I found myself bored after an awesome video chat with my friend Heather, so I decided to take a break. I am (re)starting The Artist's Way, by Julia Cameron, this week and one of the tasks she assigns her students is the artist date. An artist date is time you take to yourself to nurture your creative consciousness, usually about two hours a week. It's basically a playdate with yourself. Most of my artist dates are trips to the cafe, but today I decided to switch it up and go on a walk. I chose the North Pierhead, which is the site of the latest drowning. I thought maybe there'd be divers out, but there were none. When I got home, the paper confirmed the body had been recovered earlier in the day. It's odd to think that huge waves washed the victim off the pier the other day, but today the water was placid as can be. The beach was deserted and being readied for winter.
It was an excellent walk and my soul is grateful. What artist date have you enjoyed lately? If you haven't been on one, what's keeping you?
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| oopsies on the upsided-downdedness |
Since you all love my music suggs, but this song has no video, follow this link for aural perfection then make it a priority goal to systematically buy their albums before the end of the year.
OMG, I think I went on one *jumps up and down* YEAH I did. I went to the shops etc and then maybe looked pretty weird investigating this abandoned building. I swear it looks haunted. Also it's boarded up but about 4 floors tall and in the middle of the city.
ReplyDeleteSo, ahem, I spent a while scoping out the perimeter because I am not that silly, this is a city, the secret inhabitants may be violent. I plan on dragging a friend there. Want to come?
Also, you're so clever. Can I hire you as my personal music person? I can only pay you in cookies though.
I have owned that book for the longest time and never read it. I should read it. Or maybe I can live/read it vicariously through you. Ha ha ha. (It's a good thing I can laugh at a lame joke like that - Lord know no one else will!) :-)
ReplyDeleteI LOVED The Artist's Way. GREAT book. Artist dates were just about the hardest thing for me to implement. And I admit since I've stopped doing the program, I've stopped going on the dates. But it's funny because just yesterday I was looking at my bookshelf and saw the cute little coloring book and special pencil crayons I bought for myself. (My inner artist seriously thinks she is a seven year old.) And looking out the office window I keep getting distracted by the swaying trees and the drifting clouds. I'm a total cloud-gazer ... do you think my inner artist is trying to tell me something? I sure do.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kick in the pants Jon!
I so need to do that.
ReplyDeleteI go on an artist date about five days per week. Today I went to what most people call NORAD. It was a great experience for my imagination.
ReplyDeleteLove your photos. Hate that so many people drowned this year.
Jon--that's an interesting mixture of beauty and death. Wow. Definitely food for thought. THanks for the chat!
ReplyDeleteI go on these outings quite a bit.
ReplyDeleteI'll look the book up.
Does taking my kids to the bookstore to play with the Thomas the Train table count? I read a few lines of a few books while I was there....
ReplyDeleteI am paying forward a blog award. I hope you will accept it! You can find it here http://lynneawest.blogspot.com/2010/09/so-little-blog-time.html
Christy
I've been sculpting quite a bit lately for my new Etsy shoppe, Deeply Dapper, and I had forgotten how incredibly relaxing and fun it is to lose myself in the clay and unwind.
ReplyDeleteNice photos, Jon!
Check In To The ROUS Motel!
Fabulous pictures, Jon! I love the idea of an artist date. But we don't have cool places like that to make me feel creative. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteI hope that this date was inspiring, or at least theraputic.
ReplyDelete