Life is all about stories. Everything we are is about a story. The bible is full of stories. Stories are what make the world go round. We are a collection of memories. Our lives are about experiences and reflections. Each one is another story. I love a good story, and I enjoy storytelling.

Storytelling in the professional sense is a hard gig. If your livelihood is about storytelling then I can empathize. Not an easy path to take in life. I am not a professional writer, but when I listen to my friends who are, man, it is not an easy path. Expression is a beautiful thing and to write is soulful, but if you write for a living, that is not easy work.

I am always writing stuff down. Ideas, experiences, lessons, funny situations, anecdotes, wisdom … I love capturing inspired thoughts. When I am with interesting people and someone shares a nugget I have to write it down. This year has been a particular busy year in the story department. I even have a war story in my collection. Not something I would wish on anyone. No one thought that after 2020 and 2021 that things could get any crazier but if you were living in Ukraine then 2022 is a story like none other.

The thing about the storytelling business is that it is very hit and miss. I have some experience in book publishing and a lot of experience with indie film making. When you create an independent full length film you are highly vulnerable, emotionally and financially. You work and work and work and it all boils down to about 90 minutes of story that once finished, well, that is it. There is no going back. This is very different to other businesses where you may have a good month or a bad month. If you run a restaurant, for example, and business is slow you can always try different things, like creative marketing, new menus, etc. But if you make a film and no one wants to see it, well, then, all you can do is try again one day with another project. Not easy on the soul, or the wallet. Most indie films stay on the shelf. That is the nature of the visual storytelling industry. Very few successful projects. Lots and lots of pain and dreams gone wrong. But when it does work it can be magical.

I am working with a small team on a documentary film project called “57” which asks the question: Why is the crime in South Africa so violent? Not an easy subject to discuss and it was a first time documentary for all of us involved and we have had many painful lessons. In the past few months in particular our character has been tested in a big way. So many curve balls, so few nights of any sleep. We have to deliver to the broadcaster at the end of this month so one way or the other this project is coming to a close. Almost 3 years of rollercoaster work and then, just like that, it is all over. This is a fundamental thing that is different about storytelling work. When the project is done, all that remains is the next project. If we are brave enough to try again.

I am confident to say that “57” has turned out rock solid. It is a compelling and powerful story and it will get people thinking and hopefully taking positive action. What a journey it has been. We are almost at the end. We could probably tell an entertaining and interesting story about how this film got made. Maybe one day.

Wow, I am 55 today and next week I travel to Ukraine … but that is another story for another day.

I read this quote online the other night during a Bun shift and I started dreaming, er, thinking. I have seen these words many years ago but it was good reading them again now. “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once they grow up.” – Pablo Picasso

I know I need to grow up. Well, a bit. I have been needing to do this for a long long time. The war was indeed a wake up all. Actually, more like a freezing cold shower. Nothing like a shock to the system and a loss of innocence for the “growing up” vibe to kick in. And then, I sit and play for a bit with the Bunster this morning and go “Nah. Maybe some other time.”

Here is something I put in a blog post from a while ago. Some dialogue from a film where a man and a woman are talking. He is showing her a picture of his two kids from a photo in his wallet. And she says to him, “Are your kids special?” He answers her with passion, “They are very very special.” She looks at him and goes, “Everyone’s kids are special. So how come with all these special kids in the world we have so many ordinary adults.” Very good question.

The thing about the Bunster is that if is not climbing a giant strawberry he is playing with a ball. A simple round, inexpensive, non-digital object, and the Bun man is excited. He is pure innocent passion. He gets so excited when you whip out a ball. When you are all grown up this kind of excitement is rare. The Bun man inspires me. I know he is just a toddler but I want to be more like him. He laughs with his entire being. He is fascinated by everything and he is constantly amazed. The sun fascinates him. I hope he stays like this, even into his 50s.

Now this is a bit of a creepy story. I was writing a post here on my personal blog which is hosted by WordPress, and I have had this short story in my drafts folder for over four weeks, just percolating. The day after I started this draft I got an auto-mailer message from WordPress to say that the image in the blog had been removed because I violated their community service rules. This is the same meme that got me deleted off of FB. The thing is, this was not on my blog, it was in my drafts. It had not been published. This is pretty much like eavesdropping.

I have many notes/ideas in my drafts that are private and have not been published, and some may never see the light of day. But these are my private ideas. I was still thinking about whether to post that trouble making meme, but WordPress beat me to it. I get the hint. Their AI bot did not like it. Software has no sense of humour, clearly. But this listening in on my drafts is not nice. I wrote to WordPress support saying that they were not cool for doing this but got no response. They normally do respond when you ask for support/help but in this case I got zilch back. The world is on edge. That is my take on this. A bit of stretch yes, but I reckon I am on the money.

They say no good deed goes unpunished. On IG I used to try post a joke a day, for about past 6 years. I reckon I made a few people laugh. Sometimes the jokes would not work, but that is humour for you. You can’t get it right all of the time. Well, this meme below got me deleted. No 3 strikes and you’re out. Just like that, gone. I can’t say I have missed FB much, and it has freed up some time. Sorry to those few guys out there that miss the daily jokes. I will try and post a few jokes on my blog here every once in a while.

Here is the trouble making meme. I put that red/yellow thing over the part that caused the AI bot to go into full Robocop mode. Take a guess as to what was covered up here? Whatever it was, it was deemed inappropriate. This clearly was a joke, but again, software is not known as a replacement for comedy.

A friend was telling me about being blocked by Google. Being blocked by Facebook is one thing, but if Google blocked me now that would not be good. We all have to be a bit careful I guess. These are times of an an abundance of egg shells.

Here are a couple of memes I would have posted on IG. I have a cool group of funny mates, and we all send each other jokes. Laughter is the best medicine after all, as it said on my IG profile.

And here is one last one today. I hope this one doesn’t get me deleted off WordPress. It could be construed as inappropriate. I am sure this one would offend the US Supreme Court. The world is definitely on edge.