Saturday, August 17, 2013

Doing what pleases me

Sometimes I just need to do exactly what pleases me.  Yesterday was one of those days.  I slept in until 11 AM - just delicious!  Then, around 12:00 husband and I headed to the annual Bouckville Antique Fest - about an hour and a half away. 

It's times like these when I embrace my "grandmother" years.  Husband and I can pick up and go pretty much whenever we want during the summer - he's retired and I'm a teacher with summers off.  My pets (four kitties and 3 hermit crabs) can take care of themselves for the day, or even overnight if we choose, and we're free to explore.

Three of the four felines from L to R:  Muff and Fluff (the adolescents) and Fatty Cat (the grownup):


Bouckville week is like a gargantuan flea market with something for everyone, and in every price range.  I spent $50, got some doodads that pleased me, and went home to my kitties tired and happy.

I've always wanted some of these wooden bobbin thingys, so I spent $25 and got these:





I find it card to resist vintage cabinet card-type photographs at bargain prices, so I spent $5 on these 7:

(The large one glared in the flash; it must be a church group because it looks like a reverend in the center with an open bible, and some of the others are holding what look like bibles as well.)


Then I found this funky letter opener that, because of the weight of the stone handle, doubles for a paper weight and got it for $10.  Finally, I got this cute metal pin and a couple pair of earrings. 

Happy Camper here!

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Art restores

Wow. Busy day. Traveled 2 1/2 hours to Buffalo to attend an all-day work-related conference.  It was great, but filled my head with more things I want to do before Labor Day arrives and I start my 28th year of teaching.  Then, when I got home, I had to create a unit plan for a workshop I am attending tomorrow morning.  I had pretty much decided that art, not to even mention blogging, were not gonna happen today.  But, by 10 pm I had finished the unit plan, and I suddenly had the energy to do something I have been wanting to do for a couple of days now - I sat down and started revising (is that what you call it when you return to a piece of art that you thought you had finished?) the first drawing I did for Face2Face.  I was so smitten with myself over that drawing when I first finished it.  But, of course, after I drew the 2nd one, the first one didn't look so good anymore.  Now I'm much happier with it.  And I'm energized!  Creating art really does restore me - my body is still tired, but my spirit feels so much lighter than it has all day!

                                                Before:                                                            
                                              After:
G'night!

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

My Alter Ego

I thought I would write about Shamhat today.  She's kind of like my alter ego.  In Sumerian mythology, Shamhat is a temple priestess/sacred prostitute. In the epic of Gilgamesh, Shamhat is sent into the forest to seduce the wild man Enkido and thereby tame him. (In the beautifully illustrated picture book series Gilgamesh, the King, Shamhat tames Enkido with "her song" - a wonderful metaphor, don't you think?).  I chose the online name Shamhat many years ago because, somehow, I feel a connection to her.  If souls really do reincarnate, I'm sure I was a sacred prostitute, courtesan, geisha, or something like that at one point.  This never seems odd when I think about it, but seeing it here in writing it sounds really weird!  I willingly idealize such a life.  These women weren't free to do what they wanted, but many had much more freedom than the proper women in their societies. I imagine them as being free to explore their sexual/spiritual natures. I know I gloss over the harshness of their lives, but I can't resist their call.  I have always been drawn to the idea of sexual healing, and I even find myself sometimes envying today's highly sophisticated, elite female companion - who is self-employed, picks and chooses her millionaire clientele to travel with, and offers genuine sexual healing.  I can't decide if Shamhat is part of my Shadow or my spiritual path, or both...

Shamhat and Enkidu:


Monday, August 5, 2013

2nd try...

This time, I watched the entire video and drew along with Mika - very different outcome.  She makes it look very easy, and although I have a long way to go and I get frustrated in the middle of a drawing, I have to say, it is easier than I thought it'd be. (2nd blog for me in Effy Wild's blogalong - yay!)


Sunday, August 4, 2013

I'm excited!

Ok.  So it's day four of Effy Wild's blogaglong challenge, and this is my first post.  I"m going to try to do as many as possible during the challenge, but not stress out over it.  So I just bought Mika's Motley Soul  Face2Face class and I LOVE it! It's half price right now - only $25 through August 15th.  I've watched the 1st two lessons and floored my self with this drawing.  I keep looking at it and can't believe that I actually drew it!!  I was getting really frustrated with drawing faces and this course was just what I needed. (Maybe there's hope for me yet :) )...