The things I find online

The Monument to the Discoveries in Lisbon, Portugal <- I should build my own monument for my own online discoveries!

It's been a while since I used the internet for social networking purposes, but it's kept me company through many tough times. I love how it keeps me connected to people who help keep me dreaming and hoping. I love that it gives me access to people who are doing what I want to do, who remind me that I have the power of doing what I am so certain that I cannot. I love how it reminds me of how much the world is changing, yet, how much the world is getting smaller also. All of these things have already been said and restated about the internet, to be sure. I want to say them anyway; in gratitude for it keeping me company through long restless nights where question is followed by question.

Here are some of my recent internet loves.




750words.com

750 words is a website that was inspired by Julia Cameron's The Artists' Way. I haven't read the book actually, but as I understand it, it guides the artistic process by forcing the artist to commit to honing their craft at a certain time of a certain day. They must do so without stopping to censor or filter themselves. The exercise is not designed to create the most elegant work, but rather to remove blocks to your creative path that hinder you from making your art. I have chosen writing (what else?) and found that it takes approximately 750 words. While I have yet to create something inspired, the site has been instrumental in helping me to personal breakthroughs; through it I was able to discover patterns of self-sabotage and clues as to why I do the things I do. I don't know if this is how it is for the others who participate in this writing experiment, but if only for the things I have learned I consider this site and the time I devote to it as a worthy pursuit.

listography.com

I love listography obviously because I love making lists. But it's taken my list-making obsession to a whole new level. Because of events that have taken place in my life this year, I decided that it would be a good idea to list down how I spent my time in various ways (movies I've seen, restaurants I've eaten at, people I've met up with) but then I realized that I could get so many more lists off the ground - and it's made me more conscious of how the little things make up big things. In the recent months, I've started a list of stuff I've learned today (which can be as mundane as a new word definition and as deep as a life-directional thought), stuff that's made me happy this week (I don't list down the stuff that's made me upset because I prefer to dwell on the positive). Even with just these two lists I've come to realize that life really is made up of the little moments. It's what I remember most, actually. I don't know what other mundane stuff I will be listing soon, but when I started my listography project I said I did it because I wanted to fall in love with my life again. I think that though my life is so much smaller than how imagined it would be many years ago, I revel in the fact that there are points that make it richer too. It's a good way to count your blessings and take stock of what's happened to you.

Online journals and newsletters

I'm fast-becoming such a fan girl of online literary journals and general interest newspapers. Because they are updated so regularly (much more than magazines which run the risk of featuring things that have become passe when they make it to print), you get a great amount of information and concepts that you would never discover on your own. It's a great way to open your mind up to new ideas.

Brain Pickings

Maria Popova's weekly newsletter Brain Pickings is such a great project. Hers was the first product of "content curation" that I've seen, and the ideas that she picks week after week really do blow my mind. The other thing that blows my mind is the fact that she does this for free, out of the kindness of her heart. (She asks only for a donation, should you be so inclined to give). When I am rich and in a better position, I so am going to donate generously!

I have also enjoyed discovering so many literary journals and general interest magazines online.

Monkey Bicycle

image from http://monkeybicycle.net/

I enjoy the quirkiness of the articles featured on this site. Another thing I like about the stuff they curate is that they are never formulaic. The themes and tones are always diverse.

Narrative Magazine Online





Narrative feels like Monkey Bicycle's older cousin. The writing featured on the site is more polished, more mature. It is both inspiring and intimidating to me. I am not as uncomfortable with the thought of intimidation as I once was. This is thanks in large part to one of Brain Picking's featured books (344 Illustrated Flowcharts by Stefan G. Butcher - People who love me, if you want to give me anything this year, please give me this!!! ) which pointed out that it is often when you are intimidated or outside your comfort zone that you do the most learning and growing.


New Slang

new-slang is a recent discovery of mine. I love that someone has taken the time and the energy to create a local general interest / literary journal for people who enjoy reading more than your average slide slow/blurb text articles. I hope I can contribute to this soon! (More importantly, I hope they'll have me!)

It's not an exhaustive list of stuff that I frequent. There are so many more that I visit on occasion. But I am just so glad that my time online (now at least) is spent less on social networking and more on personal discovery and idea generation. I think that is a feat in itself, to be honest.