Thirty One-derful Years!

Thirty One-derful years together and counting........

Discouragement

In the last few weeks, I've experienced discouragement from several fronts. It isn't pretty and I don't like it. I've felt like a failure in more than one arena of my life. Blech!

Distasteful.

I can handle (more or less) dealing with one portion of dismay at a time, but I hate it when it seems like I've been ganged up on! Some referee needs to throw a flag and call a foul.

The only thing to do in these times is pick up and keep moving. After falling flat on your face in the dirt, what else is there to do but get up? Brush the dirt off my knees, spit the mud from my mouth, and bind up the bleeding wounds.

It is important for me to re-assess my priorities. Figure out what I did wrong and where I was wronged. Decide what I've learned. Because I have learned. A lot. Some of it makes me cynical, but there you have it.

The best part is knowing I've grown a backbone. Really, I'm a very non-confrontational gal. I tend to run hard to avoid a direct confrontation and I've always been a people pleaser. In this case, on one front, I was run over by someone else's agenda. It was ugly and rather public. Downright insulting. And it happened within a church structure. Double blech! But, this time, I stood up for what was right and did what needed to be done. Some folks now have my foot print on their backside. I can tell you that apologies were offered and accepted. Progress.

Now we move on.

I'm older, wiser, tougher, and much more determined to pursue my path. My highlighted failures in the past few weeks have broken me. It's up to me to decide if I have the grit and courage to rebuild and continue to pursue my dreams to completion.

Design notes

The Pilot Guy and I went to the Kaleidoscope of Homes yesterday. This is a builder's showcase, but not just any showcase. These are multi-million dollar homes filled with bells and whistles you didn't even know you wanted. Five of them, fully landscaped and beautifully decorated.

I noticed a couple of home design/decor trends. Dark is in. Dark woodwork, dark wooden doors, dark paneling. I'm not too impressed because I love light and bright. In one home, a bathroom in a secondary bedroom was so dark that even three light fixtures didn't dispell the gloom. I'd look mighty good in that mirror every morning because the light was so soft and dim.

Carpet is out. Great brickwork, distressed hardwoods, and rustic tiles were on the floors. A few bedrooms had carpet, but most had hardwoods and area rugs in muted colors.

The greens in the paint jobs and accessories leaned more to the mint side rather than the sage of the past few years. Quite a bit of blue paired with brown.

You aren't in fashion unless you have a mirrored exercise room. Or a built in fancy coffee machine. Or a wine closet/room/cellar. Or a huge media room. Or a flat screen in the bathroom.

Which puts us way out of fashion.

I loved the outdoor spaces, especially one charming front courtyard with a small fountain and streambed running through it. Many of the European details spoke to my love of all things French or Italian. And some of the furniture was incredible. There was this one ladies writing desk, all curves and tidy drawers. Small, but very beautiful. And could be mine for only $1500. Sigh. But, hey, this is better than last year when I fell in love with a simple green display cabinet that was only $10,000. Funny, I've survived all year without that piece of furniture.

I don't want a home that big. My favorite of the five was small at 9300 square feet. (And could be ours for a mere 2,775,000 dollars. Gulp.) I can't imagine the costs of running such a home. It was fun to see that just because it is big, fancy, and expensive, I don't necessarily want it. One of the largest and most expensive on the tour had a ghastly (to me) kitchen. It was laid out so that the only way to function in there would be to have caters come in often. Really. I don't know how anyone, even a hired chef, could manage.

Touring there did make me want to clean out more of our corners and showcase the prettiness we already have in our abode. Filling a home with memories, beautiful treasures from travels, and comfort are enough of a goal for me. I picked up a few new decorating and landscaping ideas to play with in the coming months.

I love filling my creative soul with new colors, shapes, textures, and ideas. I hope you find a way to do the same this weekend.

Point of View

Point of view.

I've heard the phrase a lot lately and it's got me thinking. We writers love point of view. We wrangle endlessly about whose eyes from which a scene is being observed. Woe to the writer who has an abrupt POV shift within a scene, although Nora Roberts does it quite successfully....

In the last few weeks, I've heard the phrase 'point of view' on a couple of reality based shows like 'The Next Food Network Star' and 'Project Runway.' (Yes, I'm addicted to both. Cut me some slack. I don't watch American Idol or Survivor.) The phrase puzzled me a bit at first, then I got it. The contestants are talking about style. Personal style. Their unique factor. Flair. The one thing that makes their work different from everyone else's. It's the way they see the world. It's probably the one thing about their work that makes their hearts sing.

Back in my professional photography days, my reputation was built on a love of contrasting the elegant against the rustic. Time after time, I posed brides in beautiful white gowns between sharp cliff faces or on the edge of the canyons. It was dramatic, exciting, and beautiful. Clients came to me for just those looks.

When I think of photographers I've known and studied with, I see their signature looks also. Charles J. Lewis's warm family portraits, Monte Zucker's elegant lighting and emotional style or Rocky Gunn's dramatic outdoor art portraits. Each is so distinctive that if you knew what to look for, you would easily be able to pick their work from a collection. It would be like being able to find the Renoir among the Rembrandt's and both from among the Picasso's. Totally different styles.

Writers, too. Can you tell Stephen King from Charles Dickens? Jane Austen from Nora Roberts? John Grisham from Jodi Picoult? Of course you can. Foodies, as well. Bobby Flay is different than Rachel Ray. Come to think of it, you can tell the difference between Debbie Mumm and Martha Stewart, can't you?

So the question is.....what's your style? What's your point of view?

Are you writing, painting, sculpting, sewing, or gardening according to your style or are you trying to please someone else? If you gathered several pieces of your work together would there be a cohesive thread throughout?

As an exercise this week, try to define a portion of your style. Don't be afraid, it will not limit you to only that one thing. Those dramatic portraits I used to do? They got people talking and brought work into my door, but many of my clients only wanted a sweet and simple portrait, they were not interested in traipsing into the canyons. That's okay, my style for fresh, unique design carried over. So....maybe in reality, that was my point of view. Hmmm....more thinking to do. One of the worries I have in my writing is my lack of a definitive style or voice. I sound like too many other people still when I write so I'll be exploring this exercise with you.

Whatever you do, it's got to look like YOU. Not your features or your skin color, but your personality.

There is light within you. Let it shine!

We Have Winners

Thank you to all who participated in the Journal page contest. Thanks to all who thought about it and either chickened out or timed out. Next time, promise?

Our winners are......

Paula aka Sweet P from Coffee Time Quilt Studio sent a wonderful color page from one of her journals. Plus, she sent in a page from her quilt planning journal. I think the two pages illustrate the two wonderful parts of her creative brain. The color page enchants me!


Paula says....Here are two photos from two of my journals. The first one is from a stitched book I made in a book making class four years ago. The book is made from Japanese paper. I did this one by letting watercolor paint drip from the brush onto the paper. I haven’t looked at it in a long time. I had forgotten how pretty this page is. I may have to frame it.

The other photo is a page from my quilt planning journal. You can see how I make notes when I first start planning a project. If there is math involved you would be able to see my calculations done by pencil.

This is a great contest. I can’t wait to see what others send you. You’ve inspired me to start picking up my Prismacolor pencils and drawing journal and start doodling.

Donna NM sent in a page of poetry and drawings from one of her journals. I love words and images combined on a page, don't you?

Donna says....Why do I like this page in my journal?
Well, I liked this poem enough to write it down....because I loved the simplicity of it; in that it reminds me to treasure the most simple, yet most beautiful and cherished, of what the Lord has blessed us with.......nature.

Truly, some of the most precious times with Him, the times when I have felt most grateful, most awe inspired, and most blessed, have been when I was outside in nature.
Not necessarily someplace magnificent....but even simply in my own backyard, tending my own little garden, early in the morning, when no one else is around.
Those moments are the moments when I "feel" Him, deeply & gratefully.
Moments only my heart can understand, moments when there are no words that I am skilled enough to use that would be able to accurately express the majesty of His creation and/or the peace and contentment it can offer me when I take the time to simply “see” it, “appreciate” it, and be “aware” of it.

I also like this page in my journal because of my little drawings. I have always loved art/drawing and have always longed to draw with mastery and skill. Unfortunately I have never had any “real” skill, talent or training in that area. But that doesn’t stop me from making feeble attempts and amusing myself with doodling here and there. ( I am grateful and bl essed now to see my children so inspired to draw. So, I encourage it muchly, and ooooo, and awe and melt over their precious artwork.) I admire, appreciate and cherish artwork, and can smile and feel satisfied when making my own little attempts at it.

And, lastly, I like this page in my journal because of the simple quote at the bottom, that says, “I am a Sparrow, a stay at home bird”. I have felt that way most of my life.
While others have been out galivanting, exploring, and/or adventuring, I have usually been a stay at home person. I do love to travel, but have not had many opportunities to do so. And, it seems I have always had a lingering sense of lonliness in my soul….which I also felt was expressed in that little quote. Thanks, Deb!

Have some fun in your journal today. Even a doodled on grocery list can be a creative moment and in a few years, a piece of everyday history.

Thanks for playing the game, everyone! Paula and Donna will be getting a prize package including a new journal, a set of my photo notecards, and a few extra goodies I've gathered.

Deadlines

"Without a deadline, nothing much would get done...."

I don't know who said that, but I believe it.

Today is the last day for the journal page contest.

Get 'em in to me by midnight (or by morning....I'm not going to be up at midnight, I promise.)

Email yours in the body of an email to

deb s muse AT 1 scom DOT net

Squish and translate the capitals as needed.

Good luck!

Who Nurtured Your Creativity?

A while ago, I asked who had killed your creativity. Now, it's time for the opposite. Who has nurtured and nourished your spirit? Whose words or actions keep you striving? Who taught you something important about your craft or yourself?

For me, the list is long.

My husband, the Pilot Guy, has to top it. He is always encouraging me to do what makes me happy. Whether I'm earlobe deep in photography, writing, gardening, quilting or whatever, the man has hauled equipment, endured fits of creative despair, and patiently picked up pieces when I think I've broken my heart beyond repair. He believes in me. A precious gift, belief.

Mama Marge, my journalism teacher from long ago. She was the one who encouraged the teenaged me in photography. Her husband, Bill, actually taught me how to load film in my Yashica-mat. Over the door to the journalism department in my high school was a hand lettered sign that said, 'Beware all who enter here. Your life will be changed.' True, very true. Mine certainly was.

Chuck, photographer and business man extraordinaire, my mentor and often a tormentor.(Grin) Best of all, friend. He shoots straight with me. I don't like hearing what he has to say sometimes, but after I quit reacting I realize he is (usually) right. He and his wife, Cheri, inspire me as few people on the planet do. They ask great questions and make me think about my creative life in new ways. A great big thank you to the Art Leather company for sending Chuck to Amarillo to speak in 1982. (Yikes!) What if I'd missed that seminar? Imagine what I would have missed. Quite simply, Chuck changed my life. His friendship, and Cheri's, is one of the most central to my life. Precious people.

My late sis-in-law, Hermion, taught me to watch and learn from nature. Big observations and tiny moments of noticing. She loved color and texture and whimsy. She's been gone for over a year and a half yet I'm still storing up treasures to share with her.

Bonnie, my writing friend. She is so persistent--(please finish something, Deb)--and encouraging. I love her questions and her ability to see things from a different perspective.

Who's been important in your creative life? Have you told them lately how much you appreciate them?