sent from: London, UK. destination: San Rafael, California, USA

Hollywood is littered with stories of ups and downs, of people finding bursts of fame, only to seemingly vanish into obscurity, or directors who make that one good or even great film, yet you never hear from them again. Most of these people are still in the industry, working away making a living, although they may not be as prominent as before. You might view this as a failure, a kind of demotion (after all, what’s better than fame??), the audience has judged you and found you wanting. More likely, I think they’ve driven it themselves, and found a more comfortable spot to sit. When I started out, as good as my supervisors were, some part of me said – “when you get the chance, you’ll do it better. Or happier.” Well, a few years back I did get my chance. It was.. ok. It wasn’t a huge success, but I don’t think it was a failure. If I wanted to, with time, I could be a decent supervisor. But I stepped away from it – in London I’ve chosen to keep my head a little closer to the ground, and watched those above me, mostly in admiration, tackle the big responsibilities. I was reflecting on this with a friend who is one of those shouldering much of the weight of a project, and he expressed his own doubts and fears, saying he didn’t think he’d want to do it again. “I don’t think I have the personality to do this job and be happy, to not let it eat me alive,” he said. I nodded, in understanding

 Without a doubt this is one of Sisley’s paintings that I love, and a favourite postcard of mine. I love his snowscapes in particular. I’ve had this card for the better part of twenty years, you can see it’s been on many walls – university, work, etc. Fly, postcard, fly!