A Collection Archives

29 Aug 2020

A Collection Part 58

What are some little things that you do for yourself that bring you peace and calm? I think one of the reasons we’ve kept “A Collection” going for so long is because of how it makes me feel. I could look at pictures like these on an endless loop and never get tired of it. I’ve often wondered too, when creating these posts, what makes me decide that I’m done? Is it because I think 50-ish photos is enough for people to be enticed by it, but leave them wanting more? Maybe it’s because any more and I will feel sorry for it eating up the loading time for a visitor. There’s no rhyme or reason and each time we post it’s different. It is one of the series regulars that has no consistency or format. That could either really bother someone a lot or not, I don’t know.

Whatever the case, I hope it brings you some light into your life this weekend the way it did mine. Everyone please wear a mask, stay safe, be kind to each other, and check in with someone you haven’t spoken with in some time.

Style

03 May 2020

A Collection Part 57

It’s safe to say that this is the first time I’ve ever created “A Collection” while in quarantine. Let’s hope that in this lifetime, we don’t ever have to live through another pandemic. I used to look forward to these posts for a number of reasons. They were so different than any of the usual posts that I normally did for Yow Yow! Instead of spending a lot of time around the words I was using, this was my visual diary. It was calming for me to dig through the archives of Tumblr accounts I manually followed (I don’t have a Tumblr account!) and make a decision on what photos to include. It wasn’t always a simple yes or no. There’s certainly an intent for each one that is selected and for how I’m feeling at the moment.

Being in Shelter-in-Place now already for a month and a half, I thought I would have gotten to this post much sooner. It seems like I’ve found my calm through a number of other outlets during this time.

Culture

01 Jan 2020

A Collection Part 56

Somehow we’ve really nailed the timing of these posts and every time we’re due for one it’s right around New Year’s! But if I’m being honest, the New Year is when I’m feeling my most creative and inspired. These photographs represent that and my current state of feelings. I can’t believe this is the 56th post for “A Collection!” It’s not a significant number by any means; I’m just amazed we’ve had this many.

I love going back and visiting A Collection 1-10 or 10-20 because even those represent a much different time than how I feel presently. In a way, these happen to be my own personal journals, but written in the form of other people’s photos.

May your new year and new decade be full of life, simplicity, and joy.

Culture

01 Sep 2019

A Collection Part 55

It seems like these posts always get worked on when I have chunks of time to carve out for myself. They are the ones that I want to be the most thoughtful about. So if I’m stressed because of a deadline or under pressure, it’s not a good time. However, it’s moments like these where I do feel a bit of stress, but it’s these images that put me at ease. I read somewhere recently that when you have anxiety at work, there are a few things to remedy it. You can count or you can start listing things in a category. Anything that takes your mind off of what it is that causes you stress for a bit does the job. For me, it’s these types of images. They are the ones that spark whimsey, creativity, or a different perspective. What is it for you all that helps get you out of a rut like mine?

Culture

07 Apr 2019

A Collection Part 54

For me, birthdays can act as complete shifts in your life. It was decided that this year, I wouldn’t celebrate the way I normally would and opt for smaller gatherings. The morning after last weekend’s wedding, my friends and I seemed to all decide that we were going to change our perspectives on how we had been “doing life.” In my day-to-day, my weekdays are now packed with activities every night while my weekends are seemingly quite open.

I know what you’re thinking. Isn’t it worse to go out and have a night of drinking during the work week? Yes, it’s completely irresponsible, but I don’t make the rules here! I will say, that it does feel great to wake up in the morning on the weekends without a hangover and with a complete and clear mind to tackle the day. It also means I can make it to my 11AM workout class without any regrets.

This moment right now is not in balance, but I have some high hopes that we’ll be able to get there. Eventually.

Culture

30 Jan 2019

A Collection Part 53

Tonight I did something for the first time that I’ve never done with these posts. Since I started working on this post over the holidays while I was at home there were a few Christmas themed photos in this batch. As I scrolled through the preview, I didn’t feel that same spark or attachment to them as I once had. So while on my way to finish this post, I replaced those photos. Since we’ve been through 53 rounds of this and I’ve never once replaced any photos before posting, in some way, I felt like I was being inauthentic. Could my readers tell that I had swapped them out? Of course not. But I would know and that kind of ate me up for about 15 minutes.

We haven’t written our resolutions post yet, but this made me think of two previous resolutions I’ve had. A few years back, I had “say yes to everything.” The intent was good, sure. But saying “yes to everything” can sometimes do more harm than good. Sometimes you say yes to things when you don’t want to. Maybe saying yes to things causes you to spend money when you don’t want to. Have experiences that you don’t think you’ll appreciate. The next year I refined that resolution: do the things you want to do. And that has stuck around longer than saying “yes.” So if that’s what I truly believe, why not act upon that when it comes to this blog and my posts?

Culture

02 Dec 2018

A Collection Part 52

I’ve never said this to anyone, but sometimes I look through these posts and try to find the story that it’s telling. It seems like I’m making it up as I go. I wouldn’t consider myself a great writer by any means. Call it Imposter Syndrome or whatever, but I have this blog despite all of that. If I get better over time, sure, I would consider that a win! Since I’m not the writer I thought I’d always be, I’ve wondered if people can tell what I’m trying to say or what I’m thinking by the pictures I choose to highlight. This is something I’ve been wanting to ask Veronica for a long time. I like to think that she can tell my mood or my feeling, but am I consistent? Do I change year to year or by months based on the photos?

Does posting one photo lead me to want to post the photo afterwards? What if one photo had led me to choose the next photo differently?

For the first time ever, this collection post only has photos from one source.

A Collection Part 51

For those of you who have been following Yow Yow! for years now, you know that these are some of my most intimate posts. Often times, I’m saying more with the images that I select than in the paragraphs I’m writing ahead of the post. For the first time ever, I’ve selected images that come from only one source. I recently discovered a new Tumblr that has become a fast favorite. Worried at first that I wouldn’t have enough material to use or even that the post would be an inaccurate representation of what I was hoping to convey ended up not being a real concern after all.

It has been a week of being completely stress free and living in my moments without having a plan. I think these photos depict an image of that. I think this is what carefree-ness and whimsy looks like and it’s entirely how I’m feeling. In these photos, you’ll notice that there are some up-close shots of a part of a body or detail zoomed in. I may not have known it at the time when I was picking out the photo, but it ended up being more intentional than planned. I wanted to focus and hone in on one thing specifically as opposed to doing the whole “big picture” thing.

A Collection Part 49

We don’t always time these posts with the end of the year, but it feels good, doesn’t it? Even as I search for photos it’s nice to be able to put something together that wraps up the end of the year and my feelings towards a new year. The start of this post doesn’t look anything like the end of this post, which I think is pretty different for a change. You can definitely tell that I’m feeling some sort of way by the end of this. What is it exactly? That I’m holding on to millennial pink? That I’ve got a love inanimate objects? Those things, but maybe a couple of other things that aren’t so obvious.

A Collection Part 48

48 posts and counting! I’m convinced that writer’s block is a thing that happens to everyone. I can still remember being in college and becoming upset at myself when I knew I had waited until the last minute to complete a paper. Typical. Writing always came easily when it wasn’t out of desperation and when it wasn’t at a time that I needed it the most. These “A Collection” posts are my favorite because they don’t ever require writing, but I like to write a little piece to go along with it anyways. It’s nice to just sift through a bunch of images and decide on the spot if I want to include them or not. I will usually know within a second and if I’m thinking about one for too long, that might also mean something too. I like to think that all of the images represent the mood that I’m in or a period in my life. I never actually write out the exact feeling at that moment and we’re completely okay with that. If you read into these a bit though, you can always sense a type of pattern.

Enjoy!