Stimulating Challenges
in chronological order.

Many experts advise:                                          
Following your passion,
do what inspires you,
          do what you really enjoy.

 

Model Railway:
completed about 1961 when I was 17 years old.

This is a photo and the layout plan of my 4' X 8' railway.   The plan was created by myself: responding to a desire for both mountain scenery and a small town, a pleasing and diverse environment for the trains to run through.

  .

My experience was that much of the process of building the railway was not really enjoyable, rather it was a way to keep busy. The key motivator was the stimulatation of converting a unique dream into something impressive. The dream was a powerful enough motivator so I was able to complete years of often boring and sometimes tedious hard work.

As a young adult, I kept analyzing, trying to predict if my experience of building a railroad would help me find work. I worked with a carpenter building a granery for a few weeks, but didn't do that well. Work in a hardware store seemed possible, but my range of knowledge and experience was very narrow. Also my interest was low, so learning would be a struggle and the daily work would be a grind. Taking stock was a mind boggling chore. So regardless of how hard I tried, I would do poorly.

 

Poem on a plaque:
purchased in 1977, when 33 years old.
When I read it, I could relate to it, it really impressed me, it hit home.

At the top and center of the collage which is below, is a plaque
which I purchased in 1977. It contains the poem
"The Little Things In Life" which states:

If any little word of ours
Can make one life the brighter
If any little song of ours
Can make one heart the lighter
God help us speak that little word
And take our bit of singing
And drop it in some lonely vale
And set the echos ringing

Five years after purchasing the plaque, in an 1982 Art project, I placed it in a key location at the top of the collage (pictured below). So, it isn't surprising that 15 years after that, when I found that Web sites can deliver a message 24 hours a day to anyone interested, I saw them as an irresistible tool. Now my files keep doing my work, keep delivering a worthwhile message, even during the hours that I'm sleeping. They are like an echo, only better. With a Web site, as time goes by the message gets stronger.

 

Collage:
created in 1982 at 38 years of age.

The contents of this collage, a creation that represents who I was at 37 years of age, up until I returned to school, contains many of the little things I had collected up until then. It has two flaps on the side that can be opened or closed. So, this artistic piece of work is a concrete representation of who I was at that time.

This project illustrates that at the time I did have my priorities straight. Towards the bottom, in the centre, is a light brown area shaped like a road. It includes little reminders of the various key jobs I had worked at during my career. Also, two of my resumes take up the inside of the entire left flap. The only item in the collage that refers to history is the small black & white photo collage of relatives, located at the bottom, to the left of the road.

Although it could be said I spent too much time on this project, it was a regular art course assignment, and it did succeed in a number of ways. While building this creation, it was stimulating to watch things take shape, to sense that every item had a place where it belonged, and to see it all balance out (except for one flaw, the photos top centre were inadvertently reversed).

I dove into this project and was surprised at how well it all fit together (in a way similar to how this Web site fit together). Although, I still do not enjoy physical work like this, this collage was one of the most exciting challenges I had during my Univeristy years. I enjoyed watching things that were important to me be organized in an attractive and artistic way, in a way that is meaningful and impressive.

This challenge and the various skills it required have similarities to the building of a Web site, and similarities to the little project I took on when I was ten years old. In response to a radio news story, I created a six frame comic about the death of a junk dealer's horse.

 

 

Web site:
created in 1997 at 53 years of age.

My first Web site was posted November 7, 1997. Then, additions were made and my site was revised on December 18, 1997. This first Web site reveals my values. It contains my judgment of what I could find in 1997 that was suitable for posting. Although my account of the Metis half of the 1885 Rebellion had required a ton of work and seemed to be the most valuable file, it is interesting to note that my focus was NOT on history. However, in 2000, when planning a major Web site with a unique domain name, I chose to create a package that included the best combination of everything I had. A unified package was built out of my files on lifestyles, history, and innovative ideas for the future. These files gave rise to the domain name: alittlehistory.com. This Web site applies concepts from a 1995 Marketing course which I took, and integrates previous knowledge in art, drama, history, and writing into a unique creation. It is all organized into a unified black and white world, an incomplete and flawed summary version of Western Canada's past. This black and white world has a hint of pink, and counters which prove that it lives, like an organism. There are also a few links that allow you to connect the past with the present as you view the colorful photographs at westerntour.com and get linked to videos at youtube. But don't forget to return to explore more of the inners of this black and white creature.   Now, as my personal life settles down and I overcome chronic digestion, bloating, and sleep problems, I have hopes of working effectively during a regular work schedule. This Web site helped me develop many transferable skills, it hints at a lot of potential, and it now provides an easy to access work sample. However, a regular job does not come automatically. The quality displayed at this site came only after tons of hours of work, many of them irregular, late at night, over a long period of time. I still need to work at my own speed and in my own time. The part time job that I currently hold is hassle free; it pays the bills, and compliments my ability to be creative. It keeps the stress at manageable levels, and allows me to be really productive, working on my own time at stimulating projects that are consistent with my interests and values, and suit my unique abilities and limitations.