I’ve been thinking more on the sustainability/alternative energy idea and have come back to some books from the If Products Could Tell Their Stories class. The one I have in my bag at the moment is the well known Cradle to Cradle. I’m also going back into Emotional Design and Shopping Our Way to Safety.

It’s pretty evident to me that all these things are intertwined – and they inherently address our (not sure who “our” is exactly, but certainly mine) manner of consumerism.

I can say that I’ve spent a good portion of time when looking for and researching products I want to own – whether it’s the nuance of detail in design, the materials, and/or the final price that drives my search. I wonder what percentage of online shoppers – or shoppers in general go to such lengths. I also wonder if perhaps a materials breakdown or some kind of sustainability rating will soon enough become a part of the shopping search engine process.

If even novel at first, such a feature would really augment the consumer experience. Would it make consumers overly self-conscious about what they’re purchasing or even desiring? Could it make manufacturers more responsible? Could it work? Even then – how could it be smartly implemented in a way that would feel balanced to both consumers and manufacturers/companies? I think it would be an interesting possibility that could work similarly to the way consumer ratings are created, though admittingly time-intensive.

Definitely something to ponder.

2nd “schools are closed” snow day of the year. Just one week (& one day) apart!

sustainability – (from dictionary.com)

sus·tain [suh-steyn]
–verb (used with object)
1. to support, hold, or bear up from below; bear the weight of, as a structure.
2. to bear (a burden, charge, etc.).
3. to undergo, experience, or suffer (injury, loss, etc.); endure without giving way or yielding.
4. to keep (a person, the mind, the spirits, etc.) from giving way, as under trial or affliction.
5. to keep up or keep going, as an action or process: to sustain a conversation.
6. to supply with food, drink, and other necessities of life.
7. to provide for (an institution or the like) by furnishing means or funds.
8. to support (a cause or the like) by aid or approval.
9. to uphold as valid, just, or correct, as a claim or the person making it: The judge sustained the lawyer’s objection.
10. to confirm or corroborate, as a statement: Further investigation sustained my suspicions.
Origin: 1250–1300; ME suste(i)nen < AF sustenir, OF < L sustinēre to uphold, equiv. to sus- sus- + -tinēre, comb. form of tenēre to hold

—Synonyms
1. carry. See support. 3. bear. 5. maintain.

sus·tain   (sə-stān’)
tr.v.   sus·tained, sus·tain·ing, sus·tains
1. To keep in existence; maintain.
2. To supply with necessities or nourishment; provide for.
3. To support from below; keep from falling or sinking; prop.
4. To support the spirits, vitality, or resolution of; encourage.
5. To bear up under; withstand: can’t sustain the blistering heat.
6. To experience or suffer: sustained a fatal injury.
7. To affirm the validity of: The judge has sustained the prosecutor’s objection.
8. To prove or corroborate; confirm.
9. To keep up (a joke or assumed role, for example) competently.

[Middle English sustenen, from Old French sustenir, from Latinsustinēre : sub-, from below; see sub- + tenēre, to hold; see ten-in Indo-European roots.]

sus·tain’a·bil’i·ty n., sus·tain’a·ble adj., sus·tain’er n.,sus·tain’ment n.
———————————————————

I am thinking about what I am doing, this daily process, this idea of 21 days – and it’s now making me think of sustainability, specifically sustainable energy.

I find these words both literal and metaphorical in their implication.
I feel it would be worth exploring how my personal process of creative sustainable energy is mirrored in/into a process of environmental sustainable energy. Possibly giving this a MIRRORED MICRO/MACRO bent.
I’m thinking of it less in the way of an individual recycling and reducing their carbon footprint to help reduce the global warming and more in terms of the creative process of the changes and shifts an individual goes through in order to maximize their personal energy & productive output and how that energy flows out and effects the world around them.

This is a rough idea that I just came up with this evening. I’ve been thinking about my interest in environmental sustainability, the related classes I’ve taken at ITP, my general personal pursuits in this area, as well as the desire to educate myself even further in this area. This would be a good opportunity to do that. We’ll see.

Mission statement: (3 sentences max)

It takes 21 days to develop  a habit, or so theory goes. I am setting out to be consciously creative and consistent by employing a series of 21 day cycles to unleash and understand my personal creative process and how that can connect with others (or the world outside me).

Where does it live?

I’d like it to be a scalable installation/exhibit that can sit within a small square footage (as in possible table-top size area) or as large as a room.

What it is still remains to be seen.

Making the invisible visible
Everything all at once
Loop until the end

Sometimes learning feels slow. Learning a new language, in this case a computer language – even slower. Learning seems best by doing, but how much doing before one learns?

Makes me think of the dots from my “process” post.

Given that this is the first time I’ve made an animated gif, I wish Flash was this simple.

(via http://www.rapidftr.com)

I guess this is what’s left of it.

Today:

Almost Ready-Made Chocolate Croissants

Making Space

Mashed Plantains

No Brainwave Mandalas

Upper West Excursion

Many Felines

Year of the Metal Tiger

And finally – this:

Today was composed of:

The Power of Three
(A good case for three-legged tables vs. four-legged ones.)

mod·u·late
/ˈmɒdʒəˌleɪt/ Show Spelled [moj-uh-leyt] Show IPA verb,-lat·ed, -lat·ing.
–verb (used with object)
1. to regulate by or adjust to a certain measure or proportion; soften; tone down.
2. to alter or adapt (the voice) according to the circumstances, one’s listener, etc.
3. Music.
a. to attune to a certain pitch or key.
b. to vary the volume of (tone).
4. Telecommunications. to cause the amplitude, frequency, phase, or intensity of (a carrier wave) to vary in accordance with a sound wave or othersignal, the frequency of the signal wave usually being very much lower than that of the carrier.

FM (Frequency Modulation)

Brooklyn Ecopolis

I’m not gonna lie, I feel tired and sort of lazy. Granted, it’s late and I did do random other things today. I’m wishing I had a tablet to draw with instead of a laptop mouse. Today was about the “force” and balance – and also about how you can “twist” perspective by playing to certain feelings. This was via the Star Wars prequel of course :). I know all too well that’s what advertising does. I also know it’s not all bad, but sometimes the ways in which the manipulation can go about is what helped steer me away from making advertising my full on career path. I should clarify and say “the irresponsible ways in which the manipulation can go about”.

I”m currently reading A Whole New Mind by David H. Pink. He addresses attraction and appeal as does Donald A. Norman in Emotional Design, but within a different context. This really is an age of Abundance and choice. The fact “consumerism” exists is a testament to that. Recently I had been thinking about how a museum in the future would go about picking a pair of shoes to represent this era, year, decade. With all the possible styles of shoes available to us today in 2010, how would they even begin? There are so many!

But in the instance of writing this, I realize – our archives and artifacts will surely one day perhaps be purely digital. And beyond photos, these artifact will be scanned 3-dimensionaly, through every last bit and nook and pore – so that if needed, an “all-materials” 3D printer will easily reproduce a replica. This is already starting to happen. We have digital archives. We have 3D scanners. We have 3D printers. It is only a matter of time. And in time, the concept of “original” will become even more refined.

I basically spent the entire day on just one thing. This was again emphasizing the need for practice to make one proficient, efficient, more than sufficient.

It was all about this:

So after realizing I have to up the stakes, I’m thinking that it would be best to start framing my work, documentation, observations, creative output, etc.  Essentially it’s time management. I decided I’m going to start with giving myself blocks of time for specific tasks. Or in certain cases – like meditation, a minimum amount of time. If I go beyond it, that’s great, but the idea is to get the meat of things done more efficiently.

I discovered Flex Time software by Red Sweater. Its by-line is: “You’ve got loads of time. Spend it wisely. A versatile timer for your repetitive activities.” I don’t know if I agree with the “loads of time”, for if I did have that – I perhaps would spend it more foolishly and loosely. The reason I’d want to use this thing is to help manage the little time that I do have.

COMBO a collaborative animation by Blu and David Ellis (2 times loop) from blu on Vimeo.