Sort of Check in and a bit of folding of paper

 

 

Last night we watched a movie, the Husband and I and it was a goofy one, I got a good couple of hardy belly laughs in...the husband didn't think it was all that funny.  But he said he was happy to see that I was happy...what dear guy.

I'm in the process of getting geared up for some major Coptic stitching of some journal for the new year.  I purchase a box of paper from the local Staples, about $30 it is for 500 sheet...nice quality paper for Resume's and such.  I fold them in half...and fold and fold and fold...that mundane task but before I know it I've folded enough sheets of paper to have 10 signature each for 3 books to start off. I think I can get 5 books  out of box that is if I count right...sometimes I don't always do and run short in a signature.

A while back I purchased a really nice Book cradle for my Coptic Stitching tool collections.  My idea is to teach a class but I need the husband's help in making some cradles for use in the class.  I would need about 12 at the most...nothing is set up yet for a class but let me tell you I'm thinking about it.  I do love the feel of the text-wove printing paper...the best but it's a bit pricey...I'd have to check in on the cost for a large amount. All I know is I love the style and the openness of the way the journal open for the morning pages, nice and flat...and for using them as art journals too.

Now a bit of Check in....
Working with the Artists Way,
Each week there's some reading to do and then some task work which is some independent writing and of course your morning pages and artists dates. My artist date was a quick at the Horse stables again.

This week we were to be alert to synchronicity and deal with some shame and growth...wow just writing about it has me think how far apart they are and what's the connection?

From Goethe...."Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it. Action has magic, grace and power in it."  I love this...and I'm going to make a saying for my studio wall. 

Shame came in with my dog biting another dog and me feeling ashamed that I can't control my dog.  With that issue it got my body back out there on the street and in the dog park to do some serious training that I should have done all along.  Leak of responsible as a dog owner... With this all I've made some deprograming process with Hank and myself and now we will be forever training new behavior.  I shared my shame with a person at the Dog park and found out she has some third generational training with Cesar Milan...how cool that is and she was acted to be a satellite  trainer...don't know if she will be  but it's till kind of cool. Never knows what will come with sharing a shame story and asking for help.

As far as Synchronicity/shame goes...I did a gig with the Illinois Art Educators Assoc.  just recently and kind of feeling badly about that as of not working with my timing so the teachers could get the full experience all the way through with a image transfer technique.  But they got as best that I could give them, with the help of Nancy Stazsak as my wing woman.  Out of that all came an email asking me to see if I want to come in and work with some high school students in Niles IL.  Right away I though Wow! after feeling a bit like a failure...(stinking thinking) I get an surprise like this..Synchronicity for sure.  But with the experience of not being able to do it all the way I would like to with the perfect setting/room/time wise...I hesitated to move forward.   Then one more thing this week...can't remember which day it was...I let go...let go of some craziness that I have to have it all work out the way I want it to with timing, everything etc., because I'm some great artists...and when I came to that mind set...crazy as it sounds I felt at peace and willing to give this opportunity a chance and change...did you hear me...change the way I approach it...and let go of some things and keep it as simple as possible...I do have a tendency to get really passionate about things so much so I latch on and look out...like a dog with a good bone.

Well this all lead to me to the studio to work through some of this emotional stuff and then that lead me to finishing up the first Brown Paper Bag Collage I did for the "Pack the Pantry in Aurora, though the Gallery/ Frame shop..."If these Wall Could Talk" As I was driving out to drop it off, the ideas came that I could do the Brown Paper Bag Collage with the kids and they could hang them and wow it would and could look pretty cool and being that March is the time I would go in just before Spring break and April the next month is Earth Day month...it might make a bigger impact on the whole process of repurposing found papers and recycling. So as this goes on I drop off the bag...then I'm in there viewing a fellow artists work and admiring it and I just let it rip and ask her what she had open for the next year and if she would think about having me in there...June was mentioned...and well that has come to be a Solo exhibit of my work next year... we are set...paperwork details but looking forward to it.

Some task work has you looking at people you admire and some that are passed along and write about their qualities you admire and then look into yourself for those same qualities.. and well I didn't do it as such but I did do some sending out of some quick little emails and letting people know I do admire them for who and how they are and then yesterday out of the blue, and because it's what I had to do, I didn't put it off, I called up people that would be coming to our home for thanksgiving and chatted with them, even those that I knew might not even come and I hadn't talked to in a good year...How time can come between people and how shortly the shame leaves you when you do take that action to act in kindness and really being real about it all.   I know it wasn't about filling the ego...it was about a bigger connection.  I personally and quickly disconnect from.  I don't want to and I see that...I use to chat on the phone quite a bit and met up with people more often then I do now and I miss that...I've come so use to typing my fanny off on the computer that I think this is now the way to only communicate and it's not.  Well always time to make the changes and act on them...and it's usually nothing major it's just the small act of kindness that make the biggest change...

I've not seen my cousin in so long, it might even be a year...there are some driving issue that effect it on her part but...I miss getting together with her and I know I've let that friendship slide....so she got a call from me yesterday too...a good hour or so of natural woman chatter...but it felt good to hear her voice and that things are changing for her too...and one never knows how growth will fit in and where it can take you...(Keep creating dear one and act on your own behave...see what happens.)

This passed week had to do with a sense of Power...it truly is amazing how this all can engage an sense of power but it does...bring it to the surface and examining it for the truth.  Ok I've got to get going I have some reading and typing to do for my Artists way class tomorrow. Love a good Sunday morning like this.