cobaltika

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the daily pencam book. in progress. it is one of my artsomofo projects and it has been coming along very well. especially after yesterday. it is a little simple and naive, gluebookish, i guess, but i like it. i am not so pleased with the quality of the images (but jeez, they *are* pencams!), because i did not want to use heavy photo paper, as that would add far too much bulk to the book, so used ordinary paper. but when complete, i will finish all pages with dorland’s wax or varnish and that should brighten up the colors. anyway, it is fun.

i loved the storms and rain yesterday. it meant we had to stay in and not go out to do errands, as there is no window on the driver’s side and we can’t drive with black plastic on the window. i have some heavy clear plastic to tape on for winter, but we haven’t done it yet. a tedious chore to avoid for as long as possible. yes, it is tacky, but my car Saffire is a DNR car. she receives vital fluids and that is all. $250 for a new window is better spent on travel or artToys! but today i am already feeling a little restless and not only do i want some FOOD, i would also like to wander around a little with that new Diana+.

it is very fallish. there are leaves down everywhere.

i seem to have been doing most of my posting lately at artsomofo but i thought i would show this collage today because i like it. this is an interesting project, this forced exercise. i am probably taking the “committment” far too seriously, but i just wanted to see if i could do it. so far, so good. it is amazing what you can get done in less than 2 hours. especially if you have a plan, which i do. i have the bundle of paper “canvasses” prepared that are ready for collaging or painting. a box of junk and scraps and lots of jesus stickers to use. and the prepared book that i am pasting the daily pencam images in to make a finished picture book. sort of. i am noting that i am feeling guilty for not spending enough time with my poet, and feeling selfish, and i also feel like i am sort of wasting time, dicking around on exercises, instead of trying to discover my “true work” or my “personal style” which is beginning to seem a lost cause anyway. maybe i will always just be a dilettante.

lately i am a little obsessed with dwelling on the future, so the daily pencam exercise is good for keeping me somewhat present. i spent a bunch of $$ in texas and although i don’t regret a penny of it i wish i had more to pay on my debt. i wish i could get it together to get all that vintage junk out of the basement and photograph it and list it on eBay. but that sounds so tedious. this whole life is just feeling too circular lately. maybe that is why i am spinnyHeaded so often. i am glad it is friday. i shall guzzle some red wine and do my arty exercises and then watch a film with my poet. and two days of freedom!!

back now and a little blue, as to be expected. sure i am very glad to see my poet again and be around my own stuff, but … hmmm … i dunno. i don’t feel “home” here any longer, although i am not sure exactly where home would be otherwise. anyway. it was good to go live in margaretWorld for a little while. she has a sweet little apartment (um. when she changes the catbox!! ha ha!!) and some nice.smart.funny friends. i think school is fine except for french and she is well-loved at her job, i am SURE. we had fun and i loved just hanging out with her. we went to the country for a day and i was able to visit my sisters and (one) bro-in-law and Kathy and MY MOTHER. my sister made us decorate pumpkins in a Martha-Stewart way and we giggled and it turned out to be fun. we went to OktoberFest so Kathy could moonwalk. back in Austin, i wandered around in my old neighborhood. we ate at interesting places. began to decorate her porch and almost lost the kitty. watched movies. chattered. i bought some new garments in the most rebellious fashion (not at all in my “budget”) at Whole Earth Provision. we went to first Thursday. and tried on cowgirl boots at Allen Boots. i wanted some badly. and not just the red ones. there was a cupcake vendor in an airstream and a photogallery in a schoolbus. Home Depot is bilingual. this is all mixed up but it was all fun and i miss her and and and …

wheeeeeeeee! loading up my backpack with a few pieces of clothing, a book, some gifties, a tiny box of artToys, a limit of 3 cameras (will my Diana+ come today, *will* it??? please???) and i am off to the airport at the crack of dawn. i will see my margaret and my family and my texas! oh i wish i could also see my betsy, too, but not this time. and i wish i could see my poet there, too, but he stays home to work, write and feed king tubby.

it will all be good. i can’t wait!! see you next week…

the weekend was calm and good. monday is fine because it is a 3-day week. on thursday i will fly to texas for a few days and visit margaret and mi familia. i am so happy about that. it is now cheaper for one person to fly than rent a car and drive. nice.

saturday was the usual errands and chores and cleaning up the studio and finishing some artBook gifties to take to texas. i put away all of the pieces from the previous post because i don’t think i want to see them for a while. this month i am doing artsomofo so will be working on some different things anyway. maybe i will bust out of my rut?

sunday was a hike in the wetlands with mi poeta and miss jemima. miss jemima wore her hoya r72 filter, as the sky was nice and i thought the grasses and plants would look so fine using infrared. they did. (more on flickr) but it was *very* windy and things were mostly too blurry. but it was pleasant. later traci came over for some artPlay and a dinner of spicy vegetables and polenta and ice cream bars. there was also some wine, but we were not too rowdy. she brought gifts for me!