Posts Tagged ‘inspiration’

I am inspired by many things.

I get inspired by watching the sun rise on occasion. Those occasions being when I am not having to get up with the sun, mostly… Those mornings I am more inspired by my coffee than by the sunrise.

But I digress.

Inspiration comes in many forms, and one of my favourites is when it comes from what might be an unexpected source. Over the past number of years, I have been inspired by a man that maybe most people would consider to be a source of comedy, rather than inspiration.

However, I remain inspired, as well as entertained.

The man is Kevin Smith.

You should recognize the name, if you know me. Or if you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time. One might say that I am a fan. I own all the movies (except Red State, and that will come) and I have been a fan of his Evening With series, his books and Smodcasts for as long as they have been around.

I was a late bloomer. I didn’t really know who Silent Bob was until I was well into my thirties. Since then, I have grown older with him. I have been moved to far more than just laughter by the man, and by his sharing of the trials of his life. I have truly been inspired.

Today, I was listening to a Smodcast episode titled, “Hall Rats“. It was recorded at the San Diego Comicon. As is his way, he spent time answering questions from the audience that had gathered not only to see a clip of Red State, but to hear a truly great writer speak.

Kevin Smith is one of the best story-tellers on the planet. He is funny, poignant, relatable, intelligent and raunchy. His stories are great writing come to life. He is one of the few people that I could listen to talk for hours on end, and never grow bored.

Or feel the overwhelming need to punch them in the face.
But that’s just me.

During the course of this Smod, Kevin spoke about many things. But one little bit of wisdom almost knocked the wind out of me.

“Surround yourself with WHY NOT.”

He goes on to explain that a lot of the time, we have people around us that continually reply to every idea that you might have with a “Why?” rather than a “Why not?”.

Interesting thought, isn’t it?

Maybe those flights of fancy wouldn’t seem so flighty if you had someone that was saying, “why not?” rather than an eye-rolling “why?”. I thought about the times in my life where all it would have taken to give me the right push in the right direction would have been for someone to ask me why not – rather than why.

Creativity – another thing that Kevin touched on during this Smod – is something that requires WHY NOT. ‘Why not’ encourages thinking, ‘why not’ frees the mind to open up new avenues of action. ‘Why’ closes doors and shuts down passion.

I’ve decided that I want to be surrounded by WHY NOT.

Seems like a much more friendly environment to be in.

So thank you, Kevin Smith.

Once again you have inspired me, Sir.

Smod-on, Sir.

I, for one, love it when Silent Bob breaks the silence.

PS… I also love the dick and fart jokes.  Just sayin’.

I have quit a lot of things in my life.

I quit the Girl Guides when I was a pre-teen because I didn’t think it was fair that I couldn’t earn a “Bad Attitude” badge. I mean, really. What the hell is that shit? Everyone else could get badges for doing stuff they were good at.

I also quit taking piano and voice lessons when it occurred to me that my instructor was pretty much the re-incarnation of Norman Bates from Psycho. He was all quietly creepy and lived with his mother. Except that I never saw the mother, and I’m pretty sure that freakazoid was wearing a wig a few times. There was no way I was going to wait to find out.

I also quit smoking. Which really pissed me off. Because I was good at smoking. And it always kind of sucks to quit something that you’re good at. I know, I know. I’m happy that I quit… now. But still.

Apparently, I’m a good quitter.
I know when to say when.

And right now, it is time for me to quit the blog challenge.

So that's the reason he always talked that way.

I have stopped enjoying it, and it has become a chore. Which means that it’s time for me to call it quits. I want to write what I want to write for a while, and when I want to write it. This is not to say that I won’t return to it someday, but for right now, I need to say g’bye.

I need to make sure that when I write, it is because I am grandly inspired to do so. I need it to be because of the joy of writing.  Because I am deeply moved to type word after word to express the overwhelming inspiration that lives in my soul!

Or because I am feeling really, really stabby.

Either way, I need to write what’s in MY head, not in someone else’s.

So, it’s back to basics for me. Write what I want. When I want.

*ahem*

It’s my blog, and I’ll bitch if I want to.

Thank you all for following along in the challenges. Thank you to Chrissa for understanding and agreeing that it’s time for me to quit. Thank you to Dean for making sure that I was doing it for the right reasons.

And as much as it seems like I’m patting myself of the back here…

Thanks to me for realizing that it was time, once again, to quit something that was bad for me.

I’m getting kind of good at that.
And I like it.
A lot.

/Challenge.

This post is the first in a blog challenge that I am taking part in with a great fellow blogger, and an even better friend, Chrissa.  You can find her on Twitter – @Chrissarella – and over on her blog at A Little Wicked.  She found a list of 50 Lists to Write to Lift Your Spirits.  Even if you don’t need your spirits lifted, it’s a great list of lists.  And out of that link and a few tweets came the idea of the 50-50 Challenge.  Every day for the next 50 days, we will be posting a blog tackling one of those lists.  If you want to take part, have at it.  Drop me a comment to let me know, I’d love to read your answers, too!

List #1:  People that have influenced or inspired you.

This is perhaps both the easiest and the hardest list for me to write about.  Easy, because there are just so damn many people that inspire me; hard for the same reason.  Picking just a few is going to be difficult.

First off, I am rarely inspired or influenced by famous people.  I see people every day regurgitating quotes from famous people.  I don’t find them all that inspiring.  In fact, I generally have the same thought run through my head whenever I see someone quote a celebrity. ” How damn  inspired am I supposed to be by someone when I can not identify with them in any way?”  Screw that.  I get my inspiration from real people.  People who’s lives I can look at and say, “Fuck Yeah! I GET that shit!”  The people that inspire me are the people in my LIFE.

That being said, let’s start at the beginning.

The Parents. They are my first inspiration.  They inspired me to live up to my own potential, and to remember that I am the only one that can judge myself as lacking.  They inspired me to give of myself fully when I am able, and to remember that sometimes, I will have to lean on others.  My father inspired me with his logic, my mother inspired me with her heart.  Together, they inspired in me a long held belief that true, ever-lasting love not only exists, it’s out there waiting to be discovered.

The Brother. Three words. Just keep swimming.

The Best Friend. She inspires me with her strength, her conviction of character, her honestly and her loyalty.  She is one of the strongest people I know, and while she’ll tell you differently, I’ve never believed it.  I know what strength lies within her.  I’ve seen it.  I’ve grabbed it and hung on for dear fucking life when I’ve had to.  And it’s always there. For the record, she also influences me.  But that’s mostly bad. It is, however, always fun. Heh.

The Writers. These people have inspired me with their talent, and with their words.  Every time I read their work, it reminds me why I write.  Whether it’s poetry, prose, rants, or essays, these are real people with the ability to make me want to be a better writer:  David, Annie, Dina, Chrissa, and Brian.

The Light Makers. These two inspire me every day. Every. Day. Whether it’s with a shared article, or a shared smile, or just dropping something into my life that I happened to need right then, they are the ones that have added light to my days for almost two years now.  Two kinda dark years, at that.  Staci J. Shelton is the Lady of Light, and I adore her.  Light is her talent, and it is her gift.  And there is little that I can say about Khayyam Wakil that hasn’t been said before, and probably by me.  He is Khayyam.  And he doesn’t just bring the shine wherever he goes, he IS the shine wherever he goes.

The Friends. They all inspire me in their own ways.  They all hold a lovely little place on the cherished mantle of my heart.  I’m not going to link you all or name you all.  I suppose I could, but really… we’re passed that by now, aren’t we?  I mean, you know I’m all bitchy and crabby and shit, and yet you seem to like me anyhow, you crazy-stellar people.  Trust me when I tell you that you inspire me.  Your humour, your support, your wit and your everything else inspire me to be the kind of friend to you that you have been to me.

The Loved. When it comes to people, I do not throw the word ‘love’ around lightly.  If you’ve heard it from me, then you have inspired me to say it.  You know who you are, and what you mean to me.  You? You inspire me to believe.

Yeah.

I don’t have to look far for my inspiration.

I am one lucky snarkbitch.