Greetings everyone, and welcome to the first ChatterBulletin of 2010! Now although January 1st begins what we all know as our Calendar Year, New Year, according to Nature actually begins with the Season of Spring, in the month of March, and not in the middle of Winter, and the month of January. When you think about it, it does makes sense, but we are all used to wishing everyone a “Happy New Year” when in fact, all of nature is resting and hibernating! So for the meantime, I wish you all a wonderful 2010!
And, I would also like to wish those of you that have a birthday this month a very “Happy Birthday” – but in particular, I want to send a special shout-out to my two “sisters” – Charlotte on January 16th and Victoria on January 21st!
Structure
© Louisa J. Curtis
This month’s topic is “Structure” and the image I have chosen to illustrate the ChatterLog this month is one I took on my iPhone when I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art back in October of 2009 when my Aunt and cousin were visiting. We were meant to be going to MOMA that day, but it was closed, so we opted for the Met instead. Because it was such a beautiful sunny day, I suggested that we pay a visit to the Cantor roof garden, which we did, where we stumbled upon the most fantastic installation I have seen in a long time. Titled “Maelstrom,” it was an amazingly complex and dramatic site-specific sculpture (meaning it had to be lifted by crane on to the roof in sections and then assembled there) by a young conceptual artist called Roxie Paine, and it was comprised of more than 10,000 pieces and weighed over seven tons! We were completely enthralled by the magnitude and magnificence of the piece and I am so glad that MOMA was closed that day and we witnessed this shiny steel structure instead.
So why talk about structure? Well, for one thing, we are in the month of January and the sign of Capricorn, many of whom are “builders” of one sort or another, whether it is a building, a bridge, or their career. It is the sign of the sure-footed goat that climbs up the side of the mountain ever so steadily… They are also connected with the earth, and therefore all building materials, rocks and stone. And so it occurred to me that we had not yet featured Architectural photographers up to this point, so what better month to choose, than this?
Structure also suggests something that we can practically apply to our lives and our careers. Perhaps some of us are not the most organized of people, and we need to find some structure and put order to the chaos. In business terms, that might mean simply making a marketing plan for this year, or at least a to-do list! Even if you do not complete everything, at least make a plan. And if you cannot do it all yourself, then get some help and add to your infrastructure, your framework, by installing another branch, whether it is an assistant, a bookkeeper or a consultant perhaps? Or maybe by joining another structure such as a trade organization like APA, ASMP and so on, you will find the additional support you are looking for.
For some of us, structure may be more spiritual in nature where we find ourselves needing to be more disciplined with our meditation or yoga practices. Maybe we must simply sit still for a few minutes each day, or make sure we work out several times a week and exercise regularly, or perhaps what we eat needs some attention, adjustments and “structure.” If we don’t have our health, then what do we have? So we must learn to take care of ourselves – mind, body and spirit, for if we neglect or abuse one or more of those areas, then we shall surely suffer in some way?