around the web

AROUND THE WEB | VOL. II

around the web

The Big C.

It’s quite difficult to grasp the meaning of this word all at once. It ranges from the material things up to the state of our lives. As a new year entered, it became the talk of the town. Though it may be a little step, I started to learn a thing or two about contentment.

Reading Hannah Brencher’s experience on her target obsession made me nod my head in agreement (especially on the part of wanting all those pretty stuff but never getting around to using some of them). Last month, I scanned my room for evidences of excess. I need not look far, with just a tilt of my head the pile of unread books on the shelf presented themselves.

Blame it on my poor self-control, lack of good buying habits, or the low-priced second hand books that I can’t let go of. The moment I started earning money was also the day that my book hoarding began. I have read some of them for the past months, but the problem is that I buy faster more than I can read. Slowly, they started piling up and the number didn’t go down to 50 plus. I would always joke that this is the reason why I’m broke.

On another corner of the room was a large plastic container filled with notebooks, papers, scrapbooking materials and other artsy fartsy shenanigans that I haven’t used yet. There were time that I feel that I don’t have anything to use, but put them together and I have more than what my two hands can deal with.

Consume less. Create more.

I’ve been hearing (or reading rather) this phrase from one of my favorite creatives and at this point I couldn’t agree more. The world can make us feel like we don’t have enough, but in fact we do. We’re always driven to get more and more in our hands, without realizing that what we already have is already sufficient for our needs (sometimes a bit more).

For the next months, I’ve vowed to refrain from buying any books, notebooks, or art materials, and instead make full use of what I have. Posting this here as a reminder to myself, at the same time it’s a chance to meet others who might want to go through the same challenge. It doesn’t seem too intimidating if going to do it together.

Here’s a few more words from my favorite blogs to throw encouragement in your way:

AROUND THE WEB | VOL. 1

around the web, artsy fartsy

It’s a millenial’s battle – to keep on doing what you need or to leave it all behind and to pursue the things that you love. One of my high school friends once said that pursuing your passion is an entitlement — something that only the privileged ones can do (those who have unlimited funds to supply their dreams or those people who don’t need to worry about grinding a 9-5 job). There are moments of frustration when I am thisclose to believing that his statement is true, but there’s a huge part in me that won’t give in to this idea. It seems that saying yes to the fact dream jobs are achieved only by the privileged is like killing my own dreams. So, at this season of my life I beg to disagree.

Day Job vs. Dream Job, is one better than the other? The Great Discontent‘s newsletter came right on time in my inbox as I was pondering these thoughts. I could babble on this for so long, but I know that I belong to the category of people who hustles in order to figure out the right balance of things. Read instead the round up of the online content shared by TGD on their weekend newsletter and other related podcast and blog posts found along the way:

  • Hold off on quitting your day job as advised by Dana Tanamachi. Out of all the interviews included, hers was the one that I got so much from. Maybe it’s because her art and passion is something that is close to my heart as well. I got a lot of insight that I printed the whole article. If you’re interested in hand lettering or chalk art you’ll lover her works!
  • There’s also Grace Bonney of Design*Sponge and the British adventurer Alistair Humphreys, who speak on behalf of the bloggers, freelancers, designers, travelers, who take the risks in pursuing their passion. It’s somewhat uplifting to read these kinds of interviews because you get to know people before they even get to do what they’re doing right now.
  • Some may even relate to the path of Benjamin Heath  who took on the path of studying law first before he finally come into terms that he wanted to become a professional photographer. Or maybe we are in a familiar situation as Sara Blake who’s grinding the hours in the corporate world as she tries to venture out as well in illustration.
  • Darling Magazine also asked the question, and provided a list of pros and cons to consider when deciding if one should quit or not.
  • And if you need an extra push one of my all-time favorite bloggers Arriane Serrafico tackled on how to pursue a passion project when you have day job.