MARINA SOKOLOVA

Update on my small claim.

As I mentioned in the older post, I am involved in litigation with one former client. I decided to simply follow the instructions on the court’s official websites and they hired a solicitors firm. I decided to file with online claims service first as it is cheaper. I also did it as an individual against an organisation case, so if they choose to defend themselves, the case would get transferred to my local court and I wouldn’t have to travel too far for the hearings.

I filed my claim for about £750.They filed a counterclaim for £5000 (£50 000 reduced to £5000 – oh, how nice of them (sarcasm)) in response to my claim, claiming that I caused them damages, because they couldn’t publish my articles with adverts alongside. This is for the reason that their sales person quit her job as she allegedly got frustrated with me and they were unable to replace her. Then they invented a name for her forgetting that I know her, because they introduced us …in writing. I couldn’t believe that they put this on a formal statement, which includes an oath of truth. After she stopped laughing when I told her the above, she signed and posted me a witness statement in my favour. The court hearing is in April in Southampton County Court. Wish me luck.

Work on Personal Feng Shui book.

I am in the process of publishing my first book using POD technology with one of Amazon’s subsidiaries. I was planning to get it all done by this month. I was at the last stage, where I needed to approve a proof and the book would have been released for sale on Amazon. Today I received a proof copy, which I was eagerly awaiting for weeks. I unpacked it, took it in my hands, and flipped through it. I liked it. Then my brain registered that something is wrong with it. I flipped through it quickly couple more times thinking. Then I realised what it is. There is no page numbers! I simply forgot to insert them when formatting the manuscript. This means that I cant approve this proof, I will have to replace the files and start all over again. And the book will not be released for another month or so. The good thing though is that I noticed it now rather than later.

Proof copy:

No page numbers:

Movie: Slumdog Millionaire.

I was shocked by how characters portrayed in the movie treat each other. No respect for each other’s rights or feelings whatsoever. No laws, no hope. I wonder if this is entirely fiction or this work of art is trying to portray an actual mentality that exists in the slums. I mean, if torture happened in USA’s prison in Iraq then it can probably happen in some other parts of the world. If this movie portrays the attitude and lifestyle that exist in slums like this then I wonder what came first the chicken or the egg. Do people tend to live in poverty, because they treat each other like this and there is no order? Or do they start to hate each other and everything becomes chaos, because they struggle to live? Or may be they don’t even feel it as struggle and are actually happy?

Photos by Leonid Shyeglov.

Counting other people’s money.

I wonder if it is true that Katya Ivanova has been paid, according to some bloggers, 150 000 for participating in CBB. If it is, then it means she was earning over 10 000 per day. And despite this, she didn’t seem to care about playing in it much.

I just discovered another reason why Russian housing is so much warmer than British housing. It is not just much thinner walls and insufficient heating in UK, but lack of snow. Turns out that even a little bit of snow makes a building noticeably warmer. I guess it insulates the roof. Although I suspect not many people need the warmth around here. It is still shocking for me to see how many people in UK are capable of living in January with open windows and very little or no heating. I branded them cave people jokingly, because they don’t need the comfort of heating or closed doors and windows, basically they can just as well live in a cave. I also noticed that a lot of them don’t need winter clothing and walk about in shorts and barefoot in flip-flops. Or alternatively they dress warm themselves, but deny that pleasure to their babies and drive their barefoot and naturally very snotty babies around in the prams in the freezing cold.

Sexy boys.

Marie-Antoinette movie.

This is a fabulous movie about Marie-Antoinette (one of the queens of France). In addition to it being very interesting, the movie is gorgeous eye candy. This movie is also famous for the fact that it was shot inside Versailles (France). Usually moviemakers are not allowed to work in places like this, because they allegedly behave like pigs and leave everything in tatters after they’ve done. Sofia Coppola is one of a very few moviemakers who were allowed to shoot in Versailles. In fact, she gained so much trust that she was even given permission to shoot in rooms that were closed off to tourists for restoration.

Elena Smirnova.

This is one of my favourite felt artists, Elena Smirnova:

She felts beautiful sculptures, which she modestly calls toys. I chatted with her recently to find out more about her. Elena lives in Moscow (Russia) with her partner and numerous pets. She used to be an accountant. Elena said about herself: “After working for 5 years in an office I realised that this is not who I am. Creative pursuits constantly attracted me. I drew, sculpted, and tried doing all sorts of arts and crafts. I am a self-taught artist. I didn’t take any classes. I was just moving with the flow.”

Sculpture inspired by one of Elena’s pets, Qip:

Elena has been felting for 4 years now. She said: “I am very grateful to my spouse whose loving unconditional support allowed me to quit my accounting job and pursue an artistic career full time. If it wasn’t for him I would probably still be doing debit and credit in a stuffy office.”

“When I saw IT –THE WOOL”, she continued, “ or to be more precise an ugly looking toy made out of wool – this was the moment that changed my life. I didn’t care about the toy itself, but I was curious about how it was made and for what reason. After this event, I have collected all the info about felting which I could find online, bought the supplies and started felting my self. I fell in love with THE WOOL, with its warmth, softness, and tenderness. I found that wool is not just tactile, but also a very therapeutic media to work with.”

Another of Elena’s sculptures and another of Elena’s pets, Tyopa:

Elena particularly enjoys the process of creating a new sculpture. She first develops an image in her head. “Sometimes it comes to me in my sleep”, she said, “I think about it for a while then draw it on a paper. Then I take a piece of wool in my hands and a miracle happens. Sometimes the toy dictates the result.”

Every sculpture takes Elena about 5 of 12-hours working days to complete it. The felting process feels intimate to her. Hence she likes to work at night when it is quiet and she can fully immerse herself into the felting process. Elena said that she wants to grow as an artist and see what else the wool can do. She constantly challenges herself, tries more complicated forms, and plays with the colours.

About her sculptures, she said: “My toys are like my children to me. It is very hard to part with them after a sale. When I part with these animals I kiss them in the nose and wish them caring owners.” Most of Elena’s sculptures are one of a kind. Her customers want to own an exclusive piece that they can love and cherish. She added: “These are the toys for adults. People buy them, because they want to have something like this or because they want a felted copy of their pet. I love to see the reaction of the customers when they collect their orders. Some had tears of happiness in their eyes.”

For over a year, Elena has been teaching felting to others. She said about this: “I love to see my students develop and grow as the artists and create their own unique pieces. It is intriguing to watch how each student develops her own style and vision in felting.”