While I don’t have a favorite Mr. Darcy as no matter who plays the role, in the end, Jane Austen’s story will bring me around to the same conclusion as Elizabeth Bennet. I too love Mr. Darcy. I’ve watched every version or homage made, from Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to the classic BBC version with Colin Firth. The latter I watch at least a few times every year, but I’ve learned never to start watching it after 9 pm.
The mini-series is 327 minutes, or just over five and a half hours. And even though it may be my twentieth viewing, once I start watching I don’t stop until it’s done. While I’m sure the allure of Mr. Darcy has a great deal to do with it, in reality the reason I’ll stay up way too late is that I’m a night owl and when fully engaged, whether with a classic like Pride and Prejudice or more typically on a craft project, I just don’t want to stop. All of my senses come awake.
For my One Little Word® project, each month we’re given a prompt and activities around our word. They are usually a combination of writing prompts along with artistic, or creative components.
Our February prompt was to create a vision board. Vision boards help to bring focus to our word. It’s always interesting to see the final result and the things you end up highlighting, which you may not have even realized were important to you. It’s a great prompt but I don’t have any place to display a full vision board, so instead I focused on creating a fold out version that could go directly in my book.
This is the type of creative project that can be done quickly or may stretch out for hours. Finding the images and words you want to use for the project can take a long time. I knew this, so I started working on the project in the afternoon, allowing for plenty of time. As expected, I got so invested in the task that it was at least 11 pm before I forced myself to stop.
I’ve come to learn that evening is when I’m at my most creative. The challenge is that I will often become lost in a project and lose track of time, which itself is another one of my definitions of bliss. Being so engaged that time melts away.
Glancing at the clock now, as I edit this blog post, I see that it is almost midnight. Still, I’m awake and energized and could continue working on my posts for many more hours, if I didn’t need to get up for work in the morning. Being a night owl doesn’t always align well with the real world, but I no longer fight against it.
Why does this bring me bliss? I think that understanding your own unique, individual rhythms and leaning into them are important. Realizing when I am at my most creative is a big part of finding my bliss.
When do you feel most creative?
I’m participating in a Blogging A-Z Challenge for April 2020. I will be posting new content every day this month except most Sundays. Each post is associated with a letter of the alphabet, starting with A and ending with Z. My theme for the challenge is Bliss. To read more of my A to Z posts from this year, click HERE.
Weekends in Maine 
From Toffee the cat: My old woman loves that Mr Darcy coming out of the pond dripping wet bit in the TV series. I don’t see what the fuss is all about. He doesn’t even have orange fur.
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That is a classic scene!
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Even though I’m a lark, I can be up all night watching Colin Firth walk out of that lake in his smouldering hot looks and dripping breeches:)
Ha! HA!
Early morning is my post productive time of the day.
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He makes an excellent Mr. Darcy. Occasionally, I can rally in the morning but that’s not my most productive time. I think the key is just knowing what works for you and leaning into it.
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Hi! Thank you so much for visiting Leap to Joy! And this post is right up my alley 🙂 I love Colin Firth’s Darcy. His smoulder is on point 🙂
I do love your collage! I am an avid collager/art journaler and I really love how it brings my creativity to the surface.
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Collage is such a great creative project. I like how you have no idea how it’s going to turn out. There are so many ways to put it together.
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You know, I should do a vision board while I am sheltering at home. When I have done them in the past and they always set me off in a new direction. Maybe they will spur some A to Z ideas for my later posts. Thanks!
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It really is a great craft project. I loved creating this one specifically for my One Little Word book. My problem is that I never have the space to display them so this is perfect.
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I used to be more of a night owl, but these days I’m at my creative best in the early morning. I’m not really sure why that changed, but as you say: once you find your unique rhythm, lean into it.
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I’m surprised that I’m still as much of a night owl as I am. I guess it’s just my natural rhythm.
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I seem to have shifted from night owl to somewhat of a morning bird. Not too early, though, please. For me mornings are better to be creative in terms of writing. I need my mind to be fresh and not too cluttered. Does that make sense?
My E today is about Equality in Switzerland.
https://thethreegerbers.blogspot.com/2020/04/a-z-2020-switzerland-equality.html
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I can understand wanting to get things done first thing in the morning while things are fresh. The key is not too early!
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Me, I’m a total night owl too. I’ve always wondered if I should find a job where I can work a night shift.
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I’d do well on the night shift too although it would probably mess up my internal clock even further.
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No doubt.
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In my younger days I could be so productive at night. The house was quiet and no one needed me. But now in my young sixties I find morning best since I seem to to be brain numb when the sun goes down.
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I know what you mean. When my girls were little, after they went to bed I would stay up so late as it was my only alone, creative time. So far, nights still work for me but maybe it will change someday.
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I’m an evening person too and could spend the night in my craft studio quite easily. I’ve made vision boards before too and my word for this year is Drive, although I’m not doing too much of that actually right now. Love your board. I just read “Pride and Prejudice” for the first time and now I want to see some of the movies.
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I haven’t read Pride and Prejudice in a while. That might be a good thing to do during the pandemic.
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I tend to either fade in the evenings, or get so energized that I can’t sleep. Morning and afternoon are better for me!
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That’s the risk with evening creativity. There have been many nights where I had trouble getting to sleep because my mind was still engaged.
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Great blog! I love Mr. Darcy, too. And Maine…although I haven’t been in 20 years, sadly. 🙂
I know exactly what you mean about getting immersed in the blog and losing track of time.
Oh…and the word “memory keeper” is lovely. I am a phrase keeper and am keeping that one!
https://atozwriting.blogspot.com/
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I hope you get back to Maine someday. It’s a great place to visit! I love the phrase memory keeper too. I heard it first from Ali Edwards and it sums up my creative passions perfectly. All of my creative pursuits are related to keeping stories and memories alive from scrapbooking to blogging.
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Beautiful vision pages! Will have to check out One Little Word – hadn’t heard of it and am always looking for writing or creativity prompts and projects! As a popular meme says, I’m some form of perpetually exhausted pigeon, but I do find that I hit my writing stride between 5pm and 10pm. Because of the Covid-19 shutdown, I’ve found myself getting up early in the morning to write, but it generally is just an exercise in getting something on the page that I can then edit in the evening.
I love Austen and Mr. Darcy too – Colin Firth will forever be my favorite and the Darciest of Darcies. ❤
Lovely writing – enjoyed reading.
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One Little Word is a great project. You should definitely check it out. Ali Edwards has other great writing related classes too.
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I like the idea of a vision board! And I, too, am most creative in the evening, then lose all track of time. Works great now, but when we are no longer staying home, I’ll have to go back to a normal schedule!
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I know what you mean. I’ve been pushing things later and later since we’re stuck at home. It will be an adjustment to get back to a more normal schedule.
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