Hi guys,
I hope everybody is doing well. My name is Andrieu and I'm excited to finally make my first foray into the world of Steemit. I've been meaning to check it out for a long time now, but never got around to it. Given that I've been into blockchain for some time, Steemit should have been something I'd joined long before, but alas not. Well, still, better than late than never I suppose!
Painting
I have many passions. One of those passions is painting. I love to paint! I wish I could find more time to put brush to canvas, but work commitments often mean that I can't paint as often as I'd like. I'm not particular about what medium I paint with, but I tend to be partial towards oil paint loaded with liquin lately. I love the way liquin looks - that sort of egg-shell finish, and I also love the way it dries quickly, but not as quickly as acrylic, allowing you to apply glazes like no tomorrow!
Here are is a painting of my dog, done in acrylics:
And here is a visionary art peace of a Cosmic Peacock painted in oils with numerous glazes.
I hope to share with you some of my painting techniques, as well as find fantastic artworks and lessons here on steemit. I'd love to teach, and I'd love to learn from all of you. There's so much to learn out there, and you can never, ever know everything about your craft! As the great writer Chaucer once said:
"The lyf so short, the craft so longe to lerne..."
Life is too short to learn everything! We can only learn as much as we can.
Writing
Aside from painting, I also love to write. Poetry, prose, whatever. I look forward to sharing my writing here with you. I have written at least a million words of prose, and perhaps 100,000 words of poetry over my lifetime, and although most it is not very good, I still love to share anyway. In writing, as in art, there is a lifetime of learning to hone one's craft to the point of mastery. It almost seems impossible!
My favorite authors include: Stephen King, Clive Barker, Nietszche, Joseph Conrad, among many others.
Technology
I'm also passionate about web development, programming, bitcoin, and all things tech! The bitcoin bulls are running at the moment, so let's hope they don't lose steam!
Travel and Adventure
Finally, I am a keen traveller, and an avid adventurer. I love visiting wild, far-flung places. My dream is to one day trek to Everest. I try to travel every year or two, finances permitted. I have had the privilege to travel to the arctic circle, the antarctic circle, and numerous places in between. The world truly is a magnificent place, and for us to be able to fly in this modern era is amazing; we should feel blessed and grateful that we can do so many things that our ancestors couldn't even dream of doing.
I have various expeditions planned for the coming years. In a month I will travel solo to Mt Kosciuszko in Australia and camp overnight near in the snow. I'm excited about that. Although Mt Kosciuszko is an easy hike, in winter it is a bit more challenging. It also happens to be one of the 7 Summits. I'll document this journey right here on Steemit, as well as at other locations online.
My other long-term adventure is a solo unsupported walking journey across the Simpson Desert in Australia. That is scheduled for July 2020. Few people have attempted to cross the Simpson solo and without support. It is a journey of 400km (248 miles), along rugged, sandy terrain. I anticipate 10 to 12 hours a day of forced marching at a pace of 2 miles per hour. I have been in training for this adventure for the past 3 months. Ruck training with 80lb to 100lb on my back whilst marching for 2 to 3 hours at a 4 mile per hour pace is my standard "easy" workout now. Consider that I suffered from years of deep suicidal depression (a horrible place to be, and I will discuss it at length in later posts), the world now looks bright. I want to challenge myself. I want to surpass myself. In the words of the great mountaineer Reinhold Messner:
"I do it to know myself."
I hope to document all of my journeys here, and I hope you will find the stories I have to share with you inspiring and valuable in your own lives.
Anyway, that's all from me. I wish you guys all the best! Take care!