ACT ON THE IDEA

I had this weird idea.

That isn't uncommon.

But what IS uncommon is that the next morning, these words came into my psyche.

"Act on the idea."

I will NOT be ignoring that.

Last time I ignored such a 'voice', I fell and shattered my wrist immediately afterward.

So, I'm putting together something pretty different for me.

I have had, for years, a collection of vintage kitchen cabinet doors. I've done all kinds of projects with them. My 'weird' idea will use another of these old doors. And some pieces of birthday gift wrap paper. And bubble wrap. And those glass 'rocks'. I have no idea what they are called but they are available in craft stores and come in all kinds of colors and they are shaped rather like peanuts....some are circles.

My weird piece is, apparently, about circles and other rounded shapes. I wonder how this will turn out.

***********************

This is how it turned out.

There's lots of shiny stuff on here so there's lots of glare for the camera to deal with.

It sorta looks like something you'd find in a frog pond, doesn't it?

My readers who were fellow participants in Oprah's on-line A NEW EARTH study will find much meaning in that.  The rest of you will possibly be left scratching your head.

Especially when I sign off thusly.

Ribbitt!

I am grateful for the beloved Frog Pond!

MY NEW 'RELIGION'

For several years, I spent a great deal of time reading spiritually enlightening books and participating in on-line discussions of them.  I loved it.  It was a beautiful time of awakening and expansion.

I might do that again, someday.  But for now, I am slavishly following a new guru.

Me.

Yep.  That's right.  I said "Me."

"Me" says, "Follow your bliss."
"Me" says, "Seek out...and create...as much joy as you possibly can."
"Me" says,  "Never, ever forget to BE GRATEFUL.
"Me" says, "If you listen to "Me" you will BE what and who you were created to Be."

And peace, love and joy will follow you all the days of your life."

WASTE NOT?

Sunday morning, I got out a small masonite panel and started playing with paint again, as I love to do.

This time, I squeezed paint directly onto the board and then moved it around with a broad palette knife.

It was fun to see what color combinations developed and what effects can be achieved.

What I ended up with was not at all satisfying to look at.  It's rather dark and foreboding...not in a artistic dramatic way...just

YUCKY!

Trust me when I tell you that it looks better in the photo than it real life.  The blue is not so blue...it's almost black.

But....it does have potential to turn into something interesting, I think.

I am so grateful to have gotten to a place in my creative process where I don't consider it a 'bad' thing to 'waste' paint.  Paint is like money....To serve the highest good...it needs to be spread around freely instead of with a miserly hand. 

Like joy. 

Like kindness. 

Like smiles.

Like love.

I send you all my kindest thoughts of love, accompanied by a joyful smile!  :)

IN SEARCH OF JOY

The other day, I overheard a conversation between two people I know fairly well. It was déjà vu, all over again...as Yogi Berra said. (I think)


These two repeat the same ol', same ol' every time they talk with each other. It's always a re-hash of all the bad family memories they have. In truth, they have more than their fair share of 'bad' family memories. Most of us do have, at least, our 'fair' share of similar stories. But those two seem to 'live' in their old bad stories!

I got to thinking about why I don't indulge in the same fruitless conversations.

And I think I figured it out. It's not that I'm smarter or nicer. It's not because of all those 'self help' books I've read-although I have been tremendously helped by all of them. It's not because I don't have any bad memories. I do. And I could, I guess, spend more of my time concentrating on those memories.

It's simply because what I concentrate on is something that brings so much joy to my life that I just can't be bothered with anything that doesn't.

I haven't always been that way, I assure you.

But today, and every day now, I have INTENTION to experience those things which bring me joy. For me, most of the time, it has to do with painting. This blog also brings me joy. But when it began to feel like a responsibility...a duty...instead of a joy....I stopped blogging until I was inspired to start again.

I have come to believe that our first obligation to ourselves is to ensure that we feel as much joy as our hearts can hold....as often as possible! It isn't somebody else's obligation....it's all ours! If what you're doing isn't creating joy for you, maybe you should consider just not doing it anymore, if it's at all possible. And, I think it's possible more often than we allow.

I think, now, that I've developed a habit of joy. I didn't just wake up one day like this. It isn't something that falls on you like rain, ya know?

So......

If you find yourself dwelling on past or present 'negatives'......

......and if you are needing some more joy in your life,

make you some!

Have the INTENTION, each and every day, to consciously provide yourself with at least one joyful experience. Then do it some more!

Until one day, you have so much joy in your life that you want to talk about that...instead of those old bad memories.

I told my son the other day that I would rather be an old woman who bores people to death talking about how excited I am about painting, than to bore people to death talking about all my aches and pains and other woeful things.

I am grateful to know that true joy comes from ME. I am the creator of my joy.

HALLELEUJAH!

and

AMEN!

NOTE TO MY INNER CRITIC

Stop!

Get out of my way!

I want to paint!

I want to paint all those beautiful shapes

and rainbows of color

exploding like fireworks

dancing like fairies

erupting like passionate love

coming at me from the farthest edges of the Universe!
 
 

I sit, quietly, hiding in the corner, from

that big, colorful universe called "Life."

I'm a little afraid that all that love might just crush me.

I'm still not quite sure that

Love doesn't hurt.

I make myself rise and take a few tentative steps.

Oh Look!

The Universe has asked me to dance!

Hiding safely in the shadows

I wonder.

If I come into the light,

Will my own brilliant beauty blind me?

I am grateful for The Artist's Way.

http://www.theartistsway.com/

FALLING OUT OF LOVE WITH TED DE GRAZIA

This post mortem love affair I have with Tucson artist Ted De Grazia might be over.


As of right now!

I am struggling to get the crazy shapes and lines of his little chapel painted correctly. I am also having strong visions of him, laughing maniacally, from his grave.

The turkey!

I have probably done at least twenty paintings of this place. This time, however, I am determined to be a tad more accurate in my portrayal. And the perspective I chose, makes it imperative that I get it right. You see, there's this one part that is really odd. There are no straight lines...some really weird curves...and if you don't have this right, you just aren't 'getting' the chapel.

Ths is why, in the past, I've always painted something to try to hide that one really crazy looking part. I've always used a well-placed cactus or tree to disguise my inability to 'get it right.' Heck! I even think that there were times that I just invented my own shape for this particular part of the chapel! Who needs accuracy?

Also, there's these funky little 'holes' in the chapel walls. Every time I try to paint them, they wind up looking like bullet holes. Not exactly the 'mood' I'm after. So, I usually just leave them out.

Sigh.

Here's the real thing.

Here's my pitiable initial lay-in of it.

Again, I say, "Ted, You turkey!"

And again, I hear him laugh from his grave!

I don't know why this seems to be so difficult for me.  I have seen many paintings of this chapel which are quite good likenesses and don't seem to have any trouble at all with that buttress on the left side of the building.

I just don't know what my problem is.

It doesn't help that my reference photo is devoid of interesting light and shadow.

It would help, if I would just drive the few miles to this place and take a picture in the more dramatic evening hours.

Why don't I do that?

I don't know.

Perhaps I have even more emotional dysfunctions than an imaginary love affair with a crazy, dead artist.

I am grateful for any vestige of sanity.

DIBS AND DABS

There seems to be no end to new things to learn and isn't that wonderful?

Sometimes, life teaches you lessons in dibs and dabs.

Sometimes, in waves which completely engulf you!


The last couple of days, I've been engulfed in a wave of learning about dibs and dabs! LOL

I had an old canvas with a bad painting on it. Actually, it wasn't a bad painting, it was just an experiment in using thick textures. So, I did a completely new experiment, adding even more texture.

Know what?

I love this. I don't think this one is a 'bad' painting.

RED ROOFS

16 X 20

Neither did L & L who came by yesterday to pick up their paintings.

More importantly, they seemed very pleased with their paintings. So now, I have no more bricks to carry around. If that makes no sense to you, refer to my posts about warped canvases.

They are such an absolutely delightful couple. We have lots in common and I hope to see them again sometime. Actually, I did my best to ensure that will happen by loaning them one of my most special books which I think they'll enjoy. If they don't bring it back...well, I KNOW where they live and I'll just go get it!

After I finished RED ROOFS, I wanted to try some more 'dib and dab' painting. But, I didn't have another heavily textured canvas, so I had to start from scratch. I didn't quite achieve the same look...but it's close. I like this one, too.

COTTAGE BY THE STREAM

9 X 12

Although it sorta looks like that stream, gliding so merrily along, is going uphill. Oh well. Perfect, it ain't! But fun, it was!

I am grateful to have been given another day to play with paint.