The last couple of years had a strange effect on me - as it undoubtedly had on many of us. The world changed dramatically. It became far more stressful, more worrying than anything I could recall. I reached the point where I just didn't need to hear the latest farcical news reports even as I was always a news addict. Finally I developed the ability to look at the headlines and move on. I've become a bit of an ostrich. Most shocking of all? CNN no longer holds my attention. Why add to the day-to day challenges we face in our lives? There were some personal difficulties during this time, too - illness in the family, the usual life upsets, and my own self-made, pointless pressures. These were enough to leave me without much energy to create anything new, and then Global Affairs threw in its two-cents' worth.
I was unable to write or paint. I felt I had nothing to say. What could I offer when things seemed out of control? I retreated to knitting, watching movies, and gardening, rather obsessively. Oh, and napping a lot. All things little old ladies do, right? Not this little old lady. I was always a bit of a rebel, a little eccentric (ask my kids). I decided this bit of history we are going through was not going to dictate the way I live
my life. I've come back to my first loves. Not so much the writing, although I've been doing a lot of mental composition - sometimes jotting things down, but mostly believing I will remember the ideas, the lines of dialogue, whatever, when I'm ready. But the painting is back. Thank you, Gaia.
It's a relief to know that the pure absurdity of what's happening in politics hasn't changed me. It just numbed me for a while. I actually laugh a lot these days, even if it's sometimes a touch cynical. It's ridiculous to be ruled by forces I cannot influence (so much for voting). So I reject the hype, the babble. And I am back, ostrich-like though I may seem. I needed to say all of this today, even as I appreciate that we all have much shorter attention spans than we once had. We ordinary people have so few outlets for venting. Luckily I have my blog. Thank you for reading. I will bore you no further on the subject.
My new painting, "The Usual Stragglers" is lighthearted, peaceful, and calming. I hope you like it. Perhaps you'll smile.
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"The Usual Stragglers"
Acrylic on 16 x 20 inch canvas
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I told you about my new sales site in my last post, but I've now found one I like even more. Check out my gallery at
Daily Paint Works. Not only is there NO commission for direct sales, but it also offers an auction service (for a tiny commission), separate "store" pages for sales links to prints of sold work, and a page where I have linked my novels for sale. I've had such fun setting this up, and there is so much at the site in terms of reports, tracking, feedback, etc. I highly recommend it.
I've sixteen paintings listed there at present, including "The Usual Stragglers" above, but I'm gradually adding more. Perhaps nothing will sell - the art market is a mysterious one, after all. But it is pure pleasure to know that my work is out there, available.
And I've become a bit more entrepreneurial - I now regularly plug myself on Facebook and Twitter. Why not? If I don't do it, no one else will.
Until next time...
