At 6 am there is lightness in the sky. It is not yet daylight, but the promise is there. From this point forward towards summer is always an exciting time. The days get longer and warmer and one looks forward to the frenzied growth energy of spring time slipping quietly into the warmth and glow of summer. The days have been getting longer for several weeks now, but by such small increments that it takes a while to fully realize the subtle differences. Now, with lightness beginning before 6 am and lasting until after 6 pm, one finally senses the change.

Energy increases, not only within you, but within everything around you. There will still be much cold weather, but it will be teasingly interspersed with warm days of promise. We had such a day just recently. The grey clouds departed and the sun shone in a clear sky. There was warmth to it its rays. Doors were flung open to welcome the fresh air in and chase out the stale oxygen-depleted reminder of long winter days indoors. People and dogs were out walking and talking, visiting with friends and chatting to strangers, happy to be outside again. People sat out on their doorsteps soaking in the sun's rays. You could feel the expectation, the promise, in the air.

The ice on the river is beginning to melt. Small sections are clear, and tiny holes appear in other areas, where the current bubbles up and water flows atop the ice creating interesting little fountains pushing up from below.

The milder weather brings out the birds. They flit about calling for mates, gathering bugs, looking for nesting sites. The smell of damp earth fills the air as the snow slowly melts away and I begin to see patches of earth appearing midst the snow covered landscape. There are small openings on the anthills where the sun has melted the snow and the woodpeckers are busy there looking for grubs to feast upon.

I hear rumours that about 250 miles west at the Coast (where the climate is milder) there are buds appearing on the forsythia. It gladdens my heart. I know that we have made it through the long, cold months and Spring is definitely on its way.

The deer persist in trying to find something worth eating in my garden. They too are probably impatient for spring and tender green shoots.

Then, late yesterday afternoon, the temperature dropped and it began to snow. The sparkles in the air and the quiet that snow brings reminded me of Christmas Eve. It has snowed on and off for most of the night and this morning, everything is white once more. But the warmth will return. This is just a minor set back. A reminder that it is still winter. It puts me on notice to get all my winter tasks completed before spring actually arrives, as I will not want to be indoors when it does!

Read a linked note on my facebook profile yesterday that caught my interest because it was about 'baby boomers' and I was curious about what they had to say. What I read prompted me to respond, which I seldom do. I usually just read, add to my info cache and leave it at that. I probably responded a little too abruptly, but some of the remarks raised my hackles. My comment presumably raised the same response with the writer of the article, as I got a personal email from her. I must commend her on that, as comments on websites seldom get personal responses. Many writers just post and leave it at that. I thank her for replying because it did give me further insight.

The article, "How to Reach Baby Boomers with Social Media" was posted on ReadWriteWeb.com and quoted some research from Forrester Research which suggested that the consumption of social media by Baby Boomers had increased over the past year. I have no objection to that statement. It probably has. And I realize that the writer was probably intending to add information for her readers that would help them make informed decisions on how to direct their advertising budget. In other words, she was trying to be helpful and add information of value.

What I had difficulty with - what actually got me angry - were the following comments;

"A new report from Forrester Research revealed some surprising information: apparently Baby Boomers aren't exactly the technology Luddites that people think they are."

"The one thing that Boomers are less likely to do in the online world is actually create content - outside of updating their online profiles and leaving blog comments, that is. Boomers are still not involved heavily in writing blog articles or creating videos and posting them online."

"The best bets for getting Boomers interested in your content is to create blogs or videos that relate to the life or work-style of Boomers, Forrester suggests. And if you're looking for feedback and contributions from the Boomers themselves - like comments or criticisms - make that process dead simple. Don't introduce overly complex sign up forms or processes. Instead, encourage low-effort contributions such as star ratings."

When I questioned who they interviewed to come up with this information I received a personal email from the writer with links to Forresters statements on how the information was gathered. That was very kind. Also very interesting. A part of Forrester's statement follows;

"The sample was drawn from members of MarketTools’ online panel, and respondents were motivated by a sweepstakes drawing. The sample provided by MarketTools is not a random sample. While individuals have been randomly sampled from MarketTools’ panel for this particular survey, they have previously chosen to take part in the MarketTools online panel."

I'm just guessing here, but I would think those criteria just cut out a massive segment of the population. I know that they cut me out, and many of my acquaintances as well. I do believe that market research plays an important role in business decisions, but I also believe that we should look at that research very carefully before rushing in like lemmings to join the 'gang' with the latest 'trends'. Understand what the biases are and what weights the statistics in one direction or the other.

If you want to read the complete article or Forrester's statement about the data used ;
North American Social Technographics® Online Survey, Q2 2007

From my own personal experience, I see something quite different. The links that follow are to websites of a few acquaintances who certainly do not fit into the 'category' discussed in the article.

http://www.ozameilleur.com/
http://keysupport.co.uk/index.html
http://imaginingthetenthdimension.blogspot.com/
http://patobryan.com/blog/
http://allancockerill.com/
http://www.careerchangecourse.com/
http://www.howtotradeoptions.nzmkr.com/
http://www.womenandweight.com/about/

Of course, with due regard to being honest, this list has been arbitrarily gathered from people who first had to happen along to my facebook profile and send a friend request AND seem to fit into the age category of between 43 and 63 that researchers categorize as 'Boomers'. I didn't actually ask any of them to confirm their age! The point I am making here is that 8 people out of the 130 some odd that I have as friends is, I believe, a larger percentage of 'arbitrarily chosen' people than the 5,000 or 10,000 Americans and Canadians that the company used for their own research.

I am not saying that research is a 'bad' thing, I am saying it has to be understood how easy it is to come at the numbers with unintentional societal biases that just don't pan out to be a realistic view of the world, because it is a global interaction we have, and we need to carefully examine these biases if we want to get along and change the way we function in this world. It seems to me that consumer research would be one good place to start as it has such an impact on our lives.

'And now for something completely different......' this is one of the recent illustrations I completed for a book by Rob Bryanton of  Imagining the tenth dimension. One could say that things are not always as they appear.

Throughout my history of creating things I have often felt at odds with comments of others about my work as well as my own feelings about what I had created that time around. Sometimes I stand back and look at the finished work and wonder where it came from. Even now sometimes I come across things I have written or painted and feel a sense of puzzlement. "Does this really sound like me? Did I say that?" I think, as I read the words. Or "How did I think about connecting those objects?" when I look at a painting. I can't always come up with an answer. I don't know where it came from. Don't know how I reached those conclusions.

For the last few months I have been focused on creating illustrations for a book that is looking for a publisher. I didn't write the book, I'm just doing the illustrations for it. But it is very obvious that the author, Rob Bryanton, has had inspiration of his own and is putting it all together in a way that is unique. Sometimes when I look at the work I have created for it I try to pinpoint where the ideas came from - how did I figure it out. The best answer I can come up with is that I feel it. I focus on the idea I am wanting to portray and some sensation rises within that leads me in certain directions... makes the decision for me as to which medium I should start experimenting with, and what shapes or objects to put together before the conscious answer in my head 'yeah, round circles and wavy lines might express that feeling'. The decision seems to come first, then the logic that interprets it.

In this TED video, Elizabeth Gilbert discusses the creative process within the context of social attitudes, and how those attitudes reflect on the creator. She points out that society has not always looked on creative thought as belonging to the artist alone. I agree with her. I don't feel that my creative impulses belong only to me. There is something involved in the process that is much bigger than me. Something that keeps me working at it whether I receive social acceptance or 'success' in the view of those around me, or not. After struggling many times with the 'why bother' feeling that sticks its head up now and then, I have come to the conclusion that it is not up to me to decide whether my work is worthy or not - it is only up to me to do the work. To keep doing the work.

I agree with her idea that it is time we started looking at creativity from a different point of view. The one we operate under now stifles many people who could be creative. They are blocked from attempting anything by a fear of success and failure. Yes, you can be afraid of both at the same time, because each brings with it other expectations and reactions from those around you that reflect on you personally - at least in their eyes. The social stigma can be overwhelming. Even when you make it past the "I don't get it" comments (knowing that not everyone can think outside the box artistically); even past comments that the colours aren't right (knowing they are trying to match their sofa); and past the comments that the price is too high (understanding that they have no idea how long it took you to create it, and that they are just hoping to brag about the great deal they got). Even then, you still have to get past the subtle reactions of others when they ask you what you do and your reply includes artist or writer or musician or dancer or any number of other creative fields. It's a subtle shift in their attitude, but a shift none-the-less. You can almost see them attaching labels and expectations to you. If you state that you are a bookkeeper, people don't ask if you have done work internationally or how much success you have had with it. They don't ask if you make a living from it. They don't expect you to do weird things, be emotional about stuff, or wonder what you are hiding if you dress in ordinary clothes. The oddest part is that I know bookkeepers (and I don't mean in terms of fudging the books), scientists and mechanics who are also extremely creative. They are artists or photographers or musicians as well as bookkeepers, scientists and mechanics.

What I don't believe though, is the idea that creative people are alone with this 'gift from the universe' of some ethereal voice within that drives them to do things. We are not holders of something weird and different that sets us apart. I believe it is something that all of us draw upon, no matter what profession we are involved in, no matter what lifestyle we live. It is the force within that leads the architect to put the plans together in a new and different way; the energy that directs the research scientist to try a new experiment,or look at an old one in a different way; it is the hunch that the policeman follows to solve a mystery; the sense the farmer has that the weather is going to change or that something is wrong with one of his animals. We all have that 'muse', but some of us call on it more than others. Some of us have developed more sensitivity to it.

We definitely need a new perspective on creativity because we all hold that ability within us. And don't tell me that you couldn't possibly be creative because you can't draw a straight line with a ruler! That has absolutely nothing what-so-ever to do with being creative. Creativity is just a word that refers to the process of having an original insight.