My freshman year of college I almost drove my roommate nuts. Ginny (who is still my best friend) had to put up with my late (LATE!) hours, constant songs on repeat (so sorry about the “I’m Kissing You” phase!!), and my bizarre creative notions.
Example. One particular day we overheard the RAs talking about how there would be a middle-of-the-night fire drill. These happened once a semester and were supposed to be a surprise. After everyone went to sleep, I coerced Ginny into making a mannequin out of my art easel, a styrofoam head, and some wire hangers. We dressed up our lady in a pantsuit and gave her a giant poster board sign that read: FIRE! SAVE YOURSELVES! Then, at about 1am, we tiptoed into our hall mates’ room and left her there, pointing toward their door. When the alarm went off in the middle of the night, they awoke to the loud alarm, but also a strange mannequin pointing them to safety.
There was no WHY. It was simply odd and random and fun. After we failed the fire drill for being too slow (and having a few boys stumble out of our supposed-all-girls dorm), Ginny and I left our lady on the front porch by the door, because we knew typically we would have another test in ten minutes. This time the whole dorm got to see our middle-of-the-night handiwork.
This terrifically bad photo is from my sophomore, not freshman, year of college and shows the second iteration of fire drill lady: cow head lady.
Did they care? Probably not. Did we have the best time making her? Yup. Should we have been studying or sleeping? Definitely.
When I don’t have a constant creative outlet like writing or painting or songwriting, I will MAKE one. Like the fire drill lady. I will also sometimes drag people along with me even in the middle of the night. Because it’s more fun with friends.
For the last six weeks or so, I have had ample creative outlets: writing, blogging, and podcasting. I tend to wither up and die without some kind of creative outlet, but as a parent of four small kids, there is also this difficult balance to navigate.
The balance of time. Only having three hours a week (outside of when my kids are sleeping) to get anything done.
The balance of my desires. I can so easily get caught up in my creative projects that I can be snappy with my HUMAN projects (aka my kids).
The balance of blogging & podcasting. I’m desperately trying to squeeze in the time to write on this blog AND interview people AND write an entirely different blog.
I know I’ll get into a rhythm soon, but summer is going to eat me alive so that rhythm might be more apparent in the fall. For now it results in a very clear lack of sleep. I generally am good with 6-7 hours, but these days I’m running more on 4-6. Can I say that I’m thankful I am not one of those people who NEEDS sleep? I do think I need more than 4 hours (ask Rob about that!) so I’m looking forward to more time in the fall.
Can I tell you something I want maybe even MORE than I want more time?
I want YOU to come along with me on this journey.
I know not all of you are interested in writing and blogging and social media (I listened to your survey answers a few months ago!), but I feel like this podcast is so much more than that. For me, it invigorates that creative spirit in me. And I want to bring you along for the ride, maybe a little less forcefully than the way I dragged Ginny into making mannequins at midnight.
If you already know that you’re a shrivel-up-and-die-without-an-outlet people, you DEFINITELY should be listening. But if you don’t already know that you have that need, or if you don’t feel like a creative person, you should still listen. My hope is that you will discover that you DO have a creative side that is longing to find a space in your busy life. Maybe it will help clarify that outlet for you. Talking with and listening to creative people stirs that in me and I think it will in you, too.
If you don’t know how to listen to a podcast (because until recently, they were an enigma to me as well!), I’m going to give instructions at the bottom of this post. It’s so easy! But I’m also embedding the first few episodes right here. Listening is as easy as clicking play.
Will you listen? I really hope so. If you love it, let me know. If you have suggestions or people you want me to talk to, let me know! If you enjoy, share with friends or leave a review. I would love to take you with me on this creative journey. If you want to do this with others, join my Create If Writing Facebook community! I’m glad you’re here. I’m still here. But I hope you’ll take a leap and follow me to some other places and perhaps feel the stirring of a creativity that’s gone a bit dark.
HOW TO LISTEN TO A PODCAST
Option 1- via the Blog
Just like the embedded option above, you can listen to each episode along with the show notes, which are basically like blog posts to go along with the podcast episodes. Find them on the Create If Writing site.
Option 2- via iTunes
If you use iTunes, you can find the podcast here and subscribe. If you leave a review, it’s a HUGE support and helps me become visible.
Option 3- via Stitcher
Stitcher is another option that doesn’t require you to have the iTunes app or an apple phone. Find the podcast here.
Option 4- via SoundCloud
Soundcloud is another great site and is how I embedded the listening tool above. You can leave comments for me at certain parts of the episode, which is a really cool feature! It’s free to create an account and listen. Find the podcast on SoundCloud here.
Option 5- via the RSS Feed
There are many other apps and ways to listen. If you are using something else, then you can snag the RSS feed and subscribe.
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I lost my creativity a few weeks ago. It can be very hard to overcome roadblocks like these. Definitely liked reading your article though. It gives me the inspiration to change me mindset and make something great again!
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