I’m sitting high above Collins Street in Miami Beach taking in the sights and sounds of a fairly unfamiliar city. It is not the Miami of my childhood and I certainly do not speak the language. Clearly South Beach is booming. Construction everywhere, masses of people and not a spot on the beach to wiggle your toes.
My gosh, it has been quite sometime since I did a good cleaning of my studio. (And my head for that matter!) Cobwebs are everywhere, dust bunnies are on the loose and I’m finding loose stones in the strangest places. So cleanup time has begun. Luckily this also means that I have been making my way to the third floor and actually working. I’ve been on an enameling roll except that came to a screeching halt when the mapp gas producer recalled the canisters for a faulty valve. Yikes. I’m thinking it’s time to upgrade all of my torch situations so I have spent countless hours researching what that might look like. One torch is on order and the other is still up for debate.
Enamelled earrings waiting to go into the shop! Progress!
Sigh. What to do. January ushers in the beginning of the Spring cleaning mindset with detoxes, cleanses and the like. For me it is about unpacking my suitcase from Christmas and thinking about cleaning my studio. Mostly, it is about wrapping my head around new ideas for jewelry that keep my brand interesting AND that keep me interested. And that tends to lead to bigger concepts. But, whoa, we still have winter to endure.
Admittedly I have been a bit jumpy since January 1st. Sad events during the holiday season kept many asking the big man, “why?”. I think many of us are also feeling the undercurrents of transition and that can be uncomfortable. Perhaps that is what 2012 is all about. I certainly think so. So now that the first full moon of the year has occurred I feel the momentum of change. I’ll delve into quantum physics a bit looking for more information on the noosphere and the collective consciousness. And I’ll strive to bring meaning and purpose into my life and my work that I can share with my family and friends old and new.
Why is it that I feel such relief the holidays are about over? Every year the stress level is higher and I’m starting to not enjoy any pre holiday festivities. Does the ugh factor increase with the age of the kids or is everyone feeling the same thing? Kinda like global warming. I don’t enjoy being an elf anymore and I want a tree that folds up like an umbrella. I don’t want to have to start decorating for Christmas at Easter, either.
On the flip side we did get to enjoy ourselves with my family! And, we had a deadline to be done with shopping so we could ship everything to fla. Maybe if I give myself a deadline of December 5th next year I will be able to enjoy it more. Especially if I get that fancy new tree.
I had a lovely dinner with a terrific friend last night who has the incredible gift of clarity. After tackling a slew of topics, we delved into the “Raleigh” conversation. My stance has been that I feel like I’m living in someone else’s town, which is true, but what became very clear is that I’m not going to embrace my city (or vice versa) if I’m a recluse. At least that was my takeaway that I pondered all night long. So to revise my stance, this is a fabulous town that I don’t know but I’m willing to get out there and meet my new people. What I also haven’t stated clearly is how lucky I am to have the friends I have here. A solid group that is always there for me when or if I need them. And we have quite alot of fun. Maybe what I struggle with is environment and setting. I have always been partial to the look and feel of Florida. Who knows. But I still ought to get out of my front door and see for myself.
And one other thing. It is no secret I can go to deep, dark places. Maybe that’s the chemical brain of an empathic artist. But I have a niggling thought that this is what alienates me from other people and puts me at arms length with many. S all of you that understand what I’m talking about lets start a meet up! We can wallow together.
I’m an app whore. Really. I have become addicted to Pinterest and now I’m loving Instagram. And, I can waste an entire day following other people on these sites, too. Not enough hours in the day!
Instagram photos on display. Heck, follow me on both sites!
This will be the season to move from discontentment to contentment courtesy of my great friend Molly. I have lived in Raleigh,NC since 1996. It is a beautiful town but it is not my town and it’s about time I realize that this is not a temporary stay for me. Somehow during the course of raising children I have let life in Raleigh pass me by. I know very little about the city except in passing. I tend to remain on the periphery.
I come from a town, Jacksonville,FL, that tends to be very open armed about its newcomers. Jacksonville embraces new blood and pulls people into its heart and soul. It seems to be a very engaging city. Maybe it is because it does not have several University’s centralizing and dividing its folks. Who knows. But the fact that I did not go to any NC university has me at a distinct disadvantage. And i tend to be reclusive by nature throw in kids and it is easy to have the years slip by being an observer on the sidelines. I don’t have a group to huddle with or a real feeling of purpose here yet.I do, however have many fabulous friends from all different types of groups.
Here is where Molly comes in. A former gallery owner, she has always had a pulse on the arts community and a real knack for being a connector of all different types of people. Over lunch the other day, she was astonished by how little I know of Raleigh and all it has to offer. So over the next few months she will be my guide and mentor. My goal is to become a living, breathing part of the town I live in and to revel in everything it has to offer. And to meet people who get my artistic quirkiness.
We are off to a great start! Yesterday we walked the trails around the art museum and even took the footbridge over 440. I had no idea how to do that before. This is going to be fun!
