Searching for Words

I love this quote that my friend Cheryl posted on Facebook last week. My moods have been swinging around like this lately… one moment I’m an angel, the next moment I’m a bitchy brat.

I can’t seem to find the right words to match my moods, never mind matching up with the many photos I’ve taken over the past few weeks. So I put off posting because some part of me thinks, if I just work hard enough, it could be perfect – aarrrggghh!

This morning after wandering around taking more photos of the weeds and hoarfrost, I was back on Facebook enjoying the swirl of connection with my social media circles and I read an amazing poem by my friend Tim and his words seemed to say or not say something similar to what I’ve been experiencing –

Blahh…

by Timothy Fullerton

For reasons known only to the gnomes living
under the boxwood in our yard,
I simply do not want to write today.
My words are ready,
like extras in a film, waiting for the call
to the set.
Lately, I feel that they’ve
lost their punch,
become boring,
recondite.
I won’t write just to do it,
throwing words into battle like
literary cannon fodder,
just to say I’ve done something.
So, I just don’t want to write today.
“Fukkit” says the brain.
I concur.
Fukkit.
I’ll read.
Put my feet up.
Look out the window.
Pick my nose.
Scratch.
Today,
I just don’t want to write.
I send the cast home,
buy them pizza and rent a movie
for them.
They wanted ‘Busty Beach Bangers 3’
They got “Sound of Music”.
They’ll live.
I’m going to meditate in
the yard and watch the birds.
We are both trying not to freeze
our asses off in this chilly
March wind.

© TF27MAR2011

My friend Beth’s beautiful post on her blog gave me the courage to begin this post… willing to share anything that is ready to pour out rather than trying too hard to find the ‘right’ words to wrap my photos in. I think I landed somewhere in the middle??

I ache to create beauty and there is no formula that guarantees I will create something beautiful, but I have to keep reminding myself to begin. I’m grateful for my cyber space circle of friends who continue to show up in weird wonderful ways and encourage me to begin.

My photos are not perfect and my words seem strange but it feels good to share anyways.

P.S.  I’d love it if you clicked on the Facebook button below to share this post with your friends… I’m having fun expanding my cyber circle 🙂

Art Supplies & Shelves

I’m so excited ~~~ This is a ‘supply sculpture’ I just put together in my new studio space. I use these cookie cutters I’ve collected over the years for painting and batiking projects. When I took them out of a packing box and tossed them on the table, my eye caught the light bouncing off the metal sides and I just knew I needed to find a place to see that everyday. My husband helped me fuss around with these metal shelves and we eventually found just the right placement. I love playing around and finding interesting ways to display my stuff and boy do I have a lot of art stuff.

I’ve been buried in boxes and house painting projects for so long, it’s such a relief to finally be unpacking and sorting some of my favorite things. I can’t wait to be painting an actual painting, just looking at all my raw materials lights me up inside. I don’t think of myself as having an addictive personality, I seem to find moderation in many of my lifestyle choices. Yet when it comes to art supplies…I’m completely hooked on the stuff.

(click on the photos above to see a larger version)

These shelves we’re too dirty to put in my freshly painted studio space, so I thought a quick coat of white paint would clean them up. Three coats later they are finally ready. It is taking much longer than I ever imagined to set up my new studio. I was frustrated about this for days! Yesterday it finally dawned on me that I actually have the space and the time to sort till my heart’s content, so rather than rushing the process, I am soaking up the opportunity and have settled into a slow rhythm of contemplation and clutter clearing as I design my new playground.

P.S. I’m just amazed at how inspiring a photo of art supplies can be. This photo I took months ago of gooey oil pastels gives me a zing of energy every time I look at it. I think about having so much fun using what I see in front of me. I am instantly transported to a that zen like space I fall into when I choose to create with my hands.

What inspires your creative process?

Winter Wonders (part 3 Weeds & Whatnot)

I’m so beyond winter … but its beauty …

Winter Wonders (part 2 finding treasures)

Every time I go out on a hike it is such an adventure. I never know what I’m going to find?! As I learn how to use my new camera, it’s such a treat to be able to bring some of the beauty home with me.

Lately I keep spotting more and more red cardinals. I hear other birds returning, there are all kinds of chirps and singing sounds happening, but I can’t seem to capture any except for the bright red beacons.

Just yesterday a huge owl flew over my head, it was so cool. I had no time to take a photo, but I did have a bit of luck with a few of these beautiful birds.

Some of the other treasures that are easy to find this time of year are the abandoned nests. I found this one in my backyard.

With the branches bare, it’s easy to spot clusters of twig and twine wrapped into all kinds of vessels, especially when they hold a pile of snow.

(Click on any of these thumbnail photos above to see a larger version of each nest.)

On one of the hikes I went on last week, when I got back to my house, I was shocked to find this ladybug crawling in the snow, just outside my front door. It was so still when I knelt down to take a photograph, I wondered if it was alive, but she soon started crawling very slowly. I feel a bit like this lady bug, moving slowly trying to find my way in this long wet winter.

Finding these treasures on my hikes has helped me cope with the winter blues. And if a ladybug can survive, I’m sure spring must be just around the corner.

What kinds of treasures have you found lately?

Winter Wonders (part 1 hoarfrost)

Winter is hanging on strong here in Michigan, and the gray days drive me crazy. But when the sun breaks through right after a storm, the beauty it brings is just magical. Last week, I had one of those exquisite days wandering in the woods as the sunshine sparkled on the crystals. I was mesmerized watching the snow melting into new shapes.

I love the hoarfrost that grows on the surface of twigs and plants. The trails behind my house lead to three little ponds that freeze and melt often during the winter. On some rare mornings it’s just the right temperature that the vapor forms into interlocking ice crystals, creating the fascinating coating. It’s so beautiful.

I think the name is so interesting, it comes from the old english word hār which means to show signs of age; gray,venerable, old. Hoarfrost makes nature look like it’s covered in elderly white hair.

Most of the frost on this hike looked like teeny tiny evergreens or feathery shapes and spikes. Some of the frost was more circular.

I’m in awe of the shots that captured not only the growing crystals, but the perfect 6 sided snow flakes! On this winter hike, I did not mind that walking a mile felt like two.

P.S. I hope you can be patient with the new look of my blog. WordPress has very limited graphic options compared to my iweb blogspace. With each new post I plan on improving the look and feel of this new blog space.

Hello

Thanks for stopping by. I am new to WordPress and will have my first post with photos up tomorrow! I have a blog at

http://www.cmyart.me/Christine_M_Young/Blog/Blog.html

( A few of the links on my iweb blog are broken … so I’m learning how to move over here to WordPress )