Announcements and Social Media Update

Hi friends!  I know it's been a long time.  I just wanted to update you on what's going on in my life and how I am using social media.

First, and maybe most important, is that I am writing a book!  Yep it's true.  It's about my experience living in the sweet little beach cottage.  You can follow my progress at Instagram #sweetlittlebeachcottage.

Second, I am working on an installation piece honoring the Harvest Moon of October and the Supermoon of November 2016.  You can follow my progress at Instagram as well, but I am planning to post some pictures of this work here.

Here is an update of how I am currently using social media:

Facebook - don't like.  Too much drama.  Makes me sad and makes me feel excluded.  I have deactivated my account.

Twitter - use mainly for politics, but am giving up politics.  :)

Pinterest - I share designs by other artists I like.

Flickr - not currently updating, but parts of my portfolio reside on flickr,  (For my portfolio and links you can see my tab above entitled portfolio)

Instagram - is my favorite thing in the world right now!  I post my work in progress, the installation piece I am working on, pictures of my home, and of course urban photography.  All photographs are by  me. I also use IG to spread positive messages of love.  I hope you will follow along.

How are you using social media these days?  Do you also love the ease of Instagram?  I'd love to hear from you.

And remember my friends, during this tumultuous time to always choose love.  Whenever you think what can I do?  Spread love.  It's the only thing that matters.

Simplicity, Pretty Things and a Long Hiatus

 

Dear readers, how are you? You look marvelous! I've missed you. Hope you are having a great holiday season. I'm happy to report that I'm not participating. Ahhh. Such freedom. I'm also happy to report that I am not taking part in anything that causes me unnecessary pain, such as news, politics, dishonesty, drama. Time is too short to be inauthentic. My mother had a recent episode, which brutally reminded me of our mortality. In the blink of an eye, none of the stupid shit I worry about matters.

As I've been doing for the last several years, I've been ruthlessly editing my life. I want to live as simply as possible. No, I don't want to grow my own food, but I do want to leave a small footprint and to be free to pick up and move as I please. Don't get me wrong, I still love beautiful things, but I want just a few and I don't need anything precious. I have only four pairs of shoes, all of my paper and photos have been either shredded or put in electronic form. Things I live easily without are:  a TV, coffee maker, microwave oven.

Like many of us, I'm feeling over-stimulated and overwhelmed. I refuse to participate in the harried "crazy busy" life that is popular now. I feel a deep urge to let go, and to live. I've given up the news, and many blogs. I have a few favorites that I continue to read. I'm even questioning whether I want to continue blogging.

I'm in the process of extricating myself from Facebook. Never really liked it anyway - it mostly made me feel excluded.  I've given up most of my possessions. I know I'll be moving, I just don't know where yet. With getting rid of most of my stuff (some donated, given, tossed and sold), I confirmed something I've known for a long time. I love the freedom of simplicity. It's been a slow process, but the more I watched my apartment get cleaner, easier to keep clean and organized - the better I felt. Less weighed down. It feels lighter and airier.

Even though I am not currently decorating a specific place, I am still contemplating colors, as always. In my next place, I will be free to paint the walls. I'd love to do color blocking on the walls instead of art. The above is my most recent painting. I love these colors. Cobalt blue, silvery periwinkle blue, and of course, pink!  I am currently loving gray, cave like interiors, so would love to have a gray accent wall. I still really love the gray accent wall I did in my kitchen (see previous post here). I still love white floors.

Most of my vase collection has been sold, but here are a few in my collection. Not sure yet if I'm selling these.

That's where my head as it. I have an urgent need to unplug. To get out in nature, meditate, pray and breathe. I have been writing a lot about living simply, so there may be a book there. I don't know. It's amazing that I've been blogging almost 8 years. I didn't even know what a blog was at first, and I've never really known what I'm doing, I just jumped in. Blogging has done a lot for me. It's boosted my confidence. I've "met" some wonderful, fellow creative types who have provide incredible moral support. There are couple of bloggers I actually hope to meet, something I never thought I'd do.

So I'm feeling a little sentimental. I've decided to take a long hiatus on the blog. If you've read this post, have a wonderful holiday season and I just know 2015 is going to be the best year ever. As always, thank you for reading. I'll be spending the holidays in Colorado. This is a lifelong dream of mine - to go away for the holidays! I've never done this before so I'm really looking forward to it. Of course, I am packing light, lol!

See you sometime next year.......maybe.

Love, Peggy xo

Beauty in the Mundane

Image by Peggy

Hello dear readers!  As promised, I am about to reveal a lot of new art that I've been working on.  As you know, I gave away many of my paintings to make room for new art.  Upon clearing some space, the muses spoke so loudly, I could barely keep up!

As you know, everything looks like sculpture to me.  I see beauty in the ordinary and mundane.  I see beauty in detritus, I look at everything as art.  Indeed, my life is art and art is my life.

My new series of work developed out of necessity and resourcefulness.  I need to create, yet  have no money for supplies.  So much of my work is made from "trash" and recycled materials.

Remember the post about the Detritus Robot I designed?  She is made of detritus, and performs a needed public service by picking up detritus.  She is one of the muses of my recent work.  I am currently seeking proposals from computer animators to make her come to life.  I can see her move, and hear her sounds,as she lovingly picks up the careless casts offs in the hood.

I believe my current work will develop into an installation piece.  Hope you enjoy!  As always, thanks for reading and your comments and emails are welcome!

Please also check out my Urban Photojournal, if interested.  I have been working on some interesting photography.  I will be making an announcement in the next few days about a photographic project I am working on.  Hope you are having a great day!  xo

Love your haters

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED 9/30/13


Dear readers, as you know, I've been in deep prayer and meditation for the past several weeks.  I am happy to report that I am feeling better than ever, and have never been happier.  The intense introspection was painful at times, I discovered parts of myself that I didn't like, but with God's help I am working hard to eradicate those qualities. I'd like to thank my haters for causing me to pause, humble up and examine my life.  I have emerged stronger than ever before.

Also, out of this time period came a very prolific artistic period.  I started giving away paintings.  I never did paint for money - which is a good thing because no one wanted to pay me for a painting. I painted because I love it.  My only criteria for a painting was that the new owner love it.  I took great pains to be sure that each painting went to a loving home.  They are my children, after all.

I had been sad that I could no longer use acrylic due to an allergy.  But.  Clearing out the paintings felt good. I felt lighter and now had room to create new art!  And it doesn't matter what medium I use, as long as I create.  I create because I must.  It's that simple.   I've been very prolific over the past several weeks.  I could barely keep up with my various muses.

Over the next few days I will be revealing my new art, and the direction I am taking.  Then we will be discussing colors - aren't all the bright colors fantastic?  They look really fab tempered with gray.  One of my favorite color combos is neon coral pink and gray.  Also love mint green and gray.  Teal and gray.  Orange and gray.....you get the idea.

Once we've discussed colors, I will reveal my apartment.  I have worked hard on my apartment to create a beautiful, edgy, girly pad that doubles as an efficient work space.  Not easy in 450 square feet with small closets.  Fortunately, I am resourceful.  There will be plenty of tips on organization.

Also, don't forget to check out my urban photojournal.  I've been taking a lot of pictures lately.  Politics aside for now, let's have some fun!

Stay tuned, cuz you're gonna hear me roar.

Katy Perry, you are fabulous!  Thanks for being an inspiration.  You go girl!

Announcements and Independence Week

I love me some tokidoki!

Hello dear readers!  I hope you are enjoying a wonderful summer vacation at this moment, and not working too hard.  Sadly, too many work too hard for too little money in our country right now - but that's not the subject of this post.  As you know, many of our traditional holiday celebrations just don't work for me.  But rather than continuing to feel excluded, or like an alien, I have been rethinking holidays.  As you know, Mothers' Day is one that is difficult for me.  So I turned it into a celebration of women.  (See my Mothers' Day post here.)

I've decided to rethink Independence Day as well.  Okay, now haters, before you go crazy - I am a patriot.  That's why I want our country to be the best it can be.  I believe in the constitution.  I believe in American values and the American dream.  I just don't believe so much in the American reality.  I want to do all I can to leave a better society for our children.  Arrogant, I know.  But, I've been called by God.  No turning back now.

A quick word about soldiers and their families.  Soldiers in our country are asked to sacrifice in a way no human should ever be asked to sacrifice.  I do support our troops.  I just wish they were here.  Instead of policing arguments we don't understand - and really have no place in - they could be here rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure.  Make no mistake, our infrastructure is obsolete and falling apart.  Instead of continuing to apply the bandages that caused these problems in the first place (i.e., pipelines, autos, natural gas consumption, etc.), we need to look at sustainability.  These bandages will not sustain us, indeed, they will continue to make the problem worse.

Instead of spending our billions of tax dollars on wars, why not rebuild our country?  We have the structure in place.  The military are highly-skilled individuals with the best technology.  Have our patriots rebuild the bridges, the roads, build the high speed rail, hospitals, schools, alternative fuel sources.  Make this country a mecca and then - lead by example.  Once our house is order and every American has enough food, shelter, education, medical care, then...hold out a hand to other nations.

Yes, I've been called naive.  A dreamer.  What people think of me no longer phases me.  I don't even like that my beloved President Obama says that these things are hard.  No they are not.  They are easy.  Perhaps that's the problem.  We need to eradicate the belief system that change for the better is hard.  What is hard is the way we are currently living.  I know of no one in the U.S. who is completely happy.  They are either overworked like slaves, or underemployed or unemployed.  There's a lot of talent going to waste.  And it all starts with education.

Worse, than that, I've been called unpatriotic.  What crap.  I want the best for our nation, its people and the world's people.  The loss of even one person's potential is unacceptable.  You can even look at our problems from the stand point of selfish enlightenment.  The poverty of one encroaches upon the comfort of us all.

Holidays such as Veterans Day and Independence Day are always a dilemma for me.  Like, I said I do support our troops.  But I do believe that sometimes these young brave men and women don't know what they are getting themselves into.  Can your young daughter who is stationed in Afghanistan actually tell you why we are at war?   Also, I have a brother in the military and I'm proud of him.  He's a fine man, soldier, husband and father.  Do I support the troops?  Absolutely.

My brother enjoys being in the National Guard.  Sometimes he goes on a mission to save people, such as during Hurricane Katrina.  

Do I support war?  No.  I have heard many arguments for war, and am not convinced.  It's the year 2013.  As a young woman I didn't even think we'd make it to 2000.  War should be a concept that is incomprehensible.

I do apologize for the outpouring of words again.  The words are just flowing these days.  It's a gift.  And a curse.  (Ha!  That's a joke from Monk, one of my favorite shows.)

The purpose of this long-ass post is to tell you that I am making this week Independence Week on Creative Influences!  This week were are going to look at the man in the mirror.  That's where change needs to start.  I'd like to invite all of my readers to look in the mirror and see a fabulous person they love looking back at them.

I'd like to encourage independence from your internal tyranny.  Forget about self doubt.  Forget about what anyone thinks of you.  Forget about perfection.  You are perfect the way you are!  Time for a revolution from within.  There's an oldie, but goody, by Gloria Steinem, who first encouraged me to think this way.  Called Revolution From Within.  I highly recommend it.  In fact, it should be required reading for all young women.

This week on the blog is Independence Week!  The next post is about some bloggers I adore.  Followed by a quick reading list of some women using social media to its fullest advantage.  On the 4th we will have a very exciting guest post.  Stay tuned, dear readers, should be an exciting week.  All based on empowerment.  And remember at all times, you are fabulous!  Thanks for reading.  xo

Announcements

Hello dear readers!  Thank you for the outpouring of love I received for my previous post.  It was a heart wrenching one.  There are many more of those to come, but I am wondering how much to put on my blog. Please leave comments if you want to continue to read more about my life.  I'm not looking for pity or sympathy, but merely want to help empower others.

Over the next few days, we will have some fun.  Don't want to get into deep shit all the time, want to have some fun too!  But want to remind people that sometimes someone as fabulous as me, has come from a difficult past.  I am working on a particularly shocking chapter in my book right now, and think it perhaps is too much for this blog.

Couple of other announcements.  I hope to upgrade my about tab in the next couple of days.  Also, hoping to update my portfolio.  Also, I am adding a reading list tab.  I spent the first half of my life reading.  Now I'm spending the second half of my life experiencing and putting into practice what I've read.  If you're interested in how I formed my philosophy, you will be able to check my reading list.  I was a voracious reader, read everything.  Now that I am vision impaired, I don't read nearly as much.  I've been criticized severely for being "book smart" and not "street smart."  What crap.  I worked downtown Cleveland for over 20 years.  Rode the metropolitan bus and now live in the ghetto.  I'm a perfect combo of book and street smarts.  My strength and sensitivity are often intimidating to others, but that's crap too. No one should be intimidated by another. Ever. I am a humble servant, what is mine is yours.  And just because I am fabulous, does not mean that you're not fabulous.  Indeed, each of us is fabulous in our own way.  God don't make no junk.

Okay, enough words!  Let's have some fun!  TGIF!  xo

Social Media Update #2

Happy Monday, dear readers!  Hope you had a great weekend.  I have a quick update to my planned use of social media (see previous post below).  

I am pleased to announce that I am not abandoning flickr afterall.  Flickr now provides 1 terabyte of memory free!  Hooray!  I am so grateful.  I have been depending on flickr for several years now to maintain my portfolio.  I was planning to move my portfolio to facebook since it's free.  Whew, now I don't have to do all that work.  You know how lazy I am.  

Hello again flickr, you sexy bitch.  I've missed you.  Stay tuned for updates to my portfolio.

Social Media Updates and a New Direction

Hello dear readers!  Hope you are doing well, I've missed you!  Thank you for all the kind emails I've received.  If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that I have been suffering with a strange and rare illness for about four years.  last week I experienced an inordinate amount of stress, more stress than a human should have to go through.  honestly sometimes i think god trusts me too much, lol.  i had a particularly bad flare up and thought it was my time to check out.  thankfully, I made it with the loving care of my family.  i'm not ready to go, i still have so much to do.  i am so grateful i have so many people who love me, i wouldn't be here if it weren't for them.  i worry that i'm not worthy.  i worry about overburdening or overwhelming them, they (like everyone these days) are leading busy lives.  they have their own crap to deal with.

but this isn't a post about illness.  i'm trying to remain positive.  it's true what they say about positive thought.  it works!  i have acopula exciting announcements and a few changes in how i'm going to use social media.

1.  i am writing a book!  yes, indeed. this is one of my lifelong goals!  it is the story of my life, and i am not holding anything back.  there will be laughs and tears.  i am excited that i will be working with my dear friend, Haley Litzenger, who will be my editor.  

2.  you will be seeing pictures of me on this blog!  i have a confession to make.  i am old and fat.  but Haley has convinced me that i am fabulous.  it's true.  each of us are fabulous in our own way.  we are each unique, and isn't that a miracle?  god don't make no junk.

3.  i am experimenting with typing in lower case!  the reasons for this are as follows. in some languages the use of the pronoun "I" is not capitalized and it is actually seen as arrogance. using lower case reminds a body to remain humble.  though i am fabulous, i'd like to remain humble.  two, i've gotten extremely busy and unable to keep up with twitter, facebook, blog, emails, etc.  typing in this fashion helps speed up the process for me. three, one of my favorite daily reads, sfgirlbybay, uses lowercase. i've long experimented with lowercase in creative writing classes, before i ever read her blog. however, when i read her blog it confirmed for me that i like it.  Victoria is just the right amount of fab, edgy, sweet, bohemian girl with humility.  i always leave her blog feeling happy.

Update 6/12/13:  I am abandoning this experiment for the time being, but may resume at a later date.  Will explain in a subsequent post.

4.  i will be reorganizing the blog a little!  over the next coupla days i will be making little cosmetic changes, updating links, etc.  this is my least favorite part of blogging, the mechanics, so i tend to procrastinate. also there's a pesky little thing called....time.  there's never enough of it.  i've thought many times over the years of quitting blogging. but somehow, every time i think about quitting, i get a kind comment or email and i am enthused all over again.  ain't the cosmos grand?

a thought occurred to me when reading another of my favorite blogs, My Mod Style.  i have been following the fabulous Jessie  for so long i feel as if she is my friend.  at first i felt terrified when i started seeing bloggers who got mega huge. they started meeting each other and attending conferences. i felt inadequate, excluded. yet, i adore my autonomy and anonymity.  i made a decision, if a blog makes me feel bad, i stop reading it and won't link to it.

also, i'm too friggin' lazy to learn HTML. it's been kicking my butt for a long time. Jessie has been kind enough to help me with that, but she's getting busy too and will soon need to require payment for her services.  btw - you must check out Jessie's vlogs.  they and she are fabulous.  i realized you don't wait until you are fabulous to do a personal post.  doing the post helps you gain the confidence to become (even more) fabulous.  we are all fabulous to begin with.

Erin at Design for Mankind helped me see that as well.  she posted vlogs of herself dancing, saying that she couldn't dance.  i marveled at her courageousness!  and i adored her!  i find her absolutely - ahem - well, fabulous.

Kim, of desire to inspire, has also taught me a great deal.  DTI is a mega huge blog, and i never feel like crap after reading it.  i like that Kim and Jo are spunky, and have the back bone to engage in difficult convos as long as you take ownership of your comments.  poor Kim has accepted my criticism of animal skin rugs with grace and humor.  i love you Kim!  there are few others, that are my favs, i will be including a heading on my side bar with my daily reads.

5.  i am changing my use of the social media!  for now. may re-evaluate this decision as time goes on.  things change so quickly, it's hard to keep up.  here's my current plan:

a.  abandoning Art Wanted.  enjoyed while it lasted, but largely a waste of time (for me).

b.  etsy.  also abandoning as a seller, not a buyer.

c.  flickr.  love flickr, but can't afford the fee for a pro membership.  as you know, i've been out of work a long time.  i used to rely on flickr to be my storage option for my photos.  when pro expires, you can only see 200 of your photos, and i have probably 1000.  i find that sad.  what if a person passes?  i like feeling as if i am leaving behind a portrait of me.  that's why i like to blog.  it's self expression.

Update 6/12/13:  Apparently, flickr has heard my cries!  Hooray!  Flickr now provides 1 terabyte of storage for free!  I am no longer abandoning flickr.

d.  facebook.  i have recently rethought my use of facebook.  during my crisis, i was able to keep in touch with people who worried about me.  i used facebook to update those i love regarding my condition, but also as a means of expressing my humor and desire to stay positive. this was very helpful in that my sister-in-law is an extremely busy professional who travels a lot.   in  the past i was annoyed at people who posted too much.  no longer.  i get it.  facebook is not some evil entity.  it is completely neutral.  it is all in how you use it.    it can be a marvelous tool.  i did not feel alone during my crisis.  i do need to work on balance and conserving my energy so will need to unplug from time to time.  blogging can be a 24/7 job.

i am toying with the idea of opening my facebook to the public, although i am still a little scared.  my two loyal readers (ha! joking) know that when i am having a bad flare up i don't blog for long periods of time.  opening up my facebook allows those readers the opportunity to see what's going on.  please send a friend request, if you'd like.  please note, however, for the time being i won't accept friends who appear to be violent.  please send a message with your request explaining why you'd like to be friends.  i look forward to hearing from you!

e.  pinterest.  i know ya'll miss my fabulous fashion, color and decor posts when i am ill. so you can also check in on pinterest.  it's easy and fun. they now include the sources of the images, which was my main criticism of them. also i have been experimenting with image searches in Google+, pretty amazing stuff.  don't fully understand yet, but working on it.  it always important to me to give artists credit. making art is hard work. artists deserve to make a living just like everyone else.  and thank god for artists, they make the world a better place.

f.  replies to commentors.  working on learning a more efficient way to do this.  i respond on the blog, but am not sure commentors see my response. jessie published detailed instructions on this topic, i just haven't had time to review them.  thanks jessie!

one thing about blogging, i learn every day. and the more i learn, the more i realize i don't know. when i first thought of starting a blog, i complained to my good friend, Nate, that i didn't know enough to blog yet.  he told me "let the people see you learn."  best advice i've  ever received.  you gotta dive in, if you wait for perfection, you'll never dive in. as you know, i've been giving up my perfectionist tendencies.  the journey is more important than the goal.  when i started blogging, i didn't know what i was doing (and still don't).  i just knew i was giving away too much for free with leaving comments on other blogs and i fervently desired a vehicle for self-expression.  blogging does that for me.  if someone notices me, or likes what i've written, great. but that's not why i do it.  i was pleasantly surprised that people all over the world commented about my art.  it's also okay if no one notices, after reading Rilke, i do it for me.  because i have to.  the first time in my life that i've been in total control.  i thank god for the marvelous technology that has allowed me to participate in the world.  i even had a voice in politics over the last several years.  something i never had in the past.

if you've read this long boring post, i thank you for your time and support!  please contact me if there is anything you'd like to see on this blog.  in addition, please forgive me that my portfolio is woefully behind and needs lots of work.  i made the mistake of relying on flickr for my online portfolio.  make no mistake, i adore flickr, just can't afford it.  i believe it should be free like facebook.

i am trying to put my house in order, not because i think it is my time, but for my own freedom and well being.  i finally understand forgiveness!  it's for me, not the person who supposedly hurt me.  carrying around hatred, anger, jealousy, resentment, etc. hurts us.  not the perp.  as you know, i am an advocate of non-violence, have studied extensively the works of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Gloria Steinam, Abraham Lincoln, Barack Obama, Mahatma Gandhi, the Buddha, and a little about Toltec cultures.  i highly recommend The Four Agreements, if you haven't read it already.  this is one of those books you should carry with you at all times.  it's simple, but profound. with concise instructions on how to live your life.  i refuse to harbor hatred, as it is an act of violence.  

my goal in life is to love unconditionally, without judgment.  i have cleaned up a lot of bad blood and feel so much lighter for it.  there is only one left who has broken my heart, that i may not be able to come to peace with.  i may have to come to peace with that i can't come to peace with her.

stay tuned.  i am going to be putting it all out there.  i am longer afraid.  as Milarepa said, "into the mouth of the dragon."  or when you feel as if you are poised at the abyss of insanity - jump. i finally understand surrender.  i am letting go and letting god.  ahh. such a relief that someone else is in charge.  he's my alpha.  i am his conduit to use as he sees fit for the betterment of humanity.  lastly, i hope to do it all with humor and toughen my skin to the haters.  i actually feel compassion with them, and would like to be noble enough to turn the other cheek, as Jesus did.  Janelle Monae has been crucial in helping me understand that it is okay to be fabulous.  see her marvelous video below.  i've watched it 100 times!  singing, clapping and dancing around my apartment like a crazy person.  do i give a shit what people think of me?  no.  i do not.  what freedom.

i love my readers, i hope you will join me for the ride! i promise the next post won't be so much pontificating.  we will have some fun with fashion!  xo