Witness the Small Life – A Stormy Day

Sunshine? Rain? Wind? Snow?! What a week its been! In between my commutes from my dorm to Stamps to Hatcher to (my favorite place on campus) the Union, I’ve seen a whole year’s worth of seasons pass by sometimes in just one day! And I though last week was crazy enough. Mind you, as a Minnesotan I’ve seen my fair share of uber-chaotic weather but these past seven days may have just taken the cake. From donning sunny summer skirts to considering busting out my knee-length winter jacket, I have fully exhausted all the capabilities of my wardrobe.

In terms of the big and small of this week, it’s been mostly a lull. Loads and loads of work sprinkled between some down and up time has meant many a late nights huddled in library corners. Most notably this week I have been especially grateful to know as many people as I do on campus and most importantly feeling like I can say hi to most every one of them. At the beginning of the year my most fear-ridden task was actually going out and meeting people. It was hard at times, but once you commit to going out and doing something you’ll have a high chance of getting to know a great amount of amazing people. I encourage everyone out there to at least do a little wave to an acquaintance or two you see on your commute to class. It makes everyone feel loved! And when does the world ever stop needing some love in it?

To take into our next week:

Ins: Working in the Hatcher stacks, sappy 00s ballads, cabbage, taking walks even if you could bus it, Faygo, going to random events even if you’re nervous (you never know what’ll happen!), appreciating really good typography.

Outs: Not breaking in your shoes the right way, only having a really big umbrella and a really small umbrella, rude bus drivers, falling asleep with headphones on, using way too much dry shampoo.

Here’s to warmer weather (knock on wood!) or at least more consistent weather! No more juggling games of sweaters, umbrellas, hats, oh my!

Witness the Small Life – Battle Royale

All is fair in lunch and war!

As the great OK Go stated (more or less) twas a week full of upside downs and inside outs indeed! From beautiful skies to devious windchill, not only has the weather been a rollercoaster but so has my to-do list. It’s felt like I’ve simultaneously had nothing to do while having nothing to do and vice versa. I’ve been jumping from place to place every which way, but in between all of this commotion there’s been some great moments of rest, relaxation, and rollicking!

With our first full week back in the full swing of things, there were a few big moments! Most of all I had my work shown in my first college art show thank to the newly formed club The Stampede on campus. Whether you draw, paint, sculpt, write, or anything in between, consider submitting your work for their next show! It was amazing to not only see my work among so many other beautiful pieces but also talk to and celebrate with other art majors and non-art majors alike.

Some other highlights of this week: Celebrating my friend’s birthday with balloon guests and Spirited Away, (badly) playing a Tekken Tournament and singing along to YouTube karaoke with friends, and in general doing SO much more drawing everyday!

To take into our next week:

Ins: Telling people you think they’re awesome, the color green, admitting defeat (in a cordial manner), mismatched socks, Wisconsin cheese, using the word awesome!

Outs: Impulsive spending, forgetting to floss, watching really bad TV shows just to have something on in the background, chipping at nail polish, forgetting to bring a hat on really cold night walks home from the library.

Happy (or not so happy) Daylight Savings to you all and let us all hope for some more permanent blue skies ahead of us!

Witness the Small Life – Together in Toronto!

“When in Rome!”

This spring break the stars and planets aligned well enough for me and my friends to grace beautiful Toronto with our presence! From Kensington Market to Cabbagetown, we probably supplied the Canadian economy with enough money to last them till next spring break. Although we didn’t get to climb atop the fabled CN tower, we found many things to love about this Great White Northern city.

Because of so many of the amazing sights we got to see, it was a little hard to pick out my absolute favorite small things of this week. Overall, letting the tide of the city sway our adventures most likely encapsulates the most fulfilling parts of this trip. This week reminded me that even 45 minute long train rides squished between groups of commuters and students alike can be made meaningful with the right people beside you. Even if you stayed at home (whether that be Ann Arbor or beyond) or went to even more captivating places around the world, I hope you were able to spend beautiful quality time with those you love.

To take into our next week:

Ins: Taking pictures even if its obvious that you’re a moony-eyed tourist, carrying a water bottle everywhere, taking notes in tiny notebooks, jeans, public transportation!

Outs: Not listening to your body when you need a break, overpacking, sleeping through 5 different alarms every morning, forgetting to put in earrings, not tying your shoelaces.

Good luck to everyone with tests, critiques, midterms, projects, and everything in between! We are almost to the finish line <3

Witness the Small Life – Serenade on Comm South

Hi everyone! Welcome to my first post for my series Witness the Small Life. Through weekly doodles and photo-collages, I hope to encourage myself and you all to remember to stop, smell the roses, and appreciate the littlest parts of our lives that make them full.

A quick little introduction of me: My name is Mia and I’m currently a freshman studying Art and Design! I was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota but I’m happy I get to call Ann Arbor home now too. Some of my favorite artists include: Basquiat, Norman Rockwell, Julie Mehretu, and Ricardo Levins Morales (also from Minneapolis!). I currently love illustration and printmaking, and I’m hoping to become a teaching artist (or something along those lines) when I graduate. Besides art, I also love to crochet, roller skate, watch really cheesy movies, and listen to pretty much every genre of music under the sun.

With every drawing I do, I’ll include a little blurb about it/the things that happened within my week. Consider these posts a kind of diary/word salad/thought catcher of sorts. This week was a little bit of a hard one. I’ve been getting super homesick and with a bunch of last minute work right before spring break, everything felt extremely overwhelming. But, I’m lucky to have friends here to pull me out of those difficult moments and spend time singing on buses in the middle of the night with me. This week, I also took time to draw for myself instead of just for class. Keeping a steady art practice is so important! I’m so neglectful of making art for me and not for the sake of others, so even if it’s just a doodle a day it really helps to just do it! Even if everything you make sucks (in theory!) or you feel the imposter syndrome coming on yet again, consistency is key.

I’m a person who has a lot of thoughts, so I hope to share these with you to start our new weeks refreshed and with some words to chew on. I’m a big list fan, so here’s a list of my ins and outs for our upcoming spring break week!

Ins: Singing MORE, taking time to just sit in silence and stare at things, patching up holes, watching more movies on DVD, napping midday with the curtains open, smiling at strangers even if they don’t smile back.

Outs: Letting dirty dishes pile up, wearing too-tight shoes at the wrong times (even if they look super cool), sleeping in my mascara, popping cough drops like they’re candy, forgetting to text people back even if it’s just liking a video they sent.

Have a fantastic spring break and enjoy the small life out there! <3