One step at a time

Whenever I begin a new hobby, I have instant expectations that I will be awesome at it. No matter what it is. I will learn to crochet a exquisite afghan in a day, I will figure out ways to grow basil quicker in one hour of research. I know how unreasonable it all sounds, but let's admit we all do this sometimes. With the culture of instant gratification that we live in, we want everything at our finger steps quickly without effort or disappointment. 

Needless to say, I have learned the very hard way that it is not possible to get everything right the first time :) Proof is my first crochet scarf which looks more like a table cloth than a scarf. After that, it was so difficult for me to continue because I was scared of failing at it. 

I took up another hobby this year. Yes there are so many things to explore, that sticking with one hobby all my life did not seem fair :) Urban sketching is what I am exploring off late. Not too crazy and tough if you like drawing buildings. Sit outside a cafe in a city and simply sketch and paint what you see. Simple enough right. I bought the book," The Art of Urban Sketching: Drawing On Location Around The World". Read it. Looked very tempting.

Well I have 10 pictures that I have taken in the past few months that I need to sketch. Somehow I am not able to bring myself to start the process. The reason, I am scared that I will fail at it miserably and all the effort will go to waste. Yes, I am procrastinating, shying from my sketch book and colors :) So stupid you would say, still we do it. 

I listen to this song called," One step at a time" by Jordan Sparks. So simple, One step at a time. Easier said than done right. The book said one very simple thing. What you paint does not have to be an exact representation of the view you see. It should be a representation of your outlook. It is your creation and you can make it the way you want. You don't have to make it exactly like it is. I agree with all of this, yet I am not convinced if I can make it. 

Tsk tsk. I finally got down to doing some sketching.  

Below is my recreation of a picture I took in Elizabeth City, NC. A simple building in the corner of a sleepy town. 

Original picture

My water color recreation

 This is my interpretation of the building above. Drew a basic sketch and water colored it. Finished off with a black pen outlining. This is my first attempt at urban sketching. I must say that I am happy with the outcome. The process was very easy and simple. It was not as bad as I thought it would be. 

One step at a time, right!

Leena --<@

What's in a design?

The wheel is always round. The keyboard always begins with qwerty. The electric socket looks a certain way always.We are so used to things being a certain way that we forget the number of iterations it took to be the way it is today. That is the power of design and a good design is so difficult to come by. Ask me. I have spent more than necessary resources (time, money and loads of efforts) finding the perfect kitchen tools. The pain and agony in buying and testing the various pieces. Truly agonizing I must say. Ya ya I know what you must be thinking. "what's the big deal!" It's not like you are trying to find the perfect car and have spent thousands of $$ in the search. I agree but I take my optimizations very seriously. I like getting the most out of what I pay for.

So I set out to find the ideal soap dispenser. No big deal. Go to Bed Bath and Beyond and pick out one or two. Yours truly did just that. One day of using and soap was flowing from it like a fountain. But not from when it should be flowing from. Evidence 1 (below):
 

1st Dispenser (alas!)

The spurting was so annoying but I hung in there hoping that the pump would start working without leaking. Alas! It did NOT work. I did not give in. I went to another retail store to get another hero for my kitchen. Too many expectations from such a small simple soap dispenser. I present to you, evidence # 2. This time I bought a plastic one hoping it would work better than metal. Yup, I know I am too much of an optimistic.

Drip drip drip...

 Needless to say, it did not work either. Well after 3 more dispensers and broken hopes, I finally found one dispenser that WORKED. Really this one does and without dripping one bit. I am so happy and my faith in the genius of product design is reinstated.

Maybe we will see an oval tablet in the future. You never know :)

Leena --<@

Part of a group

Pressures of living in a competitive society weighs heavily on every individual's shoulders. Are you the first in your class? Are you the captain of your team? Are you the highest paid member of your team? The list and intensity grows and grows. We spend most of our lives trying to distance ourselves from the crowd. To be different. To stand out. 

Recently I heard about a report on the lives of Aids survivors. Heart breaking would be an understatement. Here were people who were trying to get by with a society imposed stigma and no support or empathy. The advancement of science has not helped people become more accepting. I don't think anyone wishes that they should get Aids. So why are we so quick to judge them and outcast them. 

One young man who had Aids said in an interview," I would give anything to be a part of the normal group again." It struck a cord in my heart. Here we are trying so hard to be keep our differences alive. So hard to shine above everyone while completely forgetting that sometimes being a part of many is most comforting and a blessing. 

Leena --<@