Meeting in the Middle: The Challenge of the Art Assignment

I'm going to take a break this evening from the LOST Rewatch posts and write about something else. (And yes, I still have probably four to five episodes that I have watched with the kids but haven't yet taken the time to write up my rewatch posts. And, there may be an upcoming hitch in those plans anyway, as Grace didn't response calmly to the last one we did watch, Two For the Road, in which Michael does a bad, bad thing in the Hatch. I'll explain more during the recap, but if this is going to become an emotional problem involved with watching the show . . . then I'll have to start watching them solo. And that makes me sad.)

But that is not why I sat down tonight to write this post.

I want to muse about the new Art Assignment YouTube Channel, and specifically think about the first assignment, which is entitled "Meet in the Middle."

So, as you know, I'm a big Nerdfighter and I want to completely support Sarah Green's efforts with this new YouTube partnership with PBS Digital. And I went into watching these videos with the hope that I can try my best to take on these assignment as well. Hoping to inject a bit of new spontaneity into my routine and find fun ways to think about things.

So I watched this first episode and now I'm trying to figure out who I can meet in the middle? My first thought was my old work colleague Lisa. She and her family live in Missouri now and we recently been reconnecting more frequently over our shared enjoyment of the TableTop channel on YouTube. I thought maybe we could meet in the middle--somewhere on the Illinois/Indiana border (I haven't checked) to hang out and play board games with our kids?

But . . . we're both busy and do have kids and maybe that is just too far away? Maybe another time when we're less stressed.

So, someone more local? Certainly there are many people in Columbus that I haven't connected with in a while. I used to regularly throw cookouts when the weather was nice. But job stresses, family complications, and the fact that many of my oldest Ohio friends don't work around me anymore--and the fact that I'm a lazy, fair weather friend--have made me lose touch with them on any kind of regular basis.

But maybe now is the time to fix that.

I need to think on this more. But some of you guys who read this blog . . . I hope I find the time and the courage to give you an unexpected email or phone call soon. We'll pull out our road maps. We'll negotiate the necessity of video recordings. We'll meet in the middle.

Related:

• Check out The Art Assignment's Tumblr page to see some of the first "Meet in the Middle" video responses that have come in. They are fun and inspiring.
• John Green's most recent Vlogbrothers video is also his submission of a "Meet in the Middle" effort.