My Poor Neglected Blog

As usual I have fallen off the wagon again on posting but I do have an excuse...also as usual. I have been on the road non-stop teaching, developing the latest dvd and working on the magazine. Amid all this my sweet computer had to be wiped clean and completely re-formatted...always an exciting experience and last but not least, there was so little, and yet so much, happening that I didn't feel like narrating what I ate or how many planes I was on.

Finally, guilt overcame me along with a nice block of free time so whoo hoo! I am back. My schedule is still monsterous until August but I do promise to try and be better. On with the news: I have lost my fabulously talented editor, long story, and am now having to learn how to edit my own dvd's. Sure do hope I am smart enough to master this skill but y'all know, I am stubborn enough to keep on or go down in flames.

The second news report is regarding the magazine. Between discussions with my students and other teachers, I have received nothing but great feedback....and then, of course, all the encouragement from my faithful readers. I did some one on one market research regarding the title and the winner is: Jeannie with her submission Behind the Seams. Everyone loved it and so do I: congratulations to Jeannie. When you have a second or two drop me an email, so I can put you into the data base for your free dvd zines.......and thanks for a great title. FYI, we already have lined up Sue Benner, Jane Sassaman, Judy Dales, Jan Krentz and the ladies of Asilomar for either interviews or featured artist segments. Any and all suggestion regarding subjects of interest to you are welcome. This dvd zine is for you so I look forward to your suggestions.

Now onto the work: many thanks to all of you who posted in on my "Art Thang" post. I do have a lot on my plate at the moment...to the point where I became a zombie just washing, packing and going back to the airport. As is my usual bent, I have pondered this dilemma and have taken all your comments to heart. I do still love teaching so there are a couple of options: Raise my fees, require more days teaching, or stop doing so many guild gigs....or all of the above. I gave myself a deadline of June 1 to have this resolved so I will keep you posted.

Most of my being overwhelmed came from simple daily life that we all experience. However, the last two years have been a trial by blast furnace. As many of you know two of my darling grandkidlets were born at 25 weeks gestation and were in NICU until their due date. They are two now and doing spectacular....fraternal twins but look very much alike and are cute as bugs in rugs. Throughout this our son Chris was in Iraq for a year....I would rather have gone through all his teenage years again....but now he is home, safe and finally better after recovering from PTSD with the help of a VA program. He is blessed with a loving wife who has stood by his side through all this and is now working for Toyota in a great job. His return from the war zone was bittersweet because we were saying good-bye to my beloved mother-in-law who died two years ago in March. Finally, sweet Ronnie retired in September of last year....a new person continually in my space but we are finally adjusting. Is it any wonder that I felt like Dorothy in the tornado?

Artist have enough personal reflection to deal with but these added events kinda get you out of sync. I am not special; these events happen to millions of people every day. I think that it was they all happened in such a short span of time that overwhelmed me. Priorities change, adjustments must be made and finally you gotta stop beating yourself over the head about what you aren't doing and try to enjoy what you are doing.

I miss blogging and all of you....so I have resolved to get back into the swing....for yet another time.