Far and Wide
There is something incredibly comforting about the fact that I have friends far and wide – connections all over the globe that wouldn’t mind if I crashed on their couch for a night or two if I happened to be in their neighborhood, their city, their country, their continent. Because I never know where life might take me.
Wet Shoes
I walked to yoga today with my umbrella, skies swollen with rain that had not yet started to fall. After class the downpour was in full swing, and by the time I got home my shoes were soaking wet, reminding me of the days I went exploring in the woods as a little girl. I could never resist crossing creeks, but the unfortunate part of that experience was going home with soaking wet shoes, knowing my mom would be mad at me.
All We Needed
We didn’t do anything extraordinary – went for a drive, had lunch in a cafe bathed in yellow, sat by a fire and read our books. We were quiet, we held hands, we laughed, we were warm. And this was all we needed in the whole wide world.
On the Calendar
[Me & Marisa at the September 2009 Squam Art Workshops. We're back baby!]
I updated my website recently and thought I'd share everything that's posted over there on my Calendar page. There is already much to look forward to in 2010!
January 2010: An essay in the Blogs With a View section of Somerset Life Magazine. Read about it here and order your copy here. There's also a lovely review of Ordinary Sparkling Moments in this issue and in the current issue of Somerset Studio. You can read both of those reviews from the divine Jenny Doh right here.
In addition, I wrote a small feature about the 100 Books Project for the latest issue of Uppercase, and my most recent entry in The Wish Studio is here.
March 2010: An inspirational alphabet I created will be featured as the Exemplar for Somerset Studio. I'm also headed to Jordan on this extaordinary journey led by the lovely Tara Bradford, and will be a Guest Curator for Crescendo March 22-27.
May 2010: I'm on the teaching roster for the first Wish*Full Virtual Art Retreat over in The Wish Studio, and an essay about a global friendship will be featured in Artful Blogging.
June 2010: That's right, Marisa Haedike and I will be back in action with our Book In A Day class at Squam Art Workshops' Spring and Fall Sessions. WooHoo!
There's more coming in June, but I'm sworn to secrecy about it for now…so stay tuned.
Summer 2010: Art Journaling will showcase my very first collage journal along with an essay about how my first foray into this process changed my life.
There are many more projects underway, and I will share the details as they get squared away. In the meantime, here's a quick overview of revisions I just made right here on my blog:
* A new page of reviews & praise for Ordinary Sparkling Moments.
* A new page – which will soon be two pages – with my "resume". The idea to write my bio this way came to me in a flash of inspiration, and I had so much fun writing it. It was written on the tail end of this week, so I was in a particularly snarky mood. My hope is that the snark is funny and not just plain annoying.
* A new page with links to some of my favorite entries. Anyone new to my blog might want to take a peek at those to get an idea of what this blog is about.
* A new page with links to all of my interviews with fellow bloggers, artists, and visionaries.
* And three new categories for 2010 – Sparklettes, Love Letters and Vintage Vignettes.
Darci Fever
I want Darci Fever, don't you? Although I'm not sure I'd recommend strolling along a sandy beach in silver plastic heels. But that blue crocheted bathing suit? I want that. I want it now.
[Doll Reader, November 1987]
Resistance
I know it is a sign I’m on the right track. I know the more intensely I feel it, the more imperative it is I plow through it and get to work. I know all those things, and pull them out like tarot cards when I feel like I’m stuck in a block of cement and need some wise council.
Still, some days I wish there was a magic elixir I could spray in the direction I sense resistance the same way I’d aim a can of Raid on a cockroach so I could do my work in peace. Not that I own a can of Raid, mind you, I usually let bugs go about their business (although I can’t say I’ve ever dealt with any kind of cockroach infestation, which I’ve heard can be a bit gruesome.)
Snail Rescue Brigade
I am not sure where my affinity for snails came from, but I love these little quiet creatures who carry their homes on their backs and take their time moving through the world. For a while our front yard was getting too much water, and snails thrived. We’ve since scaled back with our sprinkler system, but I appreciate that I got to experience at least a small window of time where I saw them everyday – including babies! I always picked them up off of our walkway and gently placed them beneath the flowers I planted, not wanting our mailman or anyone else coming to our door to step on them.
Back when Beanie Babies were all the rage, I was given a half a dozen of the little snail Beanie Baby – not because everyone knew I loved snails, but because this particular Beanie Baby was named Swirly.
How perfect is that?
Quiet
I work at home all day in silence. When I drive alone it is usually silent. I love music, but find it too distracting most of the time when I need to concentrate on other things. I never think about this until someone comes over, and then all of a sudden I become incredibly self-conscious and hyper-aware of the quiet. I immediately begin to worry that whoever I am sitting with is thinking what a weirdo I must be to exist in so much quiet.
I swim in the quiet – drown in it – there is something about the absence of sound that soothes me.
Five Things
Sending help to Haiti
1. Artist Rebecca Sower was recently in Haiti, and has stories and links over on her blog about the experience, as well as information and links to send help, including her Haiti by Hand Etsy shop.
2. Photographer Nicol Ragland was also in Haiti last year working with Haiti's only Film School, the Cine Institute. Visit her website and click on Haiti to read more about her journey and make a donation to help rebuild the school.
