I’ve always been a dreamer. Reality is cool…sometimes. But I live for imagination and dreams.
My dreams inspire me to push for things in real life. My imagination reminds me that even when reality sucks more than leeches on a hemophiliac, things will look up eventually.
In other words, having my head in the clouds keeps me from going crazy here on Earth.
So for this Sunday, I’d like you to go on a trip with me. It won’t take up too much of your time. All you have to do is look up. Let’s go off into the clouds since that’s usually where my head is most of the time.
It was a cloudy day this past Thursday, so I snapped a bunch of pictures. I love it when the sky looks like there’s a convention going on for the Care Bears, don’t you? Look how they parked all their cloud cars there! (I wonder if Grumpy’s vehicle got rear-ended and that’s why he’s unhappy.)
In this post, I share more photos I took as well as what I saw in two of the clouds! (Maybe I’m crazy…hehe, but hopefully a good kind of crazy!)
And let me know if you see anything else in the clouds! It’s so much fun – wish I could stare at them all day. But then reality comes knocking on my door with iron knuckles. Bah!
In the above clouds, I see a happy girl with pigtails wearing a dress and clicking her heels together:
Sorry if this looks creepy. I told you before that I'm not an artist! Haha! And I'm also just lazily outlining it using the touchpad on my laptop. 😛
In the above clouds, I see both a fetus and a boy giving the thumbs up while running:
When I was lazily drawing the outline, apparently I gave the poor boy a hunchback, too.
Did you see anything in the clouds today? Hehe, and will you admit to seeing things in the clouds? 😉
Hope you all have been enjoying your weekend! 🙂
Edit: Look at what a Swatch And Learn reader, Vivian, found in the clouds! Cracks me up!
An elephant and a sumo wrestler! Those are some heavy clouds, aren't they? 😛
Edit: And if you need to set the mood for cloud-gazing, how about Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now? Click for the audio on YouTube! (Thanks to Kimberly, another Swatch And Learn reader, for mentioning it!) And may I also suggest spinning Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful World?
Love the metaphors and the Carebears reference! I still have the complete Carebears episodes back at my parents’ house. 😀
We usually play this game on long road trips. Makes passing the time (and distracting you from your sore behind) fun! Imagination feeds our inner kids. I think it’s important to never lose sight of the simpler joys in life like finding a pig-tailed girl in the clouds. Coupled with an insatiable and child-like curiosity, that’s the perfect coping mechanism for anything life throws at you!
Hey Carmela!
Do you ever sit down and watch some of the episodes when you go to your parents’ place? Hehe, I caught a few episodes on TV a few years ago. They’re much more goody-goody two-shoes than I remember, but I don’t care because they’re SO CUTE! And the Care Bear cousins were cute, too. 🙂 And remember Hugs and Tugs? Awww!
I wish that I collected all the plush toys back then, but money was really tight for my parents. I was lucky to even own the 2 big plush Care Bears that I did! 😀 Love-a-Lot (She was my favourite back then…hehe, probably because she was pink and I was obsessed with that colour) and Friendly Bear! My brother didn’t like any of the Care Bears except for Grumpy Bear (hehe, of course), so he had this small poseable figurine of him. And I had a tiny Tenderheart Bear statue that I think was a gift from someone.
Hehe, I’m glad that you’re encouraging me instead of considering locking me up. I agree with everything you said. Everyone needs to play regardless if you’re a full-grown adult or a little child. Wish more people could just let go and enjoy their imaginations more.
They ARE so cute! I liked the older episodes they have from back in the 80s, etc where they’ll have these moral lessons at the end about sharing and all that. 🙂 Hugs and Tugs are the definitely the cutest! Bedtime Bear was my favorite tho bec he (?) was blue (yah, I have a long-standing love affair with blue ;)). Cheer Bear is a close second; he’s almost always where the action is! 😀
I think I only had one plushie of Cheer Bear because everyone seemed to think I liked Strawberry Shortcake more and I got gifts of her merchandise from a lunchbox to a shirt. I love Grumpy Bear tho! 😀 He reminded me so much of Oscar the Grouch and I liked Oscar a lot too. Good times! 😀
It’s all too true tho. People seem to be so fixated about growing up and forgetting about their childhoods when growing up isn’t really all that. Then they end up pathetic and depressed because they’ve forgotten how to look for the silver lining. Like they say, growing up is optional and I’m of that mindset. Altho to be clear: being child-like is not the same as being immature. I think it takes a special kind of maturity to realize the merits of retaining your inner child. Also, I think it’s what makes people fun. 😀
That last paragraph – couldn’t have said it better myself! 🙂
Same – I like the older episodes. Actually, I don’t think I’ve seen any of the new version. But I remember seeing the new plush bears and they had weird bubble-type noses with toys or something inside. The original bears looked better and cuter.
Strawberry Shortcake! I liked her, but in terms of female cartoon characters, Rainbow Brite topped the list.
As a kid, didn’t like any of the Sesame Street characters, but I would always watch the show. It was the first TV show I ever watched. One day when I was very young, I apparently asked my dad what one of the buttons on the TV did. Hehe, he said, “Nothing!” only because he didn’t want me to start watching TV too early. But, of course, I was curious especially with an answer like that. Curiosity didn’t kill the cat, it turned out. I pressed the button and it opened up a whole new world – Sesame Street! (Thank goodness it wasn’t some horror flick or who knows how badly that would’ve scarred me for life…hehe!)
As an adult, I really like Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street. And from The Muppets, I find the two old men, Statler and Waldorf, absolutely HILARIOUS! 😀
The newer episodes are so-so. I don’t think they even have the moral at the end too!
Ooooh, Rainbow Brite! She was complete and utter love too. I think I had some eating utensils and a couple plastic plates of her. 🙂 I wonder if it would be weird if I go as her on Halloween..
That’s what I realized was such a wonderful thing about Sesame Street. It was appealing to both children and adults. I remember reading about it in one of Malcolm Gladwell’s books (can’t remember if it was Blink or Tipping Point, both of which are great books if you haven’t read them) and thinking, “Wow, that’s forwarding thinking!” considering that most kids do watch the show with an older person.
Statler and Waldorf are huge favorites of mine! But I like Fozzie too so I can’t help but feel bad for him when he gets those tomatoes thrown at him..
Btw, I somehow got talked into starting a blog (more like nagged into it..) and I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind me linking to yours. I don’t intend to provide competition since yours is much more established anyway. Either way, let me know. 🙂
Last night I looked on eBay for the dolls just to see what the going rate for them was. (When I was in high school and university, I used to comb through eBay and try to win auctions for the dolls because I wanted to complete my set…which is sadly just Rainbow Brite and her sprite, Twink.) Wow, some of them are going for a lot cheaper now than years ago. But right now my budget is really tight, so I can’t place a bid just now.
Woo hoo! I’m excited about your upcoming blog! I’d definitely want to check it out. And don’t be silly – I don’t view it as competition. 🙂 I’m happy that you want to join the blogging community because it’s so much fun to share opinions, photos, etc. with others! And I’m very honoured that you’ve considered linking to Swatch And Learn. Thank you so much for your support! 🙂 I’m looking forward to great things from you!
As in the vintage dolls? Which ones are your favorite among the bunch?
It’s a no-brainer. 🙂 I’ve been stalk..er, following a whole bunch of beauty/nail blogs but I only regularly comment on yours. I think you provide more in depth reviews with a witty tone, tons of photos and best of all: a down to earth follower appreciation. The older, bigger blogs might have a ton of content, but they feel like an old boys club. Yours fosters a more inviting/friendly environment and that’s something I’d want to emulate. 🙂 (no brown-nosing!)
Do I need to email you the particulars or how does it even work? Total newbie here. @_@ I’m learning stuff as I go.
PS. I have a new found respect for the amount of time and effort it takes to photograph a polish for review and make sure it’s as true to the actual color. I’m realizing the blurples are the worst of the lot.
Thank you so much, Carmela! 😀 That’s exactly the kind of atmosphere that I wanted to make Swatch And Learn have – open and friendly. You’ve made me feel like a million bucks just knowing that’s how you feel. And I am incredibly flattered that out of all the highly talented beauty bloggers out there, you’ve chosen to share your thoughts/comments with me. 🙂 Comments like yours make blogging even more worthwhile and enriching.
Hehe, if you’re just sharing a link to the site, I don’t think you need to be formal and send an e-mail. If you add my link to a post, please do let me know so I can say thank you! 🙂
Yes, the vintage dolls are the only ones I like. The newer versions (I think they made it in 2000) look “off”.
Of course I love Rainbow Brite herself, but my favourite aside from her would be Patty O’Green (Haha, very surprising, right? :P). I also really like Murky Dismal, too. And I find his background interesting.
(From Wikipedia: “In the episode ‘Mom’ it is revealed that, as a toddler, he colored on the walls with crayons, markers, paints, rollers, and finally an industrial airbrush. His mother made him wash off “every bit of color, if it takes all day, if it takes the rest of your life,” leading Murky to his hatred of color as an adult. He loves to invent devices to create gloom clouds which remove color and make people hopeless, for example the “de-gouz-a-phone” used in the San Diego Zoo Adventure.”)
You get some pretty creative clouds where you live! Here, all we get are big foggy rain clouds. Sadly only the villain Darkheart lives in my clouds. This totally calls for some cloud nail art. I’m picturing a light blue base with some white puffy clouds and perhaps a smiling sun on one finger, yes? 😀
Daydreaming is always fun, but don’t forget that last OPI Muppets swatch! I’m counting on you! 😀 😀
After a second glance of those clouds, I seem to have found an elephant and sumo wrestler in the 3rd photo.
http://i53.tinypic.com/29uzzt2.jpg
Ahahaha! Those are some REALLY BIG, HEAVY clouds – I love that you found those two! Thanks for sharing…hehe, this is so much fun! 😀
I’m going to add what you found to my post with your name. Think that others will get a kick out of it.
haha! glad you like it! I agree this is loads fun. I never get to cloud watch where I live. thanks for sharing the photos. This was exactly what I needed to relax with after a busy morning.
Aww…well maybe even in those foggy rain clouds you’ll see something eventually. 🙂
Hey Vivian!
I actually did some nail art with clouds several weeks ago. 🙂 Going to try to post the nail-art tutorial soon – I keep putting it off. Still need to weed through the photos and crop them.
Hehehe, don’t worry – even when my head is in the clouds, my polish is up there as well. I won’t forget. The post’s already scheduled to go live tomorrow. 😀 The only way that it won’t go up tomorrow at 7 am is if my host’s server crashes. *Crosses fingers, eyes, and toes that it doesn’t*
Oh, gosh! This is sooooo cute. Remember the song ‘I’ve Looked At Life From Both Sides Now’ by Joni Mitchell? I thought of that song instantly when I saw this post. 🙂
Kimberly recently posted: Ogre Snot or: How I Came to Love Naming Colors
Hey Kimberly!
One of my friends LOVES that song and played it for me a few times. Since then, I’ve really fallen in love with it. It’s such a daydreamy, romantic song. Hehe, very suitable for a post about cloud gazing.
I’ll include a link to the song. Maybe it’ll help put more people in the mood to find things in the clouds. 😉 Thanks!
Nice photos! I think clouds may be my favorite thing to take non-nail related pictures of. I’ve tried cloud nail art in the past and loved it. I know this post isn’t suppose to be about nails but I thought I’d share. Sometimes I can see things in the clouds but I can’t seem to find any other thing in the pictures. Maybe I’m too tired. I totally see the girl in the photos though.
Katie recently posted: Revlon Starry Pink
Hey Katie!
Thank you! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed looking at them. And woo hoo – I’m not the only one who sees the girl!
Hehe, it’s okay – everything eventually comes back to nail polish! 😉 I don’t mind at all.
Thank you for this POST!!!
Honestly, I am often so run down with stuff that I’m too scared to gaze up and take a moment (for fear of tripping over something)… but this post has made me do just that… not trip… but take a moment and see the wonder and awesomeness in life (that is there for the rich and poor…) that doesn’t cost you a dime to experience and you’re so much richer when you do!
Looooove the little fetus and the happy happy little heel-clicking girl!
THANK YOU!
Marta recently posted: Lots of Gold
Hey Marta!
Haha, phew, I’m glad that I didn’t make you trip. I’d feel really guilty…and somehow into dark magic. 😛
I’m a short woman, but for some reason, I always tend to look up at ceilings wherever I go. And, of course, the sky is the biggest ‘ceiling’. There have been lots of restaurants I’ve been to that have fantastically intricate ceilings with crazy patterns. Then there are ones with tons of ducts/pipes…hehe. And old cathedral ceilings are always breathtaking.
After a second glance of those clouds, I seem to have found an elephant and sumo wrestler in the 3rd photo. It was nice.
It was helpfull and usefull article. Thank you for writing. keep it up please