what are we doing right now?

last updated: september 11th, 2024!

to start off, we just turned 25 on the 3rd of september!

a lot of the things are the same, though - we are still unemployed... but, we are making progress towards doing what we love full-time! we recently made a lot of prints of our artwork, which we are selling at a local art gallery and an indie bookshop. we also got accepted for an artists' bursary which was supremely helpful.

we do a lot of performance poetry nowadays. like, a lot. we go to 3-5 different open mic nights a month, and we were even doing poetry in a play we helped write as part of a 48 hour challenge that finished on the 8th of september!

of course, since we perform so frequently, we also write pretty often. lately, the muse ariadne writing club has been a source of a lot of the inspiration. we also paint very often! acrylic and palette knife is the best!

we have also been buidling our photography skills by going to a photography club for lgbt+ young adults every week.

we go to some art groups too, and recently started volunteering at an art group for autistic adults. that happens twice a month, and it's pretty chill. we also are probably going to start volunteering with a trans charity as photographers and peer supporters...

in general, when it comes to creativity, our focus is trying to fuse our disciplines into mixed media projects. we have a lot of ideas and a lot of directions we could take things, but we won't let the wealth of choice give us decision paralysis as we work towards actualising the plans we have in mind.

to be honest, a lot of what we do is stuff we consider "work-related" and "productive", and we have an unhealthy complex about staying on that grindset. so we've been trying to allow ourselves to unwind sometimes, and just enjoy life. we do genuinely enjoy working, but there needs to be a balance, and when we find ourselves getting extremely stressed out about the idea of not working, we know we should be kinder to ourselves.

our wonderful girlfriend and her system have helped a lot in that regard. hanging out with her is really chill and comforting and just plain fun, and the way she loves us helps us love ourselves more. we started dating on the 5th of may, so things are still a little new, but it feels "just right" and it feels like wonderful magic.

okay, but what about media and hobbies? well, we really like to read books, and are doing amazing on our goal of reading 36 new books this year (so far we have 25/36). we mostly read translated (usually japanese) contemporary fiction. our goal to watch 24 new movies this year is failing miserably, though, as we only have 7... but we are determined to get there!

so, in conclusion, things are cool and fun as usual, and the opportunities to be creative are numerous and immense! as we try to seize the day, we have to remember to take time for ourselves too.

learn more about now pages here!