Thursday 1 May 2008

LTLYM

The website www.learningtoloveyoumore.com lists several ‘assignments’ – activities that are creative or emotive, or a bit of both – some of which I’ve listed below, others I’ve adapted as I choose. In my opinion, the rules they’re built around are not sacrosanct, so merrily break them for your own pleasure. Then again, sometimes the creative constraints are what make them fun.

#4 Give a lecture or talk, or start a lecture series, convene a lecture circle, organise an evening of short talks. You can choose who speaks, who to invite to listen, how long for, and – if you want to – even choose the subjects too. You don’t even have to speak yourself if you don’t want to. So many conversations end before the listener has heard enough, or before the speaker has said all that they want to. Make a pot of tea. A living room or a back garden feels like the right sort of scale to me, but you might think otherwise.

#67 Repair something. Find something that is broken that can't be used anymore. Not an electrical appliance or a clothing item – choose a piece of furniture, or a kitchen utensil, or a suitcase or simple tool, like a rake; the kind of thing that you would usually throw out when it breaks. Imagine that you cannot easily get another one. Now repair it. Make it completely usable again. In fact, make it stronger and better than it was before.

#18 Recreate a poster you had as a teenager. Don’t look it up, just draw it from memory. It doesn’t matter if the drawing isn’t accurate as remembering is the point. Show someone else.

#55 Photograph a significant outfit. - Remember exactly what you were wearing during a recent significant moment. Maybe it was the day that your cousin was born, or the day you decided something important. Lay out what you were wearing on the floor, as if you are dressing an invisible, flat person. Don't forget the other things that complete your outfit such as jewellery etc. Stand on a chair or table and photograph the clothes from directly above. Write a few words about why the moment is important.

#39 Take a picture of your parents kissing (or at least hugging). Not an older picture of your parents, a new picture taken specifically for this assignment.

#14 Write your life story in less than a day - In no less than one hour and no longer than 24 hours write your entire life story starting with your birth and ending with today. Try to get as many details in as possible. Don't feel frustrated by the time limitation, it will make the task less daunting, (besides you have the rest of your life to write a more complete version if you want to!) at the same time seriously try to remember everything you can from your life so far.

#36 Grow a garden in an unexpected spot - Find an unexpected public place that you can plant flowers seeds in and water over a period of time.

#16 Make a paper replica of your bed - Using paper, cardboard, coloured pencils, glue and/or tape, make replicas of your sheets, blankets, comforters, pillows and anything else that comprises your bed. Then assemble them the way you assemble your bed. The completed bed should be roughly the length of a pencil. Take special care to reproduce details, like the patterns on the fabric.

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