House Repairs

I'm thinking about getting some things done to my house this summer.

Last night when I couldn't sleep I was thinking about different rooms and realized that the room I'm working in now is the last room I have that I haven't done anything to. I still have the stairwell and upper hallway, and plenty of finishing things to do in other rooms, but this is my last room that hasn't been touched.

One of the first rooms I worked on was the kitchen - for the obvious reasons. People either love my bright blue and yellow or they look at it and go, "Oh, you haven't worked in here, yet."

Well, yes, I have. See the grease stains running down the side of the cabinet where the stove sat previously. I scrubbed all those off - took, literally, weeks of scrubbing and letting it soak every night with some different harmful chemical on it.

I painted my kitchen blue and yellow because I love Monet's kitchen at Giverny. When I was there I fell in love with the color scheme. Thank goodness I went years ago when you could actually SEE the house without your view being blocked by the hundreds of other tourists inside while you were. Obviously, my blue and yellow are a bit more brilliant, but I love the combo.

Every Dec. 19 I take pix of my house to chart my progress. That's the day I closed on it so that's the day I chose to do pix. Of course, I'm always decorated for Christmas then so it's all the better for me to do it then.

Photographs

I'm thinking tonight about photographs and how they capture different moments in our lives and how those moments tell a story of who we are.

I'm thinking about what photographs would tell the story of my life up to now if I could only chose a few. If they were all scanned in, I'd show them here but they're not all in the computer, so I'll just share a couple.

Of course, something from childhood. This isn't especially meaningful - I don't even remember it - I'm guessing I was turning 4. But you have to have something from childhood, of course.

Going to Egypt by myself in 1999 was a turning point in my life in many ways. It was, truly, life changing - in every sense of the word. It made me think of myself, travel and experiences in a different way. I won't go into the details here, as I've never shared them with anyone and am not about to start by putting it on the world wide web, but that trip changed who I am and how I move in the world. It was when I really became "me" again after a relationship had ended over a year before.

There are some, of course, who think "me" is a dangerous thing to be (hi, Leah!). But, we have to be ourselves.

There are other photos I can think of that illustrate moments for me, but I don't have them handy. It's an interesting concept... maybe something I should devote some time to.

Mail Art Call on Anxiety

One of the things I do in my spare time is Mail Art. It's a movement that believes that art should be available to everyone.

Last year I did the first ever Mail Art exhibit in Hutchinson. My friend, Diana, hosted it at The Dancing Grouse (www.thedancinggrouse.com). You can see last year's exhibit by clicking on the link below. If you want to read more about mail art, google it and you'll find plenty to amuse yourself.

This is the call I have out now. It's fascinating to see what you get and from where.

Send Mail Art that illustrates ANXIETY.
Entries should be postcards, 4x6 inches, any media.

See last year's exhibit at http://www.mharenoco.org/mailart2004.htm

No Jury, No Fee, No Return, Documentation Provided.
Deadline is September 12, 2005
Exhibit will be held in the fall.

Send to:
Patsy Terrell
Mental Health Association
PO Box 2021
Hutchinson KS 67504-2021

Saturday

I took off for Wichita this afternoon, just to get out of the house and out of town. For some reason, a change of scenery really helps my mood. I need all the mood lifters I can come up with these days.

I stocked up on some art supplies I was running low on.I'm still thinking about things I want to have in stock before any art shows. I'm thinking about going up to the studio for a while, but I'm also tired so may just head on to bed. Being sad is exhausting.

It was a gorgeous day today - perfect for folks who are at the lakes enjoying this first summer weekend.