of pennies
o Saving
them for a rainy day. Or until I get sick of having them on my desk and decide
to hide them randomly amongst Roomie’s belongings.
-
Cake Vs. Pie
chart
o Peanut
butter pie wins forever.
-
Random doodads from staff parties.
o Valentine’s
Day puppy and heart erasers
o Leap
Day leap frog
o St. Patrick’s Day rubber ducky
-
Notes left on my desk by Roomie
o One
states, “Drank some of your soda. Ha.” What a jerk. This is why I hide pennies
in her things.
And finally, with a little Tennessee Williams action…
-
Glass menagerie
o Damian
(green frog)
o Melvin
(goldfish)
o Edgar
(pink & green turtle)
o Cecily
(clear swan)
o Hugo
(blue hippo)
o And
growing…..
So, even with white walls, I’m surrounded by funzies. Making
it that much easier to hang on to what is left of my sanity.
What about you? Anything you need in your workspace to keep
your creative brain from going off the deep end? That is…if you’re so inclined
to put effort toward such a goal. Maybe you like feeling bonkers. I’m not here
to judge.
I LOVE tin lunch boxes! :)
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you today, Kelly.
You too!
DeleteYour solar bloom looked awesome by the way. Definitely something I'm going to look into if I'm ever in an office with a window. =)
- Office Supplies...color coded and separated by size in the case of paper clips, binder clips, etc in purple containers of differing sizes/shapes/shades of purple.
ReplyDelete- Oreos...in the clouds on the valances on my windows.
- Mathematics...I have mathematics written in many languages on neon colored sentence strips around the top of the wall.
- DC...an American University pennant next to a map of DC.
- Gifts From Students...a picture of SuperClark, my name in Arabic and Russian, a purple frog
- Kites...my penguin kite is on the wall and my US Navy Blue Angels kite is hanging from the ceiling.
- Inspirational quotes...my favorite is "Be Yourself. An original is always worth more than a copy." but I have several!
- PICTURES :) interior stateroomies frame, several magnet-ed to the file cabinet, a purple collage frame and my sister's senior year picture
There is a lot of other random fun stuff in my classroom, but these are the things that make me smile and keep me sane. I can stick things on the white walls, luckily. I would go crazy with all white walls, even with stuff on bookshelves and desks. The biggest thing in my room that keeps me creative is the constant influx of 13 year olds' voices lol!
Fantastic! Of course, now I want Oreos in the clouds too....
DeleteI wish I knew where they came from. I feel like I got them on clearance at a department store when I was in high school...but they are pretty awesome. My favorite thing about them is when a student finally realizes there are Oreos floating in the clouds, because there is nothing to do but interrupt class immediately when you realize something like that. Happens every year.
Delete