Power to the people!

wednesday's alright if you like iced matcha

Hello Dear Readers (and you are dear),

Here we are on Friday the 13th, the sky is grey and the air is very warm, a bit muggy even. If I was in Arkansas, I would think we are about to have a storm. All my windows are open and I am drinking my matcha iced. This song is on repeat. So that's the scene, it's 7:06 in the morning.

I am pretty stoked to have made it through the week. It was a hard one, but there were many beautiful moments. I even took a minute to draw and have decided I like Neocolor II Aquarelle wax pastels by Caran d'Ache. I picked up 2 colours back in March for my birthday, but didn't think much of them at first, but now I understand why they have so many fans. I just did a quick sketch on a piece of cardboard, and felt instant relief. Some days (especially with a job) it's so easy to do nothing, when even 5 minutes can really make a difference. It's so important to remember this. It doesn't have to be "good" and it doesn't have to feel "resolved" it just needs to be. Action is where it is at!

mother as a girl

In other news, I took a walk that was particularly beautiful, a feast for the senses. I think the experience was heightened because I really needed it to combat the stress I was feeling. To just give up and move through the air and take it all in was so comforting.

In a world gone mad, I trust the birds, the trees, and the dappled light. I trust the water and the wind. The birds were singing loudly, sending messages out through the trees overhead. The flowers nodded in agreement and the air felt like velvet. 

poppy says hello

The highlight of my work week was speaking with a group of artists at Embassy Gallery in Edinburgh as part of their Emerging Strategies programme. 

"A 9 month programme of artist workshops, talks and participatory sessions exploring professional practice with a selected co-hort. Covering everything from art activism, creative criticism, collective working, curation, getting projects off the ground, hands on skills and freelancer basics."

I was happy to be asked by SAU learning team colleagues, Ben and Emily, to join them for part of this workshop and to speak about common issues that freelancers face and how to protect themselves by using contracts, rates of pay, and providing them with some additional resources.

We met at the basement gallery, and as it was a beautiful day, we walked over to nearby Gayfield square to sit in the grass. I gave an hour-long talk followed by a thoughtful discussion. I really love this type of hands on, public speaking work - engaging with artists to encourage and inform, is my love language. 

It was also great to spend an extended period of time in the flesh with my amazing co-workers as we rarely have the opportunity. 

I went to sleep feeling fulfilled and I woke up happy.

As seen on the wall at Embassy gallery

In other, other news, if you are in America tomorrow and are able, please take to the streets for the No Kings protests. Watching the news of the past week has been horrific and my heart and spirit are with you. Keep fighting!

Power to the people!

This is the best costume for the day

£2 well spent looks like this

After last week's newtongrange moment, I spent the weekend doing nothing much at all. I met a pal at the local car boot sale on Sunday and found some perfect antique teaspoons (I have a thing for old silverplate - I mean a real thing - I have said in the past if I ever got a tattoo it would be of an old fork or spoon and maybe a rickety chair). Anyway, I took it pretty easy as I was still recovering from the after effects of the previous week's migraines. 

I could feel the edge of frustration creeping up as my newest routines had been slightly derailed by the headaches. It was a busy week at work, but I did manage some creative time - just a few moments of weirdness but it's good for the soul. 

It was one of those frustrating moments, where the day had been fine but dull and that edge was creeping up. All of the sudden I was in the bathroom putting on red lipstick like Robert Smith - you know, not inline with my lips - too much product and a bit deranged like an old hollywood meltdown. It's nice to do things "wrong" especially if you are always trying to get it right. I then filled in my eyebrows - the way they were before I mistakenly plucked them in my 30s for the first time. I haven't done a thing to them since 2018 but they don't grow back the same after you've fucked with them, so they are spare in parts. I back combed my short hair like I did in hair school and put on a headband. It's really good to do something slightly out of character and just for the hell of it. I thought about all the times I don't do this. I mean this was standard fare in junior high and high school for me, but then that became a costume like any other, so eventually I stopped with it all. 

"Just getting through life" can make for a pretty boring but necessary costume. So it was nice to have a bit of a play. Play is a forgotten art for adults - think about the way we dress, the face we put on - often so ordinary. I wear "this" but not "that." I couldn't possibly make a change now because this is "me" and that is not. 

Anyway, I guess I was having a very mild Cindy Sherman moment so I decided to take some snaps (the adult voice says how vain, how 2009, and what is the point of all of this). The child says, because I am here, I exist, and it's fun. So I did, and the child was happy. 

With action comes power (or at least a change in perspective or a break from inertia). 

Daily Life Costume

A bit extra for dull days

Photographic expansion 

Double exposure 

Living my best life in multiple exposures

In street finding news, a fully functional bicycle in great condition was put in my path this week.Thank you to the generous soul who clearly marked it, "free and it works!" before abandoning it in the alley. I went for a ride after I got off work yesterday and again, the child was happy. 

It's okay to play when the world is on fire.

Until next week, you know what to do...

PS. Thanks to everyone who makes this blog what it is. I am so glad to be back.