Gremlins

I randomly picked a book off my shelf the other day (although I don't believe in accidents) and it turned out to be "12 Secrets of highly creative women" by Gail McMeekin. It's been on my shelf for years, but I've not really paid attention until now. I've been working my way back to my creative self, and there are some really thought-provoking passages in there. One of the chapters talks about our 'saboteurs' or inner critics, and this is pretty much what mine looks like. He's not a pleasant fellow at all. He's opinionated, bossy, and just plain nasty at times. He expects perfection, is judgmental, and he doesn't like criticism one bit. Since he lives with me, I decided to do some sleuthing and find out more about him, and what makes him tick.


Now that I understand his inner workings a bit more, I'm standing up to him instead of shooing him away and pretending he doesn't exist. I'm on to him now, and I'm taking my power back. I can now hear him out, thank him for his opinion, and then go on my merry way.


Once in awhile he has a good point, but mostly it's clear that he's just got his own issues. Biggest learning: It's not about me. Now that's powerful!

My goal is to end up living here, and I'm getting there, one step at a time. How about you?

CatNap

This photo pretty much describes how I've felt a good part of the past few weeks. The change of seasons and a few of life's curve balls hurled my way took the wind out of my sails for a bit, leaving me with little energy. I hate it when that happens! But I'm now back in the swing of things--getting excited for the holidays, looking forward to time spent with friends, and preparing for the February retreat. Lots of good stuff coming up!


Fortunately, I did manage to get up to Oregon to visit DJ for a few days--we spent some quiet time exploring country roads; meeting up with a fellow friend and fabulous artist/instructor; eating good food; and of course, taking photos. I didn't take many good ones, but I do like this one. Now you know how she gets all those great angles...lol!

And we came across this sweet little face in our travels one day.

The second part of our visit was back here in northern CA--we drove back down here, where DJ was finally able to go to the Alameda flea market with me. As we were nearing the end of the day, I was thinking I was getting off easy, having bought only a small handful of goodies. And then I saw this...


And this...

And what do you know, they both fit in my car perfectly! I had no intention of buying a mirror and a dresser, but as I walked around, I couldn't stop thinking about them. That's when I knew they were meant to come home with me! DJ shared some great photos of the day on her blog; she has a special way of seeing things, and captures images like nobody else. I'm so in awe of her work, as a photographer and as an artist.

And it thrills me that she loves to come up with ideas for the retreat! We got some felting needles, and she went crazy making these little flowers. So guess what I'll be incorporating into the Journey goodies?


On a completely different note, look what I got in the mail the other day! Another good friend found out that I'd never had a pear from Harry & David, so she surprised me with this goodness. I am so grateful to have such generous, uplifting souls in my life.