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I'm happy to report that I heard from my stepmom last night via text. They're okay! Still no power or phone service; it's dark and cold, she wrote, but they're okay. No damage to their home at all but their neighbor, across the street, lost six trees. Dang! I didn't know that any one property on Staten Island had that many trees! LOL. Anyway, I'm thankful everyone's okay.

This morning I'm meeting with a travel agent to begin the process of planning a group tour of Italy. Yay! It's been my dream for a long time to visit Italy - live there, really - so I'm taking the first steps. We'll see if I can pull it off.

When I get back from that meeting, I'm heading straight to my studio to paint. Going to try a couple new techniques today - going to try scooping the ink onto a piece of scrap paper & then laying the ink down on my substrate with that and also speckling the ink with a toothbrush. Then, I'm going to look in my closet and around my studio to see what other 'homemade' tools I can find to experiment with.

This what I love about art. I can just experiment, play. There are no rules.

I hope you play today. Whatever it is you love to do, just take the time to do it, even if it's just for 20 minutes. No one can tell you you're doing it wrong because, heck, you're simply releasing whatever it is that's in your heart. How can that be wrong? Just play.

Oops. This isn�t tomorrow. Well, it�s not Friday�s tomorrow. I will not again say that I�ll write again �tomorrow� because�yes, you figured it out: I may not.

I won�t force myself to write if there�s no subject matter burning a hole in my brain on that particular day. I�m telling you this now so that you know if you continue to read my blogs (one day I'll figure out how you can get them automatically, if you choose), you�ll know in advance that you�ll never read something �made up� or �forced� just for the sake of writing. That would just be dumb, right? And boring.

Alas, today there is. Today, I will talk more about the subject of �What you think about, you bring about.� I�m actually going to give you a really, really easy example of what that means. And here it is:

�Be careful what you wish for.�

Yep, that�s it. You�ve heard that statement, yes? I think we all have. And it does make us stop for a second and�well, be careful what we wish for. Why? Because we�ve also heard the rest of the story which is, ��because it just might come true.� And we�ve all experienced, at least one time, that it does come true.

But here�s the thing: Most people think about the negative. We think, �Uh-oh. Better not wish that my grouchy neighbor who dresses his lawn with political signs and a pink flamingo and whose dog barks all night long wouldn�t live there anymore.� And next thing you know, he doesn�t live there anymore because he was hit by a truck that day. As much as you didn�t like that neighbor, you feel bad now. I mean, you didn�t like him and wished he didn�t live next to you but you surely didn�t really hope he suffered a catastrophic, fatal injury. (Did you??)

I truly know someone who wished & wished that she had more time off from work. Well, she did. She was diagnosed with cancer.

See, as human beings we tend to think about the negative more than we think about the positive. But we can change that.

How about thinking, �I�m going to go to Italy next year.� Okay, you have no job and no money in the bank but you�re still thinking � okay, wishing � that you�re going to go to Italy next year. You don�t know how you�ll get there but you really, really want to go.

So, okay, picture this:

On Friday night you force yourself to go to your neighbor�s party (not the same neighbor), that you thought would be boring, just to get out of the house and be a nice neighbor.

You�re enjoying a glass of wine, taking in the sights, when you decide you need another. You walk down the hall, turn a corner and smash right into someone who had just poured a glass for himself. His Merlot splashes all over his once neatly pressed Alberto Cellini white, dress shirt. Your face turns the color of what is now the color of his shirt. After making the perfunctory apologies and offering to take his shirt to be cleaned (which he refuses to allow you to do), you begin to talk and find out that he owns one of the world�s leading tour companies�.and he just happens to be looking for someone to lead tours at a winery in�yep, you got it!...Italy!! You happen to have experience as a docent at the local museum and next thing you know, you not only have a job, you�re on a plane bound for Tuscany!

Sound outlandish? Perhaps. Something like that doesn�t happen every day. But it does happen!

Usually, though, there are a few more steps in between your wish and the positive outcome. Sometimes you have to kiss a few frogs. Sometimes you have to kiss one frog, who leads you to the next frog who you didn�t even have to kiss who introduces you to another really ugly frog who introduces you to the local museum curator who happens to be his neighbor. And you know the rest of the story.

And here�s the moral: Take one step at a time. You don�t have to see the entire staircase to know that you�ll reach your destination. Just take the first step. And on your way, choose your wishes carefully. Visualize a positive outcome.

Because wishes and dreams DO come true.

Okay, I�m off to clean the house. Today�s house cleaning and laundry day. But, I�ll have the music on and I�ll take breaks and sneak into my studio now and then. I�m creating greeting cards with images of my artwork. They�re turning out really nicely! I�ll post a photo next time.

Have a fantastic Monday. See ya'!

It�s happening!

Remember when I told you that you don�t have to see the entire staircase, jus take the first step? That one step leads to the other?

Well, yesterday something magical happened to me.

I�ll tell you about it in a minute. First, I must reiterate the last few steps.

Back in August of this year, there was a Call to Artists for a new show in Folsom. It was to be called �Top of Folsom� because not only would it take place at the top of one of the highest structures in Folsom, but the best of the best would be there to show off their stuff. It was juried, so you had to submit three pieces of your artwork (in digital format) and tell a little story about yourself. Only 20 artists were to be selected.

I had never entered a show before - not in my adult life, anyway � and guess what: I was one of the 20 artists selected! So exciting!

That night, I sold three pieces which was phenomenal. They sold to two local people and one other who lived out of the area.

Fast forward now to yesterday, November 7. I received an email from a writer! Later in the day a phone call from a photographer! It�s for a local magazine; the editor saw that I was one of the artists selected for TOF, googled my name, read my story, took a look at my work and now wants to feature ME in their January issue!

Yes, it�s (just) a local magazine but so what? Does that really matter? (remnants of yesterday�s blog post) No, it doesn�t. Because this is the next step. You see? It was me taking a chance of rejection and submitting my work for a juried show. Next thing I know, I�m chosen! Next thing I know, I sell three pieces! Next thing I know, I�m noticed by an editor who choses me to be the featured artist in her upcoming issue!

Dreams do come true.

You just gotta believe.

You just gotta take the first step.

I hope you do.

Hidden Beauty

It�s Tuesday. Yesterday I spent most of the day cleaning the house and doing laundry. I choose just that one day a week, Mondays, to do all that so that I�m sure it gets done and the I don�t have to think about it for another six days. I�m not a big fan of cleaning and doing laundry, but the results are wonderful.

That�s life, though, right? I mean, sometimes, the process isn�t all that fun but you do it anyway because you know that the result will be awesome.

I had the music playing while I cleaned and laundered. Not instrumental like I enjoy while I�m in my studio. No, that�s a whole different mindset. When I�m cleaning, it�s the classics from the 70�s and 80�s or Country. Lyrical stuff. So, I sing. You see, you have to do your best to enjoy the process, right?

The day before, Sunday, it was instrumental. Spent all day in my studio � from 5:30 am until 5:30 pm. That was awesome. I thoroughly enjoyed that process AND the outcome. Painted The Rainbow Bridge. It�s a quaint, little bridge here in Folsom. It�s iconic. It connects this side of Folsom, Orangevale, Granite Bay with, well, the rest of Folsom. It leads directly into downtown and looks out over Lake Natoma. Often times, you�ll see kayakers in the water or others just sitting on a rock enjoying a picnic. It�s idlyllic. Most people who know the Rainbow Bridge love the Rainbow bridge. I certainly do. So, I painted it with my inks.

Today, I�m finishing up the cards. My friend Val is going to help me. After a conversation with some fans this past Saturday evening at the Gallery, I think I�m going to sell them as little mini works of art. The card and envelopes I�ll sell separately so that one has a choice to mail it or simply put it in a frame and keep it for themselves. They suggested it and I think it�s a great idea. Thanks again Jim, Katherine and Yvonne!

I�ve added glitter to these. I call it �bling�. I love bling and I had fun adding it.

We�ll see if they sell.

Anyway, before I bore you to death, let me tell you what the moral of this story is today: Enjoy the process.

You don�t have to know what the result will be. You can�t, really. No one has a crystal ball that really works. But remember when I said that you don�t have to see the entire staircase, just one step at a time? Well, that doesn�t mean that each stair has to be boring. Look for the bling. Add your own bling. Listen to the music. Literally. See the beauty in everyday things. A bridge. A flower. An Owl in a Tree (the attached photo was taken by my friend Shelley Hall � she found it in a tree in her own backyard! Now that�s someone who enjoys the process.) At the very least, enjoy knowing that you�re here to enjoy and that you CAN. You CAN. Just do it.

Yesterday, I forced myself to just sit on the couch,watch a movie and catch up on my magazine reading. I forced myself because I have a cold, dangit, and I felt that resting not only my body but my mind was necessary.

So, I watched my favorite movie for the umpteenth time: �Under the Tuscan Sun�

Oh, how I love that movie! I love everything about it � the actors, the scenery and especially the messages held within.

Over the next couple of days, at least, I�ll be quoting some lines from that movie because they relate so well to the message I wish to convey to all of you.

Today, it is this wonderful little story told by Vincent Riotta, who plays Signor Martini. He tells it after Francesca, played by the enviable Diane Lane, tearily begins to question why she bought this house in Tuscany, thinking it will never fulfill her dreams after all because she is single and she has no family there to fill the rooms with love and laughter:

�Between Austria and Italy, there is a section of the Alps called the Semmering. It is an impossibly steep, very high part of the mountain. They built a train track over these Alps to connect Vienna and Venice. They built these tracks even before there was a train in existence that could make the trip. They built it because they knew, some day, the train would come.�

Build your tracks. Your train will come.

Happy Friday!!!

Well, believe it or not, I�ve been on this computer every day for the last four days for a minimum of eight hours each day.

You see, there are lots behind-the-scenes things that must be done to make everything work right, look good, etc., etc. And then there�s the uploads and the downloads and the emails and the phone calls to get the word out about who you are and what you do.

This week, I�ve been working on my website, mostly, and didn�t want to post another blog until I had a few things tweaked. Well, one thing leads to another and before you know it the tweak turns into a giant mess! I think I�m missing a few strands of hair, too.

And it�s still not right but I missed writing to you guys and, frankly, I needed to vent. So, if you�ll indulge me�

I�m an artist. I don�t profess to be anything close to a computer geek (I mean that in the kindest way) and let me tell you�this computer stuff can be frustrating, to say the least. You know what I�m talking about, right?

Yep, being an artist and having the desire to JUST do my art takes a LOT of work. Don�t even begin to think that all I do is paint all day. That�s my goal but in the meantime there�s a lot I don�t know and I don�t yet have the budget to hire a staff .

So, like any non-computer geek does�when I don�t know how to do something, I Google it or YouTube it or send an email to someone who knows this stuff much better than I do. Then I can't just sit there and wait so I work on something else in the meantime. I�m on support forums, I�m on the phone with help desks, I�m toggling back and forth on my computer with the hope that it doesn�t start smoking and blow up on me.

No, it�s not all fun right now but I honestly it�s not all that bad either. It could be worse � I could be out schlepping some product I really don�t believe in. But I do believe in me (most of the time) and I have that vision in mind. That vision that, about a year or so from now, I�m going to be looking back on 2012-2013 and thinking, �Gosh�what a year! I learned SO much and now�wow�I know how to do these things! Now it�s so easy! And now�my art is in stores, on all sorts of fun products and it�s being bought and enjoyed by thousands of people and....

Okay, enough about me for today. Thanks for listening. I�ll save the rest of that vision for another post.

Talk to you all again soon. Have a wonderful weekend!!

First, I want to thank any and every one who has ever purchased a piece of my artwork � even those who own a piece as a gift. Your encouragement helps to push me forward on a day like today.

It wasn�t an awful day; just a day when I painted and painted and nothing looked quite good enough. To me. I know, I know. Some pieces that I think are awful you might think are great. Sometimes I go with that and I actually post the ones that I don�t think are very good.

Today, well, there�s a couple that likely no one will ever see. I�m pretty sure I�m turning those upside down and starting again on the other side. (There�s a hint: if you ever purchase an original of mine, you might want to flip it over one day�you never know what reject there might be on the other side!)

There are a couple I finished today, though, that I�m going to dare to show you. I still might change them but I kinda� want to read what you might have to say about what they look like now. Be honest. Always honest, okay? I have to photograph them and it was too late in the day today (sunny!) to do it so I�ll take the photos tomorrow and post after that so keep an eye out tomorrow.

Enjoy the rest of your evening! See you tomorrow.

Yesterday was Thanksgiving. Today, the day after Thanksgiving, marks the anniversary of my Rowdy leaving this life. That was a very tough couple of weeks leading up to Thanksgiving and especially the day after. Fortunately, Rowdy was pretty darn healthy up until those last couple of weeks. He was 17 + 2 months old when he passed on.

His brother, Bear, left this life on February 29, 2008. I chose that day so that I wouldn�t have to be reminded but every four years. Silly thought. Bear had been really, really sick for quite a while, made a comeback with some meds, then quickly regressed.

Gosh, how I miss my boys!

Dogs are so important to so many of us. Rowdy and Bear were so important to me that I never wanted to leave home. They were my kids. I never had any human children; Rowdy and Bear were it.

It bothered me for a long time that dogs just don�t live long enough and I wondered why. It didn�t seem fair to me. If you�ve ever lost a dog, I�m sure you understand.

But shortly after I lost Bear, I read a story that comforted me SO much. I hope that if you ever lost a dog and perhaps are still grieving, this thought will comfort you as well. It comes from a little boy, just four years old.

Here�s the story:

Why Dogs Don't Live As Long As Humans (author unknown)

There was a wolfhound named Belker. The dog�s owners, Ron, his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family there were no miracles left for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for the four-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt Shane could learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker�s family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept Belker�s transition without any difficulty or confusion.

We sat together for a while after Belker�s death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, �I know why.�

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I�d never heard a more comforting explanation.

He said, �Everybody is born so that they can learn how to live a good life � like loving everybody and being nice, right?� The four-year-old continued, �Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don�t have to stay as long.�

Gosh, to have the clear, true, unadulterated, right-sided mind of a child again. It�s what all of us should strive for, really. Not all the time, of course, but more often than not. Artists require it, actually. Picasso said it succinctly: �It took me four years to learn how to paint like Raphael but a lifetime to paint like a child.�

Shane knew. He understood. There�s a much bigger lesson in the wisdom of that little boy. It�s not just about why dogs aren�t here very long. It�s about how we should all treat this life.

Be loving. Be kind.

And think like a child whenever you can.

I love you, Rowdy and Bear. Always will.

I must have frustrated countless teachers of mine. Oh, and a couple boyfriends. And probably a few girlfriends. And my Mom, for sure. Why? Because I was the one constantly asking�But why?�

You know the type. When you told me the sky was blue, I wanted to know why. If you answered, �because of the way the light bounces off the atmosphere�, I�d still ask �But why does it do that?� When I was told that warm air rises and cool air sinks, I wanted to know why. If the answer was, �Because of the size of the molecules�, I�d ask �But why are they different sizes?� When I was told that cotton shrinks and polyester doesn�t, I wanted to know why. You get the idea.

The most frustrating two words I�ve ever heard were �Just because.�

My grandfather had a line that was better than that; one that I always had me forgetting my initial question and scratching my head. To my constant questioning, he�d always reply, �Because why (�Y�) is a crooked letter.� Good one, Grampa. That shut me up for a while.

But not for good. I still ask why a lot. I can�t help it. I just gotta know.

It goes back to the thing we talked about in an earlier post, about Neophilia. The constant quest for new answers. The insatiability factor. I want to know what is the least common denominator, the finest point, the root cause.

It�s why I believe in fairies and angels.

It�s why I paint them. Why?

Because, believe it or not, it gives me satisfaction to believe in something that�s simply not explainable. Because I know that if there just isn�t an explainable answer, the answer is just that: there is no answer. It�s a way to vent my frustration for not knowing why. And that�s satisfying. Does that make sense?

I think it�s why artists who do abstract work, as I do, do it. We paint whatever it is in our head, in our heart, and we know that it doesn�t require an explanation. It just is.

Fairies and angels can�t be explained. They just are.

It makes sense to me and I hope that if it doesn�t quite make sense to you today, it�ll at least cause you to ponder on it for a while. Hopefully, if you�re one who has lots of unanswerable questions, like me, you�ll find a way to vent those frustrations because sometimes, you just have to accept that there is no answer. And why is that?

Because �Y� is a crooked letter.

(You knew that was comin�, didn�t ya?)

Exercise. Eeew. Usually a nasty thought, huh?

Well, what if you were exercising your brain??

Last night, I attended an Art Journaling class led by Sherry Meneley of Create Heart. What an enjoyable time! Sherry's studio is spacious and light and filled with a variety of her beautiful creations. Just being in that room was inspiration enough.

But in addition to that, I had the pleasure of Sherry's company, with her quick wit, and the company of 8 other funny, intelligent women that were, like me, eager to learn.

And learn we did. Sherry taught us a couple techniques which were new to me and led us, with a series of prompts, to write in our newly created journals. I tell you, if you've ever attended an art journaling class or even if you already have a journal, prompts are good. You know what I mean. It's hard to get your brain unstuck sometimes. The image here is from a page I created last night using watercolor paints, india ink and a straw. Yes, a straw. What fun!What Thoughts Does Wintertime Bring?

I left feeling even happier and knew I had to have more! So, I signed up for her next class the minute I got back to my computer.

If you're reading this and live anywhere near Cameron Park, California I suggest you check out Sherry's blog at http://www.createheart.com. It's a great read especially if you feel like smiling, and she has several interesting classes which, I wouldn't doubt, will intrigue you.

So, what is Art Journaling? Well, it's not learning how to do something perfectly. Art is never about that. Wait..let me repeat that: ART IS NEVER ABOUT DOING SOMETHING PERFECTLY. Basically, it's a creative process that allows you to play with different art mediums and processes and 'release'. It's where you might write a thought you have, a quote by someone else, perhaps even a short story about what's on your mind. It's a process by which you open up your creative self, your right brain, and let go. In a word, Art Journaling is cathartic.

Although I do consider myself an artist, Art Journaling allows me to be in the company of other creative souls (or those who wanna be), exercise my right brain and play. I love to play, don't you?

Here's a quote I've posted once before but I will post again because I feel it's appropriate for the message today. You'll recognize the author:

"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means Paint! and that voice will be silenced." ~Vincent VanGogh

So...by all means, PAINT!!

See ya' next time.