This or something better

  "This or something better is now manifesting for me in my life, in totally satisfying ways for the highest good of all concerned."

~Shakti Gawain~

                                                    This affirmation has served me well throughout the years, and continues to do so. Whenever I am falling into survival mode, it is time to pause and reflect on those times where people that have been there for me. These events haven't always been positive experiences, that is for certain. Most of my personal growth, both emotionally and psychologically have come slowly. Several oppurtunities and lessons that my Higher Power had in store for me, were easily overlooked and missed as a result of my own self-centered behavior. However, things can turn around.

    The Spirit Rocks that I sell have been an example of this. Being out of a job and having no foreseeable future, I found myself looking out over the Pacific Ocean from a remote beach. Perhaps I will end up as a drifter, skipping rocks along the shore. Or perhaps an artist living in my own pad like a bohemian. Then it occured to me looking at these smooth shaped rocks. That's it ! I can paint on these small little canvases and maybe generate an income doing this!

    Today I have a life I've hoped for, living in a town that is equivalent to Mayberry, and countless friends who have always been there for me. I have everything I need, and need everything I have. Materially, settling for less has served a better purpose, although it hasn't been without a bigger price to pay. I just wanted to grow up to be hip, and to be loved.

    Having achieved this dubious and yet illusive goal, it is obvious to me now, that change is the rule and not the exception in life.Whether to go forth willingly or unwillingly is always the question to be addressed. Just for today, I won't hold back.Thy will, not mine, be done.

    Below is a sample of what has been called "The Rock of the Week" even if this hasn't always been the case.I have been a bit lazy as I've grown older. 

         Enjoy!

Not a goner

 Last week at the Market, a local Latina lady came by the booth with a friend. She showed me this glass sun ornament with a dark blue color. She expressed that she wanted to have a nylon chord attached to the item so that it could be hung from a kitchen window. I figured that to be an easy enough challenge, so I said that I would have it done in a matter of minutes. All this while she and her friend went on to purchase some vegetables.

    During their absence, I clumsily dropped this pretty sun ornament and it broke into pieces. Luckily, it was a clean break, but still, it was going to be hard to explain this accident to her and her friend Carmen.When both returned to see if the chord I supposedly and successfully had attached to the glass piece was not ready, it was going to be painful to explain how it just fell out of my hands and crashed on the ground.

    To my surprise, she graciously forgave me and said that I shouldn't worry about it. This response was not anticipated,nor was it how I wanted the story to end. 

    After some profuse apologies, She was told that it would be repaired as best as it could be, and to come back the next Saturday to pick it up.Naturally, I began to envision the possible difficulties that could occur when putting a project like this back together.

    It turned out to be a lot easier than first expected. I used a quick, one-step resin to bind the pieces together, and it worked! Then the next step got my creative juices pumping, so the decorating began to evolve. The pictures below show the finished project and the glowing face for what would then come to be another satisfied Rock Star.

Fun Stuff

 Okay, I was spending too much time on the internet ( as usual ) and discovered this cool site that will take your name and transpose it into images taken from space to form it's spelling. Just go to this site and enter a name...

https://science.nasa.gov/specials/your-name-in-landsat/

For fun, I tried the name, "Your Spirit Rocks" and this is what came on the screen.It never ceases to amaze me what is possible to create and have appear online nowadays. In fact, the word "Amazing" as descriptive adjective is perhaps wearing a little thin . Let's just say it's... uh, "Interesting". Nevertheless, I like to be the first kid on the block to discover this sort of thing 😁

Staying true to the purpose of this blog, I am committed to showcasing the "Rock of the Week" which in all honesty, does not always appear fifty-two times a year. Maybe at most, twenty. Anyway, here is this week's rock of the week. It's my little, glow in the dark alien rock. Ain't he cute?

Pursuing Beauty

    This idea of pursuing beauty takes into account many views and perspectives. Suffice to say that in our experience one may find some object or idea particularly beautiful, while another may find the exact same point of view particularly repulsive or even grotesque.Is the concept of beauty a shared belief or is it even measurable? If one is behelden to beauty does that diminish it's value? What exactly do i mean when I say that something is beautiful? Perhaps it can be argued that just get's gotten.

    Many have seen the movie a few years back, called "American Beauty" ( appropriately named ) where during the film a young man is showing a friend a video he has made of a plastic bag gyrating in the wind in what could be described as a dance . The character is so taken by this visual display that he begins to tear up.It was a very moving scene in which this character who was initially thought of to be a voyeur until, the girl he's been watching begins to befriend him. 

    The effect of beauty can both be attractive and revealing in it's ability to expose and mesmerize.This feeling of beauty speaks volumes. When I hear someone say, "That's beautiful" I try not to question their observation. Just to say "Thank you" will say it all

Drawing from the past

     Even though these rocks were recently painted, when they got finished they become past. We always draw from our past experiences in order to create what is to come.This idea begs to question,"What value is it ,when we attempt to maintain and control our future by relying on our past experiences?" Must synapsis be formed and left to die without any hope of reformation? Things live on, or they don't.Without getting too philosophical, suffice to say that things will transform but the Spirit lives on.That's what I love about painting rocks.History will repeat itself, until it doesn't.

    Trips to the beach to collect rocks that are carefully chosen to be decorated or adorned,are a natural high. The ocean tumbles most rocks into smooth,mostly symetrical shapes.Every rock seems to have it's own personality after having been around for ions. Occasional dimples or sharp edges get worn down over time,and what remains of the basalt ( which are the main type of rock I use to paint ) is a quasi-absorbent surface that acrylic paint takes to very easily.

    The designs come from ideas about what will fit the rock. Base colors of black or white, then metallics, puff paint, sparkles, crackles, resin and invisible ink will follow. Occasionally, the dots of a fluorescent gel pen will be used to add little flourishes. No two rocks are the same, although designs have been repeated that have been proven to be successful.

Fun making Mobiles

 Everyone gathered at the Calistoga Art Center of the second workshop sponsored by the Park and Rec. Dept. this one was how to make a mobile using old CD's , Plexiglass pieces and glass bobbles with metallic vinyl flourishes. The tricky part was the drilling of holes and inserting the fishing spinners along with the hooks to hang them with. Decorating the CD's was pretty self explanatory, but the glue and puff paint had to dry which presented a bit of a snafu. All in all, things went pretty well and all the participants seemed happy with what they produced. Below is a picture of some of the ladies that came by.

Something a little different

Thursday, March 5th. This is a workshop that will ony last a couple of hours but hopefully it will turn out to be an enjoyable time spent making wind mobiles. The fun thing about this is that we will be using old CD's and pieces of plexiglas. Naturally, you will get the bling during the day and the glow factor at night ( but then again, only with a UV blacklight which most of you know is a favorite device of mine ). The event is being held at our local art center which provides lots of space for all our creative endeavors.Anna Johannsen is a gifted and conscientous director and she always seems to have her hands full. I hope that the people that attend will find the experience to their liking. Below are samples of what one might expect as a finished piece.

Hearts a Plenty

 Having Friday the 13th coming before Valentine's day is a curious thing. Trying not to be superstitious, it still can be said that I was a bit hypervigilant that day. There was so much to be done and timing was essential in having things run smoothly.Two things were demanding my attention. One was the rock painting class to be held in St. Helena beginning at five p.m. The other was a Mardi Gras/Birthday party beginning at six (which was an invitation I was not going to decline ). So, what the heck... Just be fashionably late which turned out to be okay, because others were too.

    The rock painting class went smoothly and the participants included two young people who had their parents joining them in a creative activity. After an introduction and presenting a basic methods and materials overview, we got started. Some were ready to jump ahead in using whatever materials were available.Having brought a set of Posca™ Pens proved to be helpful for myself and others in drawing something representational on the rock. Hearts were a popular motif, given the upcoming sweetfest.

    Halfway through the two hour class, one of the young art novices had the misfortune of having her rock painting smudged when mom reached over to retrieve something on the table to facilitate her own creation.Suddenly, it became clear that hurt feelings and a sense of frustration overtook a project that had begun on such an enthusiastic note.

She ended up going outside to regroup, and my attempts to bring her back in weren't helping.Time takes time. 

    Eventually, she did come back in but remained quiet.Others attempted to redecorate the rock or at least bring it back to some semblance of cohesiveness. A Nice try but... No. This project was destined to be abandoned.Mom's attempts at reconciliation did not redeem the situation either, but things did turn around.

    One hope I had at having things end on a positive note was to offer her the rock that I had painted after requesting a straight across trade for her "former" rock. The deal was made, the class ended and most were pleased with their own personalized rock.

    Lastly, I did make it to the Mardi Gras party, and it turned out to be a fabulous feast. Our neighbors, Carmen and Tom turned their house into a New Orleans showcase along with several guests arriving in bedazzled attire.The Lobster, Shrimp and Crawdads were over the top delicious! These folks really know how to do it up.

Thanks to Amy, Alex,Elvie and all the "Rock Starrs" from the Art Collective.

Then...Having a Happy Mardi Gras/Birthday Celebration at Tom and Carmen's house

Episode 41

 The picture below is from a photo I saw about the Kiluea volcano that is currently erupting on the Big Island in Hawaii. My neice Elizabeth has had the residue floating down from the sky over her home for some time now. It is like fiberglass or so I am told. This has been quite an adventure that has been going on for some time now. January has witnessed several episodes that are now up in the 40's. Facebook has been keeping us updated on it's progress.

2026, Oh yea. Happy happy. I'm going to just write (or type) using a stream of conciousness in expressing stuff. Everything that pops into my head is in some way trying to formulate ideas that can be modified or made into something tangible. I can envision, manipulate or create from nothing. So can you. Recently the Calistoga Art Center has invited me to feature another workshop about creating mobiles. It sounds like fun, and I'm looking forward to it. It will be happening on March 5th, so there is still time to enroll through Park and Recs, if you are interested in attending.

Valentine's Day is rapidly approaching, so I've taken some time making a few dazzlers for your sweetie. The flip side has hearts emblazzoned with another heart motif in invisible ink, just for that extra surprise.These will be on sale at this Saturday's Farmer's Market in Calistoga, so come on by and claim yours!

Kiluea was done with watercolor and Prismacolor pencils. So you can see that rock painting isn't my only passion. But hey, the rocks are still bringing home the bacon.

Below are the "Rocks of the Week"