My sophomore semester is coming to a close and while it’s been a ride, I’m sorry to say that I haven’t done as much with my artwork as I would have liked. My hobby life is kind of dead, especially around finals. There’s a statistic out there that says only 1 in every 5 college student report having hobbies that they indulge in during the school year and I think that really makes sense. Regardless, enjoy my showcase of a few art pieces that I created for no other purpose than to enjoy creating art.
First, let’s start with my hand drawn pieces:
My favorites of this batch were probably my Reepicheep sketch, my kingly sparrow sketch, and my little necromancer sketch. I wasn’t a fan of how my kitten-bee turned out but I really enjoyed the concept.
Next, I’d like to showcase my 3d art edits and pieces:
A few of these were actually for a series. The portraits of regal and vintage looking women were a concept I had floating around in my head for awhile. It was a lot of fun making them into a sort of disney-esque style. But, admittedly, most were random portraits I created for the fun of it. No theme. Just fun.
And here we have it folks! The sequel that everyone saw coming because clearly I cannot cram all my childhood obsessions into one singular post! (There were far too many.) I didn’t know I had so many phases that I grew through but the more I thought about it, the more obsessions I found myself recalling. A red flag of mine? Or perhaps a loveable quirk? Who knows! We don’t have time to unpack now as I need to get on with ranking my various childhood obsessions, part two!
1. Pirates
This was a brief one but it still shows itself even to this day through my love of white, puffy sleeved shirts. Despite this phase not lasting incredibly long, I still find it entirely understandable. The hats. The cutlasses. The gold. The SHIPS. THE FREAKING SHIPS. I remember spending way too much of my spare time sketching pirate ship designs because of this.
I don’t think this obsession was spawned by one singular franchise or piece of media though Pirates of the Caribbean and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader probably aided this fantasy. To this day if someone told me I could make a living by sailing the high seas, wearing magnificent hats, sword fighting, (but not getting scurvy) I would. Alas, I think my fantasies are somewhat unrealistic however that has never stopped me!
Someday I wish to dedicate an entire post to the appeal of pirate costume-ry and fashion however, this is not that day. Instead, have a mood board.
2. Rise of the Guardians
Another brief but still instrumental obsession of my former high school years. This movie was integral for sparking my passion for animation and animated movies. Not to the degree of wanting to make a career by working in such a field, however I did enjoy spending my days design Guardian OC’s because they were just too much fun to create. The whole concept of the movie was ripe pickings for the young imagination. The characters were bright and interesting, the story compelling but never lacking an air of mystery. It was a bit of a tragedy when I found out later in life that this movie had been a box-office failure for Dreamworks, practically ensuring that it would never release a sequel. *weeps*
However, despite the fact that the movie did not make a lot of money at the box office, I still believe it is well-worth a watch and it remains to have, I believe, some of the most shockingly beautiful CGI animation that I have ever seen to date. High school me had good taste.
3. Avatar the Last Airbender
Gosh, I love this show. And yes, it still holds up, even to this day. Even as an 11 year old girl, I could appreciate the amazing and surprisingly mature writing in this show. The jokes almost always landed, the characters felt grounded and real, and I probably don’t have to tell you that it contains one of the most well executed character arcs I have ever seen executed on screen. If you grew up in the 2000’s, you probably have heard people sing this show’s praises. Heck, you might have even heard people sing them recently. It’s a darn good show. However, I was never really a big fan of the sequel show, Legend of Korra. That was a little…disappointing. (It’s hard to follow up greatness you know?)
I still love this show. Even now I like mentally classifying my friends into groups .
“oh they’d totally be a firebender. And so and so gives water bender vibes. And so and so seems like an earthbender and…”
4. Libraries
Okay, hear me out. When I was like, 9, I was convinced my family needed to convert the loft of our barn into a library. My parents, for some strange reason, didn’t agree with me. So I set about doing it myself. I began to author books (stories where the papers were stapled together) and scrolls to fill my “new” library and arranging them neatly into boxes. My heart was all but broken when I found out the paper attracted bugs (specifically spiders) and my dreams of a giant library in the loft of our hay barn were crushed.
This little scheme of mine was a symptom of an obsession that I think a lot of us have. This obsession shows itself when we walk into a library (the older, the better), and want to squeal at the sheer size of it. This is the part of us that loves marble floors and old architecture and the smell of old paper. This is also the part of us that gets strangely angry when we remember that the library of Alexandria was burnt to the ground.
Did I lose anybody? I hope I’m not alone but something tells me I’m not.
5. Wizards
Did you ever wish you could just start fires with your mind? Or flip a light switch from across the room? Or make something levitate for no real reason? Well you know what would fix these very common problems? MAGIC.
Ladies and gents, I have this theory that like 75% of the population just wants to be wizards and I am one of those people. This desire to be a wizard shows itself in different ways. A Harry Potter phase. A time in your life where you took horoscopes way too seriously. Or even a super hero phase (because after all, aren’t super heroes just specialized wizards in leather suits?). Or trying to use the force to shut a door from across the room.
We all just wanna be wizards, don’t we? I think it’s time we face it. Who doesn’t love starry patterns, pointy hats, cloaks, shiny and potentially magical rocks (THAT MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ITS OWN PHASE. WHY AM I LIKE THIS), wands, staffs, towards away from everybody you hate… the superior lifestyle, clearly.
And yeah. I think that’ll do it. I really don’t know how to wrap up with post except for simply stating that your childhood self is nearly always right. Magic is still cool. Dragons are still the best. Webkinz is still fun. Pirate hats still look like the absolute bomb. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Life is too short not to believe in these things anymore. Hmm… I think my pal C.S. Lewis had a quote for that actually…
“When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.
C.S. Lewis
Good ‘ol Lewis. He has a quote for everything.
And that’s it! Have a wonderful day and stay young my friends!
Hello there, readers! It’s me again, back at it with some self-targeted advice. I experienced some hardcore burn-out in the recent months and am only just now realizing that I show some very obvious tell-tale signs before I completely become useless to all my creative projects. I wanted to compile these signs here so both you and I can recognize them and identify them when we feel ourselves becoming less and less motivated. Usually they are indicators that I just need to step back and give myself a break from my work before starting back on it so here’s hoping both you and I can recognize these signs better in the future.
1. Constantly feel guilty and like you should be doing more.
I am the queen of self-induced guilt. I feel like I should always be doing something. All the time. Life is short after all? This sign usually shows up as a sort of guilt-inducing self talk. It tends to come in the form of phrases such as “You should REALLY be working on X.” and “Why didn’t you do X, today?? You had so much time!”.
2. You procrastinate.
I can procrastinate a lot in general but I find my procrastination spikes to new peaks when I am actively burning out. I find myself consistently putting something off, that is a sign of burn-out right there.
3. You feel tired all the time.
Forcing myself to work on something makes me twice as tired than normal. This is because I have to spend energy making myself motivated and then spend energy actually doing the task. And what’s even worse is it’s often a task I once enjoyed which segues right into my next point which is…
4. You can’t remember the last time you enjoyed your work.
Generally I burn out on tasks that I once enjoyed quite a lot. They’re generally hobbies. This means I CHOOSE to do them for FUN. At least I used to. But sometimes I can’t remember the last time I wanted to draw or work on my story.
5. You feel uninspired.
Writer’s or Artist’s block persists when I am becoming burnt-out. It’s not that I don’t care. It’s just my creative juices tend to not flow as freely. It’s almost like those times in school when you find yourself staring at a math problem of sorts FOREVER. Then you get up, walk away from it, and come back to find yourself knowing the solution all along. You just needed a break in order to remember it.
6. You feel exhausted before you even do tasks.
Similarly to the “being tired all the time” issue, you find that the mere thought of doing certain tasks makes you tired. It’s this weird pull of wanting to do something but also DEFINITELTY NOT wanting to do something.
So, now that we got the signs out of the way, how do we fix it? What is the solution? Usually it’s simple. Usually its something like taking a break for a day or two. Sometimes its taking a LONG break depending on how intense the burn-out is. Sometimes it’s finding a new source of inspiration to reignite one’s passion for what they originally loved. It often depends on the individual. But whatever the case may be, remember creation should be fun. And if it’s not, it is not a crime to stop creating. Often life feels like a chore and it’s our own faults. Awhile back I came to the realization that many of expectations I felt weighing on my chest were my own. And while that’s was a hard pill to swallow, there was a bright-side to that scenario. It was in my power to fix it.
The thing is it is often our own expectations that lead us to burn out. And it sucks. But it also means that there is something I can do about it.
Welcome one and all to the Get to Know Me Tag, writer’s edition. I came across this tag through a series of snurchments (that’s not a word but it is now) and thought I’d continue this digital paper trail by completing the tag myself.
★The Rules★
link back to the person who created the tag, Savannah
thank the person who tagged you ( no one tagged me but I originally saw this on The Texas Lass’s Blog.
share the tag graphic
tag eleven bloggers
★VITAL STATS and APPEARANCE ★
Let’s jump right into the tag now, shall we?
Name(s): Brooke
Nicknames: Brookie Cookie, Smol one, yaknow, whatever people yell at me from across the house.
Birthday: January 7th, a time in which everyone is burnt out from Christmas and new years. Additionally, my other siblings have birthdays in December bringing the grand total of holidays that we celebrate in December to a whopping 4. So by the time we get to January 7th, everyone is ready for a nap, myself included.
Hair color & length: Brown and curly. The length ranges from medium to short. I’ve randomly been whacking it off because how else am I supposed to deal with stress? Bangs may be coming soon.
Braces/piercings/tattoos: I was in dire need of braces so I got them in middle school. Thankfully they were removed after two years. I have my ears pierced and am considering getting double piercings?? No tattoos though and I don’t plan on getting any. Needles are far to terrifying for me.
Righty or lefty: Righty most of the time. There are a few tasks I can do lefty like archery. Just some odd things like that.
Ethnicity: Whhhhhhhhhite. Very, very white. Pale. Sour-cream-y. However one likes to say it.
★FIRSTS★
First novel written: A book I started writing at age 9 called “The Sword of Fire” which are a wondering story about a person looking for a sword that…wait for it…was on fire. And had magical fire powers of sorts.
First novel completed: A really, really bad book I wrote in middle school called “The Jewels of Mythica: The Diamond”. Ugh….it was a… piece of work. I enjoyed writing it and that’s what matters but it was hardly a great work of literature. I was 11 at the time.
Award for writing: I haven’t published anything so the closest thing I have to a writing award would be any award I got on this blog.
First publication: None yet. Coming someday.
Conference: Pffftt… I don’t leave my house. (I’m mostly kidding. I leave for college and for groceries and for funding my coffee addiction).
Query/pitch: I’ll write this after I finish writing my book. I swear.
★ FAVORITES ★
Novel (that you wrote): A messy little book called “Malice in Wonderland”. It’s unfinished and was originally supposed to be a self insert of me and my friends falling into the twisted world of wonderland where The King of Hearts is a murderous maniac who does away with his “Queens” to keep himself young (hence the name King of Hearts), The Jabberwocky is a haunting, shape-shifting beast that stalks people to steal their human forms, and the Cheshire Cat is…well, the Cheshire Cat. Me and my friends each assume a role in the story and must find our way back home alive. I was cast as the Queen of Hearts and was tasked with eluding the King. One of my friends was Knave of Hearts. Another was Alice. Yet another was The Mad Hatter, and you get the idea. It was a fun story which I hope to work into an actual novel someday because the premise is so entirely interesting to me. It dabbles in my favorite genres: fantasy, psychological thriller, horror, and adventure.
Genre: Mystery. I blame my ungodly consumption of noir movies.
Author: C.S. Lewis of course.
Writing music: The soundtrack from the Movie “Loving Vincent”. If you have not heard it, please do your ears a favor, and look it up. It is marvelous for writing mysteries and anything with tension/emotional weight.
Time to write: The Afternoon/Evening. I wish I was an early bird but alas, twas not mean to be.
Writing snack/drink: Coffee is probably my favorite drink. Or Dr. Pepper. My favorite snack tends to be something salty like popcorn or chips.
Movie: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardobe. BUT THE DISNEY ONE, LET ME CLARIFY.
Writing memory: I remember being pretty lonely in middle school but I have very fond memories of writing on a sort of kids message board primarily for stories. I love the community I felt there with other young kids who read each other’s work.
Childhood book: haha the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe ahaha. You already knew it was coming!
★CURRENTLY ★
Reading: Unglued by Lysa Terkuerst.
Writing: A lot of things unfortunately. A poetry book that I hope to publish via Amazon Kindle before I graduate college, the edited draft of my mystery novel, and a silly story for my friends where we are all astronauts. Oh, and a college research proposal.
Listening to: The sounds of the campus library around me.
Watching: My computer screen….
I’m joking. I’m not watching anything until the Obiwan Show comes out on Disney+ in May.
Learning: Biology all the time. It is my major after all.
★FUTURE ★
Want to be published: Oh heavens, yes. I would love to be published more than once actually though I’m sort of aiming for the stars with that wish but I don’t care.
Indie or traditional: I want to try traditional but I could see myself end up self publishing down the road. It depends on the opportunities that present themselves I guess.
Wildest goal: To be able to make a living as an Author. Like to have that as my primary job. It may not sound wild, but for me it feels crazy. (Rent where I live is SKYROCKETING).
And I think that is it. I don’t have anyone specific I wish to tag so If you’re reading this and want to do it, you can consider yourself as such!
All for your writing or roleplay purposes for when you are unsure of where to place your characters. If you have any biome suggestions to add to the list, feel free to comment them down below.
A wizard comes to you in your dreams and claims they need you to come rescue them. In turn, they’d teach you magic. These lessons can only occur while you’re sleeping as this wizard is known as a “Dream Mender”. So you set out on a quest to save this wizard, learning new skills every night as you sleep.
★The White Necromancer
A cleric/necromancer strikes a deal a king whose kingdom was suffering under the strain of a plague: they would heal all afflicted parties as long as they could have their bodies after they died of natural causes. The king agrees. 50 years later, The White Necromancer has an enormous army of undead and is near unstoppable.
★Fallen Magic
A star falls to the earth one night during a meteor shower. Word spreads of this however no one has been able to locate exactly where this star is. You are an astronomer who has a better estimate than most of where the star ended up. However, you find yourself facing a dilemma. You see, stars are very sought after to use in magical potions and weaponry so two wizards- a warlock and a sorceress- both want it. You wish to find the star but are uncertain which party you should serve under as they are both trying to get you “on their side”.
★Borrowed Magic
You wake up in an unfamiliar castle with no memories but magic powers. You wonder the castle and find a few interesting characters who claim to be your “magical helpers”. The mystery deepens as you are told by one of them that the magical powers that you posses were stolen from a wizard. And the wizard wants them back.
★ Man or Monster?
A wizard comes to you for help, claiming to have accidentally turned their friend into some sort of beast. Not only do they want your help finding him and turning him back, they also inform you that you are on a time crunch. The longer the person is under the spell, the more of their mind the “beast” part takes over.
★Secrets are Kept in Boxes
A bloodied man with a tall pointy hat emerges from the woods near your home. He has a box in his hand. Before he dies he whispers only one thing; “Keep it safe.”
★Wizard Assassin
Wizards are becoming a dying breed in your city. Literally. Every wizard known amongst the people is showing up dead with a brand upon their arm. You want to find out who is doing this and why, your motivations being that your lover is a magic-worker themselves.
★Meowgic
You are a necromancer. You have the power to resurrect yourself. You have done so twice already. Oh, and another minor detail- you are a cat.
This is a post that has been stewing around in my head for quite awhile. As a sophomore, almost a junior in college, I have heard A LOT of these. The unfortunate thing is people often think they are being helpful or supportive by offering these words of advice though I think sometimes they can do more harm than good. So, I’m going to quickly go through a few of these and say my peace as to why I have a problem with each of the selected phrases. Let’s get to it now, shall we?
1. “Just follow your dreams.”
This is a super loaded statement, nor is it particularly helpful. Students should consider a variety of factors which includes but it not only limited to their passions. If you ONLY consider this singular variable, this could lead you to a precarious position. Pursue your passions, of course, but also consider that that doesn’t always mean making it your career.
2. “The next step is always college/higher education.”
College is expensive. I think we all know this. If you’re not entirely sure if it’s the right next step for you, maybe take a step back and look at your options. There are alternatives to college. There is something to be said for trade schools or simply applying to entry level jobs and working your way up.
3. “You need to decide X, Y, and Z right now.” & “You can’t change your mind.”
Some decisions are time sensitive but decisions such as what you choose to major in, what career you’re working towards, etc. can be changed. So while it may be technically true that you need to choose a field of study soon after graduating, this is also a decision that can be
4. “Just find something that will make you money.”
Money, like your passions, is a factor that must be considered while planning your future. It should not, however, be considered solely. Again, like your passions, it is one of a few factors to think about.
I think if you were to summarize all these phrases and my problems with them is that they offer little to no nuance on a subject that depends highly on the person and their specific set of circumstances. There is no one way to live your life and certain decisions and life styles suit some people and not others. So, if you know a graduate and want to support them, do so by letting them know that no one really has it figured out in adulthood. Tell them that they should try new things and do their best. Tell them to prepared to work hard but also enjoy some little things about being an adult now. It seems scary at first, but you can do it!
The title tells it all. I’m gonna do this on a 1-10 scale. This is 100% a whim but I figured it make a fun post. I am such a huge sucker for nostalgia and, when going through this list, I found that I still have a very warm place in my heart for all these things. For context, I was born in 2002 and, consequently, was raised in this weird era where I wasn’t quiiiite a 90’s kid but I still, largely, enjoyed 90’s kids trends. It’s a weird mix.
1. Horses
Or, more specifically, magical ones. I wasn’t quite a weird horse girl but I still greatly enjoyed wasting hours playing a horse themed trading card game called “Bella Sara”. Anyone remember that? The site has long since shut down but I ADORED this game and still have some of the trading cards to this day.
My horse love grew when I eventually came to own one. I live on a farm and when I was about 10 or so, my parents bought me and my sister a few horses. This hobby was something I greatly enjoyed however my favorite horse, Abby, died under not so unpleasant circumstances (she was an older horse and had some health problems as a result). This didn’t entirely ruin my love of horses but I think my horse phase really diminished after that.
I didn’t mean to dampen the mood….sorry. Here’s a Bella Sara mood board to lighten it!
But let’s not forget the rating! I’d still give this childhood obsession a 8/10 despite the traumatic horse death though that does bring it down a point.
2. Webkinz
Okay, full disclosure, I definitely have Webkinz installed on my laptop. It’s like the only other thing I use it for besides writing and college homework. This game has stood the test of time. It’s so much fun to play with my virtual pets and still enjoy a sweet air of nostalgia. The plush pets that this company sold were super cute too and I still have a lot of mine from my former years. Spoiler alert, this one is going to get a near perfect rating because I STILL enjoy it to this day. This obsession was entirely understandable. Webkinz is so charming, even now, years down the road!
This obsession obviously gets a 10/10 rating. Go play Webkinz right now, I dare you.
3. Fairies
Disney fairies especially. This obsession began when I got “The Tinkerbell Movie” for Christmas. These movies were so magical, my grade school self couldn’t help but admire them. I instantly wished I was a fairy and went about collecting tiny little fairy figurines. I would arrange these and play with them in my own little “Pixie Hollow” for hours on end. I still have this figurines in my closet, carefully tucked away as they are some of my most valuable possesions.
And since it seems to be an ongoing theme that these obsessions would be further kindled by online games, this obsession was no different. There was a little Disney Fairy themed MMO called Disney Fairies where you could create your own fairy, pick your talent, fly around and play games, and decorate your own house. It was an absolute tragedy when the site eventually shut down.
This obsession might be one of my favorites even if it hasn’t exactly stood the test of time as the franchise has been winding down the past couple of years. They stopped making movies and with the shut down of the website, I find it an awful shame that all that is left of this joy of mine are my little figurines which are definitely not manufactured anymore.
9/10. It was gone way too soon. You will be missed Disney Fairies.
4. The Chronicles of Narnia
Ahhhh… such a classic. I loved these books. Though I’d be lying if I told you the books were my introduction to “The Chronicles of Narnia”. It was but the Disney Movie “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” that captured my 7 year old heart. I wanted to be Lucy soooo badly. I wanted to stumble into a wardrobe and find a magical world where animals could talk. I wanted to fight in battles and go exploring and eat Turkish Delight (even though in real life, it’s actually not that good? The Narnian stuff must be something different because I swear it looked delicious in this movie).
It was such a shame when they stopped making the Narnia Movies. Despite not exactly being true to the books, I GREATLY enjoyed Prince Caspian and Voyage of the Dawn Treader though I was much older when these movies came out. Though if I’m being entirely honest, at age 20, I still want to find a magical world in a closet.
Maybe someday I’ll dedicate a whole post to these movies. They really deserve it. But, until then, I’ll just have to leave this childhood obsession with the rating of 10/10. Still a classic. Read the books. Watch the movies. Cry about your childhood lost.
5. DRAGONS
Alright, so originally that was going to be where I was going to end this post. But then I recalled a memory. A deep memory….
DRAGONS.
This was a relatively shorter phase than any of the others listed but it definitely still existed. I can’t exactly tell you how this obsession started but I think it was definitely punctuated by the books in the series called “The Dragon Codices”. Overall, this phase consisted of me wanting to find a dragon egg, hatch it, and ride it around How to Train your Dragon Style. I also drew a lot of dragon pictures. I mean, a lot.
I would rank this phase a solid 7/10. It’s lower than the others because it was so short-lived but I still enjoyed the world of dragons greatly. And I definitely wouldn’t say “no” to any merchant who offered my a dragon’s egg.
And there! I think we’ve covered the bulk of my childhood obsessions… *thinks for 10 seconds more* okay, that’s a lie. We still haven’t covered my Lord of the Rings phase or my Wizard phase (WIZARD phase. NOT Harry Potter, I must iterate). And there was my mini phase where I made Rise of the Guardian OC’s… ugh, cringe. Okay, I was lying. We’re not done. But I need to go eat supper so I think that will do it for today. Definitely be warned though… a part 2 may be in the future…. beware traveler. Beware.
Hello my lovely readers! Hope you had a wonderful Easter!
It has come to my attention that it has been a hot minute since I’ve done a fun personal post. And it came to me that it might be fun to do a little personal style overview. I enjoy cute clothes and thrifting so this post is right up my alley. So, enjoy this post as I show you the various aspects of my personal tastes in fashion.
School
First off, one of the most important things to me when it comes to clothes is that they’re comfy. I am a college student who spends a lot of time on campus and I refuse to spend that time being itchy or uncomfortable. Unfortunately, the sheer amount that I’m on campus can get in the way of some of the outfits I wish I would wear. Sure, I love the way heels look in this skirt but do I want to tromp around in them for SIX HOURS??? I think not. (Four hours is my limit).
As a result, most of my school outfits consists of a comfy sweater, some jeans and converse. Oh, and lots of cardigans. If I feel real cute I may wear a skirt instead of jeans. And if its a little too hot to wear a full on sweater, I’ll wear a classy, collared button up.
Comfy
Yes, I wear matching pajama sets. They make me happy.
Out to Coffee
We can get a little more fun a creative here. I have a few artsy outfits, a few “edgier” ones (for lack of a better term), plus a few “cottage core” style ones and I adore them all. Really its just a little bit of everything. As much as I wish I could stick to one style I find myself unable to do so as I enjoy them all so very much. I tend to lean into the artsier side of things more than anything but even that’s not a set rule. I wear a lot of blue and black. But again, this isn’t a set rule either.
What I Wish I Wore
Not gonna lie, I wish I had the money to really lean into the artsy, van gogh-esque aesthetic but at the end of the day, I wonder if even if I did, would I really stick to it? Not gonna lie, probably not.
And… yeah! That concludes my fashion overview! Feel free to leave your thoughts down below? What’s your taste in clothing?
By the Brooke 