mirages
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Post by mirages on Sept 1, 2014 10:57:25 GMT -5
Borrowing this photo by augenpoesie from the daily thread ... thought it was a perfect after-hour flower. How does she DO this with light and shadow? If you've never visited her photo site (there's a link in her signature line), I can't recommend the trip strongly enough. In the same way that Adam "sings in 3D (TM bridgeymah), somehow opening up a space with his voice that we can feel and share, augenpoesie's photos are inhabited by tremendous presence and a beautiful soul.
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Post by Nocturnal on Sept 2, 2014 3:19:13 GMT -5
Mirage, lovely mood you have set in here. Moonlight always sets my mind at peace. I am a painter, mosaic artist and novice quilter. I have been putting off projects telling myself I am too busy with the day job. Maybe we can all inspire each other to find the time and confidence to express our creativity. I want to comment on the Gaga video/ Adam tweet discussion. The fans want to help, and have a connection with Adam through social media, but some don't always go about it very well. I think his intention was to educate, since some are not following his example of being supportive of other artists. Was his favorite of that tweet the best way to do it ? probably not... But, I think he is so thrilled and proud of the Queen opportunity he's worked so hard to earn, he was shocked when his fans made negative remarks towards one of his favorite artists, and just reacted. I agree, Shoshanna jumping in too made it very business like. He's still an emerging artist, and needs support. Adam's is a relatively new fandom. Sadly, I've seen the same craziness in many older fan groups. Just look at the disrespectful way a few Queen "fans" talk to Dr. May. I know they suffered when Freddie past. I grieved when John Lennon was killed, but I love celebrating his work when newer artists play it. Hopefully, the fans will continue to support Adam, and maybe evolve a little as he does.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2014 9:27:19 GMT -5
Hi, everyone. Thanks mirages for starting this thread. I am a writer too. I have written two novels in the past but right now I am doing freelance business and marketing writing for others. It took a while to get this business off the ground but now I have enough clients to make it full-time. I have a good idea for a new novel and hope to start working on it in earnest "soon," as Adam would say. This whole thing is part of a lifestyle change that I hope will eventually allow me to work from anywhere, enabling me to move to a small coastal town and away from the big city. There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen. Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about. —Helen FrankenthalerP.S. My thoughts on the Gaga/fan/tweet imbroglio is this. The internet really makes it marvelous to be a fan these days. I was a fan of musicians back in the day. I remember when you didn't even know any other fans, and your favorite artist disappeared off the face of the earth between albums, and you just had to treasure and dote for years over a tiny picture you cut out of TV Guide -- because that's all there was. Having worked in internet outreach for years for a large cultural institution, I learned that people are ungrateful for the new ability to communicate and connect. Rather than conduct themselves with self-restraint and politeness, they periodically unleash all the pent up rage lurking in the reptilian brain. That was certainly what I saw when I logged on and saw that Adam had dueted with Gaga -- a collective tantrum. Unfortunately the offending parties probably feel more self-righteous and justified than ever, and are clueless that they were even the ones being called out by Adam's favoriting of mys*&@^#r's tweet.
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Post by rosepetal on Sept 2, 2014 10:46:43 GMT -5
I am very excited, thanks to all who made this possible . I have written poetry my entire life, I grew up in a very bad place with very bad people and it was an escape. As I've gotten older much of my writing had become a statement of things as I see them. I'm often inspired by Adam and social injustice of this world. A lifelong Emily Dickenson fan I sometimes lean toward the subject if death but not the sadness, it's the peace and understanding I feel death brings that I write about . But since we are talking about the moon and darkness I will post a little poem I wrote years ago when I was so unsure what tomorrow would bring Perhaps the night will linger And grace me with its kiss, Tell the dawn it's not welcome. And dry the morning mist, For I'm frighten by tomorrow And yesterday was so sad , That darkness is now my fortress While in its arms I'm clad . It wooes me and comforts me Then whispers in my ear , Rest now my little one For life is drawing near. If only I could stay here Safe from care and harm , But I fear it will not happen For alas here comes the dawn.
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augenpoesie
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Post by augenpoesie on Sept 2, 2014 12:45:49 GMT -5
Awwwwww mirages, thank you so much for your kind words! What can be more beautiful than doing what you love from the bottom of your heart and your work getting appreciated by others?! I feel very honoured that you've chosen my pics for this cozy little place for the "after hours". I really admire all those people that are so good with words, who can express their feelings so accurately and so detailled by writing and who can create mystical places just with their imagination and words. Maybe it's because english is my second language but it is so much easier for me to express myself with pics or gifs. I'll be a regular visitor here and if it's okay I won't contribute with words but every now and then with a photograph of mine.
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Post by theosgma on Sept 2, 2014 13:11:32 GMT -5
Awwwwww mirages, thank you so much for your kind words! What can be more beautiful than doing what you love from the bottom of your heart and your work getting appreciated by others?! I feel very honoured that you've chosen my pics for this cozy little place for the "after hours". I really admire all those people that are so good with words, who can express their feelings so accurately and so detailled by writing and who can create mystical places just with their imagination and words. Maybe it's because english is my second language but it is so much easier for me to express myself with pics or gifs. I'll be a regular visitor here and if it's okay I won't contribute with words but every now and then with a photograph of mine. Regular visitor and photo contributions - what could be better!! Look forward to that and was so happy to meet you in Las Vegas
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mirages
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Post by mirages on Sept 2, 2014 14:15:04 GMT -5
Mirage, lovely mood you have set in here. Moonlight always sets my mind at peace. I am a painter, mosaic artist and novice quilter. I have been putting off projects telling myself I am too busy with the day job. Maybe we can all inspire each other to find the time and confidence to express our creativity. I want to comment on the Gaga video/ Adam tweet discussion. The fans want to help, and have a connection with Adam through social media, but some don't always go about it very well. I think his intention was to educate, since some are not following his example of being supportive of other artists. Was his favorite of that tweet the best way to do it ? probably not... But, I think he is so thrilled and proud of the Queen opportunity he's worked so hard to earn, he was shocked when his fans made negative remarks towards one of his favorite artists, and just reacted. I agree, Shoshanna jumping in too made it very business like. He's still an emerging artist, and needs support. Adam's is a relatively new fandom. Sadly, I've seen the same craziness in many older fan groups. Just look at the disrespectful way a few Queen "fans" talk to Dr. May. I know they suffered when Freddie past. I grieved when John Lennon was killed, but I love celebrating his work when newer artists play it. Hopefully, the fans will continue to support Adam, and maybe evolve a little as he does. Welcome, nocturnal -- what a perfect name for the After Hours thread! The lovely mood is as much due to augenpoesie's photos and nikki and iris' posts as my words, but thank you. I've always been a night person myself and I was nodding along with comments made in the daily news thread recently about how in North America it's somehow more virtuous to be up early working than to be up late working -- why the heck is that? Our agrarian past, I guess, when you needed to make the most of every hour of daylight. I have the same hope you do that this thread will be an encouragement to do my own creative work -- to be honest, it's my way of trying to not have to give up my regular Atop time each day in order to focus on my own writing -- my thought is that if there's a thread here where I can check in and see people talking about finding time for their creative projects, sheer jealousy will impel me to do my own -- we'll see if the theory holds true! So far I'm doing pretty well on weekdays and getting blown right out of the water on weekends. With the kids back in school this week and more of a routine reasserting itself, though, I'm looking forward to carving out some regular writing time. If you ever feel like posting pix of your paintings, mosaics or quilts, I'd love to see them. nocturnal wrote: I want to comment on the Gaga video/ Adam tweet discussion. The fans want to help, and have a connection with Adam through social media, but some don't always go about it very well. I think his intention was to educate, since some are not following his example of being supportive of other artists. Was his favorite of that tweet the best way to do it ? probably not... But, I think he is so thrilled and proud of the Queen opportunity he's worked so hard to earn, he was shocked when his fans made negative remarks towards one of his favorite artists, and just reacted. I agree, Shoshanna jumping in too made it very business like. He's still an emerging artist, and needs support. Adam's is a relatively new fandom. Sadly, I've seen the same craziness in many older fan groups. Just look at the disrespectful way a few Queen "fans" talk to Dr. May. I know they suffered when Freddie past. I grieved when John Lennon was killed, but I love celebrating his work when newer artists play it. Hopefully, the fans will continue to support Adam, and maybe evolve a little as he does. mirages' response (I haven't figured out how to do the successive boxes in a reply yet -- anybody care to enlighten me?): You know, I think you hit on a key issue about having heroes or saviours in general: do we allow our admiration for them to challenge us to develop and evolve ourselves, or do we allow being a devotee to take the place of evolving personally? There are times, of course, when one does just need rest and respite and to have someplace fun and beautiful to go without having to leave the house -- Atop has often been my "take a trip and never leave the barn" place and will continue to be. But I want the part of me that responds to Adam to help me evolve, too -- what is it pulling me toward? There's a great poem by Rumi where he talks about how a yearning or craving is the connection between the yearner the object yearned for -- let me just find it, it's called "Love Dogs". Love Dogs
One night a man was crying, Allah! Allah! His lips grew sweet with the praising, until a cynic said, "So! I have heard you calling out, but have you ever gotten any response?" The man had no answer to that. He quit praying and fell into a confused sleep. He dreamed he saw Khidr, the guide of souls, in a thick, green foliage. "Why did you stop praising?" "Because I've never heard anything back." "This longing you express is the return message." The grief you cry out from draws you toward union. Your pure sadness that wants help is the secret cup. Listen to the moan of a dog for its master. That whining is the connection. There are love dogs no one knows the names of. Give your life to be one of them.” ― Rumi
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mirages
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Post by mirages on Sept 2, 2014 14:31:19 GMT -5
Hi, everyone. Thanks mirages for starting this thread. I am a writer too. I have written two novels in the past but right now I am doing freelance business and marketing writing for others. It took a while to get this business off the ground but now I have enough clients to make it full-time. I have a good idea for a new novel and hope to start working on it in earnest "soon," as Adam would say. This whole thing is part of a lifestyle change that I hope will eventually allow me to work from anywhere, enabling me to move to a small coastal town and away from the big city. There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen. Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about. —Helen FrankenthalerP.S. My thoughts on the Gaga/fan/tweet imbroglio is this. The internet really makes it marvelous to be a fan these days. I was a fan of musicians back in the day. I remember when you didn't even know any other fans, and your favorite artist disappeared off the face of the earth between albums, and you just had to treasure and dote for years over a tiny picture you cut out of TV Guide -- because that's all there was. Having worked in internet outreach for years for a large cultural institution, I learned that people are ungrateful for the new ability to communicate and connect. Rather than conduct themselves with self-restraint and politeness, they periodically unleash all the pent up rage lurking in the reptilian brain. That was certainly what I saw when I logged on and saw that Adam had dueted with Gaga -- a collective tantrum. Unfortunately the offending parties probably feel more self-righteous and justified than ever, and are clueless that they were even the ones being called out by Adam's favoriting of mys*&@^#r's tweet. juniemoon, I can't tell you how happy I am to see you here! Your essays and engagement really set the tone for the Moon Garden and folks have been saying lately how much they miss having a place like that at Atop -- as you can see, Q3 decided to keep the Moon Garden thread intact in the Salon and create a new thread for ongoing discussion. Your essays always brought attention to the meta aspects of fandom which really interest me, but which don't always fit in a fast-paced news thread. You've done a great job getting a freelance/contracting writing career going so quickly -- it often takes years to make it big enough to keep you going on its own. How do you find the self-marketing aspect? I freelanced for a few years and found that part the most challenging ... I can sell anything on paper, but don't make me do it face to face! That's a GREAT graphic -- menacing, funny and vertiginous all at once, much like spending time in the right brain or wherever we think the creative work originates these days (they've debunked the left/right hemisphere theory, haven't they?). I love your image of the reptilian brain getting control of the keyboard and the mouse -- that would explain a lot! I just don't understand why the reptilian brain gets triggered, since theoretically the distance afforded by telecommunication should reduce the sense of threat, not increase it. I do think the anonymity of internet communication brings out the worst in some folks, and I also think that fans develop a sense of ownership the longer they stay with an artist. In Adam's case, he came to us through a TV show that encourages ownership and buy-in by fans, and then when he lost the competition, many fans' protective instincts were engaged and never quite let go again. But as nocturnal points out above, we do see the same bad behaviour even in far different situations, as in those Queen fans who now seem to feel they have a better sense of what's appropriate to do with Queen's legacy than the original members do. I recall Roger complaining about that once and retorting, "It's OUR fucking legacy!"
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mirages
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Post by mirages on Sept 2, 2014 14:44:28 GMT -5
I am very excited, thanks to all who made this possible . I have written poetry my entire life, I grew up in a very bad place with very bad people and it was an escape. As I've gotten older much of my writing had become a statement of things as I see them. I'm often inspired by Adam and social injustice of this world. A lifelong Emily Dickenson fan I sometimes lean toward the subject if death but not the sadness, it's the peace and understanding I feel death brings that I write about . But since we are talking about the moon and darkness I will post a little poem I wrote years ago when I was so unsure what tomorrow would bring Perhaps the night will linger And grace me with its kiss, Tell the dawn it's not welcome. And dry the morning mist, For I'm frighten by tomorrow And yesterday was so sad , That darkness is now my fortress While in its arms I'm clad . It wooes me and comforts me Then whispers in my ear , Rest now my little one For life is drawing near. If only I could stay here Safe from care and harm , But I fear it will not happen For alas here comes the dawn. Ah, rosepetal, so good to see you here! I think you are one of the key inspirations for the launch of a new thread like this one: you asked if there was a place to post original writing at Atop and that sparked a bunch of posts about how much people missed the Moon Garden. So thank you! (For those who didn't see if originally, rosepetal posted a funny poem in response to the picture of Adam doing the Ice Bucket Challenge -- it went like this: I'm a little naughty and seeing Adam drenched in ice water made me think a rather naughty thought, so I wrote a little diddy. Since I'm new this is not allowed please let me know : Here it is:)
Adam doused himself with ice It gave u know who quite a fright , I hope he's fine and will rise above When Adam dons those pants we love. Read more: adamtopia.com/user/2001/recent#ixzz3BcK15inprosepetal, it's lovely how you are able to use poetry to make us laugh, and also to comfort yourself and others -- I did see the lovely poem you posted for mamba6 recently, too ( adamtopia.com/user/2001/recent#ixzz3BcKLRlq9). I love the way you image night and the way it can wrap comfortingly around you like a blanket (also known as a comforter, now I think of it) -- dawn is often used as a symbol of hope and I like the way you turn that on its head here. I am so glad that your writing has helped you make it through such hard times, and I look forward to sharing the journey with you here.
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mirages
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Post by mirages on Sept 2, 2014 14:50:25 GMT -5
Awwwwww mirages, thank you so much for your kind words! What can be more beautiful than doing what you love from the bottom of your heart and your work getting appreciated by others?! I feel very honoured that you've chosen my pics for this cozy little place for the "after hours". I really admire all those people that are so good with words, who can express their feelings so accurately and so detailled by writing and who can create mystical places just with their imagination and words. Maybe it's because english is my second language but it is so much easier for me to express myself with pics or gifs. I'll be a regular visitor here and if it's okay I won't contribute with words but every now and then with a photograph of mine. augenpoesie, lovely to see you and thank you so much for contributing some of your beautiful, evocative photos. Not all pictures are worth a thousand words, but yours are -- and then some! You show very clearly that you don't have to be a writer to have something to say and say it powerfully. I think all the most important things we ache to say are impossible to fully say in words anyway (see my signature line from Heschel below) -- or as Laotsu said, "The Dao that can be spoken is not the true Dao." For me, words are a thread I follow through my own dark tangled woods, or I try to arrange them around the living heart of something I feel or intuit but can't fully see or grasp -- sometimes they help me see its outline. And your English is VERY good!
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