JOURNALS

Tuesday

Today was one of those days that just seemed to roll out of bed with a bit of a grumble, but somehow managed to dress itself up nicely by the afternoon. It all began with a creative itch I just had to scratch – the tactile joy of pen on paper. There's just something about the physical act of creating that gets the juices flowing. So, of course, I decided to do more of it. The plan was as straightforward as a straight line drawn with a ruler – explore bold lines in my page designer code, shoot some footage for the ole' Day and Weeknotes, and retry sending those postcards after the first batch took a detour into oblivion. And as a juicy little bonus, I had a small expedition to the stationery store mapped out.

But you know, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. And when you're partly a contemporary print artist and partly a hoarder of stationery, sometimes those plans just end up buried under a pile of paper. Speaking of, my workspace is turning into a paper labyrinth. Since I can't magic a new shelf into existence just yet, the books have been evicted to "over there," making room for my growing stationery empire. It's a temporary solution but hey, chaos can be a creative's best friend, right?

The technical adventures continued with my experiments in adding bold lines to segments in my art – an "easy" task in theory. But as usual, the reality was more like trying to thread a needle while wearing oven mitts. The code eluded me today, so it’s sitting in the 'tomorrow' basket, which is starting to look a bit like a bottomless pit.

My mini-journey to the post office felt like an epic quest in itself, sending off the new batch of postcards with a pinch of hope and a dash of 'please don't get lost this time'. It's the little things, like choosing the right pen, that matter. And in this case, I feel good about my choice. It's like pen plotter match-making, but instead of doodling hearts, it's all about that perfect ink flow.

In a plot twist, the new studio was auditioning for the role of an icebox today, so I migrated to the old studio turned cozy reading nook. Armed with "Art-Based Research" by Shaun McNiff and the "Handbook of Arts-Based Research" by Patricia Leavy, I dove in. It's like intellectual spelunking, exploring the depths of arts-based research. It’s comforting and terrifying to realize that not knowing is part of the process. A gentle reminder that the journey of creation is as winding and unpredictable as my plots.

Ending the day, I find myself in an odd state. Feeling on top of things, yet not quite satisfied with the amount checked off the to-do list. But then again, isn't that just the usual artist's conundrum? All in all, today was a quiet nod to the belief that every day is a fresh canvas; sometimes, you just have to be okay with leaving it a little less painted than you'd hoped.