Back from a Long Absence

 Inspiration

This past summer I discovered Dana K. White, Nonni from A Slob Comes Clean. She's like an American Marie Kondo of sorts. I saw her video interview on Mel Robbins' YouTube channel. Mel Robbins is a sort of self-help coach and author/speaker and often interviews people with professions in the personal growth field. Dana is friendly and down to earth and speaks about her personal struggles with MESS and CLUTTER in such a kind way that you feel less ashamed of your apparent inability to overcome it.

Anyway, Dana was outlining her methods for clutter clearing in your home and also told the story of how she began her personal quest that became a business. IT ALL started with an anonymous blog! Listening to her describe those early days of writing just for herself  and how she became a writer while focusing seriously on her passion subject of learning how to make her home a livable space was enlightening.

I said originally I was starting this blog to practice typing and writing while job hunting.  I ended up stopping writing mostly because I started working a job that was so absorbent that I had what felt like no time or energy to do anything personal or creative like writing or art making. I still played piano sometimes but that was about it besides being 'creative' in the kitchen. And when we moved from Oregon to Washington in August 2020 I gave away my piano.

The great thing now is that I have a whole room for myself for art. I use it only occasionally. It's pretty much storage for all my art supplies. That's where the clutter clearing author comes in! I have been listening to her audiobooks and they have slowly started to have a really positive effect on my understanding of the psychology and methodology involved in creating space to live in your own space.

While learning that Dana used a blog as personal motivation and jumpstart to clean her house (and keep it clean) is really inspiring, I don't know if I could do the same or not. There were blogs I used to read regularly that really were what made me want to start writing online. I was incredibly inspired by the thoughtful and humorous (and extremely personal) blogs of: Violent Acres, Waiter Rant and The Blogess. They were so enjoyable I was always disappointed if one didn't come out 'on time'. Later I was a regular reader of Retail Hell Underground. The Blogess (Jenny Lawson) has at least four books out now which is super cool and awesome! 

While many bloggers have a book in their future (and that's an awesome goal to have!) I am enjoying the idea (just now as I am writing this) of using this 'new era' of  my blog for making my art space a usable and inviting space to enter and work in. The possible problems with that are: how to take and share before and after photos; it's like a finite project: once it's all clutter cleared and organized it's done (though that could be step one). After that I could carry on and take this to the place I think I always had in the back of my mind, which is an ongoing artist blog where I can talk about and share work in progress.

Art thoughts

2/11/2020 I need some more inspirational ideas, even when I am enjoying creating art it is rarely from my own imagination. I prefer to draw from photos and do assemblage/collage.

I think I am a "slow" artist but  I have done quick mono-prints and figure paintings. I may be good at some quick things, but not everything is supposed to be done quickly. Some things need measurement and thought and slowing down and precision. That's what caused me trouble in woodworking class...trying to go too fast.

Days later: I am almost done with neighbor's portrait of her brother and I brought my little ceramic sculptures into class to wait for firing. Carving into clay is calming, like whittling...

The clay donuts and pyramids are all fired now and just need to be glazed and re-fired. I did some after school the other day when I also organized all of the messed up and disorganized glaze bottles on the shelves. I also tried to use the wheel (for the first time in 25+ years, if I did it in college, so maybe more like 40 years, when I did it as a kid with Ariana in her mom's art class-I still have the things I made in there! I use the serving plate regularly.) so that I could try and teach the kid I'm with in that class next time. But when it came time he was so into goofing off that we were both covered in clay and I had to write an agreement for him to sign, a promissory note saying that he would follow the rules for everyone's safety. I used the kick wheel on my own but in class we tried the electric wheel ... and you have to be careful when you use it.

I finished my neighbor's picture and gave it to her which was great, but I really want to do another version and have it turn out cleaner and smoother. I think I need new pastels, mine are really old. And time probably affects them like it does paint.

11-20-2023 Edit to add: The clay donuts turned out really well and I actually traded them to Blue Star Donuts for some real donuts. :) Also I found out that the student I had been working with in ceramics class passed away last year from complications of an illness. It's always devastating when a former student dies. I cherish the memories of our interactions even though he wasn't always on his best behavior.