30 B4 30 Day 23: Send a Secret to Post Secret

Every person has a secret, and don't lie because you know you do. Personally, I only have a few because I consider myself an open book. I am just a horrible liar and anyone I talk to can tell. When people ask me a question, if I know the answer, I offer it. It is harder to keep up with lies than to just tell the truth. At least one person knows each one of my secrets. There may be more because some of my friends have big mouths, but that is OK because I am comfortable with myself at the ripe old age of 29. Today I chose to Send a Secret to Post Secret and, of course, it was anonymous.

Post Secret is a mail project started by Frank Warren where people send him serious and not so serious private thoughts that he may post to his blog or add to his books. When people send in their postcards, he is free to do with the secrets as he wants. I decided on the secret that I would send in and then found imagery to be paired with the text. (TK even helped me.) I made my anonymous, homemade postcard and I am going to send it tomorrow, in a random mailbox. You can never be too safe...

I believe that a secret should remain a secret and that is why I am not telling you what my postcard looks like or what it says. Sorry. You didn't think I would spill the beans, did you? It wouldn't be a secret anymore if I did. Also, out of respect for some of my friends and family, I have a few secrets in my mental Rolodex that I will be taking to the grave. Their secrets are not my secrets to tell, so I am being responsible with their privacy.

I submitted my own secret because I support what Frank Warren is doing. He created a project and has received a lot of response and interest. It would be very hypocritical of me to not encourage this creative and interesting outlet that he chose to establish online. I can only hope that my blog and my submissions are half as popular as his site is, but, like I said, I am an open book so there are no secrets here.

If I have inspired you to purge yourself of a secret that has been eating away at you for decades or if there is a naughty thought in your mind, send your anonymous homemade postcard, to:

Post Secret
13345 Copper Ridge Rd.
Germantown, MD 20874

It feels kind of nice to let out a secret and send it away. It's like the secret isn't mine anymore. Now it's Frank's to worry about. Enjoy!

30 B4 30 Day 22: Sketch in Central Park

Ever since I could remember, I have sat with paper and a pencil and have just drawn. When I was a kid, I wanted to be an artist, a librarian and a background dancer for music videos. I guess I thought I would have a lot of time on my hands as an adult. Since my brother didn't let me play G.I. Joes with him, I sat and sketched images of my family, my house and whatever inanimate objects I could find. In high school, I began to draw portraits of friends and family members and then in college I was formally trained in figure drawing and still life. I haven't created many landscape drawings in all the years I have studied art, but when a friend of mine suggested that I Sketch in Central Park, I thought it would fit perfectly with my 30 B4 30 project.

Mary Kate and I walked into Central Park looking for a large open space with people lounging on the grass and trees hanging around creating shadows. We plopped ourselves down on a bench and I took out my sketchbook and pencil, and began drawing. I tried my hardest to capture the trees, the lamppost, the concrete path, the metal garbage pail and a few people that were enjoying their day in the park. Little did they all know, they were modeling for me. Most of the drawings I have done included a naked person sitting in front of me for three hours in the same pose so I could depict the way their spine curved, their face wrinkled or their leg folded. Today, I can't find anyone willing to take all of their clothes off so I can draw them. It's not something I go around asking people. So, this was a little more difficult because some objects were in motion, even if it was ever so slightly with the wind. And, I had a time constraint of one hour because TK had to be picked up across town. However, I have come across things many times in my travels that I would like to sit and sketch, and this is one of the only times I have actually done it.

As I sat there, Mary Kate and I caught people looking at me and my drawing, and we realized that I was one of those artists that people stand behind to analyze their process. It made me feel like I didn't have to hold on to that little bit of jealousy anymore. I am an artist, even if a paycheck doesn't tell me so. Getting paid to do something can be validation that you have the skills necessary to complete that job, but for me just doing it and coming up with a finished product is validation enough. I don't need anyone to tell me I am an artist, I have a degree, a passion and a talent that tells me so. Sometimes, I just forget that I have this in me because life gets in the way and it is a shame. Creating art allows my true self to come out and express itself, and for that, I am thankful. Maybe one day a paycheck will agree with me.