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destabeeTo everyone who had to be out in the nasty weather -- my sympathies . However, I have to say I really enjoyed my unexpected downtime. I spent the morning grading exams and engagement activities for my gender class. I was through by noon which means that I have an entire 24 hour period where I am COMPLETELY caught up with grading. It has snowed steadily here all day but only in the last hour or so has it been windy enough to look like a blizzard outside. Had they not cancelled classes I would be driving home in the worst of it so far today. I would guess that we are nearing 8 inches or so of snow from this storm. It has fallen steadily enough that I have had to put out food for the birds several times because the snow kept burying it. I wouldn't be surprised if many things are also shut down tomorrow as well as winds will continue and system snow will be replaced by lake effect snows.
After the grading was done, I turned my attention to how chores. I also started a roast cooking in the crockpot.
I also spent some time savoring a book I picked up last Friday. The book is Kaleidoscope: ideas + projects to spark your creativity by Suzanne Simanaitis. The book if filled with rich colors, a variety of images and interesting prose as well as the actual ideas.
The title Kaleidoscope is actually a reference to one of my favorite concepts. In the introduction the author says this "Kaleidoscope, translates from the original Greek as "beautiful form" and is defined as "a series of changing phases. . . . a kaleidoscope uses mirrors inside a tube to reflect constantly shifting patterns of colors and shapes." Simanaitis compares this to zines which grow and change over their lifespans as their creators acquires new tools and new interests. She notes that through these changes the audience develops new skills and an expanded creative vocabulary." That imagery is a metaphor for several things that are important to me including: teaching, community activism, the role I wish to have as a minister and counselor/coach.
When I dream about owning a combination coffee shop, bakery, bookstore, herb shop, "new age" sort of place (candles, jewelery, art items, music, etc.), the name of the store is Kaleidoscope. That was before I new this bit of information about the word itself. Kaleidoscope also represents that which could be the title for a biography of the life I wish to live. At various times I have seen museum piece kaleidoscopes; I think that is something that want to consider as a gift to myself for turning 41 in several months (for those who don't realize the significance of that birthday to me, my mother died at 40 so 41 will be a major milestone for me).
Ideas from this book are adding to a growing tapestry created of ideas from diverse sources and interactions; the interesting part is that the design of the tapestry is not yet clear but I am enjoying watching it develop.
The second section of the book begins with this quote by Virginia Woolf, "If you do not tell the truth about yourself, you cannot tell it about other people. She then goes on to say that, "In claiming the identity of 'artist' for your brave, sweet self, be bold about it. If you are going to dive in, it is actually safest to aim for the deep end." The qualities that I associate with artists are deeply appealing to me and they are qualities I would like to develop and nurture within myself. My talent for traditional arts are fairly limited with my greatest potential for development being in fiber arts or photography. However, the idea of being "artists in the fine and messy art of living" that Judy Ford introduces in Painting the Walls Red. Ford describes such women as "experts in figuring out what is needed . . .[who] know where they are lacking, and they either cheerfully accept their quirks or move heaven and earth to change them and grow better."
In discussing her own claiming of the identity of artist, Simanaitis notes that she examined and challenged the assumptions about who she was. In doing so, she notes that she became more confident about her ability to alter and interpret each momentary reality.
For both of these authors transforming one's life into living art seems to be related to to knowing and embracing oneself (dark corners and flaws as well as the good points) and in celebrating our uniqueness and subtle differences that make us artistic originals rather than skillfully rendered copies. The challenge for me is in finding time, energy, space, and means to honor those things about myself.
After the grading was done, I turned my attention to how chores. I also started a roast cooking in the crockpot.
I also spent some time savoring a book I picked up last Friday. The book is Kaleidoscope: ideas + projects to spark your creativity by Suzanne Simanaitis. The book if filled with rich colors, a variety of images and interesting prose as well as the actual ideas.
The title Kaleidoscope is actually a reference to one of my favorite concepts. In the introduction the author says this "Kaleidoscope, translates from the original Greek as "beautiful form" and is defined as "a series of changing phases. . . . a kaleidoscope uses mirrors inside a tube to reflect constantly shifting patterns of colors and shapes." Simanaitis compares this to zines which grow and change over their lifespans as their creators acquires new tools and new interests. She notes that through these changes the audience develops new skills and an expanded creative vocabulary." That imagery is a metaphor for several things that are important to me including: teaching, community activism, the role I wish to have as a minister and counselor/coach.
When I dream about owning a combination coffee shop, bakery, bookstore, herb shop, "new age" sort of place (candles, jewelery, art items, music, etc.), the name of the store is Kaleidoscope. That was before I new this bit of information about the word itself. Kaleidoscope also represents that which could be the title for a biography of the life I wish to live. At various times I have seen museum piece kaleidoscopes; I think that is something that want to consider as a gift to myself for turning 41 in several months (for those who don't realize the significance of that birthday to me, my mother died at 40 so 41 will be a major milestone for me).
Ideas from this book are adding to a growing tapestry created of ideas from diverse sources and interactions; the interesting part is that the design of the tapestry is not yet clear but I am enjoying watching it develop.
The second section of the book begins with this quote by Virginia Woolf, "If you do not tell the truth about yourself, you cannot tell it about other people. She then goes on to say that, "In claiming the identity of 'artist' for your brave, sweet self, be bold about it. If you are going to dive in, it is actually safest to aim for the deep end." The qualities that I associate with artists are deeply appealing to me and they are qualities I would like to develop and nurture within myself. My talent for traditional arts are fairly limited with my greatest potential for development being in fiber arts or photography. However, the idea of being "artists in the fine and messy art of living" that Judy Ford introduces in Painting the Walls Red. Ford describes such women as "experts in figuring out what is needed . . .[who] know where they are lacking, and they either cheerfully accept their quirks or move heaven and earth to change them and grow better."
In discussing her own claiming of the identity of artist, Simanaitis notes that she examined and challenged the assumptions about who she was. In doing so, she notes that she became more confident about her ability to alter and interpret each momentary reality.
For both of these authors transforming one's life into living art seems to be related to to knowing and embracing oneself (dark corners and flaws as well as the good points) and in celebrating our uniqueness and subtle differences that make us artistic originals rather than skillfully rendered copies. The challenge for me is in finding time, energy, space, and means to honor those things about myself.
