Play Date

I refuse to post a winter picture. Here's a shot of a beautiful, vibrant flower I took at the State Fair last year!

I've been living in the land of Blah, which is located in the state of Winter. Seriously, this current blast from the North Winds is really more than I can bear. (Our high temp today was in the single digits. Windchill below zero) I have not been sleeping well, which just adds to my doldrums. I have no energy. I feel fried at work (the day job) and frustrated at the studio. This is starting to suck.

I took today off for a "Mental Health Day". (My boss knew I needed it). Actually because of the weather, I went home early yesterday. I felt crappy yesterday, with an upset stomach. I fixed myself a "comfort" meal...a healthy "everything" pancake with ground flaxseed, dried blueberries, banana, and chopped pecans. Yum. (I saved a second one for this morning's breakfast. Double Yum).

I tried to sleep in this morning, but woke up at 7...earlier than I do somedays when I go to work. This was not the start I was hoping for. I felt crappy still, so I just lounged around, surfed the net, and felt like I was wasting my day off.

For lunch I made some chicken soup, which seemed to help my stomach. Finally close to noon, I ventured out in the cold to make it over to the studio.

The first hour or more at the studio was a struggle. I've been trying new stuff, trying to "stretch" and it doesn't always feel comfortable. I'm not always sure what direction I'm going with things or if I like what I'm doing. At the same time, I've been putting pressure on myself internally to finish things...either for Etsy, the art crawl in April or a few shows I'm thinking about entering. With all of that, the joy in painting seems to be a bit elusive these days.

And then I decided--the hell with it all. I just wanted to have fun. I decided I needed a playdate with myself. So I put aside the larger canvas I was laboring over and pulled out a stack of 5x7 canvasboards. I started laying down background colors--4 in orange/pink and 4 in robin's egg blue...I definitely wanted a vibrant spring feel. After painting, I pulled out some paper and started cutting out bird shapes. I found some other things I had laying around that I could use as embellishments.

And so I played till 6:30, making fun "cards" to share with friends. I got 3 done...and there are 5 more that I just got started on. They were simple, but fun. It was good to not worry about the final product and instead just focus on making something I could share with others.

Let me just say, even adults need playdates!