Buried

Hi blog readers - sorry for the silent period - I'm buried in work and still not running on all cylinders. Hope to be back again in a bit...

Artistic Inspiration... One creative Dad and a camera...

In keeping with creative answers to bad things that happen... see what this wedding photographer/dad, Jason Lee did with pictures of his daughters. Jason started a blog for his mom who was undergoing cancer treatments and wasn't able to see her granddaughters too often because of their frequent colds and runny noses. Instead of just "normal" pictures, he decided to have a little fun with them! I love it.. I'm sure you will too!

Check out the site here.... http://www.boredpanda.com/creative-kids-photography-jason-lee/

The Boring Life of....

As I struggle thru this little bout with the flu, I've had lots of time to do nothing but sit in a chair or lie in bed and watch TV. The past few days I've entertained myself with The Vampire Diaries, Season 3, a myriad of movies, a civil war documentary, haunted house movies on the Sci Fi channel and a new personal favorite "The Boring life of Jacqueline", an HBO digital 15 minute series. In this show, a 20-something unemployed, struggling actress lives in a small apartment in NYC and struggles to fill her days. She obsesses over her new maintenance man, leaves long phone messages for a friend who never calls her back, talks to her mom and auditions for an acting position on an independent film, during which time she meets a crazy woman who worms her way into her apartment and her wallet. It's a sad, yet comedic story of a charming and talented artistic young woman who has no friends and no life.... and I related to it all too well this week.

Little Jacqueline is a bright, energetic, talented, imaginative and optimistic person who wants to grab all she can from life.... but comes up empty handed every time. Her dreams and expectations are far greater than the reality of her situation. She's a visionary living in a flat-liner world, while watching other people accomplish their dreams. It's not for lack of enthusiasm of talent, she just can't quite get it together. Sometimes she has just plain bad luck. Some of what holds her back are financial constraints. At times she gets discouraged because life just isn't cooperating with her.

It's really about the human experience. Gardens and weeds.... nature and insects.... air and germs..... good and bad. The story of life.

Here's the funny part.... go to Youtube and type in "The Boring Life of Jacqueline" and you see tons of homemade videos about people's boring lives! It's like a new market! It almost makes me want to make my own movie about my life. I've been told often that if I made a movie of my life it would never be boring... there's irony in that. Anyway, maybe one of you creative souls out there might want to take on the challenge. It helps you think in a whole new way. Turning the bad into good. Turning lemons into lemonade. Turning sour experiences into profit. Doing something creative with your boredom....I like it.... It's a concept that might just be good for the soul!

Weekend Off

Hi my dear blog readers.... I caught an awful flu last Monday and am still fighting it. Instead of improving, it seems to be getting worse.. so I'm going to take the weekend to sleep. You who are healthy need to go outside, breathe in the fresh fall air (if you are in the north) or just breathe and enjoy the health you have. Go apple picking for me and get some pumpkins and mums and go to some harvest festivals - today is the day! Hopefully I'll be able to join you soon again in the land of the living... Anne

Finding Rest....

Take a few minutes today just to find rest in this beautiful autumn music video.... it's good for the soul!

Artist Inspiration... Jack Vettriano

You are looking at the work of Jack Vettriano, scottish painter and publisher. His work has come under criticism for being "stiff, devoid of emotion and sleazy". After all, the critics say, what is art if it is not emotional? This of course is great news for us emotional artist types because we have a license to emote - it's in our natures. You'll notice that I didn't post any of the paintings with the more sexual overtones, thought I'd keep this PG. For me, art comes in so many forms. Vettriano has a Hopperesk style - crisp, clean, linear, bold, colorful with a vintage charm. You can decide, as with all the artists that I publish on this site how much you enjoy his work. To see more of Vettriano, check out his site.... jackvettriano.com

John Keats Inspiration

In keeping with the Love Letter theme of yesterday.... enjoy this scene from the movie from the movie "Bright Star".