Fortuosity!

WOW!  It seems like only yesterday I was waxing nostalgic over May.  Now we are standing at the edge of another month.  For me, June has been chock full of fortunate encounters.  It seems only fitting to share them here.  First, a word *or three* about the title of this post.  Talk about a "blast from the past"...

When I was a wee girl of 5 or 6, I had a beautiful, blue record player.  It looked much like a small, hard-sided suitcase (or typewriter case).  I loved my record player, even if the records I had did make for a rather odd collection.  Comprised of an odd assortment of 78 rpm records in bright yellow (with classics such as "Turkey in the Straw (Turkey in the Hay)", "Shine On Harvest Moon", and the like), and a few 'read along story books' with their own 45 rpm discs, the real treasures of my collection were a trio of 33 rpm albums handed down from my mom:  "With Love, Bobby," "Peter Paul and Mary - 10 Years Together," and "Walt Disney's Happiest Songs" (a promo/tie-in with Gulf Gas Stations released the year before I was born).  Thus began a life-long love of music (in general), and liner notes (specifically).

I was a singing fool!  One of my clearest memories from this time is singing *on the top of our lungs!* selections from each of these, while pumping my legs on any swing set I could find -- oh, how I loved to swing and sing!  *Julie, Julie, Julie, Do You LOVE Me? -- I DIG Rock 'n Roll Music -- When You Wish Upon a Star*  To this day, I can sing *from memory, thankyouverymuch* every line from "Fortuosity" -- and these days, that little ditty seems to sum up my daily outlook better than any other tune that comes to mind!  This merry month of June has proven no exception.

The month began with a book give-away on the Blog of the wildly talented artist and author Quinn McDonald of Quinn Creative.  As I normally do, upon reading about the the book she was giving away I looked it up on Amazon and added it to my wish list...  I was thrilled to be notified that I had won, and have spent more than a little happy time perusing its pages (and adding to the marginalia).  I am thoroughly enjoying my copy of "Finding What You Didn't Lose" by John Fox.  Thanks, Quinn -- I love it!  The beautiful post card featuring Quinn's work (and a sweet hand-written note) is a fitting book mark, to boot!

 The mail continued to deliver happy moments with the  delivery of a little gifty from one of our ReMe Retreats guests!  Laurie Beth Seehusen snagged a last-minute cancellation spot for our May event in Ocracoke only 2 weeks before we gathered on the Outer Banks of NC...  In doing so, she took a flying leap at something she had never done before. She joined in with all of her being, but did not have time to gather or create a "Gift-a-Thon" offering.  Upon returning home (to Texas), she found the perfect thing for her ReMe buddies:  The Freaker!  Their tag line, "1 Freaker, Every Bottle," sums up nicely the job(s) that this quirky character can do.  It fits nearly EVERY thing:  baby bottles, canned beverages, bottles (up to a wine bottle), and 'go cups!'  It was created by a young man from right down the NC coast in Beaufort; he was featured on the TV show "Shark Tank."  How cool, to learn about something from right here at home from a friend so far away!  I received Sherlock Homie, and couldn't be happier -- it works like a charm!  Thanks, again, Laurie Beth!

Back in January, my fellow CMMAG Guild members and I embarked on a journey of creative sharing endearingly called YORCA -- a handy acronym for the Year of Random Creative Acts.  Just last week, I was the happy recipient of one of those kind and creative acts when a bubble mailer arrived from the lovely Iris Musslewhite!  Nestled within the tissue wrapping (secured with one of the very labels that I designed) was THIS thing of beauty -- a most lovely, mixed media bracelet.  The colors are rich and deep, bringing to mind virtually every piece of clothing that I love to snuggle into in the Fall and Winter.  That won't stop me from enjoying it throughout the dog days of Summer, tho'!  It is gorgeous, Iris, thank you for thinking of me.

Speaking of the CMMAG, it was my pleasure to welcome a student from my "Long MAY You Wave" class to our meeting in June.  Deb Averitt came to our General Meeting, and brought a friend -- she also brought her Flag Book from my class.  She had finished her colorful, kinetic color-wheel by collaging images onto the flags for each color; it was FAB-U-LOUS!  I love it when folks make a project their own by adding things that they love.  Deb's finished book is a perfect example of that very thing.  Thank you, Deb, for sharing your book with us, and for your very kind words about your workshop experience with me.

As regular readers of this Blog know, my ReMe partners (Jean Skipper and Jodi Ohl) and I are in the midst of our 2nd Blog Hop.  This is a tried and true vehicle for driving traffic on the interwebs, and back in May I followed the flow of traffic on a Blog Hop for my far-away-friend Jill K Berry's latest book:  Map Art Lab.  Much to my utter delight, I won the drawing on her site for a copy of this treasure.  It arrived last week, and I look forward to spending more time between its covers -- it bears lingering.  If you enjoy map imagery and incorporating it in your own work, I highly recommend this beautiful book!  An added bonus is that it also includes work from two other artists whose work I love, and who I know personally:  Amy Smith and Cathy Taylor!

As if ALL of this wasn't enough, I will wrap up the month of June with a visit to Richmond, VA to spend a little time with friends old and new!  I'll return home via Raleigh, after this month's workshop at Jerry's Artarama:  Mixed Media Triptych - One Work in Three Parts.  There is still room to join us, as we beat the Summer heat by spending a day learning some cool techniques using text and acrylic mediums for texture and visual interest!  It promises to be a BIG, fun day & I'd love to see you there!

Until next time!

Onward & Upward,

Words of wisdom for today:

"God is a comedian
playing to an audience
too afraid to laugh."

                                    - Voltaire

Photo Notes:

    Flag Book Finished - by Deb Averitt

We have a WINNER!

My hearty thanks to all who visited with me this weekend during The Great ReMe Blog Hop - Week 2:  Relax!  A recurring theme in your responses was that finding time to Relax seems a daunting task.  I say we all make a concerted effort to make more time for it!  It's good for us -- reason enough, eh?

Now, onto the business at hand!  Drum Roll, please...

Congratulations, Lynn!  You are the winner of an Arrowood Paper Arts FolioBook!  Please contact me at:  parrowood@gmail.com with your mailing address, and your prize will be on its way to you! 

FolioBook
Winner:  Lynn

For all the rest of my 'commenters' -- if you send me an e-mail with your mailing address TODAY (before midnight, 02/17, EST), I'll send you a little somethin' somethin' by way of thanks for playing along.

Hop on over to the ReMe blog for the announcement of the Winner for that giveaway!  ...as a bonus, you'll get to see Wito in action one more time.

Visit the ReMe Blog to see the Winner of my 2nd giveaway
(Click the Banner)

There's more fun, sharing, and giveaways in store!  Be sure to join us for Week 3:  Renew next Friday (02/21) for an inside look at what the third portion of our Motto means to Jodi Ohl.

Onward & Upward,

 - p

Words of wisdom for today:

"Stop a minute, right where you are.
Relax your shoulders,
shake your head and spine
like a dog shaking off cold water.
Tell that imperious voice in
your head to be still."

                                      - Barbara Kingsolver

Photo Notes:

   Wito (video) taken with Samsung Galaxy S4
   FolioBook taken with Panasonic LUMIX DMC-ZS1  - collage created in Pic Monkey

   ReMe Banner  - created by yours truly

*All photos can be seen in a larger size by clicking on them*

ReMe Blog Hop pt. Deux! - OR – Destination Relaxation

Hi!  Thanks for visiting with me as The Great ReMe Blog Hop continues.  If you missed last weeks posts, do take time to read Jean’s approach to the first prong of The ReMe Way *Rest-Relax-Renew,* Rest.  This week, I’ll share with you what it means for me to Relax.

All Aboard!
What does it mean to you to Relax?

I have to open by saying that, as a quasi-typical Type A, this whole “relax” thing is not my natural state!  *a running joke around here is that I have two speeds:  Stop and GO!*  Rather, it has been a learned trait for me; one that I appreciate having learned, and continue to fine-tune.  As an artist with full time dreams on a part time reality, I often find relaxation in ways that may look a whole lot like ‘work’ to other people.

Day to day, for me, involves working alongside my husband and our business partner as we run a small company dedicated to providing affordable technological solutions for county agencies throughout NC.  Kevin (aka Resident Genius) designs access control and video monitoring systems that are used by County Jails, Courthouses, and Sheriff’s Offices.  He and Bob are the hands-on, front line fellas – performing installations and service calls hither and yon.  I am the ‘behind the scenes’/Girl Friday of this outfit, manning the office, ordering equipment, billing and paying bills, and assorted and sundry other tasks that keep the wheels of commerce turning smoothly.

In my off hours, I enjoy the company of fellow creatives in both a regional mixed media art guild (of which it is my privilege to serve as a member of the Board), and a local art marketing discussion group.  When not learning/growing/socializing with these dynamic crowds, there are family and friends near and far with which to correspond and connect.

Add to all of that my own artistic business venture (Arrowood Paper Arts), and the newly established joint endeavor with fellow artists JeanSkipper and Jodi Ohl (ReMe Retreats); it becomes easier to see where the notion of only having two speeds comes from, eh?  Fortunately, being actively involved in creative pursuits is its own form of Zen for me!  Quite often, the easiest way to settle my rather active mind is to immerse myself in some sort of creative activity:  sketching out one of the myriad ideas from the mind-tumbler, designing a new class/project, puzzling out a new way to use an old thing, or romping around in colorful a painting/printing session.  Allowing myself to step away from my various To-Dos and indulge in serious play is a fabulous way to recharge my batteries!

Print, Cut & Fold, Print, Print
Serious Play begets Beautiful Work

 

Another, and perhaps the most long-held, means of relaxation is to find a comfy spot and dive into a good book.  For as long as I can remember, I have been an avid reader.  I thought the notion of a ‘limit’ on how many books one was allowed to check out of the library in school was preposterous (!)  From my teen years all the way up to the present moment, the most totally indulgent thing I can think of is to curl up with a book and read until falling asleep, only to rise in the morning and return to reading, while still nestled snugly among the covers *preferably with grand mug of good coffee.*  This scenario can only be improved upon if the weather is either (a) wickedly, frosty cold, or (b) dreary grey and rainy – making such slothful behavior fully justifiable *unless the laundry is calling too loudly (?)*  In the spirit of Full Disclosure, I will confess that the former happens with a great deal more regularity than the latter!

Before you head over to “the rest of the story” on the ReMeBlog, take a moment to tell me what ways are your favorite to embody “Relax” in your day-to-day existence.  Leave a comment here, and you will be entered to win one of my handmade FolioBooks.  They make handy little project workbooks, allowing you to keep track of all the details with pockets on the front and back covers for notes/receipts/ideas-scribbled-on-cocktail-napkins/etc.  Winner to be chosen *in the tried and true manner* by Wito the Wonderdog on Monday, February 17^th (with video verification provided).   Good luck!

FolioBook by PLA
Enter a comment, here on the blog, for your chance to win!

Continue to ReMe, for some of my favorite ways to Relax in Ocracoke…

One down, one HOP to go...
The Great ReMe Blog Hop continues!

Onward & Upward,

 - p

Words of wisdom for today:

"It is nice finding that place
where you can just go and relax."

                                      - Moises Arias

Photo Notes:

   Destination taken with Samsung Galaxy S4 - edited in Pic Monkey
   Print, Cut...   Samsung Galaxy S4 - collage created in Pic Monkey
   FolioBook taken with Panasonic LUMIX DMC-ZS1  - collage created in Pic Monkey

   ReMe Banner  - created by yours truly

*All photos can be seen in a larger size by clicking on them*

Love Is In the Air!

It's that time of year again...  One can not venture into any retail establishment without being bombarded by glittering hearts, a menagerie of pastel-hued stuffed critters, and chocolate piled to the rafters.  Yes, Valentine's Day is right around the corner!  My creative cohorts at ReMe Retreats and I have another idea for spreading love in this season of Cupid, though.  We are hosting a HOP!  No, we haven't confused the order of our holidays  --  We're staging a Blog Hop :-)  

Let's go to the hop...

 Won't you join us on Fridays in February?  We'll be sharing with you how we embrace the simple philosophy of the ReMe Way -- both in our day-to-day lives, and in the special ways that Ocracoke embodies each notion for all of us.  It promises to be most illuminating -- and, you may just win an original piece of art from us!  It's the perfect win/win scenario:  we win by sharing our passions with you, you win by learning more about the dynamic artists/instructors behind ReMe Retreats, and you might well win an original work of art in the process!

I am super excited to be on this creative journey with two amazing artists who also happen to be dear friends.  As I shared with you last year, our inaugural event is fast approaching (May, 2014)!  Due to the tremendous response to our initial offering, plans were put in place to offer a 2nd ReMe Retreat in Ocracoke in October of this year, as well *registration is now open*!  We thought that the Season of Love was the perfect time to share more of our love for this undertaking.  To do just that, we are expounding on our motto:  Rest - Relax - Renew.

                          Jean Skipper                                               Penny Arrowood                                               Jodi Ohl
                           February 7                                                      February 14                                               February 21
                                Rest                                                                   Relax                                                           Renew

The details:
Visit with each of us on Fridays in February -- follow the link to "the rest of the story" on the ReMe Blog -- leave a comment on the presenter's blog post -- giveaway winners will be announced the following Monday.  *easy peasy!*

What's that, you say?  There is a Friday unaccounted for?  Why, yes -- yes, there is, my astute reader!  Don't you worry tho' -- we have BIG plans for that last Friday!  I hope you'll hop to it, and join us on this whirlwind tour of exactly what it is that ReMe means to each of us, as well as how special we want ReMe to be for you!

Onward & Upward!
 - p

Words of wisdom for today:

"We must always change, renew,
rejuvenate ourselves;
otherwise we harden."

                                                           - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Photo Notes:

   ReMe Banner:  designed by yours truly

   Jean, Penny, and Jodi:  from Facebook profile photos (effects applied in PaintShop Pro X2)

  

*All photos can be seen in a larger size by clicking on them*