Take part in a postcard art project!

There are always awesome art projects for postcard fans on the Internet. Postcrossing and Couchsurfing have always some going, but there are some occasional ones organized by artists or bloggers, too. This one I found on the Facebook page of Wort.lu. (By the way, I think they're creating an awesome newsportal.)

My own photo taken in Ettelbruck. Artist: Marie José Kerschen

So what's this project about?

Well, Luxembourgish artist, Gea Casolaro is waiting for your postcards from 15 June, 2013 till 31 January, 2014. But she wants specific postcards, like that featuring a red bridge or the word 'suisse' or a donkey! The art project will be on display at the Luxembourg Centre National de l'Audiovisuel from 26 September, 2013.

Find a detailed description on how to participate and how to get your postcard to Gea here.

And if you have awesome photos, but no postcards, turn them into fabulous ones with the help of Moo!

Are you a Postcrosser? Have you ever participated in an art project organized via the Internet? What kind of postcards do you bring home from your holidays? Let me know in the Comments below. (Mind you, I set all comments to moderate, so it may take a while to appear.)

Mind Mapping Fun!

A few weeks ago, I picked up the book, The Power of Creative Intelligence by Tony Buzan in the library. I've found it very inspiring. At one point, there's a 'workout' where you have to create a mind map based on FUN. You should write down the first 10 words that come to your mind, then write 5 more words to each main word that pop into your mind in relation to that 'concept'. Later, the author suggests that you use images in your mind maps, because they are much more powerful, than simple words.

Source

Since I really enjoyed this little 'workout' - that's the author's concept -  and thought that it would inspire a lot of people, I'll share with you my imperfect version. (I say imperfect, because my mind got stuck in a rut at certain places.)

And, you should definitely read the book. It gives you wings far greater than Red Bull ever could.

Click on the words to see the images I've picked for each. (And Pinterest is even a better friend than Google.)

Source

So, the main concept is FUN.

10 words associated with fun:

Travel
Laughing
Sugar
Sunshine
Sea
Game
Wind
Surprise
Excentric
Cooking

Source

5 more words associated with Travel:

Europe, sandy beach, adventure, glamour, summer

5 more words associated with Laughing:

Lipstick, naughty, rire, teeth, sound

5 more words associated with Sugar:

Pink, cake, patisserie, yellow, vintage

5 more words associated with Sunshine:

Parasol, shades, comics, rays, sand

Source

5 more words associated with Sea:

Breeze, shell, silkie, gulls, pier

5 more words associated with Game:

Playful, seduce, deer, casino, witty

5 more words associated with Wind:

Shawl, tree, grey, green, road

5 more words associated with Surprise:

Gift, joy, box, white, pearl

Source

5 more words associated with Excentric:

Jewellry, aunt, design, icon, peacock

5 more words associated with Cooking:

Christmas pudding, icing, flavours, goddess in the kitchen, entertaining

Have you ever tried mind mapping? If yes, what do you use it for? Have you found any inspiring words or images in the above collection? Let me know in the Comments below. (Mind you, I set all comments to moderate, so it may take a while to appear.)

Try something new!

Do you also feel the urge, not only around New Year's Eve, but during the summer, as well to try something new? Now, that the days are so hot and long, I decided to look for some inspiration for trying new things to spice up my lazy summer days.

That's when I came across the website www.trysomethingnew.com. It looks very much like The Idea Swap, where you don't see a database of ideas, but get a simple page with a simple form that you have to fill out, then hit the Get idea! button and there you are!

You can search for new things to try according to location, or if you're looking for not-location specific ideas, you can pick a category from the drop down menu.

Here are a few I tried:

Making Money: (of course!)

Join an investment club! If you have no idea what's that, read the Wikipedia article!

Creative Endeavour:

Wood carving

Mental Fitness:

Play cribbage! No, I have no idea what that is. I've never been good at card games. But it says: "Cribbage is a great card game for two players. The rules are fairly easy to pick up [...] it combines fun and mental exercise."

However, they have nothing for girls, which is kind of sad.

Well, I suggest girls read the book First Comes Love by Katie Kacvinsky and take lots of inspiration from Dylan!

For Guys:

Play a game of darts! Haha! Hmm.

Do you have a favourite experience related to trying new things? Something that was fun or interesting and everyone should try it, too? Have you read a book that inspired you to try out something you read about in it? Let me know in the Comments below. (Mind you, I set all comments to moderate, so it may take a while to appear.)