Happy New Year!

Come home to a new plate!

My newest addition to etsy.

Go take a looksee :)

STOP DWELLING START DOING.

Depressed. Depressed. Very depressed.

What will it take to get out of this mess!

Yep, I've been depressed. On and off it gets me. Mostly on but recently since my diagnosis of bipolar II and the medicines I'm taking - thankfully off. Christmas, I guess, has just been one of those 'on' times. So, what can I do to get out of this 'mess'? Well, getting out of bed would be a good start :) yes, and perhaps making myself smile. Have you ever tried that? It's hard when you don't want to but that's what I'm going to try today, it really does take the weight off and lighten your mind. I'm going to try to smile and I'm going to look forward to tomorrow. New Years Day! I've always liked New Years Day. A new day. A new year. A fresh start. A time for cleaning away the cobwebs. A time to reorganize. To think ahead. To start something wonderful. No new years resolutions for me though, just good intentions. Good intentions to be better to myself and to try to live my life in the way I've always wanted to. Filled with all of me. I want to live my life fully, I don't want to waste it anymore wondering what I could be or should be or want to be. So, my good intention for 2009 is to stop dwelling and start doing. I think if I can manage that I will do just fine ...

Happy New Year and may all your good intentions be fulfilled :)

FEEDING THE ARTIST

I always thought I was too much of a procrastinator, a dreamer, but apparently I am perhaps O.K. 

I have just bought Jennifer Louden's book, A Woman's Retreat,  and on page 179, headed, Feeding the Artist, it specifically gives me permission to, 'gather experiences that delight, stir, excite, and recharge me.' She states that the artist must be fed and proposes that s/he totally immerses his/herself in the creative mind of others and gorge him/herself on other's work to the point of overflow.

As I said I feel that now I might very well be O.K.  I spend most mornings when I wake drinking my tea and feeding my thoughts with other artists websites and blogs, thinking all the time that I should be up doing and not just browsing. But I love it. I love seeing what everyone else is doing, I love feeling inspired and mostly I love the newly formed energy I feel that prompts me out of my bed and into my studio. Of course there are many things in between the bed and the studio that easily distract and depress me so now, if I could just maintain that energy ...

BLACK MADONNA

This is my black madonna as in it's jungian reference. I was really pleased to discover her :) and I think she was pleased to have me finally discover some portion of her also, however stereotypical a portrait, as she practically painted herself. I think I have a lot more reading to do about her and wonder if I'll ever fully understand her significance in my life but thank you, Marion Woodman, for helping me to at least begin to feel some of her power ...

THE OTHER ONE

The photographs are not tremendously good but this is my other beautiful daughter, Nikki, (homecoming 2008). She's a senior and so will be off to college also at the end of next year. She is totally different from her sister, Becky, who is a freshman at Texas Tech, and takes more after me  - bless her heart :) 

So, pretty soon, that will be the two girls gone and we'll have only the boy left to contend with ...

Stephen is a sophomore at high school, and god only knows what it's going to be like with just him around the house. I look forward to it ... it might actually be the making of me :)

They are great kids, all three of them, and I am very fortunate to have known them ...

A JEWELRY MAKING DAY :)

We've  been away at art festivals recently trying to make some money for Acorn. We will never raise enough funds through this means but it really doesn't matter. We get out there. We talk to people. We explain our purpose. Not easy for a chicken like me!

This week we have had two offers from women who have experience in non profits. This is great for us, and to a degree, way more important than a donation of their money. If we need anything besides money, it is all the expertise we can get...

We have sold an awful lot of jewelry so today I will be making more which will be great as I can take stock of our supplies before the bead show on saturday. Really love the bead show but I have to control myself when I get there. However, I will be considering buying my supplies from Happy Mango Beads from now on which is a site that offers a large selection of fair trade beads from all over the world. How great would it be to make my jewelry using this supplier :) All you jewelry makers out there, why don't you take a look. If you don't know about fair trade take a look here. 

O.K. happy blogging, art making or what ever else you are doing today. It's going to be a good day :)

THE SHIFT

Take a look at two relevant (I think) video's.

Perhaps one day we'll all understand how important this is....

THE SHIFT

THE AWAKENING