Time

Yesterday, while waiting in a Queue, I was fondling a Ten Pound Note, I have long appreciated even to a point of compulsion the textures of objects, it is something I have to do for my eyes only tell a part of the story; in the top left hand corner of the Note I felt tiny lumps which I frantically tried to scrape off with my fingers, they did not belong and spoilt the otherwise silk like flawless surface, when I looked I realised that they were the Braille dots for the blind, how acute and wonderful our senses are as to be able to read with our fingertips.
One of the models of Tai Chi is to make every movement for a purpose, a beginning a middle and an end, imagine the possibilities if we were to transfer that model to the use of all of our senses.

Sight, Smell, touch, hearing and taste, these are our Primordial pleasure tools yet modernity it seems facilitates the removal of these sensations from our lives, pace of life in 2018 denies us this for appreciation requires time.
Filled with fleeting images, a need for speed in getting from one place to another or in completion of a task, 'Time is Money' is heard often yet at what price; there is so much more that we miss out on .

The loss of sensory Appreciation from our lives can only lead to bad repercussions, a negative prognosis for individuals, communities, the place, or our place of work, the difference between artist, craftsman and labor.

Time should not be governed by pounds and pence, shortcuts should not be taken and patience, should be more than a virtue, beyond that race to the end there is so much more in life that we have yet, or may never, appreciate, perhaps this is why as an artist I do what it is I have to do.

Have an artful day 

Social Media

What a wonderful creation, the Internet, for all of its flaws it is The Global Community and reflecting a true account of the world at large, for sure my life would have been an entirely different one had it been around in my childhood.

I use Social Media not just for a variety of reasons but for the management of my entire life in one form or another, my art, my life my business all packaged and in that order, certainly it is a far cry from my first encounter with the WWW back in 1994 a time when larger images required sometimes more than half an hour to download and print, the content was sparse and questionable, despite the risk of malicious software, financial scams and 'the dark side' the internet is a wonderful thing.

Of the greatest impact to me now is the management of my health and general well-being, growing my knowledge base, growing a greater understanding of mankind, maintaining contact with friends and family and, in finding a relaxation away from my art, this latter is of such importance not only to me but also to the quality of my work, on occasions it denies me time for anything other, abandonment sometimes of the most basic human needs,  food, sleep or personal care, that was until now. 
Until the advent Internet I had never found a positive state of rest the time to recharge my batteries but that has all changed.
How my life may have been had I grown with it I have no idea, there are so many things I would have like to have done or to have understood that, with all of the answers at my fingertips my life without a doubt would have been as if a stranger to me now, my life would have been what the Internet grew. 

Back to the present I still find that the internet affords me personal growth and initiates my day as my wake up call, second only to Tiger-billies needs my day starts with a couple of hours at the screen, reviewing my Home page for the past 24 hours, checking my mail, Facebook 'Good Mornings'  and sorting my Interactive Farmville, though deemed at some point to be The most addictive Game on the Internet, I have managed to avoid addiction.
For me, it is not a game, it is a tool, a creative endeavour and something that evolves on a daily basis it allows the time for me to wake up at my speed rather than of the strict regimen born and raised to adhere to.

When my time at the screen is done all of me is balanced and ready to start the day.

As in Society, The Internet has its dangers and pitfalls but when used as a tool truly is the greatest Library and Knowledge base in existence, every answer, every fact, every thought that a person would have need to question it is there for the asking.
Though I can not alter the past I can choose the future, not in the manner of reinvention but in the way that I can find a superiority over my former self and that is an exciting prospect even at my age.