Friday 4 April 2008

What do you love?

I love my job (I know, what's with that??), but it's incredibly stressful at the moment and deadlines are running around left, right, and centre. I've always had highly stressful jobs. I guess that's one problem with being a workaholic and the kinds of things I get myself involved in.

Every now and then, I wonder how I'd cope with painting shot glasses or terracotta pots, making crafts and other artsy things, or doing cross-stitch embroidery full-time. The fantasy never lasts long; apart from the fact that I'm neither very artistic nor crafty, and it would bring me practically no income, I'd still find myself drifting back into the world of challenge and workaholism.

Then I came across someone who does something she obviously loves. Well, she must do to create something as elaborate as this Lego church.


Some facts:
  • It took about a year and a half of planning, building and photographing.
  • More than 75,000 Lego pieces were used.
  • The structure is about 2.2 m x 1.7 m x .76 m.
  • The church seats 1372 Lego people.
  • There are 3976 windows in the church.
  • It features a balcony, a Narthex, stairs to the balcony, restrooms, coat rooms, several mosaics, a nave, a baptistery, an altar, a crucifix, a pulpit and an elaborate pipe organ.
One question: why?

I love Lego. I grew up creating little cities and petrol stations with my brother and reinventing our limited Lego collection in endless combinations. My parents often roll out the story about how embarrassed they were when flying back to New Zealand after a month in the States, with a 6-year-old and 4-year-old in tow, to be asked by customs to open one of our family's suitcases for inspection. For some bizarre reason, they chose our kids' suitcase, complete with its boxes of recently-acquired Lego from our holiday. It ended up all over the customs desk and floor, and apparently everyone for miles around were on their hands and knees picking up stray Lego pieces and handing them back to our red-faced parents. I guess the boxes weren't as securely packed as they thought.

But I still ask: why?

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