Thursday, December 29, 2011

I'm a hoarder.

I think it's programmed into my DNA that I have to make sure to gather food so that I don't starve to death. My mother has followed our family history backwards and found out that our ancestors were the only survivors when starvation killed the rest of the village. In my eyes that's proof enough. It's in our genes.

The problem is that one of the shelves in the larder have had enough. It's broken and it can't be fixed. No, that's not the problem, it's a symptom of the problem. The problem is that I have enough food to feed and army for a month and we're only four persons in the household. Two of that being our sons that spend much time away form home.

I never make new years resolutions, but this year I think I should make an exception and make one. I really need to stop buying and storing so much food. I will never be in a situation where I will have to feed an army. Ever. It's about time to relax and stop hoarding, at least for a couple of months or so...

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

The Volcano in My First World


I've made an image based on how I remember the volcano hideout that I created when I was 4 years old. the entrance was hidden and there were several tunnels that led in and out too. The bottom floor was for storage and animals. Since I grew up on a farm I couldn't imaging a good place to live without animals in it. The next floor was the great hall where my characters would eat, play and have important meetings. The centre of the volcano is open and light, as well as rain, would come down through the hole. The next to floors had rooms and bedrooms. All rooms had small windows where you could look out and make sure that no one was coming to the volcano. At the top floor there was a garden with both flowers and fruits.

I had two characters that was "I". One was a good girl named Maria. She was princess like and liked to bake, cook and take care of everyone else. The other was Fiddledee a tomboy that went on adventures and got into trouble. She's the one who often ended up in the city jail where she had to struggle to escape.

There were other kids there too, mostly boys, but they were most often created after what I needed at that time. One older buy was often in the stories I created. He was good, safe and strong and he helped me when I was in trouble. I can't remember what I named him, even though I'm certain that he did have a name.

All the bad guys and enemies were adults. The sheriff and his men that would put us in jail and the bandits who tried to rob us in the high mountains were all large and scary men. The spirits of the forest and the witches of the desert were all female, ugly and terrifying to look at.

Now I struggle to remember some of the adventures I created since it would be fun to write one down. It wouldn't be exactly the same as then of course, but I'd use the same story line and idea as I did as a child.

Monday, December 26, 2011

World building I did as a child

I was 4 years old when I started building my first world and now I've decide to recreate it.

First there were mountains and volcanoes. I can't remember the sun ever being behind the mountains and I've decided it's because they were to the north. Lava fields spread from the mountain range and down into the desert. There were small mountains sticking up out of the lava and close to the desert there was a small volcano. That's where my characters lived. The volcano was a fake, a clever way of hiding from the enemy. Inside of it was a castle like building where the characters lived and had fun.

The rocky desert had no sand dunes. In the middle of it there was an oasis where my characters sometimes hid from the enemy. A river passed the fake volcano and then it faded into the desert. There were mountains in the desert and the river or water from other sources could be found if you dug into the ground there.

To the west there was a city located on green fields. The city was crowded and dirty. There was a jail, a stone building with iron bars in the windows. The prisoners where held in the basement where the barred windows where up by the roof. My characters often ended up in there and they would look out those windows and watch the birds in the sky.

South of the city were the high mountains where there were precious stones and metals that could be found in deep dangerous mines. The dwarves who lived there also made good quality weapons and armours.

At the far south there was a jungle. Lush and green with strange plants and animals in it. I didn't  know anything about strange plants and I imagined my grandmothers plants there.

To the east of the desert there were woods. Small lakes, rivers and big trees. My characters built tree houses, real big houses, and the built huts to live in. They would also rob rich people who travelled through the woods, just like Robin Hood did. That's why they needed the volcano hideout and often ended up in jail.

 

How I know I was four years old when I built the world? We moved to the city then. I dislike the city very much and that's how the city appeared in my world, as a prison. The Volcano hideout, in the dark, was my dream escape while the woods was a symbol for "home", the place where I grew up. The desert, the high mountains and the jungle were are scary as well as amazing places of exploration. Places I connected the real world to as I experienced more and more.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Lonesome Christmas Blues - Blind Blake 1929


Christmas and blues is a great combination. I really like this.


My new "baby" =)

It's a Sony Ericsson C901 GreenHeart. I don't think that my husband thought of it when he bought it for me, but I'm really happy that it's "green". The environment is something that's often on my mind. The only thing missing is a "FairTrade" type of label too since the majority of all technology we use today contains metals mined by people that are virtually slaves.

Now I'm looking forward to learning how to use it and to trying the camera out. I know that the camera can't compete with my Canon 550D, but that's not what I wanted either. There's just too many occasions where I want to take a quick photo without bringing the big camera out. I have a feeling this will be great fun. =)

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas?

Christmas Card by Jenny Nyström
It's that time of year again...
I wouldn't say that I hate Christmas but I'm very tired of it. It's been years since I had any holiday feelings that were of the positive kind, and this year it's even worse. We're all ill and that means that it's up to me to make all the food and preparations. Cancelling Christmas feels like a great idea right now.

It doesn't help that my doctor changed my medications last week either. She removed all my painkillers and substituted them for painkillers that doesn't work. Brilliant idea for the holidays.

Well, there is something good about this Christmas. It's the first time in many years that I haven't had to buy my own presents. This year I even got things that I'm happy about. A new cellphone is at the top of the list.