Looking ahead - writers Mandy and Ari

Mandy: if the big thing about this year was change, so then what’s next year about? What’s the new beacon of hope that people are gonna cling so dearly to? It can't still be change. This year is almost up and I know I’ve been through a lot of change but I really hope that’s not what to expect next year. I need stability at this point.

I know that change is inevitable, the world will continue to develop and I am destined to evolve but I really need to see a point where I’m going to plateau and find that steady ground I can rely on.

Ari: ok so I had a time trying to figure out what the hell I wanted 2010 to be about so I decided I couldn't predict the future and decided I wanted my theme for next year to be "re-invention". And by that I mean, I want the world to reinvent itself, lol. I want to turn on the radio and not hear the same song being sung by different artists or go to the mall and not see a certain decade being pushed on me telling me how its "coming back in style". I'm the kind of person that craves the "new" and "improved" but for some odd reason, I keep getting shoved the same warmed over crap, lol. But I'm even looking to reinvent myself, too. I want to start this new coming year as a better, more focused and creatively daring person.

Mandy: My attention is really in the Upenyu clothing line. I’m really excited about being able to transform my designs into a wearable line and working with you on a fall fashion show for next year. That is going to be incredible. In our group of friends, collectively we are more than capable of re-inventing the stereotype about a t-shirt clothing line. 

Ari: That's why I'm excited about your line and the fashion show. Its a way break out of the boring day to day and move on to what I actually want to do with my life. That what I think the concept of the show should be, or at least one of the themes. Since Kenyatta has all of these off the wall designs for her swimsuits and you and Yoli have all these cool fashion designs how can I not be inspired! I’m actually kind of bursting with ideas and I can't wait to tell everyone about them and hear everyone else's ideas too :)

Mandy: 2010 is going to be a big year. It’s around the corner though. 2 months is not a lot of time. We’ve gotta get the wheels in motion, and FAST lol!

So readers I put it to you, what do you hope to see in 2010?

Blog Intro

Mandy:

So I was trying to write my very first blog entry and I sat and stared at the screen for hours. Trying to find the perfect way to begin had me stuck. Something about typing on a computer and you know whatever you write can be erased and done over somehow makes it harder for me to think. Since it can be changed I write, erase then re-write over and over again. So I decided to sit down with a pen and paper and amazingly my hands couldn’t stop moving. Its like the feeling of writing is so much more organic that way. I’m pretty good at typing but my thoughts flow more freely when I don’t have a cursor blinking back at me. The sad part of it all now is that I still have to go through everything I wrote and type it up onto the computer. My handwriting is so awful though so I’m still glad that I can type this up.

I guess in many ways I do appreciate a more old school way of doing things. Even though I have a digital diary I still have books I take everywhere and write my thoughts. Something about seeing it in my hands makes it real. I enjoy the sensation of holding something. Flicking through the pages, being able to sit in any position I want and enjoy the moment. One of my favorite things to do was to flip through magazines. Yes reading was very informative but I could look over a magazine 10 times in a row just to look at the pictures. I would canvas every page not having to worry about resolution or zooming in and out. Everything was right there in front of me. I could look at page 10 and page 35 at the same time.  Fold up the corners on pages I wanted to go back to, that was enjoyable for me. Looking through a magazine on a website can never fulfill me in that way. But it saves a lot of paper!

Anyway, coming in from my tangent, the idea of making something digital tangible was always something I enjoyed doing. I know putting images a t-shirt is no original idea but I love the concept of something that lived on a screen was transformed into something that a living person walks around it. A shirt with the same design will become a part of someone’s memories. It will go to the grocery store, it will go to a barbeque in the summer and under all your layers in the winter. The idea that art then becomes mobile is exciting to me. It travels to destinations a painting on a wall never will.

Upenyu has given me an outlet for my artwork where it will not be confined by 4 walls but will breathe and be free in the world, something that I want for myself.
Upenyu is my freedom.
Who knew that “life” would be so liberating.

My blog (hopefully) will not just be pages and pages of me rambling on about my perspective on life, I intend to extend my reach to all over the world and converse with a diverse range of people on their take on life. Some formal and some informal conversations just to see life from all angles.

Thank you in advance to all those who participate with me in the exploration on all the things that make life so intriguing,