Reacting to life changes and making something

I've always fancied the idea of making something, but I've also tended to let the idea rattle around in my head rather than actually get off my arse and do something about it.

I was snapped out of my constant procrastination by the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the Tohoku region of Japan on 11 March 2011, which scared the hell out of me and made me seriously question what I wanted out of life. I quickly came to the conclusion that I didn't want to be stuck in an office doing a job I didn't particularly enjoy, and I also knew I wanted to do something connected to my adopted home, the place I love.

Although I had already decided to quit my company job (for various reasons) when the earthquake struck, I was having second thoughts (mainly because the money was good), but a nine-hour walk home due to a crippled transport system and being unable to contact my wife for a few hours due to an overloaded phone system swiftly removed such thoughts.

I quit and have been slowly but surely been building up my K Creative business and teaching. I'm not about to challenge Bill Gates for the title of richest man alive, but I'm a lot happier. Poorer, but definitely happier.

 

But what about making something...

One day I was out for a run, looking around and thinking how much I liked some of the things that caught my eye.

Slowly but surely, the idea of making something stopped rattling around aimlessly and began to take root, growing into something that I became increasingly excited about.

I started coming up with more and more ideas, and each one was something that I really liked, something that was uniquely Japanese, and something that had a lot more depth than just a design.

I began piecing things together and realised that I had almost subconsciously built up a great network of people who I could turn to for advice, contacts and - possibly - help.

I mentioned the idea to my wife, who is something of an ideas barometer - i.e. she tends to tell me my ideas are crap - and to my surprise and delight she liked it. More than that, she actively encouraged me to give it a go.

So this is the start of it.

This is why storm from the east is no longer just me talking about design, sharing news from other people, or wracking my brains trying to think of something else to write about. It's about me trying to react positively to life changes and to finally stop talking about wanting to do this, that or the other and actually doing it.

So what's the big idea?

I'll tell you next time - there'd be no fun in giving everything away before I've produced any goods, plus I kind of want you to stick around and share the story with me.