sean wrote: >> ...I guess Im living the dream. I think that's it for me too, living the dream, but I'm not waiting around for someone to finance it. Here's my little essay on this from last year:
Do you wish your life had a better outcome, like that really great movie you saw last year? Do you wish you could get that spark of insight that solves one of life's major problems by simply reflecting on the glint of sunlight in your cup of coffee, like the neat vlog you took a moment to watch yesterday? Then live your life like the movie or vlog you want it to be. Decide what effect you want your life/movie/vlog to have on it's viewers, including you and the people close to you as well as distant observers. Write up a treatment. Shop it around to your friends. Pitch it to your sponsors, your champions and even your enemies. Dream up the story. (Don't forget the twist at the end where everything works out great.) Write down the script. Sketch out story board. Live the story (hey, that twist at the end? in reality it double-twisted better than I could have imagined!) Shoot the footage and edit, edit, edit. Distribute it to the theaters, or feed it out on your vlog. Five stars? No stars? Either way, learn the lessons, write the next chapter in your life, live it, vlog it. Why does this work? Because we humans have an inner need to share our selves and our lives with others. Because if we follow good plans the result is good works. Because if we know someone is watching the work is bound to be better. With my own work in this world I help people understand how to care for the historic buildings they live and work in. I earn my living with hammer, clipboard and camera in hand, writing and vlogging about my work. I do often make decisions about what to do, with print articles and vlogs very much in mind. My remaining life is getting too short to do anything for just one result. If I take a hands-on contract to restore a porch on an historic house down the block, I need to get at least three or five results: 1. Earn some money fixing the porch so I can feed my family. 2. Take notes and photos of the work so I can write a print article or book chapter about that type of work. 3. Shoot some video for a vlog or two. 4. Help out my neighbor. 5. Fix those classically styled Ionic porch columns so they improve the looks of this neighborhood and make the whole world a little more beautiful place for all of us to live a better life. If I have a choice between two projects and the first will give number 1. above, and the second will give 1. through 5. above, I'll definitely pick the second, which has the greater outcome. Cases in point: Carpenter & the Columns http://historichomeworks.com/hhw/frontporch/front.htm#Carpenter Bill's House http://www.historichomeworks.com/hhw/frontporch/front.htm#House Stop by sometime to shoot the breeze with with me out on the Front Porch: http://www.historichomeworks.com/hhw/frontporch/front.htm - John Leeke by hammer and hand great works do stand by pen and thought best words are wrought by cam and light he shoots it right
