| Welcome to a different view on journal writing. This is Out There! Collaborations, where we want those who wish to contribute to shake things up a little bit and share a little more of themselves and their creativity in their journals.
Since real life has a tendency to intervene in all lives, this will be a once-a-month collaboration. This isn't The Sopranos, where once you're in, you're in for life. *G* Participation is a "take it as it comes" thing---there's no pre-conditions on taking part in every single collaboration. All who wish to participate are welcome to do so, and all that you need to do is e-mail me
(when you are finished) with the journal name and URL, and the entry
name and URL, so I can post it on this page for the world to see. My only requirements are that you provide a link back to this page, so that everyone gets a chance to see what everyone else involved is doing, AND that you have fun with this, and open yourselves up to the
possibilities.
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| TOPIC FOR
MAY 2001:
After a month's hiatus, the collaboration is back with a new topic for this month, on imagination, and creativity. First, create a scenario in which a part of your life is the basis for a play, a movie, or a TV show. Who would portray you? What would the plot be? Feel free to be as specific or as general as you wish, regarding the plot and the medium you would create this scenario for. Then, explain how easy or how difficult it was for you to create something like this---what was most interesting to you about this creative process? Is using your imagination something that comes easy for you, or do you find it difficult to express yourself in a creative manner? Do you daydream a lot? Do you admire creativity, or do you prefer something less open to interpretation? Could you see yourself pursuing something creative in your future endeavors? |
| Name | Journal | Entry title |
| Deadline for this collaboration is June 4, 2001. |
| TOPIC FOR MARCH 2001:
This month, explore the relationships between you and your parents. (In the interests of modern times, feel free to incorporate all meanings of the concept of “parents” as you see fit.) What kind of relationship do you have with them? What kind of relationships do you wish you had with them, and with whom are you closer? What events have shaped how you view your parents, and how you relate to them? Do you find that you grow closer or more estranged from the folks as time goes by? What, if anything, would you change? How has the way these people raised you affected how you view life? What have you learned? |
| TOPIC FOR FEBRUARY 2001:
This month, the topic is love. What is love, to you? Using MORE THAN ONE previous dating/romantic experience, show some of the highlights of love from your point of view. Discuss the best in all aspects of love, from courtship to commitment. For example, what was the best introduction you had to someone? The best date? The most romantic experiences? The most fulfilling relationship? The best sex? (Feel free to add your own positive love experiences to those already mentioned.) Using positive aspects of your love life from more than one source of experience, discuss the positive ways love has affected your life and times. Did the good times you've experienced override some of the less-positive times of your love life? |
| TOPIC FOR JANUARY 2001:
What are you afraid of? What are some things that you fear in life? Tell about some instances where your fear and anxiety were strong enough to interfere in your life. What was it like to feel that intimidated or fearful about something? What steps have you taken to overcome your fears and anxieties? Have you been able to help people overcome their fears in any way? What role has fear played in your life, and how have your feelings about fear evolved? What are we afraid of? |
| TOPIC FOR DECEMBER 2000:
This month, the topic is friendship. What kind of people do you surround yourself with as your friends? Do you find yourself more comfortable with people your own age, or does that matter? Do you like to surround yourself with lots of people, or do you like to have a smaller, more tight-knit group around? How easy or difficult is it for you to meet new people/make new friends? Is it easier or harder to make friends using the Internet, and what kind of positive effect has meeting friends online had on your life? What are a couple of the greatest kindnesses a friend has shown to you? Share some of your opinions on the concept of friendship. |
| TOPIC FOR NOVEMBER 2000:
This month, examine the issues surrounding sex appeal. What is it, to you? Does it include physical traits? Intellectual? Emotional? A combination of those things, or something different? What would your potential mate have in terms of sex appeal? How would you assess your own sex appeal? (Be fair and objective.) How have your view of what and whom is sexy changed over time? Is sexual appeal likely to change again for you? What principles do you/did you have, when looking for that special someone? How rigid or flexible are those principles? |
| TOPIC FOR OCTOBER 2000:
What does “spirituality” mean to you? Does it mean belief in a specific religious dogma or other principle, or does it mean something that is more secular and cosmic rather than religious? What were your spiritual beliefs when you were younger? Have they evolved, and if so, how? Was there a specific event in which your beliefs were strongly tested, to the point of having to reconsider what you held to be true? If your beliefs are different than those your family and friends have, how accepting are they of you and your beliefs now? Does spirituality hold a high priority in your life? |
| TOPIC FOR SEPTEMBER 2000:
Describe the most powerful you have felt in your life. What were the circumstances surrounding the feelings of total control and power over that given situation? How did it feel, and was it a feeling that you would want to repeat? By the same token, describe the most powerless you have felt in your life, and apply the same questions to that situation. Do you prefer control over most every situation, or do you prefer a more relaxed attitude towards things? |
| Name | Journal | Entry title |
| Doug | Virtual Exile | Power |
| Cris | Silent All These Years | Power Trip |
| Chris | Lobo Solo | His future in my hands? |
| Tom | Out There | The Power |
| Terry | Random Notes | Power Trip |
| TOPIC FOR AUGUST 2000:
If you were given a chance to live in another time and place, when and where would you choose to go, and why? What is it about this time and place that appeals to you so strongly? What would be happening to you, and around you? What would you miss about current times, and what would you gladly leave behind? What would it take for you to make such a drastic change in your life? |
| TOPIC FOR JULY 2000:
Think back to being a teenager, in your high school years. What were you like back then? What kind of a person were you in high school? For example, were you a jock? A bookworm? Part of the "in" crowd, or on the outside looking in? How did who you are in high school affect how you see yourself these days? If you had a chance to change something about yourself from high school, what would it be? |