most under-rated

The most under-rated health mechanism we have must surely be the deep breath. It releases tension, clears the fuddled brain, relaxes the muscles. And, according to yours truly, when you are already feeling happy and contented, it multiplies the feeling ten-fold.

The sun is shining. It feels like spring. It is Sunday. It is after mid-day and I am still in my PJs. Deep breath. Life is great.

Photo... a random snapshot of my yesterday and today.

Now to leave the computer, go outside, and breathe deeply as I pick cadmium deep mandarines under a cobalt sky...

Today I am grateful for the gift of wild asparagus.

almost ready to paint

It has been a glorious spring day, with lots happening under a cobalt sky.

The local exhibition that was going to happen at short notice next week has been postponed. I am not sure if that is good for me or bad for me. Good, I think.

Today I completed two more sections in the palazzo, and will hopefully finish the design over them on Monday. After that it will just be a few additions and alterations, and then I will start on the panels in the first apartment where I started the whole project. That work is for the apartment owner, not for the project developer.

It's time to start bringing bits and pieces home again. I'll miss it, but my life will be so much more manageable again :-) Zacchi and Pickle will be delighted if the walks are more frequent and a little longer!

Today I am grateful for being accepted as a local in the art community.

tonight

Sometimes it seems that I see images in the distance that aren't visible to others, rims of light, shimmers. I used to be confused by it, when others looked at me in my excitement as though I were mad, but now I simply enjoy what I see. But tonight the camera caught some for me to share.


A ray of light is always a symbol of hope.

Today I am also grateful for the promise of tomorrow.

from this

to this...
This one is hard to photograph so I will try again when the scaffolding has gone. The brief was to clean, cover the new stucco, but not actually repaint anything. It ended up being a bit more than that, with some areas being toned down and others brightened a little, and contrasts being reduced but water damage and the signs of the time the place was left exposed to the elements I softened but didn't repair.

crossing the line

There is an area of overlap between art and craft. It's an interesting area of discussion, finding that defining point.

These wonderful papercraft structures, if made by following a pattern, in my opinion would be craft. But as the maker has designed them as well, surely that is fine art? Check out the A4 Paper Cut on line gallery of Peter Callesen and scroll to the bottom to read what he says about his work.

His website is full and well worth exploring. The works convey more than skill; there is metaphor, symbolism, social comment... I particularly liked the large work entitled "Human Ruin". (If this link doesn't take you there go to the large scale papercut section of the website and scroll down to it).

Today I am grateful for artists who make me think.

a thought

"The brick walls are not there to keep us out; the brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something."
~Randy Pausch
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the now

Sometimes it is good to look ahead. Always, I suspect, it is good to have a dream. But now, this moment, is where we are. Every moment is precious, let's enjoy them all!

I have decided that my cup is half full, not half empty. And sometimes it is overflowing. At least, that's what it looks like to me. I think I am finally standing on my own two feet, and the constant leak in the cup has closed over.

Friends are wonderful, they add richness to life. But at the end of the day, the person I am accountable to is the one in my shoes, the one I see in the mirror. Somewhere (probably filed in a box in New Zealand) I have a wonderful piece of writing about the woman in the looking glass. I'd like to read it again.

Today I am grateful for shoes that fit.

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PS Found it, thanks google! Here is the poem, adapted from the original "Guy in the Glass" by Dale Wimbrow:

The Woman in the Glass

When you get what you want in your struggle for self
And the world makes you queen for a day,
Just go to the mirror and look at yourself,
And see what that woman has to say.

For it isn't your father or mother or husband
Whose judgement upon you must pass;
The person whose verdict counts most in your life
Is the one staring back from the glass.

She's the person to please, never mind all the rest,
For she's with you clear up to the end.
And you've passed your most dangerous, difficult test
If the woman in the glass is your friend.

You may fool the whole world down the pathway of life,
And get pats on your back as you pass.
But your final reward will be heartache and tears
If you've cheated the woman in the glass

Further to this, here in this link, is a copy of the original poem, "The Guy in the Glass", with correct acknowledgement. Please read the story and also go to this link, the official page for the poem. Interesting that the word "self" was originally "pelf" (money, riches).

I wonder how many people have been touched by this poem? One person really CAN make a difference.

I also very much like the gentle poem "My Religion" by Dale Wimbrow.
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