Inspiration

Inspiration is a fickle thing. A lot of people write about it in rhapsodic and often schmaltzy terms, making it sound a lot more wonderful than it actually is. Personally, I get a lot of ideas, all day long, about all sorts of things. But not always how and when I want them. 

Being creative can drive me absolutely mad sometimes. Sometimes, when I’m in the middle of, say, math, I’ll get a wonderful idea about a novel I could write and I have to abandon 2√x±4y and scribble it down on whatever paper-like surface happens to be nearby so I don't forget it. This, needless to say, can be very annoying. And when I’ve got all my homework done for the day and have sat down in front of the piano to finish the walking base motif I’ve been thinking about all day, NOTHING HAPPENS. Inspiration, that flighty, easily offended creature, has abandoned me in my hour of need.

So how should you deal with inspiration coming at inopportune moments? I’ve found it’s helpful to carry around a notebook and small pen or pencil with me wherever I go. I keep sticky notes, a tape recorder and a pencil by my bed in case I have an idea late at night. As soon as I get an idea for anything, I record it. Even if I never use that particular idea, at least writing it down gets creative juices flowing, which may lead to other, even better ideas.

I know everyone says this, but inspiration can be found anywhere. I once got an idea for my NaNoWriMo novel by noticing that my piano teacher’s pen was running out of ink. Once I was in the laundry room, and very randomly I began humming. Now I’m in the process of turning the melody I was humming into a jazz piece for piano. As long as you keep your eyes open and let your mind wander, inspiration will eventually strike. Very unfortunately, at about age 12 it becomes uncool to be curious about everything and ask questions. Personally, I don’t really spend a lot of time being cool anyway, so that’s not an issue for me. If you stay curious, you stay creative.

As you read this, I will be in New Mexico in the wilderness. Maybe I’m hiking, riding a horse, shooting a rifle, or collapsing in a tired heap after hiking ten miles up and down a mountain in the heat all day while carrying a twenty-pound pack (don't you just love Scouting?). Whatever I’m doing, I hope that I’ll use that experience in my art someday. 

Good luck finding the inspiration for the things that you like to do!

~Naddie Boyne

Camping Quotes

For those who don't know, I belong to the most epic Girl Scout troop ever. Seriously. My Girl Scout troop (aka the Evil Minions for various and random reasons) means quite a lot to me. They are fun, positive, kind, diligent, and are willing to share their extra socks during a small hurricane in a campground in Pennsylvania.

Recently, we went camping. We got to stay in a large white tipi. Shortly after we arrived at our site, I decided to write down funny quotes people said in my journal. Well, throughout the course of the trip we collected quite a few. Some of the best are below (the names have been changed to protect the innocent. Whether or not I deliberately changed them to names of various companions in Doctor Who is for you to decide. Coincidences do and frequently happen.)

Our tipi smells like Christmas candles!
No one killed my father. Thank God.
My feet can fly!
We were encouraged to steal soap.
Hitler was a good artist until he decided that he hated Jews more than he loved art.
I love that there are three ukuleles on this trip!
I'm thinkin' Elmo with a mullet.
"Why did we bring such a huge pot?" "Because my mom told me that the little one was stupid."
If your cooking pot isn't smoking by now, you've done something wrong.
Why do the peas smell like Oreos?
The beauty queen is going to stuff her face now.
I will eat potatoes angrily in your general direction.
I hate it. I want to smother it.
What the HECK is in my pants?!
I'm starting to think that the idea of wearing pajamas all the time is a good one.
My brain is like "no! sleep is for the weak!"
I didn't clench, I just lightly grazed my teeth across your face.
Just hug her. She'll move.
That does not constitute a tickling emergency.
"WHAT is that THING!?" "Um, that's Martha."
I'm gonna go to war in my pajamas.
Either you love bacon or you're wrong.
Did you just spit into the wilderness?
It is possible that monkeys will fall from the sky and demand s'mores.
I'm like "yay, clothes!"
My soul has a bounce to it.
It's like I'm playing a weird, aquatic tuba.
It's like a python in the world of ponytail holders.
Isn't Donna's hair the best meal you've ever had? It's like dessert!
I have my own disgusting pile of disgustingness to finish.
I was bitten by a radioactive mustache. Now I'm cat woman by night.
My face hurts because he's so gorgeous! (In reference to the campfire that we named Benjamin).
You're sharing your chocolate with me, so I burned these three marshmallows for you!
Stop waltzing with Mr. Bunnypants!
"Is this sticky?" "I don't know. Let's run it across my face and see."
I'm known for my bendy face.
Wait, Sarah Jane? Did you just turn into Amy? WOW!
I feel like a middle-aged marshmallow man!
But how could you have tripped her if you didn't touch her?
But I had Rose in my head!
You could just tie a string to her ankle so you could follow her wherever she goes.
Let's just not listen to one another.

This is the sort of delightful madness that ensues in my troop.

~Naddie

Ninjas vs. bunnies (or, community education takes an unexpected turn)

The following is the second of three stories that I wrote as part of my Girl Scout Silver Award report. To give you some background, my project, called 'Bun on the Run' was to teach different Girl Scout troops about rabbit care (i.e., don't keep them in hutches, please spay and neuter, yes, rabbits can be litter trained, etc.) In total, I brought the class to the meetings of well over 100 girls. But because animals and small children were involved, it was inevitable that there would be some, ah, "memorable moments," like the one that follows.

#2: Teenage Mutant Ninja Bunnies

I think that many girls who do their Silver Award do at least one thing that they have never done before, never in their wildest dreams imagined they would do, and hope never to do again. Each of these experiences is unique, memorable, and completely weird. Having said that, I think mine could easily top the experiences under this category of many, many Silver Award veterans.

As part the Bun on the Run program, I always had the girls take a look at one of the rabbit pens I had set up, and ask them what they saw in it. They would all look, and as they told me each object that they saw, I would explain what the rabbit used it for and why.

After they had a rough idea of what a rabbit needed in his or her enclosure, I would ask the girls what they thought you shouldn't put in a rabbit’s cage. This was a list that reliably included, depending on the group, “plastic toys,” “poisonous plants,” or, the ever-popular “things the bunny could choke on and die.”

This is why I was fairly unprepared when, on an evening in early May, I had this talk with a Brownie troop, or more specifically a Brownie troop including one particular Brownie, sitting in the back of the group with her blond hair in a ponytail.

The conversation went something like this:

Me, to troop: “What do you all think I shouldn’t put in a rabbit’s cage?” *hands are raised. I call on Girl 1.*

Girl 1: “A Barbie doll!”

Me: “That’s right. The rabbit would get sick from chewing on it, and your doll probably wouldn’t look so good anymore besides. What else should you not put in a rabbit’s cage?” *hands are raised. I call on Girl 2.*

Girl 2: “Anything rubber!”

Me: “Exactly! The bunny would get really sick from eating rubber. What else?” *hands are raised. I call on Girl 3, who is bouncing up and down in her seat, making faint ‘ooh, ooh!’ sounds.*

Girl 3: “Things the bunny could choke on and die!”

Me: “Exactly right! I think that stands for itself. What else shouldn’t go in a rabbit’s cage?” *hands are raised. I call on Brownie with Blond Ponytail.*

Brownie with Blond Ponytail (and slight smirk on her face): “A highly-trained ninja.”

Now, at first this may not seem that bad. While this answer is a bit awkward to respond to in a group of young kids, particularly when you were expecting an answer like “candy” or “poisonous plants,” it is a no-brainer that highly trained ninjas should not go in a rabbit’s cage. But then another girl pipes up and asks me “What is a highly trained ninja?” Fifteen pairs of eyes turn towards me expectantly.

I am caught by surprise. The Brownies’ parents are watching me. I look behind me at my two volunteers for support. One of my friends is politely trying to stifle a laugh, and the other is not looking at me and seemingly very amused by something on her shoelaces.

“Um, a highly-trained ninja is a person who punches people for a living,” I say to the group of impressionable young children.

Before that moment, I never imagined for a minute that doing a Silver project about animal shelters and bunny rabbits would lead me, through various twists and turns, to explaining to a group of wide-eyed, innocent seven year olds what a ‘highly-trained ninja’ was. As policy, I do not think exposing children to violence is that great of an idea.

Yet somehow, I admire that girl with the blond ponytail, who caused me to be in such an awkward situation. She demonstrated an ability to voice her opinion, no matter how strange an opinion it was. Perhaps she will grow up to be an artist, or a highly successful politician. And why not admit it, she reminds me of myself when I was seven.

~Naddie