Global Artist Colony

Quote of the Day:  Through a strange chain of events, I received a link to your blog telling about your visit to the Hot Shops Art Center in Omaha. Friends, who had friends in about 4 different states, kept forwarding an email that was eventually received by another artist in the Hot Shops, and she forwarded to me. Must have something to do with the 6 degrees of separation! I am the one who made the glass for the piano and Mike Godek made the stainless steel baby grand piano. I thought you might like to see the finished product!
 

Thanks for mentioning us and the Hot Shops in your blog.


Gerry Klein

Here is the gorgeous finished project!  That message made me feel connected to the artist world, both at the Hot Shops, and around this globe of amazing artists.  I AM connected.  Here I sit in my office in my tiny little dot of a place in central Minnesota, yet my words have floated all around the globe (maybe?), clearly through several of these United States of America.

Thank you, JeMA, for bringing me to Omaha and introducing me to the Hot Shops.

Thank you, Gerry Klein for finding me through the six (or more) degrees of separation (better said: connections).

Thank you, Mike Godek, for pausing in your work that day to show us around, introduce us to your artist world, and bring us into the creative community.

Journaling Prompt:  Describe a time when a friend connected a friend, or a moment that led you into a great relationship or creative inspiration.

Fear No Art

Quote of the Day:  Fear No Art - a sign above a door at the Hot Shops Art Center in Omaha, NE. From their website:  A place where artists can work and interact establishes an atmosphere for creative art discourse. This will not only be an energizing influence on development of art, it will ultimately create relationships with other artists fostering a sense of community.

Have you ever wondered why people take the time to make things beautiful?  On our trip to Omaha, my friend, who is a visual artist, looked up places of interest in the arts.  We visited the Hot Shops and the Joslyn Art Museum.  All forms of art existed in every culture from the beginning of time.  What motivated the Native Americans to spend hours sewing elaborate bead patterns on their dresses?  What motivated Monet to break out of the mode of realism and develop something new?  How have the stories and legends of our ancestors been passed down through generations, and why are we still interested in them?  How is it that music written over a hundred years ago stirs up in us today the deep emotions that stirred the creator?

The Hot Shops and the artists who gather there have what I dream of having - a community that encourages one another and builds each other up.  When we found the shops, we walked up to a man welding a miniature baby grand piano.  He showed us the glasswork keyboard that would go on it.  The glassmaker had made that for him.  He said they work together to make art.  They interact and bounce ideas off one another.  They encourage each other to "go for it," when they think they're having a wild and crazy idea in their art.  When you're surrounded by all that art and beauty, your creative spirit soars.

Journaling Prompt:  Who is on your creative team?  What art would you do if you had no fear and unlimited resources?

The blogging world is my creative team. Thank you Joanne at Whole Latte Life for pointing that out to me.  We writers are great creative support to one another.  Thank you all!  Lisa and Laura featured the book It's Raining Cupcakes (the very thought!) on their blog this week, and have a copy to give away.  Their question was, What's your favorite flavor of cupcake?  Since I made them drool with my favorite, I included the recipe below for all to try and enjoy!

Black Bottom Cupcake
Part 1
6 oz. cream cheese
2 beaten eggs
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 c. sugar
12 oz. package chocolate chips
Beat all the ingredients well, then stir in the chocolate chips.  Set aside.

Part 2
3 c. flour
1/2 c. cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
2 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
Sift together.

Part 3
2 c. water
2/3 c. cooking oil
2 tsp. vanilla
Beat well and add to Part 2. Fill cupcake tin (add papers if you like) about 1/2 full. Drop 1 tsp. of Part 1 on top of each one.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Oh, ya, they're worth every calorie!

Have a safe and reflective Memorial weekend.

I Left my Bra in Omaha

Quote of the Day:  So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline.  Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.  Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ - the Message - have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives - words, actions, whatever - be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way. from The Message, Colossians 3:12-17

I wore that uncomfortable bra all the way from Brainerd to Omaha.  The under wire was poking near my underarm.  It was rubbing me the wrong way!  I needed to discard that old thing. Although no one else really sees it, I'd know that what was underneath the outer covering needed to feel and look right.  Purge out the old, put on something new!

I accompanied my friend on an inward-outward journey to Omaha because what's inside of her has been rubbing her the wrong way for years.  She suffers from depression, grew up in an alcoholic home, and is working very hard at getting healthy and living an authentic life.  She was willing to go alone and meet with a highly skilled therapist who lives there.  I thought about how hard that would be, to face your inner demons, then go to a hotel room all alone at night.  I offered to be her travel companion. I gave her the gift of a loving friend.

While she counseled for two days for inner healing, to shed the old nettles that poked and prodded her life, I went shopping.  Yes, I experienced retail therapy.  Nothing like getting a new bra to lift your spirits.  But, I also took time for myself - read a book, took a nap.  Something many moms neglect to do.  I hadn't made myself so unavailable to my kids in years.  Their Dad had to make arrangements to be "on call" for them.  As you know, we tend to have an emergency now and then!

What's underneath your outer appearance has everything to do with the way you feel.  If it's ugly and broken, purge it, and try on something new.  If you need a professional to help you figure it out, don't be afraid to ask for help.  You deserve to have a life filled with good people, healthy living, comfort and peace.

On a related subject, Jeannie Campbell is a writer/therapist whose blog The Character Therapist is filled with great insight into people's/character's psyches.  A recent post is on the top 10 reason's characters stay in abusive relationships.  Please read it and share the info with someone who needs it. Thanks.

Journaling Prompt:  Is there something in your life that's rubbing you the wrong way?  What can you do for yourself today?  What can you do to show love to a friend?

Breaking the Curse of the Good Girl

Quote of the Day:  Emotional Intelligence is a portal to fulfillment in every area of life. - Rachel Simmons, author of The Curse of the Good Girl Raising Authentic Girls with Courage and Confidence

I have four sons, but no daughters, so you might be wondering why I've been reading this book.  I bought it first to help myself.  I suffer from this curse.  The author describes how many girls are taught that they need to "be nice."  They're made to feel like they must be happy, kind, shy, nurturing, and not too smart.  They list "bad girls" as the ones who stand out, wear flashy clothes, are creative, speak their minds.  Girls start to believe that they're only allowed to have "good" emotions, be happy, smile, be self-sacrificing, and in doing so, they lose themselves and become ashamed of having fears, anger, needs, and original thoughts.

I also read this book because every week creative, intelligent girls come to my door and sit on my piano bench.  I want to help them become authentic women who aren't afraid of hitting a wrong note, making a mistake, having a bad day, or shedding a few tears of frustration, because that's what it means to be real.  I want them to know that making mistakes is part of learning, and that you can't be perfect all the time, if ever.  Perfect, to me, is a dirty word.  I'm trying to eliminate it from my vocabulary.

I want to nurture their creative spirits and show them how to encourage one another and build each other up.

As a woman who teaches, nurtures, and counsels girls, I need to show them that I am a human being with a full range of emotions.  I make mistakes.  I have conflicts in relationships, and I embrace who I am, imperfections and all.  As a mother of four sons, I need to show them that women are not happy, smiling Barbie dolls whose needs are less important than theirs.  We all have needs.  We all have good days and bad days.  Sometimes we're able to care for others, and other times we need their care.  That's what it means to be in a relationship with someone and to live an authentic life.

Journaling Prompt:  Describe a strong, authentic woman in your life.

Mother's Day with Four Boys

Quote of the Day:  The best thing about you is you kiss me at night. - from one of my son's Mother Day gifts.

We went to see Iron Man 2.  It was loud and full of car crashes, explosions, and metal on metal.  The boys loved it.  I like Pepper Potts.  She's both strong and beautiful.

Other things I've been up to...I cleaned out the garage and sent some things to the church's garage sale, making room for boys to have some guy space and play cards.

I also cleaned my room, hadn't dusted since Christmas, even organized this closet!

Purging, sorting, organizing, cooking, cleaning, lending my voice to a church service...what else...

Went to a terrific 6th grade band concert.  I LOVE band concerts.  That's my boy and his trumpet.

My twin sons are in separate 4th grade classrooms, but they did the same projects for Mother's Day.  They made a cute clay wall hanging with a little space for a tiny flower and filled out this card (writing prompts in bold, their responses in italics):

Eric's card:

You are special to me because you like to spend time with me.

I love the way you always love me.

I really like when we go to Mount Carmel (family camp).

Thank you for giving birth to me.

Charlie's card:

You are special to me because your really nice.

I love the way you always cook food for me.

I really like it when we have turkey gravy day at school  (I eat school lunch with them that day).

Thank you for giving birth to me.

They wrote out their cards independently.  It was just one of those twin coincidences that they wrote the same response to the last prompt.

I feel loved, and I thank God for my four healthy, happy sons, and for each day they are in my life.

Journaling Prompt:  What did you do on Mother's Day?  Write about your mom.  Write about your kids, if you have kids, or write about mothering other people in your life.

(This is my one and only post this week.  May is full!  I'll be reading your wonderful blogs when I can steal a bit of time.  Write on!  Thanks for visiting my little space in the world.)

The Committee

Quote of the Day:  Go boldly in the direction of your dreams; live the life you've imagined. - Henry David Thoreau

Here are a couple of dreamers.  JeMA paints amazing abstract art.  She is on the path to "make it" as an artist.  There I am sitting next to her, wearing my Scriptfrenzy t-shirt, my fingers have just left the keys on my laptop.  We're sitting at the coffee shop where I write my play, Coffee Shop Confessions, and where we dream together. 

We need each other because sometimes those negative voices in our heads get really loud.  I call them "The Committee."  They are the Devil voices that tell you you're not good enough.  They say things like, "Who are you to make it as an artist."  I hit a low point last fall after attending a writer's conference.  Then, I came home and wrote about the struggle of an artist for our local women's magazine, Her Voice.  (Click on the link which will take you to my article. It's on two pages, so click next, or pages 28-29.  You can also enlarge the text by clicking on it.  The cover story is on a local group of doctors and friends who went to Haiti.)

This story is for anyone who has ever felt insecurities about who you are and where you can go in pursuit of your creative dreams.

Dream on!

Journaling Prompt: What creative dreams do you have for yourself?  What have you done to make them a reality?

Boy Use for Ordinary Things

Quote of the Day:  Imagination is more important than knowledge. - Albert Einstein

Boys can invent a new use for nearly any household object.  The vacuum and its parts have been a sword, a knife, an instrument, and a communications hose...I think.

I wore my hair short for years.  It was wash-n-go easy when my babies were small.  I wanted a new look, grew it out, and got a few hair things...or...

A blindfold.

When I can't find my favorite hair clip, I ask the guys, "Where did you put the catapult?"

"Stop launching rocks and let me put my hair back."

I've also noticed that instead of taking the easy way, say, the stairs, the boy will hop the stone path, scale the fence, walk the railing, jump from the highest step, or crawl through the gap, just to get to the other side.  So, I asked a boy, "Why do you do that?"  He said, "Because it's more fun."

Okay, so the next time I need a pot lid, I'll look in the costume box with the swords and armor.  My vacuum parts should also be there, or under a tree.  I need to buy a few more catapults, I mean hair clips, so I don't have to dig through the Legos or look under the couch when I need to pull back my hair for some serious house cleaning.  (Despite their need to shoot things from water guns to marshmallow pellets, they have poor aim in the bathroom.)

Boys have a primal need for adventure.  I've seen whole crews of them disappear into the woods, "spears" raised to hunt wild animals.  Of course, the "spears" are anything from sticks to golf clubs.

That type of wild imagination is fascinating to watch.  It inspires me to write "off the page" and challenges me to give boys the kind of adventures they crave.

For more fun stories on raising boys, and their creative use for common objects, see Peace Garden Mama today.  My writer-mama-pal, Roxane, has three boys and many adventures of her own.

Journaling Prompt: What unusual use have you, or your kids, found for ordinary things?  What adventures did you have with them?