#that was the funnest commission of my life

[koiinoborii]

One of the greatest achievements in my career was being the official artist for Gino Fratelli's penis.

[artofcarmen]

do you do commissions? :0

Unfortunately not any more. I went through a massive 3 year long burn out after my last job, so I had stopped them permanently cuz I couldn't guarantee i could work on them. I pulled back from social media and stopped posting for a while.

Im feeling much better now, so Im back to creating, but im just taking it easy now. Doin the 'what I want when I want' approach to art. Keeping it light so I dont burn out on my own.

I may not go back to commissions, but honestly Id love to eventually offer YCH (your character here auctions) or even request streams in the future, but Id announce those here and twitter well before theyd open.

PS: I know a bunch of my old clients still follow me and I just wanna say I miss you guys. I had some fantastic people commission me over the years and it was the funnest years of my art life for sure. ♥

[rupertgayesarchive]

“i think sam would still have his visions, like you said, and then maybe those lead him to dean or to a case that dean is also on? or if angels are more well-known later on, he tracks one down, maybe cas, maybe not (if it's NOT and it's one that works on raphael's side. ohoho. the possibilities...)” YOU MADE ME SO ILL WITH THIS. this is the same anon as before I’m sorry for being like this. i don’t have a google doc open but you are going to convince me to do that unironically.

I think you might be right about the show being different completely if Sam was gone for years and the above quote made me so insane okay hear me out. I’m the gif of the man wildly gesturing at an investigative board right now. okay so in canon the apocalypse starts gearing up. well I mean that starts pre canon but in the context of the show I’d say around season 2 or maybe even 3? I think a lot of dean development regarding Sam happens in this seasons also. i think Gabriel could disappear Sam from THEN but it would be a little different cuz Sam at this point wouldn’t have a ‘normal’ life and is aware of the demon blood and feels inherently monstrous moreso than before so. maybe Gabriel would just stick him in a time loop because that’s just an easy way to keep him contained, but also Gabriel only did his other spike traps to teach the winchesters a lesson he felt would help work in his interest of stoping the apocalypse. and if sam was in a time loop like we saw he would try and get out of it which would mean more maintenance by Gabriel who I assume wants an unalarmed unaware Sam. hm. I think the funnest option here would literally just be he wipes Sam’s memory? like he returns Sam to factory settings and sticks him in one of his pocket dimensions. isont think HED put Sam back Stanford because Sam’s motivations have moved past compulsively wanting a normal life.. OKAY WAIT I just rewatched (sorry in advance I didn’t choose to be like this) s9 and the angel possessing Sam kept Sam locked in his mind by making him think he was on a hunt with dean. obviously Gabriel couldn’t do this cuz he’s not possessing Sam but he would throw Sam in a mundane pocket dimension for however long it takes to stop the apocalypse. so, maybe forever.

genuinely think it’d be so fun if Gabriel died or. wait if this is s6 cas could find him to ask for help against Raphael. i mean working under my previous assumption of Gabriel didn’t stop the apocalypse but just prolonged it leading to a s6 angel war type thing the specifics aren’t important I just want Cas to have some degree of girlboss lying and betraying. i think dean would assume Sam fucking died if he just vanished in s3 which is evil but I think it’d be fun that Sam comes back and dean doesn’t have the same degree or expectation of codepency anymore. like obviously not completely but in canon he did move on somewhat with Lisa and in this scenario it would be more healthy for dean I think because he’s not processing his grief out of obligation. I think Sam would come back and dean would revert immediately back to horribly adjusted before like eventually evening out.

i think it would be fun if Gabriel accidentally got caught up in whatever the fuck cas and or dean is doing which distracts him and Sam figures out what is happening. also it would be sooo fun to me if Sam literally just didn’t know several however many years had passed at this point. like he thinks it’s been a week and HE has discovered angels and is sorely disappointed he’s ready to be like DEAN the lore was wrong angels are evil. all this because... I think it’s fun but also because I think all of them taking pains to hide cas being an angel is hilarious and compelling. dean would probably like.. kind of encouragement through the agreement that angels are dicks after sam is caught up, AND LIKE YOU SAID. Sam should track down an angel who recognizes him and is on Raphael’s side and Sam wants information and is hostile but the angel recognizes him and . wait oh my god angel ruby. not.. not exactly like ruby but the archetype remains I think the angel would reluctantly convince Sam they could be useful and then just subtly manipulate Sam against Cas. like.. unwitting double agent is sooo fun to me. i don’t think the angel would mention cas by name immediately especially if Sam doesn’t know Cas is an angel, mostly because i want them to have the incredibly fun dynamic at first of Sam being just completely confused while Cas is amicable. but I do want Sam to be hostile to Cas sometime because that’s great, and additionally because it’s fun if whatever angel talking with Sam drops progressively larger implications about Cas which Sam just completely buys initially. but then he decides to start like.. talking with dean or bobby or whoever’s around. maybe even Cas. and realizing he’s being played on his own. mostly because I like characters having to admit to their faults but also because I think them deciding to go with the extremely ill advised plan of a triple cross is hilarious.

sorry this is so long and just an excuse for me wanting Sam to have to meet a somewhat less horribly adjusted dean who has like. actual friends and problems not intertwined directly with sam u know?

SORRY i completely lost track of stuff so I'm answering this Now:

anon please open a google doc this could be a really cool idea! i think i only have one series rewrite in me, hfym is IT you know? Anyway yes the idea of Gabe putting Sam in a pocket dimension or a time loop makes ME insane, I remember reading a really fucked up mystery spot au where Gabe accidentally forgot how long he left Sam in that loop and Sam like, lost it? So he shows up after 50,000 Tuesdays have passed or something insane like that. Anyhow I don't think it'd be as stagnant as that but if Sam did end up slowly realizing he was in like, some unreal environment? Maybe either his powers keep breaking through to show him events that he feel should be happening but they aren't? Like a vision about Jenny and her family in the Home ep in s1 but he can't actually get to his childhood home or a different family is in his childhood home? Weird shit like that. And maybe he ends up summoning or finding Gabriel to figure out what the FUCK is happening or another creature tunes into him if Gabriel isn't actively watching him.

Alternatively if you wanted to keep Sam around maybe like, he 'dies' in all hell breaks loose but when Dean sells his soul and Sam comes back Gabe snatches him up? So Dean thinks it was like, a trick or s/t... he tries to find Sam or get his soul back, ends up going to hell anyway, Cas saves him, Sam can't come to the phone rn so the apocalypse doesn't happen as it should... idk idk these are random ideas it's very hot here i can't think.

I also love the idea of another angel helping Sam and convincing him that Cas is the bad evil one that was leading Dean astray while Sam was out of commission that'd be SO fun. And yeah idk if the purgatory/souls thing would happen but angelic civil war is occurring, maybe said angel tries to kill Dean as a way to stop Cas and that's when Sam is like 'oh okay Cas is actually cool'. Maybe... a little pieta? as a treat? Cas cradling Dean's broken body openly crying over him (either dead or just gravely injured?) hm. love that. Sam just sees that sorta thing and is like 'Dean's gay?? is it gay if it's an angel?? Oh fuck I messed up huh' in that order lmao.

[lethendralis-paints]

Artist Meme

Was tagged to answer this set of interesting questions by @kourvo​

(original post is here: https://kourvo.tumblr.com/post/621355098110640128/artist-meme

Thank you so much for that!

Let’s see....

1) What is the character you've drawn the most (Can be original or fanart)

This precious boy. I can never get enough of him. One of the most compelling characters I have ever come across. Love everything about Fenris and can relate to him on so many levels!

2. What colour do you often use? 

Gray and brown are my faves. And all other colours have the same chance of appearing in my artwork :D

3. Any colour you are bad at using?

I don’t think so...I love them all, even the pinks and yellows people usually find hard to incorporate into a colour palette. Tell me in the comments if I’m wrong :)

4. When drawing people, where do you start? 

Funnily enough - either with the front of the hairline or with the left eyebrow. Don’t ask me, why - I don’t know myself.

5. What is a character only your eraser will love?

Hmmmm...any sort of villainous character. I can’t draw evil people convincingly. I’m a huge softy at heart.

6. Which of your works took the longest time? 

Big scale commission I did for @pikapeppa​, featuring all the Inquisition companions, along with Fenris, Rynne and Carver Hawke. That one took almost 3 weeks, due to its sheer scope and my relative lack of experience in such large works. Pika was extremely patient with me though, for that I am eternally thankful!

7. What techniques do you use when you want to improve in drawing? 

Classical art studies. Varying my technique, themes I choose and software I use. I try to experiment and go outside my comfort zone often.

8. What do you think of the art of the person who gave you this ask meme? 

I adore Lillymon’s technical skill, refined style and limited colours! She is a huge inspiration for me!

9. What art tools/media are you good with? 

DrawPile, Photoshop, graphite pencils and liners. That’s about it :)

10. Art tools/media you are bad at? 

Traditional paints. I have no formal artistic education and my lack of knowledge comes to the forefront whenever I have to paint on a real canvas. It’s so much trial and error, you can’t even imagine....

11. What do you think about your own art? 

Lately it’s one of the last few things that were bringing me joy. I hope I won’t lose the passion for it. Because at this point I’m not sure I’ll be able to find some occupation I will be genuinely interested in and good at it. I don’t know if me gravitating towards moody fantasy art speaks about my fear of facing reality. If so, idk what to do with that. I do hope to develop my skills and being able to support myself financially as an artist.

12. Do you consult references for your drawings? 

Yes. A lot of them. Anatomical atlases, schemes for both academic and manga art, photographs found online and taken on my own, copying colour palettes from classical art - anything goes. I think it’s essential to develop your technical skill.

13. What do you like about your art? 

Lately - consistency, both in terms of produced results and in sticking to the timelines I set to myself. I hope this lasts. I would also like to branch out to other themes and not confine myself to quirky fantasy characters, so I’m working on developing my own story behind the scenes (spoilers) :P

14. What habits do you have while drawing?

Only the bad ones, lol. Hunching forward in front of the screen, forgetting to eat, drink and letting my eyes rest. Tilting my head to the side instead of rotating the canvas....I’m an idiot XD

15. Are you good at drawing faces facing right? 

I think that’s the thing I’m good at!

16. How frequently do you draw? 

For the last 1,5 years - almost every day without fail, for good or ill.

17. What do you do when you have artist's block? 

Change occupation and work myself into a depressed state. I changed work places in the last few years a lot, working as an interior designer, draftsman, textile designer, a cook, a bartender to name a few.

18. What must you have when you draw? 

No commotion around me and a cup of some hot beverage.

19. Do you have a lot of stray lines (messy lineart)? 

In the starting stage of my work process - yes, like you wouldn’t believe! If it’s a personal doodle, I sometimes just leave in as am under layer and draw clean lines on top of that mess. It looks cool in a way.

20. What is drawing to you?

An essential part of what helped me to retain my sanity in the last year and a half. Hopefully a lasting profession that will help me pay bills and survive on my own, if my life falls apart entirely later.

21. Your art goal from now on? 

Broaden the themes I depict, improve my technical skill, work on personal creative project and not only fan arts. And most of all - not giving up on it this time.

22. Artists you've had influence from? 

To name a few: @kallielef​ @kourvo​ @shayafury​ @fairsparrow​ who I met here on Tumblr, and many others who I follow and zealously study their works for clues on how to improve my own work.

23. Artists you like? 

I am following them all either here or on Instagram, I also do my best to share their works on my side blog!

24. Which is easier to draw, humans or animals? 

It was animals earlier. But now that I started to diligently study human anatomy, I would say it evened out! I’m quite confident drawing humans/humanoids now!

25. Show us an old drawing 

My first digital drawing from 2010 when I first bought my tablet!

26. What is the charm-point of your art?

I ummm....I don’t really get the question? Is that like the the strongest suit of me as an artist? Intense expressions maybe? Idk. Let me know in the comments :D

27. What is the first thing you would draw if we're talking about fantasy? 

Broody warriors, he-he

28. Please draw your most beloved character:

Here’s a sneak-peek of me drawing him right now! :D

29. When thinking of characters is it mostly female? male? or androgynous/no sex? 

I usually gravitate towards depicting strong-willed, caring, passionate, brave, honest men and women.

30. What did you draw yesterday? 

Started cleaning up that sketch from the last question, actually!

31. What is the funnest part to draw? 

A circle. Mostly because you’d die laughing seeing my struggle to draw a believable one XD

32. What part of other people's drawings do you notice first? 

colours, mood, eyes, hands.

33. Regarding backgrounds, what is your method of making it easier to draw? 

pick your favourite textured brush, find a good reference for mood and colour scheme, zoom out, squint your eyes and start slapping colours like mad. You’d be amazed at how much you’ll be able to achieve in 30 minutes with this approach. Bare white background is the enemy - destroy it! >:)

34. What colour coordinations do you like? 

Gray or brown as a main colour and then deep, earthy, saturated colours to complement the main one. Pink and orange is the combination I strangely enjoy using lately too.

35. What character did you last draw? Fenris and Eris :)

36. Does your style change easily? 

I don’t think so. More like it’s evolving slowly into something more serious and deliberate.

37. What part of drawing do you pay most attention to? 

Facial expression, body movement, mood and light effects. Not so much the composition and framing, he he.

38. How do you feel about drawing adult art? 

Tbh, I don’t consider straight up porn to be ‘adult’ exactly. To me adult art means aiming towards serious topics, exploring complex emotions and ideas, being honest with your viewer. I did doodle a few more steamy sketches of my OTP just to see if I could, but it was definitely a tongue-in-cheek kind of a artwork that I don’t take seriously.

39. Do you like criticism from others? 

If it’s friendly and in done in private - I welcome it always.

40. How many people do you normally draw per artwork? 

1 or 2. Rarely more. Crowded battle scenes are definitely not my thing :D

This was fun! Tagging forward to @shayafury​ @schoute​ @stella-minerva​ @nug-juggler​ @kallielef​ and anyone else wishing to go through such a long questionnaire!

[woodys]

✸♡. Where would I be without   🎶  F R I E N D S  🎶  !! .♡✸

In the last few years i’ve always come to love and look forward to the summertime. It always seems to be the time of year I have the biggest adventures, funnest moments, and get into the craziest things. For instance, I got the once in a lifetime chance to see my favorite musical, Hamilton, live. At the same time, Magikarp became one of my top favorite beloved water Pokechildren, right after that I played myself getting tripped into infinite video game hell with four losers on a road trip in my first Final Fantasy game. I watched my favorite speedy hedgehog and his friends RISE BACK to their glory in a True Blue™ revive and just when I thought all dreams couldn’t be reality TOY STORY shows up in KINGDOM HEARTS ya’ll. TOY STORY GONNA BE IN KINGDOM HEARTS YA’LL.

That said, with all of those things, I took notice how just about everything this summer’s offered me has had some unifying line of friendship tucked in it somewhere. And as I rode out Hurricane Harvey, I realized just how great friends are and—just like the many video game characters I adore and love—how good are the ones that motivate, encourage, and surround me. As many of you do or don’t know by now i’ve always gotta close my a one great summer send off post! And though this one’s a bit LATE no thanks to Hurricane Harvey craziness, I couldn’t let the tradition die! For third year in a row ( ♫ WITH THE HELP OF HYPER POTIONS YET AGAIN ♥ ♫ )  here’s another commemoration a huge summer of growth in my life and a big thanks all of you for being a friend! Whether you realize you’ve been one to me or not! ♥ 

✨ — OLD FRIENDS!  

After all of my years saying that my summer commemoration posts aren’t follow forevers, ya’ll are the ones who finally make this post an Official™ “Follow Forever”. Cause I really have followed you for two to three years now! And I probably will again if I remade another blog! And a blog after that! Ya’ll make my dash HOME and the time that I waste here on Tumblr is always worth it because I get to see you. Thanks for being so epic for all these years! 

☼  @kiliroleplays ☼ @skiwalkerrey ☼ @kataaras ☼ @disappointedwrites ☼ @lucasdelcs ☼ @fitzsimmonsofrp  ☼ @jodiewrites ☼ @nickwldes ☼  @sweetpandarps ☼ @clairetvmples ☼ @jessicuhjcnes ☼ @billsprestonesquiree  ☼ @haywilliams ☼  @crystalreedwrites ☼ @atalantaa ☼

🌱 — NEW FRIENDS! 

I picked up a handful of you before the summer, but it doesn’t mean I love you any less. You’ve added new shades of color to my life and every time I see your url or when we talk it’s always the best reminder of why the days so far this year have been that much more brighter!

✧  @lizzyxrps ✧ @karlasouzawrites✧ @blu3crystalbrax ✧ @pastelseasidedancer✧ @reputationwrites✧ @qvakewrites / @starswritten​✧ @beverlymvrsh ✧ @tulirps ✧ @ladymacbeths ✧ @robertsonwrites  ✧ @trishwvlker  ✧ @kazdarling  ✧ @yourmuseco  ✧

👋🏾 — THE ‘YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND IN ME TOO’ FRIENDS!

Our posts are so very different, but here you are anyways! Though we hardly talk or chat, when we do there’s always a sparkle in my eyes because you’re always so kind to me and are all such wonderful people who I love to follow along with on my dash. If you ever need anything, i’ve gotchu! Because yes! I every much consider each of you as distant friends. ♥

@steinfeldofrph ✿ @victnam ✿ @dannyphantomrps ✿ @bobbybrigs ✿ @ofmymuses ✿ @queenchiddy ✿ @perfectxplaces ✿

There’s plenty more super special friends i’ve acknowledged under the cut, because I didn’t want this looking too long on your dashboards. But again, to all I say, thanks for another fantastic summer and even MORE thanks for being a Friend™! ♥ 

—Another special shoutout to @pandora-box-of-mind for the two wonderful, adorable, commissions that are apart of the gifs in my graphic. I can’t wait to commission you again, Pandora! ♥ (The art in middle graphic though, belongs to me y’all!! 😩 🙌🏽 )

🌻 — THE ‘ROYAL AVENUE’ FRIENDS

Ah yes, another year, another space to tag all of you in. Royal Avenue™ sounds fancy, but actually it’s just the name of a Pokemon theme I jam to all the time ;u;  Das because I love y’all and you’re my jam.♥   I probably tell some of yall that all the time by how much we talk. But now like this everyone can see me say it.  And most of you are my partners too and I’m sorry excessive yelling over video games kept me away from replies this summer.

❀ @pixiedustrps ❀ @maliatating ❀ @xkatiewrites ❀ @partycrouchwrites ❀ @elenaqilberts ❀ @fireheartwrites  ❀ @sherihollcnd  ❀ @whatsernamerps  ❀ @horan-rps  ❀ @alaskawritcs  ❀ @wcmanizer  ❀ @mezzymuffin  ❀ @asoftsounds  ❀ @maddybunny  ❀ @fist-of-derp  ❀

👾 🎮 — THE SUPER GAMING CREW FRIENDS

For as long as i’ve associated myself with the RPC I always used to feel so self conscious about posting gaming content because of how it didn’t meet whatever weird “aesthetic and FC” standard I felt RP blogs should have. I’m probably making a big deal out of nothing, but as i’ve finally grown to confidently reflect my interests onto my own blog, you three are the ones are the first i’ve personally ever seen in this community to do so with beauty and grace and it’s inspired me everyday to feel it’s okay not to post what everyone posts and love what you love! I love seeing the games you love, and I love talking with you about them too! I’m glad they led me to you!

@xgarnetwrites​ ϟ @arcvnums​ ϟ @flowerhelps​ ϟ 

💕 — THE FAMILY I NEVER KNEW FRIENDS!

I remember the first time Chris asked me to join the group chat back in y’alls Skype days and honestly, I can’t believe I went so long in my life without all of you. On nights I felt like endlessly crying, you made me laugh until my sides ached. On days I felt like giving up, all of you were there to cheer me on—even when you had your own burden of problems. They say friends are the family you choose for yourself, and i’m so blesst™ all of you chose little ole’ me. ☺️

♡ @jeauxlyne ♡ @josukegod ♡ @sharkmama ♡ @sauceaonmyballs ♡ @shinjiswhatever ♡ @sir-introvert ♡ AND OFC ALWAYS YOU @aeoneon ♡

And now for a set of LET ME HOLLA AT YOU FRIENDS

[ Taylor Swift’s Best Friend ( @starshineswrite ) ] - I know what you’re thinking: ‘wtf mimi we’re not even that close for me to earn this space’ but THAT doesn’t mean i’m not making this space for you anyways!!! I adore you so much Kat. You’re so strong even when you have to go through the stupidest stuff. I love when we talk. I loved earlier this year when we got to heart to heart. I just wanted to remind you again just how amazing you are and how much I love you. I’m actually high key excited to experience Reputation with you. :’D

[ The Ladybug Friend ( @pcnnywises ) ] - Even though I don’t say it as much as I used to, and when you doubt that I do, I love you so much bbgirl. I’ll never forget the day you messaged me and we talked the whole day nonstop and after being mutuals I was so happy that you did. I adore you. And all your 654654654651 celeb crushes. You’re wonderful and don’t you forget it. ♥

[ The Friend from the Lyon’s™ Den ( @b-almighty ) ] - Kay it always amuses me so much that I found you through your amazing Empire liveblogs and we ended up having RIDICULOUSLY so much more  in common. I know we hardly talk, but I really appreciate you and I love watching you blog about everything else you love. 

[The ‘dang I wish I could be you, Friend ( @plumwrites ) ] - For years now your posts have made me laugh and your no nonsense attitude has been a delight in my life. I love reading the posts, your tags, and responses you make to things and just thinking ‘dang I wish I could be like bridge about things’. I just love how real you are and I wish I can get some guts to be like that one day. I know you’ve been going through some things recently, but you’re always on my mind. ♥ If you need anything just shout!

[ Lady’s Best Friend ( @amcthystwrites) ] - I’m really sorry this summer wasn’t one of our best ones. That’s mostly on my part, but already I see things shaping back together as they were before and I never doubted that it’d happen that way.

[ Dearly Beloved™ ( @naaatalie ) ] - [ DOING THE 400 CHARACTERS OR LESS CHALLENGE ] I try my best not to get sappy on you often, but I do want you to know how happy you make me and that I can’t express how grateful I am for you. ♥ I’m genuinely so honored and fortunate that after these years you made the choice to Keep™ me and now we’ve got TWO giant, amazing, universes filled with the hugest variety characters that i’m far beyond excited to see grow with you. You’re the Umbra to my Pryna, my penpal, my bestie, The Ruthless Angst Master™. I’ve got so much to thank you for. ♥

TILL NEXT SUMMER YALL!!! ♥

[inverted-old-blog]

Moving

Hello followers, this is Scarfy~!

For those who didn’t see my post on it, until fairly recently I was hospitalized and had to get surgery and all sorts of shit I won’t go into detail on. It’s kept me out of commission the past few months, and given me a lot of time to think.

I’ve missed a lot, and more than that I have quite a few regrets on this particular blog, have always had quite a few troubles operating as a side blog.

To that end, simply put, I’m moving.

A fresh start and a clean slate, with Alter now on her own blog rather than as a simple side blog.

I’m dropping any asks and threads unless requested otherwise; I don’t mind at all resuming a thread if you’re game for it though, you just have to ask. ^^

If you won’t be following me to the new (but identically named I put a lot of thought into the name okay) blog, I’d just like to thank you, whoever you may be, for helping me with one of the funnest experiences of my life.

As for those who for whatever reason want to keep on following me, I can be found right here on @inverted-iris

This post will be on queue for a bit, and afterwards, once I’ve done some housekeeping and archiving, I’ll be deleting the blog.

Thank you again for everything!

[fit-hunter-blog]

2018 Goals

This is the ginormous post detailing all my goals for 2018. 

But before I dive into them, I want to insert a little prologue. 2018. This year really means a lot to me. Four years ago I was accepted into the university of my dreams and my class year was practically branded on my heart. You are never allowed to forget your class year. Mine is 2018, and I wear ‘18 proudly on a huge gold ring every day. I never thought this year would finally arrive... yet here it is. I know this year is going to be pivotal. I graduate and am officially thrown into the real world as a real adult... alone. I find out if I am accepted into medical school... or in other words, I found out if all the hard work I have done over my entire college career has been worth it and I will get to pursue my dream career. I will be financially independent for the first time in my life. I will not be constantly surrounded by my friends and thousands of other intelligent 20-something year olds every waking moment. I am single which is extra terrifying because how do people find partners in the real world... I was suppose to find mine in college. I am sickeningly nervous, but I sense that it will not be bad. When 2017 rolled around a year ago, I felt in my gut that it would not be a good year, and in all honesty, it wasn’t for me. There were high moments for sure, but overall, I was so incredibly unhappy. 2018 feels brighter somehow. 2018 holds a lot of uncertainty but uncertainty has never been a bad thing for me. I just pray 2018 is kind.

Fitness and Health

Run a half marathon: I have run two half marathons in both 2016 and 2017 so I think it is only fair I keep the streak alive in 2018. My goal is to finish strong and not broken (lol I stress fractured my foot in the second one so my goal is to go uninjured). I start my training program in two weeks for a race in early April. My goal is just to stay on schedule and properly fuel and recover. 

Do another Tough Mudder: unfortunately, I did not do one of these in 2017 which is heartbreaking. I hope to complete my 4th in Austin in the fall, after a summer of training specifically for it. 

Get a Gold’s Gym membership: this is a huge financial commitment for me so I am nervous to dive into this but Gold’s in my town offers all the classes that I love and I feel confident enough in a weight room that I feel like I would really benefit from the membership. Not to mention a lot of my training program relies on a membership... guess I have no choice.

Regularly cycle: One of my new found loves of 2017 was indoor cycling. Not only am I good at it, but I love it. It’s a workout that I truly feel like I’ve pushed myself to my limits and exhausted every part of my body. For that reason, my goal is to cycle twice a week (Tuesday and Thursday) at Gold’s Gym. 

Become stronger: Plain and simple, I want to be able to lift heavier things. My goal is to attend Body Pump classes twice a week (Wednesday and Friday) and lift heavy on at least one other day of the week (most likely heavy on legs).

Redevelop flexibility: I found a really yoga flow that increases flexibility for the splits. I have always wanted to be able to do the splits and this year it’s going to happen. I want to stretch (even if it is quick and easy) every day.  

Fuel my body properly: 2018 is going to be the year I really gain control over my eating habits. When it comes to health, this is always where I see the most failure. I want to educate myself on what nutrition is best for the type of training I am doing, feed myself simply yet effectively, and on a budget. I also want to invest in new cookbooks and try new recipes and step out of my comfort zone. 

Drink water and reduce caffeine: Emphasis on “reduce”. I will never part with my cup of coffee every morning.

Family, Friends, and Relationships

Invest in lifelong friends: the terrifying thing about being a senior in college is that I have no idea who is going to stick around after I graduate. That is why my goal for this semester and this year in general is to identify and invest in those lifelong friends and really define my inner circle.

Thank my family more often and spend more time with them: I think this says it all. The older I get, the more I value family and so I want to make sure I am visiting them and talking to them more than I have in the past couple of years. 

Enter a serious romantic relationship: I feel like I say this every year, but this year I want to be in a long-term, serious relationship for the first time in my life. I finally feel like I am genuinely ready to be in one. For my whole existence, I never really wanted to be in a relationship. I hated the idea of being tied down or “belonging” to another person. But now, I crave that vulnerability and trusting someone with my entire self for the first time ever. Not to mention, my sex life could use a little perking up. 2017 was horrible when it came to romance. The first half of the year was me struggling with my sexuality and coming to terms with the fact that I am in fact on the bi-sexual “scale” (as I like to call it) and recovering from being sexually assaulted over a year ago in October. These things combined put me out of commission. But 2017 was also a time for healing and growth and I finally feel emotionally and spiritually mature to let my guards down. I’ve never really gone looking for a relationship but maybe God or Fate never put anyone in my life because they were waiting for me to reach this level of inner peace. 

Heart and Spiritual

Meditate daily: even if it is only for 10-15 minutes, make time.

Regular mindful journaling: easiest the most therapeutic practice for me. I usually only journal when I am anguished by some temporary drama or emotion or bout of depression but my goal for this new year is to journal at least once a week to hopefully keep those negative valleys from returning as frequently.

Educate myself in buddhism and other religions: the end of 2017 has found me  in a place of religious curiosity. While I do feel very content with my level of spirituality, I do want to explore other religions and simply mature spiritually in an individualized way. I want to finish reading the “Buddhist Bible” and explore other religious texts. 

Financial Goals

Learn how to better budget: when I graduate, I lose all financial support from my parents and yes, I am panicking a little about this, especially when I don’t have a career set up to pay for things and I am going to be re-entering school in Fall 2019. I hope to spend money more wisely and not on frivolous things. Also taking time to coupon and wait for sales.

Save as much money as I can (especially while my parents are still paying for housing and food): Any money I get, I spend almost immediately. I need to invest at least 30% of whatever income I have into saving and budget the rest.

Work, Career, and Study

Get straight A’s my last semester of college: I want to graduate with a 3.8 overall GPA and one last 4.0 will push me over the edge. Also, it’s a pride thing.

Get accepted into medical school: (please god, I am begging)

Get a job for my gap year in the health/wellness/medical field: my goal is to apply for as many scribe and medical assistant positions as I can. Since I will have a kinesiology degree, I also want to look into wellness center positions and getting certified as a personal trainer. My mom also mentioned getting me EMT certified which is another interesting option I can look into. 

Volunteer more: animal shelter, hospital, for community run clubs; I feel like lately I haven’t devoted enough time to this which is so sad considering it’s one of my favorite things.

Other/Personal

Travel somewhere beautiful: whether it’s here in Texas at Big Bend or to Seattle or California or to a foreign country, I just want to go somewhere grand. 

Vlog more: I started a vlog this summer which was one of the funnest creative projects I have ever done. It will certainly keep me entertained during my gap year and capture my final moments as an undergraduate college student. 

Keep up with the blog: I love writing long posts and the daily inspiration. It keeps me accountable and motivated. I don’t care if this blog gets 20 followers or thousands, I need it to be for me. 

[sandralmuller]

Why I love the sweet sound of Korean canaries

We’ve put away our beanies and scarves, enjoyed the brief blossom season and now are loving the warmer, blue-sky days when the air quality is good enough to not need a face mask. It’s hard to believe it was snowing only six weeks ago.

You’ve probably seen Korea (or more likely North Korea) on the news, but please don’t buy into the western media hysteria over North Korea. It’s the same rhetoric I dealt with back in the early noughties when I lived here. Nothing has changed.

The South Koreans are like my canary in the coal mine – when the canary stops singing, it’s time to leave in a big fat hurry. But there has been no panic buying, no evacuation from Seoul. It’s business as usual, and they roll their eyes at the west’s hysteria and the antics of their embarrassing northern neighbour. The South Koreans are more concerned with next week’s election to replace their impeached and indicted former president than they are about putting together an emergency ration pack.

My canaries are still singing.

Daily life in Korea

I’m enjoying a slower approach to our life in Korea. Our days unfold at an unhurried pace. I am yet to cook a meal (does switching the rice cooker on count?) and I have washed the dishes only two or three times since we arrived.  #SorryNotSorry

I’m happy to report that our Monsta is thriving here. He loves his kindy. His teacher is amazing, there are only five other kids in his class, and they go on all kinds of fun excursions and do the funnest activities like dressing up as a chef or a bus (he doesn’t look too happy about being a chicken).

He has started to pick up Korean and will now greet random strangers at bus stops or shops or traffic lights with a little bow and a mispronounced but much appreciated ‘Annyonghasaeyo’.

He’s also started to pick up a lot of bugs that his immune system is not used to. It’s inevitable. I remember what that was like back in the early 2000s when I was teaching English to hundreds of kids each day and I picked up at least one bug every month. For the Monsta, it started with a nasty bout of croup, but thankfully we live only 50 metres from 2 paediatric clinics where they are equipped to help get his breathing rapidly under control. Ah the joy of village living. Everything we need is within 100 metres of our cozy flat. Seriously! And if you want to see a specialist, you don’t need a referral and you don’t need to make an appointment. Just walk in off the street. It’s so different to Australia’s convoluted and poorly staffed system.

My stop/start online adventures

I have enough online content work from paying clients to keep me busy until the end of June and possibly beyond, which is great, but it doesn’t leave much time to create things – even something as simple as this newsletter has taken weeks to put together.  But I’m making the time in the evenings after the littlest member of our household is fast sleep to work on my digital adventures – sorry Suits, we’re on a break. I miss you Harvey!

I am working on a federal government project, the same one since February, which has been stretching me in some unexpected ways as I work my way through a labyrinth of 1000 pages and almost as many stakeholders to try and make it a much better user experience.

In between project milestones, I’ve been working on smaller jobs – some online copywriting work for a bookkeeper, a new eCommerce store selling upmarket gift boxes, and a national tyre brand. That’s quite a mix and I love that I get the chance to work on big and small projects.

I’ve got to make sure I maintain a good balance between client work and my own writing projects. One of the reasons behind the move to Korea was to give ourselves the time and opportunity to build a stable of online businesses to generate passive income without the pressure of financial overheads. I want to finish writing my novel and create more things like templates and eBooks for my business. If I give all of my creative energy to my clients, what’s the point?

I said ‘no’ to a lead that came through my copywriting website last week and handballed it to a colleague. While part of me hates the thought of saying no, it was a relief knowing what’s on my books. I’m getting more comfortable with the idea of saying no, or no, not right now. This is a very different situation to where I was this time last year and I’m happy to see my little business growing steadily.

What I mean when I talk about online business and passive income streams

For those of you curious about what I mean when I talk about online businesses and generating passive income online, this is what it is:

Creating ‘niche’ websites where we write carefully researched and crafted, in-depth articles about specific topics and monetise it through affiliate or commission sales with programs such as Amazon. We do keyword research to find keywords with a high monthly search volume, low competition, and buyer intent. We review products and encourage people to check out the product on Amazon (for example). If they buy it (or any other product), we make a commission from that sale.

Creating ‘drop shipping’ eCommerce stores (like our wallpaper store www.silkinteriors.com.au) where we find physical products to sell, but we don’t hold the stock ourselves. We sell the products on behalf of a wholesaler who takes care of the fulfilment side and ships the product directly to our customer.

Using the drop shipping model but for services instead of products. For example, finding translators, website and app developers, and search engine optimisation (SEO) experts in Korea who can provide these services for western companies wanting to grow their export market and develop an online presence in Korea.  TJ’s working on finding the right companies to partner with.

Creating eCourses, templates, and eBooks around writing skills and creativity to sell via this website.

Silk Interiors has been TJ’s focus. We sold 17 rolls and a sample this month, which is lot more than we’ve sold in the past six months! It’s not huge money, but this online business made about $500 this month. I don’t expect to replicate that again anytime soon because one transaction alone was 15 rolls.

With our niche sites and Silk Interiors, we’d love to see a ten-fold increase in income within the next 12 months. It’s a stretch goal, but I’d rather fall short and still earn thousands in passive income than not give it a red hot go at all.

Visiting Melbourne

The Monsta and I are travelling solo *gulp* to Melbourne and we arrive on Friday the 26th of May. I am catching up with family and as many friends as possible, though shifting project goal posts means I won’t have as much free time as I had hoped and I’ll probably have to work through. We fly back on Wednesday, June 7th.

I’m also hosting my third ‘The Great Melbourne Blog-in’ on Saturday the 27th of May. I can’t wait. I’ve got a stellar line up of guest speakers willing to share their knowledge with the Melbourne blogging community. I’d love to see this concept take off nationally with others hosting blog-ins in their cities. It’s booked out, but I’m running wait list, so let me know if you’d like to come (it’s free).

In the meantime, I’ll keep an eye on the canaries and hope they continue to sing their sweet song.

Why I love the sweet sound of Korean canaries was originally published on Sandra Muller

[sandralmuller]

Why I love the sweet sound of Korean canaries

We’ve put away our beanies and scarves, enjoyed the brief blossom season and now are loving the warmer, blue-sky days when the air quality is good enough to not need a face mask. It’s hard to believe it was snowing only six weeks ago.

You’ve probably seen Korea (or more likely North Korea) on the news, but please don’t buy into the western media hysteria over North Korea. It’s the same rhetoric I dealt with back in the early noughties when I lived here. Nothing has changed.

The South Koreans are like my canary in the coal mine – when the canary stops singing, it’s time to leave in a big fat hurry. But there has been no panic buying, no evacuation from Seoul. It’s business as usual, and they roll their eyes at the west’s hysteria and the antics of their embarrassing northern neighbour. The South Koreans are more concerned with next week’s election to replace their impeached and indicted former president than they are about putting together an emergency ration pack.

My canaries are still singing.

Daily life in Korea

I’m enjoying a slower approach to our life in Korea. Our days unfold at an unhurried pace. I am yet to cook a meal (does switching the rice cooker on count?) and I have washed the dishes only two or three times since we arrived.  #SorryNotSorry

I’m happy to report that our Monsta is thriving here. He loves his kindy. His teacher is amazing, there are only five other kids in his class, and they go on all kinds of fun excursions and do the funnest activities like dressing up as a chef or a bus (he doesn’t look too happy about being a chicken).

He has started to pick up Korean and will now greet random strangers at bus stops or shops or traffic lights with a little bow and a mispronounced but much appreciated ‘Annyonghasaeyo’.

He’s also started to pick up a lot of bugs that his immune system is not used to. It’s inevitable. I remember what that was like back in 2003 when I was teaching English to hundreds of kids each day and I picked up at least one bug every month. For the Monsta, it started with a nasty bout of croup, but thankfully we live only 50 metres from two paediatric clinics where they are equipped to help get his breathing rapidly under control. Ah the joy of village living. Everything we need is within 100 metres of our cozy flat. Seriously! And if you want to see a specialist, you don’t need a referral and you don’t need to make an appointment. Just walk in off the street. It’s so different to Australia’s convoluted and poorly staffed system.

My stop/start online adventures

I have enough online content work from paying clients to keep me busy until the end of June and possibly beyond, which is great, but it doesn’t leave much time to create things – even something as simple as this newsletter has taken weeks to put together.  But I’m making the time in the evenings after the littlest member of our household is fast sleep to work on my digital adventures – sorry Suits, we’re on a break. I miss you Harvey!

I am working on a federal government project, the same one since February, which has been stretching me in some unexpected ways as I work my way through a labyrinth of 1000 pages and almost as many stakeholders to try and make it a much better user experience.

In between project milestones, I’ve been working on smaller jobs – some online copywriting work for a bookkeeper, a new eCommerce store selling upmarket gift boxes, and a national tyre brand. That’s quite a mix and I love that I get the chance to work on big and small projects.

I’ve got to make sure I maintain a good balance between client work and my own writing projects. One of the reasons behind the move to Korea was to give ourselves the time and opportunity to build a stable of online businesses to generate passive income without the pressure of financial overheads. I want to finish writing my novel and create more things like templates and eBooks for my business. If I give all of my creative energy to my clients, what’s the point?

I said ‘no’ to a lead that came through my copywriting website last week and handballed it to a colleague. While part of me hates the thought of saying no, it was a relief knowing what’s on my books. I’m getting more comfortable with the idea of saying no, or no, not right now. This is a very different situation to where I was this time last year and I’m happy to see my little business growing steadily.

What I mean when I talk about online business and passive income streams

For those of you curious about what I mean when I talk about online businesses and generating passive income online, this is what it is:

Creating ‘niche’ websites where we write carefully researched and crafted, in-depth articles about specific topics and monetise it through affiliate or commission sales with programs such as Amazon. We do keyword research to find keywords with a high monthly search volume, low competition, and buyer intent. We review products and encourage people to check out the product on Amazon (for example). If they buy it (or any other product), we make a commission from that sale.

Creating ‘drop shipping’ eCommerce stores (like our wallpaper store www.silkinteriors.com.au) where we find physical products to sell, but we don’t hold the stock ourselves. We sell the products on behalf of a wholesaler who takes care of the fulfilment side and ships the product directly to our customer.

Using the drop shipping model but for services instead of products. For example, finding translators, website and app developers, and search engine optimisation (SEO) experts in Korea who can provide these services for western companies wanting to grow their export market and develop an online presence in Korea.  TJ’s working on finding the right companies to partner with.

Creating eCourses, templates, and eBooks around writing skills and creativity to sell via this website.

Silk Interiors has been TJ’s focus. We sold 17 rolls and a sample this month, which is lot more than we’ve sold in the past six months! It’s not huge money, but this online business made about $500 this month. I don’t expect to replicate that again anytime soon because one transaction alone was 15 rolls.

With our niche sites and Silk Interiors, we’d love to see a ten-fold increase in income within the next 12 months. It’s a stretch goal, but I’d rather fall short and still earn thousands in passive income than not give it a red hot go at all.

Visiting Melbourne

The Monsta and I are travelling solo *gulp* to Melbourne and we arrive on Friday the 26th of May. I am catching up with family and as many friends as possible, though shifting project goal posts means I won’t have as much free time as I had hoped and I’ll probably have to work through. We fly back on Wednesday, June 7th.

I’m also hosting my third ‘The Great Melbourne Blog-in’ on Saturday the 27th of May. I can’t wait. I’ve got a stellar line up of guest speakers willing to share their knowledge with the Melbourne blogging community. I’d love to see this concept take off nationally with others hosting blog-ins in their cities. It’s booked out, but I’m running wait list, so let me know if you’d like to come (it’s free).

In the meantime, I’ll keep an eye on the canaries and hope they continue to sing their sweet song.

Why I love the sweet sound of Korean canaries was originally published on The Smarter Writer