IS BLOGGING THE NEW BLACK?
After launching into this thing with gusto, I have come to a frighteningly grinding halt. But it must be said now that blogging makes me feel fundamentally happy. And satisifed. To a degree where I will actually finish this entry, unlike many others written recently that haven’t made it past the “publish post” button.

However. (And there is always a however). I have suddenly developed some anxieties about this sweet blog o mine. Sure, its been a great life changing experience to publicly post my ramblings. But now I have “friends” blagging on about the blog that I am blogging on. And that makes me positively sick with fear.

Like any first time experience - I find myself wondering if my blog is too vain. Was recent entry too long, too short, too fast, too slow? What can I do to make the reader feel better? Does the reader really care about me? Will the reader still love me in the morning? Will the reader come back for more? And, should I talk dirty? Surely the lighthearted-ness is something that readers can see through and share in my sense of humor no?

But no – communication without context is actually harder than I thought. Its interesting shit to me (that which I muse upon) – but is it to you? I am not seeking any form of approval here. That’s not what this is about. But honestly, living in the techno-savvy world I am in – I can see you readers out there – the ones that spend time here, and keep popping back for more and I get a little kick out of you. But the trouble is – I don’t know who you are. Dont leave me feeling dirty and used. Its like a one night stand and I dont know your name. I cant get no satifaction.

If blogging is the new black. And blagging on blogs about anything blog-worthy is blog-tastic, then I’m going to keep doing what I am doing.

But it would most definitely be cool if you still loved me tomorrow…

DID IT RAIN LAST NIGHT

Just a thought I have been playing with.

Almost a million meanings.

A good name for a song I havent written yet.

IN A NEW YORK STATE OF MIND

Poetry in context. I'm not done with you yet.

I'm passing time, making up rhyme and reason.

Tis the season.

This week is where its at.

Photo by Sony Ericsson W880i

LOVING THIS

I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET

I've been thinking in circles lately

This is where I know I'm found

Not afraid of all the maybe's

Once was lost - no longer around

I walked between the city scapes

To incite something real

The shadows I drowned in all seemed fake

Something I'm beginning to feel

Dont take my hand I dont need it

I can feel you now I can see it

There's nothing like those who mean it

And life is sure what you make it

I'm not done with you yet

I cant take that train

Wont catch that plane

To keep me from going insane

I'm not done with you yet

Our time's not over

And I'm still getting over

The thought of you.

WANT-NEED-DESIRE

These lovely snow washed black Cheap Mondays... amongst other things!

WHAT KIND OF MUSIC DO I LIKE

Really, there's nothing like a bit of Frank. And though there are probably greater songs of his that deserve recognition, this holds special meaning to me for obvious reasons.

PLEASE DONT STOP

(the music, thinking, doing, being, wanting, wishing, learning, me)

AND TODAY IS…. EARTH DAY

Forget Earth Hour… today we dedicate an entire 24 of them to this special place that we call home.

What more reason to reflect on what life on earth means to you in its bigger jurisdiction.

Today should not be a day to be complacent.

Instead to look to the future, make room in your minds and hearts for change.

Celebrate and bathe in gratitude for all that we have, and for what our future generations will have if we look after our home.

Life is abundant.

The experience of living is transplendent.

Take time to stop and give thanks.

And use your voice to create action – for now, and for the future.

STRANGE THINGS I HAVE DONE IN MY SHORT LIFE THUS FAR

(and other oddities)

Eaten dinner with The Doors (remaining members thereof)

Been in the Big Brother House whilst housemates were inside

Hidden reconnaissance style in the middle of a film set photographing a “tornado”

Adjusted the bra straps of some well endowed ladies for a TV shoot

Built and plastered a wall of tiles and attached a toilet roll for a photo shoot

Pressed the live feed button on the sound mixing desk to allow live broadcast of a concert

Served champagne to Gough Whitlam

Bumped into (literally) Mr Big – Chris Noth

Created a 10 meter high curtain of mixed media tape for arts sake

Escorted a TV personality to the ladies and had to hum lightly to drown out the sound

Been heckled at by Josh Kelley

Snuck backstage at a premier industry event to mingle with the famous emcees

Covered an entire two rooms of about 50 square feet in tin foil

Moved approximately 60 different animals from one shelter to another in a day

Written 4622 words in an effort to say three important ones

Sung in front of 10,000 people, but not in front of my mum – ever

Put my hand into a rabbit hole, only to retrieve two baby rabbits who then became pets

Owned a pet echidna

Been a radio announcer reporting on childrens ski activites

Dated a child star… when they were no longer a child star

THIS MODERN LIFE

This morning I logged into the following websites:

Facebook
Myspace (my two accounts)
Hotmail
Work email
Web Banking
My blog account
My stat report account
My personal email
My editor email
Getty images
My ebay account
You tube

Each one of these places on the www requires a different username and password for logging in. Right now I feel like I should work in the car numberplate industry simply because of the vast amount of number and letter combinations that are stuck away in the recesses of my mind.

Yet another random thought bought to you by the letters A, B and Z and the numbers 22, 176 and 5.

THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS

Shame my personal trainer doesnt like them as much as I do!

ALWAYS WHERE I NEED TO BE

SUMMER IS GONE - BUT I STILL HAVE YOU

A FEW WORDS FROM THE WISE

a very wise man indeed

Think big, brave and new

Be firm with what you believe in, but be flexible enough to recognise you may be wrong

Listen to the person next to you, you may learn something new

Play to your strengths, and allow others to support the few weaknesses

Most of all, just enjoy.

TALK IS CHEAP LATELY

I've been thinking lately about the high costs of communication in the emerging digital era. With the prevalence of text messaging, blogging, myspace, facebook, myface and spacebook (check - they're there) I'm left wondering whether this primarily Gen Y driven digital world we are living in is infact enriching the experience of communication or impoverishing it.

It seems that we have more access to information (and personal information at that) than ever before. We can make contact and be "friends" with almost anyone our hearts desire. But to what degree does this actually facillitate a meaningful and lasting connection? And to what extent can we trust the information we are supplied with when it is user-driven (and thus filtered).

I'm almost certain that a good majority of 'profiles' out there are edited to within an inch of reality. Created to protect individual weaknesses and ugliness from public scrutiny - conversely so to propagate fame, popularity and even profit.

But then, I'm also not a complete pessimist. I actually have faith that, like myself, there are others out there that value reaching out in the prospect of making a meaningful and enduring connection without compromising on the value of the communication, the integrity of the information and maintaining a sense of dignity, self-respect and moderation.

This said, there really is nothing in this world that can facillitate communication better than a person-to-person interaction. A letter written on paper beats a text message or email anyday. Talking rather than IM'ing is just easier to do and doesnt allow for loopholes in understanding, intent, thought and feeling. And looking at a friends holiday photos over a nice dinner and glass of wine far exceeds the experience of clicking through an online album.

OH TOM - STOP BEING SO "VULGAR"

Poor old Tom Ford, he just cant catch a break it seems!

Italy has deemed his latest advertising campaign for his ridiculously hot sunglasses as being "vulgar" and consequently has had all ads pulled from print and labelled "sexually explicit" on Fords website

Personally I think they are fabulous!

TIMBALAND

Contributing to a generation of poor usage of the English Language

Sorry dude. You may very well be an incredibly well-recieved pop singer and producer extraordinaire... but do you have to encourage the youth of today - the leaders of tomorrow, to use the english language so improperly?

While it may be hip and cool to say things like "wit 'chu" and "floss" I really hold some serious concerns for statements such as "can you handle me the way I are"

Enough of my rant for this morning. Turn up the volume and "get jiggy wit it" if you must.

WHERE FOR ART THOU?

Nylon, I have waited very patiently by my mailbox for your imminent arrival this month, but to no avail. Why do you tease me with your pretty cover and stories of my current favorites Clemence Poesy, Anja Rubik and Chloe Sevigny? I know you have already released your May issue and yet I still wait for April with such patience. Where in the world are you?

PS: I still want my T-Shirt and I haven't forgotten about that!

THIS GUY'S GOT TALENT

Tom Cooney Myspace

Tom Cooney Website

AS ONE LOVE AFFAIR COMES TO AN END

so too a new one begins...

IF YOU CAN BELIEVE IT – YOU CAN ACHIEVE IT and associated limitations Now I am all for “The Secret”. In fact, in many more ways than I care to describe, I have personally seen positive proof and support for the theory based on the laws of attraction. But there has to be said, that to some degree, there has to be an absolute limitation threshold at some point. Not speaking to anyone specific here, but sometimes believing is just not enough. We all spend time daydreaming and investing energy into things that we want to achieve in our lives. Heck, I have put into action, plans that were inevitably doomed to fail – however, in doing so, I have been open to all the possible consequences of asking the universe for what it is I desire. This doesn’t mean that there have to be a positive or negative consequence, it simply means that the positive outcome may not be as we imagined it. Take for example, my recent case of mistaken identity. Sorry to harp on about it again folks, but to preserve the sanity and respect the thoughts and feelings of the person that made this mistake, I have chosen to NOT post the 85 remaining comments waiting to be moderated in my inbox for public scrutiny. However, in my recent communication to said person to explain aforementioned circumstances, my point has clearly been missed. Or rather, they choose to overlook the realities of the situation. The simple fact remains – I will never be the outcome she was after. BUT I can say that I hope, as I do for all mankind, that the outcome bought a learning experience and by that, a positive change. What I am trying to get at here is – by all means, I think that we should all dream, and motivate ourselves to a point of actualizing these dreams. But something has to be said for positively pursuing the wrong things in life. Priorities should be abundance – in life, happiness, health, relationships and so forth. But positive pursuit of unhealthy obsessions could potentially lead to heartbreak and disillusion. At what point does one know that they are positively heading down a negative path? I don’t know that I can tell you the answer to that. What I do know is that its all about the ebb and flow, the give and take, the push and pull. To receive is to give and vice versa. Things materialize in ones life when they truly believe with heart and soul that they have given to the world and thus a mutual understanding between world and person combines to achieve. Think about what it is you are asking for. So, use that secret people – but don’t “expect” the results to materialize in the exact manner that you personally prefer. Expect that the results will have a positive consequence regardless of success or failure. To try is to learn.

MARTIN SMITH

In response to conversations with a therapist as a narrative device

Smith’s mechanism for production is quite methodical – even ritualistic. Carefully layering printed text over the chosen image and meticulously cutting into the surface of both layers facilitates the amazingly professional quality of each finished work. As Smith cuts into the photograph he is exercising a societal taboo; destroying printed images that, for some, can be the only visual by-product of life lived, whose value is all more tangible when that life has expired.

When exhibited, these works have a certain fragile aesthetic.

This combined with intimate and sensitive narratives implore the viewer’s full and careful attention, mirroring the value of a photograph as an honoured social artefact more so than a direct account of history. A precious facsimile of the mind’s eye.

Smith’s works on paper meld the visual and narrative, instantly provoking the viewer to find a link between remembering an image and its associations within their own written or spoken experience.

In a move toward three-dimensionality, Smith has swept up the fallen letters from his wall works and given them new birth as a generally familiar artefact of youth. ‘In response to conversations with a therapist as a narrative device’ is covered fully in the discarded letters of the wall works, and portrays the same tattered surface quality of that of a well-loved toy, conjuring up childhood narratives from the familiar confidant to the discarded and redundant.

‘Are you waiting for the darkness daddy’ highlights the same threads of significance of material possessions, which are all inevitably imprinted with memory and lived experience; recording on its surface ideas of worth and use within the owner’s life. The title however could be conveyed in either ominous or naïve ways, leaving the viewer the ability to formulate diverse meaning from the work.

April 23 – May 10, 2008

ryan renshaw gallery

I WANT TO MARRY A PRODUCER

A forwarded email excerpt that I just HAD to post!

By Ted Royer, Executive Creative Director of Droga5 New York

Producers are great. They are my favorite people in advertising. And I want to marry one. Since every single person I've met over the last 15 years works in advertising or some related industry, I've realized that I'm destined to marry an ad person. After a brief panic attack, I thought about producers and felt much better. I want to marry a producer.

I don't want to marry an account services person. Sure, they can take lots of pressure and abuse from the world, and they're organized (a definite prerequisite for my future spouse), but we'd quickly realize that while we share many goals, ultimately, she may not care enough about my goals. And caring about my goals, or at least seeming to, is very important.

I'm not going to marry a traffic person. They propel jobs through the agency and thus are obviously good at getting stuff done. But they cry too much. Or they yell too much. Or they cry while yelling. There is crying and yelling at some point in every marriage. I wish to keep it to the bare minimum in mine.

Marrying another creative seems like a great idea. We would laugh together. We would dream together. We would make amazing plans together. But we wouldn't know how to get any of those plans done or how to actually make anything happen. And then we would blame each other.

I could marry one of my clients. We would have a great initial relationship. She would find me really funny and inventive, but over time, she might begin to doubt my motives and commitment. And she'd be right. Am I bored? Am I ultimately looking to trade up? Am I looking for a newer, fresher challenge? I'd be coy and say no. But the real answer would be... maybe.

No, I want to marry a producer. A producer listens to the most batshit crazy idea and doesn't say yes or no or ask why, but instantly asks "How?" She could talk me out of dumb things with grace and logic, or conversely show me what it's possible to do with virtually nothing. A producer realizes that just as business and creativity need each other, responsibility (her) and irresponsibility (me) do too. A producer wouldn't be afraid of different challenges, no matter what form they took. A producer would be tough, fighting battles I'd neither see nor even know about. A producer would plan for a rainy day and not even tell me she was doing it and then, when it started to rain, she'd say, "It's covered, go over to the food table." A producer would stay up all night partying with me, then make sure what needs to get done gets done, while I sleep. Marrying a producer would allow me to be as self-absorbed, self-indulgent, self-congratulatory, naval-gazing and "creative" as I want to be.

Of course, I could always date someone outside of the industry and see what the rest of the world is like. But that would be weird.

80 FACES IN A 20 MINUTE LUNCH BREAK

Simon Obarzanek at IMA's satellite gallery

Melbourne photographer Simon Obarzanek’s 80 Faces plays into our fascination with faces. For years he made frontal mugshot portraits of young people, male and female, posed against a grey background. Bare-shouldered or in black T-shirts, there was nothing to distinguish them sociologically, except their hairstyles.

The sitters were not a dispassionate scientific sample – Obarzanek photographed faces he found interesting. Black and white, his prints suppress some aspects of difference (colouration: skin, eyes, hair) to emphasise others (proportions of their features).

Always presented in groups, Obarzanek engages us in comparing-and-contrasting his faces. One face is Aryan, another alien. One refined, another vulgar. One man's lips look rudely pasted on. As we discriminate the classic from the quirky, those we like from the crowd, 80 Faces tells us as much about ourselves, about what resonates with us.

http://www.ima.org.au/

PRETTY AS A PICTURE

ADDED BY GOOGLE

Oh yes - the highlight of my day is in fact that scissorspaperrockblog.blogspot.com has been added to Google!

I feel very special.

SAME SAME BUT DIFFERENT

"Will the real John Mayer please stand up" Part II

To loyal readers, friends and fans alike… I have recently blogged about my trip into Celebs-ville – also known as “Will the real John Mayer please stand up”. Herein I give you part two of this story… with the hope that following this post, there will be no further future reference to this hilarious case of mistaken identity!

I am now left with absolutely no choice but to reveal my identity as “editor” of this blog. I am conflicted by this admission – as I would have preferred to maintain a sense of anonymity a little longer, but am left with no alternative that I can see fit at this point.

Sure, my initials are JM (with an F on the end for those that know me well), yes I like Art, Culture, New York City and witty blog banter. I also dig on writing music, listening to John Coltrane, and drinking red wine. Whilst I appreciate the undivided attention that has been shown to my blog every single second of every single day, I cannot make it any clearer than this.

But for once and for bleeping all – I AM NOT JOHN MAYER!!!!!!!

I do NOT want to be your wife, I do NOT look sad in my photos, I DO NOT want to kiss you under an umbrella, I DO NOT want to watch your cherry blossom bloom. I AM NOT waiting for the day we “reunite” I AM MOST DEFINITELY NOT your sexy lover man!!!! What more proof do you need from me????

If there is ANYONE out there that can get me in touch with the “fan email” address for John Mayer, or preferably - the man himself, would they please fill me in on this so that I can kindly pass the unwanted attention onto the correct recipient. He may need a potential pre-read disclaimer so that he might understand the history of this unusual case, and understand that by no means whatsoever – have I been intentionally moonlighting as his alter-ego!

85 unmoderated comments and climbing.

Regards,

Your no longer anonymous “editor”

EVERYONE'S GOT A STORY TO TELL

Yesterday I was in a less than plesant mood. I sat around revieiwng the millions of why's in life, feeling disgruntled at most of the answers. I have always suffered from a bit of self-imposed over-achiever syndrome. Not that I was an over achiever, I just always expected the very best for myself and thus set the bar at a level so high, I would never allow myself the actual joy in jumping over it metaphorically speaking.

There are millions of people in this world that consider themselves a byproduct of their circumstances each and every day, but I challenge you this... How about flipping it all on its head and thus your circumstances being a byproduct of your thoughts and actions. Try it.

One thing in this world is certain - life is finite.

IRONY

Richard Prince you make me font

CURRENTLY GATHERING INSPIRATION FROM...

The incredible works of Helmut Newton.

THE DEFAMER BECOMES THE DEFAMED

The Double Standards of an internet blogging queen

How much of an idiot is Perez Hilton? Honestly. The guy makes a living out of tearing other people down and destroying peoples reputations - his slanderous gossip blog (to which I will not post a link to to avoid yet another means of publicity for the site)is nothing but a waste of www space.

Now, I never intended for this (my) blog to have anything whatsoever to do with celebrity, but I recently came across a link to this document - which I found an interesting and at the same time, pathetic read.

Jason Jaxon is eaually as bad. Between the two of them, they could feed an entire third world countries population based on the advertising profits made from thier respective sites hit rates alone, but yet they choose to engage in petty arguments over who has the bigger *ahem*

The fact that Perez has taken the matter to legal heights is just a sad and sorry way for him to (once again) draw more attention to his lonely and pathetic life, publicise his revolting blog, and further live out a life of complete and utter double standards.

To the pair of you - Hilton and Jaxon - go bitch fight it out somewhere else other than in the public forum. The whole thing makes you BOTH look stupid and hypocritical. And if you MUST insist on using your notoriety to communicate with the world - perhaps think about doing it in a more thoughtful, generous and altruistic fashion.

PS: I can use paint too!

EASY AS 1-2-3-4

The Ultimate Love Triangle

Man loves woman loves computer loves woman. Makes me want to travel back to 1984.

INSIDE THE PUZZLING MIND OF HEO WOOK

Colour, in all its vivid, effervescent, stimulating glory, is at the centre of the work by gifted artist Heo Wook. Bold and inspirational, Heo Wook's striking pieces are a distillation of his unique vision of the splendid beauty of daily life, where experience and emotion are fractured kaleidoscopically into vibrant, abstract tableaux. His work moves beyond the inspiration of his native Korea to present his viewer with a universal concept of the beauty of the world in the form of paintings and installations.

Heo Wook has been deaf for all his life. Not being able to hear, however, is just a mere discomfort and nothing more. Heo Wook has chosen to face the outer world, the loud, the noisy, and the lively space where he can interact with others. Heo Wook's sense of the visual beauty of the world is heightened by his deficiency, and his work offers an energy that engages each of the other senses.

http://www.heo-heo.com/

Thanks to blank_space gallery for the invite.

OUT OF OFFICE AUTO-REPLY

Hi there. I am currently out of my mind this afternoon.

If you have an urgent message - please contact the astral plane through an out of body travel experience.

I may respond to your email if the stars align and the "vibe" is right.

FOR THE...

Understated. Simple. Font Junkie. Design dweller. Artist. Peacemaker. Sublime. Subtle.

in me

A CASE OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY – A TRIP INTO CELEBS-VILLE also known as WILL THE REAL JOHN MAYER PLEASE STAND UP

Ok, where do I begin? So as you all know, I have only recently joined the blogging world. It’s a great creative outlet and fabulous forum to speak ones mind on everything and nothing. It has also opened me up to the extravagance of freely being able to express myself personally, albeit through a guise of being simply known as “editor”. However, I had no idea the extent to which being anonymous could affect someone else – by no fault of my own.

For those of you that know me well, I dig on music, art, creativity, intelligence and culture. One of the musical talents I admire most is none other than that of the currently all-perezz’ed up John Mayer. I have had a keen interest in his music and shared a good portion of my earnings to purchasing quality seats at some of his shows. I have also been an avid reader (although non-commenter) of his blogs – which are effortlessly combined into a brilliant one stop shop on tryjm.com.

Being the newie I am at blogging, I thought it relevant to road-test commenting on tryjm. Aside from the fact that John had blogged no less that two days after my Coltrane post about none other than the great jazz man himself – I thought it might be a great space to do a little bit of shameless self promotion and post a link to my blog URL. I saw a potential for those with similar interests to link through to my own blog and take a look around. Little did I know what was waiting on the other side of the increased counter hit rate.

Logging into my blog this week I saw I had been inundated with comments. Lovely, kind, and thought-provoking comments. I took a moments joy in celebrating that by placing a url link on tryjm, people might actually be feeling a resonance with my blog and thus all the increased interest in commenting. So wrong.

In the strangest twist of fate, I was scrolling through said comments, and started realizing that some of them were sounding well, strangely familiar, but unrelated to my postings. Why? I wracked my brain to work out why this person thought that they could see themselves walking in the rain with me, and kissing underneath an umbrella???? It was all getting a bit strange for me, and the hit rate was incredible – this person was looking at my blog on refresh-by-the-second basis! I decided to post a blog about moderation – being a double entendre message to this reader… meaning – Do things in moderation, and your comments – all excessive amounts of them, are currently being moderated, by me, “editor”

To no affect. Again at next login, I was overwhelmed at all the new, and increasingly irrelevant comments to be moderated. But now, they were discussing the perils of celebrity and how difficult it must be to be a publicly- represented human being. Strange, I had no public persona – I wasn’t a celebrity (that I was aware of). Nonetheless I kept these comments in my moderation file, because they were starting to get out of hand, and I didn’t want the user to delete them until I could get to the bottom of what was going on.

Then the penny dropped. A quick side-swiping look at tryjm.com made me realize that the person was trying to comment on John Mayers photography – pictures of people kissing underneath an umbrella, taken on a recent trip to Japan (check it out here). The comment about being a celebrity… it all fit. This person thought that I was in fact, JOHN MAYER!

Far from me to be rude about this, I actually posted a very immediate call to action on my blog, inviting this person to email me urgently, so that I could explain the case of mistaken identity before it went too far. An email exchange occurred and now as a result I have lost my most frequent reader!!!!

There are several things I learned from this experience:

Some people can convince themselves of anything

Being anonymous has its downfalls

Some people should pay further attention to what it is they are reading and or commenting on – there is a picture of me on this blog if you care to find it.

Being a celebrity isn’t all its cracked up to be.

John Mayer has some pretty interesting fans.

So thanks tryjm.com, and frequently-visiting aforementioned reader. I am sure my stats will go down now, but I wish you all the very best of luck in your pursuit of becoming John Mayer’s wife. I really do.

PS: Shannon - this far beats your little while lies blog on nada - and its devastatingly true! Check out Shannons blog here

WEAPON OF MASS DESTRACTION

LOVE LOVER

First drop in store now. Someone steal my credit cards... NOW

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - ON MODERATION

EVERYTHING - in moderation. A double entendre

i miss you love - maria mena

my most recent itunes purchase

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - ON VISIBILITY

Over or under exposure... it all comes down to composure.

BRIT-IT

Brit it-model of the moment Agyness Deyn officially appears on the May cover of ID magazine... all 6 of them.

Ahem...Overexposure much?

Sure, shes hot and all. But there is something about mass consumerism that just drives me wild. The more we demand, the supply infinately delivers. For someone that works in the Creative Sphere I hate to think how much time and money it might have taken to art direct not one, but 6 vastly different cover looks. Is it entirely necessary really?

It begs the question - when will we stop supplying? Because I cant seem to justify why there is actually a demand to have 6 different covers for one magazine...

I CALL IT ART

What can you do with 100,000 metres of mixed media tape?

Create a 10 metre high curtain of film, one inch and audio tape, hang it in a prominent place in a post production facility and call it an art installation.

This is my first.

Say

Been listening to this a lot lately. No hidden meanings, no complexity, just pure unadulterated bliss.