"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery that you miss by going too fast-you also miss the sense of where you are going and why."
~Eddie Cantor
~Eddie Cantor
*This photo was taken by Tomasen at Gay Head Beach on Martha's Vineyard. The perfect
example of "balance".
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Hello everyone~
Well, I actually was somewhat creative in the kitchen and tried a recipe for Schezuan Chicken. I have been thinking a lot about living healthy and what that means to me. What I would like to do is introduce some variety into my diet, as I tend to always eat the same things. Slowly I am finding new combinations of healthy food. I am realizing that it doesn't take as long as I thought to make something new and that I felt really good when it was done because it was healthy at the same time.
Because I don't love to cook so much I have decided to change the way I think about it and look at it as something artful within my life. I also decided to make it a little more special and put out a fresh tablecloth, the candleholders that we received as wedding gift, some flowers picked from the garden along with a bottle of wine. It was simple, fun and special and didn't even take that long to do. As I try to live more artfully within other areas of my life I realize that there are simple things that I can do every day to make it more special.
Here our my artful goals for the week:
Decorate for Fall.
Micromovement:
Buy some pumpkins and gourds and pull out three to five decorations to start with.
This last week I made some real time to enjoy life. I went to the beach twice if you can believe it. The first time was after dinner one night. My husband, son and I drove down (its only about 5 minutes away). The moon was just starting to rise. Owen was afraid of touching the water with his feet when we got there and was soaked by the time we left! It is amazing what just being near the sound and vibration of the surf will do for your soul. My best friend and I got together on Friday night and we decided to get a bottle of wine and an italian sub and go to the beach so we could really talk. We were there for four hours. The moon was amazing. It looked like the sun when it first started to come out--we had to remind ourselves which coast we were on! Then we just sat there, talking and drinking our vino paying attention to the changing moon. We could also see the lights out at the Isle of Shoals, which doesn't happen very often. Anyway...I don't know what my goals should be this week. I would love to start a painting or work on the 2 pieces of pottery that I really need to finish. My husband's surprise 40th birthday is this coming weekend so I'm not sure how much extra time I will have for myself. Enjoy!
From Brigitte (she forgot her password and asked me to post this for her):
This past week was hectic with school, but especially with yearbook. I question why I took on such a massive responsibility. I definatley do not get paid enough! I know money is not everything but it certainly helps :) This will be the 4th book that gets published and I am very proud when it is done so I need to suck it up.
As far as a productive week creating I would say not until I spent the weekend in Connecticut with Laura. We experimented with collographs. I illustrated 3 quotes and made a picture frame.
Jess: Maybe you can make your husband a birthday present. My husband just turned 40 in July too.
Thanks Laura for shared moments!
My micromovements:
This week I will work on my 15 anniversary present.
I will illustrate a quote.
Make some contact sheets and select pictures to enlarge.
Smiles to a brand new colorful week,
Brigitte
Hello all-
It's been a busy few weeks for me, which is why I have not been present on this blog for a while. So forgive me in advance if this entry turns out to be a little long and meandering. I have been reading all of your entries and feel like there is so much to respond to!
First of all... on the topic of balance. The thought occured to me that many of us worry too much about trying to balance everything in our lives instead of just accepting things as they come. My life is full of so many things, people, roles that are never completely equal. Sometimes certain thing come more to the forefront. For instance, right now the thing that is taking up the largest chunk of my life is being a mother. And as much as I've always loved my daughter, I've recently just made friends with the fact that this is what I am meant to be doing right now and given myself to it, rather than missing my former career as a teacher or feeling guilty that I am not doing something more than staying home with my daughter. I've come to realize that, for me, I am doing exactly what I need to right now. That is not to say that ALL I am is a mother and that all I do is mother, or that at other points in my life other things won't come to the forefront, but for right now this is where I am and for the first time in several years I feel comfortable where I am standing. So I wouldn't say my life is necessarily balanced, but it's definitely full & happy!
OK, I warned you this would be a bit long winded...
I've also been thinking lately about all the forms that creativity can enter your life in... music, film, photography, painting, etc. etc. etc. I've been especially into and inspired by music lately. Isn't it funny how certain songs or albums can actually have vivid memories attached to them. For instance, any time I hear an Allman Brothers song I instantly think of driving in NH on the first day of spring when you can finally roll down the windows in the car and breathe in the fresh air after a long winter. Or when I hear the Indigo Girls I automatically think of my best friend with whom I would sing these songs in harmony on long drives in high school. Music is such a magical thing. I recently went to a concert and was reminded of what an almost spiritual event this is for me. I've been to LOTS of shows in my life... everything from Prince to Radiohead to Justin Timberlake, and I'm a bit of a junky for it. There is such energy between the music and all the people there that I seriously feel like it elevates my consciousness to another level. I wonder if anyone else has ever experienced this?
So I could go on and on, but I won't. Here are my goals for the week...
*Finish the Halloween cards I am making with a picture of my daughter on them
*Finish Eat, Pray, Love (I just finished the Pray section), and prehaps start my new book Into the Wild
*As always... find a good quote for Bella's book.
As a side note... I just watched the movie Volver and it is excellent! I highly recommend it. And if you have never seen the movie Life Is Beautiful, you MUST. Both of these movies have subtitiles, but you hardly notice because the stories presented in each transcend language barriers!
Liz-I just read your comment out loud to my husband because he has said exactly the same thing about music, especially shows--how they have been the only "religious" experiences he has had in his life.
I agree--I think creativity comes to you in all sorts of ways as well. For instance, I love hearing about the process the contestants go through in challenges on the show Project Runway. I am constantly amazed by set design and direction in certain films--I'm a die hard Alfred Hitchcock fan. I also have some guilty music pleasures as well--I have been addicted to Fergie all summer long and I have been known to call John Mayer "my boyfriend". Songs can hit you at just a point in life where you "get it"--just totally understand what the artist was trying to say.
I have done some photography and work a lot with Photoshop and I think your pictures show flowers in a way that is larger than life. The morning glory just bursting with life and early morning sunshine and the last flower your view has just captivated me, made me want to go out with my own digital camera to take some pictures in my yard to see what can be discovered. Fabulous work enjoy you seem to have found one of many niches that is the artful world.
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