face lift

If you’ve been here before, you’re probably blinking your eyes wondering if you’ve landed on the right page. Well hold on Dorothy before you click your heels! You are indeed visiting the eclectic eye and here’s what you need to know…

In September 2016, I decided to take a break from the blog returning  in January 2017 for what was to be a one time appearance. Recently, I set aside several hours over a two week period to review the 733 posts I’d written along with the countless images that accompanied them from Sept ’09 to Sept ’16 and was astonished with the amount of growth, many changes, and things I’d forgotten that took place in that seven year time span! I had to catch my breath as I marveled at all that was my life, captured and recorded on all those Sundays and Wednesdays past and wondered what was ahead. 

On Sunday, March 12, I found myself wanting to share a thought, sat down to post, and an old familiar feeling rushed through me. In a single moment, I decided to begin posting again, but only on Sundays. This past week, without nary a pre-surgical thought, I found myself giving the blog a complete face lift. Background and font colors, layout to a degree, blog title font, main image, images in the gallery, replacing the use of ar.T.ee with TiLa, the two letters from my first and last names, slight update to “about me” along with a new pic and my full given name…done. More importantly, the blog has a redefined description that accurately reflects my direction for the messages and images conveyed on its future pages. Looking quite refreshed with a sophisticated flair, it and I are bright-eyed and, as we step out on this spring morning, ready for the reveal!

So stop by the eclectic eye on Sundays and be sure to comment when anything moves you or you just have something to share. Until then, as always…

keep your peepers open!®

ps - If you’re interested in seeing additional images, click on www.tinascottlassiter.com and reach out on the contact page if you’d like to know more about or have an interest in purchasing the collage art or customized photographs.

#freshstart #keepyourpeepersopen

no dice

Gambling is not my thing. I went to Vegas and though I walked through a good number of casinos on the strip, I never sat down once, not even to pull the lever of a one armed bandit. When I drop cash, I need to either carry or be carried away physically, mentally and/or spirituality and lately, my focus is on the latter because "collect moments, not things" is a message that rings truth in my ears. As time flies, it has become increasingly more important for me to slow my roll just long enough to evaluate not only how I spend my money but also my time, effort, and energy before I throw any of them away. Recently, during a long stroll down memory lane, I affirmed with myself yet again that there are more people, places and experiences that I wish to know, explore, and have rather than the acquisition of more tangible objects.

What prompted today's post is yesterday's quick trip to the MGM Casino National Harbor, a place I’ve been in no hurry to visit since I don't gamble. I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised not by the slot machines and tables but by the intimacy in the enormity of the place; the artwork, furnishings, overall decor, and especially the outdoor space prompted me to snap a few images. I left the grounds exhilarated by the unexpected experience without spending a dime or rolling the dice and funny, with a desire to go back to photograph the property at a leisure pace and okay, I confess, to drop some coin (... at the restaurant Ginger!).

I was about to close this out when the question, "But what is life without the right risks?” rolled through my mind, reminding me that I intended for the message today to be double, not nothing so…1) If there's something you've always wanted to do, take a chance, for your passion, raison d’être, purpose may be waiting for you to find it, and 2) in the long run, it will be the experiences you have that enhance and enrich your being as the things you acquire can't rest in your soul and spirit. Bet on both and as you do…

keep your peepers open!® 

#motivation #inspiration #mgmcasino #nationalharbor

#fountains #keepyourpeepersopen

the dish

A recipe requires more than one ingredient to make it the dish it is meant to be. Your dish, with its many seasonings, should undergo constant taste tests and if something begins to make it bitter, eliminate its use and find something that better suits your palette. This is just another way of saying that life is multi-faceted with varied and changing interests and goals, your innate gifts unique; some things will be great, some things will not, yet all contribute to what makes you the head chef in your kitchen of life. 

The dish is real so mix with confidence and flair as you…

keep your peepers open!®

#keepyourpeepersopen

twenty seventeen

as twenty seventeen

rings in, to be seen

what awaits this U S of ours. 

administration will now shift 

divisiveness just has to lift

if we’re to be a country that’s dealing.

in twenty seventeen

time to quit being mean

to those with whom we don't agree.

come together, understand

we’re all different, extend a hand

'cause this country's in need of a healing.

greet twenty seventeen

as if it’s the queen

who will usher in peace and respect. 

all is possible, only true

if we stand as one...can you do?

drop the mic…just sayin’ what I’m feeling.

Happy New Year…may it be blissful!

keep your peepers open!®

#keepyourpeepersopen

733

This is a transitional year for me on many levels. When I started journaling on a daily basis back in NYC, the time spent reflecting on paper allowed me to take a much needed good look at myself. When I moved to DC, after about a year, I discovered that daily writing no longer served a purpose however, my creative energy directed me to a larger journal where I recorded progress, thoughts, and pictures when the mood or circumstance arose. Electronic journaling took over at a time when I felt I needed discipline and also had an itch to explore something new. Posting provoked creativity on several levels including matching words with pictures or visa versa; finding different words to say the same thing; composing poems; and communicating with people when speaking directly to them was not working. Over time, the blog became an outlet to help me cope with dissatisfaction, a state of being that dissolved when I stepped out on purpose this past February. 

During the summer, I experienced frequent writer’s block which is unusual for me when it comes to penning the eclectic eye. I didn’t fully understand until August; the desire to return to physically writing my thoughts down on paper consumed me, let me know that it was time to lessen the note taking on my phone as well as typing the blog. I don’t argue with transition, I move with the flow. 

After today, I will no longer post every Sunday and Wednesday as I’ve done for exactly seven years. While I totally enjoyed sharing these twice a week stops on my journey with you, I look forward to where my writing takes me next. I’m not sure when post #734 will appear, so until then, thanks for stopping by, check back periodically and continue to…

keep your peepers open!®

ps…artwork and photographs can be found on www.tinascottlassiter.com; I update monthly.

sit a spell

It’s been awhile since I posted an invitation to have a seat, so on this last day of August when summer is just about over, please sit for a spell and…

keep your peepers open!®

best laid plans

Earlier this year when I retired from the 9-5 world to pursue my own ventures, I embraced stepping onto a transitional path with a plan for what I was to accomplish by summers end. What is it that they say about plans…

July was a month of making life decisions for others, unexpected travel, trying to understand the value/meaning of other people’s belongings, and hours on the phone, none of which contributed to growing a budding business. When August started, all of that was still in play; I felt like I was making little to no progress with my work but came to realize that in between everything, I have taken the time to go to the movies or get lost in a good book, giving my mind time to escape. I’ve also been doing some very deep thinking. Recently, during one of my quiet moments, a small voice within clearly spoke nine words, “Places to see, people to know, joy to spread” which lifted my spirits; the best is still ahead.

Any period of disruption comes with lessons or messages and this period wanted me to know that transitioning occurs on many levels, not just the ones typed into plans and to do lists. I am thankful to have the time to manage the more difficult situations that popped up since summer tends to bring a bit of down time to the pursuit of new clients. Devouring a good book is a respite often enjoyed in my past; I was reminded of just how much I like a page turner. I even began to feel the need to physically write, pen to paper, once again (more on that in a future post). 

Indeed, the best is coming in many aspects of our lives, we just have to be patient when all is not occurring as we expected. Keep in mind that the path is not always straight and, quite frankly, life has its own plan, so remember to…

keep your peepers open!®