Archive | July 2008

Feeling better already

Jul15

A nice long torch session did the trick. I worked late tonight and am feeling much better. The thing is when I am torching I have to give a certain amount of concentration otherwise, you know bad things happen, like burns, or worse I use the wrong color glass *wink*. So freeing my mind from whatever was going on in there, did the trick! Have a nice evening. :-)

Feeling Melancholy

Jul14

Do you ever feel melancholy for no particularly good reason? Or at least maybe you don’t know why? I am having one of those days. That in itself isn’t all that particularly unusual. This usually happens to me when I get cabin fever, or work too much, or am feeling particularly stressed. The thing is none of those things are really on target for this day. Okay maybe a little bit of cabin fever is going on, as we didn’t actually take our usual Saturday off. We just worked on different things, but nothing pressing. And I am not stressed, and not feeling particularly over worked. So I am left wondering what it is really, that is going on?

The odd part my husband is feeling the same way. He is Mr optimistic, or at least is when it comes to being in a good mood. He isn’t much of a worrier either. So why are we pledged with this melancholy on the same day?

I am a big believer in energy. In the way that all of us are connected with threads of energy. I am particularly effected by the energy of people I am close with, even when I am not near them. Do you ever find yourself thinking something is just off? Then you find out someone you love is having a hard time with something? Maybe hubby and I are effecting each others moods. It is possible I suppose. I hope it is that and not a large black cloud over someone we both care deeply for (not a happy thought at all, lets move on).

Maybe it is just a state of the world affairs. Everyday the news brings more and more depressing doom and gloom. From the economy, with banks folding, Freddie and Fannie needing a serious bail out, people losing their homes, gas prices, rising food costs, and now this lift on the ban of off shore drilling, or to the President committing to the G8 decision to reduce green house gases by 50% by 2050 then coming home and saying, “nope sorry, that will cost too many jobs”. Then add in the politicians who have yet to say anything to give me any real hope of a serious change. It’s all very depressing. I even stopped watching the news, I’m tired of it. (That will probably last all of three days…).

Or maybe it is just that the day is overcast and the sun hasn’t come out to brighten my petals. :-)

All in all I have much to be thankful for. My good friend Lisa is coming for a visit this weekend. I am pretty excited about that. Business is good (or at least good enough) and we are healthy. So I am off to go count my blessings, and look forward to a fun filled weekend.

Maybe it is just one of those weird astrological things. Is there a moon in retrograde or something causing the moodiness? Maybe I can blame it on that? What do you think?

Thought provoking…

Jul11

One of the many blogs I read is Mr Nathan Bransford. This week he posted a hypothetical question. I am paraphrasing here, basically the question is “Would you still write if you absolutely knew you wouldn’t get published (at least by a “real” publishing house and not self publish) and be successful.

I find this interesting on many levels. For one, if writing is a passion and something a person gets enjoyment from what difference does it make if said person gets published or not? Oh I know all about the validation and the joy of so called success, but what I really mean is, if you love to do something, won’t you do it even if fame and fortune doesn’t come along with it? Maybe said person won’t work as hard to get a manuscript extra, extra polished, or maybe they will. Certainly they could spare all that wasted time trying to find an agent and/or publisher, but if it is passion, won’t you just write because you like it?

Second, as with anything practice makes for a better crafts person. Does practice make perfect? I highly doubt it. But a person certainly will get better at what they do, if they keep practicing and learning along the way.

Third, if an artist or crafts person is only doing what they do for the potential money, they are not likely to be successful anyway. Maybe people who say they would quit writing if they didn’t get published, just don’t realize most writers do not become rich and famous. In fact a great many of them cannot afford to write as their full time job. With this in mind, why would a person choose to only write for the money?

Forth it is certainly okay to love to do something, even when a person knows they may not be naturally gifted in an artist sense. Writing is an art, just as glass working is. It can also be a craft. Or maybe both to the same person.

To me writing is a skill, just as lampworking is a skill. When I was first learning glasswork, I was certain I would never make anything good enough to sell, and was even more certain I wouldn’t ever make a living at it. I was pretty sure I didn’t even want to try that. But here we are 4 and a half years later and lampworking is my full time job and I love it. If I found I could no longer sell my work, I am certain I would still melt glass, it just may take a different turn. I would play and experiment a lot more. Certainly I wouldn’t make nearly the amount of production I do now, but I would still be found out there melting glass.

So, would I stop writing if I knew I didn’t have the chops to get published. Heck no! Right now I am doing it because I like it. Really like it. When I am done writing the novel, I will reread and rework it and probably will try to shop it. I mean really, why not? Doesn’t hurt to try. I highly doubt I will stop writing if it goes nowhere, which is highly likely. Right now writing is in the “This is what I like to do” column. If the joy of writing goes away, then I will put the pen down. Not when the agents or publishers tell me NO.

Post 4th of July

Jul8

I hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July.  We had a very nice time visiting with friends who were vacationing in New Orleans.  We went down and had dinner with our friends at Muriels.  Greg and I had eaten there once before.  I remember being pretty impressed with my blackened tuna, but Greg didn’t remember it as much.  So it was a bit of a surprise when we all ordered something different and all decided we had ordered the best thing on the menu.  We ate entirely too much, drank too much, and then they all had dessert with out me.  (Stupid migraines.)  It was very very yummy!

Then we watched the fireworks on the Mississippi.  The city has dueling barges, so we got to see in sinc, or almost in sinc exploding fireworks.  It was cool, accept it only lasted 12 minutes.  I think I would have preferred only one barge and a longer show.  Twelve minutes hardly seemed worth it.  Though we did get to visit with good friends, so it was all good…until we wanted to leave the parking garage!  Yikes!

We were on the 6th floor and it didn’t look good, (backed up at least two more levels) so we went to a bar and sat around drinking bottled water.  How cool are we?  Hey Greg had already had his share of hurricanes for the evening and I am a non drinker these days.  (Sucky stupid migraines.)  Anyway, we people watched until midnight, finally braved the parking garage and made it home about 2am.  The fireworks ended at 9:12 pm.  So the verdict is in.  It isn’t on the list of things to do next fourth of July.  But back to Muriels we will go.  Did I mention yum?

I hear it is suppose to be a slower week…

Jul1

Not for me.  I am buried still in orders.  The sale last week was a huge success, thank you everyone!  I am working diligently at getting them all done.  I should be finished by the end of the weekend.  I hope so anyway.  However, today we have friends coming to visit,so no torching today.  Then on Friday we are headed to New Orleans to watch the fireworks on dueling barges on the Mississippi.  Should be fun.  I hope you all have fun safe plans for the weekend.  Get some rest, or party down.   We plan a little of both, then back to the torch.  Happy 4th of July everyone!