wednesday morning thoughts...

I got up early this morning so that I could get ready and be out of the way for the painter who is returning to finish our bathroom. Just as the coffee finished brewing he called to say he can't make it until tomorrow because of an emergency. He's a nice Italian man (like my husband, but twice as old) who has a daughter the same age and with the same name as me. These little details seem to give us an instant comfortability with each other and it makes me miss having a strong father-figure in my life. Maybe it's not fair to put it like that because, after all, I do have a father and our relationship seems to slowly be returning to some level of normal after a very sad and distant couple of years.

But where did that come from? My god, I sat down to tell you how happy I am that the painter can't make it today because that means I can use this extra time to enjoy a strong cup of Costa Rican coffee at a leisurely pace and finally update my blog. I've been missing my blog lately. Funny how that happens, ey? Sometimes I yearn to write like I used to. What I mean by that is that I have this perpetual assumption that I used to be a better writer, that I used to be better at capturing the moment, and that these days my blogging has become too much feeling and too little description. It gives me this floaty sort of feeling (yep, there's another feeling) and I find myself really hungry for the grounding factors of details and description. After all, my favorite thing in the world are the details.

Details: There is a stack of 14 books to the left of my elbow, all of which I am reading. And there are another 5 books in my bag out in the living room that I checked out from the library last night. I've been wondering what it will be like to no longer have a destination for my writing (school) and found myself in a state of elation as I sat with a stack of writing books in an odd shaped chair facing a window whose darkness reflected every ounce of excitement held within my body. The elation, which I still feel even now, stems from the notion that there is really no end to this writing life. And, even though I've known this all along, the re-realization of it never ceases to amaze me.

Oh yeah, but there I go talking about feelings again. Really, what I love most about writing is the way it causes me to associate every single little concrete thing with a memory, an experience, an emotion. Writing is endless like that. I've missed my blog because I miss being immersed in that way of thinking. Painting, on the other hand, is the moment before language, when language isn't enough. Painting is the breath you take before speaking. I only include these thoughts about painting because I have a hard time separating my writing and painting selves. It seems that, over time, I have become one, but never without the other.

On my desk I also have a bronze Dog-Buddha statue. It is a perfect combination of shininess and texture. It is unassuming and quiet, and all of the animals are attracted to it. Louis sniffs it and the cats rub up against it. I bought it a couple weeks ago to remind me to live from my center and listen to my heart. It has also become an internal logo for my web design endeavors. I look at it often and it has a strange, centering affect on me. The body sits cross-legged in meditation, but it has the head of a dog who looks much like Louis when he is at his calmest. Perhaps what I am most attracted to in this statue is the way it radiates love. Can a bronze statue radiate love? Well, if not, then it somehow manages to pull love from the center of my chest--love connected by threads made of filaments of the universe. They are the sort of threads that defy description. I could try, but words never seem to get it right. Words get it wrong, no matter which ones I use. The most profound experience I've ever had with these threads was when my great-grandmother died. I was holding her hand when it happened. The air opened up, just a sliver, and those threads slipped through. She was 105.

Anyway, the painter didn't come today and I have time to write...and this is the inside of my mind. Which leads me to wonder not only why I write, but what causes the desire to share it in this way. In one of the books I'm reading, The Business of Memory: The Art of Remembering in an Age of Forgetting, Lydia Davis asks:

“Why do I want the past (the material contained in my memory) to live on in the present? Why do I want evidence of it now? And why do I want someone else to know, too? Why am I not content to leave it where it is and remember it in solitude”

I am fascinated by these questions and, despite my best attempts, my own explanations fall short every time. I want to have a conversation with you. So tell me, what do you think?

Quarterlife Blog Drama

I read about Quarterlife in the newspaper today under a headline reading "Web-only shows now ready for prime time."

The main character, Dylan, says things like "we blog to exist" and "I often find myself crying for no reason and find out later there was a huge reason I was unaware of." She uses her online diary as a writerly venue to muse over the deep, dark secrets of her closest friends. Apparently, these 8-minute episodes just might debut on NBC as hour long versions sometime in 2008--and it's not hard to imagine the explosion of personal blogs if it happens.

My heart sort of skipped a beat when I read the article. I was at work, on an island without internet, when I read it. I mean, a show about a bloggers?! *eeeeh!* Aren't we all, in our own way, looking for whatever it is that reflects the deep-certain-something that we are continuously trying to make meaning of? Needless to say, I watched all 5 episodes in one go.

Never mind that it's mostly about skinny girls, boys, fucked up self-worth, skinny girls, and boys. I think it's about other profundities as well, but it kept getting lost in boy-drama. Even so, there's a few insightful little statements peppered throughout. I admit that I like it--even if it is just blogger junk food.

Watch it for yourself here. I highly suggest starting at the beginning. Then again--does it really matter? Since we're talking blogs, does it really matter where you pick up the story line?

who me? nothing to say??

Is it possible that I actually don't have anything to blog about?? Wow. This never happens. I think this means something...like maybe I should get some things done and out of the way so that I can think more clearly. Or maybe I should do interesting things on a more regular basis. Or maybe I need to read a really good book. Or......

?

You know that feeling of: "I want something to eat, but I don't know what it is"? Well, I sort of feel like: "I have something I want to say, but I don't know what it is." Hmmm...

I think I need some mental nutrition.

love to my rockstar friends :)

Due to a really wonderful email, this morning I was reminded to be thankful for my my friends. There are so many things to be thankful for and it never even dawned on me to think of Thanksgiving as a day to actually think about the things I'm grateful for. Mostly, I was thinking about what time we should leave for my grandparents' house and what the traffic might be like and how many rawhides I should bring for Louis to keep him out of trouble while we're there.

Today I am grateful to still have active, healthy grandparents whom I love and am loved by. It is snowing--pretty, soft falling snowflakes. The ground has a light covering for the first time this year. I am grateful for winter and snuggling dogs and a smiling husband and this very divine extra dark French roast coffee that I am drinking from one of my favorite cups.

Want to know what else I'm thankful for?? I am thankful for YOU, my blogging friends. Thank you for inspiring me, motivating me, supporting me, growing with me, believing in me, thinking with me...thank you for sharing your friendship. You are all a seriously positive force in my life! :)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

refill.

Tomorrow, I am happy to say, I am going to take some time off to spend the day with my husband visiting the Walker and the Minneapolis Institute of Art with a lunch date sandwiched in between. Frida Kahlo and Georgia O'Keefe on the same day?! OMG. Perhaps I'll write more if it's even possible to describe the ecstasy I'm sure to experience. This is just the sort of break I need. Thank you, Universe. And thank you everyone else for the kind of comments that you left on the last post.

I also treated myself to the latest copy of Art Forum (because there are such incredible images of artwork and studios within its many pages) and a wonderfully RED shirt since I've been wanting something red to wear ever since starting the "Be Brave" project. It is reserved for days when I want or need to feel especially brave. I have a feeling that I will probably wear it often in the coming weeks.

In other news , I finally finished writing a cover letter that I had been avoiding for several days. Avoidance really takes a toll on me and is part of the reason I have been feeling so drained. In the end, I decided to do the only thing possible and simply write from the heart. Why did I spend so much time making my life difficult? I mean, I think it might just be my best cover letter yet.

Tomorrow I'll get a much needed dose of strong woman energy--but, for now, it is off too bed. My dreams, these days, have been vivid. I've been doing my best to pay attention because, even in their strangeness, my dream-time insights have been somewhat startling in their accuracy.

tapped out.

Tonight I am feeling unbelievably tapped out. Actually, I've been feeling that way for the last couple days, but tonight I seem to have hit the bottom of the barrel. For the life of me, I cannot seem to just give myself an utterly guilt-free break. After all, I have things to do. But I always have things to do. When did I learn to think that the only time I am worth anything is when I'm accomplishing something? Well, I suppose that's a dumb question, isn't it. Like most of us, I learned it while growing up and watching the people around me. I remember, at one point in my life, feeling pleased with myself for having escaped the many disfunctions of my family. Turns out, I was just late to blossom.

The other day I worked outside bundling white pine, cedar, and juniper boughs while the sky snowed, snowed, snowed and blew cold wind. The stone Buddha sat quietly, serene--his eyes closed yet somehow watching me as my heart was bursting into a thousand snowflakes. Underneath all of these conflicting emotions (rage, hope, despair, gratitude), there is a sense of peace. Right now, however, it feels ever-so-frustratingly just out of reach.

Maybe it's only hormonal, but I feel like I'm about ready to crumble.

a sense of satisfaction.

I find the need to romanticize my job today in order to keep myself sane. Things have been a bit quiet here at the ol’ garden shop, but today I woke up at the crack of dawn to unload half a semi-truck worth of Christmas trees. I would have been crankier about it except for the fact that I find an odd sense of enjoyment in these outdoorsy sorts of physical activities. Not to mention, the smell of pine is intoxicating. Autumn leaves drifted and swirled upward in strong wind currents. Everyone walking to and from the coffee shop next door was exceptionally friendly. It seems that, in general, the smell of pine trees has this effect on people. Ok…so never mind that it was dark when I woke up. Never mind that my back is now stiffening. Never mind that I had to coordinate something I shouldn’t have had anything to do with. I admit it: I enjoyed myself. And I feel more connected to things than I have in several days.

Maybe that’s all I needed…a little extra exercise to loosen up and release all those emotional toxins that have been knocked loose during the course of the past couple weeks. Such a simple solution—I forget—is exercise. It’s not every day that I get the opportunity to throw around Christmas trees. Trees are good medicine. Even if they have (unfortunately) been cut down and transported from another state. True, I prefer the deep forests, but in this urban landscape I’ll take what I can get.

These days, I’ve been feeling a persistent urge to keep working on my thesis. Actually, I don’t want to do it, but there is not a second of the day that I’m not thinking about it (except while hauling trees, that is!). I completed another 4 (rough) pages yesterday in between a yard work, a visit to the dog park, sending a few emails, and dinner—a straggling paragraph here, another there. Finally, I had to tell myself: STOP! Other than the four pages I pieced together yesterday, progress has been slow. I beg myself to keep moving forward while reminding myself that, eventually, I will reach the very end. When I get really stuck, I do 15 minute freewrites (alla Peter Elbow), then move on to a new thought. It turns out that those freewrites have become the bulk of my most recent pages.

Last night, to keep myself from total and absolute burnout, I did the wise thing and took a break by going on a little shopping excursion with V (paints for me, pants for him). Once back home, I shifted focus to my other current obsession: web design. I’m presently working on several projects at once and, oh my, I would be so happy to just spend entire days CREATING!!

One thing that I am learning about myself is that I enjoy work that allows me to move around and mix things up. When things get monotonous, I tend to turn off. But multi-tasking on compatible projects? Yes, I love that idea—but compatibility between projects, I’m noticing, is key. And, uh… time management (which is something I would love to get better at). I thrive off of feeling a sense of personal investment in what I do. However, I also need to learn when to call it quits and just relax. It’s a continual process though, isn’t it? To live a seamless life—is that even possible? Maybe not, but what I’m striving towards are things that turn me on, not shut me off.

And so I have two questions for myself: What brings me satisfaction? And how might I create a life based on those things?

* * *

a sense of place

I would like to report that I finished the last 10 pages of my thesis with gusto and then broke open a bottle of champagne to celebrate the accomplishment. This, however, is not the case. Luckily, I’ve spent the past month and a half practicing bravery, and so I am using my newly discovered courage to carry me through this last little expanse of thesis writing—the part that stretches out before me in all its unruly disarray. In 4 days I’ve written 3 pages that are worth acknowledging along with several more pages that will be used for kindling if I should ever make the effort time to actually print them out.

I’ve come to realize over the course of the last several days that this is not the sort of writing that I can simply pump out and send off. Perhaps I set myself up for failure by expecting to finish the remaining 10 pages in 3 short days. This last bit of writing that I am currently working on will act as the "introduction" to the creative portion of my project. In short, I am attempting to summarize my topic, explain its importance, and offer a brief discussion about the genre to which it belongs.

It turns out that trying to bundle up some of the most difficult years of my life into a polished little package is extremely, well…hard. And emotional. There are numerous layers of separation and letting go is possibly the hardest one of all. Letting go is, after all, the final farewell.

This entire project is centered on the notion of a sense of place. It is made up of a collection of personal essays, all of which are inspired by the thoughts and experiences that have come about within the past 3 years—spanning from the time I put my place out in the country up for sale, until now. The topic of my thesis is about leaving a place I once loved, a place of magic, a place that spoke directly to my soul. But, more than that, my thesis is about my attempt to once again find my place in the world.

Writing a simple summary—how could I know that it would open up such a flood gate of tears and old emotions? I’ve been trying to meet a page count, untangle the messiest years of my life, and lay it to rest all at once. I now realize that expecting myself to finish the last 10 pages in a certain number of days was asking too much of myself. I had no idea that all this other stuff would push itself so forcefully to the surface. In my tarot reading, Jamie said that I would cry for my old self and for the way things were (and, whoa, was she right!)--but I didn’t know that it would happen now and be about this particular part of myself. I wasn’t expecting this.

There is a quote that I recently stumbled upon by Scott Russell Sanders who writes: “There’s no need to go looking for a home, of course, unless you’re lost. I have been lost, in ways no map could remedy.”

There have been two places in the span of my life, so far, where I truly felt at home. And they are also the only two places that caused such a deep surge of tears, upon leaving. One of those places was India. The other was a wild plot of land in the middle of nowhere, northern Minnesota. Two years ago I sold that plot of land along with the house that I built with my own hands and moved to a small rented house in town and then to the middle of a big city. These past several years, it turns out, have been a profoundly transitional time.

This week I cried over the place in the country that I once loved. I miss it there intensely. I cried for my dog, Abe, who died one early gray morning just before the move. That was the day my heart truly broke. I cried because, the week following, my grandpa also died. I miss his smile in a way that words don't understand. These things, along with a horribly stressful grad school experience and the divorce of my parents after 33 years, happened in one fell swoop. I experienced a tremendous amount of loss all at once. In the process, I lost my sense of direction—the result of too much stress and conflict and upheaval all at once? I lost my footing and, in little bits and pieces, the world dropped out from under me. Even so, I've done my best to buck up and move on.

And so here I am, writing about it in order to let go of it. I’ve come to this little café in the middle of the city with its small table pushed up close to these over-sized warehouse windows so that I might better hear the words that are doing their best to push their way to the surface. Only glass separates me from a busy sidewalk filled with the chattery vibrations of school children and, beyond them, an occasional siren that conflicts with the deeper, more constant, rumblings of downtown traffic. In a place so completely opposite from the one I left behind, I’ve come here to say goodbye.

There is an Albert Camus quote that I have tacked up on the wall next to my desk at home that says: “Live to the point of tears.” And so I have. I have loved so very deeply and I recognize that this surely is a blessing.

*image:
"Release"
48"x60"x1"
original oil on canvas
(sold)

my day in 2 parts and 3 videos...

The Distraction:





The Solution:
(sorry...i'm rambling. and that head-bobble-thing I'm doing? can i blame it on a quirk of the camera?) :)-

in search of the muse

words. words. where are you? lost under a pile of papers? buried in a book i have yet to discover? silenced by a chattering monkey mind? distracted by emergency water work and an exploding toilet? playing hide and seek among endless aisles of library book shelves?

come out, come out, where ever you are. even just a whisper, dear words. i miss you.

Acts of Bravery...and then some!

"Courage is not the absence of fear but the judgment that something else is more important than fear. . . . For now you are traveling the road between who you think you are and who you can be." ~Meg Cabot

A couple of days ago I invited all of you to send me a list of the brave things that you have accomplished so that I could compile our list together. These are some seriously wonderful acts of bravery, my friends!!

If you still want to add something to the list, it's not too late. Everyone is invited to add their acts of bravery--big or small. Once again, just send me an email or leave a comment. I'll keep adding to this list over the next few days.

What staggers me the most is the feeling of STRENGTH IN NUMBERS!!! :) You people amaze me!!

1. I had a job interview-me and six people and It was very hard and I did not do a great job but I am owning that and there you have it:)
2. sent a 30 poem manuscript to a small pubisher
3. responded to their kind rejection letter by calling the editor and asking for feedback
4. followed his recommendation and applied to the colrain poetry manuscript conference
5. got accepted!
6. started a short story about a great love affair
7. brought my mom to my house to live for awhile
   
8. let go of an uneven friendship
9. made cards from my photos
10. let myself love
11. reviving my counseling business.
12. Wrote my first Amazon Vine review.
13. Discovered in my heart that I deserve nice things, ordered a designer key fob.
14. Stood up for myself.
15. Made first video ever.
16. Conquered my fear of groups. Really!
17. Took a yoga class.
18. Grounded my health by giving up sugar & refined carbs & alcohol.
19. Started a low carb diet.
20. Decided to stay sober, sugar-free, and refined carb-free for a good while.
21. Decided to do NaNoWriMo, a writing challenge.
22. Became more authentic on my blog.
23. Attempted to get more sleep (still have work here).
24. Eventually stopped putting myself down for my hair.
25. Made first video Amazon review.
26. Did first guest blog spot on a blog.
27. Opened up to a new friend.
28. Figured out how to use my new word processor.
29. Took on procrastination and broke through it many times.
30. Said no to good things that weren't right for me.
31. Learned how to give myself permission to take a break.
32. Became more comfortable with receiving good things from the Universe.
33. Began to lose weight.
34. Began to feel my feelings.
35. Experimented with being present.
36. Decided to adopt being present as a spiritual practice.
37. Started and continued to due yoga every day.
38. Shook up my patterns by doing things differently.
39. Discovered that I could be brave with the flu.
40. Learned to face difficult intimate conversations better.
41. Discovered the ease that comes with perseverance.
42. Eliminated clutter on To Do List.
43. Cleaned my pantry.
44. Did things imperfectly with comfort.
45. Dealt with my most feared person ever.
46. Learned to trust that the Universe will come through for me.
47. Practiced keeping myself safe.
48. Had video featured for the first time on another blog.
49. Stopped out-of-control late night eating.
50. Decided to help create a Complaint-Free World.
51. Found out that things could be easy instead of hard, if I wanted them to.
52. Discovered that being afraid is something I can move through.
53. Surprised myself with what I could do.
54. Fell in love with this community.
55. Committed with all my heart to move back to Spain and build my coaching career.
56. Gave notice on my flat.
57. Canceled some subscriptions on my bank account.
58. Arranged an interview with a company I used to work for in Madrid.
59. Booked my flights for the interview.
60. Made contact with contacts in Spain telling then about my plans and asking for help me on my journey.
61. Asked a client who doesn't pay me to pay me.
62. Started copying all of my late father's CDs onto my laptop so that I can let go of their physical bodies!
63. I have been nurturing my wounded, scared little heart with tender words and brave commitments to its desires.
64. It has started to beat louder and thumping, red and juicy and full of joy, so that I always know its there.
    
65. My heart full of joy has kept me laughing and free from blame and judgement through a big restructure at work.
66. The braver my heart is, the more joy it creates in this body that's my home while I'm here and the more I am able to let go of attachment and I chose to take conscious action from this place every day.
67. I ask myself "Are you awake?" just so that I am 100% sure that I am present and at choice no matter how much difficulty is going on around me.
68. I bought some clothes that are the real, authentic me and they keep me brave.
69. One of the outfits is leggings, boots and a lovely aubergine top that gets me a lot of attention. I would never have worn this at 20 even though I was 10 pounds thinner and 18 years younger. Too scared, I was hiding. Being brave lets me light up a room sometimes without feeling embarassed about my body.
70. I posted a proper picture of myself on my blog for all to see!
71. I've been making a huge effort to connect with more people. I've always been shy and so chatting and joking with people I dont really know is a new and thrilling pleasure. And the good thing is that nowadays, people seem to naturally want to chat with me. I like it.
72. I started working with two clients who asked me to work with them about two months ago and I never acted on it.
73. I have asked all of my clients if they will still work with me when I move and so far they have all said yes!
74. I leave comments more regularly on blogs that I like and connect with even more people.
75. Composing an email about coaching asking friends and family to spread the word for me.
    22. Confronting my fear of rejection by asking for what I want. If I want to spend time with someone I tell them.
76. In line with that fear, going through embarassment and just to name and say what's really going on for me is truly liberating.
77. I was inspired by the Be Brave project to attend a job fair, shake hands
    over and over and pass out my resume multiple times.
78. Applied for a job as curator of education at the Crocker Art Museum
79. Applied for a job as education program coordinator at Museum of the African Diaspora
80. Submitted work into an international show. If my work is accepted it will be shown in a highly reputable gallery in London
81. Was nominated take a trip to Europe as part of the International Scholar Laureate Program. While this scares the crap out of me I am gathering information to go.
82. Changed my hairstyle after wearing it in a way that was easy and comfortable for 2 years
83. Inquired about studio space at the place I had my art show a week ago
84. Inquired about a gallery that I have submitted work at before without response but have being encouraged to try again several times by about four artists this museum represents
85. Signed up for Nanowrimo - National Novel Writing Month. While the book I want to write isn't a novel, I figured this activity would be just the push to get it all down on paper
86. Agreed to speak in front of a group of women about starting an art collection
87. Making hearts, stars, and joy ornaments with the hope that they will sell throughout the holiday season
88. Filing away old bills and clearing clutter (a brave act simply because I do not want to deal with it)
89. Applied for a portrait artist job.
    
90. Applied for a retail manager position. I was offered a job, but turned it down because it didn't pay well enough to justify it. Upon reflection I was glad that it worked out the way it did because, if I were to be honest with myself, it is not the kind of work I want to do anyway.
91. Worked on my thesis (and I'm almost done!).
    
92. Encountered wild animals up close, including two bears and an entire pack of wolves in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. Now that was (wonderfully) scary!
    
93. Went on a solo writing retreat.
94. Got my bangs cut extra short.
95. Went shopping for a nice outfit that made me feel good, wore high heels, and went out to a restaurant that sported more silverware than I knew what to do with!
96. Walked out into the deep, black, night through mist and crashing waves. Such darkness. I was terrified!
97. Started eating smaller portions for meals and traded crackers and chips for apples--and have, since then, lost a few pounds.
98. Posted a video of myself on my blog. Yow! Did I really do that?!
99. Built a website banner for someone inspired by a dream image. I was intimidated by it at first, but ended up having so much fun creating it!
100. Learned how to use my new pen tablet that I had been avoiding for weeks.
101. Made great strides in learning new Photoshop techniques. This has already been so incredibly helpful in terms of my web design projects and fun, too!
     
102. Started pulling together the inklings of a new book.
     
103. Looked into getting fine art prints of my paintings.
     
104. Applied for a advising/counseling position. It is the kind of job that I would love!
105. Shared my blog address with my mom.
106. Had my tarot read. Wonderful, amazing, life-changing.
107. Learned how to solve computer challenges without asking for help.
108. Went shopping for jeans even though I was afraid that they would all look horrible on me and that I would go home feeling bad about my body. However, I surprised myself by finding a pair that fit perfect and that I feel great in!
109. Lined up an art show for spring.
110. Cleaned, organized, and cleared out the negative energy in my office. It feels great and is so much more conducive to getting things done and feeling comforted.
111. Made lasagna from scratch for the first time ever.
112. Started really and truly believing in myself and my dreams.
113. Inquired about 2 more web design projects--and got them both!
114. Bought a new domain for our web design business that better reflects me. We're in the process of revamping the whole site in a way that better reflects my work.
     
115. Started wearing jewelery and clothes that feel more like me and noticed how much brighter my energy shines when I am simply me.
116. Was honest with myself and stuck to my guns when confronted with an "opportunity" that would undermine my personal goals.
117. Made a list of priorities...then got real with myself. I have a tendency to stretch myself always too thin and always too far. So I shifted things around so that there are only two ranked under "#1 Priority."
     
118. Did a "letting go" ritual
119. A stay at home mother of two years applied for a position that would allow her to get back into her profession, but still be able to pour ample amounts of energy into her favorite job: being a mom.
     
120. A professional photographer did something that she always wanted to do and started taking photos of strangers--with great success!
121. Got courageous and signed up and went to a weekend long weaving workshop.
122. Got even more courageous and, even though it was hard, got honest with someone important.
123. I have taken time off blogging in order to look deeper, all alone.
     
124. I have taken medical tests I have been putting off, in order to be proactive in my own health.
125. I went off my anti depressant (ok'd by doctor!)
126. I shared some very personal information with someone that needed to hear it.
127. I worked out a big problem (dog related) with a neighbor on our street.

Is there an act of bravery that you would like to add? ;)

"I've come to believe that each of us has a personal calling that's as unique as a fingerprint - and that the best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others in the form of service, working hard, and also allowing the energy of the universe to lead you." ~Oprah Winfrey

Ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

Ok, I feel like I've been running at break-neck speeds towards something all evening...but it's time to try and slow down. I've made myself a cup of wonderfully spicy Ruby Chai with cream and and a little bit of sugar. Ooooh, yummmm....

But what I'm really doing is attempting to give myself a break before I head off on one last writing retreat. This time, however, I don't get to go anywhere (unless, perhaps, I go across town). My hours, this week, were cut once again for no particular reason except that, I'm convinced, the universe is conspiring in my favor to help me actually finish my thesis. I'll have three days off in a row and, in that time, I hope to buckle down and write the bulk of the critical portion of this project and, although it is something that I feel a fair amount of anxiety over, it is also something that makes me feel a great deal of excitement because it means that I am on the last stretch to the finish line. To have a finished draft that I can actually, tangibly hand over to my adviser...HOLY YES!!!!

And so the next three days I only partially exist in this world. Mostly I will exist only in books and in my head and in anonymous coffee shops and in the library. I've been a bit jealous of all you folks who are participating in such things as NaNoWriMo and NaBloPoMo...but, alas, the next three days are mine to blissfully immerse myself in writing. I feel very blessed to have this little chunk of time and so I am going to do my best to enjoy it. My arsenal: coffee, rose petal tea, candles, walks through leaves and along lakes, coffee shops, healthy food, my trusty laptop, a relatively clean desk, a very large stack of books, and good music. I mean, does that not sound blissful?? ;)

I recently read in Ask and It Is Given: "It is not your job to make something happen--Universal Forces are in place for all of that. Your work is to simply determine what you want." Well, I want to finish my thesis so that I can move on. Plain and simple. I think it's interesting that my hours should be cut at this particular time (they'll go back to normal next week). A good friend recently said to me: "Jessie--this is it--in every way the universe is speaking to you--nudging you forward--trying to toss you out of your nest so to speak..." Those words speak very truthfully to me and I've been thinking about that a lot lately.

Things have a way of working out and I think that if I just keep going with the flow, things are going to work out well. Mind you, going with the flow is not exactly easy. But it feels right and so, in that sense, even the hard work feels good. I'm ready to do whatever it is that I have to do. More than ready, actually.

ps.
Last night I had a dream that I was committing random acts of art by leaving paintings and drawings in odd places for other people to find. I left them taped to sidewalks and tucked in the crooks of trees and any other odd place that I felt inspired to leave them. It wasn't long before The Administration got together to talk about it. No one knew who was leaving the artwork scattered about, but The Administration wasn't happy about it at all. It became widespread campus news and eventually it was all over the local news (oh my!). haha! I was having so much fun leaving random artwork for others to find because it always made the people that found it so unexpectedly happy! Towards the end of my dream, even my Dad (who had previously abandoned me) came to stand up for me and The Administration lost their battle against my random acts of art. It was the weirdest dream. But, well...all things considered, it makes perfect sense. I keep dreaming about art and making art. Geez...do you think my dreams are trying to tell me something??

Letting go...

"I saw the angel in the marble,
and carved until I set him free."
~Michelangelo

I received this photo as a gift from my very beautiful friend, Maddie, with a quote and a few loving words about how this Be Brave project has helped to set her free. I gazed at the image in silence for a long, long time...and its beauty, its optimism, its sense of freedom, its boundlessness brought tears to my eyes. I imagined the bird, the moment it found release from its cage and the thought takes my breath away. What that moment must have felt like! Her photo speaks to me on such a deep level. She has captured a moment that is so raw and beautiful and innately powerful!

These days, I feel exceedingly tender and capable all at the same time. It is a strange combination and leaves me feeling very thin-skinned and emotional. I also feel very receptive. This is hard to explain, but I feel as though the universe has brought me to a very unusual space of receiving. It makes me feel a little bit topsy-turvy. It also makes my heart feel incredibly full.

On Halloween night, after V. went to bed and the world was quiet, I acted on Jamie's suggestion and did a "letting go" ritual. I took out a stack of index cards and a black permanent marker and, on each card, I wrote something that I needed to let go of. Through Jamie's tarot reading, I have come to realize just how much emotional weight I have been carrying around with me these past couple of years and how important it was that I let it go in order to move on. I wrote down the biggest things first and with those thoughts came tears from somewhere very deep down. But then I kept writing...and writing...and writing. I wrote down every single thing that I needed to let go of. One thought sparked the next, sparked the next, sparked the next. And before I knew it I had filled up an awful lot of little index cards.

Still, there were four things that caused the most pain. They felt like an illness that is hard to get rid of...and so, for those, I took out 4 bigger index cards and I wrote them down again, this time in big, fat letters--one word, no explanation.

Then I went outside with a lighter, set up the little weber grill, and started lighting them on fire. One card at a time. I read the index card out loud and then turned it to flame. And as it burned, I told myself: "It's time to let it go." As the flame crept its way across the paper, I felt each and every thing that had been weighing me down grow wings and release itself from my heart. One thing after another after another after another. I got to the end of the stack and was left with the last four large cards. The grand finale of release! Oddly enough, the most emotionally difficult card was also the slowest to take the flame. I had to relight it several times. But finally...oh, FIRE! It is such a beautiful thing!

I'll admit, I half expected to be sitting in a dark back yard in the middle of the night sobbing like an idiot...but as I burned those cards I felt only a sense of lightness. I felt myself breathing more deeply. I felt forgiveness--for both myself and for those who had been a part of my pain. I felt the strangest and most liberating feeling: release. In simplest terms, I felt good, happy, uncluttered!

That night, I again dreamed of the snake.

The next day I found myself involved in several wonderful moments of connecting with strangers. One of these people was an old woman who had ridden a bus all night from Chicago. I met her walking down a sidewalk. I said good morning and the next thing I knew we were talking about coffee and sleep habits and bus schedules and laughed good belly laughs. She seemed lonely at first and so I was just trying to be nice, but before we parted ways, she thanked me for the good conversation--her gratitude was so sincere that, in the end, I was the one that was thankful! The whole day went like this. Throughout the afternoon I met several artists who, for unknown reasons, totally opened up to me and showed me their art. It was fabulous and I felt so energized by our conversations! Later in the day, a customer overheard me talking about the web design projects I've been working on and asked if I would be able create a site for him!

Last night I dreamed that my friend and I saw Diego Rivera in the grocery store. Diego was leaning on his shopping cart, puttering around and turning down an aisle when my friend yelled: "Hey Diego! What day is it?" Diego took a few moments to get his bearings and yelled back: "Uh...um...Friday!" It was a wonderful everyday sort of moment that oddly fueled my inspiration to get back to my studio (where ever that was) to get some work done. My dreams continued on in several other directions. In some I was really scared. In others I was completely in love. I woke up feeling incredibly entertained.

~ ~ ~

I feel like I'm in a dream and that, every day, I just keep remembering the details.

~ ~ ~

ps.
Want to see more of Maddie's beautiful photography? Visit her Etsy here: "courage my love"

Happy Halloween! Merry Samhain! And Happy "Be Brave"!

It is Halloween tonight and I can feel the energy in the air. Being what I thought would be the end of the Be Brave Project, this feels like a very important night for me. Samhain, in the Gaelic tradition, is the night that we celebrate the harvest. For me, it is the night that I celebrate all of the hard work that myself and all of you have accomplished through each and every act of bravery that's been committed in the past month. Tonight I celebrate the ability to move past fear. I celebrate courage. I celebrate Eleanor Roosevelt. I celebrate community. I celebrate darkness. And I celebrate moving past it.

I celebrate you.
I celebrate us.

I celebrate the belief that anything is possible
when we simply get out of our own way!

Tonight I celebrate the fact that
this is not the end of this project,
but only the very baby beginning.

On Thursday, September 27th I started the Be Brave Project and dared myself to do one thing every day that scares me. I don't know what I expected from it. All I know is that I was starting to feel a very deep need for change in my life. For thirty-five days I've been watching myself transform into someone that I can love. Does that sound cheesy? Well, yes, I'm cheesy then. This challenge has taken more time, energy, and concentration than anything I've ever done before. Yes, even more concentration and energy than hiking the Himalayas!! It has required me to be focused. It has required me to be confident. It has required me to stand up for myself and to push myself further than I would have otherwise.

It has taught me to listen to my heart. It has also taught me that I have a lot to let go of before I can truly move on. It has taught me that I have it in me to be anything and anyone that I want to be. It has taught me to believe in myself and in my dreams. I have come to the conclusion that, what I want more than anything, is to be myself--fully and completely me. And what I've come to understand is that is what the universe also wants most from me. The closer I move towards my heart's desires, the more everything else seems to start falling into place. It is truly, for lack of a better word, weird.

In the past 35 days I have (in no particular order):

1. Applied for a portrait artist job. I never heard back from them--doesn't matter though, because it got the ball rolling.
   
2. Applied for a retail manager position. I was offered a job, but turned it down because it didn't pay well enough to justify it. Upon reflection I was glad that it worked out the way it did because, if I were to be honest with myself, it is not the kind of work I want to do anyway.
3. Worked on my thesis.
4. Worked on my thesis.
5. Worked on my thesis.
6. Worked on my thesis.
7. Worked on my thesis.
8. Worked on my thesis.
9. Worked on my thesis. (Yes, this is important to me! Can you tell?)
10. Worked on my thesis. (I'm almost done!) :) :) :)
    
11. Encountered wild animals up close, including two bears and an entire pack of wolves in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. Now that was (wonderfully) scary!
    
12. Went on a solo writing retreat (see #3-6, and #11).
13. Got my bangs cut extra short.
14. Went shopping for a nice outfit that made me feel good, wore high heels, and went out to a restaurant that sported more silverware than I knew what to do with!
15. Walked out into the deep, black, night through mist and crashing waves. Such darkness. I was terrified!
16. Started eating smaller portions for meals and traded crackers and chips for apples--and have, since then, lost a few pounds.
17. Posted a video of myself on my blog. Yow! Did I really do that?!
18. Built a website banner for someone inspired by a dream image. I was intimidated by it at first, but ended up having so much fun creating it!
19. Learned how to use my new pen tablet that I had been avoiding for weeks.
20. Made great strides in learning new Photoshop techniques. This has already been so incredibly helpful in terms of my web design projects and fun, too!
    
21. Started pulling together the inklings of a new book.
    
22. Looked into getting fine art prints of my paintings. I realized that my search for lower prices will need to continue. :)-
23. Applied for a advising/counseling position. It is the kind of job that I would love!
24. Shared my blog address with my mom.
25. Had my tarot read by the ever fabulous Jamie. Serious stuff. Wonderful, amazing, life-changing.
26. Learned how to solve computer challenges without asking for help.
27. Went shopping for jeans even though I was afraid that they would all look horrible on me and that I would go home feeling bad about my body. However, I surprised myself by finding a pair that fit perfect and that I feel great in! Now that's amazing.
28. Lined up an art show for spring.
29. Cleaned, organized, and cleared out the negative energy in my office. It feels great and is so much more conducive to getting things done and feeling comforted.
30. Made lasagna from scratch for the first time ever.
31. Started really and truly believing in myself and my dreams.
32. Inquired about 2 more web design projects--and got them both!
33. Bought a new domain for our web design business that better reflects me. We're in the process of revamping the whole site in a way that better reflects both of us. This felt very important to me. I'm so excited about it!
34. Started wearing jewelery and clothes that feel more like me and noticed how much brighter my energy shines when I am simply me.
35. Was honest with myself and stuck to my guns when confronted with an "opportunity" that would undermine my personal goals.
36. Made a list of priorities...then got real with myself. I have a tendency to stretch myself always too thin and always too far. So I shifted things around so that there are only two ranked under "#1 Priority." They are: finish thesis and find a new job. The rest will happen soon enough.
37. As soon as I am done writing this post I have promised myself time to do a "letting go" ritual. I hope to tell you more about it tomorrow.
    

I was thinking that it would be really, really cool to compile a list of ALL our "Be Brave" actions. Even if the "Be Brave" project has inspired you to do just one thing, I would love to hear about it. I actually got this idea after reading Kristine's list (is she amazing, or what?!). Whether you did things that were tiny, small, big, or huge, just imagine how incredible our list would be TOGETHER! Whew! Now that would be a lot of bravery. There is powerful energy in our actions and so here's my idea...

Send me your list in an email OR leave your list in the comment section of my blog by Sunday, November 4th. On Monday, November 5th, I will create a new post with ALL of our "Be Brave" actions combined. For the sake of readability, please try to keep any explanations relatively short (at least for the purpose of the compiled list). You all have been doing some AMAZING stuff! And I would really like to take a moment to celebrate it.

As for the "Be Brave" project...this is only the beginning!

video bravery

Since the beginning of this "Be Brave" project, Olivia has been posting videos of herself and because I have absolutely loved every single one of them, I decided to post a video of my own. Yep, so here I am...completely unedited.

Good morning, everyone! :)-

ps.
that second photo from the video? not flattering. gah. can't get rid of it. please just try to ignore it. :)-

meditative time

Have I really not been here to post since Thursday? My god, I don't even know where to begin.
Well, I completely emptied my office at 9pm last night. I got a bug up my bum and the next thing I knew the entire contents of the room had been moved to the dining room. Then I filled up a bucket with some warm, soapy water and sage oil and did a thorough cleansing of the windows, walls, and floors. My desire for a change of perspective and mental refurbishing has been satisfied--even if the closet is still a mess (I guess you could say that I'm saving that for a different day).

At the moment I am drinking a cup of "Meditative Time" tea (check out Yogi Tea's great website--yum!). I'm enjoying a clean room with soft lamps and burning candles. The door is shut and music is playing. Ok, actually, that is all a lie. I am just trying to write myself into a peaceful place. I have, however, put the water on to boil and *hold on a minute*... have just now lit candles, incense, and turned on the music. The tea is now sitting by my side. The lamps are turned down low. There. I have hereby turned a wonderful fiction into reality. *deep breath* Tonight I am attempting to enjoy my own private and much needed sanctuary. It has been an incredibly emotional last couple of days.

Doing this "Be Brave" project ranks up there as one of the most intense things I have ever done. It is psychological, emotional, spiritual, physical. Seriously? Yes, seriously. And if you're doing this "Be Brave" project along with me, then you probably know exactly what I'm talking about. I knew it had the potential to be life changing. I just never realized that such deeply internal transformations would occur.

Yesterday I received the very incredible gift of a tarot reading from Jamie. To be honest, I am still processing much of it. She truly has a gift and I will forever be grateful for the insights that she has shared with me. Perhaps one of these days I will write in more detail about this experience. But, for now, it is deeply personal and deeply appreciated. I have spent much of the day in tears. Not necessarily sad tears, but the kind made up of everything all mixed together. What I feel today is: release. Huge amounts of emotional release. Jamie's reading caused a lot of intense emotions to rise to the surface. She was so right on with everything that she said and well...I have a lot of thinking to do. You know, it takes a lot of courage to follow one's heart. These days, my heart is only whispering. In so many ways I am only starting from scratch.

And right now...well, right now I just want to say thank you to everyone who is on this Be Brave journey along with me and to all of you who have been leaving comments, emails of support, and putting your positive energy out into the universe. I'm serious, people. This is big time. And I am truly thankful for this community of friends and fellow adventurers. I can feel your presence, I think about your words, your experiences, your acts of bravery and it is empowering in ways that cannot even be described.

One of these days soon I'm going to rewrite the post that "Be Brave" links to. Because, you see, this is not just an October thing. It has no ending. It won't end October 31st. It won't end ever. It just doesn't work like that--and if you should decide to join in on this project, then you'll see for yourself what I mean. I want everyone to know that you (yes, you!) should feel welcome to join in anytime you want. May we find bravery within ourselves every day. Every single day. All of us.

I love you, friends.

glass (more than) half full

(click on image to read)

It seems I've gotten out of the habit of writing about the scary things that I'm doing every day. A funny thing is happening--that is, I'm doing all sorts of things that at one time or another I've considered scary. I usually don't even notice it until after the fact when the thought dawns on me: "oh hey, I actually did that without being intimidated by it!"

Today it was the little things that made a difference:

• Made homemade lasagna for the very first time ever (always seemed like too many steps. lasagna? daunting? nope, guess not!)
  
• Created mock up for a new website (without hesitation)
• Drove downtown in the middle of the work day for information and price quotes on art prints
• Worked on thesis
• Hung out talking to my neighbor even though I had a horrendous case of bedhead
• Figured out problems with my computer on my own.

The best part of my day though was the non-accomplishing task of taking the dogs for an extra long walk in the woods. Last year I dubbed it "Sherwood Forest." Now I remember why.

zen and the art of decluttering:

Today I took the first step towards simplifying my life...and I'm starting in the closet. I bought some inexpensive boxes (in black) and magazine files (in wine/medallion). Next I'm going to go through every inch of my closet and am either going throw it, file it, or organize it. I have a serious mess starting to spill out of the confines of my little office closet and it's starting to seep into the rest of my life as well. In terms of clearing the mind, my closet is a good place to start. From there, I might very well take on the rest of my office as well. That's my goal, anyhow! And in the end, I'll award myself to some long awaited color (have you guessed that the boxes are a form of self-bribery as well?). These walls are white, white, white and have been getting on my nerves for too long. Since I'm renting, I can't paint...but I CAN get creative! I'll let you know what I come up with when I get there.

In the meantime...it's just me and the closet.

"Be Brave" tip o' the day: You gotta start somewhere!

~~~
ps.
Check out last week's office:

a la writing retreat!
;)









~

paying homage to the creative forces that be.

Oy vey! It's been a few days since I last posted, but I've been busy trying to stay on track. It seems that one thing every day that scares me has been centered around completing my thesis--and this has required a fair bit o' daily devotion. Devotion, I dare say, that has even cut into my oh-so-sacred blogging time.

I haven't accomplished anything major in the past couple of days, but the important thing is that I've at least sat down with my project and have made progress on a daily basis.

There's a quote I recently came across by Kent Nerburn from Letters to my Son that I absolutely love:

If we don't offer ourselves to the unknown, our senses dull. Our world becomes small and we lose our sense of wonder. Our eyes don't lift to the horizon; our ears don't hear the sounds around us. The edge is off our experience, and we pass our days in a routine that is both comfortable and limiting. We wake up one day and find that we have lost our dreams in order to protect our days."

I found these words while traveling with Vinny up to the North Shore and thought about them again while on my writing retreat. Since I work and live in the same neighborhood and because time and money always seem to be a commodity that I don't have enough of, my world sometimes has a tendency to get much too small. I want to find the small and wondrous details in every day places. I look, but when everything becomes monotonous and tiresome...well, then I know I have a problem. A serious problem.

Getting out of my regular routine was helpful for my writing beyond measure. It has been helpful to not only my writing, but my entire sense of well being. Now that I've once again tasted worlds outside of my own, I find my dreams, once again, stretching further outward in dangerous degrees.

Vinny's been daydreaming about France. I've been daydreaming about India. We've both been daydreaming--and, my god, it feels so good! A whole new realm of images have begun to show up on my "vision board" (that is, the cork board next to my desk covered in a collage of things I want to fill my life with).

By doing one thing every day that scares me I've noticed my life beginning to crack open in directions that I never really anticipated. And, although I'm not yet able to find the language for my visions, I feel a more complete self rising to the surface. In my mind, I get glimpses of things. The more honest I am about what I want for my life, the more vivid those images become. I don't have words for a lot of it, but I strongly feel that all of it will happen if I just keep walking towards it. As I write this, I feel very much like bursting into tears. Not sad tears, but the kind that let me know when something is true.

And I know, without a doubt, that this project will continue well beyond October 31st. These changes are molecular--and backwards is not an option I feel like entertaining.


*image credit: "Hommage" by Leopoldo M. Maler 1974

elements of bravery:

(click image to enlarge)

I spent some time this evening making friends with my pen tablet. I love this thing! Have I mentioned that I've accomplished TWENTY more pages of my thesis this week?! There's no going back now. These past several days I've felt a mental shift taking place inside of me. Kind of like taking on a strenuous physical activity, I've somehow managed to turn monkey mind off and just climb the mountain--with words, that is. The trick, I've found, is not to question myself--just keep moving forward. Just do it. Don't stop. Keep going. Trust it. Every page is nearly polished (well, hopefully), but there will be no looking back until I've made it safely through the danger zone.

“Bravery is believing in yourself,
and that thing nobody can teach you.”
~El Cordobes

balance.

At the moment I am sitting in a coffee shop with the intention of bringing this week's "writing retreat" to a proper close. I took a photo with my laptop's web cam a minute ago and then applied a bit o' Photoshop to capture the night's urban mood. Outside is all traffic, road construction, and sidewalk people. So much different than the world I left behind and yet, together, they strike such a perfect balance.

I came home a little bit early because, I'm embarrassed to admit, I started to miss my pup and husband. I accomplished more in the past 3 days than I have in the last 3 months. I got excited and couldn't sit still any longer--so I drove through a foggy, deer-infested night just so that I could get home before the alarm clock went off. It was a wonderful homecoming. And it was a productive retreat. Not only productive, but refreshing as well. Right now, I feel an incredible sense of balance.

And so I have stolen myself away to write one last essay in order to cap this retreat off with a nice rounded number. Music is in my ears, art is on the walls, a large cup of coffee is in front of me. I want to tell you about the blackness of the northern sky; I want to tell you about a lot of things.

But right now...I am committed to staying focused on this one last essay of the day. This writing retreat ain't over yet.

Cheers. ;)

dream come true: self-created writing retreat

When I decided to do one thing every day that scares me, one of the things I quickly decided I would do within the course of the month is make some serious headway on my thesis. This is an extremely important step for me because of the very great need I feel to tie up this particular loose end. Finishing my thesis would open up a whole new space in my life--mentally, emotionally, and probably even spiritually. Every single day this thing looms over me, it nags at the back of my mind, creates little nigglings of stress, incessantly tap-tap-taps at my chamber door. In short, it won't leave me alone. No matter what I'm doing, it causes me to always feel like I should be doing something else (read: working on my thesis). And (quite obviously) working on my thesis is something I have not been doing often enough of.

A couple weeks ago I was a bit irritated when I found out that I wasn't scheduled for as many hours as usual this coming week. But then I thought...Ok, I can either be mad about losing hours OR I can use the extra time to my advantage. I decided on the second option and, from there, immediately resolved that I would take this unexpected expanse of time and head to the woods for some uninterrupted writing time. Yes, DEEP into the woods. Just my wolfie and me.

I'm leaving directly after work today and I won't be back until Thursday.

2 days for travel.
3 days for writing.

Writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking, writing, woods walking.

Nothing more. Nothing less.

I've packed my notebooks and pens and enough books to last me a lifetime. You see, with the book packing I allowed myself the luxury to bring books that have even the remote possibility of being useful. I'm planning on working on the critical section of my thesis and I don't want to find myself in the middle of the woods wishing I had remembered to bring ___*potential book title goes here*___. Never mind that I have an entire liquor box PLUS a book bag FULL to the brim with books that are (even loosely) associated with the topic of memoir, essay, creative nonfiction, or sense of place. There are some that have absolutely nothing to do with anything, but are coming along for no other reason than sheer inspiration--which, if you ask me, is as good a reason as any.

Of course, if I find myself inspired to work on the creative portion of the thesis, there's the possibility that I won't use any of the books--but that's ok, too. The best part about a self-created writing retreat is that there are NO rules. :)

The last time I felt so perfectly excited and focused about taking on a writing endeavor was when I was in India and decided to rent a room for several weeks to do nothing else but write. Unfortunately, I only have 3 days, not 3 weeks--but, hey, I'll take what I can get.

Things I will NOT have: phone, electricity, running water, a bathroom, noise pollution, light pollution, needy (but oh-so-loving) puppy, needy (but oh-so-loving) husband, love from said husband and puppy, television, internet, hot showers, loud traffic, sirens, drug dealers, nosy neighbors, disruptions of any kind, humming refrigerator, humming freeway...

Things I WILL have: peace and quiet (enough to make my ears ring), stars (enough to take my breath away), Anu love, yellow legal tablets and pens, books, fresh air, food that tastes better than ever because it's cooked outside on an open fire, very cold swim in a nearby lake if I'm brave enough, sleeping bag (good up to -20f), French press coffee (never leave home without good coffee), hobo dinners (I'll share my "recipe" upon my return), miles and miles of trails, chai, bright orange sweatshirt to protect me from hunters, fall colors, snow (??--oh, could I be so lucky?!), a bonfire, candles, writing by lantern light, the sound of howling wolves, wild flower bouquets, a stack of my favorite books, words that bring me one step closer to accomplishing a major goal...

I know...this sounds way too enjoyable to be an act of bravery. Right? Well, for me, working on my thesis is possibly the most extreme act of bravery out there. The travel, the woods, the time to myself...well, that's just padding to make the experience more pleasurable. Hey--no one said bravery had to be torturous. ;)

~~~
ps.
Going out of town twice with only a couple days in between has left me far behind with reading blogs and writing emails. Please forgive me. I look forward to catching up with all of you soon!

a post to bury the last post.

I woke up this morning with the desire to delete last night's blog entry. Why? Well, mostly because it's slightly pathetic and also because I know that the only way to get a better job is to just do the work. There is also the very possible possibility (mmm...I like that phrase: "possible possibility" ;)) of something extraordinary happening. You know, like I just happen to be at the right place at the right time....but, until then, there's only one way to go about this and that is to continue moving forward with patience and perseverance.

Perseverance--yep, there's that Julia Cameron word again. Whenever I think of that word, I think of her book, Finding Water. Granted, many of us had a hard time getting through the book. Nevertheless, it is a word that I've become strangely fond of. Don't get me wrong, perseverance isn't all things should be. I want a certain amount of spark and charm and magic to be included in my days as well.

And speaking of books...there's another book that I have been enjoying immensely lately which is Sabrina Ward Harrison's The True and the Questions: A Journal. If you're doing the Be Brave project, or even if you're not, there's a greatly inspiring section, "Leaving Ripples," (page 24-49) that I highly suggests visiting. Well, actually, the entire book is worth visiting, but that chapter is especially centered around the notion of bravery.

One thing that amazes me the most about doing one thing that scares me every day is how each little action creates a ripple effect in all other aspects of my life. I am finding this project to be a very big lesson in the connectivity of all things. I start thinking about how I want one thing to turn out and realize that it has a lot to do how this other thing turns out has a lot to do with this has a lot to do with that. It is quite mind boggling, to be honest. And if I didn't have to get ready to go to work in the next 5 minutes, I would love to try and write more about this. Alas, I do not have time.

Instead I am going to perform an experiment today to see how many people I can get to smile. And, in turn, I'm going to see how many times their smiles make me smile. And if my smile makes someone else smile....well, see where I'm going with this?... :)

job search 101.

Now that I've returned from vacation...I've also returned to the job hunt. This is my act of bravery for the day. 3 hours of shuffling through websites and more website and a few want ads. This seems small, but it was the necessary step that I needed to take today because the whole process can seem endless and I sometimes become irrationally disappointed in myself that I'm not able to make something happen overnight. Then I remind myself that, however long it might take, I promise not to give up because, let's face it, big changes rarely happen instantaneously.

Now I'm going to do my second scary thing for the day and humble myself by asking you, dear readers, to offer up your advice. I feel stupid for not being genetically preprogrammed with this information, but...

How does one go about finding a job that is both fulfilling AND pays well??? A job that both satisfies the heart AND pays the bills??? These jobs are out there. But how do I find them? How do I narrow my search into something even remotely manageable?

I'm serious. I want to hear your suggestions--the real, down to earth sort of suggestions.

There. I've made myself look like a bumbling idiot. Now let's see what becomes of it...

Thank you.
;)

returning home...

I've come to the conclusion that my poor quality scanner does not like copying images done in oil pastel (or more like anything at all). However, five days without internet and posting these pages from my journal is the best I have to offer.

I keep a journal on a regular basis, but I must say, I especially enjoyed drawing and writing the musings of my mind these past several days. Besides drinking my morning cup of coffee, it was the one thing that I did religiously and with great anticipation every day. I missed blogs and blogging, but the Be Brave project never left my mind, not even once. {click the image on the left if you want to read the condensed version of what I did every day.}

The cabin we stayed in was built by an artist in the 1950's. It began as his studio and later grew into a home for his wife and two daughters. His paintings still grace each and every wall. Actually, there was not one element of that cabin that didn't, in some way, reflect the creative mind that built it. How could I help but be endlessly inspired? I spent much of my time alternating between drawing, writing, reading, hiking, and generally just breathing it all in.

...and let me just say:
It was hard to come back.
Very hard.

I learned something about myself this week--much more than I can verbalize in this quick little homecoming post. What I can say is that I've found something worth working towards. I realized this past week that, although there are many things that I love about the city, I am not, ultimately, meant to live in one. I love noting the changing colors in a constantly changing sky, walking under the cover of trees, in the wind, under the sun, in the rain, taking in the smells of leaves and moss, the sounds of birds and chipmunks, the unexpected colors of a mushroom or wildflower--this is when I feel truly alive. Under these conditions, I feel myself smile; I feel the blood beneath my skin; I am more aware of the muscles that hold my body together and the flow of thoughts that come from feeling connected to my body and the world I walk through.

{Click on images to read the larger than life version.}

Day 1:

Day 2:

Day 3:

Day 4:
(yes, sorry, i felt the need to crop the dark musings
of my mind--nonetheless, it is a path into a dark forest.
you can make up the rest from there.)

Day 5: