Trench Coat Mentality Part 2 Or Randomness Ahead

Beware--randomness ahead....

A real life friend pointed out that trench coats don't have to be boring beige. What do you know--She's right! Just today I saw a bright yellow trench in a magazine ad. Then I saw a bold red one. Okay, maybe trench coats aren't all the same. You can rest assured if I found one in a deep purple, I'd try it on.

In the comments section of the last post, Joanne reminded me pairing a hat with a trenchcoat gives off an Ingrid Bergman vibe ala 'Casablanca.' Nothing wrong with that at all.

Then, Jan, bless her, pointed out what a split personality I can be, yearning for unity in one post and daring everyone to be stand out individuals in the very next one.

Yes. Welcome to my world.

My son has a t-shirt which tickles me when I see it. In big letters across the front....

I am Unique

Just like everyone else

There's times lately when I feel life is squishing me into conformity. Other days, I feel downright invisible. On still other days, I feel life is an adventure and I'm sitting right on top of it.

For some reason the old saying 'every path has it's puddle' comes to mind now. Life is a path...and it's often a muddy, messy trail, but the farther down the path you go, the farther down the path you can see.

2009 in My Rearview Mirror

In the past year, we (I)....

finished our homeschool journey

watched my youngest play his last varsity baseball game

graduated our youngest

planned a wedding for our oldest

gained a daughter in law

watched my oldest son become a husband and a father

gained a granddaughter

traveled to Phoenix, Seattle, and Vancouver.

Drove to Tennessee twice for weddings.

learned how to create stained glass

swam, hiked, and walked regularly

laughed with family

cried

became a second time NaNoWriMo winner

survived an ugly split at our church. Survived being the operative word. Healed? Not hardly.

reconnected with a long lost uncle

pondered new business ventures

spent way too much time on Facebook (and loved it!)

struggled and grew as a Creative Soul

How about you?

Has it really been that long?

Sorry to disappear on you. Thanks to all who've commented or emailed to find out just where I've been. A round of nasty colds in our family, an out of town funeral that hit me harder than I expected, some writing deadlines, and a bunch of commitments at church have kept me away from my blog. I've been blogging in my head. Great blog posts. Inspiring. Creative. Motivating. I'm so sorry you couldn't read them. They were really quite good. Really.

A couple of random thoughts....

I found this quote in a gardening article. It's a what kind of gardener are you type article. Here's what they had to say about someone like me.

Artists, collectors and nature lovers enjoy the process of gardening. They garden because they like the feel of the earth and the smell of the flowers and the sound of birds singing. They have varying degrees of tolerance, but in general their gardens are unkempt, cluttered and inhabited by a host of creatures. They prefer to be outside, so they willingly spend the extra time required by hand tools. They welcome visitors, but love to be alone in their gardens to work and putter and enjoy.

Yes.

Random thoughts continued...

Today, The Pilot Guy and our youngest, The Baseball Guy, helped process and pack Magi Boxes. If you've ever been a part of Operation Christmas Child or Operation Shoebox, this is a similar program. Find a shoebox and fill it with small items like clothing, toys, toiletries, and treats. Our little (but growing) church put together 114 boxes to be sent to children in the Dominican Republic in time for Christmas. Last year, we did 48. Wow.

Despite the growing economic downturn, people find satisfaction in bringing joy to children they will never meet. I'm always humbled and inspired by when working with the Magi Project.

And one last random thought.....

A pithy quote The Baseball Guy found the other day.

I wish my imaginary friends would quit arguing with the voices in my head.

Snort. Snicker. Giggle. Why do I resemble that remark?

Coming up....

Beth from Being Beth sent me photos of her creative space...The Cave. Stay tuned. I'll be posting those very shortly.

Wow, I've missed you all. I'm delighted to be back. Thanks for visiting Creative Soul.

8 Random Creative Things About Me

One of the memes circulating the blogosphere is the 8 Random Things theme. I've decided to give it a creative twist and make it 8 Random Creative Things About Me.

Here are mine:

1. I love the color purple. Deep, rich, and on the blue side, not the red. Royal. Makes a statement where ever I use it.

2. I love the paintings of Vincent Van Gogh. The first time I saw one in person my skin sizzled with the awareness that the painting wasn't created by an ordinary person. In my quest to see as many Van Gogh's as possible, we've visited the Orsay museum in Paris, the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam, and the Kroller-Muller in central Holland.

3. I'm not a modern art person. Sometimes I find things I like, but most of the time modern art seems like someone's idea of a joke to me.

4. I love writers who can draw a visual in my head with their writing. Put me in a place and time and let me live there for a while and I'm a happy person.

5. I speak dialogue out loud when I'm writing. That's why it is crucial for me to work in solitude and silence.

6. My favorite songs are generally related to a movie or real event in life. I'm not a music for music's sake type, but I can hear a song and know when and where it has been used in a movie.

7. I love texture. In paintings, in fabrics, in the garden, or on the surface of a photograph. Hands-on crafting is my favorite because I like to touch the objects.

8. Gardening is a like planning a slow motion fireworks show. This area shines for a few weeks, that area next, then later other areas pop with color and scent.

I'm tagging eight of you to participate in this exercise on your blog. Remember make it your own.

Tim at Thoughts from Above1
The Divine Miss M from Pottermom
SusanC at Homeschooling Writer
Rose at Quilted Hills
Lisa at PercyTruffles Place
Paige at Paige Pearson Photography
Steven at Blue Like Me
Becky T Ahem.....fill up that blog, girl!


Have fun!