[i] LoveLife

Mid week...

frosty morning. It's seriously very, very cold.

Last night, I had to pick up some stuff from Jared at work. He's a firefighter and Dan was itching for a tour of his hall. There's three things I know for sure: a tour of #1 fire hall is plain old very, very cool, Jared loves giving tours as much as we love being toured, and Jared is one of the best firefighters of all time. He was just made for that job. If you're ever engulfed in flames and bleeding profusely - he's the guy you want dragging you out. Definitely. The tour never gets old either. Dan was walking around drooling like a school-kid because it's just so frickin' cool. Thanks Jared. (Bonus: I had my camera with me and it was my first time shooting inside a firehall without a flash. Awesome. Awesome, because this firehall is dark and just about every piece of fire equipment has reflective tape on it. Makes for a terrible point and shoot. Makes for a beautiful Canon Rebel XTi shot.) Right: one of my favourite shots.

I've got lots of pictures today. Here's yesterday's shoe painting. Shoes no. 8. Alright, truthfully, the strappy-shoeness of this strappy shoe scared the bejeezuz out of me. BUT, the best cure for that is just pushing through and jumping right in. Worked. This painting feels like a zebra to me... It's 36 x 36 inches. The story of these shoes is cool, too. It's about a fashionista-socialite-architect-woman-turned-step-mom-overnight. When the paintings and the stories are together I'll line them up on my site to view. Got great shoes?? Photograph them nice and close and fire 'em over. I'll paint them.

I was organizing photos and printing stuff on my new WIRELESS PRINT NETWORK (that I totally kicked ass setting up yesterday) and I found a set of photos of us from December by Tessa Emery. This is my favourite one (eventhough my hair is wonky) - we were in the middle of the road on South Osborne Street just outside the Park Theatre. Someone asked yesterday how we met: we met at the Maple Grove & Ferry Road dogparks last summer. Yes, last summer. We got married in October. Yes, October. And life has never been better. I am, and so is Dan, totally of the mind that life is short and completely worth jumping right into with both feet. They say, 'when you know you just know'. Well, we knew and we didn't want to waste a single minute of the good stuff. Time.

TIME MANAGEMENT: I used to work 6am to 2pm and then stop answering the phone so I could clear my head and get out for a break (before returning back to work around supper time for a few hours of uninterrupted time). NOW, I'm working until 1pm. That's it. Then I turn off the phone, head downstairs and paint. No exceptions. I learned through LoveLife - that the best way to fill yourself up is to make what fills you up a priority.

36 days and counting. This morning, I woke up in a panic wondering why I exactly was having an art show. No one asked me to do this. I don't have a big collection of paintings sitting amongst dust-bunnies waiting for a spotlight. I don't have scads of time and money to run around and arrange things... (GASP!) I'm even short on energy these days. BUT, after the short blip of terror settled - it still feels like the right thing to do. It still feels like something bigger than me is pushing me in this direction. I like that. So what if no one seems to think that I'll sell anything. So what if no one has that much faith in me lately... I know something good will come of it - I believe it - EVEN if it's just to get me painting again. Heck, I'm PAINTING. Every. Day. (That's huge.)

This is for Joanna Smith: thanks, Jo. The grandest THANKS. [We talked briefly on the phone yesterday and somehow managed to say a LOT with almost no words. She said she reads this blog and she totally 'gets it' now... her word is MORE; MORE time with her kids and husband, MORE memories, MORE fun, MORE life, MORE. I cannot tell you how cool that is. ]

Today: WORK. Booo on hump-day. I have a crap-load of stuff to get done and today's the day - I've been putting it off. Unfortunately, I'm motivated by deadlines & adrenaline. I'm going to drink 3 litres of water today - just because. I'm going to get another painting done. I'm going to find MORE shoes.

Whew. Chatty-Cathy over and out.

Tickity-boo...

not sure what that means, but... let's get started anyways.

Love this quote from Emerson. I love it for two reasons, one: I never once stuggled to decide what I would be when I grew up, and two: it totally emphasizes the thoughts-out-thoughts-in idea that I love. Our thoughts become us. We become our thoughts. (I love the texture of these past-their-prime tulips, too)

Yesterday, I got a painting done and while I was down in my paint studio (read: laundryroom/workshop/toolstorage/Sarah's storage/pantry/furnace room/Dan's den) I was thinking about what I actually need to get jump on a painting...

In no particular order: I always have a hot mug of tea in my Starbucks insulated mug (1), a wobbly-tippy laundry sink that keeps losing a leg (2), cheap-of-the-cheap kids brushes (3), sandal/comfy shoes called DOGS (like Crocs) because I'm standing straight on cold, uncovered cement (4), Painters Touch plastic enamel paint in red, yellow, blue, white, and black (5), one of Dan's super HEATERS because it's very, very cold in the basement and this helps dry the paint (6), a teetering easel rammed under the stairs because that's the only place there's room (7), and an idea (8). That's it. I could probably list out camera, computer, iPod, etc, etc... but this will keep me going for a while.

Shoe series no. 7: I accomplished this yesterday. It's huge. 3 feet x 3 feet. It's painting number seven in the series (23 to go). I made great progress on the show planning. Every painting will have a small card next to it with the story of the shoes. It's been fascinating to hear why different women like the shoes they've loaned me. So, I'm writing some nameless stories (nameless because they will be very, very honest) about their shoes. Kind of an 'in her shoes' kind of piece. Originally, I wanted to do shoe paintings because shoes are hot and trendy and women love shoes... but, after borrowing many pairs and hearing the stories and the connections we have to these shoes - the project has become more of an empowering/connecting/sharing idea relating some common emotions. Whew. That's a little heavy for first thing in the morning... but, it's connecting me with the paintings, too. I'm not a shoe girl. I literally have one nice pair. But, I am very much a story & connection girl and I think it's a creative way to show the link we all have.

Today: First off - I have to get some wireless printing going. I have all the capabilities of printing wirelessly - only I haven't kicked the frickin' thing hard enough to make it work. Today's the day little HP colour laser printer - brace yourself. I will get a painting done - I have three ready to go so that should be easy. I have to jump into a project for the University of Manitoba. I need printing quotes on the invitations for the show as well as the take-away piece from the show ( 37 days and counting). I need to price out 5 info boards (oversized posters) and get in touch with the Liquor Commission about the legalities of selling bottles of wine at the show. I gotta get to the bank. I need to take the dog for a W-A-L-K. I'm pretty sure that the crusty, black, disintegrated filter we pulled out of the humidifier needs to be replaced and I want to make a batch of cookies for Dan as a thanks for taking me to a chick-flick last night (we saw Catch & Release - it's definitely a renter.)

On with a great day...

Flooring, whoring, and...

three other non-essential wisdoms for a better morning.

1. Flooring: second floor - done. They're in! They look amazing. It's hard to tell from this photo just how amazing they are because I didn't have a great pic of the BEFORE. Before the new floors, this 100 year old house had hardwoods that had been hacked and mangled and then covered with cheap, cheap, cheap carpet. Since moving in 4 years ago, I ripped up a few rooms worth of carpet and painted the tattered hardwoods as a mean-time colourful solution until I could afford to figure out a stylish alternative. In walks Dan... now - OUR floors are dream white maple. Not only are they dreamy - but, the entire second floor (which was 2 rooms painted floors, 2 rooms old carpet, one bathroom of ugly vinyl) is all a light, cohesive tone. So beautiful. Three cheers for Dan-the-flooring-Wizard! Next up: the main level floors, the stairs, and then repainting the walls! Voila!

*NOTE: the strange & stark light pink room is what was formerly known as my office. It looks a little bland because we moved everything out to do the floors. Next up, a colour that's more me (the pink was a failed experiment in left wing thinking) - blue. This room will become an office/media den/extra room after the final transformation. Totally stoked about this.

2. Whoring. I got nothing there - it just rhymed. Sorry.

3. Non-essential Wisdoms for a better morning: Get out for a walk. Don't roll your eyes at me - it's a completely great way to start the day. I try to leave myself a pile of clothes to pull on in the morning so I can just roll out of bed, throw them on, grab the dog and get out the door before I'm even fully awake. A morning walk helps me wake up slow and peacefully, enjoy the scenery, share a few laughs with Crash and get on a nice perspective before returning to To-Do lists and ringing phones. And yes, it's cold here and I still go. This morning was blowing, snowing, pelting ice crystals - BUT as we strolled along the frozen river all alone it was like walking in a snowglobe. It's good. It's really, really good.

The countdown has begun now. 38 days until the show. It's called "For some reason it's always about the shoes." Yup. That's a mouthful, but that's the title of the very first shoe painting I did last year for a charity auction. It started the ball - so this is homage to that. It's GO-time on all and every detail that Ellen and I talked about on Friday.

Today: work a little. Show invitations will be designed in first draft. I have two show paintings I want to get done (the adrenaline is pumping). We need groceries in a bad way. I promised to stop by TiberRiver to talk about a job for the Cancer Walk. And, I will make some time to read the book I started on the weekend: Continuity Girl by Leah McLaren. It's good. I love to read.

Flooring, whoring and Essential Wisdoms...

Chaos...

surrounds us.

Oh, man. Today - we are not in Morris because Tammy's team played their hearts out yesterday in the tie breaker and were just a feather shy. Oh, so sad. They played like champions and the game was tied in the last end and they didn't have the hammer. What an AMAZING run for them. Tammy was chosen as the All-Star Team Lead and her teammate Rhonda Ritchie was chosen as the All-Star Team Second. That's very, very cool.

So, that means we are deep into the flooring today. I've been dreading getting started on my office. Oh. My. Goodness. Everything is everywhere. There's a vacuum in the bathroom. The spare room is undertaken by junk like it has never seen before. My trio of powerful little design babies (my computers) are dismantled and separated... that alone is making me short of breath and woozy. There is a mitre saw in the hallway, a focussed and very determined contractor (Dan) in our closet, and a half inch layer of saw dust throughout the second floor. I know, I know... it's all for the greater good of amazing flooring and a facelift for this wonderful house. I know, I know... it will all be put back together in no time. Still, I'm finding it very tough. Even at the best of times - I have a complicated and intricate system of piles, files, and 'secret places to find things later'. (read: I'm a disaster.) When that's disrupted - chaos ensues and things, projects, thoughts are lost. (read: I'm much, much worse.)

Don't get me wrong. The clean white bleached maple already looks AMAZING where it's been layed down so far. MORE amazing than I imagined. It is absolutely what I wanted from the moment I set foot into this house four years ago - and BLESS DAN'S CONTRACTOR HEART for being a complete flooring wizard. I love it. It's a desingers dream come true.

I will, however, love it more in 12 hours - which is when I have been promised that I will be fully able to put my office back together and reunite the design babies with their networks. The office, spare room, hallway and stairs will be undergoing a major paint transformation as well in the coming weeks.

Change is good. Change is good.

Great day...

...for play.

Aloha. Yes, it is. This morning - we were going to boot out to Morris to cheer Tammy on - only I'm not feeling that good and we realized that Crash would be by himself all day long and probably into the night - which would be bad dog parenting. So, we decided to go out later this afternoon and watch the finals of the curling bonspiel unfold. In the mean time, I am glued to the live game updates online here. That makes it a little better. (I should be there to support her -but, my spirit is definitely in attendance with her.) Go Tammy Go!

That also meant we got a chance to have a relaxed breakfast together, get out for a nice (although VERY COLD) walk this morning, make coffee and read the paper. So nice. Dan is already upstaird whacking away at the flooring and I'm taking a moment to browse through the bazillions of very cool fonts I got for the MonsterMac from Eric. There are 2000 new ones. Wow. It's making me a little light-headed. No, seriously, it really is - I think I will go lay down.

We'll go to to Morris this afternoon to check out the curling scene. Then, we have a Yay-you're-done-your-masters-finally-you-slow-bugger Party at Dean Leith's. He's finally done and his 5 year old daughter Eila is throwing him a party. Cool. He's been working on it since she was born - so it's a pretty big deal to everyone that he closed the deal.

Saturday is a great day for PLAY. Sunday we hope to be in Morris all day watching Team Park kick butt in the finals. Aloha.

PS. Yesterday was a terrific meeting with Ellen about the art show (Yes, Tiarra, I designed her logo - thanks for the kudos!!). Looks like it could grow into quite an event (not without a crapload of work on my part first) so the wheels are in motion and I'm gonna go for it with all I've got. We are 6 weeks out minus 2 days.

Big day...

...big game.

Well. Tammy's team lost the game I watched yesterday, BUT it was so close and they had Jennifer Jones in check for all but the last two ends. SO CLOSE & IT WAS HUGE FOR THEM. It was a nail biter and Alex Mowat and Jared Blair and I were on the edges of our seats. It was SO MUCH FUN and I am so incredibly proud of Tammy's team. Thanks for the questions and cheers for Team Park. They are three days into the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, which is the provincial championship for Manitoba. BIG. The winner goes to the National Championships (the Tournament of Hearts - you may have seen on TV) and then if they win that - to the Worlds! VERY BIG. This is a really exciting time for Team Park because they are relatively unknown and yesterday's game was against Jennifer Jones (several time National Champ and World Champ... known as Canada's 'best' curling team). Eventhough Team Park lost yesterday, they played incredibly well and are 3 and 1 so far (second behind only Jones' team). It was a BIG DEAL. That's so cool! They are on fire. Dan and I are heading to Morris, MB tomorrow morning to catch Saturday's games (the first one being at 8am!) Go Team Park Go! (I'm not much of a curling fan, but it's really exciting to see this story unfolding... ) Live updates available here.

Last night, we had dinner with Bonnie, Quinn & baby Cash Holtslag. It was delicious and nice to finally be able to connect with these guys. They are the owners of Lucky Dog Biscuits, but more importantly just good people and good hearted friends. THANKS for dinner! Baby Cash is growing like a weed and it was too cool to see that he didn't want to miss any of the action (sorry Bonnie & Quinn we hope he got to sleep eventually!). Regardless, we had a great time and plan to have them over soon (I'm feeling very, very guilty that new-mom Bonnie cooked us a delicious meal - we should be pampering her!). Thank you, thank you, thank you... (*Don't forget our deal with the t-shirt.) ;)

Today: WORK. Oh, my goodness the pile is growing and I must get down to business today. LoveLife. I have a meeting with Ellen (of the Perfect Publicist) to get the ball rolling for my Art Show. The show will get a name today and probably some really cool invitations that I'll whip up to start getting out. I want to visit Heather. It's Leah's birthday dinner tonight so we are off to that and them home early to blast outta here at 7:30am tomorrow morning to watch curling.

This week flew by. (NOTE to Dan: I know, I know - if I have so much to do then why did I take yesterday off to drive away and watch curling?? Because. Because that's what's important in life - supporting friends and participating in the markers that MAKE life.) I'm glad I did. (Go team Park! Go Tammy!)

**PS. To those of you asking about Jamie Munn's ugly tongue (see yesterday's post) - he got hit very HARD in hockey. Eventhough he was sporting a MOUTH GUARD, he still managed to bite his tongue and nearly eat it. Pretty gross. Good work, Munn - take it like a man. It will be a while until he can eat Sour Patch Kids again.

Adventures...

in friendships and rocks.

Yes. I'm off to Morris, Manitoba this morning to watch the Women's Provincial Championships of curling. I'm not a curling fan, but I am a Tammy Mowat fan and her team (team Park) is on a roll. Tammy's been curling for her sister Heather since Heather's accident. All signs point to good things happening for them. I believe it with everything I have. It's a really big game today against curling princess Jennifer Jones. I wouldn't miss it. Go Tammy Go!

And, I wouldn't normally create or post something like this...

But, this is my 5 minute digital version of Dogs Playing Poker (my apologies to the original artist) for Jamie. Why? My friend, Jamie Munn has been asking me to paint this piece since we met 3 years ago. Why? Personally, I think Jamie wishes he was a dog. Why? I'm not sure, (but, he IS a taller, much better looking version of the Dog Whisperer). Why this? I'm not frickin' sure, but under the weird dog guy he has a big, big, two-sizes-too-big heart and I like that about him. My life has definitely been enriched by knowing him (and it was because of him that I met Dan!). Happy Four Hundredth Birthday, Jamie Munn.

Today: I'm seriously off to the small town of Morris, Manitoba for the day. Yay road trip! I'll be back in time for dinner with Bonnie, Quinn & baby Cash and I'm pretty excited about that. The Jeep is set to go. I've got my camera packed up and ready to roll - so I hope to capture the excitement of the day at the tournament and the warmness of the evening sharing dinner with friends.

Today is a great day. (Go Tammy Go!)

Halfway...

to the weekend.

Love that quote. It's off a card from Icon Art - one of my favourite cool print companies. And who doesn't love Mae West? I love quotes. I have them posted all over my workspace. I love cards with quotes. Signs with quotes. I have a list of quotes that I'd like applied in large art gallery format to my walls. Just love quotes that much.

I spend a lot of time at the dog park. Crash loves it - I love it. It's a peaceful place for a walk and we snuck out in the middle of the day yesterday mid-errand for some fresh air. Got some interesting results from a low aperture, bright sunny day shot in RAW format. The colours look like they came out of a Group of Seven painting. Hey, that's not a bad idea....

I promised you a cool LoveLife story only I'm not sure how to set this one up. I have an art project and book called LoveLife. The project has been around since 2001 - and the book since 2004. My Aunt Marsha is a high school teacher in Wynyard, Saskatchewan and she sometimes uses the LoveLife project/images/concept as a sample idea for her computer class (Marsha, please correct any and all parts of this story). Sometimes, the art teacher at her school does, too. And sometimes so does the English teacher. Last week, Marsha sent me a note and a scan of a few pages from an art-book fashioned after LoveLife itself - created by a student named Dana Ostapowich. Dana created a book in LoveLife style, wrote her own poetry/entries, drew her own pictures and collectively bound them into her own LoveLife. Too cool.

Kal, I'm in class right now.  3rd last day of classes in semester 1 for division 3 students.  A student has just brought up a booklet she made to share with me.  The student is 16.  Do you remember willingly sharing things with your teachers at 16?  I don't.  Anyway, she has created her own version of love life.  It is actually an English project inspired by YOU!  Kind of cool.  This is why teaching is good!  I quickly scanned two pages of her booklet to send to you.  I told her I would email them and she was a bit nervous.  I convinced her you were just an ordinary person with talent so she agreeded.  Here they are.

Marsha Barteski-Hoberg
Wynyard Composite High School

And that's the story. LoveLife inspired so many things in me. It changed who I was and how I looked at things. Completely. It took me to places and people that I am eternally grateful for. That makes it a pretty special idea to me. BUT, it's a mile cooler to see other people inspired by something I started doing when I simply didn't know what else to do. Big thanks Marsha for taking LoveLife somewhere bigger. Big thanks Dana - you are too cool.

Today: I have to put a little energy into real work. Don't feel bad for me though - after lunch I have a meeting with a very cool US wine company that's hired me to be their art-mind/designer on the launch of a new brand. It's very cool. Then I'm going to move the furniture back into the FIRST flooring-complete room (Dan you so totally rock!!) and I've got a date at the paint store to pick new colours for the entire second floor. I need to stop at the Liquor Commission to get a license for the art show. I think I'll spin over to hang out with Heather for a while tonight, too since Dan is being forced to stay at work until 6:30pm these days. That must be pure torture.

The consensus on the Junk Poll was: THROW IT AWAY.

(Also wanted to thanks Dan's Mom, Chris Foubister for the beautiful, and very soft, red robe for trés early Valentine's Day. Thank you, thank you, thank you...)

Would you believe...

a major thing like this can get past me??

Not known for my spelling prowess, a GLARING error was brought to my attention this morning. Rachel Ray is actually RACHAEL RAY. Gadzooks. Thank you to "Lovey" the commentor. Wow. THANKS. THANKS. THANKS.

DATE CONFIRMED. My art show will be March 8th - at Candie & Dolls on Albert Street in the Exchange District. That's 5 weeks and change away. Feels good to have something concrete and now I feel a littl bit 'o adrenaline. If you're a lucky friend of mine with a connection/service/product that would help me - expect a call in the next couple of days. Make plans to be at this event.

Off to do errands.

Innocent people...

die everyday from clutter.

They do. I'm not gonna lie to you, there may be a fatality here soon if this mess doesn't get under control. In the spirit of Ali Edwards' newsletter about her Essentials, I have 4 Essential Wisdoms today:

1. Clutter kills. Yes it does. It just sort of eats away at your mental happiness until you freak out and lose it. You can have house clutter. Office clutter. Mental clutter. I'm about this close to losing it today. Dan (bless his soul) is working on our new floors so the junk from the clutter-room has infected the other rooms. We need to clean it up. ASAP. **Take the junk-poll.

2. Pencil crayons make the world go round. They are my go-to medium. They're easy and low maintenance (like me). They travel light. They come in every colour. They blend easily. They don't require anything other than a good sharpener. And honestly, I feel technically in control with pencil crayons because water (and thus paint) has a tendency to be a tad unpredictible. Get yourself a nice set. Like Prismacolor.

3. Routine, once established, is a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful thing. Most people think that because I'm of the arsty-fartsy-work-at-home variety I flutter around like a butterfly all day. Wrong. I thrive on routine. I have a definite routine. It's flexible, but it's there. One of the hardest things since getting married: getting into a routine. (I will post a Routine entry this week.)

4. A To-Do list is merely a suggestion. It's true. I long time ago - my To-Do list was literally the bible of my life. If I didn't get everything done - I took it as personal failure and marked the day with a black X and I carried it around. What a weight. My Mom made a good point (my favourite point, actually). She said, "you get done what you can get done and what doesn't get done, didn't get done today." Well put. And thus changing my life. Lighten up. I wake up with the good intention of getting things done and accomplishing more than the average bear - but, what I don't get to just rolls over onto the next list and I meet it there in a cordial, but somewhat reserved fashion. 

Those are my 4 Essential Wisdoms of the day. In response to Ali's Essentials; I am never without my computer (complete with a working copy of the Adobe CS Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign; a trillion fonts, a media card reader, and a scanner), Fineliner black ink pens, a couple dozen sketchbooks, Prismacolor pencil crayons, soy crayons, paint markers (best invention ever!), a solid set of CHEAP kidnergarten paint brushes, Home Depot brand plastic enamel in Red, Blue, Yellow, Black and White, something to paint on, graphite stick, scissors.  Alright... that's a lot list of essentials.

** Junk Poll: What to do with trinkets/knick-knacks/clutter? Let's say you have acquired a zillion trinket-type-gifts over the years, yet you are not a trinket-type person. Do you A) throw them out; B) display them eventhough it makes you irritable; or C) pack them into a lovely box and store them in the basement.

  Are these yours? Someone left a very, very cute pair of Steven by Steve Madden gold and beautiful shoes here after the Hockey Party. I really wish they hadn't - as our lovable, and incredibly good dog decided to sample the heel of one shoe. Much to our surprise! The damage is kept to a few little teeth marks on one heel only... and my apology is large and very wide. Please forgive him (and us) and please come get your shoes right immediately.

Today: Email correspondence. I'm the worst for returning emails. Invoices. Posters for Tiber River. I have 4 pairs of new shoes to photograph. An afternoon of painting. A trip to the park with a pit stop at Home Depot for some paint.

Yesterday, I was not-myself - so today it is my intention to have a better day. You, too.