A lot of people find it difficult to create scrapbook pages about a subject when there are no photos to form part of the design, and in honesty I am no exception. I often think that this is mainly due to my scrapbooking process, as I tend to start with a photo and work my design around it. These Bisous papers were a perfect way for me to challenge my creative process and force me to try to find alternative routes to making layouts. So I set myself a challenge that I would make one without any photos, and I knew exactly what topic I wanted to focus on.
I am 26 and I can’t drive. I don’t find it a problem as we live in a city and have done for many years. I like to walk places, and don’t find this a chore in any way. But you would be surprised how many people nearly fall off their chairs with shock when they discover this truth. Most times the revelation is followed by a conversation of mass exaggeration about how they could never survive without a car, and they don’t understand how anyone can live life and be happy without independent transport options. Usually I just smile and politely listen to their exasperated comments, but sometimes I just want to say to them ‘ Seriously, this is not a big deal’. Sure, not having a car makes things difficult at times, for example we don’t have the luxury of nipping to the grocery store to buy our weekly food shop – but tesco.com does home delivery which actually makes life very easy – plus I don’t have the opportunity to waste money on impulse buys. Yes, there are days or evenings when I think, wouldn’t it be nice to go for a drive or visit the nearest town etc, but we usually just go for a walk instead. Yes, there are times when I think ‘ugh, if we had a car we would be in town within 5 mins instead of having to walk for 20’, but this makes me save up my errands through forward planning and spend my time more effectively. It also means that on the rare occasions that we hire a car, we appreciate it more.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not frustrated or annoyed when people act like this when they find out that I can’t drive, but I do think it is very funny to watch how they can easily overreact and make such a song and dance about something so trivial. Although I suppose I should be used to it, given the fact that for several years I had to put up with all the dumbfounded stares of disbelief when I told everyone that we didn’t have a TV, and even now when I tell people that I don’t drink alcohol.
Perhaps I just like being weird?
I hope you like it, and don’t forget you can leave me a comment here.
Journaling reads:
Everyone is always so shocked when they find out I can’t drive. So I’m 26 and I never learned. Big Deal, it’s hardly headline news. It’s not that I don’t want to, but its never been top of the priority list & i’m lucky enough to have lived in places where the public transport system removed the need to have a car. I do hope to learn soon, but seriously it really isn’t that big of a deal!
Design Team work for Bisous
See my work published in this months Bisous newsletter here and you can check out my Bisous interview here.
I love when the journalling takes centre stage! Great Lay out Lesley.
I do drive, I do love cars and would miss driving terribly if I was not doing it. We are lucky to live in the countryside so dont have a public transport option either. Some days however I do think it would be lovely to be able to either walk where we need to be or to be able to let someone else take us
I think its great that we are all different 🙂