in the pause...

...when the days are dark and uncertain remember that the sun will come out if not tomorrow, eventually...so if you’re waiting for brighter times, be still in the pause and…

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week in review

As my birthday week off draws to a close, I am pleased to note that it has been beyond splendid as well as productive and uplifting. So much laughter and time shared with friends provided a spirited foundation for a lifestyle change; the past seven days was not just about celebration but restoration as I embarked on a wellness adventure. At first, I struggled with understanding the difference between alkaline and acidic foods and once I got somewhat of a handle on that, educating myself on what alkaline foods are also arthritis friendly. Yes, I’ve been diagnosed and decided to take action while it’s just a mild diagnosis; a change in what we eat can make a difference in the progression of something that affects millions.

Somewhere in the midst of the week, I turned to creativity or maybe it called out to me. Art has played a huge part in healing for me in my past and once again has helped me ease into managing an illness. I decided to begin keeping a journal again, something I abandoned once I got into writing the blog. As much as I enjoy blogging, nothing beats the tactile experience of writing with different color markers, scribbled drawings, pasting in pictures, painting with watercolors and making torn paper collages on a whim; the act of tearing provides a release of that well-buried mild anxious anger that comes with how did I let this happen.

For the first time, I actually decorated the front of my journal and did so with abandon yet meaning.

I also enlarged photographs of fruits and vegetables, cut them into pieces, reassembled them on top of an x-ray of my bones then put the picture into a frame, upon reflection knowing that what I was telling myself is that surrounding the challenge with healthy beauty is my way to wellness. That those words I found in a magazine, BE COLORFUL, were both an affirmation that the bright work I was producing in rapid succession for my eyes only was exactly what I needed as well as a reminder for what I should select to nourish the body, bones and joints.  

Taking photographs of pretty arrangements of food and understanding that it’s one step at a time, hence the bacon on the plate is quite helpful; there is something psychological about showing the mind pleasant visual images as a means to shift thinking and behavior.

But not all of my creative energy was channeled into dealing with health issues hence my sudden desire to make mini torn paper collages out of the bags my birthday gifts came in and send the picture as part of a thank you note.

And then there was my trip to the museum, which produced my own interpretation of some of the work I viewed…

…and a view of the museum.

It really has been a full birthday week which will now turn into my birthday month, days that I know will be filled with creative exploration in more ways than one. So as I lift a glass in celebration of health, wellness, and healing expression, I know for sure there is more to come...

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LMAO

...lots of birthday fun last evening…LaughedMAO so now I'm sleepin’ it off as I continue my week long celebration so until Sunday…

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queen every day

…a few birthday eve thoughts that somehow wrap together, I just can’t seem to tie them with a neat bow because it’s too early in the morning...it would please the queen if you would indulge her for this one…

Birthday 2010, I was walking in the footsteps of kings and queens that may have been part of my ancestry as my friends and I toured Egypt; birthday 2011, I received my very own crown and dubbed the Queen of Hearts during an early birthday celebration. It never matters when, where, or how my special day is marked. What matters is that I’m here to rejoice in some unique way with others as well as by myself relaxing, reflecting, pampering and/or making merry.

One of my nicknames is Queenie, a term of endearment used several years back by my close female friends; one of my male friends has referred to me as Queen since we met. I’m honored because two definitions of the word queen are, in part 1) a greatly admired woman who stands out and 2) a place or thing considered the best of its kind. The Queen is also the most powerful chess piece something I did not know but have now stored to play when needed.

Those who know me well know that my birthday is major. They also understand that sometimes the simplest things are the most meaningful. I love my red paper crown with its sparkling faux jewels, artful design and heart-shaped cutouts created just for me with me in mind. It was indeed a most thoughtful gesture, as the person who made it knows I collect hearts and that I recently took a photograph of roses that when turned upside down revealed the queen of hearts, my favorite playing card followed by the king of spades. True confession -- when I was a little girl and to this day, they are a couple and whenever I play solitaire if at all possible she always rests on him.

So on this October 3rd I will be reminded that though my king has not yet arrived, I am still the queen each and every day…I have the crown to prove it. Happy Birthday all!

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not down w FB

I swore I would never join Facebook or FB as I now know. My sister convinced me to do so immediately as a way to garner votes for my portfolio of photographs that I have entered into Art Takes Miami 2011. I certainly don’t claim to be an electronic guru but my goodness, navigating FB requires a manual! The time it takes to set up your page, find friends, post a message…it took me much longer to do all that than it took to send an email to my established address book that brought in more votes than my newly developed means of networking. Honestly, I've never had any interest in socializing via FB nor do I care to read streams of conversation that have no meaning to me. Sure, it’s a nice way to find people but only if you want to find them or them to find you but I’m not that hard to locate, just Google me. Perhaps I'll maintain a business page for exposure (which is what I thought I was setting up only to make one wrong entry and wella, a social page appeared, very confusing!). On another note, entering my photos into the Miami competition was quite easy to do but I realize it probably is a means to recruit artists to utilize a paid online service where we can show our work. Right now it’s free; I’ll decide in the very near future if I should become a subscriber or just go ahead and set up a new web site to showcase and sell my photographs. I’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, my friends and family have gotten excited about the whole voting thing, me too! It has been fun. Even if I don’t win the $2500 people’s choice award, I’ve already won…I caught up with some folks I haven’t been in contact with for quite some time, have some new admirers AND yippee...buyers! If you care to vote, click on http://tscott.see.me/atm2011, do so daily until 10/14/11, and…

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a spoon full of funny

I found myself sitting in the dark again only this time not in a movie theatre by myself but in a huge room with hundreds of others who along with me came for the pain. Three hours later, I stumbled out of that room with cramps in my stomach, a raw throat and two black eyes...my mascara was running from laughing so hard that I cried while watching the comedian that is Paul Mooney. OMGoddess that man is a riot!

Comedy is an art form that I do admire. I couldn’t help but note as I snorted, hooted and fell out of my seat over and over again, that we as an audience provide a page on which to write line after line, weave story after story. Linking what was scribed into the air an hour before to the immediate madness without being able to actually go back and read what was said earlier is the mark of one who knows his craft. Sure I’ve seen a comedian at work before however, this was the first time I understood that stand-up comedy is a masterpiece created moment to moment inspired by both the times in which we live, political and otherwise, and the

audience. Unlike other artistic expressions, there can be no replication so you just have to be there for the unveiling that is continuous and in this case went on non-stop from 10:30 pm to 1:30 am; my throat is still in recovery.

The ability to bring humor to sensitive subjects, to be downright offensive while at the same time tickling our funny bone, to deliver one-liners that knock a heckler out yet leaves him doubled over in hysterical admiration is a creative talent that not all can master. And while the truth can hurt, some of its bitterness is better swallowed with a spoon full of funny so lighten up and…

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ps…happy birthday to that skinny little bitch…she’s the one who invited a group of us girls to join her for the riot @ the Riot! all the best to ya honey and in a word that is truly yours...CHEERS!

photo of paul mooney from www.riotactcomedy.com

longing

On the spur of an overcast Sunday moment, I decided to go to a 10:45 am showing of Midnight in Paris, which turned out to be my own private screening. As the story unfolded, I found myself thinking back to moments in my life when I felt as if I was born in the wrong era. Like the character in the movie, feeling misunderstood or out-of-step with the people and everything around me has sometimes made me long to be elsewhere connecting with those who need no explanations, who listen and don’t talk over me or ignore my contributions. Unlike the character in the movie, I have not time traveled physically to interact with creative individuals from the past. However, I have closed my eyes and journeyed while standing still imagining what it would be like to mingle amongst the writers, poets, musicians, photographers and artists of the Harlem Renaissance my favorite era.

I left the theatre wondering how we can be nostalgic for a period in time that we’ve never known. Maybe romanticized stories tap into empty spaces lined with some sense of familiarity filling them with a feeling of comfort or perhaps we did indeed live in another age that is stamped on our current DNA (if you happen to believe in reincarnation). More than likely, we are dissatisfied, unhappy, disillusioned and afraid to accept the truth and make the necessary changes believing that back whenever was better …but we know that’s not the case. Much like the character in the movie comes to realize, I am grateful to be living right now with all the advances and conveniences of these modern times. I am astounded by all that has happened since I arrived on the planet, can’t believe how what’s hip this second is already passé the next.  And much like keeping pace with the here and now, exposing our creative self can be both exhilarating and exhausting! Not all will get me, you or it and really, do we always want them to?

Unlike the character in the movie who loved walking in the rain and did so in the last scene, my preference is to stroll beneath a light drizzle, which I did until I stood still for a few, closing my eyes to take hold of the past, touch the future and long for nothing but my next breath.

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