INSPIRATION BOARD-14 July 2009

After a long-weekend off--my very own home-town-bound mini-holiday--I am struggling to get back into the swing of things. I have not hit the ground running. I have been standing idle, craning my neck, trying to find something,anything, to crank my motivation up a notch or three. My mind is teeming with a thousand big, a million little, ideas. Settling down long enough to commit more than an errant, squirming phrase or two to paper is proving immensely difficult. Spending uninterrupted, calming quality time with family has reminded me to look to the small things for succor and inspiration. I am going to try and apply that lesson to my creativity. Here are a few things that are currently making me think, smile, and give thanks.

1. A cuppa and a few McVitie's chocolate digestives make me feel not just like a writer, but an English one. I do not indulge in the latter very often but very few things beat their peculiar and scrumptious wheat-meets-sweet taste.
2. The ridiculously vibrant and exotic produce section at Jungle Jim's, a gourmet, international grocery emporium in Cincinnati. They stock an eye-opening variety of vegetables and fruits. I love the artistry of the display; it is a visual reminder that nature's bounty is varied and endless.
3. "We do not write because we want to; we write because we have to."-words of infinite wisdom from one of my favourite authors, W. Somerset Maugham.
4. Anticipating the August (Age) issue of 'Vogue'. All fashion magazines manage to simultaneously elate me and flat-out piss me off. This is cyclical; this is perpetual. My love of fashion-as-history runs deep. I also love pretty, pretty pictures (something that modern Vogue does not always deliver). I still adore the issue's cover girl, Christy Turlington, who remains as stylish, elegant and principled as ever. Plus, the 'Age' issue of the magazine always exists on the sharpest razor's edge, waffling between dishing out genuine inspiration and gutless irritation.
5. Discovering, after all of these years, that I have more in common with my Dad than just a high IQ and love of reading.
6. Writing that is utterly unlike my own. Whilst in the midst of much creative writing, I can only read non-fiction or fiction that has a voice and view-point far removed from mine. I am beyond excited that my friend Chrissy has finally started her own blog, A Steampunk Reverie.. Please check it out, you won't regret it: Click here to begin.
7. Baseball's All-Star Game. It is held the second Tuesday of July (tonight!), which is always around my birthday. In my mind, the two simply go together. I can scarcely recall a time that I was not a baseball fan. I owe this particular passion to my Grandfather. The game, held this year in St. Louis, is, for me , a hallmark of Summer, relaxed times, and family.