Sometimes life is punchy.

Originally posted on June 1, 2012

 
I have sat in front of my computer screen staring at a blank "new post" page many, many times over the last few months. And then I would type a few things and then I delete them. And then type, and delete, over and over and over again until I contemplated deleting the entire blog altogether. The thing is, it's hard to be inspirational when you yourself are feeling uninspired.

I know most of the people who read my posts - if you haven't abandoned ship (and thank you for that, BTW) - are actors or other creative-types. And most of you will probably relate to my recent frustrations. You see, sometimes casting directors struggle as much as actors do in between jobs. I know we're supposed to be these big, scary people who hold your dreams in our hands, but we are just human. We have bills to pay. We have crazy family members and friends to deal with. We have old pets with health problems. We suffer from depression and/or anxiety. We have car troubles. We have families of birds nesting in our backyards that we obsessively observe and occasionally photograph. Just me? Okay, well anyway, the point is, we are just like you!  


And each time a job finishes, I tend to get a little down. Okay, a LOT down. And then I panic because I don't know when the next job will start and what the next job will be and if I will lose my insurance and on and on and on, as all us freelance creative-types tend to do between projects. And it totally sucks.

Sometimes it just feels like life is punching you in the face from the moment you wake up until you finally fall unconscious at night, only to do it all over again the next day. And the next. And the next. But we must remember that eventually life's arm will get tired from all the punching, and the blows will become lighter and lighter until we become immune to them.

But you guys, these things only destroy us if we let them.  
And I have been letting it destroy me for the last month or so. But no mas! I say, enough with the violence already, life! Surely, a punching bag would be far better target on which to practice your fighting skills. From this moment on, I vow to learn how to bob and weave and block life's punches more effectively. Sure, there will be times I let my guard down and wallow in self-pity, and end up with a figurative swollen lip, and I might even need those times, but then I will pick myself back up, brush myself off, and put in my mouth guard. And I will be ready for you, life. I will be ready.

Now, please to enjoy photos of my happy little bird family. If anyone knows what kind of birds these are, I would love it if you would let me know in the comments! (Thanks to @PRETTYMEADOW I found out that the birds are House Finches!) Shall I name them?

Also, I'm back. Sorry about abandoning you for so long. It won't happen again. But if I run out of things to say, be prepared for bird family updates. Which will, of course, include photos. Because, eeee! Bird family in my back yard!