Art Plunge

Not making my Halloween costume This month. Wow. What to say about this month. I think I had an existential crisis this month it was such a kick in the gut. I had work but no money (my work projects dont pay out until an approval is put on it...not completion -but approval). I was frenetically busy but about to get my lights cut. It made me take a hard look at my finances, my business and my life. I discounted everything and had a sale. People willingly bought prints and art and even donated $ to me and I was almost out of the hole but not quite. Next I had to do something I didn't want to- open up the record portal and take some orders. Its time consuming work and creating more deadlines for myself but you do what must be done. A few people jumped on this opportunity and I can say- I just have enough for rent today! Right under the wire! Then to add more chaos to my own personal stress party- my Mom is getting evicted. Two cats got sick and needed meds during all this. I ju...

It is what it is...whatever it is The other morning I woke up to a burning searing pain in my lower chest...where my gallbladder is it turns out. After a bunch of Facebook friends schooled me on their gallbladder woes I spent the rest of the day in bed reading about gallbladders, diets for gallbladders, what makes em go kaboom, etc etc. I also spent the rest of the day writing down what I ate, when, when the pain appeared-how long it lasted,etc. I'm no stranger to pain and this is nothing like endo pain-thankfully...but it's pain nonetheless where there should be none. So cause for concern. I AM going to the doctor soon (stop waving your finger at me sweet nurses) but I'm presently in the hot seat in a lot of ways and it will have to be delayed a bit if possible. A work project I've been killing myself over since September has been riddled with technical difficulties and has not gotten to approval stage...which means no money for me until it does. Which means I h...

 It's October 21st and the clock is ticking! While all my friends are enjoying the upcoming Halloween festivities, discussing scary movies and debating the purpose of candy corn...Im fully involved in matting, printing, shipping and working for the rent. Im in my own scary movie 😜😂 but I have my good humor about it. (Matting all the things to ship out) I was blessed with sales the past two days and a friend threw me a little gig helping her pack yesterday so the electric bill has been graciously split into two more manageable payments after paying a good chunk of it yesterday. It got me in survival mode for sure...I have rounded up: Candles, a metal percolator, charcoal, fuel, a little fondue set that I guess I thought I could heat simple liquids in like soup etc...and batteries. At least if there's an outage Im slightly more prepared 😂 I missed the Fair this year but I'll shoot for next year. I upgraded my living situation but it came at a price..more rent du...

I won the good vibe lottery yesterday even if I didn't win the megamillions. I didn't have money to play with though-so there's that! 😂 Ha! After yesterdays blog post I had a flurry of friends helping to share my post and then I had about 7 solid orders in my Shopify for prints and art. I am honored and touched and SO GRATEFUL to you Care Bears 💙 The Geode print was the hot number yesterday and I actually have to go to the print shop today and matt and frame some more up. Troll cat got her magic medicine- some pink liquid antibiotics that when mixed with fishy water she LAPS RIGHT UP! Its almost damn near impossible to give my cats medicine so Im thrilled something in my life is easy. 🐱 She seems a little better today, resting easier and the "incidents" are fewer....cat pee is no joke. Might as well burn the house down. I found myself burning sage last night to just get the scent outta my nose. Friends also sent donations so today I can set up the payment...

There has been a TON of rain here in Dallas and word is that more is coming so its only befitting to say "when it rains it pours"...and when things go south they really go south! My eldest cat, lovingly nicknamed Troll cat, is a grouchy diabetic old lady who recently was diagnosed with a bladder infection. There's been lots of fun around here trying to find the latest spot where she "went" and constantly cleaning up skid marks where oopsies happened. Shes currently a mess who has pissed herself and will barely let me touch her for a second to try and clean her off. Think pirannha tearing up your hand and thats pretty accurate. On top of that I have exactly $193 dollars in the world today. I know someone out there in the world has it worst than me so Im still going to keep my attitude of gratitude. What to do? Gotta keep my old girl as healthy as possible. Im checking the mailbox for the impending LIGHTS OUT SUCKA notice from the electric company and ren...

Some little Yupo art I made and gave away Yesterday someone wrote me and reminded me to stay positive. I needed the reminder. It dawned on me that half the month was now over and even though this electric bill looms like a black cloud on the horizon...it won't be long before rent is due...which is way more important in my eyes. So Im switching gears... I have two projects I have to hustle on and Im setting aside the new little paintings I've been trying to sell online and focusing on the projects. Social media has just proven once again to be filled with empty likes and hearts and almost no one helping to share your work (those that have- THANK YOU) but will wile away the day sharing dumb memes, stories about celebrities and an endless drool over political figures. Thanks. 😉 I mean that happily. A point has been proven that I've long known.  But back to staying positive... " In mindfulness one is not only restful and happy, but alert and awake. Meditation is...

Decided I better get this blog up while I could. Today is the day my ginormous electric bill is due and no Christmas miracles happened (do they ever?) I sold a few prints over the weekend but not enough to even put a dent in it. Im getting a full blown lesson in SURVIVAL old school style. Done this many times growing up so its not new. I do have a little grill, so that will be how I cook my food and I do have an old percolator I can put on the grill to make my coffee ☕ Got those necessities covered! The house has a lot of natural light luckily- in all the rooms. Bundling up and layers for the cold. No biggie. I can find little public spots to charge computer and phone. Things will just be very quiet and the sun will govern activities for awhile. I really can't sweat it. I've done everything in my power to produce, create, sell and also do projects for work that take forever to get approvals on. Almost everyone ignores your sales and efforts and it's just like tha...

So many experiments in frugality of late it's no wonder my painting is going through a pared down phase as well. "Casual Exclamations" and "We Will Help You Touch The Sun" were finished yesterday and listed in my Shopify shop and also Etsy. I like them and plan to do some more. It was interesting to work on them simultaneously and get different vibes from each one. *The wobbly unbalanced exclamation point that doesn't line up and becomes ineffective. A shout that doesn't make an impact. *The shape that needs to stand on another shape to reach its glowing goal while another just looks on. Feels like there is so much disconnect in the world. Having to jump into social media again has been a drag. But Im resolved to stay mindful and although I finished the last of my chicken soup and my too-giant-for-me electric bill is due today (and won't get paid) I DO feel grateful for every little thing. 🙏❤ Shout out today goes to Dana, Elva and Mel...

Lately I've been getting into "surface" and nuance. Focusing on textures and exploring techniques. The idea is to hone all skills and bring them together beautifully. So minimalist is a necessary lesson for me because my work can get super "extra". Maximalist, if you will. (Works in progress-unfinished)  Decided to start the morning with some small minimalist paintings on canvas and groove to some LOVE...who are also super "extra". Its a cold, rainy day in the studio and their delicious,almost Spanish, guitar licks and Arthur Lees off kilter unique voice are a nice start to the Monday. I'll be putting the little minimalist paintings up for sale in the shop later if they're your bag. I'm having to assume the role of art hustler this week until checks come in. Gotta keep electricity flowing 🔥and possibly heat going...but as of now Im loving that the AC/ HEAT is not turned on and my giant bill isnt climbing. This summer kicked me...

Just uploaded a new little "promo" for my print sale! It's pretty simple and totally NEWBIE but I'm no slick marketing guru IM AN ARTIST! Anyway- it's time to hustle and bustle on these prints and art sales. Work has been slow to cut the checks and my electric bill is a "you better pay me or else" kinda status. Freelance life- it's like this! I'm glad for the cooler temps because I just shut the AC right off and opened windows. When it gets cold tomorrow Im just bundling up like a bear and NOT TURNING ON THE HEAT. Hoping the lights stay on but whaddya do- could be fun to pretend it's all Little House On The Prairie over here and not having internet could be great for my meditation LOL! :D Anyway- buy some prints or small originals- it's all at a great price this week! SHOP MY SHOPIFY

As I embarked on my "Retreat Week" the only distinct plan was to follow these points: 1. Don't plan anything solid. This week was about letting life unfold naturally. Aside from a few things I want to enjoy in the week (a concert, the monks visit, lots of painting,etc) the only real "plan" is to be very mindful and enjoy a great week. However spontaneous that may be. 2. Stay off the internet as much as possible if its not "work related". And especially NO POSTING. This is a week of quiet. Non reaction. Inner stillness. I decided to prepare on Sunday by telling all my friends what I was doing then taking care of some mundane loose ends so they would be done and off my brain. Sunday- TCB day.....did my taxes! Feels so good to get that out of my hair. Highlights of the day were taco lunch with bestie and getting caught in a glorious rain shower and getting soaked. Blessed by rain, amazing to just slow walk and enjoy the sensation. Now that taxe...

And back I go to my home planet... I spent a few days on Facebook to do some business communiques and felt just as gross as ever from seeing all the things I saw. I refuse to let that be my reality though...so off I go back to my home planet. The one good thing I found out while there was that the monks are in town and that is actually a perfect thing to put into my week. I will not get political or make judgements but it feels an awful lot like Im surrounded by "addicts of a non drug variety". That being... political addicts whose whole lives are consumed with arguing their point with anyone within earshot 24/7. Their entire feed is nothing but praise and condemnations for this and that and somehow they have neglected all other parts of human interactions with friends and family. Go have lunch with your friends people, discuss a funny movie you saw or your dogs latest antics. In short- give it a rest for a minute and connect with your soul again. This post is about r...

OK guys, here it is...my very first HIGH SPEED VIDEO! I've been playing with Movavi movie editor and the GoPro Hero 3 my sister gave me. Im a total spazz when it comes to tech stuff so everything is SLOW MO with me. But I wanted to learn to do high speed videos to put on Youtube. Eventually I can do little clips for Instagram- but thats going to take a new phone...storage space....learning....but for now- heres my first little experiment with SPEED and YUPO PAPER. Yupo and Alcohol Inks are fun and weird- right now I'm having fun just experimenting with color, techniques and layers. Enjoy!

Burning sage to clear the air... Yesterday felt a little "off". Some negativity had crept in and put my brain in a mad little whirl. I felt behind the 8 ball on everything and just decided to put my hands to work cleaning up my bedroom. It was one of the neglected spaces in the big cleanup I just did. Much like a kid- I had a huge pile of clothes on the floor and the carpets needed serious TLC. So as I sought peace in the day I carefully folded and put everything away. As I sought to cleanse my spirit of negativity I carefully dusted and wiped down all the furniture and surfaces. Quite a lot of dust can accumulate fast- just as a lot of "bad vibes" can stick to us and wear us down. I put everything in its place, vacuumed and scrubbed the carpet and as a final "cleanse"- burned the sage and set it near my Dads photo. The smoke and spirit and good energy were floating around me again and my little space felt good. Sage is supposed to be great for elimina...

Despite the title, I'm not actually writing this from my guru cushion as I sit crosslegged and obscured by incense smoke. In fact...I've never even tried "shrooms". However and inexplicably I have found myself seeking them and their wisdom...without consuming them. It started with me getting back into "mindfulness" meditation and already being a Nature lover. I started following some mushroom accounts on Instagram and oohing and ahhing over the vast assortment of little weirdo fungis. Couple that with a particularly good rainy season here in Dallas and I began seeing your basic mushrooms out and about on my walks. Then I started photographing them. Then I started actively hunting them and seeking them out. My morning walks were no longer "let me do some cardio and burn some weight"...in fact my body was now totally out of the equation. It was "must go find new mushrooms, must go find!". This was liberating. No Self. No weight, no j...

"Las Grutas 2" has two lives... Finished that painting up above and it's actually 1 painting but shown two ways. I have never had such a conundrum deciding which way a piece should be...I like it equally both ways and for different reasons. Neither way is the way it was painted either. Which I like. It gives it an even more random voice than I could have ever conceived.  Here is the way it was created...which I also like but was lacking in that extra "suprise" factor. Vertically it works with my "caves" theme. Giving the impression of looking into an opening...jagged bits sticking up and down. Horizontally it gives an impression of land, islands, broken reflecting pools and is something my mind probably wouldn't have thought of....which I love. Vertically it looks elegant on the wall. Horizontally it draws you in like an interesting landscape. Two different vibes...one painting. Theres currently an open poll going on Instagr...