Stand By Me

One of the artists who will be exhibiting at my studio next month sent this video out to the folks on his email list today. He said it was a wonderful way to say Happy Thanksgiving, and I couldn't agree more.
Before he starts singing Roger Ridley says "No matter who you are, no matter where you go in your life, at some point you're going to need somebody to stand by you." So very true.
I have been incredibly blessed with amazing people who have stood by me through the years. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I have much to be grateful for on this Thanksgiving.

I encourage you to watch this video, and if it moves you, pass it along. I've seen it many times and I never get tired of it. I still find it inspiring.

 We're all in this together folks, and we can't do it alone.

Cool like Chrissie Hynde

This evening as I donned my jean jacket and black gloves for the first time this season, I couldn't help but think of the person who introduced me to that ultra hip slouchy-but-chic look way back in 1983; Chrissie Hynde.
I discovered Chrissie and the Pretenders when I was in high school (and was glued to FMTV - or Tele-Tunes - on channel 12 here in Denver). I not only loved her look and her sound...I wanted to be her. She was the ultimate cool. After seeing the Back in the Chain Gang video, I immediately ran out and bought some black gloves and a jean jacket.
So now 27 years later (yikes!!) and I'm still rockin the look. To a degree, anyway. The jacket has been updated and the gloves are knit instead of leather, but I still feel cool like Chrissie.

I'd like to teach the world to paint in perfect harmony...

Blog blog blog blog. I am a bad blogger.

I'm happy if I can even post once a week. It's not that I don't have much to say; anyone who knows me KNOWS I have a lot to say! I've just been busy. Which is the story of my life, really. I've decided that I must like it that way.

The beautiful thing is that my busy-ness is all for myself. I often work 15 hour days, but it's for me. I work late, I sleep late, I paint. Of course at the moment I spend far more time in front of my computer  on the admin and marketing side of my business than I do in front of the canvas. But it won't always be that way.

My Painting Soirees are really going well. I started them as an income stream, but I'm finding that they really bring me great satisfaction. I thought that getting people together to paint would be a fun thing to do, but it goes deeper than that. Many of the people walk in having never painted on a canvas before, and they leave with a completed a painting....and they are SO happy! Which of course makes me happy. One first-time painter said "I never thought I could do that!" Now that is satisfying!

So my new mission in life is to get people to paint. At least once. And hopefully they'll get hooked on it. (Hey, there are worse things to be hooked on!) I have a student who had never painted before. He came to two Soirees, and then went out and bought his own supplies. Yeah, he's hooked.

Yes I want to get people painting - especially the ones who have never tried, or are afraid, or who have painted but abandoned it. I want people to come to my Soirees who say that they can't draw a stick figure. I want the people who really need a break. The people who really need to go play in the paint.  The people who need to feed their souls! Painting is good for the soul. We all need a respite in this overly plugged-in society. So I encourage you to paint. Or draw, make music, create. Collage, knit, get your hands in some clay. Unplug for awhile. It may sound cliché, but you really do need to take some "you" time. (Yes...you!) And don't worry about what it looks like. That is not the point - especially in the beginning. The point is simply to do it. Try it, see how it feels. Blend some colors, get lost in the paint. Or the fabric or the clay...

If you'd like to paint with us, check out my Painting Soiree page.