A Good Kind of Busy

This year, I want to be busy. Not the type of busy where you just want to pull your hair out or get swallowed by the ground. It’s the type of busy where you improve yourself in a lot of areas and still make progress. It’s when you are able to achieve as much as you possibly can, enjoy every moment of it and also be able to take a rest. That for me, is living life to the fullest which is my goal every year.

I don’t really write new year resolutions or even try to think about them. Well.. I tried a few times but then I realized my goals change over time. What if I’ve already done them all? Is my year fruitful enough? On the other hand, what if I didn’t accomplish them all? Was my year a waste? There was an underlying pressure that didn’t seem to go well with me.So instead of trying to reach my goals in a span of a year, I just made them a part of my life long journey. It’s a joy to achieve them and if something doesn’t go right then I can just try again and again. The process might become slower but the progress is certain.

I’ve been in situations where I feel that my life is too slow. I began to rethink my steps and thought of ways to make it quicker. This is where it dawned on me that each of us has their own pace. You don’t need to compare where you are from others because in the end, you’ll both get where you want to be. The truth is, wherever each of us wants to be is different from one another. We make our own path where we are bound to move forward and reach our own milestones.

I’ve started this year with that mindset and a lot has been happening. The first three and a half months has been hectic, especially on weekends,and the days passed by so quickly. Now I’m back to school and yeah, it doesn’t get any busier than that. Nonetheless, I’m really excited about it. My subjects are really interesting this semester but I know they require long hours of hardwork. I might share my progress with them in the future. I’m just stoked to be learning how to create games and mobile applications. Recently, I have managed to finish a 3D game and I had a lot of fun writing the storyline and designing the environment. So far it’s all the things I love to do combined. Isn’t it really exciting?(insert geeky squeals and hoorays).

Another addition to my “to learn” list is to play a piano. My ever so supportive parents bought me a piano keyboard for my birthday and I want to make good use of it. As of now, I’m learning to play by ear but I am determined to find time so I can join some classes. I believe it’s always important to learn basics because it’s the foundation of the whole learning curve.

Since I want to maximize every bit of my time in achieving such goals, I can’t help but be busy. However, I don’t let it come in my way of relaxation and fun. Being busy can lead to stress and a lot of things can happen unexpectedly, but we don’t need to be prisoners of it. Somehow, I found ways to manage time efficiently and eventually formed habits that helped me stay calm and in control which I want to share with all of you who goes through the same struggle. Let’s break it down to five simple ways:

1. Get your priorities right. Set your goals according to what needs to be done first. I know it’s easy to fall in the comfortable hands of procrastination. One way to prevent it is to make a list of things to be done from most urgent to less then start doing things from the top of your list.

2. When procrastination strikes, get on with the difficult thing first. It requires more effort so it will definitely take time. I assure you that once that you finish that big task, you will be motivated to do the small ones because you will feel a sense of accomplishment that if you can surpass a challenging task then there’s no way for you not to accomplish the others.

3. Don’t forget to rest. Even if you’re in a situation where you can’t stop because the time is ticking and you need to get everything done, give yourself a time to breathe. Just a few minutes will do but never push yourself to exhaustion. Doing tasks until your brain or body gives up is neither helpful nor good for the health. If you exert too much effort while you’re tired, you might make some mistakes and that can lead to stress. Clearing your mind after a little rest will make the tasks bearable and you will have the energy to do them right.

4. If something goes wrong and you feel like you cannot finish the task, move on to other tasks then revisit it later. Just like when answering a test, answer the easy questions first then the hard ones later so you will have ample time to think about them. Meddling with a task when you don’t know what to do will only be a waste of time. Doing other things can refresh your mind once you get back to it. You will be able to think of possible solutions that you haven’t thought of before. Never try to overthink things or else it will become stressful and you’ll end up giving up on the task. Let your mind relax and it will eventually give you the right solution.

5. Always tell yourself that you will get it all done. This attitude carried me through all the busy days I’ve been through and let me tell you, it really works. I manage to do everything on time because I believe that I can. Even if things get difficult, this mindset gives me the strength to overcome any situation. Just bear in mind that a positive attitude will always lead to a positive outcome.

I hope that these five ways will also help you manage your busy life and encourage you to be more productive. Remember, being busy is not a bad thing. It just means more opportunity to be productive. Isn’t it a fulfilling way to live? It might push you to your limit sometimes but use it to your advantage so you can better yourself and enhance your capabilities. Don’t be afraid to get busy. It’s just a proof that you are gradually turning to be the best version of yourself that is ready to take on important responsibilities that only you will be able to carry.

~Chubbycheeksxoxo

18/04/18

PS: This blog is dedicated to lolo(grandpa) Jess, mom’s uncle, who passed away recently. He has always supported me with my writing and I am very grateful for it. I know that he will still support me from up above and that gives me strength to continue my blog. Rest in peace lolo Jess, you will be dearly missed.

Life Update

It has been a while since I have updated my blog and I’m really excited to share my experiences these last few months. Actually, I have been busy with studies and I got a little bit sick at the start of the semester (though I refused to have absences), so I needed to study double time. It just doesn’t click in when you’re sick and you still try to study even if your body tells you to rest. I got better but it’s a slow process. I’ve learned my lesson to take a rest when I’m sick instead of just dragging it along because I want to be productive, it doesn’t work that way.

Once I got better, I was on the roll again. I even joined Inktober again this year which I am proud to have finished without any late pieces, considering I just made it up to the 22^nd day last year. I managed to draw them at night during my busy days. I really felt accomplished by doing all thirty one pieces, most number of pieces I’ve made in a month. Doing it made me learn more tricks on inking but the biggest improvement I noticed is that I became more confident in drawing my ideas on paper.

Sometimes I tend to restrain myself from my ideas because I think I don’t have the skill yet to produce something similar to what I have in my mind because come on, we all know that I am just a hobbyist and I don’t think I have practiced that much. For all I know it was really just the fear inside my head. I started to be free from that each drawing I make and I was even surprised on the result. They were not perfect but they are what I envisioned. All along, I just had to do it.

After Inktober, I took on a new challenge this month of November by following SurelySimple’s lettering prompt on Instagram. I’m close to finishing it right now and it was a blast learning different kinds of lettering.  Seeing a lot of modern calligraphy on Instagram piqued my interest in doing it. Well, I love everything about art and it’s no exception. It is also handy since I can use the skill in making cards for this coming holiday season.

There are also two memorable events that happened recently which I will share more of in their individual blog posts because there is just so much to tell about them. It was my first time to attend a cultural festival hosted in our institute and it was so much fun. I got to mingle with everyone and tasted different kinds of cuisine. The other event is when we watched a Filipino concert. I’ll tell more about it soon because it’s such a precious experience for me.

Now that the Chubbycheeks Adventure is up and running again, what do you think about its new look? Is it too colourful or just right? I am hoping to get feedbacks about it. There is also a new tab called Artworks so check it out. It also contains all my pieces for Inktober 2017.

There you go folks; I hope that I have updated you enough through this life update. I will now continue to share my experiences hoping to inspire you and give you insights about a chubby girl’s life. Until next update!

~Chubbycheeksxoxo

25/11/2017

InkTober[2016]: Challenge Accepted!

One day when I was sitting lazily on our couch and scrolling through my Instagram feed, my attention was caught on some amazing  works by the different art accounts I follow. I got more curious because they seem to have been made with the same medium:ink, so I started to read the post captions and it turned out that they also have the same inktober hashtag, which I found amusing because I realized that it was the month of October and it’s quite inventive. I assumed according to what it’s called that it has something to do with ink artworks for the month of October. As I read the posts and comments, I came to know that it’s about drawing using ink every day for the whole month of October. That’s 31 ink drawings at the end of the month. I was interested in doing it but since I had a lot of schoolwork, I don’t have the leisure of making one full ink drawing a day. Plus, I love colors so I seldom do any inking on my artworks,  I didn’t think it’ll help me much at that time.

I’ve been watching artists do inktober for years and I still didn’t have the initiative to do it. This 2016 I am determined to improve on art again. I admit I didn’t draw a lot these past few years, I was focused on adjusting to my new environment when I migrated here in New Zealand. So yeah. .I was stuck in my bubble for a while. That’s why I want to catch up to things and be productive double time. Just before the month of October came, I searched all about inktober. I’ve found its official site and watched videos about it. It was created by Jake Parker, a professional illustrator. I watched one of his videos talking about inktober and I’ve learned that he started it to get rid of his fear of applying ink to his artworks. It started with the hope that if he practiced using ink, he will gain confidence and be able to improve on his art. True to its purpose, it really helped him a lot and the works he showed in the video are amazing! If you want to know more about how he came up with inktober, here is the link to his video: Jake Parker’s Inktober History video

 

A screenshot of InkTober 2016 Prompt List  (credits to owner).

 

So after I’ve learned things about this trend I was more inspired to try it. Having to draw every day is a challenge in itself since I study full time, but I’d get nowhere if I wouldn’t try right? If you are reading this and you’re into art, I encourage you to try it too.Even though you don’t use ink as a medium, it’s always nice to broaden your knowledge. Remember that the key to mastery is practice, never-ending practice and that’s already proven and tested. I keep on reminding myself that I’ll never improve if I slack off so I don’t waste opportunities to grow not just an artist but as a person. Completing this task will require discipline, time management and a lot of effort so I’m sure there’s a lot to gain from it. I’ll be sharing my inktober drawings through the Gallery, which is the newest page on my blog site. From now on it will contain all the artworks I wanna share with you and hopefully it will encourage you to try your best too (I’d be happy if you’ll comment on them, constructive criticisms are very much welcome). I’ll stick to the official themes for this year (shown just above this paragraph ) since it’s my first time participating. I feel pretty nervous and excited due to the fact that a lot of artists will be doing it too. I’ve never done this before and I’m just a hobbyist so don’t get your hopes up, but you can trust that I’ll put my best effort into it. InkTober 2016, bring it on!

~Chubbycheeksxoxo

10/03/2016

Awaken your Creativity

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.” ~Steve Jobs

 

Creativity. It is imagination turned into life. A mystery that not a lot of people discover. Is creativity really a kind of talent that you possess since birth or a skill that can be achieved? In my opinion, it’s something that is always there and you just need to wake it up. Yes people, wake that creativity inside you!

The first step to do this is to think positive. Believe that you have creativity in you. The good thing about creativity is that it’s not boxed into one thing. Some might be creative with numbers while some are creative with words. See? Being creative is not just about creating artworks but it involves a lot of different things, you just have to find it. That’s what the next step is all about.

Once you’re positive that you have it, now is the time to find it. Get up from your usual rituals and explore new things. This may not fully awaken your creative juices but it will definitely trigger it. Go to galleries, attend workshops or just read about creative people and see their works(if you really can’t give up your comforts at home). Immerse yourself in the creativity around you and I’m sure that you will slowly recognize your own. I myself can attest to this, let me share with you how I tried to find my creativity at an early age.

Being an only child, I was always left with my nanny at home so I tried to entertain myself in a lot of ways. Although I like playing with my neighbors outside, it’s not enough to get my attention(and stamina) for the whole day. So, when my parents take me to bookstores(did I mention it’s my favorite place in the mall?) before I even learn how to read, my eyes will always wander around coloring books. That’s when I  started  to like seeing pictures and coloring them. For a child, it’s just so magical to be able to put colors into images. This then triggered me to also draw the pictures on those coloring books. I was able to control my hand movements and produce solid lines.

My parents and nanny were just shocked one day that I have a huge pile of typewriting papers beside my coloring books. I just smile sometimes when I remember their faces. Probably they just thought of how much cleaning they need to do with all the papers I’ve wasted. Little did we know that those wasted paper aren’t really junks. Actually, they helped a lot in shaping the artist I am now. Maybe it’s just boredom in a child’s mind but it became an integral part of my learning. Don’t be afraid to try new things, you might be surprised on how much you can discover.

After finding out your inner creativity, I encourage you to do things to nurture it by having constant practice. Maybe you think that the advice on practicing are now overrated. Honestly, I also think that way sometimes but I cannot hide the fact that it is effective. There will be times when(or it can happen most of the time really) the spirit of laziness is just so strong that practice will feel dragging and stressful but mate, never lose to that.

In order to overcome that laziness, I’ve thought of ways on how I can be productive and still practice while having fun. I grabbed a shoe box and decorated it to my liking (as shown in the photo below) and filled it with rolled pieces of papers, inside them are different tasks that I should complete. In this case, I’ve come up with drawing tasks because that’s what I want to practice but you can also use this method whatever creative side you want to improve on. For example, you want to improve your creativity with words, you can fill the box with themes that you can write about every now and then. The key here is to have discipline. The tasks in the box won’t work if you’re not committed to completing them in a specific period of time.

Recently, I’ve found an app that creates more task for me and is more convenient because I can always access it whenever and wherever I am. The app is called Canvas Tutor and I just bumped into it while browsing interesting games on my phone. The graphics are pretty cool so I opened it and found out that it’s an application made to train artists. Every day it will give you tasks that you must complete in a specific time in which you will gain specific points for anatomy, backgrounds, inking etc. (I can have a thorough review about it if you’d like). It is also designed in a way that as you go through the tasks, a cute anime child (as you can see on my screenshot below) will also grow. So it really feels like you’re nurturing something and it grows as you improve. I’m kind of a techie that’s why it works for me, so for other techies out there, you can also find apps that suit you best.

Nurturing can be the hardest part of your creative journey but it is also the most fulfilling. Nothing beats that feeling when you know you’ve done enough and because of that, the possibilities are limitless. Frustrations will always come and go but at least, you know you have practiced so much that you can even back yourself up. Believe that you have it, discover it and nurture that creativity within you. It’s just sleeping there and it is never too late to wake it up. Who knows? It might just be what you need to understand yourself more and pursue your true passion.

~Chubbycheeksxoxo

09/15/2016