Skip to main content

Jim Rockford was keeping me broke


Ah Rockford files, a comfortable and silly way to unwind after work. Yes, I am completely aware that I've turned into my Dad and watching Dad shows totally cements that theory. I had to start looking at the handsome James Garner in a new light though...

He was a rich and famous star in his time and every evening spent curled up watching Rockford Files was an evening a painting wasn't getting worked on. No painting, no art show material. No painting, no galleries. No painting, no money. Would James Garner be watching TV every evening in a tired drowsy ball and not getting stuff done? Probably not. 

So I pulled myself away from TV land in the evenings and devoted at least a little time in the mornings as well. Even if it's just ten minutes. Even if you are just filling in all the blacks, blues or whatever... It is progress. Something is better than nothing.

I'm proud to say this little habit tweak has totally kicked my butt into gear and I'm producing at a rate I've never produced at before. In one month I've done at least 15 pieces. 😳 This is crazy to me. Absolutely nuts. 

And I'm not just flinging paint and cranking out some quick jazz... I'm actually painting at a more unique level than I've experienced in awhile. It is refreshing and fun for me again and my brain is actually tired after a painting because it was such a puzzle to figure out. 

Always having the next canvas ready to go was crucial for me. I would even get  background layers set up on a few canvases all at once so as soon as one was completed the next one was on the easel. 

I painted so much my arm physically hurts. 😑 
So today I wake up and it's early in the morning and all the work for the show is done. The last pieces get hung tonight after work and I'm taking a weird and rare break to let my arm recover. Recalibrate my brain for the next new pieces and take full advantage of the momentum I've gained.
Thursday will be friends and family and people actually getting to see the work in person finally. I have worked hard and I'm proud of myself. Thanks James Garner for the kick in the pants I sorely needed.
What's taking up your precious time and is it worth the sacrifice to your career, personal satisfaction or bank account? Maybe a little habit tweak is in order to make you feel more fulfilled. 😊



 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Words!

  Hello! I haven't blogged since last year. Even writing the word "blog" felt foreign and weird! I have actually been writing stuff on my Patreon account so if you've missed the updates you can sign up for free over there. There is also an option to pay a few dollars a month to help support me as an artist and get "extra" content- in case you are of that mindset and either way- thank you for caring about the art adventures.  I have missed blogging actually. I guess I like to make words, string them together like a pretty necklace and let them live their own expressive life wrapped around me.  Times are different. Times are weird! But I guess you know that. And also times are the same and as old as time. Is it really more terrible than any other time or are we humans just more "connected" to the propaganda and daily bad trip in a way that is insane and unhealthy? Either way I do my best to keep my sanity and I don't believe about 98% of what I s...

Taming the monster

What started as me deciding to spend 30 minutes picking out clothes to donate from my closet .. Turned into about 2 hours of folding t shirts, jeans and deciding winter was far enough away that all sweaters and coats could be packed away. My closet was a walk-in diaster. My cat had lived in it all winter, knocked stuff down, slept on it, fuzzed up clothes and built forts. No lie.  I had been living in the same two pairs of jeans and 5 shirts off my bedroom floor (closet #2 😂). First things first, all the T shirts from OLD JOBS were the first to get put in donation pile. I don't need memories of "that place" and they were all too small, waaay too large or tan/beige/grey ..all the wrong unhappy colors that just say JOB when you look at them. Bye! So that happened yesterday. Major project that still needs work but for now it is peaceful enough to my brain to leave it alone. I have two large loads of laundry to do because my clothes look like...well like a cat has been sleep...

Digital Vacation

  Have you looked around and discovered you have filled your life with bad habits? If you said NO- good for you, you might not be human! 😁  I was experiencing a major BLAH and it was all because of ME. What I spent time on, consumed, did and did not do. I also felt like the willpower I used to have in abundance was gone and I wondered if I would ever get it back.  First and foremost I had to look at my main bad habits. What was the very first thing I did every day. EVERY DAY! I reached for my phone, I social media blitzed my brain over two long cups of coffee every morning. I made sure to look at my MEMORIES like it was my job every day. Ruminating on the past and seeing everyone's angry opinions and celebrity/political posts and regurgitated memes ad nauseum....is actually not a very optimistic and healthy way for me to cruise into the day. Not only is this not good for my spirit it wasted almost two hours of every morning. 💀 That's precious time!  I'm weaning mys...