Create Collect Trade

Cover for Create Collect Trade
Originally uploaded by art2theextreme

I am privileged to be in this fabulous book. It is exciting to be in a book but even more exciting that it is for students!!

disjointed

Really my head is empty of all thoughts that would be good for me. Writing used to come so easy to me. Taking what i saw, felt, needed, wanted and putting words to it. Maybe it is not the words that are gone but the innocence in which i said them. A good friend and I talked not long ago about naivety and innocence, remembering when we thought everything we said was poetry, a catalyst, a truly new thought and how that slips away from you at some point. Also, there is a point where you realize that the thoughts should not be giving the chance to see the light, that they are better caught in the web in your mind. They have more power if written or spoken.
How the innocence hides in baggage we tote around everyday. If I could find somewhere to just set my baggage down for a bit and take a rest, find someone to hold it for me. Just long enough for me to breathe, to take stock of what I have and what I was. Especially what I have lost along the way. Sometimes the weight of the bags gets so heavy I feel as if my knees will buckle.
I always tell people I do not regret anything that has happened to me, what was done and what I choose. But really, if I could go back I would take away so much, even if that meant not being who I am now. I am proud enough to say I am not okay with the me that stares back in the mirror. I am not proud that you can count all of my ribs although my head tells me I should be. I am not proud that there are days I cannot get out of bed because of experiences and dreams that haunt me. But I do, I truly regret so many things.

I think Ani says it best

I teeter between tired
And really, really tired
I'm wiped out and I'm wired
But I guess thats just as well
Cuz I've built my own empire
Out of car tires and chicken wire
And now I'm queen of my own compost heap
And I'm getting used to the smell

spring roll

spring roll
Originally uploaded by Jo*

holy crap thats all I have to say. I came across this on flickr tonite and I am blown away

Quickie

I went to this blog to visit http://magicandmomentsfromdragonflycottage.blogspot.com/ which is a lovely blog i really enjoyed my visit. But my favorite part was the quote in the headline of the blog...

You say I am mysterious
Let me explain myself
In the land of oranges
I am faithful to apples.
-Elsa Gidlow

I am pretty sure this is going to be my new quote (so look for it on an ACEO or in a collage ). It is perfect and describes me to a tee... and if nothing else, it is going in my book. I keep a small book for times such as these. I used to write on my hand, arm, scraps of paper but the small words, qoutes, or ideas would not make it to my journal. So i bought a little moleskin and carry it where ever I go. I am actually on my 5th one....

Off By Heart

Off By Heart
The stars are align
but they don't align for us
excuse me for I am the ocean
and I will stop for you
will you know how to stay brave
search for fragile moments we share
and you are my everything
and even with nothing to say
ooooh oooh

City and Colour is really one of the most honest soul searching artists that I know of. Every song breaks my heart and speaks to me. I do not know if you have a band like this one, one that no matter where you are it will stop you cold in your tracks. The tracks like Save your Scissors, Confessions, and Sleeping Sickness literally strike me in the heart and strip away my skin. All of them soothe me. Yesterday I listened to the songs that are posted above and below over and over. These ACEOs are the product of the song and really a bit of an outpouring of my life and thoughts. Normally, my style is to have layers of paper and images embedded in between the layers. For this triptych, I wanted something plain that would not only mimic the bareness of the music but would also show how uncomplicated my thought process is on relationships and life. They may seem simple to you but to me the fact that I can admit these things is huge.

Forgive Me

So I'll cross my heart
And hope to die
Before I have a chance to lie
To you my dear
Who I wish no harm
But I know in the end this will turn out wrong
See I've been known to fall in love
But sometimes love just is not enough
And my heart will stray
Before too long
So please listen when I sing this song
I sing this song
[Forgive Me Lyrics on
http://www.lyricsmania.com/ ]


If you want more information on City and Colour you can either click the banner at the top of my page or scroll down to my music player and have a listen. either way enjoy!!!

can it fit in your pocket?

I am a very tactile person. I love to touch things in stores. Basically I look like I little kid walking through with my hand out, going down the rows of clothing. I also have a really bad habit of seeing people in public who have long hair (i have really short hair) and literally i have to ball my fists so i will not reach out and touch them. Really the desire to wind the locks around my fingers is more than I can take and sometimes I will brush past them just so i can touch them. I know, wierd. On the other hand, I am also someone who needs something in their hands constantly. My best friend makes "pointies", which is just paper folded to a point, which she then sticks her finger with repeatedly. Once, again, strange. All of this has a point, I promise. So amy and I were discussing ACEOs last night over coffee.. well apple juice- her, coffee-me, and normally i work on such a large scale... like 10 ft by 10 ft and collage, paint, and glue on there. But for some reason for the last two years I have been soo taken with these small, tiny, little works of art.( If you do not know an ACEO, Art Cards Editions and Originals, measures 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 and can be made of anything at all.) So the fact that I like these is so strange. But what we came up with is that I need something small, something I can carry with me. Something, if needed I can pull out and finger a bit. My ACEOs directly relate to what I am going through in my life. So maybe having them around helps me walk around the issue some more. Helps me think clearer. At any rate, I like them and making them makes my head go silent and my hands still.

ATC book to be featured in a magazine

About two months ago i came across a topic in the forums about trading ACTs with a school in Indiana. I was really excited becaise I also teach and thought it would be great for your kids to trade! So I contacted Nicole and then the most exciting thing happened! She was inspired to start a book to show off the talents of ATC artists! Everyone seems really excited about it! Here is the blog if you wanna go look http://createcollecttrade.blogspot.com/