Good Morning Sunshine

Opening the Possibility Gates

After temps in the 100s for most of the summer, you can imagine my delight when Sunday dawned a cool 80 degrees.  I went to early yoga, visited the nature park and threw open every window in the house!  A dramatic temperature change like that  always seems to open my possibility gates and this one has had me dreaming about…

• setting aside more time for antique shopping – old books and photo albums for Full Tilt Boogie journals, antique dinnerware, faded photos and paper goods, whatever else strikes my fancy
• turning that empty lot near my home into a community garden like Sweet Juniper did last spring
• or, knowing nothing (at all) about gardening, maybe visiting the Pie Ranch
• rescuing an old children’s table from a neighbors “big trash” pile to do something artsy with
• lightening my camera load so I’ll be inclined to take more photos
• and being HERE this time next week

Somehow dreams become easier to embrace when the grace of Fall opens my heart and mind.  This moment, with a cool breeze and cricket song drifting in my open window, I feel like I have everything I need, know everything I need to know.

What’s behind your possibility gate this evening?

It Rained – It Really, Really RAINED!!!!!

And if it weren’t for the lightening, I would have been really, really tempted to go out and play in it! 

Sacred Sunday

“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.”
~Lao Tzu

Yoga Night

I think Wednesday might be known as yoga night from here on out. How is it I forgot about the quiet place my mind finds as my body works its way through poses, or the way my muscles loosen and lengthen, or the way the world seems a tiny bit shinier when I walk back into it at the end?

I almost talked myself out of going tonight, but then the teacher from last week called me… just to say hello, see how I was doing. That’s all I needed to renew my resolve – just that little bit of a reminder that there is compassion to be found on the mat… not just from others, but from within.

Sacred Sunday

The Donkey and Pig-tailed girl, upper right, is a card by Katherine Dunn (came with a print I ordered a few months ago); the owl sticker came from JoAnn's Studio 112 collection.

I haven’t done a Sacred Sunday post in forever, but after the laziest Sunday (possibly ever), it just seemed necessary.

There were about a million things I shoulda done (like buy groceries or clean the house), but instead I slept late, cuddled the kitties (liberally),  lingered over a coffee drink for an hour and a half while surfing blogs (found some fun new ones to explore), then came home and played in my Smash Book – all afternoon!

It felt like a completely delicious (and much needed) waste of time.

Precious Cargo

I’m happy to report that I mailed two important packages yesterday…

1. My SAW registration – it’s not til September, but I’m already feeling the can’t-hardly-wait vibration I’ll probably carry until the day my flight leaves!!
2. My Arthouse Sketchbook – I truly did not think I would get it done and never imagined I’d finish with time to spare.  As happy as I was to mail the SAW registration, I’m even happier to mail this little sketchbook.  It contains my heart and all the wisdom I’ve collected along the way to this point in my life.  Photos are of my favorite spread – you can view the whole booklet in Flickr (sneak peek under “Hand Crafted” at the top of my side-bar).

It’s SUCH a relief to have this precious cargo on its way (deadlines make me a little nuts) – I feel like I can finally breathe again!

Edited 1/12 to add Flickr link.

First Snow

Sacred Winter

Winter has well and truly descended on us – bitter cold, with snow predicted for much of next week.  Between us, I sort of relished it today.  I worked on my Art House Sketch Book (two pages to go!!), baked a chicken, wore my pjs all day – these are days when our heads can rest a little and our hearts can drive.

Happy Mess

My art room has reached the point where it will literally explode if I add another thing, so Sunday I went to Michael’s and picked up a couple of organizer cubes.  Hubby said, “you need MORE drawers??!!?” and I told him a girl can never have enough drawers.

I haven’t gotten very far on the filling-em-up part and right now I have a whole lot of mess everyplace, but it’s a start and I really think these will help.  I’ve found that I can’t think straight if I have a mess around me – that doesn’t stop me from making messes of course, but once I reach a certain level of messiness I simply can’t continue until I clean it up.  Which is where I am with the art studio right now – yuck!

Once I restore some semblance of order, I have a whole “mess” of things I’m working on!  Here’s a quick rundown…

• DEEP started today!  I’m so excited, but haven’t had time to do much more than setup my profile.  DEEP is offered by Connie Hozvicka as a follow-up to her BIG class.  BIG was incredible and I’m certain DEEP will be even better!! Click here to learn more about Connie’s workshops.
• I also started Louise Gale’s Big Dreams Small Wonders class today.  Well, “started” might be a bit of an exageration, but I did get the email that the first day is ready and I read the first paragraph!  I’m really inspired to take this class – I had the opportunity to meet Louise at SAW last fall and she is just a doll!
• I have a little over ten days to finish my Art House Sketchbook.  Remember those?  Yeah.  Well, I was really excited about it at the time, but then one thing led to another and I’m only halfway done and they have to be postmarked by January 15!  Yikes!!  Anybody else in this place?  I’m hoping to do one spread a day for the next seven or eight days, which should get me done in time to get it in the mail before the deadline.  Wish me luck!!
• I’m joining a local art group and have to come up with my theme for a journaling project we’re going to work on this year – must spend time meditating on this!!
• Still just itching to make a craft bag combining the structure and graffiti style fabrics I used for the bag and pillow I made for Christmas gifts.  PLUS, I saw a purse Saturday afternoon that got me plotting about making a purse in that graffiti style.  I need to figure out a way to keep up with all my ideas (besides lists – I write lists, then never look at them again – sigh).
• And the icing on the cake (really - I’m talking strawberry cupcakes with cream cheese icing) – SAW registration is open!!  Oh my gosh, the yumminess is just mind-blowing.  I need to be two people to take all the classes I want to take!  Alas, I must decide on three by Jan 11 in order to get my registration in EARLY and ensure I get first dibs!

Plus I have this annoying little thing called work (grumble) – must figure out a way to fit more hours in the day!!