…as creatives

…as artists

…as seekers of beauty and light

….as writers of our own stories

…that we are worth the time.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

this video by jan phillips speaks this truth so eloquently

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

toodles,

G

as she ordered her drink i heard her ask for extra pumps in her chai tea latte…my drink of choice.  i usually keep to myself but, remembering my effort to be more myself, more open (all the time, every day), i asked her about what she had just ordered.   we struck up a conversation about how sometimes the chai is a bit weak and she told me about how she regularly takes her drink now – 2 extra pumps of chai (she’s up to 6 now) with non fat milk and no hot water.

so this stranger/new friend, seeing that i was a newbie at customizing drinks, told me to “go for it” and that she was gonna stick around until i had a sip of my zipped up drink.

growing up i had always been one of those cautious individuals but, having come into my own and knowing that i was now choosing to live life to the full, i went whole hog!  you might think this is a small feat but i cannot telll you how i’ve dithered over the years (still do sometimes) about making the teeny tiniest of decisions.

OMG…..can i tell you……that tea was exactly how i always thought it should taste!   she and i chatted and laughed as we walked out of the store then parted ways.

when i began painting a few years ago this was one of my first pieces.  still have no idea why i painted it but i did and hung it up in my studio nonetheless.

as i drove back home this morn, going over my this encounter with my new friend jill, this painting came to mind.  even though this time i took a small risk, it reminded me that i must jump more at the chances i encounter, even those that push me the tiniest little bit.

I believe we should all take more chances and wear red shoes more often.  patti digh, author of “life is a verb” tells us in her book to ‘rent the red convertible” instead of the ho-hum 4-door all the time. She says that “being practical, safe and logical is way overrated”

so go forth my friends and

wear the damn RED shoes ( as Dani would say)!

show em off….feel your sassy…..be a risk taker!

take the bull by the horns!

and let me know….what have you risked lately?

toodles all,

G

it was a very nice surprise when i opened an email and saw that a friend i made online, Isa, had given me an award.  i have been awarded a ‘gorgeous blogger’ award. I am honored and, at the same time, tickled pink!

how way cool is that!!!!!!

now i have to answer 5 questions…

when did you start your blog?
i started my original blog back in June 2007 (wowsa!) …had to go digging for that long ago bit of info. this means that 5 yrs of blogging is coming upon me…must do something bout that…..mmmh (she says quizzically)

what do you write about?
my blog is about my art, my life and all the things that happen in between………and there have been some doozies!

what makes this special?
what makes blogging special to me is that i have a chance to share a piece of me…my art and my life….with online friends i’ve made over the years (but not had a chance yet to meet) and keep my local friends up to date with my goings on, especially if we haven’t seen each other in a while.

my original blog was named  barnyard chatter (long story short..company name is redbarn studios…get it?) and i always signed off each post with “see ya next time, in the hayloft”. I used that because the hayloft reminded of a cool place to hang out together for friendship, laughter and lots and lots of chatting.  soon i’ll have to invite you all to my real barn…when i get it that is (hee hee)

what made you start writing?
i have always wanted to write in a diary and have started many a journal over the years, but writing that way never really stuck. one day my impish side decided she needed to challenge me, so i took the bait and……my blog was born.

the impish grace

i want always to be authentic in my words, to keep things light and that kinda comes out in my posts. i write like i talk…like i’m sitting with some friends in a cafe…..sipping on some java……shooting the breeze……contemplating life and all that she’s cracked up to be.

what would you change in your blog?
in the last few months i’ve been moving toward more ‘be real’ content as opposed to just about ‘art’.  although i love, love , love creating, my life these days is not just about the art and i needed my blog to reflect more of that. I believe what we write should be part and parcel of who we are.

as for the technical side, funnily enough i’ve recently been thinking bout updating her looks. a few years ago i changed from blogger to wordpress.com then moved to wordpress.org where i now host my own blog.  been thinking it’s now time for a revamp…..give this girl some more me style, maybe bring on some more RED!

next, the nominations…

wasn’t gonna nominate anyone else cause i know sometimes other bloggers don’t want to be bothered, but i had a rethunk and decided i would rather share these people with you rather than keep them to myself.  they are but a handful of the bloggers out there who make me smile and laugh each day.   c’mon now, i had to pass on this ‘make-you-feel-real-good’ gorgeous blogger award.

the first one that came to mind is my friend Delane….she is inspirational, creative, supportive and the definition of friend.
http://delanequilts.wordpress.com

next is funky, no holds barred Sasha…she is a soldier girl, living in the UK, paper artist, venturing out into a new, somewhat old thing…. professional photography
http://sassysasha.typepad.com

karoda, one of my fav quilt artists.  her art and words can invite the most sacred introspection.  don’t remember how we came to be online friends but it just happened and i like it.  she is as real as you can get!
http://karoda.typepad.com/seamless_skin/

i happened upon evalicious one day bout a year ago and have been reading her blog ever since.  she creates and sells innovative, spirited art journals….not your regular kind mind you.  must check out her ‘about’ page for heads up on her name.
http://shop-evalicious.blogspot.com

last (and by no means least….you’ll read why) is francine.  self described as a scrapbooking, west indian mama, her creativity oozes out in all she does. i think her best creative moment by far (according to moi) is her son kieran.  full disclosure here….she also happens to be my cousin! yeh baby!!!! it runs in the fam….ha!
http://francineclouden.typepad.com/

hope you enjoyed the trip with me as I accepted my award. have a gander at the other blogs…you might find yourself bookmarking a few.

Toodles all,

i looooove me self help books. i love the dig…the excavating to my spirit soul.  i used to buy one book after the other all the time but found that i read and read each book but never actually got to the end. after a while they just got put aside. they didn’t hit any sweet spots.

credit:kelly rae roberts

kelly writes in such a way that you feel that you and her are sitting, chillin at your fav coffee shop, drinking a venti latte (cause you know this will be a long session) and talkin to you best girl as she breaks it down for you.

kelly starts of by giving you the one-two punch…..facing one’s fears (agrh! you say and complain “do i have too?”).

lemma me put it like this.  you know in that investment commercial where the agent tells the person to “stay on the green line” as the path unfurls before them? well i think conquering your fears is like that.  unless you take over and control those meddlesome, pesky, full ‘a noise things, your little green line never moves forward.

so it seems fitting that 1st kelly dishes out about breaking it down, not pushing them away or stuffing them in a draw to deal with later {read never, ever, ever here} but, rather, facing them and tellin them who’s boss.

so now that i’ve delved and journaled and thought and told them gremlins about themselves and put away the key to the lock (cause i now control them suckers) i feel i’ve cleared the path to move forward, to C R E A T E the life that’s waiting for me.

thanks miss kelly rae!

credit: kelly rae roberts

p.s.  if you think you are ready for your creative bliss to take you places…..read kelly’s book first and hit your sweet spots, then you too will begin to soar like a bird in flight.
fasten those seat belts honey!

today i went back and re-read more posts from one of my favorite, inspirational bloggers.  some of you may already know her….kelly rae roberts. she is exceptional at letting go, showing her vulnerable side, being her authentic self and still creating in the midst of chaos and deadlines (see this recent post as an example).

between her and a few other bloggers i read regularly (christine kane, karen walrond, brene brown to name a few) i find i am able to ask the questions of myself that reveal the truth of who i am, bit by bit.

in one of my last posts i listed some the things i resolve to do this year. one of those is to write more personally.  one reason is so that my connections are felt more deeply.  in the last few months i kinda went into this hibernative state without ever know that it had occurred until it dawned on me a few months into it that i was seeing no one and no one was calling.

i’ll be honest, this decision of mine to write from a more personal level has left me feeling absolutely scared and very vulnerable.  i know that it will scare some away and, guess what, i am okay with that. I’ve always been an extremely private person, having a couple of good friends i confide in but, STILL,  i always seemed to remain stagnant creatively.

re-reading kelly rae’s blog these last few weeks (sometimes going back as far back as 2006!) i noticed something…..she wrote about life. Period!  she didn’t constantly edit out her what happened in her life.

so, in order to put my life in more order I will be writing more about me — my thoughts, dreams, wishes, ideas AND life happenings — along with sharing more of my creative work as i work and when pieces are completed.

Yippee for me.

p.s. as you can see from the date and the post title it took me 3 tries to get the gumption up to push that send button.

believe it or not, this music in this video is composed by the position of the birds sitting on the fence. how flipping cool is that?

a little background…

the composer, Jarbas Agnelli, a Brazilian film director and musician, says “it’s possible to see poetry everywhere”. He saw a photo by photographer, Paulo Pinto, and thought the position of the birds reminded him of musical notes (you can see more of his explanation here…be sure to click the link under the video to get to English subtitles).

Why am I sharing this with you?

…being able to see the possibility in the ordinary is rather extraordinary wouldn’t you say

…seeing beauty in the simple, everyday stuff of our lives helps redirect us back to ourselves and what’s important to us

would that we open our eyes a little wider to ALL the possibilities

Train yourself to see beyond what you ordinarily see, focus more positive energy on the tiny moments, know that the bigger things will right themselves into correctness….and YOUR hidden music will be revealed.

Toodles,

i know, i know…..i’ll get back to showcasing my art soon but indulge me this small respite while i reconnect to me.

Some days you just need to pause, take a deep breath and re-ground yourself.

Happy Re-Grounding Day!