mmiscellanea arts

(Note: This post is part of a series I am doing on my progress through Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way with a cadre of creative ladies. More info about this venture can be found in an earlier post and all of my related posts are under the artist’s way category.)

We’ve been at it a month, and it has been blissful and a trial, inspiring and exhausting. I think I did more writing this week than any previous one, perhaps a response to this week’s reading deprivation. I discovered and revived interests (printmaking and book arts), acknowledged things I’d love to try, even just once (bellydancing and welding), eeked out a poem/prayer and wrote a letter to myself that actually made me cry.

I am refreshed and directed. I have projects on the table, am teaching myself new things every week, and feel more committed to myself than ever before. Committed and, for a brief moment, unafraid. Week 3 was obviously something a slump for me, but now I feel almost revived.

Week-end check-in

Morning pages:  I wrote six out of seven days; weekends are a spot of difficulty for me since they usually have a set routine, as opposed to weekday mornings when writing out my pages is more of a habit. I get a lot of good ideas whilst writing out my pages, but now need a system to sort of capture them and put them in a place where I can locate them again and have the opportunity to pursue them.

Artist date:  I accomplished two things on my artist date:  I went to a bicycle shop and purchased a new tube for my bike and helmet and went to the thrift store ostensibly to buy some non-black tank tops and generally to explore. The bike shop may not seem very artsy, but since I don’t have a car for about seventy percent of the week, having a working bike will give me significantly more freedom. Plus, instead of just going to Target and picking these things up, I went to a little local shop and had a great experience talking to the owner about my bike and got ridiculously good service and advice. The thrift store had its rewards, too—not only did I get some good summery clothing and have fun just going through things and imagining their possibilities, but I also found a small mold and deckle for papermaking. How random is that? I have a great huge one my husband made me last year, but having a small one (about 8×6 inches) is also useful. When I was standing in line to check out, the woman ahead of me mentioned that she had picked up the mold and deckle, but couldn’t figure out what it was. I explained its purpose and the basics of papermaking to her, and she was genuinely impressed at my craftiness. So, not only did I get useful and unexpected items, I also got that little bit of ego boost!