Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts

Tuesday

I'm the Fly Girl of the Week!!

Just poppin in to let you all know that this week i'm featured in on of the flyest ((hint, hing)) blogs in the blogosphere!! I have been following Andrea's Fly Girl blog for some years and am still hooked. She has always been and still is ahead of the game when exposing talented, stylish, ambishous and uber creative women of color.

she generously spotlights a Fly Girl of the Week, every week and this week IT'S ME!!!! you know we have not because we ask not. and sometimes when we ask we still think....nawwww, they ain't gonna pick me, little ol' me. but holla atcha girl!!!! she picked me for this week and im so over the moon.

so stop by and check me and Andrea out.


Saturday

Unexpected and Kinda Cool

some how i found the ranky-dankiest laundry mat to wash my comforter. it was just me an this old man who looked like he moonlighted as Santa during Christmas. but after i got my quarters and wash going this place started to take on a personality of its own. so here's what it looks like when me & my iphone stumbled back in time.


Sunday

Letting 'em All In

I've been going through stacks of old projects this week. Unfortunately I have Neva Good Enough syndrome. So I realized I was completing projects with out feeling any pride or sense of accomplishment. No matter what I felt like a failure. In turn I'd turn my attention else where ending up starting over or resigning to do things that I was passionate about because I was convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that nothing I did was was worth two cents.And it didn't help that I had interests all over the board.

Well, the past two years have been full of learning and letting go. And while I'm def a work in progress I'm learning to accept and acknowledge myself. And with that, I also realize that whether than try and limit my interests I'm gonna let 'em all in. So in the spirit of putting it all out there and lovin what is....here are...with one eye closed...pics of some things I've done over the last five years. 
Interior Design
This was my first room for my good fried Deanna. c. 2006




A "soft" zen dining room for a client in Atlanta. c. 2007

The living room for the same house.




This was my last project before I moved to DC in 2009. As I look back I kinda like it.
 Kid's Room Hangers
 

I made these for one of my bestie's little boys.
 Wall Art
c. 2007

c. 2007
 Photography
c. 2009 @ a Park in Greensboro

c. 2009

c. 2007 Atlanta

c.2007 Atlanta

The last 3 pics were taken in my good friend's beautiful backyard. I still really like these picsc. 2007

Friday

Where the He!! Have I Been?

okay so im gonna try and make this quick. the quicker i post the less i obsess. the less i obsess the more likely you are to read this TODAY not one day in July. isnt it great to witness my neurosis in all it's glory. thanks. ur such a pal.

so its been damn near 2 weeks since i posted. quite the opposite of  my 3-4 times a week goal. and i say to that..HA! what the fuck was i thinking. i beat myself up for oly posting once a week and now look. damn. never good enough i know. i only like doing the things i cant do. if i can do it with ease...im not all that interested. didn't you know, life's supposed to be hard as hell. so im right on track with that one right? NOT!! its not but i see i have a tendancy to make it that way. and its no easy cliff to back away from. but i shall dam it...i shall. and starting with today. i refuse to apologize for not making this blog the grammy/emmy/bet/mtv/greatest blog ever winning blog in the whole frickin blogos-thing-a-ma-jig.


the truth is i have A LOT of shit going on. like...

my muse has taken a turn and has me in a new creative direction. i have long dreamed of having my own line of sassy and inspirationial t-shirt line. when i say long, i mean like 7 or 8 years ago and well it has resurfaced in full force and taken me by storm. i feel so inspired by the vision. i also feel so frustrated by not being able to do it EXACTLY how i want to. and i also feel so anxious that if i don't do it now then it might be too late. i know those last 2 are nutin but the devil knockin on my door. "get out a her you dam demon you!" but overall im truly excited and feeling even closer to my authentic creative voice. so more on that a lil later...and its gonna be sooo good!

i have also finally decided its time to move out of my mom's place and start looking for a job in charlotte...i sure hope no one from my current j.o.b. is reading this. oh well. if you are please know i have enjoyed my time but it's time to move on. but anyway...i've been out on the track like a hooker in high heels peddlin my resume all over the net. my intended move date is MAY 15. that also means ive been looking for an apartment and daycare. and hopefully they'll all be near each other (fingers and toes crossed). i can't believe ive been back in nc for almost a year and living with my mama to boot. and we have not tried to poison or choke each other not one time. dam now that's progress. but i feel i've mended my wings and its time to fly again. i'm really excited and of course ill keep ya posted.

i think even more than the 5 or 6 physical directions ive been going in, my mind has been just as full. there are some big things on the horizon...good things...and im having to really process it and keep the voices in my head at bay. i could say so much about that but the bottom line is i won't be deterred by anyone...not even myself. so take that you over-active, extra-critical, scared-to-death inner critic. i got your number!


ok luv ya but gotta go. i hope to be back very, very soon!

holla!

Wednesday

Single Mom Poem

Its hard as hell 
finding time to blog. 
a list a mile long...
frustrating. 
blew the whole 
3 per week thing. 
oh well. 
i did shower 
3 times this week. 
what would i do 
with out small victories?

Monday

Oh yeah, i left this out...

since i posted yesterday i couldnt shake the feeling that there were some things i left out. honestly, after writing and re-writing i realized i had stopped editing my words and started editing my voice. i didnt want my mouth to write a check my ass couldnt cash. so i punked out jus a lil bit. and wasnt that the point of what not to do in the first place? so fuck it. so here's what i didn't say in part 1.

1. i understand this blog is not going to be everyone. no blog is. you may think it boring, scatter brained, foul mouthed, just plain too much information or all of the above. if you are one of those people i have to tell you...and i mean this in the best possible way...peace out. i wont miss you and im kinda looking forward to turning some people off.

2. if you think you might want to hang out here with all your dreams and fucked up-ness this is what you are liable to find.
  • im a growth and development junkie and i love squawking about my aha moments
  • im also a glam-hog. if it's shiny and expensive i probably like it. so pics on top of pics of high priced stylish interiors and fashions...that i plan to one day own will surely show up here
  • you'll get a really-do look at my life as a single mom raising the cutest, smartest and loudest most demanding 3 year old on the planet.
  • my creative mumbo jumbo...i'll post new and old, paintings, furniture, poems, essays....im cringing
  • id also like to feature creative people i find inspiring...such a looooong list
  • uhm, uhm i cant thing of anything else. but to cover my bases...anything goes
i really want to get up to posting multiple times a week and have these catchy titles for weekly topics.  but we'll see how that goes.


i think that's enough for now if i think of anything else...you know ill let you know.


hugs & holla back

Sunday

The Reclamation of ME


i love hip-hop music. and if you pull up next to me at a red light you are liable to see me in my mom van bobbin my head to lil wayne and daydreaming about me, him and my 2-piece on south beach. (yes, i know he’s only a little taller than my son and has stones for teeth…just let me have this one). On the other hand you can also catch me in deep reflection while listening to the wise words of wayne dyer. and yes we’re in maui and ive traded the 2-piece for a citrus colored sarong. what can i say…im in love with two waynes.

 
if you are still reading this, maybe you are getting the point of this post. maybe not. but if you're still reading that's good enough for me.

since i picked back up the paint brush and the pen almost a year ago, i have found myself struggling to find my own authentic voice. i hear it in my head and even see it in my mind’s eye but when i go to create it, it becomes illusive like smoke and at same time stiff, like hard cement.

don’t get me wrong. i know why this is. over the years i have brainwashed myself into believing that because my delivery of the message was different from what I see in the main stream that there is no place for me. and that basically I had to become creatively anorexic so no one will be offended or God forbid, un-friend me on facebook or stop following my blog. 

through a powerful coaching process im enrolled in i now realize this is so much bigger than some paint flung on a canvas. this is about all the ways i have choked the life out of my dreams and watered down my passions because i couldn’t understand how all my opposites could survive, let alone thrive in this one body. many times  I have set the fire of my desire only to go back and create a perimeter of water around it so it didn’t get out of control.

because what would happen if my dreams and passions burned like wildfire? lord help us if they took over and I became a slave to my soul’s deepest longings.

this blog has become such a wonderful mirror for my spirit. i see how i've been on the side lines of my own life and wondering why no one will throw me the ball. as far as here i have let some personal things about me out of the bag. but i have also struggled with how much to share, how to share it and if anyone would really give a damn.

M2BM started out an artistic outlet. but it has reignited my love of writing and reminded me that i am a natural communicator and storyteller. it has also reminded me of the lighter, more playful side of my life that i thought i had to trade in for the responsible single-mom card. i want to inspire and connect with people. i just have to do it my way. and @ 36 years old I realize im not gonna change. and why should i?

i'm now ready to get on with accepting my smart, sexy, ambitious, sensitive, creative, spiritual self. and that also includes accepting my potty mouthed, know-it-all, insecure, nerdy, stuck-up, shallow self as well. and i got a inklin' that this is exactly how im gonna find my REAL place in this world. and that alone makes all the bull shit ive put myself through sooo worth it. 

so this blog and i may go through a few tweeks until we find our groove. but our groove we will find. i am sure of that. and until next time, thanks for lettin me bend your ear.

XOXO 



Saturday

Finding Myself in the New Year

Happy Holidays you guys. It's been a couple of weeks and I've thought about all the things I'd say when I came back to this space. And I think y'all understand how life and all it's facets can usurp time assigned for other things. I've been ironing out kinks and getting some well deserved rest and believe I'm just in time for a new blogging relationship in 2011.


All in all I have am so grateful to be in the midst of such an unfolding. and have some of the new truths i want to take with me in the new year.
  • We can start over any time, as many times as we like.
  • NO MATTER WHAT we deserve to be loved, accepted and supported.
  • Love truly is forgiving and for giving.
  • We deserve to receive and give this wonderful gift.
  •  No matter how it feels, the pain, grief and shame won't kill us if we allow ourselves to ride the wave of it.
I'm happy to report my crying spells have subsided. I'm getting used to the vulnerable-ness of my heart and hope I can stay present enough to remain that way. Being is a real practice.



On a more materialistic and superficial note (loving my deep and shallowness LOL) I got a new Iphone 4 for Christmas!! I am so stoked. It's like a new baby. She is so precious and I can't wait to use all her gadgets and thingamabobs. I feel so up to date and current. Funny for a girl who grew up way on the outside of all things cool.  I'm hoping it makes my blogging and social community building more seamless...and regulated.

Well, it's late and the pitter patter of little feet will up and running early in the morning. So I'll end with a heart felt  Happy New Year and new day to each of you. Thank you for your words of encouragement, support and all that good stuff.

Smooches!

Monday

Still Just Being



Well, um, its been about a week and a half since my last post and i really should be in bed but i was inspired by jenn lemen's blog and decided to take a lip gloss and comb free self pic/video(i tried to upload but took forever...still learning how to use it. but when i figure it out i will post it so you can see me in all my coo-cooness.). i really want to connect more with myself and others more authentically. i have to admit its been almost a week since i "liquified". i don't feel bad. i dont feel the same either and i dont think i want to. im a little wobbly with new legs but im very expectant.

and i have been painting. which is good. this is a piece im working on...or maybe its finished for someone very close to me. i didnt over think it or have a real expectation and i like how it turned out. 

well, its time for bed or im gonna end up watching the real housewives of atl for the umpteenth time. night night.

Wednesday

This, That and the Other


Well I just lost my whole freaking post...and I'm kinda pissed about it. I was gettin all deep working through issue #3,246 and wham i don't know what the eff happened. well needless to say i'll take it as a sign. "stop talking about it and just do it." said the Universe. So I'm off to complete my week 3 homework for my art class (im a week behind).

i will leave you birdies with some pics of some work that either; a) I just completed after some months 2) just started and finished or 3) just got around to scanning in.

a) i just got around to scanning. it's been done since the summer.

b) just finished after some eons. i've been workin on Miss Thang for a while but just finished her last week. 7.5 X12 recycled cabinet door.

Now i must say i love this one. it makes me smile everytime i read it. its the ultimate motivational saying. 7 X 8.5 recycled board.

or c) this one and the one above are NEW PIECES. i really love this abstract x-mas tree. the world is made from my most loved material, cardboard. 6X6 gallery wrapped canvas
 did i mention i got a new scanner(im sure i did its ALL im talking about right now. im more excited about this than when i got my mom-osine. the pictures are so vibrant. and its so fast and smooth and easy to use. i luv her so much i might have to name her. and it does make it a little easier not having my camera for now.

Any who, there they are. My next goal is to get my printer - the Epson 1400 to be exact. Miss Juliette Crane, a fellow flyer recommends it. It's kinda sorta in my budget so I'ma make the plunge....then comes the ink, paper, backers, mailers, return labels, business cards. Even though its quite an investment right now, I know the only way anyone else will take me serious as an artist is if I do the same. All in. SMOOCHES!

Sunday

Let the Rambling Begin

1. I don't have any pictures to keep you visually stimulated and probably wont advertise this post on FB. I just wanted to vent.

2. I went to GSO to sub for the week at the community college. and while the good news is they offered me a job. It's p.t. but the hourly pay sorta makes up for it. Sorta. The bad news is they only get paid once a month. Meaning it would be the end of October before I got a check big enough to rent a place. And my credit is so jacked up it still probably won't be enough. For the first time I'm condidering applying for public housing. Oh the shame, who am I kidding. I'll be there first thing Monday morning.

3. My schedule it totally effed up after being away from my paint for a week. I haven't made anything for 2 weeks and am kina scerred to put paint down. I've had too much time to think bout it all.

4. While I loved making my little magnets, I'm now like wondering if they are really any good. How in the hell am I gonna make enough money selling $10 cardboard magnets?

5. I'm so sick of dishes and dirty clothes every frickin day.

6. I quietly beat myself up everyday for not being able to make enough money to take care of my son independently.

7. I'm considering starting a new blog about my life as a single mom and my constant pangs of inadequacy.

8. Why is it everytime I have a good idea and tell someone all the fizz goes out of it? And why can't I keep my big mouth shut?

9. I was about to tell y'all something, I really want to but I'ma try and keep it to myself.

10. Eventhough my life is nothing as I expected it to be, sometimes I think this is all happening for a reason and if I just keep pluggin away and staying focus on my BIG dream it might actually happen.

Friday

New Logo & Confidence Coming to a Blog Near You




 Since the Flying Lessons course I've been working to up the anty on my art business. We (I mean "I") often can come up with more reasons why we can't do something rather than looking for creative solutions that fit our budget, skill and sensibility. Well I've been moping around because I didnt have a professional logo. And since I didn't have a logo and because I didn't have a logo I couldn't  get business cards and other marketing materials for M2BM. And since I didn't have those things I wasn't a real business and nobody would buy from such an amateur and blah, blah, blah....I know cry me a river right.

Well something finally clicked in this hard skull of mine and I decided to...do it myself! What a novel idea. Who would have ever thought I could make my own log?. But then again, who better to design the most accurate representation of me and my creations?

So I've been really excited this week as I've been building this little baby and even though its in it's early stages I'm liking where it's going. Unfortunately, I sometimes get caught up in wondering if others will like my art instead of making what my own heart mandates. But this logo is all about me saying who I am. Not just with the name of my business but creatively. And it feels very true if you know what I mean. And that makes me feel all warm inside like I'm already successful. And that always feels good. So the lesson today for Jenny is...do what feels good and it will be good enough.

Talk soon and big love!

Houston, We Have Landed!

I'll start with y son's newest favorite thing to say to any and everyone who crosses his little path... 
hey you guys! 

I have really missed this little blogita and all of you and you and you too. And speaking of my little cubby hole, my hasn't she grown over the last week. Yay! I want to send the biggest teary eyed THANK YOU out to all of you who have commented lately and left your warm wishes and words of encouragement. I don't know about any of you but I've never felt like I was a part of something...but I do now and it is all its chalked up to be...as long as you don't ask me to drink some purple punch. :-) But truly I don't know how to put it with out sounding like a goof ball but I really feel each of you and I'm sending so much love to all of you. XOXOXOXO

Now to the business...tomorrow will be a week since we came back to NC. My mama has taken up "shackin'" with her new "boy" friend. (yes they are over 60 and acting like teenagers!) So V and I have the house to ourselves. Which is nice after living with family for the last year. We haven't been up to too much aside from visiting old friends and making sure Vincent's schedule stays consistent as possible. So we've been hitting up playgrounds and groups, ferris wheels and today we went to the pool and he had a BALLLL! I also found some art galleries so we'll tour those next week. And since I havent blessed my mama's house with the mess that is my studio (yet), I've been taking lots of pics of my little town...and since I've been carrying you all with me I thought I'd share some.


One of my BFF's boys & Vinny clowning around -i love that they're growing up together

and their super duper cute and cuddly sister Isabella (with her rib bone)

oh, the bliss of wallowing in sand when there's a perfectly good playground only 2ft away 

 its tobacco season in the country

the itsy-bitsy post office i used to go to with my dad when i was V's age

and there we are in the white house. and yes that's even more tobacco


had to include this one...he is intently waiting for the LG to blow the whistle so he can get back in the water.

I hope I'm not beating a dead horse but...I'm so grateful to this blog and you all. It has allowed me to stay connected when many strings are dangling every-which-a-way. Thank you again and I'll be back with more soon. SMOOCHES!!