Tuesday, January 10, 2012

You, Me, and Charlie

A few months ago, I wrote about how much I adore the lovely Dianna Agron's blog, Fell Down the Rabbit Hole.


Well, a few short weeks ago my little magick-unicorn-loving heart was overjoyed when Dianna launched her new website You, Me, and Charlie:





"You might wonder, what is www.YOUME&CHARLIE.com?
Well. There is that little blog of mine, which started out as an artistic retreat while traveling in Australia to promote the show. Any of you that followed [felldowntherabbithole] were privy to pictures I was taking, music I was listening to, books I was reading. Due to your enjoyment, and your want to be involved, over the past couple of years I have received the most amazing mixtapes, books, photos…all from you! You were sharing the things that drove you artistically, because I was doing the same. It touched me and still does to this day, every time.
Because of this, I wanted to turn the little blog into something slightly larger. This is a space for YOU and ME. Our space is….CHARLIE. Again, if you followed the blog, you know that the header reads, [Dianna Agron, but you can call me Charlie.] I guess I have never really felt like a Dianna. I suppose that is because my friends and family all call me Di, babe, kitty, lamb, all those special nicknames that only your loved ones could possibly coin. I didn’t realize it at first, but it seems as if I had taken a liking to the name Charlie for longer than I can remember!
Upon looking back at old school papers, stories I wrote, screenplays, you name it, I have always used the name Charlie as one of the main or ancillary characters. About five years ago, a psychic came up to me as I was walking down the street and said a few things to me, one of them being, “You have someone named Charlie that looks out for you.” I didn’t know what she was talking about, I don’t know anyone by the name of Charlie. Much later, I starting looking at old papers, found the name here and there, and thought of that psychic. I joked to myself that perhaps, I was a man named Charlie in a past life?? Then, in Scotland last year for the holidays, another psychic told me that, “Someone by the name of Charlie holds a very special place in my life.” How could I ignore all of this?
All of you lovely, magick, wonders of this world, the ones that correspond with me in such unbelievable ways…this is for you. Without the arts I would not wake up each morning with the joie de vivre that encompasses my entire being. I would feel flat as a pancake. Because of the work I do, I get to hear some of the most moving stories, moments of your life…things I am grateful to hear from you, share with you. It blows my mind, each and every time. To know that the show I’m on helps so many people get through hard moments in their life? To hear that people like seeing what I’m going to post and often discover new artists? I never could have dreamed how lucky I would be, as I am, today. I want you to join me now. Let’s share this space as an art collective. There’s enough negativity in this world to smother all of us into a state of infinite sadness. Why not counter that? That’s what this site is for. I hope it just does that.
Thank you all for your constant love and support. Thank you for embracing the moments where you can simply LET LOVE IN and BE LOVE.
xx Dianna, although sometimes I’d like to say, Charlie."
(No, thank YOU Dianna, sometimes Charlie!)
You, Me, and Charlie is divided up in to different sections, and I admit it can be a bit confusing or overwhelming at first. A friend even said it was kind of like visiting Wonderland, so it's strangely fitting, but once you become well-acquainted with Charlie, you will be the best of friends. There is something for everyone.
There are spaces for the "Ladies" and the "Fellas" with fun advice and thoughts.
"Put Your Best Sock Forward"

 If you are looking for a laugh, you can look in "For Grins" for cute and silly pictures and video clips.

"Yo DJ" introduces new musicians, puts together playlists, and sparks conversation about music or lyrics; and "Mona Liza" showcases the work of new artists.


"Page Turners" offers wonderful book recommendations and poems (or story-time with Di!), while "Just Reeling" suggests top-notch films, both of the past and present, as well as inspiring and fun short films. 
  

"Point and Shoot" displays lovely photographs from both professionals and contributors.

 "In Motion" consists of lots of "motion" content: little kids dancing, ballet photographs, musical clips, and more.

 You can find daily sources of inspiration from, believe it or not, "Daily Inspiration". 

If you have ever wondered how the opposite sex thinks and what they may secretly want you to know, just take a gander at "She Says" or "He Says". 

Looking for some fun facts? "Did You Know" is the place to go.

Interested in making a difference? Check out "For Good", yes you should.

But the best thing about You, Me, and Charlie, is that anyone and everyone can contribute to the site. Most of these contributions are presented in "We Say" (fitting, yes?) and mainly consist of others wanting to share moments of beauty and happiness with everyone else, but readers can also share their interpretation of "who" Charlie is and what it means to them in "Charlie", as well as contribute to each and every category.
  

To me, Charlie means a place where we, the lovers of beauty, the magick believers, the laughers, the creators, the singers, the grateful and appreciative, the ones who fell down the rabbit hole, the dreamers, and everyone in between, can come together to share our happy smiles and moments of beauty with each other. A place where we can share with all of the other Charlie's of the world. 
I promise you that everyone will find something to smile about at You, Me, and Charlie.
I know that the corners of my mouth start to twitch every time I even type the words.
I may sound a bit ridiculous for talking about just a website, but I like being ridiculous every now and then. Plus this website is everything that I love, and it would and will do many many people a world of good just by visiting. Just a visit with you, me, and Charlie.

All images from youmeandcharlie.com

1 comment:

  1. Melanie here! I enjoyed this piece, please email me--I have a question about your blog. MelanieLBowen[at]gmail[dot]com

    ReplyDelete