My Good Friend, the Kneepad

I went out rollerblading (actually attempting to rollerblade since I'm still learning) and had a great time. I'm getting much better at it. Today's lessons included learning more speed control and turning(both left & right :-), can you tell I'm rather proud of myself?) My safety gear came in handy. I lost my balance a couple of times, and let me tell you, it's so much nicer to fall on a kneepad than your kneecap.
I think I'm going to enjoy this thing they call rollerblading :-)

My Creative Hero

It's hard to believe that I have not mentioned my personal creative hero yet ....(drum roll please) Jim Henson.
Not only did the man have an extremely active and successful creative life, he was also the kind of guy you'd want as your friend; a truly good person.
I thought I'd relay a bit of his writing from 1986 (I'm quoting this from a book called "Jim Henson: The Works") which I strongly connect with.

"Over the years, I've evolved my own set of beliefs and attitudes-as we all have-that I feel works for me. I don't feel particularly comfortable telling other people how to think or live. There are people who know much more about these things than I do, but here goes...
I believe that life is basically a process of growth-that we go through many lives, choosing those situations and problems that we will learn through. I believe that we form our own lives, that we create our own reality, and that everything works out for the best. I know I drive some people crazy with what seems to be ridiculous optimism, but it has always worked out for me.
I believe in taking a positive attitude toward the world, toward people, and toward my work. I think I'm here for a purpose. I think it's likely we all are, but I'm only sure about myself. I try to tune myself in to whatever it is that I'm supposed to be, and I try to think of myself as a part of all of us-all mankind and all life. I find it's not easy to keep these lofty thoughts in mind as the day goes by, but it certainly helps me out a great deal to start out this way.
I love my work, and because I enjoy it, it doesn't really feel like work. Thus I spend most of my time working. I like working collaboratively with people. At its best, the film and television world functions creatively this way. I have a terrific group of people who work with me, and I think of the work that we do as "our" work.
I don't know exactly where ideas come from, but when I'm working well ideas just appear. I've heard other people say similar things- so it's one of the ways I know there's help and guidance out there. It's just a matter of our figuring out how to receive the ideas or imformation that's there waiting to be heard.
I find it's very important for me to stop every now and then and get recharged and reinspired. The beauty of nature has been one of the great inspirations in my life. Growing up as an artist, I've always been in awe of the incredible beauty of every last bit of design in nature. The wonderful color schemes of nature, which always work harmoniously, are particularly dazzling to me. I love to lie in an open field looking up at the sky. One of my happiest moments of inspiration came to me many years ago as I lay on the grass, looking up into the leaves and branches of a big old tree in California. I remember feeling very much a part of everything and everyone.
Working as I do with the movement of puppet creatures, I'm always struck by the feebleness of our efforts to achieve naturalistic movement. Just looking at the incredible movement of a lizard or a bird, or even the smallest insect, can be a very humbling experience.
At some point in my life I decided, rightly or wrongly, that there are many situations in this life that I can't do much about-acts of terrorism, feelings of nationalistic prejudice, cold war, etc.-so what I should do is concentrate on the situations that my evergy can affect.
I believe that we can use television and film to be an influence for good; that we can help to shape the thoughts of children and adults in a positive way. As it has turned out, I'm very proud of some of the work we've done, and I think we can do many more good things.
When I was young, my ambition was to be one of the people who made a difference in this world. My hope still is to leave the world a little bit better for my having been here.
It's a wonderful life and I love it."

Finally Flexing My Artistic Muscle

Like letting go of a long-held breath, I am working again. I decided to start with the 360 fake fingernails; just started playing around, and it's certainly interesting so far. Several different ideas may come from this material. I'm also using some of the foam cubes(gotta love those foam cubes).
:-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)
Good times, good times.

It Was Just One of Those Nights

I didn't feel like going to sleep last night. It felt like my creative drive was working overtime and so many partial ideas were rattling around in my head (clunk, clunk, clunk). If I didn't have a job to go to today, I could have easily stayed up for hours playing with materials and happily making something from nothing. I'll have to save this energy surge for after work today (and for tomorrow because I have the day off).
I'm also keyed up because I'm planning to give rollerblading another go tomorrow. I just bought a helmet (because my head is very important to me); I already have the other nesessary safety gear for a novice, so I'm good to go.
There are so many things that I want to learn. I've started a list of them so I can give them a try one at a time. I have a tendancy to get involved in lots of new things at once, so I'm hoping that keeping a list will keep me focused on one task at a time.
Another Wednesday;...bowl of cereal, trip to the gym, work, etc...can't wait to get back home tonight.

So Many Dresses, So Little Time

I spent a good deal of yesterday sewing a bridesmaid dress for my high school best friend's wedding. I think it came out rather well considering it's the fourth dress I have ever made.
Each time I try a different pattern for sewing clothes I learn something different. This time I learned that simplicity and accuracy are key. The top of the dress is a little more complicated than I thought it would be, but I think I can simplify it a bit with a few sewing tucks and some careful ironing. I have also learned to put ego aside and make the garment a bit larger than you need (I find pattern sizes vary wildly and it's always easier to take a garment in than it is to make it larger).
So now that this dress is finished (the wedding is in mid-July) I can concentrate on the work I need to make for my show in August...so little time...so much to do...an artist's work is never done...but truthfully, I enjoy every minute of it.

Yet Another Monday

Another weekend passed far too quickly. It is Monday, full of promise; meaning I can make progress builing objects for the show I'm going to be in later in the summer. There is a certain excitement before an idea is fully fleshed out, when I don't know how the end result will look, that I enjoy(the allure of the unknown).
I think I am finding it difficult to work both on a deadline and with a specific theme. I don't run from a challenge though, so I'll consider these limitations assets inspead.
Time to get to work...