Don’t forget to have fun

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A few days ago, I decided I had some time to work on the design over at my other blog, in 500 words or less. I’ve changed the look and the content countless times over the years, and I’ve never been happy with it.

Part of the trouble is that I’ve changed my WordPress theme a few times, and two years ago I got a new theme that required more tech knowledge than I had. So I had some learning to do.

It wasn’t hard to set up something simple. But it was so boring.

Then I started scribbling on the header design, and I just said to heck with it.

To heck with so much seriousness. I like to play. I like to experiment with colors.

I dream of a giant canvas—which I’ll have some day—on which I throw great gobs of colorful paint and hang it on a wall in my dining room (which is completely bare of any sort of art whatsoever). One of these days.

I’m pretty happy with the result on my other blog. It was a sort of breaking free from convention and worrying about being perfect (as if I ever could be) or trying to make it look like something I’m not. And with that, I knew I had to redesign Peaceful Planet.

Same problem here: I’ve never been happy with the design. It’s been so staid and conventional! It’s as if I’ve been afraid to have fun, to experiment, as if I could do something wrong with the design and nobody would ever visit again.

I think I’ve been altogether too serious, not only with blog design, but in my life. No surprise; I’ve had some pretty serious things going on in recent years.

But when I let loose on my other blog with the color, I felt the difference. I just had fun as I threw it all together and giggled and laughed, music blasting.

It’s not some amazing genius work of art, but who cares? It was pure expression. It came from somewhere deep inside, the same sort of place my writing comes from, especially my poetry. So it’s real, such as it is.

And that makes me happy. It’s me. Nobody else but me.

I set to work on doing something different here at Peaceful Planet today. I had the idea that I would cut out a bunch of lotus leaves and paste them around and under the lotus bud in between Peaceful and Planet and all around.

It got to be so labor intensive I got tired of it, and I just started playing.

You can see the result above. Note: the header art has been changed. Below is what I had created at the time of this post.

I just laughed and giggled and dared myself to put it up there. It’s silly and childish but guess what? Who cares! It’s fun! It’s colorful!

Some years ago, someone I cared about criticized me as I skipped down the stairs, lighthearted and happy.

“Do you always gallop down the stairs?” he asked.

Ta-dum, ta-dum, ta-DUM.

I felt like I had been slapped. But I refused to acknowledge the criticism.

“Yep!” I told him. “Why not?”

I don’t remember what else was said, but there was no way anyone was going to tell me to grow up, act conventional, act with some sort of demeanor that isn’t me.

Don’t be happy? Don’t be light-hearted? Don’t gallop down the stairs?

Ta-dum, ta-dum, ta-dum.

Why not?

Why not throw some colors together, some flowers, some butterflies? Why not have fun?

So what if it doesn’t really match the rest of the blog. Who cares? Will you hate me for it?

Doubtful. And if it bothers you, maybe you ought to think about the why of that. I’m not so sure I’ll keep it up there for very long, but why not have fun?

Galumph, galumph.

Don’t forget to have fun. Let it go. Laugh. Giggle. Be silly. Don’t care what anyone thinks. Just do it. If it’s from your heart and it’s pretty and colorful and happy and fun—or however you define happy and fun—why not? If you’re not hurting anyone, if it’s from the heart, if you’re happy, why the hell not?

You’ll get a more serious post shortly, I promise

Comments are always welcome.