Ashley Baxter

2011 Update

It’s been a ridiculous length of time since I last updated this blog, very nearly falling victim to “things I’ve grown bored of and forget about”, which happens to mostly everything I turn my attention to and explains my chronic singleness.

Anyway…

With the sudden resurrection I wanted to give a brief update on what has changed in the last 9 months.

• I moved from a small village on the West Coast to the bustling city of Glasgow
• I joined a gym and have since lost over a stone in weight
• Girl With A Camera was given a seriously sexy overhaul by Matt Brett
• I’ve landed an amazing client in Glasgow who gives me money to take pictures of their clothes
• I fucked up
• I fixed things (hopefully)
• My sister and I finally started a little project together, a street style blog
• I realised one of my ambitions and became a landlady

That is the punctuated version of the last 9 months.

Speaking of punctuated, you may have noticed I’ve moved this blog from WordPress to Tumblr. The reason being that I had neglected to write new content for various reasons, but with Tumblr I feel I can drop in regularly and update even if it’s something, well, micro and relatively meaningless.

Let’s try this for the hundredth time.

I can’t imagine working a strict 9-5.

I am so lucky to be self employed. Today I had some errands to run and didn’t sit down to work until 3pm. It means I have to work into the evening, but how do folk who’s hours are dictated by their jobs actually fit any life in? How do they get stuff outside of work done? Genuine question.

Went into town for a meeting with a client who I’ve been working with since moving to Glasgow 6 months ago. Some of the pictures I’ve taken for them have since been blown up and printed on canvas, then hung in the shop next to the changing room. This made me happy.

Silly me. I scheduled all my meetings and errands for today, which is the day we get gale force winds and heavy rain. It’s disgusting outside. This hat will be coming everywhere with me, and I don’t care who stares. I still look professional, RIGHT?

2010

2010 was the year I started to get fit, taking on a personal trainer for 3 months and monitoring my fitness levels.

I want to work long, work hard, and do whatever I do to the best of my ability. I really think a large part of staying motivated and alert boils down to how kind you are to your body. Don’t feed it shit else you’ll feel lethargic, and with an office job it’s far too easy to fall into the trap of being lazy. The kind of people I respect are those that buy into the healthy living mentality. I want to respect myself. That’s why getting fit was a big part of 2010, regardless of how pretentious hiring a personal trainer may sound.

2010 was the year I overcame my fear of flying.

Photography has become a huge source of inspiration for me, and a big part of my almost daily life. Nothing excites me more than the possibility of exploring a new city with my camera in hand, freezing moments that I can then share with others and that will stay with me forever. With the possibility of being stuck in Scotland due to my fear of flying, going on to visit New York, Florida and Belfast (among other places this year) was the sweetest experience of my life. Facing my fear was the best decision I’ve ever made, and it wasn’t even all that bad. Of course, I say that after OD’ing on diazepam…

2010 was the year I went full frame.

I know there are no rules in terms of photography, but I probably hadn’t been shooting long enough to justify upgrading my 40D to the 5DMKII. At the beginning of the year, though, I ended up with some money and knew that’s where I’d rather spend it. I don’t think there’s a single inanimate object in my life that I love more than my 5D, and at one point my Xbox would have been a strict contender. It’s not even close now.

2010 was the year I joined a band.

Another creative outlet was reborn as I started gigging after a 5 year hiatus. It had come to the point where I hadn’t jammed with anyone in so long, my confidence was completely shot and I left joining a band on the back-burner until I felt ready. But you never do feel ready, do you? You could always be better. So I bit the bullet and started playing around Glasgow after a band had approached me to drum with them. It only lasted 5 months or so, and I’ll be looking for a new band when I move to the city (Oh yeah, I’m moving to the city this year).

2010 was the year I launched Robot Panties.

I actually have a post on the process in the pipeline. Honestly, Robot Panties is all about giving me more experience in life and work and creativity. That’s what I’m shooting for, that’s its purpose. Not to grow it into anything bigger, just to add to my bank of knowledge.

A few ‘goals’ I had wanted to meet, but fell short, included seeing more live bands play, growing my business a significantamount, learning either surfing or snowboarding, and building a fully functioning web app for work. I also thought it would be nice to, y’know, meet someone of the opposite sex who’s fun to be with and shares similar interests, but that never really happened. Well, it did. I mean, I met a lot of dudes over the past 12 months, but none that I really liked…

Looking back, 2010 was phenomenal in terms of personal growth, but lacked more so on the professional side of things. The industry I work in is stressing me out so much right now, it seems to be crawling along at a snail-like pace, but that’s another post entirely. There are many things I’m looking forward to in 2011, but I’ve decided not to set specific goals. I can achieve everything I want to if I follow this simple rule:

Always do more than is required of you.

Taking A Kit Kat

I abandoned my routine for 17 days to take my first holiday in 8 years. With this being my first holiday as an adult, it was also the first time I’ve had to leave behind the responsibilities of work.

I find it hard to switch off from my job, which is probably a sign that I enjoy what I do (I think?), but like everyone else, I get burned out from being so consumed by work. Recently, I noticed that was happening a lot more regularly, and my performance at work was suffering.

I visited New York for 5 days and Florida for 10. New York was an opportunity to soak up some culture, while Florida was an opportunity to soak up some rays. Having never been one to relax very well (I’ve always got to be doing something), I wasn’t sure how entertaining I’d find Florida. Would I get bored? Restless? But once I fully allowed myself to unwind and be sucked into the slow-paced, relaxing lifestyle of Florida, I found it to be hugely beneficial for recharging my batteries.

Preparing reading material for my holiday was easy. While I knew I wanted a break from work, I wanted to use this as an opportunity to educate myself in areas related to work that I’d been meaning to do so at home. So I brought along a few books that had been gathering dust on my bookshelf:

• The Whuffie Factor
• How To Build A Successful Blog Business
• The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing
• Oh, and an issue of Inc magazine thrown in for good measure

Leaving behind the trivialities of everyday life gave me the perfect opportunity to really zone into the content of these books, and I found myself soaking up the information better than I would have done at home, which subsequently left me feeling wildly inspired.

By day 5 in Florida, I was itching to get back to work — not through boredom, but through excitement; through having had an opportunity to think about the future and scope out a plan without having the stress of work getting in the way and clouding my thoughts.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, to all those hard working hustlers out there who are married to their work, it’s actually hugely beneficial to you and to your career to take a bit of a breather. While I felt that 2 weeks away from home and my routine was a tad too much, by the time I got home I felt ready to take on the world.

New York

In a little over an hour I’ll be setting off from Scotland —> England —> France —> America, where I’ll land in the “concrete jungle” that is New York. It’s my first transatlantic flight, which naturally means it’s my first time in the States. Considering I had been avoiding planes up until 4 months ago, I think it’s safe to say I’m now catching the traveling bug.

I’ll be spending 4 days in NYC, staying in a hotel situated in New York’s prestigious Times Square. Honestly, for as much as I’ve read up on this city, for all of the photos I’ve drooled over, or for every blockbuster movie I’ve watched (not to mention the 6 seasons of Sex And The City I own), I still don’t know what to expect from New York.

Will I succumb to its much hyped charm? Everyone seems to think it’s one of the best cities you can experience, and some people have even went as far as saying it’s changed them. Whenever there’s hype, however, I always find my stubborn self resisting, but with New York… well, with New York I really want to give in and let myself fall.

I’m excited about the hustle, about the food, about the well documented tourist attractions — basically all of the cliches the city has to offer. And I’m excited about capturing it all through my camera, though I don’t expect to come away with a new perspective of the place.

This is my first holiday in 8 years. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous.

Getting Fit (Week 8: Mental Toughness)

I am 3/4 of the way through my time with a personal trainer. Working out solidly for 8 weeks after a lifetime of irregular physical activity has been an experience, to say the least. Physically I have started to see the changes, particularly where my abs are concerned. In fact, I’m nicely surprised every time I whip off my top to be greeted with *gasp* some definition. It’s also nice to wear a skirt and to not feel I’m sporting stumps for legs…

I wasn’t needing to lose much weight, it was more-so about toning up my body and making the most of what I have, shortcomings and all. I’ve steered clear of scales just because I’ve seen how fixated (and disgruntled) people become when they weigh themselves on a daily basis. I’m judging the improvement in other ways; how I feel about my body, and increased fitness levels.

The latter has definitely improved, as demonstrated today when my personal trainer sprung the same fitness test on me that he used to measure my initial level of fitness two months ago. As for the former, I feel so much more comfortable in my own skin. I’m not quite there yet — I still have a lot of work to do, but just being proactive about it has granted me the right to feel good.

If I can take anything away from my experience with my personal trainer, it’s that mental toughness accounts for everything. It’s your mind versus your body, and most people let their body win. Your body can feel weak and that it needs to give up, but if your mind is focused on doing something, you can push through the pain. I think that’s been the most significant realisation for me.

Anyway, here’s the fun part. Photos! I think I was starting to get heavier around January, just as I turned 23. I remember a bunch of us hit the pubs for my birthday dressed as Wally from Where’s Wally (I don’t know why), and feeling visibly uncomfortable in the clingy clothes I was wearing. I knew at that point that something needed to change, but it took me a further 6 months before I did anything about it.

It’s not the greatest photo to illustrate the difference, but I don’t have many good examples from January. The photo on the left is, as mentioned, the Where’s Wally night out, and the photo on the right was taken two weeks ago before a fancy dress party.

I have 4 sessions left with my personal trainer. Judging by how exhilarated I feel after a workout, I’d like to think I’ll be keeping this up once our contract has come to an end. Whether it be through joining a gym or utilising my surroundings, the sense of accomplishment after a particularly painful workout has me hooked. And I definitely don’t want to undo all my hard work.

This is your life. Do what you love, and do it often. If you don’t like something, change it. If you don’t like your job, quit. If you don’t have enough time, stop watching TV. If you are looking for the love of your life, stop; they will be waiting for you when you start doing things you love. Stop over analyzing, life is simple. All emotions are beautiful. When you eat, appreciate every last bite. Open your mind, arms, and heart to new things and people, we are united in our differences. Ask the next person you see what their passion is, and share your inspiring dream with them. Travel often; getting lost will help you find yourself. Some opportunities only come once; seize them. Life is about the people you meet and the things you create with them, so go out and start creating. Live your dream, and wear your passion. Life is short.