Co² is Square

While watching the news yesterday a fact came up that shocked me.
Global CO2 emissions from oil, (stone) coal and other fossil fuels have increased by 29% this decade. Which is almost 30%. Which is way too much!
From 2000 to 2007, the global CO2 emissions from fossil fuels rose annually by about 3.6%. That is three times more than in the 90's, when the annual increase was still 1%. Most of these emissions are due to man.
We're punching Mother Nature in the face, turning our backs and saying "I'm sorry" doesn't even cross our minds.
We need to act. And fast.

Let me copy/paste something from an article from the New York Times' Green Inc. Blog: "Governments, negotiators and campaigners now say the Barcelona talks – and the Copenhagen summit that follows – will not make, or break, global climate policy. (...)Yvo de Boer, the U.N.’s climate chief, said it would be “physically impossible” to conclude a deal this year."
Let me be bold. If we keep accepting these increases and not conclude a deal and make a change soon, it'll be "physically impossible" to do anything but sit back and watch humanity fade away. I'm talking wipe-out.

Pitch in people. You may think this subject is boring, and you may not be interested in our earth's health. Let me tell you. We're just dots. Little dots in this enormous galaxy. I often hear friends saying the following phrase when they're having a bad day: "Life's a bitch." Yes, your life is insignificant. But I always reply: "It's what you make of it."
Let me be clear. Without this planet, there is no life. Not even a bitchy one.

I don't want to scare, annoy or anger anyone with this. But wake up. And do something.

Here's a little list of things you can do yourself:

- Stop eating red meat (you have no idea how much a cow contributes to CO2 emissions).
- Stop buying plastic bottles and bottles of water. Heat it up, filter it and put it in an eco-friendly, reusable water bottle. Get a Kleen Kanteen one, an Aquasana glass one or a sym.blue.ology blue glass one with a message.
- Now that I think about it, get your things in a shop. Save money on shipping costs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions (you have no idea how much transportation contributes to CO2 emissions). And if you can, go to the shop by bike or on foot. That's how I do everything.
- Save up money and get solar panels.
- Use low energy light bulbs.
- Back to the roots, the way they do it in Brazil because water is scarce and expensive: harvest your rainwater.

On Carbon Footprint, you can calculate your own carbon footprint and learn how to reduce emissions and save costs.

Whatever you do... Act.

Have a healthy, conscious and aware day.

Jolene

Life lesson

It's all about one fourletterword:

LOVE

J.

The Ink Issue: What A Beautiful Mess.

I am fascinated by tattoos. Especially on women.
There's just something about them. In a world where Mattel invented the Barbie doll and introduced a stereotypical image of how women should be, I am thrilled to see that more and more women are going back to an artform that has been past on from one culture to another, surrounding themselves with elements of themselve. Being it a quote, a portrait or something abstract, I believe every tattoo has its meaning. It's a way of putting out there what is already in you, without the fear of being judged.

I used to think a tattoo was something you had to be a hundred percent sure of, because it sticks to your skin for good. No turning back. So no regrets. But even the silliest thing is not worth regreting, because it marks who you were. And if you change, it marks your evolution.
Of course, if you're not satisfied with your evolution or just made a wrong move by not thinking it through, there's always laser removal.

Before I got my first tattoo about two months ago, I talked to some people to see what their opinion was about the whole tattooing thing. Most of them tried to talk me out of it. I scheduled my appointment without telling anyone, besides two of my closest friends, and went off and got it anyway. Reactions afterwards were "It actually looks really good." Lesson: Do not let anyone talk you out of something you have set your mind to after careful consideration. You might ask them for their opinion. But they are not you.

I'm not Jesus, and not trying to convert you into something you're just not into. But if you are looking for some inspiration, here are some beautiful, tattooed women.

Inked Magazine - Quotes, stars, portraits, custom-made designs,etc...

Betty Lipstick - Hearts, dragons, roses, etc...

Kat Von D - Tattoo artist specialized in portraits, mostly black and grey.

Known From LA Ink & her shop High Voltage Tattoo

Murielle Scherre

Belgian designer of the lingerie label La Fille d'O - has a bow, pin-ups, the word "Amor", cherries, etc...



A random girl in Barcelona with leopard print and a cupcake

A tattoo is a true poetic creation, and is always more than meets the eye. - V. Vale and Andrea Juno, Modern Primitives

Show me a man with a tattoo and I'll show you a man with an interesting past. - Jack London

You may lose your most valuable property through misfortune in various ways. You may lose your house, your wife and other treasures. But of your moko, you cannot be deprived except by death. It will be your ornament and companion until your last day. - Netana Whakaari of Waimana

Ink to paper is thoughtful. Ink to flesh, hardcore. If Shakespeare were a tattooist, we'd appreciate body art more. - Carrie Latet

Tattooing is about personalizing the body, making it a true home and fit temple for the spirit that dwells inside it. Tattooing therefore, is a way of keeping the spiritual and material needs of the body in balance. - Michelle Delio

But! Think before you ink! I'm sure you don't want to look like our famous Belgian tattooed girl aka 56-stars-on-your-face when you're 85.

Jackie

Facebook: Filter!

Alright, so I was going through all sorts of subjects for new blogposts and doing some research, when all of a sudden I bumped into a humungous amount of "fanpages" titled "Artist X sucks", "F*&# off Artist Y", "Artist Z, you're a f***" on Facebook.
Seriously. What the heck is wrong with these people?
Okay, so you might not like a certain artist. Tell me, what do you get from calling him a something something on a worldwide communication page? Is it going to make your day and enlighten yourself? If so, it sounds like you might need to sort yourself out and start looking for some useful occupations.
I go gaga when people start dissing eachother like it's the most common thing to do. Seriously, it's not. That's your imagination. Or maybe you just have some mental disorder you need to deal with. Especially when it comes to music.

Music goes back to the Paleolithic era when humans began to produce the earliest works of art. Who are you to destroy a monkey's work of art? That monkey being your forefather, hanging around with the forefather of the one you just dissed.

Seriously though, music is one of the few things we do not engage in war for. It's a universal language that everybody speaks, no matter what your cultural background is. You get it and you appreciate it, even if it's not your own.

Music expresses feeling and thought, without language. It was below and before speech, and it is above and beyond all words.  - Robert G. Ingersoll

Get the message? Exactly. Shhhhh...


Dear Facebook,
You're a wonderful invention for communication. And I'm all for free speech, otherwise I wouldn't have this blog. But filter your shizzang, will you?
Sincerely
J.

Supermodels Supernatural

German photographer Peter Lindbergh is tired of subjects in fashion magazines looking like overly-Photoshopped "objects from Mars". “My feeling is that for years now it has taken a much too big part in how women are being visually defined today. Heartless retouching should not be the chosen tool to represent women in the beginning of this century.”, he told the New York Times.
For Harper's Bazaar's September 2009 issue he captured supermodels such as Amber Valletta, Helena Christensen, Claudia Schiffer and Cindy Crawford without make-up or excessive retouching.
I love black and white photography, and have always admired 30-40 something women with long hair, minimal make-up and a natural glow. The two combined are devine.
Natural all the way baby, let's start capturing beauty as it is.

Off to an exhibition of Belgian photographer Stephan Vanfleteren now. He specializes in B&W's too and portrays artists, actors, writers, directors, musicians and other people who express themselves through their profession. He also captures events from world conflict zones as well as every day life around the world. Check out his work here

Little Girl, Big Blog: Tavi "Style Rookie" Gevinson

Meet Tavi Gevinson. A 13-year-old fashion blogger from Chicago who started "Style Rookie" about a year and a half ago and has had over 4 million readers since then. She has become a popular guest at fashion shows, and posed on pictures with designers as Yohji Yamamoto and Marc Jacobs. A lot of people praise her talent and look at her as if she were some kind of wonderchild. Others are sceptical and question her credibility. Why is this kid so articulate for her age? And how does she know so much about fashion and designers at such a young age?

I'm not going to butt in on the pros and cons, I'm just sharing something I think is quite remarkable.

I can say this though: as a kid, I was really curious too. And pretty smart. Always getting straight A's, provoking jealousy from peers and receiving kudos from adults who thought I had an amazing brain for my age. To me, I was just normal. As the years go by and you experience life, certain things change. And certain things just stick to your core. A gift, as this little girl has in writing, should be admired. But she's still a kid. And fashion can be a harsh world. Let's hope she stays true to who she is and what she loves to do, without losing her innocence.

In addition to this, an article appeared in Eosmagazine.eu today saying most children who were born in prosperous countries after the year 2000 will probably live up to be a hundred years old. If that's true, lots of remarkable things are headed our way if you ask me. Tavi won't be the last.

"It's a new day"

The first thing I think about when the month October knocks on our earth's door is my birthday. Not for presents, or parties or even celebration. I try to celebrate me being here every day.

My birthday to me, is a time of standing still and reflecting on who I am . Your birthdaymonth defines a huge part of your personality without you even controlling it in the first place. Astrology, exactly.

In 19 days, I'm turning 20. From then on I'll have number 2 in my age for the next ten years at least. Bye bye teen years. Officially.

The past month has been incredibly intense, and some things haven't been properly digested yet. See: no blog entries.

One thing I want to hold on to though, is this: do what you feel you want or need to do. Things won't ever fall into place entirely if you don't. And why wouldn't you anyway? Don't set yourself boundaries that aren't real. Anything is possible. So sing, dance, go bungee jumping, visit Machu Picchu, climb Mount Everest if you want to. Live.

I'll be trying to share a lot more on this blog. More fun stuff, stories I find are incredible, things that cross my mind.
Music. Art. Fashion. Design. Trends. Projects. Green.

I'll be trying to evoke awareness about everything that surrounds us, aswell as things that don't cross our worried minds. Occassional fortune cookie messages will still hit this blog though.

With that being said, I'm off to a concert by a local band called Kartasan. They bring you a Jazzy, Indie sound from Belgian bottom. Check them out on their Myspace page here.

Love

J

"All the world may not love a lover, but they'll be watching him"

Translation:

Replace lover by ink and it makes sence. Hu?

Cause I finally got past the being a chicken-fase and gave birth to my first tattoo yesterday!

The contractions were complicated - read: being a busy-scheduled tattoocologist, Jean from Harai Tattoo forgot to write down my appointment, but made up for it by taking me in yesterday, which here in Belgium was a holiday, so kudos for that. The discount was a sweet cherry on top of the inky icecream aswell.

The labor lasted for half an hour, it's a quick little sexless rascal, and giving birth to it wasn't painfull at all thanks to the Holy Emla, which is the abbreviation of 'Eutectic Mixture of Local Anesthetic'. Yeah, I'm not a die hard.. So sue me.

It has all its fingers and toes and although the world may not love the ink, they'll be watching it, because...





I am grateful for the day I was put into this world. It defined a part of my personality and the path that I'm taking.

Let's talk horoscopes: October 20th makes me a Libra, which gives me the characteristics of being a lover of beauty & harmony, in all aspects of life and an impartial judge, always looking for balance in everything, trying to resolve any differences by compromise. The Libran can also be changeable and indecisive, impatient of routine, which to me, makes me weigh off everything, always looking for the greater good. Let me quote the Serenity Prayer here:

God grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.

In Chinese horoscope, I'm a snake. Earth Snake to be precise, because I was born in 1989. This contains the following:

"Possessing tremendous wisdom, they are deep, quiet thinkers, calm by nature, but most intense. Being citizens of the world, they often get involved in great causes, bigger than life, and often serve as mentors to the young. To paraphrase Confucius, they have a kind of inner beauty that arises, hovers, then comes to nest."

Known snake people include Mahatma & Indira Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Grace Kelly, Jacqueline Kennedy, Edgar Allen Poe and Bob Dylan. And as I just found out... Jason Mraz...

This all isn't coming out of my mouth, I'm quoting Tuvy, a website that provides resources such as Asian literature, recipes and horoscopes. I can only take peace in believing this is all true. And hope I can live up to the toes of great men as Ghandi, Lincoln and M.L. King.

This tattoo isn't just an ink blot engraved in my skin for life. It's my way to celebrate my life on earth and show gratitude towards the universe, my parents and the gift they have created for me. Therefore, I thank you.

Always yours

Jolene

"Next time you have the opportunity, go on a rollercoaster"

Wauw. Just when I was thinking that maybe I should start writing without the fortune cookie messages, this one pops up. "Next time you have the opportunity, go on a rollercoaster."

Ever since I got back from Amsterdam I've been reflecting on whether or not I should go and make this worldtrip. It's something I really want to do, but have been a bit "hmmm" about, because I have no plan what so ever, no one to join me, it scares the heck out of me to be honest, and if I wanna be able to buy a few plane tickets to God knows where, I'll have to start working for a while and drop out of college.

Almost everyone who I tell my plan to -without a plan, really-, looks at me as if I were this crazy chick who has no idea what she's doing and isn't making a smart choice by not studying her ass off for the next 3 years, because "you can always take the trip after you get your degree."
Well, you know what? I'm not the kind that shares my thoughts and spreads out messages and gives advice, not to follow it myself. And yes, I am this crazy chick that has no idea what she's doing. But who does?

So here it goes: I am making this trip. I am leaving everything and everyone I know behind and I am pursuing what I truly want to do. Where it will take me, I don't know. What's going to happen to me, I have no clue. All I know is there's this voice in my head that's been talking to me for over a year now, and I don't want to ignore it any longer. This is what I need to do. I am boarding on this gigantic rollercoaster and am going to live and enjoy every single second of it. Like I said before, you only have one life and it's the one you're living right now.

Greeting you with a mind that's going a thousand miles an hour

J.

PS: Try getting away from the concrete jungle from time to time. Nature will treat you kindly.
PS II: Don't rely on technology and electronic items too much, they have no mind of their own and will leave you when you think you need them the most. So don't get attached and try going back to the basics.

"Open up your heart - it can always be closed again"

It's been a little while since I haven't written anything, mainly because I was on a citytrip to Amsterdam, but I've been back for two days now and decided it was best for me to reflect on everything and let it all sink in, rather than just blabla'ing about it without thinking it through. Because believe me, there was a lot of material to think about.

To start off me and my friend Sara didn't have any plans what so ever. We just bought a busticket with a return dated 4 days later and the only thing we knew was that we were going to the Jason Mraz concert in Westerpark the first night.
Like I mentioned in the blog below he's an amazing person and artist, and that feeling has been confirmed even more now that I've seen him live. If there's one thing you need to do if you ever get the opportunity is go to a Jason Mraz concert.

It will change your life, I'm not kidding.

So, I went to Amsterdam with the intention of finding Jason - which I did, too bad I had no clue how to get to him and see him face to face. On the other hand what would I have said anyway besides "uuuuuh"? - and what I found was something way bigger than anything I could ever imagine.

It started with two guys asking us for directions at a crossroad and ended up shifting my whole perspective on who we are and what it is we're doing here. My main inspiration was one of the crossroadguys who - strangely enough - practically has the same name as the person I look up to, being the magnificent Jason Mraz.
Same vowels, same consonants, other order.

What I found on this trip was love. Not in a cheesy, highschoolmovie-way, but the learnings of genuine love. Not only for a person, but for everything around you. I learned that what we really need to do is open up our hearts, and just let the love in. It's so easy.
Situations of not being yourself, being scared or worried, is just because you don't open up to that - yet - unknown love. And to my opinion it can never be closed again, you leave bits and pieces of your heart spreaded all over.


I'm not going to get into all the details - I could probably write pages about what I've experienced - but I'll tell you this: because of opening up for just one second, and agreeing to go and have a drink at some bar in a strange city with two complete strangers, I slept on docks, partied on a boat and met the most amazing people. Most of them have almost travelled across the entire globe, and are living my dream, which is to travel and see the world, getting to know people all over the planet, spreading peace and love, doing what it is you want to do and attend the university of life. Because that's all that matters really.

And what I've fully and consciously realized is that you really only have one life on this earth, it's the one you are living right now.

So stop worrying about the future. Stop living in the past. Live here and now. Today is a gift, that's why they call it the present.

What I'm writing here, are things we already know. But do we follow it? Do we really live it? There are so many expectations you have to live up to, so many rules, so many boundaries, and for what? Get my drift? Exactly.
Live your dream, enjoy and respect your surroundings, be aware, show your gratitude, and most of all.. don't be afraid to love and let love in.

Namaste

A new Jolene

"It may be those who do most, dream most"

Starting tomorrow it's all about dreaming: I'm going to Amsterdam with a good friend and dream away while we listen to the sweet tunes of godgifted Jason Mraz.

I have never "met" an artist so gifted as him. Both in music as in mind and spirit. Yesterday I concluded that the two best things nature gave us are sun and water. They're in complete contrast, but they combine so perfectly together. His music and personality are kind of the same. Funky, bubbly, enthusiastic. Still, contemplative and endless.

Tomorrow I'll finally see him live, after listening to his tunes for about three years, and be able to feel his energy up front. I'm grateful.


To all those in the European area: enjoy the summer, it's yours.

Jolene

"You have a quiet and unobtrusive nature"

True, cookie, true.
I'm quiet and I observe, I hold my distance and reflect before saying or doing something. Although I can be outgoing towards the people that surround me -everyone loves a party now and then-. But most of the time I'm just observing and listening. And I think sometimes you can get to know a person better by just listening to them, sometimes you don't even need words at all. A blink of an eye does say it all in some situations.

Also, when being in the surroundings of a great person I just shut my mouth completely. Words of wisdom are all I want to hear then.

I have the same thing with music. Don't get me wrong, I love to sing it out. But when you really want to get the music, the artist, the melody, it's better to just listen. You can't get it if you don't. And when you got it, then you should sing it out loud for the whole world to hear. Chant as loud as you can. That's with everything really.

Today a great person has gone home. I couldn't help it, but tears just popped into my eyes before I really got what was going on. He achieved great things, but unfortunately suffered a great deal too. I hope he found peace in his last moments, and hope that his soul can live on in peace now. I have listened to the words he sang. And I'll try to convince everyone who did the same to sing it out loud, paying a tribute to the King of Pop.

Vai com Deus

J.

"Your co-workers take pleasure in your great sense of creativity"

It might not be clear yet but what I want to do with this blog is the following: I'll open up a virtual fortune cookie as often as I can and I'll write about the prophecy, words of wisdom or quotes in my own way, with my own vision. Consider them as the trainingwheels on my tricycle. I do solemnly swear not to cheat till the cookie fits me. That's a promise. Although I don't know how I would react to a message like "You have one day left". Auwtsch. That's just harsh. But I'd write about it anyway.

First cookie: "Your co-workers take pleasure in your great sense of creativity"

Damn. That's a tough nut to crack.
As I mentioned in my intro, I study journalism. Do you have to be creative to be a journalist? Yes and no. If you want to write for a newspaper, all you have to do is follow the instructions as you were taught to: put the news in front and mention who, what, where, when and why. I think you're more of a rational person when you choose to do newspaperjournalism (is that a word?).
Not that there's anything wrong with that, the world needs its newspapers. It's just not for me. About two months ago I chose to do magazinejournalism (another weird word that's probably not mentioned in Webster's). Because I really don't like working under enormous -daily- pressure, because I'd like to write about other subjects than just the news and because, yes, I want to be a bit creative in my writing.

Now am I creative then? I don't know. Isn't everybody? Everbody has his talents, his way to solve things -even algebra equations-, a different way of thinking, writing, acting that seems surprising to another person. You know, that "Why didn't I come up with that?"-thing.
I studied at an artschool and therefore drew, painted, designed, sew, stressed and enjoyed my 'ahum' off. And I've seen a bunch of incredibly creative people. Even so, I did not pursue a career as a fashion designer, or painter, or sculpture.

I think my talent lies in the pen, and not even that really, but in my mind. And the journalismpen might not even be the right instrument for me, but it's what I work with for now. Nevertheless, most of the time I just have troubles spitting it out and sharing it. That mind of mine. Maybe out of fear. Maybe because there are very few people in my surroundings who have a similar mind. So in a way this blog is an amazing gift to me. I get to share my thinking and get to receive other's thoughts.

About the co-workers: it's June, which means we've been through mountains of agony together and now that the exams are finally done we get to relax and be chillie willie until the day we get our results. As we move to another building next year, we also leave our class behind and move along to be divided into new boxes being the radio-, magazine-, television- or newspaperpeople.
I'm grateful for every experience I had this past year at college and for the people who I have gotten to know. I can only hope you "took pleasure in my great sense of being myself".

Saluting you with a great sense of nostalgia -already-

J.

XXIII VI MMIX

The thought of getting inked seems painful, but worth every bit if what you're getting inked means something to you. It can be a variety of things, like a squid for example. I really think my good friend Sebastian should get a squid - it's his artist's name - and seeing he's the one who put me up with the idea of starting a blog because I'm studying journalism and I should practice my writing skills, I'll be putting him up with the idea of getting a squidtattoo. Fair trade.

Anyway, the reason I started talking about meaningful tattoos is the following: I want to put my date of birth on my body, as a starter. Why? Because it stands for the beginning of this incredible journey called life, mine in particular. And I'm grateful. Where? I have no idea. What are you waiting for then? I'm too chicken to get started, I admit.

I titled this first blog "XXIII VI MMIX", June 23th 2009, as the beginning of what will hopefully be an incredible bloggingjourney, where I can share my thoughts with whoever wants to read it and if I'm lucky, I'll see an amazing progress going on along the way.

Namaste (which will probably be my second tattoo, when I get past the "being a chicken" fase)

J.