Elvis Presley

Sigh. I wish Elvis was still alive. A true legend and a fallen hero. I went to an Elvis fan-club day once. My dad had to perform there (not as Elvis imitator, just as someone singing songs by Elvis) and I was amazed that some people spent 200 euros on Elvis merchandise. I happened to win a dvd called Elvis, The Early Years with Jonathan Rhys-Meyers playing Elvis and I was amazed at his story. Such a tragedy. Anyways, there was an Elvis impersonator. He was an old Indo guy and insisted that we called him Rocking Billy. He even had his own website including biography and all that shit.

Here's a documentary that goes with the dvd I watched. It's about his last 24 hours :(

And here's part of the tv series with Jonathan:

That's all!

The Tortoise and the Hare

For the sake of it, I would like to share with you a very old story we all know. It is the story of the Tortoise and the Hare.

There once was a speedy hare who bragged about how fast he could run. Tired of hearing him boast, Slow and Steady, the tortoise, challenged him to a race. All the animals in the forest gathered to watch. 

Hare ran down the road for a while and then and paused to rest. He looked back at Slow and Steady and cried out, "How do you expect to win this race when you are walking along at your slow, slow pace?" 

Hare stretched himself out alongside the road and fell asleep, thinking, "There is plenty of time to relax." 

Slow and Steady walked and walked. He never, ever stopped until he came to the finish line. 

The animals who were watching cheered so loudly for Tortoise, they woke up Hare.
Hare stretched and yawned and began to run again, but it was too late. Tortoise was over the line. 

After that, Hare always reminded himself, "Don't brag about your lightning pace, for Slow and Steady won the race!"

Short story: Until the end of time.

"If I give you my heart, will you keep it?" She whispered softly.

I nodded, fighting back tears. We stood at a crossroads, yet we could no longer travel together. She was crossing over time and I had to stay here. Stay the same.

I wouldn't ever be the same again. Life was not that easy, unfortunately. You made me into something I never thought I could be. You made me better all because you loved me.

"Give me your hand," you said and you smiled and I knew that it was for the last time.

"Stay with me," I begged. Your smile disappeared and you could only look at me with sorrow in your eyes.

"Look ahead! Your future is bright. Even without me, not a thing will change. Don't look back. Please. Don't ever look back." She removed her hand from mine and I could feel the weight of a cold stone resting in my hand.
"It's a star," she explained, "When I'm up in the sky, this will remind you of me. Keep it close to your heart and you will always feel happiness." She was silent for a moment as I gazed at her present without uttering a word. "When your time has come to go, when the happiness has faded away, bring the star back to the moon and you shall be brought back to me again."

With those words, she left me. She did not look back. I always held the star close to my heart. I had put a chain around it and hung it around my neck. Every time I thought of her I did not feel sadness or regret. I felt happy to know that I had known her. I was grateful for the times we've shared. She lived within me. Always.

                                                                          *

Years pass by without mercy. Before we realise it, we're old and grey. Every day I missed her more and every day that feeling started nagging me and bothering me up until the point where I could not take it anymore. My time had come. Without realising what I was doing, I walked to the highest hill on a dark and bleak evening. The moon was shining but it was covered by thick clouds. I removed the stone from my neck, held it up and placed it in front of my feet.
The clouds cleared up. The moon shone tenderly upon me and the stars appeared to be dancing. The stone started to shine and rose and rose until it was nothing but a tiny dot in the night-sky.

The light started shining brighter until it blinded me. When I could open my eyes again, there she was. My love. She reached out her hand for me to hold and I grabbed it tightly. I was never going to let her slip away again.

I did not look back. My body was found the next day by hikers. Nobody attended my funeral. I did not really care. I was with her. Dancing in the sky until the end of time.

Something deeper than the Ocean.

I'm an avid reader of books but lately I haven't read a single book that could completely catch my attention and suck me into the story in a way that I was reluctant to put the book away. That is why I was glad Neil Gaiman announced that a new book of his would be published soon. The Ocean at the end of the Lane it was called and early reviews were raving about it. I am a massive Neil Gaiman fan and I was dying to read it. Yesterday the book was finally delivered and I started reading it and immediately was sucked into the story.

I will not spoil it for you. I just want to say it is one of the most beautiful and haunting stories I have ever read. It's about childhood, it's about growing up and it's about fear and sacrifice. Whilst reading it I felt every emotion I could possibly feel. Gaiman is a master storyteller and has a way with words that enchant you in ways you did not think were possible.

I cried at times. I was afraid of going to sleep in the dark. I remembered what it was like being a little kid and looking up at the world in amazement, while when we grow up, we lose that magical touch. We lose the innocence. We realise that being an adult is not that great either, because adults also have fears and not everything that is fixed can be broken.

I read it in one go and I think I will re-read it soon. It has touched me and amazed me and I can definitely say that it is probably my new favourite book. If you like dark, haunting stories with a mysterious fantasy twist and you are not afraid of the dark, I strongly suggest you to read this. You will not regret it.

Chasing the Sun: The Project is done

So, the past few months I've been working on a new project again, together with my partner in book-making crime Ana. We called our little project Chasing the Sun and it basically is a collection of poems and lyrics and a short story all about love. I personally find love both the hardest and easiest thing to write about at the same time and I had a lot of fun writing, even though sometimes it was hard. Ana made some beautiful illustrations and I am very proud with how the book turned out to be.

I've made a video to show you what it looks like:

Mijn film from Ingrid Chant on Vimeo.

Maybe if I feel brave enough I will post the book on the blog for all of you to read. Or maybe not. We'll see :)

Conversation with myself. Episode #1: Picking clothes.

"A brand new day ahead. No special occasions. What to wear, what to wear? Gosh I have too many clothes."

"Are you fucking kidding me? You have no clothes at all. NOTHING! NADA!"

"Well, sub-conscious Ingrid, I do see a lot of clothes in front of me. Surely there is something to wear."

"These clothes are all ancient relics. You can not be seen wearing this shit. What the fuck were you thinking when you bought THAT?"

"It was very much in fashion back then."

"No. Just no. I can't imagine that shirt was ever acceptable in the history of humanity."

"Shut up! Help me instead! I want to wear something different today. I feel like I should wear something sexy."

"Well, considering the choice you have, you either go as plain Jane or as an escort lady."

"I do hope a high-class escort lady."

"No. Just one who gets hired to lame-ass bachelor parties."

"They usually hire strippers for that."

"You might as well go naked instead of wearing those clothes. I don't see the problem."

"Stop being such a bitch."

"You are a bitch, bitch!"

"I guess I'll just wear jeans and a shirt again. Is it cold outside?"

"Way to go. Just be fucking ordinary. AGAIN. The weather is nice though."

"Yeah the sun is shining. Weather has been shit for a long time. So glad it's warmer now."

"Tell me about it. I thought we were stuck in Ice Age 36."

"Ha! You are so funny. I'm probably the only one who thinks so, but whatever."

"Thanks babe. I like you to. Okay, let's make a deal. You wear a regular outfit today and when you get back, we'll go shopping on Asos! Buy some vavavoom kinda clothes."

"I have no money though."

"YOLO!"

"True! We have a deal!"

Inspiring person: Jenny Lawson

So it's time for another blog about inspiring people, because I know that you're into this kinda shit. Or whatever. Look a unicorn!

This time the blog is about quite possibly the funniest person in existence. She is better known as the Bloggess (click here to go to her site) but has also published a very funny memoir about her life, called Let's Pretend This Never Happened.

I came across her site completely by accident as I stumbled my way through the world wide web. I was immediately captivated by her funny post. She is incredibly witty and, well, a little crazy in the best possible way imagineable.

I got her book for my birthday and I read it and laughed my ass off. I could relate to her, apart from the fact that my father is not a taxidermist and I tend to scream like a little girl whenever I see a dead animal. The thing that I admire most about her is that she battles an anxiety disorder and is not afraid to share her fears and troubles. As a person who suffers from anxiety attacks myself, I am glad that there is someone out there who says "You are not alone." Many people do not understand what it's like to be so afraid for seemingly no reason, that it always makes me feel a bit silly.

It's people like her who never fail to give others a good feeling. Whenever I log on her site I always end up with a smile on my face, regardless of how shit I felt when I first logged on. She is one of the reasons why I also want to pursue my writing career. I also want to make people smile, make them feel good about themselves and just be awesome.

You should definitely check out her website, and her book. Otherwise you might get eaten by kittens in your sleep. That would be inconvenient.

Sneak Peek

Hi kids!

I haven't told you, but Ana and I are working on a new book together. This time it is a collection of poems and stories about love with amazing illustrations. As it's almost done, I thought it would be a good idea to share a poem with you. Of course, when the book is ready I will show all of you!

The Poem:

I remember it now.

We were born as strangers.

We were born imperfect.

We were born as a whole.

We just had to find each other.

And the difference between

right and wrong, hate and love.

The lines are blurred but it doesn't matter.

The apple tastes sour but the poison

won't hurt us.

Dreams are just dreams

Just visions of the unseen.

Until we believe in them

and make it all happen.

And with our thoughts

we create our world.

We fill the emptiness

With our joy and sadness.

And with you I created love.

I created all I know.

And until the sky falls down upon us

We'll stand strong

 

Looking for new music?

Look new further. Today I want to introduce you to a very cool chick who is young but insanely talented. I discovered her through the Arjan Writes Blog and find myself listening to her music quite often. Her name is A*M*E and I am certain that soon she will reach superstardom. She's a breath of fresh air and apart from that also absolutely gorgeous to look at with a great sense of fashion! I will just shut up now and let the music do the talking. Keep an eye on this girl!

My favourite song: